New Home of the Braves

Jackson is a Brave! Today was the first day for the Fall BlastBall baseball season. Jackson was anxious to get to his first practice and meet his new team...although I think he assumed that his team and past teammates would be the same. After a few shy moments he got right out there and tossed the ball around with his good old mom (Drew was helping his Dad tile his bathroom). Things were chaotic for a little bit, as you might assume they would be with a bunch of 3 and 4 year olds, but all of the kids had so much fun. It also seemed like a really nice group of parents too, which I am excited about. I spent some time talking to one mother and her father, both of who were LDS....original hometown somewhere in Idaho and had lived for some time in SLC too. It looks like we are in for a good baseball season all around.

Let's go BRAVES!

Hotter'N Hell....Literally

Drew did it...and Jackson and I are so proud of him!!

Since I moved to TX in 2000 I have heard about this Hotter'N Hell thing from Drew. It all sounded crazy to me....cycling a 100 mile course during the middle of August, which is generally the hottest time of the summer. Well, as a last minute entry, Drew and his friend from work, Otto, decided that they were going to attempt the 100 mile race. Mind you, you have to reach "Hell's Gate" or the 60 mile mark by 12: 30 (they moved it up to noon this year because of the temps) or you can't complete the full 100m!! I believe the race started at 7:30 and Drew finished right around 3pm. There were trucks with trailer beds behind them driving up and down the course picking up those who couldn't handle the heat. Craziness!!!

Congrats to Drew who made the full 100 miles, and did it all on a 95 degree TX day!!

Busy Weekend....Again!

Well, this home improvement stuff just never ends. This weekend, while watching the Olympics, Drew and I finally put up the curtains and pictures in our living room area. The pictures that I have attached don't do the room justice....not to mention that the color is off due to the lighting and the room looks really small due to the angle that I had to stand at (I promise that our wall color is not pea green :). Jackson was a big helper...he brought in the curtains and the curtain rods so that Drew could put them up. It was certainly a family event!

I bought these really cute music sheet framed artwork, which we hung above each of the windows, from Pottery Barn Kids...somehow they were perfect for our living room. Also, I was crafty and made "The Power Family" sign after seeing something similar at Mike and Maria's house. You can't tell from the glare, but it has a distressed look to it. Kind of ties in the antiquey feel of the room. Now all we need for this room is a large entertainment center so that we can hide the TV and corresponding equipment.

I can't wait for the reactions of those who get to see the room in person!

Can't Get Enough of Phelps!

It used to be that gymnastics was the main event that everyone anxiously waited for when the Olympics rolled around. I have to admit, gymnastics has brought me very little viewing pleasure....fun to watch, but no where as exciting as Olympics past. What has been the highlight in this household is the swimming events. How could you not want to watch our U.S. team...not to mention being captivated by Michael Phelps and his multiple gold medal and WR wins!! What an awesome guy who appears to be extremely humble about his tremendous abilities as a swimmer. He has three more to go...let's see if he can bring home a total of 8 medals during the Beijing Olympics. Go Phelps!

By the way....and this is totally for Maria....Jackson's favorite event has been all of the equestrian events (and boxing, but we won't go into that). Can't wait to visit you guys in Idaho and get that kid on a horse!!

Goodbye Brown...Hello Bungalow Blue

Well, we did....we decided to paint our bedroom blue. Bungalow Blue to be exact. We spent the morning on Saturday prepping the walls....taping the crown and baseboards, removing outlet covers and moving furniture away from the walls. Then it was off to Lowes for paint and supplies. Drew and I began painting around 6:30 and finished up around 11:30 that night. It was a long night, but one so worthwhile when we got to see the end result.

The walls are a gorgeous blue color...it reminds me of a color that you would find on the walls of a colonial home. Now begins the long process of finding the perfect bedding set and curtains in order to complete our new look! We are so happy that we went with our gut instinct to change the color while the motivation was there. Once again, though, we have vowed that it will be years until we paint again (shhh...don't tell Drew that I am thinking about painting our guest bedroom : )

To Paint or Not to Paint...That Is the Question!

When Drew, Jackson and I bought our home almost a year ago to this date we knew that we had a HUGE project on our hands. Not only did ALL of the flooring have to be replaced, but the entire house had to be painted as well (smokers really do wonders on a home). It took A LOT of time to paint the entire house, and up until this week we weren't even done (our friend just finished all of the doors and trim on Monday). Both of us vowed it would be years before we would ever touch a paintbrush again!

