Month 7

Week 31

Week 32

Week 33

Week 34

Month 7 was an up and down month for us. Lots of mood swings. One second Ollie is happy and laughing and the next he is sobbing. Who knows. He is certainly moving all over the place, and these weekly pictures are getting harder and harder to take. 

But, all in all, he has become the best kid. Our lives are starting to feel like they are finally coming back to normal. Date nights have resumed and we are actually attempting to try new things. 

He loves his swim classes and learned to pull himself up this month. 

Now it is all he wants to do. That and eat!

Such a ham. 

Weekly Pictures.

I finally got around to updating Oliver's weekly pictures. I am by no means a professional photographer (all of them were taken with my iPhone) but I am happy with how they turned out!


Week 21 is my favorite.

You can see the rest by clicking on the tab above. Or by clicking this link. Enjoy my ever changing child. I can't believe he is 33 weeks already. 

Cheers!

Olykokes

also knows as Donuts.  MMMM donuts... Nothing gets you through grief like comfort food, and donuts are one of my favorites.

We used Alton Brown's recipe and it turned out ok. Not the best donut I've ever had, but still quite tasty. And let's face it, sprinkles make everything taste better!

Cooking long involved meals always gets my mind off of things, so it seemed like a good time to start up our Good Eats challenge again. We made it half way through the second cook book before I got pregnant and too sick to want to cook so we picked up where we left off. Clearly I need to work on my photography too.

Cheers!

Saying Goodbye

This weekend we lost our beloved dog Norman. The grief in the house is palpable. I know some may be confused as to why we would mourn a pet so much but he was far more than just a pet. He was our little man.

 Norman filled our home with love and laughter and snuggles. Oh so many snuggles. When Daniel and I adopted him from the Seattle Pug Rescue five years ago I couldn't have imagined how much he would become the center of our house. With him gone it feels so empty here.

Everything reminds me of him from the pillows he loved to smash down until they were just right, to the yard we made sure to find just for him when we bought this house.

I was looking forward to Oliver and him growing up together. Being playmates and nap mates and for Oliver to see the joy of caring for someone other than himself just as we did.

I'll end with this PSA before I dissolve even more heavily in to tears. Xylitol, a common sugar substitute in things like sugar free gum and candy is EXTREMELY toxic to pets. Even one stick of gum can cause death if eaten by a dog.  For a pug who loved to eat, the cake I made and unthinkingly left on the table was too much to pass up. So please, if you have dogs, just keep the sugar free cakes and candies out of your house. I wouldn't want anyone else to go through this.

We buried Norman outside Oliver's window so we can say goodnight. Oliver probably won't remember him but we definitely won't forget.

Front Yard- Before and After

Apparently even professionals can't stick to a deadline. By Friday it was clear they weren't going to finish and after a long day yesterday the yard is 90% complete. The plant order was short so there are a few things still to come, but here is the general picture.

Let's look at the side by side comparison. 

Looking up from the front stairs before:

Now

Looking toward the street

The view from the porch

As you can see it is a million times better. All it needs is a few little tweaks and I can finally call the front yard done! I say it was 100% worth it to pay someone to just get the job done. The whole project was so quick and clean, nothing like it would have been if I did it. Could I have gotten the same results with half the budget? Probably. But it would have taken me months of blood, sweat, and tears. I'll take you around and show you all of the plantings once we are officially done later this week. Maybe I can score some end of the season deals on furniture for out there.

Cheers!

Front Yard Renovation: Day 1

It is amazing what a two man team, working eight hours can do to a space.

This is what our yard looked like this morning:

And this is what it looked like by 4pm:

I can already see the potential.  Be back Saturday with the final reveal!

Cheers!

Front Yard Plans

So, I've been saying this for two years now but hand to god, we are actually finishing the front yard this year. Know why? We hired someone to do it. All of it. I know, not very DIY of us but sometimes you just have to decide what you are willing to do yourself and what is just not worth your time.

It will be going from this

to this

Work starts Monday and I'm excited to see what paying people to do all the work is like. We seriously thought about doing it ourselves, but just know that with the baby it would take longer than we would like. I've been waiting two long years for this front yard to be done and I'm glad we are finally getting on it.

Be back Tuesday with an update!

Cheers!