Midwife Appointment!

We had our 34 week midwife appointment today. As usual, it was a fabulous hour! We only had a few questions and we had all of them answered. Our midwife asked us some questions and we talked about breastfeeding a little more. At the end of our appointment we got to hear Baby's heartbeat; which is our favorite part! Baby was quite busy and the heart rate was bouncing between the 130s and low 150s. It was so nice and strong! Our midwife and her assistant were pleased with it. Baby is also in a great position too, already head down. Then it was time to take my blood pressure. 138/83....ya, it wasn't so great. It was just one reading, but it was enough to concern our midwife and so I am going to be monitoring it and e-mailing her every few days with my blood pressure readings. Fortunately, our friends C & M have an at home bp monitor so I will be borrowing that. I talked to my chiropractor and our dear friend Val who is also a chiropractor and will be increasing my fish oil supplements, magnesium, folic acid and vitamin C in order to be sure that my body has all the nutrients it needs so we can try to prevent this one reading from being a trend and moving towards preeclampsia. One of the pregnancy books that we have, The Whole Pregnancy Handbook by Joel Evans, MD, has a section on preeclampsia and he also lists these supplements as helpful in preventing preeclampsia. I am also sitting with my feet up and am drinking MORE water. Apparently, too little water can also cause high blood pressure readings. So, if you have a moment and can say a little prayer that my blood pressure returns to healthy readings I would certainly appreciate it. Thanks, and in case I don't have time to post again, have a wonderful, SAFE, healthy New Year's Eve!

A Cleanup Christmas

Ok, Hubby isn't sure who I am, but he begged me to stay! Not only did I get the coolest Organic Housekeeping book as a gift, but my in-laws gave me a Shark Steam Mop and hand-held steamer! Yes, I am a cleaning machine -- AND LOVING IT! I had fun, yes, fun cleaning the master bathroom tonite! I used vinegar, hydrogen peroxide, a nylon scrubbie and the steamers. That's it. The part that shocks me the most is that my bathroom has never, ever been this clean! For the same amount of time and actually less elbow grease, my bathroom is freaking sparkling! I told K that I was going to clean the other 2 bathrooms tomorrow and that I was looking forward to it. I think he walked away shaking his head, but afraid to pinch himself and end this dream! I love having a clean house, a house that is free of chemical pollution, and knowing that I am using cleaning agents that don't negatively impact the earth in their production and in the waste that runs down my drain. Repeatedly across the USA indoor air quality tests done in homes show that there is more pollution INSIDE our homes than outside. I am happy that I am finding ways to make our home a healthy home!

A little bit of Christmas

We celebrated Christmas with my family over the weekend since my little brother lives out of town. Everyone was together at the folks place and it was fun! There was snuggling with the littlest niece and rough-housing with the middle nephews and teasing with the older ones. We had a wonderful time as a family.

My mom and dad gave me the coolest book! I am only 117 pages into it, but it's certainly a keeper and one I will use for reference for many, many years to come! It's called Organic Housekeeping by Ellen Sandbeck; you can see it here.

One of the things that bugs me about cleaning is how many toxic chemicals we introduce into our home to get it clean. I *know* there has to be a better way to clean that doesn't use petro-chemicals or other toxins. This book has some fabulous resources! One that I just finished reading about is the "Domestic Spray Program". Using one opaque spray bottle for hydrogen peroxide (it breaks down in the light so you need a dark bottle) and another spray bottle for distilled white vinegar you have a 2 part disinfectant that does not require rinsing and that bacteria cannot build up a resistance to (thereby creating super-bugs like the antibacterial products do). First, spray vinegar on your counter tops, then follow with spray of the hydrogen peroxide. It's that easy. You can also use it on produce and things like meat juice that have spilled onto the refrig shelves and stuff in the refrigerator. NOTE*** DO NOT USE THIS ON GRANITE, MARBLE, LIMESTONE or other calcium based stone surfaces. The vinegar will pit the stone and dissolve it! Only use plain soapy water to clean those surfaces.

I have to get out and pick up some spray bottles now! This is going to be a fabulous all surface cleaner for our kitchen! If you are interested in more details about this 2-spray cleaner let me know!

Time for an edgy post!

It's been a while since I've had a meaty. slightly controversial post. It's time, don't you think?

I read an article on cnn.com on Friday about a woman who was selling "gothic kittens" on eBay. Ya, she pierced the kittens ears and according to the article, other body parts. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals raided the home on Wednesday after getting a tip that the woman was selling the pierced kittens on eBay. "It's unbelievable anybody would do this to kittens," said one of the officers. She will likely be charged with animal cruelty.

I wasn't too disturbed by this, are you? And no, it has nothing to do with the fact that I am not a big fan of cats (even though we have one). How many times have you been to the mall or the store and seen a human infant or toddler with pierced ears? I have, lots. None of those parents are charged with child abuse. Why is it worse and criminal to pierce an animal? It's not like the infant or toddler chose to get pierced. Don't get me wrong I am not against piercings, but I think it should be up to the person getting their body pierced, not mom or dad who thinks it's cute. How many parents out there impact their children's bodies because it's cute or because that's just what we do? Pierced ears, they are just the tip of the ice berg. (here's where it gets edgy)

What about parent's choosing circumcision for their sons. Why? Because that's what we've done, because Dad was? Did you know that in the US (as of 2007) only 55-65% of all newborn males were circumcised? (see, not all boys are) We're outraged at hearing about female circumcision in other countries and decry it as barbarian and inhumane, but we see no problem with cutting off a part of our newborn sons.

That disturbs me...pierced cats, not so much.

What's your favorite baby tool/gadget/thingy?

So, the final 8 weeks are upon us. I am happily soaking up each and every day of pregnancy because all too soon this stage of my life will pass and another new one will begin. If you know me, you know that I spend a lot of my time researching, discussing ideas and trying to learn things. Being pregnant with our first child has been no different! Both K and I enjoy the researching aspect of life and learning so there has been lots to learn and tons of wonderful resources available. I think I have gone through 26 books and other print resources. Most of what we have learned has challenged conventional thinking and things we thought we knew. It's been very very good for us!

Now I am feeling rather prepared, certainly it doesn't mean that I have all the answers, but I do have a broader perspective and some opinions that are based on information and facts, rather than "that's just the way it is" kind of thinking. So, it's time to shift gears. For your baby or child (or grandchild or niece or nephew) what did you find to be the most useful with an infant? I have some theories of things that we may find the most useful, but of course, Baby gets the final and most weighty vote. So, hints, tips, best products?

