24 Weeks (and Then Some)

Hi!

Today I had an OB appointment... how fun! I am 24 weeks and 4 or 5
days pregnant... wow, the time is flying by!

Here are some stats...

Blood pressure: 118 / 62 (consistently in a good range... I guess my
freaky dream from last weekend did not come to fruition)

Weight gain: Umm... ugh? I am +18 right now. Crazy.

I started measurements today as well... my "fundal height" is 27 centimeters / weeks.

And, I had a different nurse today, as my nurse was gone to a baseball
game. Imagine my surprise when I learned it was Shalene, the
instructor from our baby class for when we were pregnant with Julia.
So that was fun!

Also, today I received my bottle of sugar juice for the Gestational
Diabetes test, which will be this Friday.

My next appointment is July 1.

And... my doctor is joining a band again! So, that was fun... I think
we talked more about the band than we did about my pregnancy... and
that was cool with me! I couldn't stop asking questions... I am a
curious cat that way. Fun stuff. I just hope he is not off gigging
somewhere when our baby is born. Ha!

later,
erin

Average

Hello!

Julia had her 18-month check up today. Aside from the fact that she
is scared of the nurse and the doctor, the visit went swimmingly.

Julia is "average" in height, weight, etc., but that's all good with us here!

She is 22 lbs, 12 oz, which means she has gained almost 2 lbs in 3
months. Way to go, kid! I was slightly concerned with her last
weight gain of only 6 oz in 3 months, so 2 lbs is much better! She is
40th percentile for weight.

She is 32" tall. She is quickly encroaching on that 3 ft mark, and it
is apparent, seeing as how she can reach door handles now (but cannot
turn them) and can blindly whisk anything off of the tables in the
kitchen and dining room. She is 50th percentile for height.

Her head measured at 18.5", and apparently that finally popped her out
of the "small head" category. :)

Her development astounds me daily; she impresses me with what she is
able to do. I look at the "Development" list for 18-month-olds, and I
smile when I realize she DOES do most of the things listed there and
has been for a while. That is a good feeling.

She has been climbing up and down the steps since she was 12 months
old, and long before she was walking. Recently she has started to go
up and down them while STANDING UP, much to my fright, but she is
getting a lot better at it and wants to do it herself using the
railing.

She also has been climbing into chairs for quite some time, and this
is a big enjoyment for her, especially when she knows she should NOT
be doing it. :)

She can draw with a crayon, throw a ball, drink from a cup, stack
blocks and rings... it's fun to watch her learn new things!

She also is quite the little talker in her own language. She really
loves to read books, on her own and with a parent, and she likes to
tell stories from the book, even coloring books. She still doesn't
say a lot of "English" words, but she has tried out a few before they
have disappeared back into the "word vault". However, she is
constantly asking, "What's this?" and pointing at things.

And, she has a number of "sounds" down. She meows constantly, makes
the "shhh" sound when "filling" a cup from her play fridge, says
"whee" when on swings, rocking horse, or slides, says "ahh" after
taking a drink, and says "beep" when pressing imaginary phone or
microwave buttons. Too cute! And, of course, she is very good at
shaking her head "no" and saying "mo" when she wants more of
something. :)

All in all, we think she is moving along just fine! Hopefully she
enjoys meeting her new baby sister OR brother come September! Julia's
next appointment is in DECEMBER...!!! After she is TWO! WOW!

Hope you have enjoyed her developmental updates thus far...!

erin

Finished!

Today was The Day to finish the hallway project. As far as I'm concerned, it is finished. YAY!

(Things to do yet: clean paint off trim, put trim back up, and clean carpet spots -- whoops. Thankfully Adam is helping to put the trim back up, and Adam's mom is here and can help clean paint off the trim.)

Tired doesn't even begin to describe how I feel... I would say my mind isn't necessarily tired, but every muscle in my hands, feet, arms, and legs hurt. My hands especially. I haven't been able to use a fork without pain for two days. Ha!

Today was a good day. This morning I started in on the Venetian Plaster (coat #1) and it took 6 hours to do that... that had me slightly concerned, but then I moved on to the finish coat of the yellow (Evening Glow) and touched up the ceiling and painted the attic opening again. Then I bucked up and did the second coat of the Venetian Plaster... I didn't do it exactly the way the card said to do... but ha, whenever have I done a project exactly the way I it is supposed to be done...? I absolutely love the colors and how they turned out, and you will really have to come and see the hallway to appreciate the color.

This picture shows the first coat of Venetian Plaster in progress... you can see the basecoat near the bottom that hasn't been covered yet in plaster.



Here are two pictures that, oddly enough, capture the colors fairly well and I was standing in a spot where I thought, hmm, I should take a picture from here.

(Chrissy, I was on the phone with you when I thought to take this picture!)