Drew and I might be crazy, but we are already talking about changing some of the wall colors. Let's step back a few days and I will tell you how this crazy conversion began. The day that Shawn finished painting the crown in our bedroom I brought out this beautiful comforter set and curtains that I had bought for the room. Let's just say....Drew wasn't a fan : ( I'll admit, I wasn't crazy about the look either. The khaki color that we had painted the walls (see picture above for a sample of the paint color) made the whole room look a bit drab considering that the carpet in that room is a similar color. Even though we lack a beautiful comforter, curtains and artwork, we are beginning to doubt our color choice.

So the question for the day, family and friends....do we paint or leave things as is : )

(this is the blue color we are thinking about...???)

Green ever after all of those 100+ degree days!

Somehow, even though we have had weeks worth of 100+ degree weather, Drew and I have managed to keep the front lawn and garden beautiful and green. It has been hard work, but really worthwhile in the long run. Oh, and I guess I should give most of the "green" credit to the sprinkler system (we've had to run it every other day) and some Texas specific fertilizer.

Now, let me tell you about what has been the biggest pain and the biggest challenge for us in terms of keeping the yard looking green. If you look closely at the pictures above you will notice that there are a lot of pine needles scattered on the sidewalk. Let me tell you about that!! We have 5 very large pine trees in our front yard that refuse to stop dropping their dead pine needles. Every other day I am able to fill up at least one garbage can or large black garbage can with those pine needles....every other day I am out there with rake in hand trying to get them off of our front lawn. If they were to go unraked, our lawn would be completely covered within a week. Talk about a dead looking lawn!

All-in-all, even through the heat and the massive piles of pine needles, I believe that I have discovered a new hobby/interest in life. This is the first home where I have truly been passionate about the yard care and gardens. I am already formulating ideas for what I can plant next spring! Oh, and Drew is thinking about attempting to grow a vegetable garden in the backyard (I am out on that idea)!!!

For all you bloggers and digital scrapbookers out there!

I just discovered my new favorite digital photo album website...Blurb (http://www.blurb.com/). This is a site where you can create your own photo album using their free downloadable software. From what I have seen so far, I believe that it is a step up from Shutterfly or Kodak's sites. But, be warned...I am basing my opinion solely on what I have seen online.

But wait....it gets better!!! This company also has the ability to upload your blogs and publish them into a book!! I was just thinking last night that "blogging" is almost like keeping a journal. What better way to hold onto those precious words, thoughts and moments in your life than being able to publish what you wrote. I have decided that at the end of each year I will have my blog published into book format via this site.....I'll let you know how it turns out at the end of 2008!

One step closer to the finish line......

No, I am not talking about running a race (although I really should lace up my running shoes and hit the scorching pavement in this 105 degree weather that we have been having). Officially we are one big step...maybe even a leap...closer to finishing the complete remodel of our home that we purchase almost a year ago to the day!!!


In the past two months we have had the doors refinished, painted and hung, crown molding and baseboards have been installed in the downstairs (long story about that if you ever care to know), and just last week we finally tiled the kitchen floor. It has been a challenge, to say the least, living without a kitchen for the past year....but now I feel like we are making excellent progress towards the completion of the kitchen by having the floor installed.


Drew is the man and did an unbelievable tiling job....one of his best by far! Below are the before and after shots of what the floor looked like prior to the tile (concrete slab before...beautiful tile after). Don't mind the junked out look of the kitchen.....one day it will be beautiful and no one will know the better : ) I can't wait for that day!!!

Ninaja Warrior - What Is the Appeal for Men and Boys Alike??

Several months ago I caught Drew watching Ninja Warrior on the channel G4. It was never a planned or TIVO'd TV event, but if he was flipping through the channels and it happened to be on Drew would certainly have to stop and watch. I had to ask myself, is it the actual challenges that the competitors are faced with, or the high drama Chinese speaking announcer that creates the allure for the viewer. Well, I still don't have the answer. But what I can tell you is that while flipping through the channels yesterday, Jackson made me stop when he saw that Ninja Warrior was on!!! I know that he has watched it before with Drew, but I had to laugh in amazement that it had the same pull on a 3 year old little boy as it does on a 32 year old adult daddy.