Garage Conversion

I don't think I have ever been prouder of my husband and am so thrilled to finally be able to show off all of his hard work from the past few months!

After finding out we were expecting a third child we spent a lot of time debating what to do about our living situation. We have lived in our 1,550 sq ft, 3 bedroom house for five years. When we moved in we had only Carson, and plenty of room to spare. Then, Deacon came along and our spare bedroom turned into a nursery. The furniture got dispersed throughout our house and attic along with all the random junk that the room held. We have fit comfortably into our home, but started to feel a little cramped with all the stuff we have accumulated through the years. And surprise: another pregnancy! Although we have some equity in the house now, the housing market sucks. We are afraid if we sell we will only break even, or worse, be in the hole.

We love our house; it is less than ten years old and is in a great neighborhood with lots of young families. When my aunt suggested that we consider converting the garage into another room, we started doing some research. We had about $3,000 to spend and decided we would go for it. Having a handy husband, who also knew a contractor helped us to cut costs. After about two months of work, mostly done on the weekends, we are about finished (with just a little more decorating and paint touch-ups) and it could not look more amazing!

We wanted to keep part of the garage for storage, so decided to build a wall that runs parallel to the garage door, which is still able to be opened, leaving the exterior of our house looking exactly the same.

I tried to keep up with pictures throughout the project (some are taken with my phone). I thought I took a picture of the garage before we started, but can't seem to find it. So here it began, framing (cost break-down is listed at the end): When framing was finished, the contractors took a couple of days off so that Brian could run the wiring for lights in the closet (the contractors built that too) and additional electrical outlets. Our garage only had one outlet; Brian added five more.
When he finished the wiring, the contractors came back to do the taping and floating. (I learned so many new terms!)
And then they textured:

Once the doors were installed and texturing was finished, so were our contractors! From that point on, Brian did all the work, with some help from our neighbor and family. He painted the ceiling, installed ceiling fans, ran air duct and vent, and put additional insulation in the attic:

My nephew, Ethan, spent a night and helped paint the walls.
Our neighbors are absolutely amazing! They traded services with someone and got laminate flooring for their house. After installing it in their dining room, they decided they didn't like it and replaced it with a different type. Since then, the flooring was stacked up at their house not being used. When they found out about our project, they GAVE it to us!! It saved us a chunk of change and it looks perfect in the room!After telling him what I wanted, Brian built the shelving in the closet. (I love that I come up with the ideas and he can execute them!)

When the floors and closet were complete, we finished up the project with beadboard panels! They really are my favorite part of the room and make it feel homey.


All that was left was decorating and cleaning! I am blown away by Carson and Deacon's new football-themed bedroom!!

We have a few things to hang on the walls (bookshelves and the boys names), but I couldn't wait any longer to share! There is SO much room for both guys, while still having the fun of sharing a bedroom!
Carson's clothes and toys have already been moved in, but there is still plenty of space for Deacon's stuff.
I think Brian and Carson's favorite part of the room is the extra touch Brian added: a 4ft x 6ft projection screen. We had a projector sitting in one of our closets, so Brian mounted it to the ceiling and ran wires through the attic and into the walls by the closet, along with surround sound speakers. There isn't any cable running to the projector, but the xbox is connected to it, allowing the boys to watch movies and play video games on a huge screen!
We also debated about whether or not to install a door leading to the garage. Brian wanted one added so that the boys would have an additional way to get out in the event of a fire, and it is nice to still be able to access the freezer in the garage from inside the house. (Door leading to the garage on the left, entrance to their bedroom on the right)
I am almost jealous of our big boys new 21ft x 15ft suite! It is wonderful to have so much more room in our house, and I think Carson loves having his room with a view to the living room when he falls asleep at night.

We are also thankful that our project came out just under $3k.

Deacon's 2nd Birthday Party

Deacon's 2nd birthday at Little Gym turned out fabulous! Because Deacon loves music so much, we decided to go with a rock 'n roll theme and it suited him perfectly.

His party started at 5:30pm, so we were able to get two naps in on Saturday, thinking that would have him well rested. Unfortunately, he has been battling a runny nose and cough and decided not to eat very much all day, putting him in a less than stellar mood when the party started.

