What we've been up to
Lovin' sweet potatoes!
Grocery shopping at Trader Joe's
Swinging (indoors because of the nasty rain and cold)
Spending lots of time at Lowe's (who said appliance shopping can't be fun?!)
Practicing construction safety!
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Tiiiimmmmbbbeeerrr!
This video was taken a few weeks ago and totally showcases Parker's personality! She nose-dives into the couch, her brother laughs at her and then she smiles and waits there until someone picks her up!
Saturday, March 26, 2011
A Girl Must Properly Accessorize
Hand bag? Check! (compliments of Aunt Cece!)
Hair bow? Check! (compliments of Jackie)
Dirty toes? Check! Wait, what? (compliments of Lane) Leave it to the big brother...
All About Parker
This blog seems to be all about Miss Lou these days, but you remember how easy it was to photograph a 6 month old...it's the BEST age!
I can't sleep
so I'm up working!
Thought I'd take some time to update a little on what's going on here. We transitioned Parker from our room to a room upstairs. I won't call it her room because it really is a guest room and she's sleeping in a pack in play. She doesn't seem to mind, in fact, she must be loving it because she is sleeping all night. I wish I could say the same. :-) Last night I only woke up 3 times (to check on her) between the hours of 10 and 5...so I am getting better. Since our room is on the main floor and the kids upstairs, I'm thinking I need 2 monitors?? I'm not sure how to work all of this. I've left the monitor in Lane's room because sometimes he wakes up and has to go potty so he'll call for us. Most nights he holds it until morning though so in the rare case he does wake up it's urgent and he has to go. I figured if and when Parker wakes up, her crying will wake me. Night one of her transition to her own room, which was Thursday, I did hear her and ran up right away for fear she'd wake up Lane. Last night, I didn't hear her at all, but before Matt left for his run at 5:30 this morning he came in and said she was crying. I didn't hear her, but it must not have been too loud because when he brought her to me, he said she had already stopped by the time he went up there. I'm thinking this is a good thing because when she was in our room I would pick her up at the slightest sound she would make and feed her. Having her at a distance gives her a chance to fall back asleep or if she truly is hungry/thirsty then she'll have to put a little more effort to wake me!
Parker had her 6 month check-up yesterday and she's FINALLY 13 pounds....I think 13.1 and 26 inches. We've confirmed the fact that she just isn't a big eater. My sole goal in life right now is to feed this child and lots, but she isn't making it easy for me. She is fine with a few ounces and a few bites of cereal and then she's done. When we go back in one month for a weight check, the Dr. said she would love to see her in the 5th percentile. She was in the 3.87 percentile so I have some work to do. I am starting cereal twice a day and also right now one fruit or veggie. We are working on bananas right now and tomorrow I will introduce avocado.
Lane is doing fabulous...this blog has been the Parker show and I still have 2 more Parker posts to finish, but she has been so easy to photograph lately that I can't help it! Lane's biggest thing right now is sticks and rocks. He collects both all the time and I swear I could donate all of his toys and he'd never miss them. He is loving his bike though!
I love going over to our new house and letting him explore the yard. I can just picture him exploring in it for hours!
I should also note that he is really into lining up all of his trucks, tractors and cars across the living room. He also loves to use his fire truck hose as a "gas hose" and fill up all his cars and trucks with gas.
A saying he uses a lot lately is "What's her name?" He asks that about people we pass, things in books, just about anything. He knows the difference between a boy and a girl when asked, but when referring to him or her, he mixes those up.
There has been some drama with our new house. It's nothing too too major, but we still have a lot of details to iron out. We're meeting with our builder this morning at the house to get a feel for the floor plan and we have to start picking out materials soon. Wouldn't you know that someone is going to rent our house and plans to move in by May or June. Wouldn't you know that would happen! She is a newly divorced mother of 2. She said she can buy it right now, but if she does, it would get split in the divorce so she has to rent until it is all finalized. She really loved it and wants to rent for a year and then buy it at the end. We're not really sure what to think as we have so so so many decisions sitting in front of us right now! We would prefer to rent because a recent comp. does not support our sales price. But we'll see!
That should be all for now...2 more Parker posts to follow...Have a great weekend!
Friday, March 25, 2011
2nd time eating cereal!
We tried cereal a few days ago and it went much better than our first attempt in February. She's actually getting the concept of opening her mouth when she sees the spoon! Oh and swallowing too! And yesterday I mashed up part of a banana and she tried that too!
Thursday, March 24, 2011
It makes my heart smile
The relationship between these 2 that is already forming. It makes my heart smile.
They look at each other from across the room, no words are spoken, all I see are smiles. I could just sit and watch that for hours!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Dear Lane,
Just so you know, Daddy and I have daily correspondence about you (and your sister). Whether it's "Lane won't fall asleep for his nap" or "I can't get Lane to wake up" or OMG Lane said _______________ and it's cracking me up. We're in constant communication. How do you like that?!
