Mini Man Cave :)

This summer, I created a "goals" list for the house.  I know Jeff was sighing when he saw it because that always means more work for him.  We have almost lived here a year (I can't believe it) and we have accomplished many things.  Last winter, we redid the family room.  That was a big undertaking!  We also just replaced one of our heating/air systems.  We took down the dog kennels that previous owners had up and are trying to grow grass in their place (a difficult task with no rain).

My summer goals are:

1.  Clean, organize, and decorate the office (this post is dedicated to those pictures)

2.  Find curtains for Lily's room (did that-will post pics soon)

3.  Find a deck box for the breezeway for outside toys and dog items (thanks to Sarah and Pat for helping accomplish this goal)

4.  Tear out front landscaping, put in drain tile and new water hook-up, and re-landscape-This project is currently underway!  What hard work this had been for Jeff.

5.  Put in a play set for the kids in the backyard-Lily asks for this everyday!

6.  Put overhead lighting in playroom, redo ceiling, paint and decorate (this project will hopefully be completed before Parker's birthday)

Goal one is pretty well completed.  Jeff uses the office to do estimates, so he spends a lot of time in here.  He still needs to organize some papers, and I think I need a trip to IKEA for some more office organizers!  Since Jeff gets very little say in decorating the house, I thought it would be great to have a baseball office for him.  We call this his mini man cave (because it is such a small space), but I would say it is perfect for working!

I posted this picture before.  The Reds sign was his Father's Day gift and Jeff made the bat rack to hold some of his special bats.

Couldn't resist this cute sign from Hobby Lobby (and it was half off)!

Some signed Reds pictures.  The one of the bottom is actually Jeff's dad.  He was a bull pen catcher for the Reds.  Pretty cool to have him on the wall!

Some of Jeff's baseball shots from high school and college.

Jeff's Ball State jersey

Finally-curtains on the window!

I will keep you updated on how the goals are coming!  So far, so good!

9 Months

What a great month is has been!  First of all, I am off for summer break :)  Just in time to watch Parker learn all kinds of new tricks.  This month, he started crawling EVERYWHERE!  He is getting faster everyday.  This also means he can get into all of Lily's things (which makes her pretty mad!).  In addition to crawling, he also pulls himself up on everything.  The bed had to be moved down because of this.  Most nights, he immediately pulls himself up and starts screaming to get out!  He also grabs everything and then it goes into his mouth.  Pulling up on objects makes him happy, but this also means some bumped heads and falls!

He is such a great eater and has more and more table food each week.  Just about anything I can cut up small enough, he will eat.  He loves pasta or noodles, cheese, fruit, puffs, cheerios, yogurt-anything! In the last few weeks, I have stopped breastfeeding altogether.  It was hard because I wanted to last a little longer, but my body was shutting down.  With all of his stomach issues and the stress of that, it has actually been a little bit of a relief.  He now drinks soy formula and seems to love it!

Parker also got his first tooth a couple days ago-FINALLY!  It seems like he has been cutting this tooth for months.  I knew something was up because he was sleeping so much better and then he went down hill again.  The tooth seemed to be the issue.  Hopefully, we can get back into the better sleep routine (he was going from about 8 pm-4-5 am-this was a big deal)!

He also added mama to his words!  Melts my heart.  He mostly does it when he is tired or cranky, but I will take it.  He is VERY clingy to me.  I feel bad when he cries when other people hold him, but I know it is just one of those phases.  As long as I am around, though, he is one of the happiest babies I know.  We love his smile.  It makes our day!

Happy 9 months little man!  We can't believe we will be planning a birthday party in the near future. 

Summer Fun

Last night, we went over to my mom's cousin's house and were able to get on her horses.  My sister has been riding for several years, but last night, we tagged along.  My best friend, Traci, has been here for a couple weeks and really wanted to ride.  I was happy we were able to get on the horses before it rained!

One of Lily's favorite people-my cousin Olivia!

Gorgeous horses

Lily was squealing with excitement the entire ride

These pictures were actually taken this past weekend.  My sister came into town for Father's Day.  The little boys enjoyed an evening wagon ride after a Pizza King dinner and strawberry shortcake :)

When they weren't wrestling, they were loving on each other!

On Sunday, we walked the Greenway with my parents, brother, and sister.  Parker slept the entire time and Lily had fun wearing out Uncle Steve, Aunt Hannah, Papaw and Mimi! We enjoyed a sweet treat of Berry Winkle after our walk.

Uncle Stephen was tired and needed a ride back.

Somehow, Hannah got stuck pulling!

Lily's legs were tired so Papaw Jim rescued her!

What a great summer we are having!

Pinterest Idea

My friend Traci came across this idea on Pinterest.  I figured I could recreate it for our house.  I was pretty happy with how the design turned out.  I ordered an 8x10 matte print (for less than $3.00) and hope it turns out so I can frame in and put it in our family room.  This extra time in the summer is inspiring me! 

Happy Father's Day

Jeff with the kiddos this morning!

Being silly :)

Sarah and I couldn't resist giving this to the guys as a little Father's Day gift for the cabin

Jeff's gift was the Reds sign that is now in our office.  He made the bat rack to hold some of his special bats.  The office is looking really nice.  I will post more pics when it is completed!

Happy Father's Day!  We hope all of the dads out there enjoyed this day.  Lily, Parker, and I are very thankful to have Jeff in our lives.  I was just talking to my dad today about what a good dad Jeff is.  It is funny-when we first had Lily, he was a little intimidated and awkward, but now, after having Parker, he just jumps right in to whatever task needs to be done.  He seems so at ease with both of them-playing, feeding, bathing, changing, etc!  It makes my heart melt to see him in daddy mode.

I am very blessed to have such a wonderful dad who has been a huge part of shaping who I am.  He not only loves me, but he makes time to be with his grandkids and LOVES playing with them!  Today, we were able to go out to lunch after Mass and then go for a family walk and for ice cream.  It was a great day with my dad, mom, sister, brother, and kids.

My kids are also very lucky to have their Papaw Pat in their lives.  I can't tell you how many nights Pat has let Lily climb all over him doing his hair!  Not too many grandpas would be okay with that :) What a great father-in-law he is to me as well.  We are very lucky to be surrounded by such great men!