But, as the party got going, so did he!! He LOVES Little Gym, the music, and being able to climb on everything.


He also had an amazing turn out with kids of all ages!!


I wasn't sure if this party would be geared more towards the little ones, but it wasn't! The big kids had just as much fun, if not more!


The first part of the party was free play, where everyone got to do their own thing. Then it was structured play, where Deacon participated in his favorite activity: the parachute!
He laughed and smiled more than any kid at the party!
Since he was the birthday boy, they put him in the middle while the guests circled him and shook the parachute singing "Happy Birthday."
He was so thrilled, he had us all laughing along with him!

Then, they let the other little ones on to join him!


And the big kids got to go underneath while the adults covered them up.

After the parachute came the inflatable bouncer.
I tried to get some pictures, but with all the jumping the kids all looked like blurs.
Finally came the bubbles, and again, even the big kiddos were excited!

When everyone had spent their energy it was time for pizza and cake!




By the time the presents were opening, we only had about 10 minutes left of the party and Deacon was exhausted!

His favorite present of the evening was this cuddly tiger:
To speed the unwrapping up, we asked Carson to help, which he did gladly, along with some friends. The opening went so quickly we lost track of who gave what (and even found some gifts I hadn't seen when we got home)!
As the party ended, everyone picked up their goody bags!

Each guest received inflatable guitars, rubber spike bracelets, rocker sunglasses and pop rocks candy.
And as you probably guessed, Deacon was down for the count by the time we loaded up and got home!

Deacon's Valentines

Deacon's class is filled with toddlers, so I thought something other than candy would be best for his exchange. What kid doesn't like goldfish??

This project was so cheap; I spent less than $10 for two boxes of goldfish, bags, and tags! I printed these as 4x6 pictures at Walgreens and cut them in half, but also included a larger blank version if you want to make your own message. (To steal: click picture, right click and choose "save picture as")

Carson's Valentines

I am obsessed with pinterest and have boards dedicated to crafts for each holiday. I am scared to recreate any of the gifts I have found out of fear that someone else will have seen it and will be making the same one (kind of like not wanting to show up to an event in the same outfit lol). So for now, I use them as inspiration for craftiness, but still do my own thing.

For Carson's Valentine party next week I decided to hit up my favorite dollar store: Dollar Tree and found these adorable bobble head robots. At $1 each, I spent less than $30 to get a candy robot for each kid in his class.
I wasn't a big fan of the nutrition label on the tube, so instead of trying to peel each one off, I used shipping labels (2 inch x 4 inch) and covered them up.

Next, using shutterfly studio and pinterest I created 4x6 cards to cut in half and attach with ribbon. I was torn between 2 different sayings and decided to go with the top one, but included the other one if you like it better. You should be able to click the image to make it larger, right click and choose "save as" to download on your computer, then just add your child's name. I had them printed at Walgreens for less than $5.

Carson's 1st Day of Kindergarten - Take 2

Carson started school in the district where I work, and was super lucky to have been accepted into the dual language program. Due to my bed rest it will be close to impossible to drive him 45 minutes to and from school there. We made the tough decision to move him into the elementary where our neighborhood is zoned.

He, along with us, has had mixed emotions about the transition. He loves his teachers and friends at his old school, and was really excited to be learning Spanish. But, his new school is only a couple of minutes from our house (which means not having to spend two hours in the car each day and getting home close to dark), he will get to go to school with friends from our neighborhood, and in his opinion, the best benefit is that he gets to ride the school bus home each day! The dress codes are fairly similar, both schools requiring collared shirts, but his old school allowed it to have patterns and pictures, his new school only solid colors with logo smaller than a quarter. But, his new school doesn't require shirts to be tucked in (notice how excited he is about this in his picture).

We waited until yesterday to withdraw him from his old school because it was class picture day and we wanted to be sure he would get one and also be in their yearbook. Brian picked him up early yesterday so that he could complete the necessary paperwork, and said Carson cried in the office and on the way home. :( He also cried himself to sleep last night, making my heart break for him.