I thought you'd like to see our correspondence yesterday because Diddy, it's so true, you have a way!
Monday, March 21, 2011
6 months
Dear Parker,
Could it be? Half a year already?! Sweet pea, I just can't get over the fact that YOU are my daughter. You are the sweetest little thing I have ever met. You're laid back and calm-natured and you LOVE your brother. I compare it to the big popular senior on campus and you are the little freshman. I say this because whenever Lane is in your presence, you smile and coo at him and he, most of the time, is not even paying attention. You are over the moon about your brother. Don't worry, Lane is sweet to you too. He leans in your stroller to give you kisses while playing with his friends at the zoo and the other night I caught him lean over to kiss you while watching TV. You were sitting next to him just staring and smiling at him. He reciprocates the love, just not as often as you!
Your FAVORITE word is momma. Or maybe its mine. :-) You say it all the time and I love it especially when I lean over to get you in the morning and you're all "mooommma moooommma." It's dark and we can barely see each other. I can hear you and you obviously know I'm there by the way your feet are kicking away.
You are a pro at grabbing your toys and putting them straight in your mouth. We are working on getting you strong enough so you start sitting. We're up to about 30 seconds unassisted and you are starting to show some strength and control. You're completely content to lay on your back on the couch and play with your toys or on your belly on the floor. Some days when I lay you on your belly, you immediately flip over to your back...surprising you each time. It's almost like a game you play because I'll put you right back on your belly and back to your back you go.
You're pretty easy going about sleep (for the most part) If you're tired you'll fall asleep whether it be in your car seat or in the stroller or on the couch where we laid you. You really love to cozy up and catch some zzzzz's in your Ergo. You're still sleeping in our room. You mostly sleep 8-9 hour stretches and like to be put down at 7. If you stir at all during the night, I usually pick you up to feed you even though sometimes it's not what you want. If you didn't know by now, you're a girl that could use all the calories you can get!
You also found your feet last month and definitely your voice even more than before. You are working on lots of consonant sounds and babble and squeal and giggle.
You're filling out your clothes more, you can clear a room with the gas that you sometimes emit...it even stops Daddy in his tracks and sometimes when you do that, you smile or laugh, you silly girl! We're going to try cereal again and hope that you take to it better this time. We love you Lou Lou! You've added more love and happiness to our family than you will ever know.
Love,
Mommammommmma
Friday, March 18, 2011
It's (one of) the most wonderful time of the year
We've been doing this since Wednesday and it's our plan for the rest of the weekend. The annual "Watch basketball until your eyes hurt while snacking and drinking a whole lot of beer." Our friend Matt arrived Wednesday and Uncle Ryan, who was working in Charlotte this week, took a ride to Greenville to spend a few days with u too. House showings have put a damper on completely letting loose, but we're not complaining. We also spent yesterday morning at our new house while the home inspection and other various testing took place. More details later!
But for now a few pics!
We went out for lunch downtown and then passed some time at Falls Park. Harley joined us too!
"Uncle" Matt and Lane (in green) walking on the bridge.
*Disclaimer* Parker slept the entire time in the stroller so I don't have any pics of her. (This is mostly for my sis (the 2nd child in our family) who constantly reminds me to make sure I take pics of my 2nd child) :-)
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Happy St. Patrick's Day
I usually send out cards for this Irish holiday. I am a little Irish which makes my kids a little Irish and my hubby...well he's all Irish...just say our last name. But this year, well let's just say I just realized it was March y'all! So Happy St. Patrick's Day!
(She always looks at her brother like this and the placement of these pics was on accident. It somehow got pushed to the bottom, but it's fitting, no?! I just can't take credit for doing it on purpose!)
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Appraisals, Inspections, Closing Dates
OH MY!
My head is spinning with a list of things to complete leading up to closing. I mentioned earlier that our closing time frame is a looong one due to the type of "rehab" loan we are taking out. This loan is specific for renovations and additions which we will be doing both. Its 60 days, a normal one usually 30, which gives us plenty of time to finalize our house plans, pick out materials and fixtures and line up these inspections. But my head is still spinning. Real estate is so confusing.
Even though we have made an offer and it has been accepted, it still feels like we have a long road before it's really ours. We have financing to square away, time lines to meet and my biggest concern is the appraisal. If it appraises for more than we are paying, great, but if it appraises for less, then the seller will have to take that price because the bank won't give us more money than it is worth. I secretly hope it appraises for 5-10 thousand less and the seller accepts that and then we get it for cheaper. Then use that extra 5-10 thousand for the renovations. :-) But he could always go the other way and decide not to sell it due to the appraisal and then we're out of a house. Sooo many factors during this time period. But we'll just keep trucking along and hopefully everything works out for the best.
