Another round of pics, courtesy of Instagram. Also, Parker calls cayenne pepper, Kanye pepper. So there's that.
 
I am looking forward to the weekend, I get to see Kylee! Eep! She is artsy & cool, basically the most on trend person I know. Cannot wait to get her input on that knotty pine debacle. (basically everyone says paint it, besides Marcela- I bet if I striped it blue & orange she'd get on board)

Thanks for all your suggestions on the house. I want to be decorating & doing the fun stuff but 70% of the boxes still need unpacking, yowsers, I better get off the blog. If any projects go down, you'll be the first to know so stay tuned.

woodsy

You ready to talk house projects? Good, because I am. Let's chat about the knotty pine that covers the four walls and ceiling of the front room. Folks we've talked to seem split right down the middle on this look. Loving it or hating it. So it is a great thing that Matt & I both wanted it gone. ( We were split on the huge brass doorbell hanging on the wall but it is gone now. I'll let you decide who won. ) It feels like a cabin to us which is not our style and none of our stuff is moutain-ish.We talked about removing it and possibly doing so in a way that we could sell it.

 When we moved in I set up a few parts of the room to see where things stood. We thought we'd give it a fair shake but we just cannot do it. One of the big selling points of the house is the beautiful hardwood floors & they were getting lost in the Pine Palace. And when we really thought about trying to carefully remove the pine, store it, & find somebody to buy it, eh we returned to our faithful renovating friend; paint.

 I paused for another picture because I know some of you just died a little at the thought of painting wood. The nail in the pine coffin was news that Ellen was coming up to help us settle in to the new place. She is The Paint Wizard & is up for ANYTHING diy. The whole room will be painted but as a first step in this beast project, just the trim got four coats of glossy white.

Oh! what a difference already. We have a gorgeous view out the window that is framed out so nicely now. I've said this before, good clean trimwork is like eyeliner for the windows! (not the best pictures- sorry)

 Even the hall molding & door were painted.  With four of the Lost Boys running around, that is no small feat.

After Ellen went home I felt so inspired, I got to work on the sun room off the kitchen. This room is such a bonus for us. It has been kind of the overflow room from all that happens in the kitchen. We have worked on school, watched movies, & the couch can foldout for guests.

It seems our house is just not a home until that big letter A makes it onto the wall.

What do you think? Were you rooting for the knotty pine? Paint color suggestions?

aden

Dear Son,

  You are eight today and your mother has some things to say. Your blonde hair is still around & you have freckles on your round cheeks. You continue to have the cutest gap in your front teeth. I stare at you a lot, I am smitten as ever with you.

  Most days you prefer to be plugged into a video game device. I think that world just makes more sense to you. You are very much like your mom, needing everything to "line up." You have been dancing lately, without much inhibition I am happy to see. I am excited for the day I might join your dance parties but for now they are touchdown dances, meant to be observed & applauded. That, you get from Dad. You also have the storyteller gene from Dad. You love to re-inact funny lines from movies.

  The third born in four boys-whew! Life is really hard for you sometimes. You are busy trying to be older and you internalize a lot of the chaos around our house. You are wicked smart & you look like a Gap model, I am so lucky to call you mine. I think we are all getting the better end of having you around. Happy Birthday, I love you.....more!

dwell

  We're moved! We are exhausted, delirious, & barely conscious, but we're moved! I snapped some quick pics of the house before we moved in our stuff. It is 1940 sqft. so it has plenty of room for our lot. Located just 6 blocks from where we were renting so we are in the same community. The backyard is a dream, a beautifully landscaped private place for our boys, Jake, and all other wild things living in the Archie house. We also inherited some sweet vintage furniture from the previous owners- score! There are projects already lined up, funny how home-ownership brings out the DIYer in us. 

  This all came together on May 25th, exactly one year after relocating to Seattle. It felt very meaningful to put down some permanent roots on that anniversary. Looks like we will kick our feet up and stay awhile.

white trash bash

Last weekend we had a little moving party with our neighbors. We thought we'd go back to our Idaho roots for a Backwoods BBQ. Burt & Tammy Dawn had no idea the night they were in for...

SO much fun and a lot of terrible food. Our family has loved this neighborhood and we're taking with us some amazing friends. They even came out to help us move yesterday!

big time

This dose of Instagram round-up includes some pretty major happenin's.

We are moving! Hooray, it looks like this weekend even. So there has been a mad dash to scrounge up boxes and pack it all up. And the question, again, of why do we have so much stuff?? Seriously, so much going to Goodwill.

Also, it seemed worth noting that we switched out our 2C plates for WA ones. Just consider us locals, I guess.

p.s. Kaleb learned to start a fire with a magnifying glass-yowsers! (I stress-ate the entire pound of TJ's dark chocolate right after)

p.p.s. There is a strange phenomenon when I spot a mirror at the thrift store that says I must buy it. MUST. BUY. IT.

lacrosse

Hey PJ, remember that one time you joined the lacrosse team on your way home from school? Well yea, that just happened.

