Paint the Walls Green

Four years ago, we had a plan for the changes we wanted to make to our house.  We were SURE of our plan and went out and bought paint for the master bedroom.  One can of Oakmoss and two cans of Guacamole.  They were lovely.  

Then, the plan changed.  The paint cans went down into the basement, then they got dusty, then they got pushed into the back corner.  Oh well, great plans always change.  

Fast forward a few years, and a few plans, and those cans of paint finally got dragged back out.  They even got opened!

And got painted on the walls of a very different master bedroom. 

There it is, the oakmoss paint:

I'm still in love with it.

And, as I type this post, all the painting in the house is finished - bedroom, closets and living room.  Now, while Aaron is finishing the doors and trims I can start to decorate.  If a little bit of oakmoss paint can make me happy, hanging stuff on top of the green paint will make me ecstatic!

Gratitude

That's my brother-in-law, Jeremy.  He's a carpenter, handy man, and all-around good guy.  He came up for a week and helped Aaron out with the beginning stages of our massive project.  Then he went away to Africa for almost two months to check out a possible location for he and my sister to serve as missionaries.  When he got back to the States, he got started doing some remodeling jobs he had lined up.

Then, one day he happened to notice that our remodeling project was not progressing very speedily and he started showing up at our house to help out.  I should mention that he's a pretty busy guy who lives more than an hour away.  And it isn't like he was just sitting around his home, twiddling his thumbs and thinking deep thoughts.  He's a generally pretty well booked (I saw his calendar).  But, he showed up anyway.

Suddenly, the drywall was getting finished, walls were primed and wood trim started appearing.  Not only did he work like a mad man inside, but to "take a break" he raked the front yard.  He even made time to have a nephew-uncle outing.  God really blessed us with this addition to the "Schouten Inlaw Society."

Thanks so much Jeremy!  Not only did you get a lot of work done yourself, you also gave us new energy for the final stage of this project.  I'm thinking of naming that closet the "Jeremy B. Memorial Closet" in your honor, as a perpetual reminder of how much we owe you (and a few other people, too).

A Few Thoughts on Bibs

I have four kids, so I feel like I am a bit of an expert on the subject of bibs.  When you've served as many meals as I have, you kinda get a feel for the subject, ya-know-what-I-mean?  I have a few general complaints: 

1) Most bibs are too small.  They may do fine in covering the postage stamp area directly below the chin, but they miss those areas like the rib cage, stomach, and lap.

2) Most bibs are pastel in color, with maybe a cute saying, but no pattern.  No matter how expert of a laundress you may be, those cute pink or pale blue bibs turn grubby grayish-brown awfully fast.

So, I started making my own bibs about half-way through the bib stage of my second kid.  They are still in pretty decent shape, and since I used fabric with bright and dark colors, they aren't that grubby.  HOWEVER, they are definitely on the girly side, so I had to make some new ones before "Chubba" (as his big sister calls him) could officially begin eating his first solid foods.  If these don't hide banana stains, I don't know what will:

So, the moment to try oatmeal mush for the first "official" taste finally arrived.  I say "official" because he has "technically" tasted it several times already, but since there were no pictures of those events, they didn't really happen.

Here we go - first taste:

Thinking.....thinking.....

and the verdict is...."MORE, MORE, MORE!!!!"

Yep, solid foods are a definite go with this little guy.  I'm sure the bib had a lot to do with it.

Brynnie's Turn To Make a Project

I try to be a fair parent.  I really do.  But, I guess with Ian doing all sorts of "stuff" for school, Brynnie was feeling a bit left out.  She's been asking and asking to do several different projects and I have continued to put her off.  One project that she particularly wanted to try was inspired by her first invitation to a baby shower.  The Shower Hostess had decorated the tables with very cute pink tissue paper flowers and the little hostess-wannabee decided she HAD to have some for her tea parties.  When another "not right now, Brynnie" brought on a flood of tears, my guilty conscience hinted that maybe bedtime wasn't an absolute essential that night.

We folded,

fluffed

and celebrated the results.

I guess I'm forgiven for dawdling...at least for now.  But I better not keep her waiting too long for the next project.