Basement, finally completed!

So, we finally got the basement completed. Here's a couple of photos:

As well as some photos of Bryan's pride and joy, which he just completed overhauling. Isn't it wonderful? It sounds great, too!

Drawings from Michelle

One of my dearest friends sent me the surprise of all surprises the other day. I gave her a batch of photos of Katy a couple of years ago, and I just received two of the most wonderful drawings a few days ago. I haven't gotten them framed yet, but I rolled them out on the kitchen table Here they are, with an area "zoomed in" on each:

Drawing 1:

Drawing 1 close-up:

Drawing 2:

Drawing 2 close-up:

Aren't these the coolest??

Thanks, Shel!!!

Just a cute cuddly moment

I peeked into the living room to check on Katy this morning and found her in the middle of a cuddly moment with Kip. Aren't they both cute?

More progress on the house

So, we've nearly finished the basement renovation. All that remains to be done is to get that last final layer of drywall dust cleaned up and to get some carpet installed. I am SO happy to have a space of my own that I can claim permanently! Hooray!

Happy New Year!

Antique store find

Please be forewarned: This is a silly post. I know that, but I don't care. There might be a rare few people out there who "get it," but I realize they number but a few.

Most won't understand, and I am okay with that.

These are two of the silliest, happiest buys of the holiday season for me. I stumbled upon these inexpensive Pyrex beauties in a local antique store today, and just had to have them. Five minutes and eleven bucks later, and I am the proud owner of some old Pyrex bowls.


I brought them home, cleaned them up, and set them on the counter. I couldn't bring myself to put them in the cabinet, so I just think I'll leave them out for a while so I can look at them whenever my heart needs a little lift.

They really make me smile.

Merry Christmas!

Santa has come and gone from our house, and he was very generous this year. I snuck in a photo of the Christmas tree, post-Santa's arrival and before Katy could demolish it.

Here's a quiet moment at the end of the day, after a long day of playing with all the toys that Santa (and Nana and Papa!) delivered. I think even the dogs were exhausted, and so they got some good quality sofa cuddling time. Bryan (wisely) opted for the recliner and got to play photographer instead.

Randy looks thrilled to join in the silliness, as she "goes to her quiet place" while Katy dresses her up in some of her new Christmas finery.

Hope that Santa treated everyone similarly wonderfully, and I wish you the happiest and healthiest of New Years!

Robin.

Ch-ch-changes

There have been lots and lots of changes in the house in the past 18 months. As evidence, I present the formal living room, prior to closing:



And then the newly painted and designated dining room:

And finally, the close-enough-to-call-it-done dining room:

I love a good happy ending!

Merry XMas,

Robin.

Reminiscing...

I'm at a conference tonight, and practicing avoidance of the work I SHOULD be doing. Instead, I have been playing with a few photos, and I had some fun memories as I scanned through a bunch of old layouts. Hope you enjoy them too!

At Summer's Farm

Last weekend we had a great time at the pumpkin patch. Katy raced from place to place to place, and it was a great time, trying to keep up and snap a few photos.

Fall is amazing in Maryland.

Nothing more beautiful

I love kid's drawings...always have. But when it's your own daughter holding the pen, it almost makes your heart hurt to see them. Here's a sampling of some of the drawings I stumbled upon in Katy's Spanish notebook tonight.

Too Cool!

Princess for a day

What little girl wouldn't love to have her class photos taken in a princess costume? Well, Katy's dream came true a few weeks ago. I am firmly convinced that, for the brief few minutes that she was in front of that camera, she totally believed she was a princess!

...and I loved the results!

Things that make me smile

Things that I am loving right now:

1. Katy on the cusp of literacy. "Mom, want to see? I drew my ABCs and 123s."

(...and she did!)

2. the coveted purple leotard. She's been in it all weekend, including bedtime. Yuck!

3. Backyard patio, completed. I love that the patio has increased our "living space" so much and seems to blur that line between outside and inside in the side yard. Our sweet neighbor, who grew up in this house, gave me a bunch of monkey grass and hostas (and some other plants!) this weekend, as she thinned her gardens. It made the dogwood in the patio look like it's been there for a long time!

4. Randy, just hanging in the backyard. As most of you probably know, she's a 12 year-old retired military working dog that I took care of several years ago while I was in Korea. She travelled half-way across the world to come live with us just about 6 weeks ago. She's loving life as a house pet, and she's completely spoiled rotten already. In fact, she's curled up next to me on the couch right now. Did I accuse Bryan of being the softie in my last post? (*raising hand*) Well, I'm guilty as well.

5. Bryan, who is incapable of letting an entire weekend go without starting a new project, despite my pleas to just relax a bit. He started (and nearly completed) a footbridge over the tree that blocks an easy path from the backyard to the side yard. I think he's enjoying having a creative project to play with, and I think it will be cute when it's completed.

6. Lying under the huge river maple in the side yard, watching the helicopters float to the ground, on a nice cool early fall day. I love that tree, and I love this time of year in Maryland. It's the perfect way to end a nice lazy weekend day!

Have a happy Sunday!!