Transformation (continued)...

I had to prime the wall with two coats because the first layer didn't cover enough of the green. But once I started adding my new color, it was love (for me - the jury is still out on whether or not Brian is going to like it!) {When I was priming the walls, Caitlin came out into the living room and said, "WOW, COOL, white walls!"}

Here's is the paint can - toasted honey this color is called. Wet it looks lighter than it really is on the wall. It's definitely brighter though and I already like it a lot. It feels so happy and energetic.

Starting layer one. The color goes on so smoothly with the primer on there. It also looked a LOT better than when I originally tried to paint over the green.

Wall one completed for first coat!

Wall two completed for first coat!

Here they are with the wall hangings up, just so I can see what I think. I really like it, but I still need to add another coat of paint as I have some "yellower" spots that you can see in person. I think it is going to look great! I'm going to paint the trim a BRIGHT white and accent with black. What do you think? Hopefully the other two walls can get done this weekend (or early next week).

Starting the transformation - primed and ready to roll...

Yeah! I'm finally painting the living room. I just wanted something brighter (lighter) since that room doesn't get a lot of sunlight and the green makes it feel darker than it should. I'm only getting started, but I'll post a few pics and then in a few days, hopefully it will be completed!

As you can see from the above photo (please excuse the TOYS - and books), the walls currently are this mossy green. I do still like this color, but it gets greener and darker in the long winter months.

I started with this wall because it's the first thing you see when you enter the house. I thought I would just get a "feel" for the new color by painting it and seeing how I like it for a few days.

But, then I looked at this lonely old wall and decided, "What the heck? Might as well prime that one too!" Hopefully, I will get both of these walls painted in their new color before Brian comes home and he can be the final decider on if the color is great or just yellow. (The new color is called "Toasted Honey" by the way.)

Swimming lessons

Here are some pictures of Caitlin's first time at swimming lessons.
Here she is with her new goggles (one of her birthday presents from Daddo). She is waiting patiently for her class to start. Doesn't she look so happy to be taking swim lessons?

What? This is the TRUE picture of how she feels. She told me that she's not afraid of swimming, she's afraid of water getting in her nose and mouth. I know EXACTLY how she feels!!! I still have to plug my nose when I jump in a pool. I never got to take swim lessons when I was little, so I'm hoping this helps her learn how to be in the water and feel a bit more confident about it.

I think she's telling Brian off in this picture. Not sure.

Here she is listening to her instructors. heh, heh.

See how she doesn't want to get her head wet? It's hard to see because I really don't want her to be afraid of the water. She loves being in the pool, or lake, or ocean, but is always afraid on the inside. We're really hoping that she gains some skills and confidence the next two weeks.

Settling in...

Here's a little better picture of Raja, lazing around on her new bed. She is doing better and better each day. She is starting to venture out around the house. Yesterday, she even had a chance to see Casey. She didn't seem all that loving towards Casey, but we will give it time.

We bought this little bed for her the other day (before we got her). It seems that she is comfortable in it and has no problem taking naps there. Caitlin was trying to give her the "royal" treatment and had a stuffed kitty in the bed, a toy, and that blue bear from Grandma Diane that was her music for relaxing. Caitlin is surely going to be a vet or else a crazy cat lady.

Here's Caitlin trying to give Raja her very own hotel room! Caitlin is just in LOVE with this little kitty and so far, Raja is purring her head off with all of us as well! The book is open so that she has something to "look at" while she is getting ready to sleep. She also has a tiny blue washcloth as a blanket. We have to pry Caitlin off this kitty most of the time. She is still learning about cat behavior vs. dog behavior. Overall, I think they are bonding quite well!

INTRODUCING...

the newest member of the family...RAJA (named after Amy's cat!). Here Brian is deciding if she would make a great addition and he AGREES. We went to PetSmart yesterday to look at the cats/kittens. Brian told Caitlin she could finally get a cat. {It was more of a bribe because she is going to take swimming lessons for the next two weeks and she's a bit afraid of that.} They actually used all the "found" money they've been saving over the past two years and came up with a whopping $28.00!!!! It's definitely not enough to get a cat these days, but we did go to a nonprofit animal adoption agency and found this beautiful little kitty.

Of course, we are holding off on introducing her to the two dogs just in case. We will do it slowly over the next few days. {You can tell Abby already smells her, but she hasn't had a chance to find her or see her yet. } Here she is on Caito's bed. She has done pretty well so far. She doesn't even seem afraid of Cody's loud yelling (though we haven't yet let him "hold" her).

She is also showing herself to be a playful cat. She definitely purred when we held her and does come out from under the bed when we are trying to coax her out. {Though she is still getting the lay of the land.}

The kiddos are having a hard time with understanding the difference between a dog's personality and a cat's. Caitlin thinks the kitty should just play with her whenever she wants and Cody thinks that he can just grab her whenever he wants. We are playing referee right now by not allowing Cody to "hold" her, only to pet her when we are with him. Caitlin is just going to have to learn about this kitty and figure out how/when she wants to play and/or interact. She is going to be a great little cat though, I can just tell.

Bounce 'em!

