Progress Update #2

After a few busy weeks of life getting in the way (ie. meetings, Mother's Day, music lessons and a new trampoline), we finally managed to get some work done on the bedroom reno project.

Thanks to the generous help of my handy father-in-law and my dear daughter who spent eight hours painting with me today, we saw significant changes this long weekend (in between BBQs and dealing with a sick kid).

We decided on colours -- the majority of the room will be lime green and the ends of the beds and the closets etc. will be a deep bluish-purple.

The beds are coming together nicely.

While the boys were working on the beds and getting the walls ready, I tackled the painting ... 120 boards of beaded tongue and groove that had to be primed and then painted a first coat before it was installed.  Took over 20 hours to do with Dave helping for a morning and Meg helping all day today. 

A lot of work, but it already looks so awesome.

Can't wait to keep going on it this week.

Progress Update #1

Okay, first of all, progress, as always, has been much slower than anticipated.

We worked a fair bit on the weekend, and, while, it doesn't look like much, at least we are now rolling on things.

We started off by saying goodbye to the log cabin.  (I am starting to think that all the "goodbyes" we are doing are slowing us down.  Oh well.)

Then Dave got to work tearing the cabin apart.  Boo hoo.

After a quick clean up and a few trips to the lumber store, we started working on framing in the boys' new built-in beds.

Anyway, that's where we are now.  Trying to figure out exactly how high to make the beds and then we'll build them in.

Doesn't look like much, but progress is progress.

And, in other good news, our daughter has decided to stay in her room (with the window seat her father so lovingly built) and son number one has decided that he may want his own room, after all.  If that's the case, my "office" will be a new Macbook Pro.  Sigh.  I guess I can live with that.

And so it begins ...

The playroom-to-boys-bedroom reno project, that is. If you don't know what I am talking about, you can read about it here.

We got off to a little slower start than we had hoped, but things are finally underway.

After some major purging and cleaning, deconstruction has began.

Step one -- the slide. We are happy to report that it will soon be moving to it's new home at the cousins' cottage.

And of course, as soon as the kids heard that we were taking it out, the long neglected slide was suddenly like a ride at Wonderland.  Everybody had to go for a few last slides.

Even me :)

We also took a moment to mourn the loss of the little log cabin as it's next on the chopping block.

A little sad to see it go, but can't wait to get going on the boys' new room.

Too Good Not To Share

So, I know this is in no way a music blog and, even though I love music and going to concerts, I don't really fancy myself a music blogger.

Still, last week I had the opportunity to attend one of the best live shows that I've been to in a long time.

Death Cab for Cutie, backed by the Magik*Magik Orchestra (an octet from San Francisco who performed on the band's last album, Codes and Keys), put on a simply incredible show at Toronto's Massey Hall.

A friend introduced me to Death Cab a few years ago and, the more I hear and see from them, the more I love them.

I'm not sure if it was the venue (when are shows not amazing at Massey Hall?), the perfect addition of the strings to Death Cab's beautiful tracks or the fact that I met Gord Downie in the merch line (if you are unaware of my longstanding love of all things Gord, check out my YouTube user name), but it was a pretty perfect evening. Sigh.

Anyway, here are a couple songs from the show that I posted to YouTube (and I know they're not perfect but you get the idea):

I'll Follow You Into The Dark

Different Names For The Same Thing

If you want to see more of my Death Cab for Cutie videos, you can check them out on my YouTube channel here.

Can't wait to see Death Cab again this summer.  Is it June yet?

It's Time :(

A little over a month ago, our vet told us that our dog, Dante, has cancer and that we would likely have to put him down in the next few months.

He also told us that we'd know when it was "time".

This thought kept me up at night. How would we possibly know?

But we do.

Even though he doesn't seem to be in pain, the signs have become more and more obvious with each passing day.

It's that he's not eating regularly any more, seems to be losing weight and rarely runs any more. And, just today, he's had some periods of laboured breathing.

But mostly it's those sad eyes that stare up at me as he spends almost every moment of the day, waking and sleeping, on his pillow.

It's time.

Tomorrow afternoon, we are taking Dante to be put down. And just like that, we'll no longer be a family with a dog.