The Kitchen is DONE!

The incredible Hubby put up the last piece of trim on Wednesday nite! I finished up cleaning tonite. It is gorgeous! We spent less than $1100 on the whole remodel too, I am proud of that considering the size of the room and that we replaced all the flooring. Here is a quick recap of what we did:

• prime and paint the walls (originally dark purple now antique white)
• sand all the cabinets, stain and varnish (3 coats)
• make new doors and drawer fronts for all
• make a new, larger pantry cabinet
• resurface the laminate countertops and island
• install new laminate flooring, which goes into entryway too
• remove and re-install all new railing systems - 4 total, remove carpet on stairs, install oak on treads, re-carpet with cut back old carpet
• stain and varnish all new trim, baseboard, railings, crown moulding, shoe
• install all new trim
• install new light fixtures
• polish old sink & reinstall, install new faucet
• paint upstairs hallway and living room

Yep, that's all we did. And we did all of it ourselves! I am sure I am forgetting something, but that's ok. I hit the high points. The kitchen was original to the house and was just over 20 years old and it looked like it. Now, we have a modern looking Asian/contemporary kitchen that I LOVE! To see the before pics go here. Or to see the steps as we went, go to the column on the right side of my page and click on Projects...you'll see it all!

Baby Update!

I can hardly believe this, but I am in my 8th month of pregnancy already! I *love* being pregnant, I love the way this feels...I just relish every single day and am going to miss this constant connection with our child. I know when it sleeps and wakes, when it has the hiccups, and when it jabs me with an elbow! And I love every bit of it! We had our midwife appointment today; as usual it was a terriffic hour! I had some blood work done at the last appointment and that all came back fabulous, iron is great and all that kind of stuff. Baby's heartrate was in the 140s-150s and was nice and loud and steady! K and I both just grin when we hear it! My blood pressure was the highest it's ever been in my life, but still in the "ok/normal" range (128/82). We found out that baby is head down and our midwife assistant (a midwife in training) showed us how to identify what parts were where. K thought she was teasing because he couldn't tell when he was pushing on my belly where she showed him. It was cute. We chatted about preparations for the home birth and we told her we were working on the list of stuff we are supposed to gather. I think we are close to 1/2 way done. I will finish that up after Christmas. Too much to do in the next 2 weeks! Our next appointment is the week after Christmas, so they are getting close together now! I can't believe how terribly fast this is going. I fear that my maternity leave will only last the blink of an eye...sigh.....

And onto one related issue. I painted my toes tonite. I think it's the last time I will be able to reach them until after the baby gets here! It was kinda funny trying to get to them with the belly in the way. I did get them all painted, but I am sure it was entertaining to watch! Also, I had to cross one leg over the other today to get my socks on...I was so NOT happy about that and of course, that's when K walks in the room and starts to tease me! He is soooo not funny!

A new 'must have'!

It's impossible to go to a crop weekend and not come away with a list of things to add to my scrapping 'toolbox.' Mary had a book called Designing Photo Mosaics and More by Tami Potter. There are some incredible layouts and mosaic ideas in there! The ideas translate to traditional paper scrapbooking or digital. I am going to have to add this to my birthday wish list (hint, hint!) I have used this type of technique before, but usually only with one picture per page, I have never thought of combining several of them. It really is an amazing look that is complicated without being cluttered.

They are soooo sneaky!

Above, Crystal who makes Martha Stewart look like a chump! She made the diaper cake.

It's just not safe to take a nap anymore! I took a nap this afternoon and apparently that's when some scheming and such took place here at the crop house! When I woke up I went upstairs and was chatting and nibbling and was completely oblivious that there were the makings of a baby shower in the adjoining room...I didn't see anything. So Tina told me that she updated her blog and to check it out. I headed to my crop station, looked up her blog on my computer and there were pics of this place decorated for a BABY SHOWER! I turned 18 shades of red and then was corralled upstairs. Tina and Crystal spearheaded a wonderful baby shower for me and baby. It was too much fun and a complete surprise. Crystal made a super cute diaper cake! Check it out! She is sooo talented! Not only did she make the diaper cake, but also this fabulous tea-punch and a yummy fruit & yogurt parfait. Mmmmm! For more pics of the event check out Tina's blog here.

The cropping learning curve continues!

I have had a nice relaxing Saturday. Tina took some pics of me outside after lunch and we had a blast. It was pretty darn cold and windy so the photo session was a brief belly-bump photo session, and I am anxiously awaiting her editing so I can see them all! Click here for a preview!She is an amazing photographer. See her work here and book a session! I have continued to download digital content and have completed 5 digital pages. Here is my latest. I am off to try to learn more digital techniques. Hope you are having a warm, wonderful weekend.

My first digital pages!

As promised here are 2 samples of my first digital pages. There is sooo much to learn! I love it! I will post more later this weekend as I learn more techniques and how to use all the amazing tools that are built in! I am using the Storybook Creator Plus software. You can buy it and lots of fun digital content here.

A new scrappy chapter~!

I finished up the last of my traditional paper album earlier today. And, I just installed the new Storybook Creator Plus software install on my computer along with some digital paper designs and doodles and swirls! The install went well to my external hard drive and I think it's nap time already! I will wake up refreshed and ready to go and learn and explore some great new scrapbooking methods. I am really excited to be making the conversion to digital. I have a hunch that I will be pretty much using the digital methods and not doing any albums the 'old' way. Don't' get me wrong, I love the tactile experience of paper, ribbons, fibers, metal tags and embellishments. It's just that all that stuff takes up SOOOOOOOOOOOO much room, takes forever to get out, set up and get going and then put away again, and it's expensive too! Going digital means getting a computer (any computer), my external portable hard drive that has all my pics and software and sitting down. That's it. Clean up is a breeze too! Then, when I have an album complete I click on a few buttons and it's submitted for printing. It comes back to me as a coffee-table style album with my choice of covers. And, it's all cheaper than the pages I am doing now. I'm not saying "never again" for the traditional scrapbooking, but I have a hunch that my time and space will be an even more precious commodity in the very near future and the digital stuff just seems like it will fit in better for me.

As promised last nite, here are the 3 web sites Mary recommended for free digital content downloads:
http://www.scrapwow.com/
http://freedigitalscrapbooking.com/
http://www.shabbyprincess.com/

I will be a downloading queen tonite as I grab some more stuff! And, once I finish my first digital page I will post it here for all to see! Hope you are enjoying your Friday!

I am scrapbooking!

