House Obsession

I am obsessed AGAIN.

It first hit me after we got married and started looking for our first house. Dreams of granite countertops and large spa bath tubs danced in my head. Oh, the books I would read in that tub and the meals I would plan out but never cook....ahhhhh.

It's back, with a vengeance.

Our Friday nights used to involve wine, take-out japanese, and a movie.

Replace "movie" with "House Hunters" and actually not much has changed. You know it's a good night when it's International.

The trick is to limit the wine to about a glass and a half. Otherwise, the House Hunters raving begins. Or at least it did for me last weekend.

You know the yelling involved when you watch a scary movie? Actually, I don't watch scary movies since it will frighten me for years afterward, but you know what I mean.

"Don't go in there!"
"He's got a knife. Run!"

House Hunters raving is the same, but relates to serious life decisions and such.

"Don't pick the dilapidated farmhouse in Italy! Idiot! The construction will take years!"
"One bathrooom? Are you kidding me?! What are you thinking?"
"You moved to Urugauy not knowing anybody and not speaking Spanish? Are you crazy?"

Marc picks up the remote & the wine. "I think you've had enough."

Hey, we can't control our passions, right?

I realize this is boring for some. So much so, that you could fall asleep with potato chips in your hands.

That's my boy.

And with the passion to move into a new place, comes the realization that we need to fix this joint up before we can even think about selling.

We finally took down the 80's white vertical blinds that plagued the back screen door. I wish I had a Before pic. They were BAD. Up goes the Lowe's Allen & Roth curtain rod and some old Pottery Barn outlet curtains that were sitting in the closet collecting dust. Pretty right?! Worth $17 fo' sho.

Aprons have a perfect hanging spot in the hallway. Thank you Heather Hucks for letting me copy you. They were sitting in a drawer doing nothing.


Lesson from all of this- I have a lot of stuff. Use it.

Question for you- What is the empty space that home builders put along the staircase? What are the purpose of these spaces? I struggle with this area. It's not finished. Marc said it looks like what you would discover if you found an old pirate ship. Not the look I was going for! I do love my map. I got it at a local store called Bebe Gallini's in Cornelius. It's a $3 sheet of wrapping paper that I cut down to fit one of my old frames. Looks like the real deal!

The guest room is finally suitable for guests and not just exercise bikes and old tv's. Come on over!

I found an old shelf at this adorable shop in Davidson called The Tuscan House. I go there every couple weeks and always end up finding a treasure. Perfect for family pics! But, first rule of house staging is to remove all the family pictures, right? That's the best part!

If I listened to this guy, the house would be decorated with strategically placed diaper piles.

He looks like he's done this before..

But, how can we ever leave this prized real estate view overlooking the cul-de-sac?! Betsy will never forgive us.

Love,

Lynds

Summer Hiatus

I am such a blogging slacker!

My summer malaise has set in. I have heard myself say that it is too hot to go the pool. The mosquitos have taken over the backyard and made it their home. Watering the plants everyday is a drag. I bought a tomato plant at the Farmer's Market for $1.00 but found myself too lazy to plant it.

I blame the heat, but taking care of an almost 2 year old will wear you out too!

You will find me every night after I put Henry to bed in my prone position laying on the couch watching the telly. True Blood and Curb Your Enthusiasm have started again, so that makes me very happy. I have also just recently discovered Friday Night Lights, like five years later than everybody else. This show is Texas personified! It reminds me of home so much. So You Think You Can Dance is heating up. Project Runway is back. HGTV is on rotation since we're back on the house hunting band wagon.

The words you are looking for are pathetic and sad. I have an actual real life that doesn't involve a flat screen, I promise.

We got back from a quickie beach trip down to Destin, TX to visit the Schroeder clan. MUCH too short, but we had a great time as usual. 3 and a half days, no way. Not enough.

I took a grand total of three pictures (see summer malaise above) but they highlight some of my favorite moments of the trip. Excluding me boogy boarding all the way to shore on some awesome waves covered in seaweed in the mannner of Swamp Thing. I just had to put it out of my mind or I would have never gotten in the water. My mental toughness reigns supreme.

Sunset on the dunes. Henry was not crazy about the beach..or the pool...or the sand. He tolerated it. As soon as we would step into the parking garage of the condo though, watch out! The eyes would light up and the talking would pour out. What can I say? He's easy to please. We could have just vacationed in our local Target parking lot.

"Big truck!"

"Mo-cycle!"
"Keekee!"- (There were stray cats in the parking garage. I didn't know cats hung around the beach that much, but ok.)

Reading time with Jojo. He LOVES his family! Anytime anybody left the condo, Henry would start look sad and start looking around for who was missing. He can say everybody's names ("Maw", "Paw", "Ash", and "Jojo") and definitely likes to have an audience.

View of the beach from Seaside. Seaside is this gorgeous beachfront community north of Destin. Mom, Ash, and I ventured out for a little bit of girl time to explore. If money and time were no object and I lived in a dream world, I would live here. No question.

Here's some more pics from the past couple of weeks around these parts.

The pushing obsession continues at Discovery Place.

He paused to amuse me and play with the sprinkler for 2 minutes. Our neighbor was fixing his car and this proved too hard to resist.

I am so smart!

Coming out of his secret hiding place in the backyard between the bushes.

Pickles! So good they'll rot 'yo teef! Looks like he's missing some! He is really not going to like me one day when he sees these.

Love,

Lynds

Summertime & the Livin's Easy

Or crazy depending on who you talk to! Hence, the neglect of the blog.

