Almost There...

After about a month and a half I finally feel like we are almost settled into our place. We are so glad that we were able to paint our walls even though it was a HUGE task! It was a lot of work and I had Scott for the first couple of weeks (I'm so glad because he did soooo much!) but we weren't quite done and then school started. He's gone all day and on the weekends the last thing he wants to do is work on the house. I only have a few hours a day when the kids are napping or after they go to bed to get stuff done around the house. So anyway, a month and a half later this is what we have done. It is sooooo nice not to have white, plain walls ANYMORE! It is amazing how different it feels when you have color on your walls! I took a few before pictures of the living and dining areas.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

I got that coffee table at the D.I. in Rexburg (which by the way I think I paid way too much for now that I think about it, it is all real wood though...) about a month before our move thinking I could get it finished before moving...yeeeeeaaah right!...Scott started sanding it in Idaho and then it was time to move...I just barely got it done a few days ago...

BEFORE:

AFTER:

I wish I were gutsy enough to re-upholster that blue chair. It is the comfiest chair and I love it. It just doesn't match anything we have...May be I'll find an inexpensive fabric I love and may be then I will get the guts to get into such a HUGE project...we will see...

This built-in armoire is my FAVORITE!!! With the white walls you couldn't even notice it but with the new color it stands out and I really like how it looks!

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Our dining table got really beat up during the long drive here. You can see the scratches on the table pretty bad, we tried to cover them up but it didn't work. I have a couple of table clothes but they are getting old and I didn't want to spend $15-$20 on one so I thought a table runner would just be easier and cheaper. I got it at Ross for $3.99! I thought it was a pretty good deal.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

I got this little console table right before we moved, literally like 3 days before we moved, from the cutest little store on Main Street in Rexburg called Country Keepsakes. I felt VERY guilty buying it, the owner lady knew me from all the years I had been stopping by her store and she kind of gave a deal. 10% off. Which wasn't much but now I'm so glad I got it because I love it!

This is the most impractical kitchen I've EVER had in my whole entire life!!!! And trust me, I've lived in many places throughout my life!!!!! I DISLIKE (too nice of a word) EVERYTHING about it!!!! EXCEPT...for the nice beautiful window. That is the only good thing about this kitchen everything else is basically RIDICULOUS!

Our bedroom was already painted this pretty yellow. We liked it so it saved us some money and time.

This is the bathroom in the master bedroom...nothing too exciting...

The messiest room in the house...the kids' room!!! I have this pretty green paint for that bedroom and I will hopefully get around to painting it soon and finish hanging their decorations...hopefully by the end of September...

And last but not least this is our messy office/guest room. It was already painted this light blue and I have to figure out how I'm going to decorate this room. For now, it is just plain. Any suggestions?

Brielle & Braden

A few Sundays ago, one of the ladies in our ward approached me and asked if she and another lady (also from the ward) could take pictures of Brielle and Braden. They are two moms who have been taking pictures for years and now want to team up and get their name out there. They are using the pictures to build a portfolio and a website. They are the coolest ladies and so talented. Erin's husband works for the FBI, which Scott and I think is so cool and the other lady, Amy lived in Macedonia for a few years because of her husband's job. People here have the coolest jobs and backgrounds and it is so interesting to talk to them. I just got the pictures today and they turned out so cute I had to share. They were taken at this absolutely amazing place called Meadowark Gardens. The kids cooperated somewhat, but I think Erin and Amy were able to capture their personalities so well!!!

This little girl is always busy...

So happy and then sooo serious!

The cheesiest smile EVER!!!

And can I just say how much I LOVE these two children? The other day I looked at Brielle and I got teary eyed. I couldn't believe that the little girl who used to kick my ribs when I was pregnant with her is now such a beautiful, full of spunk, independent big girl. And my little Braden is such a handsome, sweet, cuddly boy, who is definitely a mommy's boy. Oh how I love these two. They are the greatest treasure I could ever have. They make my days full of work...and laughter.

We are having way too much fun!!!

Can I just say that I'm loving living here in Virginia/DC area so much? We are having so much fun here. We have been taking advantage of everything this area has to offer. Once the weekend arrives IT'S PARTY TIME!!!! Since Scott is pretty much gone from 7am until 8pm Monday through Friday, Saturdays and Sundays are the only days we get to spend together all day and even some Saturday he goes to study for a few hours. We've been trying to go and see at least one place on the weekends. It's been a blast! A few weeks ago we went to the Natural History Museum. It was pretty crowded but it was fun to see all the cool dinosaurs! You could seriously spend days in each of the museums here.

Hope Diamond--45 carats!!! Yes you read it right 45!!!! It is even more incredible in person!!!

Braden seems to ALWAYS want to play with what Brielle is playing with...he's having a fit in this picture right in front of the Hope Diamond!!!