(that title was said in a sing-songy voice)
I am taking Friday off work, and am already at the Scrapbooking house with a 4 other ladies! The rest of the group will be up tomorrow and we'll all be working on our scrapbooks until Sunday! Yes, a whole weekend of friends, laughter & teasing, working on scrapbooks, learning new techniques and all away from home. That last part is the only not great thing about the weekend. I miss the Hubby so much. I am working on finishing up the last of my "old fashioned" paper album tonite and tomorrow I will venture into the new land of digital scrapbooking! I am already soooo excited I can hardly stand it! Mary shared her 3 fav web sites that have FREE digital content downloads! Ya, free stuff for my pages!

There has been some concern from people that I will just be doing things on the computer. That's only part of it. I will be editing my already digital photos as usual, but instead of printing them at ProEx, I will place them into digital scrapbook pages within some scrapbooking software I purchased from Creative Memories. I can manipulate the pages and add TONS of doo-dads and foo-foos without taking out any supplies! Then, once I get my digital album done I will be submitting it for printing. It comes back to me looking like a coffee-table book! A hard cover album with printed pages! It will actually be a lot cheaper too! There aren't any consumables to purchase! I can purchase digital content for my pages, but it will never run out! I will post an update later this weekend and post a page that I will complete too! Happy weekend everyone!!!!

WOOHOOO!!!!!

I did it! I am officially a Certified Restorer (TM) by the Restoration Industry Association!!!! I received my notification today. I am the 5th person in the state of MN who has earned it and the first female! I am also the 10th female in the WORLD who has earned this! There are around 500 people world-wide who are certified, most of them in the US. This is the news I was waiting for since I took the class in June in Washington, D.C. I did procrastinate in getting my paper done, so this is wonderful news for me! This is the highest certification in the restoration industry and is widely respected by our peer companies, insurance companies, and court systems. I am honored to be a part of such an esteemed group! My dad is also a CR so we have 2 in the family!

The instructor said that my formal restoration report was "excellent." I get to start using my designation now but I will miss the formal induction ceremony since it's the middle of March and baby will be between 2 and 4 weeks old. Did I mention that the induction ceremony is at the national convention and this year it's in Palm Springs? Ya, as great as it would be to be there and see my national peers and formally receive this among other CR's I cannot imagine traveling with such a new baby, nor can I imagine *wanting* to travel so soon after giving birth! I am just so happy! All that stressing and studying was worth it. Of course, the additional knowledge I have and the experience is beyond words.

Baby Room!

My mom is one of those talented folks who know how to put up wallpaper. And I am sooooooooooo grateful for that! Mom and dad came over to our place on Saturday to give us hand with a few things. Mom put up the wallpaper border that K and I picked out for the Baby's room. It was a lot harder than I thought it would be. Look at how talented my Mom is, she totally matched up the pattern and covered the switch plate cover! Dad took care of some drywall mudding for me and then helped the Hubby in the workshop with some re-organizing that he is doing. I don't like to ask my folks for help, they have done enough work on their house in the past 38 years and I feel guilty that they were here, but my gratitude is stronger than the guilt!

Then on Sunday nite, I did a little therapy for myself. I added some freehand mural-style painting to the Baby's room. I tried to coordinate it with the wallpaper border and I am pretty darn pleased with how it turned out! The animals in the jeep and the giraffe and gorilla are decals that go with the border, but the coconut tree, rocks and grasses are all my freehand painting. Once we get the furniture set in place in the room, I'll probably add more, but I want to wait so I am sure that things are not behind bookshelves and the crib. Oh, I also plan to add a little plastic hook to the tree and hang a stuffed monkey from it!

It is done...finally the countertops are done

So, here are the shots as progress was made on the countertops.

Step 1: apply a wet concrete mixture to the countertops, 2 coats...

Step 2: apply dye (this is where it all went desperately, sadly wrong)

Step 3: apply a lighter coat of dye to try to salvage it (nope, still terrible)

Step 4: cry, then try to faux finish paint the countertop (still hate it)

Step 5: spend lots of time at Home Depot, Hirshfields, etc in the paint aisle trying to figure out how to fix this. Come up with the following...A coat of antique white latex paint, the apply spray stone product in 2 colors and 12 coats of top coat sealer.

Now, I like it. I am bummed that the countertops don't look or feel like concrete. I have loved that look for years and that was really what I was going for. But, this will do the trick. I wish I would have tried this first, it was TONS faster and only cost $50. The first attempt with the concrete and dye products cost around $200. Live and learn, right? I think the hubby summed it up best when he was consoling me. He told me that of all the home improvement projects we have done, this was the first one that didn't turn out the way we had hoped. And, he was right. I can't be too disappointed in that. Hubby also put the kitchen sink back in tonite! Ya, 2.5 weeks without a sink and now it's back! We still have to put the island back in place and do the trim in the kitchen, once that's all done, I'll post some of the overall before and after pics.

We have pileated woodpeckers- and they are NOT nice!

A pileated woodpecker used to be quite a rare sight. They are on a comeback now and are a non-migratory bird. From a distance, or rather from inside a house sided in steel or brick they are kinda pretty. However, from a house with cedar siding they are not nice to look at at all!!! We have to re-side the whole front of our house and all the trim pieces next summer thanks to our new "neighbors." Pileated woodpeckers are a federally protected bird (or I would do something pretty aggressive) and of course, they are one of the most territorial birds! Aren't we so lucky? It freaked me out when I saw this dude in the backyard the other day too, I knew we had woodpeckers, but I had no clue how big they were. This guy was well over 16" in body length alone! I read online that they are generally 16"-19" tall with a wingspan of 26"-30". Not a small bird. With it getting dark so early, I have not had a chance to get a pic of the 4-6" holes, yes multiple holes- in our house from this bugger. Oh and just today, I saw 2 juvenile pileateds in our yard. Ya, a family of house and tree destroying birds. Oh joy.

it's official, the countertops look awful!

Yep, I applied the 3rd coat of the finish to the island tonite and I hate it. The hubby thinks it looks pretty awful too. So, I tried using a paint that I have on hand to faux finish it. I watered the paint down and ragged it on, sponged it off and the texture look is pretty cool, the color, however is terrible! So, back to the drawing board...The only good thing right now is that it feels like we have concrete countertops, we just need to tweak the color - ALOT! I am too tired to drag out the camera, so I promise a pic of how both finishes look so far later this week! I promise!

Onto good news!!!!! Baby stuff!!