We went to your game on Friday. The coach was nice enough to let you suit up and play a good portion of the game even though you have missed most of the season. All I could say was,

"Why are all these other kids so big?

Seriously Matt, do they look like drinking age to you?

They are just so big.

These kids have to be in high school.

Wait, is THAT Parker?

He is so big!

When did our kid get so big?"



Unacceptable and SO rude, you thinking you can grow up- phiiiiish, almost as rude as your dad yelling "Box out!" and "Goalside!" to a team you just joined, playing a sport he knows nothing of.

hot mom

 This is my beautiful mother. (circa 1980 maybe?) We are at a really great place in our relationship, mostly because I am less of a brat. I just appreciate her so much more. She is so classy, she has been through a whole lotta mess in her life but she always keeps it classy . I love her role with the boys, she will jump into whatever they are into just to be in it with them.

Also, it has been especially comforting to me that she made it through all my teenage drama & gasp! she actually still likes me. I mean of course you love your kids but somedays...man alive, I do not like mine very much. And if my boy's ever updated their blogs, they would tell you how they feel about me these days. Like when Collin walked into the room at 10:30am last Sunday and said "Happy Mother's Day is over now!" Aye-yi-yi. This too shall pass?

 Love you Mom, I am grateful we had the chance to celebrate you last weekend, just the two of us. (We went to Toulouse!) And thank you Poppa Ken for wrastlin' the natives for me while we were out.

***update***
just found this in my inbox, indulge in this love fest with me, mkay?

Good morning, sweet one, my heart is so full and so warmed by your "hot mom" (love that) blog.  I am completely honored and extremely blessed to be your Moma!  You stole my heart the second I knew you were going to be my firstborn and the second  your big beautiful brown eyes looked into mine immediately after your were delivered, that is special love!

 

Thank you so very much for the perfect Mother's Day Weekend.  I cherish our time together and the Mother's Night dinner was something so special, thank you!  I've shown the photobook around all over Boise and everyone has loved and appreciated it as much as I do, thank you for always celebrating with photos (love my photo book collection).

 

Ken has the bicycle all put together and we hope to go for a ride this weekend (he has to tune his up).  I'm very excited about that.  Thanks for the contribution to getting your Moma more fit :) 

 

We are praying for the timing to be perfect for closing on the house and getting the move completed.  We pray for you all each morning.  Hugs and kisses around, talk with you soon.

 

LUVA YOU -

Moma

storytime

 In the beginning of my 8th grade year at North Junior High in Boise, ID, I almost got my trash kicked. I was standing at my locker, all 70 pounds of bones in my too-big cheerleader uniform, when a very angry Krissy approached. Word around the preteen scene was that I had called her the B word. I was a very mouthy 13 year old but on this account I was innocent. We had a very heated discussion and then, as will happen with girls this age, walked away friends. In fact, Krissy remained one of my closest friends throughout my time at NJHS & later in high school. Krissy was a bad ass. She had a big, protective family with brothers & cousins. And somehow, I was in with them, too.
 Krissy still looks out for me. She checks in via Facebook & asks how the Seattle Experiment is going. She & I plan for a day when we can get her boys and mine together even though we are far apart for this season.

 When Matt's cousin was shot in the line of duty & all the what-ifs that I had tried not to think about Matt's line of work flooded in, I met another friend. She had been another active parent at the boy's school in Nampa & bonus points, she always had some fabulous accessory in her hair. Marcela was reeling from her own personal crisis but reached out to me. I call her Mafia, she is also a bad ass. She grew up in Nampa, in a bad part of town  (near Matt, actually) & is all the more street wise for it. Somehow she loves this still too mouthy white girl that is me.
 Marcela is a champion for me to not lose me in Mommyhood. She has now coined the phrase "Queen of the World Moment," meaning good self-care has to be a priority for us in raising kids. I never feel dumb sharing photos of what I'm wearing or how I did my hair with Marcela. She is always telling me not to lose my sparkle....or else ;)

 Fast forward to our life in the Emerald City. I have found friendship with a fierce little Italian woman who bosses me around & makes me try amazing pork products. (I love you, Ang!) She drags me out of the house on bad days with homeschool & takes me out to comfort food. She tells me her story of almost being killed in a car accident & coming out of a coma & the physical therapy she is still doing. It inspires me & pulls me out of my funk.

 My neighbor, Rhiannon is the kindest woman I've met up here but when our landlords were being too pushy, she cornered them & gave 'em the what for. She is always putting a glass of red wine in my hand & laughing with me about our kids last antics. She challenges me that my five year needs to wipe his own behind. (working on it!)

 I love a strong woman. I need loyal friends. It goes along with the idea Oprah talked about, that every woman needs a wife. Woman leaning on other women to get through this life. Like Sister Wives but not tabloid worthy. 

slices

 There is a fantastic little pizza place on Alki Beach called Slices.

 We had the Seattle sun come out yesterday afternoon & headed to the beach.

 It was not warm but sometimes you can stick it out because of that blessed Vitamin D... or because you are young... and a boy.

 There is some kind of somethin' happening with my eyebrows this year. Caterpillars!