DIY

DIY or Do It Yourself sounds so great, doesn't it? That is until you are knee deep in wallpaper scraps, a ton of glue, and a steamer that could melt the ice at the North Pole on the coldest day. Exagerating I know but my "Hey Ryan, I think I am going to do the kid's bathroom over my few days off" over Christmas DIY project is still going strong a month later. We are not finished yet - I have some monogrammed rugs and a few prints on order from Etsy and we will install the new light fixtures once the drywall people come back when we get out basement done. Until my "finally finished" pictures are posted in a few weeks, I thought I would share a project that has kept Ryan and I both busy during naps the past few weekends.

Here is the before (the way it has looked since we bought the house):

And here is the almost final product.  We removed the wallpaper, re-drywalled (we hired out), primmed, painted, painted again, trimmed the mirror, and bought a new shower curtain and rod.  We still have the rugs, artwork, and lights to complete the 1st DIY project of 2012 (which was supposed to be of 2011).  The accessories should "kid" it up a little but hopefully this will be a bathroom that will growth with them for a while.

The next stage

It never ceases to amaze me how quickly the next stage or chapter can creep up on us. We have closed the chapter of little to no after school activities and opened it to the challenge of having 2 going at once. As part of our new year's resolutions, we have decided it is time for Kate to be more involved in extra-curricular activities. We have challenged her to 2 per season or session and started with basketball and guitar lessons. This is not only a challenge for her, but an even more grand challenge for Ryan and myself. The question of, "how are we going to fit it in" was quickly answered with Friday night and Sunday afternoon options. We are still learning the balance of our nightly homework and 1 hour of computer work a week, let alone an extra activity. That, in addition to my weekly travel, left only a few options as we know our limit. Thankfully, the YMCA and guitar store are aware of the needed balance and added the weekend options! Yea - we can do it all.

Last Sunday Kate started basketball through the YMCA and this coming Friday, she starts one on one lessons with her new guitar. We love seeing the beaming smile as she makes a shot! The coach gives us 1 new thing a week to work on and she is quick to remind us mid-week that we need to practice. As you can see in the pictures, she is the tallest on her team, which I am sure will be something to ring true for most of her childhood. Thank goodness for her Daddy's height :) That makes her short mommy really, really happy.

Here are a few pictures from her game last week. We learned the lesson that shorts are a good option since it is in a middle school gym. Thank you to Aunt Granny, Uncle Pal, Judd, Jen and the girls for supporting her week 1 and to my dad for the support week 2. I think she loves the crowd more than the game, but we'll work on that!

It is January after all

Thankfully, it has not felt much like December or January these past several weeks. That changes tonight as the cold, rainy weather sits over Kentucky. We have taken full advantage of the 50+ degree weather the past several weekends. Here are a few pictures of our favorite thing to do!

I would love to know what my mom and Kate are talking about

A big day in the Mardis house

Monday was a day that we have been waiting for months on end. Kate finally lost her 1st tooth and was a brave little girl while I yanked it out. She is more proud than I have ever seen her and has told everyone that she has encountered in the past 48 hours.

There have been so many milestones the past 5 1/2 years that it has been impossible to capture them all on camera. Lord knows I try. It took me by surprise how much it hit me when she actually lost her 1st tooth. I have said for 3 years that she is no longer my little baby, but really, once you see that precious smile that is one tooth less, it really hits you. My baby girl really is growing up.

A lot of things have changed since Kindergarden started but none more than the awareness of what everyone else has, does, eat, etc. Over the past 6 months, the number of conversations we have had over what her friends have or do has increased 10 fold. Everyone in her class has lost a tooth, "everyone" (everyone meaning her cousins) has a Nintendo DS - hence the main item on Santa's list this year, everyone brings their lunch to school; the list goes on and on. I know this is part of growing up and the good thing is that it has sparked many bedtime conversations about being independent and thinking for yourself, coupled with fitting in. I have determined that I will define our success as parents based on Kate and Jake's self-confidence and independence as a teenager and young adult. We will make more than our fair share of parenting mistakes but I hope that those mistakes will only make them stronger.

Here are a few pictures of one happy little girl. She has been boasting every minute since Monday afternoon! I have to admit this is one of the milestones that really got me, a tear and all! I love how proud she is this week!

