Winter Festival

The boy's school puts on a Winter Festival each year. As the enrollment has grown, it's become increasingly difficult to get everyone together in one place. This year, the festival was at the lovely Gerding Theatre in the Pearl. Very posh, and actually more convenient that one would think. The streetcar runs from school to the theatre.

The boy's cheering committee scored front row seats, thanks to Travis. We watched Ben introduce his class, in Spanish. He sang and danced beautifully. He seems to genuinely enjoy performing.



Ry seems to genuinely enjoy being contrary (see evidence below). I think the waiting for his class to start (he sat with us through all of the first grade classes and special performances by other classes), and a general anxiety about not knowing what was going to happen, made him a little cranky. We negotiated his participation and he was finally starting to enjoy himself by the time his gorilla dance ended.

I think now that he knows what to expect, he'll be ready for the next show. He even asked if he could use the microphone to do the talking next time. And, if the next dance has anything to do with grumpy looks, he's got it down already.

The Envelope Please ...

After much discussion, sliding of samples around in the kitchen and strategic adjustments for poor lighting, we opted for the Hickory Bourbon. It was pretty and not quite as red. Auntie C pointed out that the rest of the floors in the house already have the hand-scraped, dog claw worn, bikes ridden in the house look (or something like that) and that we could just try to match the stain rather than replacing the rest. Very clever.

Then I went to order the Bourbon and discovered the Spice was $1.80 cheaper per square foot. Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner. Hickory Spice ordered and on it's way tomorrow with the potential to be here by Friday ... please appreciate the self-restraint that went into writing that last statement and not referencing the Spice Girls. Anyway, here's a reminder of the pretty floor headed our way:

Our cabinets are supposed to be here on Tuesday. Anyone want to come assemble them? Anyone, anyone? The range is also on its way and could potentially be delivered as soon as next Wednesday, two days before Christmas. Sweet present, eh?

So, progress continues. The contractor continues with electrical upgrades, plumbing upgrades and patching, sanding and general beautification of the kitchen. There's hope!

And the Winner Is ...

Much thanks for your contributions to the selection process. Sorry if your preference didn't win. As Ben would say, "That happens sometimes."

More chances to vote coming soon ...

Floored by the Options

Now we must pick a floor. I toured Floor Factors today on the advice of our contractor. I was much impressed with their customer service, their selection and their price (the best part). Here are the contenders:

Maple "Del Rio"

Pecan

Brazilian Cherry

Hickory Spice

Hickory Bourbon

All are 5" wide and are hand scraped engineered floating wood floors. The bottom two are more eco-friendly (but also twice the cost). The Brazilian is being discontinued, which is a bummer if we wanted to use it in the rest of the house.

Thoughts?

The Beauty of a Contractor

So, we started the day like this. Well, mostly like this. The beloved espresso machine was on the counter there above the dishwasher and the toaster was plugged in so we could make some breakfast. Then I cleared off the counters and revealed more open space than has been seen since we moved in, 11 years ago.

See, vast expanses of openness. Despite the 1949 Formica, the avocado green sink and the hide glue on the walls, it's almost appealing. Almost.

I left home to pick up Ben from school and take him to guitar lessons. I returned home to find the heinous sink in my driveway, and the image below. Even more open area. In fact, the boys discovered it made an excellent dance floor. The echoes helped.

Isn't it glorious in all its hideousness?

Gerdie the wonder fridge was disassembled and relocated to the dining room, along with the much used and much loved espresso machine and the toaster.

The "two days in and potentially greatest contractors ever" moved and reinstalled the fully functional but ugly (and not so clean) stove to the basement, next to the newly installed brew sink. Yes, those are the dishes waiting for Travis.

Yay! No more brewing mess in the kitchen. I think the placement of the stove next to the treadmill might be a message, but it's one I'm choosing to ignore.

Sadly, the real dishwasher sits unused (sigh) and alone in a corner of the basement. Travis sits alone on the couch.

Can't wait to see what happens while I'm gone tomorrow!

A Pair of Troublemakers

"Ry, where are your socks?" I asked, on a very chilly Sunday morning.

"They are in time out."

"Why?" I inquired.

"Because they keep kicking me on my booty."

Countertop Conundrum

Finally getting on track with the kitchen. We hired someone to help us and are pretty stoked to be moving forward. I've gotten a quote for the countertops that I really liked. They are in my budget, so I'm pretty happy. It's a big chunk of the budget, but it's a doable chunk. But, now I must make a decision. I'm rather partial to color, so I've selected two fairly bright options. Both would look lovely atop our white cabinets.

The first option is Apple Martini and it looks a little like this:

The second is the original Ocean Blue that we were so drawn to originally:

Please take a moment to post your favorite.