Progress

So, here we are again.  I know I said we'd discuss the stair project next, but I wasn't planning on posting so soon again.  My rug arrived today, yay!

And we stopped at my aunt's house and picked up the dining room chairs.  I can't wait to find some fabric and get going on that project!!














On a side note, this kid rocks my world!




















And this is my Christmas mantel

The First Week

What I wrote last week and never posted:

We've owned the house for a little over a week now.  Vain stayed at the house because he was so excited to finally have a home of our own, but I kept Ryter at my parent's house until I could get his room ready to go.  My mom and I painted on Sunday and then Monday through Wednesday I unpacked most things and put them in the appropriate room.  It was and still is a mess!  On Friday was our first night in the house as a family.  Vain's parent's were here too for the weekend to help us out.  Ryter didn't sleep so that means I didn't sleep.  He's still having a problem going down for every nap and at bed time, but I think it'll get better.  I think he really likes the house though.  Since we don't really have any furniture it's just a whole bunch of space to run around.

Update:  I've already rearranged the living room with all of the mismatched furniture.  I ordered a soft gray rug that will arrive Friday and now I'm looking for all of the small pieces to go along with it.  There are so many things that need to be done, but I think we'll get there.  The crown molding has to be caulked before I can paint...when the heck will I have time to do that?  Maybe during Ryter's nap today I'll start.

Here's the rug I ordered.

We got a new dining room table so now we can appropriately seat more than two people.  Here's our new table:

I'm hopefully getting some hand me down chairs that I plan to paint white to give an electic look like this picture:

Ryter is up for the day now, so this time I will post instead of save.  Next time we'll be discussing the stair project.  Here's a sneak peak:

What's Your Name?

Here's a quickie...

Busy Times

For those of you that can't read my mind, here's a blog post to fill you in.  I really honestly don't even know what's happened over the last month.  I can really only retain about a weeks worth of information at a time.

I went to New York with my mom and Ryter to visit Amanda.  We had a really great time!  I ordered a pack-n-play and booster seat and had them shipped to Amanda's apartment so we'd have some baby goodies when we got there.  We spent a lot of time checking out the city, riding the bus or subway, and eating out.  Ryter was amazing for a traveling baby!  He slept in his pack-n-play in the hallway of Amanda's studio, napped in his stroller on busy NYC streets, and powered through late sushi dinners.  New York is not the place for a baby in diapers though because there isn't anywhere to change them.  I embarrassingly changed his diaper at the back of a junk purse store and got really good at changing wet diapers while he stood in teeny tiny bathrooms without changing tables.  Ahhh, it is what it is.

coffee at the airport

backstage pass

breakfast at Auntie Manda's

trade choochie for whiskey

late night shoe shopping

Central Park

wiggle worm

Ground Zero

more shoes

Cuban food

back at the airport

...and Done!

I went to Indianapolis for a dear old friend's baby shower with many of my childhood friends.  We had such a great time driving, catching up, and being together for longer than an evening!

On my drive down there was when I really put my new smart phone to work signing amendments for the home sale in Chicago traffic.  I know I'm lame, old, and behind the times, but I seriously legally signed papers on my telephone with my finger!!!

Vain and I bought a house so stay tuned for a moving day post and decor photos to come!!

Hello

Well, hello there.  It's been a while.  Something about having more free time makes me more busy.  Ryter's been growing like a weed.  He had his 15 month doctor visit on Monday and he's almost 30 pounds and 33.5 inches tall.  I forgot to ask the doctor what percentile he is, but that's really more just information for competitive dads than anything.  He had the last vaccination he'll have before kindergarten and he didn't even cry.  No flu vaccine though because of his sensitivity to eggs, so we'll try the nasal spray at 2 yrs old or he'll have to go without for a few years.  The doctor doesn't expect the egg sensitivity to last much beyond a couple of years. That's good news because he really enjoys eggs!

Words are flowing from his mouth pretty regularly now and he's repeating them after he hears them for the first time.  He said pretty last night clear as day.  He also said yogurt in question form while I was feeding him.  Just checkin' to make sure that is what I was planning on feeding him.

On Monday we set him up on his motorcycle that he got for his birthday.  We didn't expect him to be interested until he was 2 or 3, but after he started riding the stroller we thought maybe he was ready.  He's doing great although can't be left alone with it quite yet.  He's still working on which leg to throw over the seat so he ends up on it facing forward.