Luckily, Carson has never been a shy kid and has always been able to make friends easily, so we made sure to talk that up last night and before school today. He was all enrolled by 10:00am this morning, and even saw our neighbor, James in the hallway before going in to meet his new class and teacher.

This afternoon, he was all smiles! When asked how his first day was and he said "GREAT!" He already made a new friend (couldn't remember his name, of course) that showed him the ropes, ate tacos and an ice cream sandwich at lunch ("tasted even better" than his old school), got to run and play basketball in PE, and "didn't get any homework!" It is not even 4:00, and he is already outside playing with the kids from the neighborhood!

It is such a relief that today went so well. Thank God for making children so adaptable to change!

Bed Rest

This pregnancy has been a little different than the first two go-rounds. I'm not sure if it is because I already have two children that keep me busy, the fact that I am pushing 30, or that by body is over making babies and wanting to make sure I don't have more kiddos.

I am gaining weight at a faster rate, swelling started early this pregnancy and isn't just in my ankles and calves, but some days all the way up to my knees and thighs. Standing for too long causes me to be out of breath and feel like my heart is pounding out of my chest. On top of all that I am more emotional/moody, and just now beginning to understand why pregnant women don't go around smiling and glowing all the time.

I have been busy dealing with all of the above, along with a 2 hour commute each day, getting both boys ready and dropped off at two separate locations for school and making it to work before eight, Deacon's therapy needs, Carson's reading and Spanish for kindergarten, teaching, student council, holidays, and so on...and somehow making it all work without going crazy. But then, the contractions started.

In early January, I would periodically get what felt like Braxton Hicks during the later part of an especially busy day and would disappear by the time I got home and relaxed. By the end of the month the contractions were definitely stronger and coming at regular intervals about 10-15 minutes apart. After work on the 31st I figured I would call my doctor and just schedule an appointment to share my concerns. As soon as I mentioned contractions to the receptionist she immediately put me through to the nurse, who told me to go to the hospital for monitoring. The hospital hooked me up to monitors and did an ultrasound of Bennett to see how he was and check his size (1lb. 11oz.) and called my doctor for her opinion. She wanted me to stay on bed rest for two days and follow up with her on the second day.

At my appointment I was still having a little cramping and my doctor asked me what was more important: Bennett or work? When I chose Bennett, she said she would feel safer putting me on bed rest because she was concerned of pre-term labor and with a 14 week premature baby, the outcome could be scary.

So here I am.

For those of you who know me, laying around doing nothing is not my thing. I am a week into this and already trying to find activities in the house to keep me busy. I wish I could do the paperwork end of my job from home to help out my colleagues and long-term sub, but have been firmly told that I could no longer do anything work related. I have been able to do a few projects from bed (100 day shirt and Deacon's party invitations), but other than that, my day mostly consists of reading, watching movies, and playing on the computer.

I was in such shock at the initial appointment when I was told that I would be on bed rest, that I didn't even know there were stages of bed rest or think to ask which stage I would be placed on. So, at today's appointment I got a few more details.

I am on modified/regular bed rest, which means no: work, strenuous chores, heavy lifting, standing/walking for more than 5-10 minutes, climbing stairs, long shopping trips, etc. I am allowed to leave the house occasionally for non-strenuous activities like sitting at church or the movies, as long as I don't have to climb stairs, or stand or walk a long distance. (And luckily got permission for Deacon's birthday party this weekend as long as I rest before and after and stay seated during the party!)

I am making myself stick to the rules, because I have already been warned that next comes strict bed rest and I don't want complete bed confinement!

Be prepared, with all of this free time on my hands, I may be busy blogging!

Carson's 100th Day

Carson has already been in school for 100 days! As a celebration, all of the kindergarteners get to have a parade through the school sporting homemade shirts. The only instructions we were given was to be creative and represent the number 100. So here is what we came up with:

100 football beads (purchased at Hobby Lobby) each individually glued (Aleene's Super Thick Tacky Glue). Carson loved it, and we all placed bets last night to see how many footballs would still be on it by the time he got home from school. Carson guessed 10, Brian said 73, and I am hoping for 85.