I truly believe everything has happened exactly as it should have leading up to the purchase of this home. We needed to look at all those houses to see what we liked and disliked. We needed to see this house and then see the one that we loved (but was way out of our price range) in order to know this was the right move for us. I knew after seeing the house we loved, I would never be completely satisfied with any house after that because I would always compare it to that one. And trust me, nothing (that we could afford) would compare! But now that we have some choices and "we're" doing the work, our new house will compare and I am so happy about that! They say everything always happens for a reason and I am a firm believer in that.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Return to the green
We did return...Here was last year! Although this year it was 75 and sunny and downright hot in the sun. It was packed! The Greenville bagpipes and drums kicked off the festival by playing through the park. It was so cool, but they walked right by us and it was really loud. Lane was a little unsure and Parker actually slept through it...somehow?!?!
We dressed for the occasion this year.
Last year, it was on accident.
This balloon provided hours of entertainment
They ran out of helium so it didn't float...it was the ideal balloon for Lane considering he let it go numerous times!
Our little Irish in training
Project Manager...
3/10/2011
add that title to my long list of titles.
Where to begin. Basically since we've moved here 5 years ago, we've had the hardest time finding a house suitable for us. It was either too small, too expensive, wrong neighborhood. We're Greenville people. We love the "city." We love the downtown area and we use it a TON. Sure we could have made this a lot easier (and less expensive) if we just would have settled on a subdivision in Simpsonville ("suburb" of Greenville). I mean A LOT easier! And trust me at times, I've thought about throwing in the towel and doing so, but I am glad that we haven't mainly because we're not subdivision people and we LOVE the charm and character of the cute little homes downtown Greenville. Plus it would be a 20 minute drive to downtown from Simpsonville and that would be a process! ( I use quotes around city and suburb because although Greenville is pretty big, it doesn't feel like a city at all...it feels like a town...if there is even a difference?!)
So we've looked at 100's of homes. I mean it. Matt looked at tons when he was looking for the place we are in now. Then we settled here (at our current home) because CAT gives huge incentive to buy and we wanted to take advantage of that. This house has been great for us. No yard=no yard work. We have no maintenance. When something goes wrong, we call the homeowners association and it's taken care of. Living here has granted us the opportunity to really get to know our new city. But with a growing family of 4, this place does not work for us. For the past year and a half, we've continued to look never quite finding the "perfect" home.
I've seen it pop-up on ads on Facebook. I swear that house has been talking to me for 6 months and I always pushed it aside. But then I gave in and went to see it with my realtor and the kids. Matt was working late so he couldn't make it.
I walked in and thought...wow, this has potential. I mean, it's SUPER tiny...3 bed 1 bath 1200 square feet, but it sits on a HUGE lot (.35 acres) with lots of room for growth. The kitchen is atrocious and the bathroom just as bad. But it has "the bones" and has been well taken care of. We can turn this house into the one we couldn't afford! :-) I think with some renovations and an addition it just might work. We can have the cute and charming brick bungalow downtown Greenville and also be able to add some of our touches to it, not to mention our needs (a master suite!) and wants (a 4th bedroom, a family room, a bonus room (probably for toys) and a nice kitchen) and VOILA! our new home.
We took Matt back to check it out and within a week, met with 2 different designers and contractors. Things have been progressing quickly and I hope to call this place home in no time at all.
*UPDATE* 3/13/2011
Put it an offer on Friday. Finally settled on a price at 12:15 AM. We are homeowners ( X 2)!
Met with our chosen builder on Saturday evening. He's a custom builder who specializes in homes downtown. In fact, he has worked on several homes in our neighborhood. Looked at 3 different proposed house plans for the renovations and addition. We can basically have what we want since we are starting somewhat from scratch! The addition is actually going to be more square footage than the actual original home. Completely thrilled and excited! More details on all that later! We have a loooong closing (60 days) and everything is still dependent on an inspection and appraisal. Our house will take 5 months to finish so we won't even be close to moving in until the fall. We're planning to live in our current home while they work on the addition and renovations, which will be nice. So, although we want it to sell at some point, we're hoping it doesn't happen until closer to when our new house will be done! Read more...
Sunday, March 13, 2011
They must have known we bought a house...
wait what?
Yeah, we bought a house this weekend. More on that later.
We had a bunch of showings this weekend (they must have known we bought a house) so we needed to be away from the house. It was a really nice day so we met Carter, Devon and Noah at the zoo. (Lisa was stuck in Asia due to the earthquake) Lane and Noah are super-BFF's. It's so funny to see. They get so wound up in each others company never letting the other one out of sight.
These 2 mimicked the monkeys that we saw, if you ask me.
I don't even think they needed the zoo to enjoy themselves. We could have dropped them off in a giant field and they would have ran around after each other for hours!
It wasn't all about the boys, although they were the ones that kept us on our toes yesterday!
Parker and Devon were there too!
We have another day planned with them (more showings) today. We're hitting the "Return to the Green" festival downtown. Supposed to be an even nicer day than yesterday.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