We spent the weekend in Iowa visiting Vain's parents.  It was a quick and fun trip. 

Everyone loves the mall :)

On the ride home Ryter read a book, well maybe read is too strong of a word.  He held it and did use it as a tray for his cookies.  Lisa, Ryter does love Yummy Yucky!

And the House is Ours

The sellers accepted our offer, and the house is ours.  Of course there's all kinds of things between now and closing that have to go just right like the inspection and financing, but I'm sure it'll all go fine!!!  We'll be closing November 16.

Now, on to Ryter because I haven't talked about him much since we started the house hunt.  He is adorable!  Still busy and running everywhere, but adorable!  He's started talking on the phone.  It all started when he had my mom's phone while we were in Wal-Mart and just started talking on it.  Then everything became a phone.  He uses rocks as phones, his lunch, his shoes...while they're still on his feet.  I die every time.  It never gets old!  He's also totally understanding most everything I say.  He takes things to the trash, he looks in the direction I tell him to.  He's still not getting that pesky word No, but I think that's more selective than anything.

rock as phone

He's probably about 28 pounds now and starting to look like a little boy. I really noticed it yesterday for some reason.  He'll be 15 months on October 14 and will have another appointment with the doctor on the 15th where we'll find out just how much he weighs.  I think it's probably more like 50 instead of 28...this baby is not a baby anymore!

House Hunting continued

Two weeks later I have officially seen every house for sale in Oconomowoc in our price range. That equals approximately 30 houses all of which had a deal breaker of some kind.  No normal basement, no basement at all, no front entry, 1 car garage, strange layouts, gut jobs, 1 bathroom...right off the kitchen (poop...what?), 3rd bedroom by the front door (sorry baby, fend for yourself down there because mommy and daddy can't hear you upstairs on the other end of the house), creepy recording studio in the garage, main street...you get the idea.  Our price range provides us with a lot of small houses built in approximately 1910 with lots of character...and one bathroom OR houses built in 1960 that are still living (and cooking) in 1960.  Lots of potential if you're willing to put in the sweat, blood, and tears or course.

So, I was getting discouraged.  I discovered that me, of all people, was having a hard time seeing past the strange wall colors, awful curtains, or ugly couch.  Me?  Me! House hunting proved to be much more difficult on me physically and emotionally that I thought it would be.  I knew I would have a difficult time viewing my life in someone else's space, but I found myself wondering about the people that lived there and imagining a story about why they were moving or why the home was vacant.  Had someone died and their children were cleaning out the house? Had someone lost their job and that's why the house was in foreclosure or being auctioned?  To say the least, it was a bit depressing.

We found a home, that after imagining an entire remodel, could be the perfect home for us.  I painted a picture for Vain of where a wall could come down and how the new kitchen would sparkle so he could see the perfect home as well.  He did, he found it in his mind, and then the news that there was already a cash offer on the house came.  It was higher than what we would have offered so our remodel would go down the drain and we'd be living and cooking in 1960.  Sadly, cash is king and we couldn't compete. So, we revisited the idea of the home we had been earlier that day.  It's a house we've had our eye on since we moved to Wisconsin long before Vain even had a job.  It's adorable, it's big, it has a wonderful yard, it's in town...all of the things we wanted.  I passed it by because I had been so determined that 1960 was the place for us.  Turns out this house was waiting for us.  It's been on the market just about as long as we've been looking at it.  The cash offer on the other house came just in time to turn our heads.  It's flooded with light, 4 bedrooms, finished basement...don't get excited, it's still old and needs a little TLC, but it's the perfect house for us.

We put in an offer today and tomorrow we'll find out if they accept.

I'm dreaming of Christmas decorations on the snowy front of this house and red geraniums in the summer!

For Aunt Pat

Dear Aunt Pat,
Here is our little Ryter running, walking, laughing, climbing, and dancing.  Can you believe it???

Hope all is well in California :)

Love Lindsey, Vain, and Ryter

We've got a climber

Now at 14 months, Ryter is starting to do so many things and showing his desire for independence.  He never wants to be held or sit and definitely doesn't want to hold hands.  He started climbing last week up onto furniture and has graduated to book shelves and the fireplace.  It's one more thing to add to the list of worries.  Now we've got trips, falls, stairs, rocks, plugs, and climbing.