Brielle is generally such a good big sister to Braden. You can see she's giving him the care bear in this picture and usually tell him in a very sweet voice, "it's ok Bwaden, it's ok, here you go"

An old Post Office building, I don't know if it was the first post office building or what...we'll have to go and find out one of these weekends...but isn't it a beautiful building?

Two weekends ago we went to the zoo with the whole family. It was really, really HOT and we started the day late and missed most of the cool animals. But nonetheless, we had a great time and the main animal I wanted to see was the Panda and we were able to see them. They are so cute and cuddly!!!

A red panda.

The fam.

Brielle thought she was so cool wearing my mom's hat.

This is the main reason I wanted to go to the zoo!!! Doesn't he just look so cuddly?

This last Sunday, after our Sunday nap, we wanted to go on a walk with the kids. We decided to drive to DC. There are so many FUN places to walk there. (BTW, since I've been here, I have noticed that everyone is so active and fit! People are always running, riding their bikes, etc. And it's awesome because there are trails everywhere that allow people to do that, it's great!) We went to the Jefferson Memorial, it was so beautiful. It was so nice because there weren't as many people and I have to say that this is one of my favorite spots I've been here in DC so far. It is just BEAUTIFUL!!! We kept walking and we went to the FDR Memorial, then it started to get dark and it was time to go home. But we had such a great time.

The Jefferson Memorial

It was just the perfect day to go on a walk!

Definitely my FAVORITE place in DC so far! I love the view!

The FDR Memorial. It's just so beautiful!

I've always seen pictures of this and I was finally able to see it in person!!! Scott thought he was being so funny!!!!:)

Scott and I were also able to go to the temple!!! I have to say that the DC Temple is the biggest temple I've ever been in!!! WOW!!! It is incredible!!!!! It's about a 20 minute drive from our house!

So far, we haven't had one boring weekend. It's also so nice to get together with my family on Saturdays! It's so nice to spend time together.

Toothpaste on the Mirror

I HAVE to share this story I read in the Ensign the other day. I touched me. It gave an intense desire to be more positive in my home with my family. The little things that sometimes get to me, don't really matter. Why do we tend to get caught up in the "small things" of our daily routines sometimes? I hope this article helps you see what I'm talking about. My goal this week--NOT to get frustrated by the "small things". I hope I can do it! (By the way, totally random...Brielle is potty trained!!! We did it! She had quite a few accidents throughout the week but by Friday she finally got it!!!!! Finally!!! I'm so happy, I can't believe my little girl is getting to be such a big girl, she is such a joy!)






Bryce R. Petersen, “Toothpaste on the Mirror,” Ensign, Sep 2008, 23

Small things have a way of growing large when we dwell on them.

I learned some very good lessons from Mom and Dad, but the best one I ever learned was about six months after Dad died.
Toward the end of my parents’ lives, there were times they really didn’t get along very well. Dad was not active in the Church, and Mom was impatient with him. They seemed to wear on each other’s nerves some of the time. The arguments weren’t really serious, but I always felt pressured to take sides, a position I didn’t like.
Small offenses have a way of growing large when we dwell on them. One of Mom’s common complaints was that Dad splashed toothpaste on the mirror when he brushed his teeth and would never clean it off. It drove her crazy, and she couldn’t let it go. I tried to explain that in the grand scheme of life, toothpaste on the mirror wasn’t a very big thing. She wasn’t mollified. I wished they could get along better, that they could overlook small things and not be so critical of each other and be more forgiving, but that didn’t happen very often.
Dad died in the spring of 1991. It was a time of grief, especially for Mom. She realized after he was gone that she missed him more than she had anticipated. It was lonesome living alone in that big house; her partner of 62 years was gone. She started talking about him more frequently.
As the days turned to weeks and then to months, I visited Mom daily. During one visit her eyes turned watery as she told me of a mistake that she regretted. She reminded me of the toothpaste and how adamant she had been that he was slothful in neglecting to clean up his mess. She had been so angry over such a small thing.
Mom admitted that on the first cleaning day after Dad died, there was toothpaste on the mirror. She cleaned the mirror, but on the second cleaning day, there was more toothpaste on the mirror. The same thing happened on the third and fourth cleaning days as well.
Mom realized that she had blamed Dad for the toothpaste on the mirror for many years, but it had been both of them splashing toothpaste. She felt terrible that for years she had been so upset about such a small thing. She freely admitted that her anger had hurt her much worse than it had affected Dad.
I learned from this experience the need for forgiveness and tolerance in our relationships, and I honestly try to be more forgiving in my own. It seems such a waste of time to fret about small offenses. There are more important things to worry about than toothpaste on the mirror.

Brielle can count in Spanish!!!

My sister taught Brielle how to count in Spanish! I love how she says "cuato" instead of cuatro with the r. I think it's so neat that she learned so quickly and it makes me feel very guilty that I haven't been persistent enough to teach her Spanish. I think I will be more now that I've seen how well she responded to my sister teaching her!!!