We had our 28 week midwife appt today. It was great as usual. We got to hear the heartbeat which is my favorite part. It was all over the 140's which was wonderful since Baby was moving around lots. Baby is likely about 16" long now and weighs over 2 pounds. And, it feels like it inside me! I love the feeling of baby moving around and tumbling. I have no back pain, swelling or anything; pregnancy is still a delight, a blessing and truly a breeze! I am not doing the glucose tolerance test that most doctors require at this stage, but we did do a blood test today for iron levels and such. K and my midwife both agree with my decision not to do the glucose test. The ways that I am eating, (the dietary restrictions due to the fibroid) really don't leave a lot of room for high blood sugars. I am not showing any symptoms of gestational diabetes either. Also, K has had Type I diabetes since he was a pre-teen so I can test my blood sugars with his meter if we get concerned. I refused the test mainly because I have not had that much sugar (50 grams) in my entire pregnancy collectively, why in heaven's name would I pump that much terrible stuff into me now? It just makes no sense to me. Also, at this stage of pregnancy, baby's eyes are opened and blinking! Baby can also cough and hiccup too! I don't think I have felt hiccups yet, but I am not sure.

The kitchen project takes a turn for the worse

I hate the countertop refinishing so much that I am not even taking a picture of it at this point. It isn't even worth getting out my camera, taking a pic and downloading it. Ya, it's that bad! Here's the recap: imagine taking a hot, fresh cake out of the oven, now while it's still hot, frost it with super wet, sloppy concrete! Ya, it's that much fun for the first 2 coats! The "primer" is like a mixture of wet concrete and tile mortar. Trying to skim that over the countertop wasn't too bad, but the curved front and backsplash drove me to the edge. Then, between each of those coats you have to sand it smooth. Basically, you are sanding hard, set concrete. Waaay more work than I had anticipated. So, each of those coats took a full day and then some. I just put the first coat of color on and I still don't like it at all. There are 2 coats of color left to apply. I hope to do both tomorrow, but I don't know if that's possible since the Monster dog and I have therapy dog work tomorrow at the VA Hospital. Sigh, this is really the worst home improvement project I have undertaken and it's the only one that I have been unhappy with the looks of at this point in the game. Once I do get all color coats on, I promise to take a pic & post it here. I think tomorrow I'll be measuring the countertops and looking at new laminate tops. We've been without a kitchen sink since Thursday nite, this is getting old and there is no reward for it since it looks so terrible. Sigh...

waking up with a smile on my face

Despite the alarm clock going off, the dog wiggling against the side of the bed and the cat meowing at o'dark-thirty this morning I had the best wake up of my life!

My amazing hubby rolled over, wrapped his arm around me and snuggled with me. At the same time, Baby woke up and started the morning calisthenics inside me. I could not imagine a better way to wake up and start my day than with the arms of the man I love the most wrapped around me and our baby moving inside me. It was extra special because of the way K was holding me he could feel baby moving around too. Even thinking about it 6 hours later still makes me so happy. I am truly blessed!

My hubby is so incredible!

We spent over 2.5 hours last nite at a baby store registering. I don't think K has ever been *in* a baby store in his life...let me tell you, nothing phased that man! He had some great ideas that I had not considered too. I was certain that I want to use glass bottles (for daycare when I go back to work) and he reminded me that sometimes we may want to have a plastic (BPA free) bottle that is less prone to breakage when dropped. Good call. We registered for both. Then that spurred a conversation about babies feeding themselves a bottle. I am not a fan of giving a baby a bottle, propping it up and letting them feed themselves, I don't like for a multitude of reasons. K had never thought about it and thought it was a normal way to give a bottle. So we had a great parenting-talk moment. It was nice to get to talk about some of those things. As we moved around the store, we had a few more of those kinds of conversations too. None of them were accusatory or nasty, just nice conversations about hopes and expectations. After we left, I asked K how he was doing, (I was wiped out!) he said it was actually all ok and he was feeling fine. I looked right at him and said, "Good, we need to hit Peapods soon to register there too!" The awesome man that he is, he didn't even flinch! What a trooper! I love him so much!

Cousins meet!

On Halloween the Yellow Monster and I went trick or treating with my sis and her kids. Afterwards I had a snack and hung out at her house, and Baby was pretty active. My niece and nephew were both able to feel the baby move, it was so great to share that feeling with the kids! I love them dearly and really treasured these moments. My nephew was so adorable, he was afraid to put any pressure on my tummy, I was pushing his hand so he could feel the baby and he was scared that he'd hurt the baby. He is such a compassionate, caring young man! My niece was talking to baby and telling it secrets via my belly button.

What is up with that?!?!

Ok, my camera says I am not 6 months, 3 weeks pregnant, but my sisters camera says I am and then some! This was taken 2 days ago with my camera; me and the wonderful Hubby! I love him so much!

And here is my sister's camera taking a pic of her and I on Halloween nite. This is the moment she felt Baby kick for the first time!



See what I mean? And the Halloween pic was taken a week ago, my pic was taken 2 nites ago. I guess Mom was right, slouching doesn't do much for the image! :-)



Here is my mom feeling Grandchild #7 move!

Pray, Vote, Pray Some More

K and I were in line at 6:40 this morning to vote. I have voted in all elections since I turned 18, regardless if they were "just" local elections or the big ones. I grew up in a home where voting was taken very seriously. There has been so much bloodshed and sacrifice so that we might have the freedoms to vote, how can you take that for granted?

At church on Sunday, our pastor talked about our job as Christians. Not only should we be voting today, but our job doesn't end there. We need to pray for our elected officials, regardless of whether or not we voted for them they represent us now and our country, state, county, city. They need our prayers. These are some prayers from the sermon:

(Proverbs 8:15) Father, guide our government officials, that they may use wisdom to lead well and to make fair laws.

(Daniel 2:20-22) Praise Your name God, forever and ever, for You have all wisdom and power. You control the course of world events; You remove kings and set up other kings. You give wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the scholars. You reveal deep and mysterious things and know what lies hidden in darkness, though You are surrounded by light.

And this from the Billy Graham web site:
"...we should remember that God calls us to pray "for everyone—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness" (1 Timothy 2:1-2). I'm glad your pastor prays for our leaders, because they need it.Does it make any difference? Let me answer that by asking you another question: Have you ever asked yourself how much worse off the world would be if we didn't pray? God answers prayer, and even when we can't see it, He still is at work. Yes, we live in a world that is filled with danger and evil—but if God's people neglected to pray, our world would be a much worse place.Evil is real—and evil is real because Satan is real. But God is also real, and by His Spirit He restrains Satan from doing even more evil. The Bible says that "the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way" (2 Thessalonians 2:7).Pray for our leaders, as well as the leaders of other nations. Pray that God will give them wisdom and will even overrule them when they go astray. Most of all, pray that God will help you and your family to be faithful in living for Christ and praying for our world. "

Amen.