In the past month and a half, we've had:

- Maldoff Family mountain vacation to Helen, GA
- My girl's trip to Myrtle Beach
- Marc's golf trip to Pinehurst
- Trip to Texas for Joey's graduation

When we travel, we do it up right! We've had a lot of fun so far this summer and we're not even to July 4th yet.

Henry is growing like crazy. At his 18 month appointment, he weighed 30lbs (90th percentile) and measured 33.25 inches (75th percentile). Large & in charge and consistent with what he's always been. He is now wearing 24month & 2T clothes, as the 18-24 month are a little snug around the middle. On June 20th, he will be 20 months old. Insane. Wasn't I just planning his one year old party?

His favorite hobbies include throwing his diapers in the trash can, wiping down dirty surfaces, and sweeping. At this rate, he's on his way to becoming a janitor.

He likes to wear sunglasses now, but don't expect him to smile when they are on. Way too cool for that. Although the look here is more Ray Charles.

Bird poop incident of 2011. I'm sure there will be more, as I have been pooped on three times in my life. I think it runs in the family.

Betsy the bestie. I think she would rather be an acquaintance, but she tolerates him trying to ride her like a pony.

But, he's still a baby! This picture proves it, see?

The fountains at Birkdale are a favorite activity now.

Capri Suns are the best! He can suck one down in 30 seconds flat.

Hi mama!

Push, push, push the Cozy Coupe.......he will do this all day long.

Wouldn't we all rather place our cell phone calls wearing no pants?

We had a relaxing trip to the Georgia mountains with the Maldoff's this year.

Henry went to a petting zoo with Nana and Aunt Catherine one of the days, while I got to spend some time reading my Kindle in the golf cart while the boys golfed. So nice! We took a day trip to Amicalola Falls one day and spent another afternoon in Helen (do not recommend it unless you are into tattoos, fake saloon photos, or airbrushed t-shirts). Extremely touristy. They did have a fun little area with a winery and a pizza joint where we spent some time. I bought some pancake & muffin mixes at this old Granary mill that has been in business since the 1850's. They get all their power from a stream that runs behind the place. Oh, and I also bought jams. You have to buy jams when you are on a vacation in the country. I felt very much like Suzy Homemaker and left with dreams of making my own bread & canning. This did not last of course. Ah...delusions of grandeur.

I had the most fun just hanging out at the cabin with the family. We cooked together every night and played pool in the basement game room. Henry gave lots of good cuddles to everybody and spent a lot of time mowing the balcony.

Quote of the trip:

Marc turns to me on the couch all of a sudden and asks like we've just met or something, "Do you play pool?" I didn't say anything for a second and all of a sudden he adds, "You know, billiards?"

It was just the way he said it....like he was a formal British chap just meeting a girl and challenging her to a game of billiards over a round of scotch. I guess you had to be there, but I busted out laughing for like an hour after that. Or maybe it was the rum and cokes and the fear of bears outside talking. Little did he know, I'm a pool shark in disguise. Took a couple nights for the old college pool skills to make their appearance, but when they did....I don't have to tell you what happened. I killed it.

His buddy, Gramps!

Day trip to Amicalola Falls.

Family portrait

I also was so lucky to get to go on a Girl's Trip to Myrtle with some mommy friends.

It was just what we all needed. We got to do some shopping, some good eating & drinking, some lounging, some singing & dancing, some good talks & games...what else do you need really?!

The Sunday we were there was my 30th birthday so Saturday night we went out on the town. Mind you, it was biker week there. Very good people watching. Got a lot of good tattoo ideas. And a hankering for a pair of my own leather pants.

Cheers to 30!

Me & Erin. What am I doing?!

Ready for our night out! Cristine, Kellye, Christina, Michelle, Erin, and me.

The girls made it extra special and made sure I had a drink in my hand all night. We went to Margaritaville for dinner & drinks and a piano bar after. We had such a great time! The interpretive dance skills made their appearance and these girls are still talking to me, so I'm guessing they weren't too embarassing.

Capri Suns for adults do exist and they are delightful. This is what girl's weekend is all about. Relaxing by the pool!

So thankful to Kellye for planning & Cristene for letting us shack up in her condo. It was a very memorable trip!

I will update the blog again soon with pics from our Texas trip for Joey's graduation. Good times with the fam!

Love,

Lyndsey

Hoppy Easter!

Hoppy Easter from my little bunny!

We had a wonderful Easter with the family in Texas this year! Henry got a Tonka truck Easter basket (I did not even know these existed) from the Easter bunny filled with toys and treats.

You mean these eggs are filled with Goldfish crackers? I got robbed!

On second thought, I like this idea.

Getting ready for a wheelbarrow ride with Noah.

A view of the basket and Grandpa taking a picture.

Power to the people with Paul!

The hunt is on! Henry's giving Noah some eggs.

Taking a ride! Note- Henry weighs 3 lbs less than his 5 year old cousin.

Porch sittin'.

Lots of fun in the sandbox.

He looks so big here! So sweet!

Cars!! My favorite.

He likes to give tires a little pat when he sees one he likes.

Wait up Gee-maw!

Walking with purpose!

Time for a haircut!

Hmmmm....I'm not so sure about this!

Fun at Bass Pro with Grandpa & Jo-Jo.

Jo-Jo is so funny!
Telling secrets...

A fun time was had by all! Henry cried maybe one time the entire time we were there. By the end of the trip, if you called out somebody's name, he would point to them. He understands so much more than I even realize. As evidenced by me yelling that something was total "BS" the other day and him yelling "Beeeeeeee!" right after. I guess I need to cut the cussing to a minimum! Give me some credit, at least I shortened it to "BS".

Love,

Lyndsey