(The darker spots are still wet in this picture... but, the walls look a bit like suede and denim together.)



Adam is happy with the results and I think when he saw the basecoat color yesterday he even did a little "ooh" and definitely NOT a "yuck". Ha!

I am happy that the wallpaper is GONE and the plaster is REPAIRED and all is well in the hallway again. You know, minus the trim and the carpet.

Umm... I'm jabbering now.

lata,
erin

Hallway Project: Tuesday

Yesterday was a big day in the hallway project. If I could get a lot done yesterday, I would know today would be manageable and the project could be completed.

To say I am 'tired' or 'worn down' would be an understatement... fatigue has entered my brain and I have no witty remarks today.

However... after 13 long hours yesterday, and a reboot of the self-confidence, I managed to...

... finish priming the hallway...
... paint the ceiling...
... apply the base color for the Venetian Plaster walls...
... apply a texture coat to the non-Venetian Plaster walls (which are now home-made Venetian Plaster walls)...
... and put away all of the supplies I don't need to get through the day.

I am sure many of you will be glad to hear that I am deathly afraid of the ladder and the ladder and I had some serious trust issues yesterday. They were resolved, but how remains a secret (again, to protect myself).

Here is a picture of the trimming out of the base color:



Here is a picture of the walls after the basecoat is done... the color does NOT do the walls justice at all... guess you will just have to come and see it for yourself!:



My invention of Home-Made Venetian Plaster... YES, it can be done and YES, it worked like a charm... Patching Plaster mixed with color-tinted paint... apply to walls like plaster (see application trowel on top of paint bucket):



The results of the home-made Venetian Plaster project:



Putting supplies away:



Today is very specific...

... apply first coat of Venetian Plaster to gray-blue walls...
... while that is drying, apply final coat of paint to yellow-orange (Evening Glow) walls...
... touch up ceiling with ceiling paint...
... remove tape from hallway light fixture...
... final coat of paint on attic opening...
... apply second coat of Venetian Plaster to gray-blue walls...
... clean up.

Sounds like a lot, but shouldn't be too terribly bad. I figured out a good rhythm of the plastering technique last night with my home-made plaster, and I had even compared the home-made with the premade to make sure my textures were about the same so I would know what I was dealing with today.

So... here goes nothing...!

erin

Foiled but Not Defeated

8:30 AM

8:30 AM... and I am already blogging about today.

While helping Adam pick up the garage last night after he did a bunch
of sawing of wood, I noticed The Ladder... as in, the Most Awesome
Ladder We Own. So, after breakfast, I went out and brought in this
Glorious Ladder, now the 5th (yes, 5th) ladder in the entrance /
hallway area of the house. It is so awesome because it has a PAINT
TRAY on it. Yay! Will be so helpful for the non-stairwell part of
the hallway.

But also, I realized that THIS ladder was EXACTLY the ladder I needed
to remove the hallway light fixture.

I tested out a few positions and found the perfect spot for it. After
burning my fingers a tad on the HOT light fixture, I got it unscrewed
and got the glass part off. Only then did I realize that the ring,
which is the part I absolutely need off so as not to paint it, was not
coming off. Wouldn't you know? The ring is FOAMED TO THE CEILING.
HA!

Foiled by the ring.

Oh, well. I will simply tape around it, I guess.

I finished sanding my plaster. YAY! It seems stuck on there pretty
well. We'll see how it handles paint.

Off to vacuum up the dust from sanding and then on with priming.

(By the way, I love the Paper Mache Inventor EVEN MORE today. Rock
solid. Solid, I say.)

later,
erin

New Pictures of Julia

Here are some recent pictures of Julia and such… she is a darling and a love…!

In the evenings, I spend a lot of time outside with Julia. Now that she has gotten over her fear of grass, she is all about exploring out of doors, and it burns off a lot of energy.

Here are pictures from Tuesday night when we were out and about.

I love my girl...!




Holy cats, it is WINDY out here!



Okay... we have this... hedgehog or something other else stone thing that has been here since we moved in and it is in the little patch by our deck... Julia thinks it is a cat, and EVERY TIME we go outside, she talks to it (she is the cat whisperer -- meow!), tries to get it to come over to her... but she won't step into the mulch, so she has never touched it... and I have a feeling she has no idea it is not real.

Trying to get the "kitty" to come by her...



Talking to the "kitty"...



A picture of Julia and the "kitty" together...



She loves to explore and ask me what things are!



We had fun rolling around in the grass too...




Then we went inside to mellow out a bit and take a bath...