Halloween Party

I am not a big fan of Halloween or Valentine's Day. I'd be just fine if we could remove both days from the calendar. We have friends though, who love Halloween and hosted a party this weekend. Since we were going we figured we might as well wear costumes. Remember the game Operation? K dressed up as the operation guy, he made his whole costume too! He used Velcro to attach the parts to his sweats and then we grabbed some metal salad tongs to use as the game tweezers and a buzzer from another game. It was a hit! People were trying to take the parts off during the evening.

I figured I should use the belly to my advantage, so I was a fishbowl! I just cut open a tank top and used face paint to paint on the fish, plants and water. It was easy and cheap. I just need to replace my tank top now.

Baby Steps

Actually, it's become more like baby step aerobics, kickboxing, rolling and tumbling! The "fluttery" kicks and sudden moves inside me have started to transform into some pretty amazing feelings of larger movements. K had his hand on my belly in bed last nite and we were both remarking at the larger feeelings of movement. A few times we could feel movement go from one side of my belly to the other side! Wow! Freaky and cool and weird all at the same time. It's really a different sensation. Once I got used to it I really started to enjoy it. The first few times were such a bizarre sensation though! I really do love this part of pregnancy! And, we're also able to watch the baby move within me. It's sooooo cool!

And, we are still stuck on boys names. So please keep those suggestions coming!

Baby Appointment

We had another midwife appointment tonite. Well, Baby and I did, K is so sick that he didn't want to get the midwife sick since she is also pregnant. Isn't he just the most thoughtful guy? So, once I got there, I called K and put him on speaker phone so he got to participate in our conversations and ask great questions! I know I say it every time, but I *love* our appointments! We get one whole hour to talk and discuss things and get informed. We are so blessed. This time we talked about some testing and post-birth testing of baby and a few shots. We also talked about the "what if..." scenario. I think everyone knows that our first goal with this pregnancy is healthy & safe Baby and Mom. In the research we have done, being low risk and healthy it's an option to do that at home. And, that is our plan. Birth at home with our midwife and her assistant (a midwife in training). Of course, with a caregiver paying sole attention to me it will be pretty obvious if things aren't going great and we need to transfer to a hospital. So we talked about that scenario a little. Needless to say, it's NOT at all what I want, but we won't risk Baby or my health and safety. My blood pressure is fab at 112/72 and baby's heart rate was bouncing between the 130s and 140s. It was pretty funny because Baby was doing a whole gymnastic routine in the belly during the appointment, so it was a little more difficult to hear the heartbeat over the sound of baby moving. Ya, we can HEAR the baby move with the doppler! It's awesome! Overall, yet another wonderful appointment!

p.s. According to my sister, that heartrate range = BOY. So, once again, I am appealing to you all for boy names. We are stuck! (Thanks to Amy C. for her suggestions so far!)

Truly, I need to learn about setting dates!

I cannot believe that I thought for a minute we'd be "close to done" by Sunday in the kitchen! The dear hubby got sick, like super sick, knock down, drag-out sick! I am trying not to get the crud so I am not pushing it much and trying to rest too. Only 1 more coat of poly on the doors and drawers and one side will be done, then I can flip them over and start the 2nd side. Since the hubby is so sick the floor is not even being considered...and there is wood to be chopped and stacked for the woodburning stove for the winter too. I still hope to have all the polying done by Halloween though. Maybe after Tai Chi and some scrapbooking shopping (click here for a fabulous sale on Saturday ONLY) I can get the doors hung and get to Ikea to look at lighting and pulls for the doors and drawers. I hope Hubby starts to feel better too, I hate it when he's sick, poor thing! He is unlike most men though, he is not one of those cry-baby "poor me" sick guys. He is a trooper.

Oh, and I am still waiting for the color chart for the new countertop resurface product so that is at least 5 days out still too. I don't think it'll ever get done.

the kitchen project continues...

Above, only *some* of the doors and drawers for the remodel.

After about 6 hours of staining spread across 2 days all of the cabinet doors and drawers are stained! It took longer than I had expected for the stain to dry, so I was only able to get one coat of varnish on one side of the doors. I plan on doing 3 coats on each side, so hopefully, after Trick-or-Treaters leave on Friday nite we can hang the doors! I am so excited to see it start to come together. We have picked up all the new laminate flooring, and it's acclimating to the house. I think we'll start installing that this week. I have a color matching card on order for the countertop product that we'll be using. Once that arrives and we pick a color, I can order the product from Hirshfields and in 3 days it'll be in the house and I can start resurfacing the countertops to look like a stone finish! I'll post more details on the product later. If I did my math correctly (which is unlikely) it'll cost less than $200 to resurface all the countertops and island to look like stone. It will be another busy week in the kitchen! If all goes well, we'll be close to done by Sunday!

Still no furnace!

It was snowing when I got up this morning and the wind was screaming! The weather channel said we were getting winds up to 50MPH today (Sunday). I was in no rush to get outta bed. I did roll over though and told the Hubby that he should put a sweater on, I still refused to turn on the furnace. He laughed and told me that he might have to work on the wood burning stove anyway; I called him a cheater! At least he waited til after 7pm to build a fire. Turning on the furnace is just one of those giving into winter things that I fight!

Perfect Saturday in Minnesota!

K, the Monster Dog and I all enjoyed a delightful autumn day in Minnesota on Saturday. We did a little around the house in the morning, went to Tai Chi class, then headed to Afton State Park for about 2.5 hours of hiking. I was a little sore afterwards. I am still fighting to get my lower back, sacrum, and left sciatic nerve bundle healthy...the weather was warm, sunny, and the leaves were covering the ground and perfect for crunching through! Monster Dog got to see his first horses and he was ready to chase them and play. It was a great way to spend Saturday. After the park, we ran a few errands then came home and I spent nearly 3 hours staining one side of all the new doors and cabinet drawers for the kitchen. A full, looonnng day!

Baby names...

