February fun.

Life is good and feels like it gets more manageable every week. I think back to the first days with Piper and being in the thick of the house project, and I already can't believe we did all of that. The weather has been great and the kids are so happy to be outside, in any way possible. We cannot wait for spring.

Piper is still as chill as can be and has been rolling from her back to her belly and then getting stuck. She doesn't hold still for long before she is on her tummy and grunting and fussing about getting help. Greta loves to love on her, read to her, and 'baby talk' to her. It is really funny and sweet. Fortunately both Sully and Greta have laid off the swats and unfriendly bumps toward her. I think they have officially accepted her presence in our lives.

The fog is clearing and life is back on track.

Car snooze, found her thumb and turned out the lights.

Pillow pile fun. 

It's amazing how much time opening a box can take. 

Here Piper, the phone is for you. 

Valentine's Day fun.
Sully 3.5, Piper 3.5 months, Greta 2

Piper and Greta, same outfit, two year later. 

My two year old, toothpaste everywhere, even in the hair. 

Me and the girls. 

Silly Greta. 

New coats from Aunt Maggie.

Stroller ride to the hospital aka walking circus. 

Dress up at daddy's work. 

Sweet girl put her hands on my face when I was talking
to her. It melted me. 

Morning snuggles. 

Watching the fire. 

All dressed up for the 'Happily Ever Afternoon' today.

Construction, part 4.

Our master 'punch list' is taking a hit, which means I get to take more 'after' photos. When Dave comes home from work and I get to tell him about all of the progress, we both sigh with relief. The end is near! We still have our painter here, he is plugging along with second and third coats. But, YAY!

Here are updates on the previous master bathroom, master bedroom and new master bathroom. The previous master bathroom turned into a second floor laundry/bathroom and we transformed the previous fourth bedroom into our master bath/closet and are thrilled with the space. I actually found out I was expecting Piper when the demo of that bedroom took place, so we put an extra bedroom in the attic (photos to follow in a future update), so we will have room for all if and when they want their own space.

Master bathroom- before. 

After- facelift and added laundry. 

Master bathroom- before. 

After- little touches like putting in a higher faucet for functionality and a
single sink for more countertop space were key. My designer is a genius. 

Before- master bedroom.

After- new windows, recessed lighting, and refinished floors. 

Master bedroom- before. 

After- we moved the doorway over four feet, which improved the
usable space. 

After- eliminating the radiators also freed up a lot of space,
although we do miss their character. 

After-  and one of my mama's paintings :). 

Before- master closet. It was a very tight space.
And I was 36 weeks pregnant with Greta here :).

After- walking into the bathroom,
the closet is on the right, no photos, too messy already ;).

Before- fourth bedroom.

After- master bathroom, the windows and natural light are incredible in here. 

After- the book matched marble turned out amazing. 

After- new shower. 

Before- looking south. 

After- looking south, and thats Greta! The one I was pregnant with
in an earlier 'before' pic. Wow. 

Usual business.

It looks as though I have lost my blog focus! Back to the main kid business around here until I have more before and afters to share...

Life moves on. We are as busy as ever and even fighting a household of colds, all five of us + some workers. We should have invested in Kleenex stock long ago as it feels like we are going through box after box. The kids are fairing well enough, even Piper, although the Nose Frieda is her worst enemy these days. I think we are through the thick of it.

Sully has been busy with class, Greta is her silly self, enjoying Miss Jaspers' and still working on getting to the potty every time, and Piper is warming up to her crib, although she insists on sleeping on her tummy. So, we put her down in her crib and then move her to our room when we go to bed so we know she is safe until she is rolling over on her own. Dave has a week of vacation this week and manned the home front today while I went back to work. Yes! I went back. After an hour or so I was back in the swing of things, and it was great to be there. Dave did great! And was thankful for Courtney to spell him some relief at 5pm (our witching hour ;).

Too cool for school.

Typical two year old. Dressed herself (in backward
jammies) and climbing the 'ladders.'

Snoozing through Sophia's confirmation. 

Sweet sisters.

Greta with her Hello Kitty 'bag' and new 'school shoes.'

Pirate day at school. 

Anna and Piper. 

Pipe.

Cozy in her carseat. 

Spider Power, all the way. 

Sweet trio.

Construction part 3.

We are still plugging away around here, finishing up room after room and are thrilled with the results. This week's update includes the kids' bedrooms and the jack and jill bathroom. The main updates include refinishing the original floor, updating the electric, and the new HVAC unit so the radiators are gone. We did have to build a new soffit in Sully's room in order to accommodate the HVAC unit in the attic above. We also added a 'secret room' for Sully which we gained from peaking the ceiling in the den (below) and creating window wells in order to save the windows in the Sully's bedroom and the adjacent hallway. Sully had an 'apartment' in the old house and when we had an opportunity to recreate this, we (Dave) couldn't pass it up. It is a great little space, perfect for hiding out when they are fighting the bad guys.

Before- Nursery, looking north (from the jack/jill bathroom). 

After (why yes, that is a baby sleeping in the crib :), yay Piper!).

Before- nursery looking back toward the jack/jill bathroom.

After. 

Before- Looking in the bathroom. 

After. 

Before- looking in from the doorway.

After. 

Before- Jack and Jill, looking in from Sully's room. 

After.

Before- looking in on the tub. 

After. 

Before- looking into Sully's room from the bathroom.

After (and a peak at the secret room).. 

Before- looking into Sully's room from the hallway. 

After.

The secret room. 

Hanging in the secret room. Greta fell for the
M&M bribe to stand together, Sully, not so much.