We went and spent a few days at nearly famous "Unca Deacon's" house down in Florence. They have a really fun trampoline and we never miss an opportunity to use it! Mackenzie (Kemzie - as Cody calls her) had fun making them bounce!

Stay in the middle...

Up, up and away!

Airborne for sure! We, as always, had a great time at the "Matthews Bed and Breakfast." We love that we can invite ourselves down there, be made to feel like invited guests, and have loads of fun every time.

One last thing...on Aunt Hilary's bed there's a pillow (I meant to take a picture of it) that says, "Guests of guests cannot bring guests!" Funny, eh?

Our old standby!

There I was, sitting on the couch watching kids' TV (PBS) when an ad for OAKS PARK comes on! I sat and thought a moment about what day it was, and when I realized it was Toddler Time Wednesday, I shot off the couch and sent the kids to wake up their Dad! We were goin' to OAKS Park! Sadly, we didn't get there as it opened, so we had to wait in that loooooooooooong line for awhile, but then we hit the first ride we saw...the Tilt-a-whirl! With Brian on one side and me on the other, we really did have that thing whirling around and around and around...

Here's proof! The kids are holding on for dear life while Brian and I are trying to keep it whirling!

Next, Cait-o and Cody hit the "big slide" with Brian.

Get ready...

Go! (I'm not sure but it doesn't look like Brian and Cody are all the way on the rug like they're supposed to be???)

Caitlin is now brave enough to go on that mini roller coaster. I think it is quite bumpy and jarring, but I'm always willing to have a ride on a roller coaster.

Here's Cody ready to roll on the roller coaster with arms raised. (It took Caitlin until almost age 5 to finally get up the nerve to ride this again, but Codes seems born for adventure.)

Caitlin has always loved this frog hopper. Look how big she seems sitting in the middle seat! Cody is over on the far (stage) left.

Up, up and away!

The lines were rather long when we were there, so we hit this airplane ride since it had a shorter line. Caitlin kept aiming at me.

Doesn't she look like she belongs in some tough girl movie?

Me and Codes - hanging out.

The second time around on the roller coaster, Caitlin wanted to ride with her Dad in the "pink" car. Cody and I were right behind in our favorite color "blue" car.

The final picture...good ole' Chipper, the chipmunk. The kids thought he/she looked awfully cuddly, but weren't sure how to go about getting a hug. They settled for a paw rub instead.

CAMPING TRIP!!!!

This was our first (of many) camping trip! We got to go with our family of campers - John & Brenda, Josiah, Sam, Caleb, Lee & Claudia (John's parents), Uncle Deacon & Aunt Hilary with Mackenzie. It was loads of fun! This is John cooking some kielbasa on night #1. Don't you love his new grill?

Here's Codes taking a brief moment to get off his bike and play with the toy cars we brought for him. That kid acted like the bike was just an extension of him.

Here he asked Uncle Deacon to "ride with me." He scooted up on his bike and told Deacon to get on with him. It was very cute.

Cait-o couldn't get enough of her bike either. Here she is taking a bike ride with Caleb. Caleb, by the way, was a star and was always up for taking his cousins for a bike ride. (So were Josiah and Sam! Thanks you guys!)

Here's Cody - tearing it up on the road. Next time we will probably try to find a camp site in the back part of the park. We were right near the exit so every few moments someone was driving out of the park. It was a little scary with our two munchkins.

Here's the gang hanging out. We finally had to put Abby in the camper. If you know Abby, you know that she barks at EVERY LITTLE THING. We even got a complaint about her. Doggone dog.

Here's Cody on our bed. We found out on this trip, that what we thought were queen sized pop-outs were actually KING SIZED. It was a wonderful discovery (except that the fitted sheets I brought were only queen sized). I had to go buy some king sized ones because our mattress pad covers are not exactly soft and comfy.

Here's Caitlin getting comfortable with her pets. She had a really great time and did NOT want to leave. (Of course she always wants to stay "one more night" regardless of where we go. She's probably going to have wanderlust like her Mom did - and still does.)

Here's me roasting a twinkie. This wasn't the amazing treat I had hoped, but I think once you pass the age of 20, you might not like twinkies in the same way you once did. I am a s'mores girl down to my core!

Here's the back side of the camping trailer. It was SO much nicer than having a tent. We also got to bike ride around a bit and walk down to the lake. All in all it was a fabulous trip and we are eager to go camping again!

Rare indeed!

With Brian mainly working swing shift, and me mainly working days, we don't get too many of the family dinner nights. When we do, it is a rare treat for us! Even though the weather has not been cooperating as of late, we still managed to eat outside (a bit chilly, but warm enough for us to last the 20 minutes it took to eat everything). Here's Cody eating his new found favorite "bone chicken." He really enjoys the chicken with my parents old sauce standby...

I LOVE this stuff. Store brand barbeque sauce just doesn't seem the same. This is simply Hunts tomato sauce, some olive oil, some balsamic and a little bit of Lawry's season salt.

Here's my little Caitlin, who is not fond of anything tomato based (don't ask me why...makes me wonder if she's mine). She does love these new tortellini pasta we found at Costco. It is quite tasty. Brian has to bribe her to eat the chicken. Seems she thinks the only kind of "good=delicious" chicken is the rotisserie kind. (She would have loved Boston Market.)