Well, we have the girls names we *love*! There are 3 at the top of our list and we both agree on the order of our favorite 3 girley names. If it's a girl her middle name will be Mellissa. I am the 4th generation Mellissa so it will be an honor to continue that tradition if we have a girl. Boys names however, are a different story! We have a list of close to 40 names that either K likes, or I like or we are both "okay" with, but none for boys that we *love* yet. We are trying to find names that are unique without being sooooo different that our kid has a target painted on them for teasing and such. We are also trying to avoid the trendy names too. I think between K and I we have scoured 4 or 5 baby name books and countless web sites for names. I don't think we need to settle on one name, I'd like to have 2 or 3 great possibilities like we do with girley names. That way we can meet our baby and see what name seems to suit them the best. So, if you have suggestions, names you have heard or names you love, but couldn't or didn't give to your boys, PLEASE let me know what they are! Thank you!

The thermostat Nazi!

I think I got this from my dad...I hate turning on the heat in the fall! Fortunately, K is entertained by my resistance and he normally runs warm so it doesn't bother him. I always tease my dad that I'll hold out longer than him when it comes to turning on the heat, he claims that when he leaves for hunting mom ruins it for him and turns on the furnace. I just laugh and said it doesn't matter! This year I told him that if he really wants to win and keep mom away from the thermostat to take the cover off and disconnect the wires. Of course, when mom tries to turn on the heat and it doesn't work, it's likely she'll call us. And OF COURSE we'll head over there to fix it! I don't want mom to get cold! Hehehheehe! Our friends tease us too, that we have a cold house. Part of it is that the workshop is below the kitchen and it's not heated so the kitchen floor gets *super* cold, that coupled with 12' ceilings on the main floor make for a cooler home. I love the programmable thermostat. We have it set to 55 degrees at nite, it stays there when we get up for work and all day while we are at work. Then around 3pm the thermostat is programmed to bring the temp up to 60 degrees. But, at 9pm, it's back to 55. We do have a wood burning stove too, and that helps with supplemental heating. If we want it warmer we start a fire in the stove. K has done a great job of making upgrades to it so it's becoming more efficient. We also have a huge basket of guest slippers for folks who are visiting our home. Nothing is worse than cold feet!

So, have you turned on your furnace yet? What temp do you keep your house at in the winter?

My first real opals!

Nope, not earrings, a belly ring*! (A good piercer will not even consider piercing a pregnant or nursing woman!!!!) I have had my belly button pierced for years, so long I can't really remember when I did it, except that it was sometime after I turned 21. Due to the expanding belly my midwife told me that I have to get rid of the metal. So, I went to my favorite piercer/tattoo shop and talked to Verno the piercing man. He truly is amazing! He has an advanced college degree in anatomy and nutrition so he really knows his stuff! He looked at the belly and the old ring and told me that it was time to switch it out to a medical grade flexible plastic tubing. So, I picked out new jewlery ends for the plastic and he switched it all out. I picked out a small white opal for the top and a slightly larger white opal for the bottom. The great thing is that these ends can be used on the regular metal ring when I am done with pregnancy! Verno also said that I need to come see him regularly so he can check on the belly ring and the belly button and switch out the plastic piece as needed or tell me if it's time for the ring to go away alltogether. And, that service is free! He really is wonderful so if you are in the market for body jewlery or a new piercing drop me a line and I can tell you how to get hold of Verno...I don't want to post a link to his web site cuz...um...let's just say some people get some very personal parts of their body pierced and there may be pics of that on the site...ahem. So, below is a picture of the 24 week pregnant belly with my new opals! (One more week and I am 6 months pregnant!)

Ok, so I am a little weird.

One of the benefits of re-doing so much in the kitchen is the great organizey stuff I get to buy! Our spice cabinet was completely out of control! And it's funny because we really don't cook much! So, I culled the spice herd and got rid of duplicates, things that were mystery unlabeled spices, and stuff that looked terribly old! Then I bought a little spice bottle step ladder for the cabinet and then I alphabetized the small bottles, and the large bottles separately! Ahhh, alphebetized spices...what is more beautiful that that? I also picked up a new silverware holder because our old one kept letting the kinves escape. I love organizey things! Now, I just need to find the *perfect* stainless steel tea organizer/holder thingy that looks nice on the countertop...I might have to go to the place I am not allowed...(Ikea)!!!!!!

P.S. Ok, so after I told hubby about this post...he just patted my arm and said he was going to take swimming lessons...it took me a few seconds, but I started laughing! Remember the movie "Sleeping with the Enemy" with Julia Roberts? For some reason K is scared now that our spices are alphabetized.

My profound blog!

I was driving home from a doctor appointment today (which is another story entirely) and I came up with what at the time I thought would be the most profound discussion to start on my blog. I had a thought and wanted feedback and now, 5 hours later I can't remember a shred of what it was! I am blaming this on "placenta brain drain." I have read and heard from several preggo relatives, friends and our midwife that the hormonal changes cause forgetfulness during pregnancy. So, if I ever remember what it was, I promise I'll take notes and get it up here for us all to share!

So, onto that doctor appt story. We had been referred to an OB/Gyn specialist due to the fibroid tumor that was found in me at the first ultrasound a few months ago. Today was our 3rd appointment with him. Well, we got there at 3:45 for our appt and found out that the doc had to do an emergency C-section earlier that day and he was due back from the hospital anytime. Well, over 95 minutes later we were still 5 patients away from seeing him. So, I left the lab reports and ultrasound stuff for the doctor with his nurse. I figured we'd call the next day and talk to the nurse and see if we could do a phone consultation with the doctor. Well, around 7:30 tonite the doctor calls me AT HOME! Can you believe that?!?! I was stunned. Ok, so there are some incredible doctors out there! This doc is truly one of them. He had looked over the ultrasound report and told me that since the fibroid has been continuing to shrink that unless I started developing pain due to the fibroid tumor or other complications that I would not need to see him again. He told me to continue with our midwife for our care! Woohoo on several counts! The fibroid is continuing to shrink, the OB/Gyn saw no reason why we cannot deliver at home! I am still stunned that he called me at home. I really liked him after our second appointment, but now, well, if you need a referral for an AMAZING OB/Gyn in the Metro area of Minnesota, drop me a line. Thank you Dr. G! You are a dedicated, thoughtful, caring man and doctor.

a great photo shoot!

After a busy weekend I was able to get behind the camera again. It really felt wonderful! My gorgeous cousin is a senior in high school and she is a Fire Department explorer as well as an incredible archer and hunter. I was able to do some senior photos of her at the fire station with some of the rigs and out in the woods; we had a blast. It was obvious that the fire department is her second home and she really enjoys it! Her smiles were so genuine and she just glowed. It was a great end to a busy weekend.

