our house: upstairs

Well, 7 months later, I'm finally getting around to posting pictures of the upstairs of our house.

I posted pictures of the downstairs & attic back in August.

I always feel like I need a disclaimer whenever I post poor-quality pictures.

I've been pretty lazy about photography and haven't spent much time trying to get good indoor pics.

Consider yourselves warned.

So, heading upstairs:

Bo's room is to the right at the top of the stairs: 

Please notice his "fort" that he's been sleeping in the past few nights...

Behind the curtains is his closet (we're hoping to put doors on there someday).

Upstairs hallway:

Current "catch-all" room, and Bo's future "big boy room". 

I actually just ordered fabric for curtains yesterday! 

I'm thinking we'll strip the hockey wallpaper border, 

and paint the walls either light gray or light brown and paint the trim white.

View of the room from the opposite corner. 

This room actually isn't carpeted - it has a custom cut rug.

I think that will also go and we'll just get a big area rug.

This is the guest room - aka, the most consistently neat room of the house.

This room has a huge master closet, which I've made my little craft room for the time being.

Then we have the upstairs bathroom. This is the other room (besides the kitchen) that we've redone.

We did this back in November. Bo looks so tiny.

Before:

 Getting started peeling wallpaper:

 And I had to include this picture because it's the first time I've ever done spackling!

Granted... my dad did the lion's share, but I patched a few nail holes!

AFTER:

And finally, our bedroom.

 & closet:

Not pictured: the other side of our bedroom with wonky dressers
& overflowing box of donations for Goodwill...
and definitely not pictured: our bathroom. My humility only goes so far.

I'm wanting to do a "Young House Love" style post,
where I list everything I'd like to change about the house.
But the truth is, it's totally livable, and we're not in a rush to update.
We ARE in the process of re-doing the one room for Bo, and then we'll see what happens next!

bonsa-isms

Yep, totally mommy blog material here. 

These are just some snapshots of Bo these days for my own recollection.

1

During a moment of exasperation, I told Bo he was driving me nuts. 

He misheard me, and the next day we made the healthy choice of McDonalds for lunch.

As I offered him a chicken nugget, he exclaimed, "Driving me nuggets!"

2

We just visited Zach and Michele in NJ to see their new baby, Riley. 

We stayed in a hotel room and Bo got a queen bed all to himself.

We arrived pretty late Friday night, so he was out of it when we laid him down.

When he woke up the next morning, he sat up in bed and asked, "Whose big house is this?"

3

Bo is learning to assert his opinions... which basically means he's telling us "no" a lot,

or telling us when he does and does not want to do things.

For example, if I ask him to say his full name, he now says,

"Don't want to say Bonsa Douglas Parton."

Or I'll ask, "How old are you?" and he responds, "Don't want to say two."

The other day I said, "I love you, Bo!" and he sweetly replied,

"Stop saying that, Mommy!"

Oh, okay.

4
However, when we make a suggestion that is pleasing to Bo,
he will exclaim, "Sounds a good idea, Mommy!"

5
We haven't been able to pinpoint the exact cause of this particular exclamation,
but I think it happens when we're busy with something else and Bo wants our full attention.
Regardless, the most recent occurrence was when I was doing dishes and Bo told me,
"Mommy, wake up!"

6
Bo loves the animated Disney movies Aristocats and Robin Hood.
He also loves watching Curious George.
Often, when we're in the car, he'll pipe up a memory of one of those 3 shows
and laugh, "That part is so funny!"
..

Ah, the fun and frustration of a 2-and-a-half-year old!

recently i'm... [33]

Excited About:

Robert & Bailey moving to NY!

Although, I also know that it will be hard for them to leave their beloved West,

selfishly, I'm so excited to have them close & for Bo to have his future cousin close!

Anxious For:

Spring. Spring? Will it ever arrive?

We had a wonderful taste of it today - 52 degrees calls for an impromptu picnic!

Planning:

Bo's "big boy room"...

We took the side off his crib after he climbed out a few times!

Didn't want any midnight excursions resulting in a trip to the ER...

So, now I'm in the process of brainstorming his room, rather than his nursery.

Mixed-emotion sigh.

Reading:

Um, ashamedly not much these days. 

Re-reading The Meaning of Marriage by Keller for a girls' group...

I still haven't gotten a library card... because I still haven't gotten a NYS license... oops.

Listening to:

All Sons & Daughters, on repeat. Especially Oh How I Need You.

Cooking:

More Pinterest successes!

Pan-Seared Scallops with Cilantro-Lime Sauce

One Pot, Seven-Veggie Minestrone Soup

BBQ Pork Pitas with Coleslaw

Baking:

Um. This is another shameful area of my life recently. 

I haven't been doing much baking! I want to make Manda's amazing PB cup cookies...

I need Doug to take another Man-Trip to the Adirondacks so I can make them.

Working:

Almost the end of our busy season at work - I can see the light at the end of the tunnel!

Excited to find out how much Katy & I saved our clients again this year!

Crafting:

Well, I randomly decided to try painting.

The results are very juvenile, but I think they're cheery & fun.

Okay, the end for now. 

Trying to get back into the blogging routine, but I'm not making any real promises!

bald for bucks

Often, family and friends of people fighting cancer will shave their heads in solidarity.

Recognizing that, Roswell Park decided to step it up a notch.They started an event called 

Goin' Bald for Bucks, in which participants raise money for shaving their heads.

This year, they had over 50 participants and raised over $50,000 - 

all of which goes to patient care and cancer research.

On March 3rd, my sisters shaved their heads at Goin' Bald for Bucks.

They did this in honor of my father's successful battle,

our grandparents and family friends who have had cancer.

(The quality of these is horrible... there was a lot of neon, a lot of fluorescent lighting

& a lot of inexperienced photography on my part.)

The girls' hair was long enough that they were able to donate it to Locks of Love.

I love Bo's face in this picture: who are these crazy girls?!

I'm so proud of my sisters & 

so grateful for Roswell and all they do in the effort to erase cancer!