House Hunting

Well, house hunting has officially begun. There are a bunch of open houses tomorrow that we're going to go to just to get an idea of the type of houses we can afford, and what to expect.  I'm really torn about where to focus our energy when it comes to finding a house because Vain is working in Hartford, but I'm not sure I want to live there.  It's quite a ways from our friends and the city, but Vain's commute is already 25 minutes just from my parent's house so basically anywhere but Hartford would add more time to his drive that he's not sure he wants to do.  I don't blame him for not wanting to drive more than 30 minutes to work, but I feel it's somehow less frustrating than living in Austin and spending 30 minutes going 5 miles.  At least he'd be going approximately 30 miles on that 30 minute drive and on most days it could be a relaxing country drive and NEVER a bumper to bumper road rage drive.

I'm also struggling with living in town, a subdivision out of town, or just plain country living.  I know living in Austin it was nice to have the sidewalks for walks and living in town would give us the opportunity to walk to the park, library, get ice cream, etc. which I think is necessary with small children.  On the other hand, living in the subdivision could provide us some newer houses and possibly an amenity center just like Austin with a pool and play ground and protection from busy roads.  On the third hand (I'm a mom...I have lots of hands!) country living is also appealing because it could become a permanent location instead of just a starter home.  We do have land and we can always sell that later, but at this point country living means a fixer upper with potential for remodeling drastically in the future.  There are lots of houses in our price range, but most lack character, trees, or are in less than desirable neighborhoods.  Getting out there and looking around is going to help us solve some of the dilemmas, plus we are being very picky and our list of must-haves is very long.  I know that once we start seeing some houses in person we'll be able to change our must-have list to something much shorter and manageable.

These are some of the houses I've been looking at.

3 bed, 2 bath, 1.5 car garage

4 bed, 2 bath, NO GARAGE=snowy cars, in the country

3 bed, 1 full & 2 half baths, 1.5 car garage

3 bed, 2 bath, 2 car garage, needs work-i think it's a foreclosure & it's not finished inside

3 bed, 1.5 bath, 2 car garage

4 bed, 2 bath, 2 car garage

Wagons and Wheelbarrows

We were out  on Sunday closing up the pool and giving Ryter rides in the wagon and wheelbarrow.  It was a perfect day to be outside!

Wisconsin Weather

Yesterday was one of those wonderful Wisconsin days you wait for all year.  One where you need two outfits; one for the cool morning and another for the warm afternoon. Then top it all off a night-time rain that you can hear because your windows are all open.  This is what I've been waiting for and now it's finally here!

Jobs are the BEST!

Vain got a job!  After about 2 months of looking and a little vacationing he landed a Systems Administrator position at Signicast in Hartford.  It's definitely a step up from what he was doing before and I'm so proud of him! Signicast is a big and still growing company so who knows where this may lead in the years to come.  Right now we're just super excited about that and of course I immediately started house hunting.  I've never done this before and it's going to be really fun!  It's kind of like wedding dress shopping.  I got lucky and found my dress on the first and only day and it was the first dress I tried on.  Maybe that will happen with the house too!

Ryter is talking a lot.  Apple, ball, up, down, avocado, and daddy are his words, and milk, more, eat, banana, bunny, dog, and cat are his signs.  It's really interesting how he just repeats things now.  I've been teaching him sign language since he was 8 months, but he never really caught on completely.  He would laugh when I would sign something and so I always assumed that was his version of "yes", but now when I do a sign, he just repeats it back to me.  It's really awesome! 

He's also really into his "Ryter's Family" book that I made for him so that he could see all the faces of the people who live far away.  I need to make another one now for all of our family and friends that used to be close, but are now so very far.  It's become a ritual at nap and night time now and he's very serious about reading it!  Along with that is the magic fleece blanket that he will absolutely not go to sleep without.  It already has a hole in it so I can tell that it will be a very well loved blanket.

This past weekend we went to Three Lakes to spend some time fishing and boating with friends.  I spent most of the time trying to convince Ryter that the pack-n-play was a super comfortable place to sleep.  He caught on by the second day.  Seriously though, we had a really great time.  I drank coffee on the deck overlooking the lake in the cool air and fog, hung out by the bonfire eating Doritos, and enjoyed my most favorite drink, the creamsicle, bringing back memories of college with my good friend Kelly.

Ryter took his first boat ride and I think he really enjoyed it.  He did not like the life jacket, but once we got it on him, which was a two-man job,  he was fine.