Christmas 2012

So many good things happen when you finally have a kitchen table again.  We are sitting down together to eat again - (sidetrack story - this evening, I was stressing out about something to Simon while laying food out on the table and the stress was escalating as I sat down with them, and Felicity innocently piped up in a pause of one of my run-on sentences, 'Shall we pray?'  She didn't understand why Simon and I bust out laughing 'You're laughing?'  But talk about out of the mouths of babes!)

Simon brought the laptops downstairs to the table and we've been printing off holiday pictures this evening.  So we've been facing each other while 'screening' and chatting, not just off in separate rooms curled up on our own chairs/desks/areas.

Because we were talking, Simon showed me how to access the NAS drive which holds all our old photos -amazing!  Been wandering down memory lane *majorly* tonight.  I dread to think what kind of weird dreams I'll have tonight after seeing so many old photos of the last 10+ years...

But I digress...in fact, the table was meant to be an introduction to the fact that I found a particularly good stash of photos from Christmas 2012.  And the following photos feature L and F.  Enjoy!

A bonus one because I love this photo - we have the same slightly self-conscious silly expression 

This one has been my default backdrop picture on my laptop for aaages

The up-curls!!

Okay and a few of Uncle A as well....

Caption this photo?  :-)

17 February 2015

Just found this draft post from a couple of months ago - life in reverse!

Paint, plants and potties

It's the February half term break and life continues apace. Most exciting accomplishment of the weekend was finally hanging up the bike over the 'porch' area and getting out to my sadly neglected garden.  It's not as hopeless as I feared. I spent an hour and a half and it was already looking better. The strawberries need thinning back and taming as they've colonised the brick paving and theneighbour's yard. The raised beds need weeding and clearing. The trellises need cleaning. If the rain holds off I may even try to get more of the posts and fences painted - that would be wonderful!

Our new kitchen comes in the first week of March so I've hired decorators to strip the old paper off the kitchen - mostly because it was hanging off the ceiling and the ceiling needed fixed! The guys came in today and started the refurbishment.  It's going to look so good when it's done.

I have started potty training F.  She's been telling me she wants to stay in nappies so we have just bitten the bullet and dressed her in knickers this week. Cold turkey! Still going to use diapers at night until we're really secure, but so far so good. She can recognise when she needs to go - hurray.  Been hilarious reading about other moms' experiences online and commiserating!

As an added incentive to staying dry I've been letting her wear her princess dresses around the house.  She's gutted when she's parted from them when they go in the wash.

Makes for some cute photo opportunities.

12 April 2015

And so life continues!

March 2015 we did our 3rd kitchen remodel in 4 years (Delta Road Christmas 2011/12, Hopetoun Street Spring 2013, Ryehill March 2015.)  We ought to be getting good at this by now....

This is the before -

Notice the missing handles, gap-y cabinets,  naff curtains and faded lino

This is the delivery we got from IKEA in our 'study'

They stripped out the old kitchen (decorators had painted the ceiling and prepped the walls already

Very interesting to see the very very old wallpaper (brown) probably from the early 1910s, and then the 1960-ish patterns on top (gray swirly pattern.)  

It always gets worse before it gets better!

It's a good thing the builders told me they were also going to haul all the
rubbish away as well!  When I saw the backyard through the window,
I nearly had heart failure!

The new cabinets the next day

And the countertops were also fitted!

Progress is made

And the new fridge before installation

Cabinet doors on, appliances fitted, sink installed!

Simon fitting the new lighting.

Laundry room before painting.  (After
we completely emptied it after a full day's work.
I think this was taken near midnight!)

New paint going on the walls

The painting process....

Beautiful new lights hanging in the kitchen!

\\\Before tiling and new flooring

New color on the walls.  I was at work the morning they began painting this (talk about a leap of faith, eh?)  When I got home (after thinking about it almost all day) and saw it for the first time, I was literally fist-pumping the air saying 'Yes!'  Such a good color match for the wood around the fireplace.

Fast forward to the new color in the laundry room, the new floors down, the tiling installed and the appliances going back into their rightful places!

With swish custom lighting!

Still planning to make a pelmet curtain for over the top of the mini-blinds and matching seat-covers for the folding chairs.  But...these are details that will keep!

Ta-da!

9 February 2015

And...it's February....

So I've gotten a bit behind on blogging to say the least! But I have a good reason - in late October last year we found out we're expecting a baby!  I've been in a haze until about 4 weeks ago. The most I can claim is that I've been getting to work, taking care of kiddo and getting as much sleep as I can.

Some pictures!

Little rapper...

Felicity s favorite dress and a rare headband moment. She was only standing still to eat the jello.... (or 'jelly' as they call it over here.)

Next house update!  before and afters of the fridge. Yes, I have been packing a week of groceries into the tiny box on the right!  The tall one will be integrated into the new kitchen when it comes.  Have a been loving having a "regular-sized" fridge?? Oh yeah!

Hopefully won't be another 4 months before I post again!