The kids all said goodbye to Dante tonight and there were tears all around.

I've been trying to put on a brave face for their sake.

But, truth be told, I am having a lot harder time with this than I imagined.

Logically, I know that we are absolutely doing what is best for Dante. And, of course, I do not want him to suffer.

As I type through tears, I continue to remind myself of the words of the late Dr. Suess:

"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."

While I love the sentiment, it's sometimes easier said than done.

Of course, I know that we were lucky to have had such a great pup for the last eleven years. Our 95 pound "beagle" has brought us much joy and truly has been a member of our family. I am grateful for the times we had together.

But, anyone who really knows me, knows that I am not good with goodbyes. I get attached and have trouble letting go.

Still, I know, for Dante's sake, that I have to let go. I need to say goodbye.

And somehow, tomorrow, I will do that. And, I will put on that brave face and comfort my kids who only "sort of" understand what is going on.

As for tonight, I'll remember the good times and likely continue to feel a little sorry for myself. After all, Dante was my first "real" pet (fish don't really count) and he's always kind of been "my" dog.

Oh and I'll keep looking at old pictures that remind me of the good times with Dante, because I suspect I won't be getting a lot of sleep tonight, anyway.

I'll include a few of the best ones here.

When I was pregnant with Meg, a then (hard to believe) small Dante used to sit in my lap and rest his head on my baby belly. He was actually the first one to "know" I was in labour.

We were worried that he might be jealous or rough around the kids, but he was always great with them.

He even let the kids dress him up from time to time. Wasn't he a handsome cat?!?

We're going to miss you, Dante, old buddy. And, we'll never forget you. I promise.

When it Comes to Egg Hunts ...

we don't mess around! At least, Jadon doesn't :)

So, it Looks Like It's Project Time Again

For as long as we've lived in our house, it seems we've always had a home reno project on the go. Playroom, backyard play structure, basement, deck ... something.

It's just how we roll, I guess.

Except, for various reasons, we haven't really been working on much during the past year.

But, that's about to change.

With spring upon us, we've decided to take on a little more than just our usual (and desperately needed) annual clean and purge.

We have decided to turn the present playroom into the boys' room, complete with new floors, built-in beds and an elevated reading nook.

Meghan has decided that she wants to move into the boys' current room. Her plan involves a new (non-pink) colour scheme and a loft bed.

And Meg's bedroom will soon become the new office/guest room.

So, of course, we are going to do it all at once. With any combination of the three kids sleeping in any of the three rooms (or somewhere else entirely) depending on what stage we're at.

It's going to be a messy and chaotic adventure, and, the whole prospect, even though it will involve a lot of work, has the family pretty excited.

But, I can't help feeling a little sad about the changes, too.

Even though it felt fantastic to finally get the train table out of the house, I have to admit I'm a little hesitant about saying goodbye to the playroom.

I am going to miss all the fun we had in that room as much as I'm going to miss our little log cabin and slide.

Still, I do think the space is going to end up being a fantastic room for the boys and can't wait to see the finished product.

As for Meg, I understand why she's ready to be done with the pink, but I don't get why she wants to move out of the room with the window seat (one of the many home reno projects we've undertaken over the years).

We tried to convince her to go with a fresh coat of paint, but she is determined to have a loft bed with a desk underneath and that just won't work in her current room.

Oh well, her loss is (eventually) my gain, as I am sure I will enjoy the new office when it's finally done.

As for the boys' room, it really is ready for a change. In addition to finally taking out the train table and Thomas toy box, it's way beyond time to get rid of the cartoony cars border. I suspect tearing that stuff off will be both rewarding and therapeutic.

So, that's what we have on tap for the next month or two -- cleaning, purging, floor installation, construction, painting and moving (kids and furniture).

When we're done, there will be less junk in our house and all three kids will (hopefully) be happy because they have funky, age-appropriate bedrooms.

And, if I'm on the ball, you'll see the occasional progress update here.

Oh, and if you happen to come by our house, please excuse the mess -- I suspect things are going to be even more chaotic than usual.

Let the changes begin ...