Master Bath Renovation Progress

Did I mention we're renovating (again)? We've been down to the studs in our master bath for a few weeks while wiring and ceiling height was worked out, and while a new window was installed. In the last few days though, it's finally starting to come back together, looking like a bathroom again. We've picked out tile, sinks & faucets, light fixtures, and as of yesterday, granite for the countertops. This weekend we'll be priming and painting and hopefully within the next 2 weeks we'll be totally done and ready to move on to the little boy's room. Here are a few Before and During photos:

Before, we had one sink that sat under a very small (single pane) window that didn't actually open. You may or may not recall that, when facing the sink, there used to be a doorway on the right that went into our laundry room. That doorway got closed up during our Laundry Room reno last year. There also used to be a doorway between the sink and the small area of the bathroom where the toilet and shower are located. That wall has come down completely to open up the room and let a lot more light in. It feels so much bigger now!

Here you can see where the wall and doorway once were, as well as our lovely "Kohler Blue" shower. That's all been pulled out and the ceiling has been raised a few inches to make the shower feel a bit roomier.

We pulled out the old window and installed a new vinyl window to match the others we've replaced in the house...it actually opens! Although it's hard to tell from these photos, it also lets in a lot more natural light but is high enough on the wall that there's still a bit of privacy.

The plumbing has all been moved to side wall to accommodate 2 sinks and a vanity that will double our storage. No more taking turns spitting into the sink while brushing teeth...hooray! Stay tuned for the After photos...

Seeing Green

I forgot to mention that a few weeks ago I finally took the plunge and painted the front door...

It's bold, for sure. It took a few days to get used to it and I may have questioned my choice of color once or twice, but after a few weeks of seeing it, I'm pretty sure I love it. One of the things I love about paint is that it's so cheap and easy to change...if this gets old, or I change my mind in a few weeks or months it's an easy fix to get back to something more conventional or muted. What do you think? Have any of you taken the plunge with your front door since my post a few months ago?

Barefoot's Summer Sale Ends Monday!

LegoLand!

We're not really theme park people. We tend to stray from big crowds, long lines, expensive concessions, and carnival atmospheres in general. I don't like the crappy-for-you food, the stuffed animals and junky plastic "prizes", and I don't appreciate the constant, in-your-face commercial messages being communicated to my kids. For the record, I also can't stand birthday party goodie bags and certain pizza places with their games and the tokens and the tickets and the "prizes". Go ahead, call me a party-pooper. It's been done before. Why do I feel this way? Because that stuff doesn't last. The food offers no real nutritional value and the plastic toys and trinkets usually break within minutes. A minute or two of fun followed by sadness and frustration that it broke, and then I feel guilty for adding another broken plastic something to the landfill. Yes, I've followed this blog for quite some time now. She's extreme, but she makes me think.

Anyhoo, all of this to say that we rarely buy toys for our kids, but when we do it's quality stuff. A little more expensive, sure, but it's stuff that keeps getting played with. It doesn't break. Things get built, added on to, taken down and started over. Again and again. Lego has single-handedly saved my sanity this summer, I owed them. So we took a little adventure last weekend, a bit of a pilgrimage, to LegoLand!

I am not afraid to admit that it's really fun to make little boys' dreams come true. They were in heaven...

We rode all the rides. More than once. (And stood in some pretty looonnngg lines!)

He is now a licensed driver...watch out!

The boys were inspired by the Lego creations in MiniLand and the new Star Wars area. I think Papa's thinking about a new line of work as well, wouldn't it be fun to be a professional Lego builder?

This guy kinda freaked me out, but the small boy walked right up to him and gave him a fist bump, with explosion!

Papa and I also learned this past weekend that one of the greatest pleasures of parenthood is seeing pure joy on their faces when they are truly overwhelmed with excitement. Yes, we were all exhausted, we ate some less-than-gourmet pizza, we let them have their pick at the gift shop, and we spent a small fortune...but we created family memories that will stick with them for years to come and we might have had just as much fun as those little boys did...

GBE2: Favorite Things

Next week my boys head back to school. This time of year stirs up all sorts of fun memories for me. The excitement of heading back to school to see friends again. The anxiety of meeting a new teacher. The fun of shopping for school supplies...

Is it just me, or does a brand new box of crayons just smell delicious? It's one of the sweet smells of childhood. I remember getting my first box of 64 Crayola crayons, with the sharpener in the back of the box. So many colors to choose from! I remember loving the tiered design of the box because it meant that I could see all of my options at once. I still remember the names of some of my favorite colors: Cerulean, Plum, Red Violet, and of course, Silver. And don't even get me started on the sharpener...coloring bliss!