A change of pace weekend

Hubby and I spent Friday nite relaxing. We did a few small clean-up-type things then went out to dinner, watched a little bit of the Gophers hockey game and then went home with the rental of the latest Indiana Jones movie. It was a nice Friday! Saturday morning was off to our one hour Tai Chi class...I still love it! I am looking forward to practicing in the evenings this week. I love watching K doing the form in class. He moves so gracefully and purposfully, I could watch him do this Tai Chi form all day! Then we spent the rest of the day running errands and checking things off our list. A trip to Costco, Menards, Lowe's, and several other places chewed up the majority of the day. We did do some more kitchen work in the evening though, so the day wasn't without some remodeling work! Tomorrow, church, then kitchen project and I am excited...I get to do a senior photo shoot for my cousin who is a fire explorer. We are doing this shoot at the fire department! I'll be sure to post some of our shots!

pathetic, with joy

That silly phrase kinda sums up where I am at emotionally right now. I think I am being overwhelmed with emotions for a variety of reasons, but I like to think it's just 5 months of PMS that never happened that are demanding an outlet! :-) So, if you keep reading, bear in mind that this is an emotional blog entry, it may not make any sense at all to you, but it's where I am right now (give me 15 minutes, I might be somewhere else!).

I *love* being pregnant, feeling baby move (which almost feels like it's constant sometimes) is so incredible. I fear that I will forget what this feels like and I never want to. I want to cherish this forever. I like the way my skin looks and that I am eating healthier than I have ever eaten in my life. It feels good to put real nutrition into me and know that I am giving our baby everything it needs to grow properly, healthy and strong. I feel powerful knowing that we are planning a birth without drugs or interventions.

I looked down yesterday as I was standing in line at the grocery store, and for the first time in memory, my stomach stuck out farther than my chest AND my shoes. I LOOKED DOWN AND COULD NOT SEE MY SHOES while I was standing still. It freaks me out and scares me. I have battled the demons of self image and emotional eating my whole life. At my heaviest (I can't believe that I am about to write this...) I weighed 198 pounds. At 5'5" that is not healthy or even "chunky," that's obese. I battled and lost weight and struggled for a long time to keep it in a healthy range which varied by about 15 pounds. Even at 198 I am pretty sure I could see my feet. At the start of this pregnancy I lost 11 pounds due to the pregnancy and fibroid dietary restrictions. Basically, I was eating MUCH healthier and seeing the results. I ate (and pretty much still do) 7-9 times a day. I have gained some weight (as a pregnant woman should do) and at 23 weeks now, (over 5 months) I have gained a total of 6 pounds(not even all of the weight I lost at the beginning). So when I look down, my head knows that it's not fat I am seeing, but still, it freaks me out. I worry about what the hubby thinks about this changing body. Don't even suggest that I ask him. Really?!? Do you see any man in his right mind telling a pregnant, emotional wife "Um honey, you really do look like a beached whale." I don't think so. Besides, K is very gentle with my emotions and would say something kind...but then the voice in my head says "ya, but is that what he really thinks, or does he just know what to say to make you happy?" See my dilemma?

Last nite I was thirsty. But I am so sick of water, herbal tea and protein drinks. That's all I drink. That's pretty much all I can drink or should drink. NONE of it sounded appealing to me. I don't know what does sound good, or what else I would drink if I wasn't pregnant (ok, maybe a glass of red wine!). I am just sick of water, tea and protein. And eggs. 2 eggs a day for nearly every day of this pregnancy. They start to loose their appeal no matter how many ways I try to prepare them. But, baby needs them.

I am tired too, just emotionally worn and on the verge of tears for 2 days now. And this is the best I can do to try to verbalize or identify it. There is so much more "there" but I am not sure how to wrap it into words.

Deep breath.....exhale....deep breath.....exhale. If you get a chance could you pray for peace for me please?

And progress continues!

Above, K hard at work making new cabinet doors!

So, we got home from work tonite puttered around and waited for each other to make dinner. :-) I guess both of us had a glum day and waited for the other. Once we filled our bellies we were off to our projects...I applied one coat of polyurethane to all the cabinets. Tomorrow night I will be able to sand the cabinets and apply the second coat of poly. My plan is to apply a third coat of poly on Wednesday evening. Then Thursday I can clean the entire kitchen! There is a fine coat of sanding residue on EVERYTHING in the kitchen. Ick. Once all nooks and crannies are clean, I can start putting things back in the cabinets (after all of those items get cleaned!)! My weekend will be spent applying edge banding on all of the doors and drawer fronts that K is busy making. After edge banding is on, they all get to be sanded, wiped off, then stained and 3 coats of poly applied...

On a great note I finally found 2 fabulous finishes that I can apply over the old, stained, chipped, yukky, 20 year old laminate countertops! Both of them are cost effective and have over 30 color choices! I will wait to tell you the details and which one we pick. I just want to get the cabinets done, then move on to part II. Some of you have asked about the order of events for this project. Here is the rundown with some explanation:

1) Prime and paint kitchen walls (DONE!)
2) Install new stair railings and modify stair coverings (DONE!)
3) Refinish cabinet boxes
4) Build a new pantry cabinet bigger to utilize all the available space & install (DONE!)
5) Build, edge band, stain & poly cabinet doors and drawer fronts & install
6) Resurface laminate countertops & install new sink (stainless) & faucet
7) Install new lighting (Ikea! Woohoo! Again stainless finish)
8) Select pulls (Ikea! Woohoo! You guessed it, stainless finish)
9) Install new laminate floor (Sam's Club -light maple color)

Naturally, floor coverings are always last so you don't drip stain, paint or tools on it. Likewise, paint walls, then stain cabinets so you don't get either of those messes on new countertops. Obviously I didn't list all the cleaning either. Where exactly is that "end that may be in sight" that I referred to the other day? I must be truly insane! (If anyone is bored this weekend and wants to stain or sand or do fussy touch up painting on the walls or help clean the coating of dust that is covering *everything* on the main level of the house just drop me a line!)

On a Baby note, the wee one is moving around LOTS now and I am feeling it all the time. It is wonderful and amazing and beyond any words that I know of. I am still waiting for K to be able to feel it. Soon, I hope, soon! According to what I am reading, Baby weighs about 1 pound now is 12" long from head to toe and all organs and stuff are "there." From here on out Baby will get bigger, finally start to put on some fat, and the organs will continue to fine tune. The pancreas is functioning and the tongue has all of it's taste buds and they're functioning already. There are some studies that suggest that the amniotic fluid is flavored by the mother's diet and that at this stage (23 weeks) baby can actually taste the amniotic fluid. Baby is swallowing amniotic fluid and practicing all sorts of digestive wonderment.