1st snowfall of the new year

Only a day into the new year and we have our 1st snowfall. Throughout the day we saw an occassional flake but nothing like what came down tonight around dinner time. It only lasted a few minutes but we took full advantage. Jake didn't quite know what to do with it as you can tell by the expression on his face! Kate; however, enjoyed trying to eat the fast falling flakes.

Happy 2012

January 1st, 2012 - it is hard to believe that it is already upon us! I feel like I repeat myself every blog entry with the phrase..."where does time go?" But really, how is it 2012 already? How can it be possible that Jake will be 2 in 11 weeks? How is Kate already half way through Kindergarten? Wasn't my last blog entry about the 1st day of school? How is it possible that this June will bring us our 7th wedding anniversary? I guess it means that we are having fun because "time flies when you are having fun"!

We have no idea what this year will bring but I will continue to pray that we are blessed with the strength and understanding of when to stop and enjoy the moment and when to dig a little deeper to overcome. I have 3 personal resolutions all geared toward being a better person - being healthier and a more loving wife and mom. I won't go into the specific but I promise that they go way deeper than to just lose the 10 pounds that I need to lose. Don't worry, if the 10 pounds comes off, we will celebrate but I want to celebrate the small stuff that comes with each stage of childhood. I am fully aware that the window of opportunity is small that our kids think we rule the world and I plan to take full advantage of that in the upcoming year.

To ring in this new year, we celebrated with our dear friends Jon, April, and Jones Nodine and Gus, Ericka, and Owen Miller. I can't think of a more perfect way to spend the evening than snuggled up with the family and friends in a cozy house. We were introduced to a new tradition called the Quaker New Year. Our friend Ericka was raised Quaker and told us about the "10 pm midnight". It was the perfect way for a 5 year old (who has only seen past 10 pm on a handful of occassions) to ring in the new year. So as 10:00 neared, we got dolled up in our gear, we went outside, counted down the last 10 seconds, and blew our horns as loud as possible! Kate enjoyed the extra attention that everyone so generously gave her and we went to bed extremely happy parents! The boys were troopers as well but didn't get to enjoy the late night festivities. They all went to bed without problems at their usual 7 pm schedule and slept as if nothing was going on outside their little peaceful dreams.

Here are some pics. Thank you so much to the Nodines for hosting us! We look forward to trying it again next year!

Kate posing after April curled her hair and painted her nails (with sparkles of course)

HAPPY NEW YEAR...Quaker style

A kiss at 10 from her daddy

I didn't want to be left out

Maybe next year Jake will get to join in???

Jones (top picture) and Owen (bottom picture) enjoying a little extra playtime the next morning.  Can you imagine what it will be like when Jake, Jones and Owen are a little older - WILD times ahead.

The wrap on our holidays

Words cannot describe the amount of joy that has passed through our house the past 2 weeks. An older friend of mine said to me when Kate was born that the "next 10 Christmas' will be the best you will ever experience so try to enjoy every minute of it". I now know what she meant because to celebrate the holiday season through the eyes of a 5 and 1 year old is truly magical. It is kinda like walking into Disney World and seeing your daughters face at first sight of the Princess Castle. Ahhh...what a feeling.

We have shopped, wrapped, gifted, received, opened, played, organized new with the old, played, and played some more. And even though our decorations are packed away until next year (I HAD to take advantage of the 55 degree weather and the time off), our memories are just as vivid as if they happened this morning. We cannot thank our family and friends enough for taking the time out of their hectic schedules to help us celebrate Christmas 2011. We treasure every minute spent together and considering how fast this year went by, I am sure it will feel like no time has passed and we are doing it all again.

Here are a few sights of our past few weeks. Having spent the last few weeks living in the moment I am sure I will spend the next weeks reflecting upon all the memories. As my thoughts continue to stream through my head, I will try and share them through the blog. Until then...enjoy the pictures.

A short lived attempt at seeing Santa - who would have thought the line would have been that long.  Not worth it this year even though we know that we would have captured the money "crying" shot of Jake.

Celebrating with Jo/Nana, Chad, Melissa, and Ava.

Celebrating with Sandy and Opal Ann

Celebrating with my mom and Bob

Celebrating with Aunt Granny and Uncle Pal

Making our final preparations for Santa on Christmas Eve

Christmas morning - "he came mommy, he really came"

Christmas breakfast at Judd and Jen's.  Jake was a little more awake and enjoyed his 1st powdered sugar doughnut.  I think he liked it.

Serious concentration for a game of Mario Cart

Christmas afternoon at Chad and Melissa's.  The adults got in on the action too!