Julia has a fascination with cupboards, and loves to climb into them if there is room. There is nothing under one of the sinks in the bathroom except... uh hum... feminine products (which you can see laying on the floor -- ha!), and so Julia goes in there all the time. She has recently figured out how to shut the door on herself... thank goodness it does not latch!



erin

Little Drummer Girl

Thoughts on the Remodeling Project

1. My husband is a plumbing mastermind.
2. My friend Chrissy is a plumbing mastermind as well, but also a wallpaper removal and painting goddess.
3. Electric teapots are God's gift to wallpaper removal.
4. While patching plaster is seemingly fun, it is inherently evil.
5. Whoever invented paper mache is my new hero.
6. "Venetian Plaster" is another term for "really expensive, color tinted patching plaster."
7. I am pregnant.

Further explanation on the thoughts above:

My Husband = Plumbing Mastermind: See the picture. As you can see, Adam used his thinking skills to take a number of "plumbing parts" and connect all of the pieces together under the sink. That probably doesn't mean you want him plumbing your house, though, because "plumbing parts" included a cut off measuring spoon. However, he did quite the amazing job and removed an old and installed a new sink (along with garbage disposal) in under four hours. Quite. Amazing. And, it DOES NOT leak. And it DOES works. And I love it!

Adam showing off his plumbing prowess.



No fooling... a cut off measuring spoon!



Can you see where the measuring spoon ended up...?



(Funny side note: Adam always talks about how he doesn't enjoy plumbing and yada yada, and then we realized / joked today that he actually does quite a bit of plumbing, but out in the "brew house" and never in our "real house".)

My Friend Chrissy = Mastermind Plumber and Wallpaper Remover and Painting Goddess Extraordinaire: Suffice it to say, we would not have had remotely close to the correct plumbing parts that I was supposed to pick up at Menards this week without Dear Friend Chrissy. She sure knows a lot! (At least, quite a bit more than me!) Also, she was a saint and worked hard at removing the Snitty Wallpaper off the wall today and then went on to paint and paint and paint! She was awesome! She even invented the Paintbrush On a Stick in order to NOT have to use the ladder to paint today. You are a rockstar, C! Were it not for the eight hours she gave me today, I would be crying, wailing, and threatening to jump off the roof to avoid finishing the hallway project, and instead, I am simply dreading tomorrow. ;) (THANK YOU, dear friend!!!)

Chrissy and her Paintbrush on a Stick and Adam watching us work after the sink is in.



Electric teapots = God's Gift To Wallpaper Removal: Oh, yes, oh, yes. We own an electric teapot, thanks to Adam's need for one on his canoe project. After another friend of mine mentioned this weekend that steam works GREAT at removing wallpaper that DOES NOT WANT TO COME OFF (i.e., Snitty Wallpaper), Chrissy and I gave it a go. Oooh, wonderfulness. It worked great!!! And in case you are wondering, no, the teapot has never been used for it's actual application: a teapot.

The Teapot of Wonderfulness



Chrissy using the teapot



Patching Plaster = Fun or Evil?: Okay, I really actually DID enjoy patching up a number of places (and I mean, A LARGE QUANTITY) on the walls requiring plaster... as our walls are mostly plaster (or wallboard that was not taped or mudded). It was quite enjoyable. And, it only has a 90 minute set up time! WOW! Yah! Great, eh? So after 90 minutes, you can put on a second coat! How cool is that! BUT, I really SHOULD read the box closer next time. While it "sets up" and you can "apply a second coat of plaster" after 90 minutes, THAT DOES NOT MEAN YOU CAN PAINT IT AFTER 90 MINUTES. Doh. You actually have to wait... OVERNIGHT. ARGH. Good thing that there wasn't much plastering to be had on the Really Big Wall that Chrissy primed for me today. As for me, my evening plans were thwarted by this Drying of Plaster Nonsense, so now I am here blogging instead. Patching Plaster? Inherently Evil.

Paper Mache Inventor = My New Hero: I cannot explain much here, becaue I must protect the innocent (mainly, myself). However, I will say this, "Chrissy, my paper mache idea WORKED!"

Paper Mache, at its finest (Nope, I refuse to show the before or during pictures...)



Venetian Plaster = Really Expensive, Color Tinted Patching Plaster: This should have been a big "Duh" and "Doh" for me, but well... yah. Today after spending a few hours of patching plaster, I turned and said to Chrissy, "you know, I would have gotten the same results I am trying to get with all of the textured paint stuff I bought if I would have just did this (referring to my plastering) to all of the walls and then painted it." She said, "I know." Yah. So, I spent a small fortune on "Old World Plaster" (Dutch Boy's "Venetian Plaster") and base coat to basically get the same results that about $40 in patching plaster and two gallons of paint would have gotten me. I don't have much more to say about it. And no, I am not returning the "Old World Plaster". I can't. It's tinted.