A weekend full of forward motion

We finally made visible forward progress on the kitchen face lift! K finished up the railing update and I LOVE it! It is much more modern than the old wood turned spindles. And the oak edging on the stairs will be easier to clean, especially since the spindles don't go down into the carpet anymore.

I sanded the cabinet boxes and got them all stained. If I never use a palm sander again it will be fine with me! I was finally able to custom mix a stain that K and I both like, and the same stain worked well on the old wood of the cabinet boxes and the new wood of the doors and new pantry. I ended up using a stain that I have never used before and I think I have a new favorite. I have never been thrilled with Minwax stain, it's just too uneven and just doesn't have a good "feel" to it when I am using it. The new stain is called Old Masters wiping stain and it's thick! It is almost gel consistency but goes on great and wipes off beautifully. I definitely will be using this on our next furniture making project. (Oh man, I just can't stop, can I?) Anyway, K started working on making the new doors for the cabinets tonite too. Hopefully the next few nites I can get the cabinets polyurethaned (3 coats) and then I can start edge banding the new doors. I am not sure, but I *think* the end may be in sight!

Below, the color of the cabinets originally, followed by the new color. I love the dark color! Partnered with some brushed nickel accents it will be a new contemporary kitchen...woohoo!

WOW! Tai Chi rocks!

The Hubby joined me and we are calling our 1 hour of tai chi on Saturday mornings a date! I enjoyed that hour so much I am not sure if I can put it into words. One of the funny things is that the form (Chinese word for routine) that we are learning is the form I posted here as an axample of Tai Chi. We spent the first class learning the first 6 moves. Needless to say, I am no where as graceful or coordinated as the beautiful woman in pink in the video (see here) but I have started. K and I will enjoy being able to practice together at home. I want to spend 10-20 minutes each day doing this. It takes so much concentration to control the movements of both arms, both legs, the crossing motions, and your breathing that there is a wonderful zen state that is easily achieved. I was at such peace while we were moving! Even just repeating one move to each side back and forth as we traversed the room was beautiful. I am excited to learn more of this form and to practice peace from within. Since K has 15 years of off and on martial arts experience he is familiar with the type of movements and I really enjoyed watching him. He also told me that tai chi is the hardest of all martial arts to learn. I am pretty proud of myself for stepping out of my comfort zone and trying something so new, especially something like this when I am such a desperately clutzy ungraceful person!

One more decision to make (sigh...).

So now I am having issues getting the grains of oak to match between the old wood and the new wood. The body of the wood is matching ok, but not the grains...it's just too obvious of a difference. So, next I am going to try a new wood dye and after that if we are still not thrilled, we will try the other extreme--to see how light we can get the cabinets. I would love to just clear seal the cabinets, and we can with the doors, but I have to get the existing cabinets *much* lighter to make that a possibility. Fortunately, I have old doors to experiment on. I talked to my dad tonite and bot the low down on the best ways to accomplish that. Unfortunately, it involves wood stripper, which, even when using a respirator and an open room, CANNOT be used by pregnant women. Argghh! So, I will have K try it on a door (if the new dye doesn't work) and if the new "light" wood will work, I will have to see about calling in some favors and then leave the house. If you know me, you know how much this will kill me! Should be an interesting weekend of decision making...

About that Rant! blog last week

A generous poster educated me last week on my Rant! blog (you can read it all here). I mistakenly stated that the HMO I belonged to was a for profit organization. Turns out, it is not. It is officially a "not for profit" in the state of Minnesota. Here is the definition of not for profit: "An incorporated organization in which stockholders and trustees do not share in profits. Nonprofits are usually established to accomplish some charitable, humanitarian, or educational purpose. See also 501(c)(3)." I still have some research to do on this topic. There are too many unanswered questions for me...Tina also found some great links which are also in the comments section of "Rant!" that you can read here.

Tai Chi!

The link above is to a beautiful example of Tai Chi. Here is a wikipedia definition of it. It's pretty much a slow, healthful, balanced form of martial arts. It's not a fighting or defensive martial art. I start my first tai chi class on Saturday morning and I am sooo excited! This will be wonderful, meditative, relaxing and so great to do during (and after) pregnancy. I can't wait to tell you how it all goes!

soooo cuuuuute!

My friend, bloggy inspiration and "dealer" (in all wonderful scrapbooking things!) gave me this today for our Baby's room. We are going to do a light jungle theme (light means we aren't going over the top with matchy-matchy stuff and all). Both K and I realize that nursery decor is really for the parents, except for pictures Baby will not remember anything about their room. But, Tina gave us this gorgeous little faux animal fur rug that is beyond words! When I showed it to K tonite, he was just blown away at how amazing it is! He loves it...and, so does Baxter. Good thing we taught him the "leave it" command. I had to use it more than a few times already...poor puppy.

And the kitchen remodel goes on (and on and on and on...)

Yep, that's The Mess. Good thing I am not much into cooking!

This is starting to get old. I feel like we are just making a bigger mess every day rather than making progress. Friday I got all the wood parts of the railing system stained, and Saturday they all received 2-3 coats of polyurethane. Naturally, I wore my respirator the whole time, had the windows all over the house open and ran a commercial air scrubber too (thanks to work for letting me bring it home). Saturday we finished taking the carpet *carefully* off the stairs so we can re-cut and install it later, got the edges where the wall meets the stairs mudded (the carpet staples chewed it up pretty nicely), I emptied all the upper cabinets in the kitchen, drew a layout of the kitchen and labeled all the doors and drawers accordingly. The Hubby will use that layout and the doors to make the new doors and the drawings with labels will make it LOTS easier to get each door back to where it needs to hang. Sunday will bring sanding of the cabinet boxes and face frames (the fronts). I also played around with stain options for the cabinets. We want to go lots darker and I am having trouble getting the new wood, which will be used for the doors and drawers, to match the sanded "old wood" of the cabinet boxes. I am using a combo of wood dye and stain and am still not happy. So, off to the wood working store tomorrow to see what else I can find. I would love to get these things stained this week and polyed, but without a viable color option I am stuck. And no, I can't paint them, they're oak and I would get put in jail for painting oak. It's ok to paint woods like pine, ash, poplar. But it's NEVER, EVER, EVER ok to paint woods like, oak, cherry, hickory, maple. It's just wrong.

The stairs, (my mud job) ready for a new look!

Above, stain matching that is just NOT working. On the left is the old wood sample that I am trying to get to match the new wood sample on the right.