The Nursery (and Guestroom)

The pillow I made with a laser print and some paint thinner.

One of my favorite parts—the rocking chair we made over.

I'm going to call this room finished! Probably the only room in the house I can say this about. We've been busy with so many projects, but I think the nesting instincts kicked in so I could actually finish something.

This was the first room where we experimented with paint colors for the house. We ended up with Sherwin-Williams Crushed Ice. Robb thought that it was a bit light, so the rest of the house will be a darker color, but I think it works well here. And, of course I painted the trim (Sherwin-Williams Roman Column).

I put the crib in the little window nook. Cheris made an adorable grey and white crib blanket with blue trim, so I tried to find some things that would coordinated. The grey blackout curtains from Zeke's old window worked well and I made a dust ruffle a few weeks ago.

The rocking chair was from the SonBridge thrift center. We bought it years ago and Robb removed the old upholstery and sanded it down. Then one evening recently, he and Corren stained and distressed it and I made a new seat cover with some leftover fabric. It is so comfy and I can imagine spending many a long hour rocking a crying baby there.

Guestroom Before

Just a few before shots of the nursery/guestroom. I'm not sure what the little window nook is meant for, but a crib sure fits there perfectly.

37 Weeks

Well, we completely missed taking pictures at 30 weeks. And then again at 35 weeks. I hope this kid doesn't hold it against us. Things have gotten a little busy, and quite honestly, most days I'm in sweats the whole time, so pictures aren't really an option.

And then I totally forget, because Zeke has been keeping us busy. And the new house has definitely been keeping us busy. And we are both still trying to work. So, here I am at a little over 37 weeks. The doctor says any day now. But also, I could be overdue again, so maybe I still have some time?

What's different this time around? For starters, this kid is a MOVER. He has been kicking and pushing and rolling for months. Though he doesn't seem to have the severe case of hiccups that Zeke did. I don't feel like eating much anymore either, and with Zeke I think I was famished all the way to the end. My joints feel much worse this time, but I think that might be mostly due to the fact that I'm working on the house and carting a 30-pound Ezekiel around all the time instead of sitting at my desk at work. Finally, with Ezekiel I was terrified of delivery by 36 weeks. This time? Bring it on. (No, not really.)

Star-Belly Sneech

This afternoon while I was trying to get some painting done, Zeke wanted me to pause for a book break. He choose The Sneeches, so we sat down and enjoyed the story. Then he showed me that he didn't have a star on his belly, so I fixed him right up. He couldn't get a good angle on it, so I eventually had to pull up a chair to the mirror so he could admire his star. He was so excited to show daddy when he got home.

Water

Pretty much the word we are hearing most this summer. And very rarely does he mean that he would like a drink of water. Usually he wants to be in the pond at Aunt Pat's or in his pool or, at the very least, playing with the hose. He is very good at watering all of my flower beds (unfortunately, they only contain weeds at this point).

Using His Noodle

I guess this is how Zeke thinks pasta should be treated. Or he just thinks he is funny.

Eggs!

Finally, the day we've been waiting for! No, I think I oversold that one. We are still awaiting THE due date. But this afternoon when Robb went to check on the chickens, he found these four little treasures.

Fun with Paint

I've been painting trim again. I usually try to wait until Ezekiel is napping or down for the night, but my time is running out. So today I was painting windowsills and he was getting a little too interested. Then it occurred to me that Auntie Tara sent finger paints for him some time ago, so we could both paint at the same time. He even got to wear his new painting smock from the Terrys, so it was perfect!

Except for when he was finally done, but I was not. Then I left the room for a split second (okay, I knew better and did it anyway) I then heard a little voice say, "painting!" and knew right away what was going on. I ran back in to find my little helper painting the trim, the door and the doorknob and droplets were everywhere.

Prepping for Baby

It has been fun getting ready for the arrival of a new little one. I've been working furiously to get the nursery/guest room in order and all it's been lacking is the rocking chair (which is almost done) and this art piece. I found it on Pinterest and printed it out, so Zeke has seen it around before. I finally got it finished up while he was sleeping and when he woke up and saw it, he immediately wanted to grab the printout he had seen earlier so he could compare. My little critic...

Then this evening we assembled a new little bouncy chair for baby and Zeke made sure to test it out thoroughly.

Living Room Big Screen

Zeke got to hang out with Kennedi this evening, so it seemed like some special entertainment was in order. I've been borrowing a projector from Rachel to do a little piece of copywork (more on that soon), and it worked perfectly for a Curious George show on the living room wall. What will Robb think up next?

Zeke's 2-Year Checkup

Ezekiel did great at the doctor today. He nearly had to see another physician, because Dr. Wren was out doing a delivery. But at the last minute he came back from the hospital, so all was well. It would seem that he is in perfect health (except those pesky allergies). He even had to get a shot, but with the help of Angry Birds, he was a champ.

Just some quick stats:
Weight=30 lbs. 5 oz. (76th percentile)
Height=37 in. (96th percentile)
Head Circumference=51 cm. (95th percentile)

Spectacular Summer Weather

 Daddy tells Ezekiel the story of the flood and the first rainbow.

A little run in the big raindrops.

Double rainbow over the vineyard across from our house.

We've been having some unusual weather lately. (Well, unusual for Walla Walla, at least.) Every evening the sky will cloud over and we will get some awesome thunder and lighting and sometimes even a little rain. Tonight we had a lovely double rainbow right around sunset.

Cuddling with Evan

After a very long and hot Sunday, I finally got my way and was able to visit my little Evan. She is just growing so quickly and is precious beyond belief. Everett and Jelinda are doing such a great job, even though I'm sure they are tired, they manage to look like they are on top of things.

We had a terrific evening together, eating blueberries and watching Rescuers Down Under. But mostly cuddling Evan. Robb stole her for awhile, and she made eyes at him the whole time, so he is pretty much smitten as well. And, finally Zeke paid a little attention to her and even smiled at her a bit. Progress, I would say.

(I stole this picture from Everett and Jelinda's Facebook.)

Zeke's Idea

This afternoon we were in the living room when Zeke ran off down the hall. He shuffled around for a bit then reappeared with these two items. I guess he has figured out what it takes to get ready for playing in the wading pool. :)

Painting Progress

Robb isn't generally very excited about painting, but I've been threatening to climb the ladder and paint the trim on the upper windows. So, he has relented and has been making awesome progress.

Independence Day

 Sampling from the Current raspberry patch.

Fun with sparklers.

We got to enjoy the fireworks display from the Current's front yard. You can see down into the valley and watch all of the fireworks simultaneously. Zeke thought it was all very fun and exciting, then it started to get a little loud and overwhelming and finally he was passed out. Robb had fun trying to capture the explosions on camera.