Erin = Pregnant: My pregnancy (or rather, my "pregnant brain") resulted in a number of scares, realizations, and even a few errors today. See the Patching Plaster and Venetian Plaster. However, nothing can account for the scare that I gave Adam and Chrissy today when I decided that I had left my Most Important Bag of Tools at Menards AFTER I HAD PAID FOR IT. I search the basement, the living room, the dining room, the paint supply area, the truck, and the garage, and IT WAS NOT THERE. I do recall Adam asking me at one point if it was UPSTAIRS, but no, silly, we are WORKING UP THERE, WHY OH, WHY would I actually take my supplies up there? After a few frantic phone calls and a decision that we would go to Altoona (about 35 minutes away) for lunch so we could go to Menards and spend MORE money on things I had ALREADY BOUGHT, I decided I would go lay down floor covering. I walked into the bathroom UPSTAIRS, and wouldn't you know, my Most Important Bag of Tools was IN THE BATHROOM. Yah. I'm good with it.

More to come in the following days... I hope you've enjoyed following the saga thus far...!

erin

OUR Memorial Weekend...!

So, this last winter, I got a Wild Hair. Yes, a Wild Hair. And the Wild Hair said that Adam and I should cancel our vacation to New England and instead do some home remodeling projects. (See? I told you it was wild.)

Adam's project was going to be installing a new sink that had a garbage disposal attached and to start determining what we could do to our kitchen cupboards to improve them and also to begin building a useful kitchen island.

Adam had off today (Memorial Day) and after about a week of determining what we needed for this project and describing things for me to buy at the store, we had the stuff and the tools to do the project. Adam did an EXCELLENT job and now we have a new kitchen sink. YAY!



And, this sucker is HUGE! Look at what I can fit in there... and nothing is propped in the sink... oh, no. It is flat on the bottom of the sink. How cool is THAT?



My project would be to "fix the hallway." See, when we moved into this house 4.5 years ago, we already knew we were going to remodel most of the 2nd floor, but we had no plans to remodel the hallway. However, the previous owners, having an idea that we would be doing work on the 2nd floor, decided to give us a head start and RIPPED A CHUNK OF WALLPAPER OFF IN THE HALLWAY. Argh. So, for the last 3 years or so, this wallpaper business has REALLY BUGGED ME.

For a few years, I have researched different ideas... painting over wallpaper, wallpapering over wallpaper, removing wallpaper (and then what?)... and the whole issue was that 1.) we knew it was plaster underneath but had no idea how badly in shape it was, but that 2.) the wallpaper was not in good shape either and was basically removing itself in various spots from the plaster.

So, after digging through a few books, I decided that the wallpaper needed to come down, and that Venetian Plaster had to go up. I started taking down the wallpaper on Saturday (I had done a small bit of it before then to see how it would go), and I was fortunate that for the wall in the staircase, it came off with relative ease and basically in one big chunk:

(looking up the stairs)



(looking down the stairs)



However, the remainder of the wallpaper proved to be quite Snitty.

Here is a picture of the Really Snitty Wall of Snitty Wallpaper:



Thankfully my dear friend Chrissy came to help me today, and after some serious steaming and scraping, the wallpaper is down.

(wallpaper DOWN)



After the wallpaper was removed, we went into action with the actual constructive work of the hallway project. Chrissy painted / primed the walls that didn't need much plaster repair, and I repaired plaster on the walls that needed some serious work.

Tonight I need to let the plaster dry, and tomorrow I plan to finish priming, paint the ceiling, and paint at least the base coat of paint. If I have my way, I will also do the first coat of Venetian plaster, and finish it up on Wednesday. If not, I will do both coats of Venetian plaster on Wednesday. All of this God willing, of course.

I will be back with more updates the the project as the week progresses...! I am on my very own tomorrow, so hopefully all will go well!

(Oh yes, I forgot to mention... I worked "full-time" last week so that I had a full week to work on the hallway project... yes, it is that involved. Thankfully my wonderful mother-in-law Marcia is being helpful in watching / taking care of our darling girl Julia. Julia's room is Hallway Remodel Central right now.)

later,

erin

Checking for Power

Last night, we cleaned out under the kitchen sink for a few reasons...
Adam is putting in a new sink and garbage disposal this weekend
(YAY!), but we had to check and make sure that the outlet that was
already installed under the sink had power to it for the garbage
disposal.  It didn't... BUT, an hour later, it did!  Ha, both Adam and
I have the same engineering degree, but you will never catch me
messing around with and wiring power to our house... I will totally
leave that to him!  He has done a great job with it in the last few
years... let's hope his plumbing skills are good this weekend!

Julia has a fascination with cupboards, and thought it was Sheer
Wonderfulness that we would be "playing" under the sink last night, so
she had to get right in there.  She was even IN the cabinet for a
short time... she thinks it is terrible fun!  No worries... when Adam
was doing actual electrical work, the power to that wall was off and
Julia was safely off playing with her toys.  :)

erin