When Macy got her new little playhouse, I wanted all the "extras" like the sink, stove, washer, etc. We found most of them, and the rest that go with the set I hope to find on Craig's List. There was one problem though. The set doesn't come with a fridge! What?! That is so weird to me and especially when we got some play food (more on that later...) and it didn't fit anywhere! You can't keep your food in the sink! The oven can hold some things, but not all. So, I decided to "make" a fridge! This is what I came up with. I found a wooden chest at Joann's for $24, so using my half-off coupon, it was 12 and the paint was 89 cents and I used 4 bottles. The sealer was $4 with my half-off coupon, though I found it at the dollar store the next day (boo!). Anyways, a little more than I would have liked to spend, but I think it turned out pretty good- matching all the other pieces and providing storage. I think it's cute! Macy loves it! ( I have to say- my fav part is the "fridge magnets") =)
Yay! I am so excited to post my first real project. I have been obsessing about blogs (thanks, Brit...) for about two weeks now. I never realized before that you could just read anyone's blog and that girls are out there posting tutorials and awesome ideas just to help! I'm new to blogs, needless to say. Anyways, I have been wasting hours everyday going from one blog to the next, one link party to the next, and I saw a wonderful idea at Domestically-Speaking.com (how do you put links into posts- anyone?). I have been wanting and Easter wreath and loved this idea and took my own spin on it. I bought this "tray" at Goodwill for $2.50 and the moss at the Dollar Store. I had the eggs and twine and paints (which I had also bought at the dollar store for a previous project). So this project cost $3.50! I am pretty proud of it! What do you think?
Noooo!!! Blog exploring is very, very bad- I keep finding awesome blogs that have such cool stuff that I can't resist the idea of making the stuff myself...someday. I just found the coolest website about this girl who uses old sweaters to make the cutest clothes for her kids, hats, purses, and just about anything. Thrift store here I come! (someday...I have eighty hundred other crafts half-way done to do first...but this one saves money, so can it be an exception?)The site is:
First of all, I wrote the "downer" post first and then the happy post- why is it saying they were posted on the day the other was? Any thoughts bloggers?
Second of all, I just have to say I am SOO freaking excited about the website I found today!! It's:
I hope the link works- I've never done a link before...Austin may need to help me. Anyways, I am excited because these ladies who live in the Concord-ish area wrote a book about all the fun stuff there is to do in the surrounding area for kids 5 and under!! It really is exactly what I need right now! New things to do and places to go. It has lots of free things to do and the cost things seem to be $10 at the most? The best part is that you can download the pdf of the book of FREE!! There is a 2.0 version that they sell for $10 on the website, but the original version is freaking free!!
I think the first thing we might try is going to the Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF)(cute huh?) place in Walnut Creek- it's free for lots of days and so fun for Macy to see all the animals I bet!! I hope anyone who reads this will be excited too and want to come with me! Everything's better with friends! Yay!
So, I totally need to post about my awesome Valentines day so it doesn't seem like I'm such a whiny baby about everything, but today I feel very whiny and that I just want to complain. Busy season is really starting to get to me. I am trying really hard to keep myself and Macy busy, but all the running around to the library, music time, all the different parks, walks, stores that I take her to to keep engaged just wear me out. I am sick of doing those things. I just want to sleep and not have to get up five thousand times a night and not have to wake up at 5 am. I have been thinking that Macy was going to transition from 2 naps to 1 any day now and today, after staying up until 12:30 last night to clean my house, which had no affect on anyone at all and was therefore pointless, she decided that today was the day she would drop the 1st nap- you know, the one I need her to take so I get to actually get more than 3 hours of sleep for the whole day. This could explain why I'm grumpy... Another reason could be because the house sucks all the time because when I don't have parenting back-up, I just can't handle anything by the end of the day- it makes me crazy when my house is like this (hence the cleaning last night- but boy am I paying for it with this monster headache I have and my wonderfully pleasant mood). Macy is so busy. She consumes my life and I can give it all to her most of the time, but not today. It is so hard to explain how my life ( and I feel like maybe a lot of mom's?) is so hectic and stressful for me taking care of this baby trying to help her learn and having to do every single freaking thing for her, and yet I feel so bored all the time. Bored isn't the right word, but I don't really know how to say it. Every week we do the same things and I change the same diapers and cook dinner over and over and just blah, blah, blah. I am happy that I haven't been feeling this way as much as I have in the past few months, but it is really setting in with no break and no help. Today is just a bad day I guess. I'll get over it. Sorry this is such a downer post. Maybe you should have skipped reading it- maybe I'll put that as the title-I hate reading depressing things when I'm actually having a good day. I just needed to get it all out so all those thoughtsit don't keep replaying over and over in my head.
So...you probably already know this if you're reading this blog, but I am- I'll admit it- obsessed with play kitchens. You know, those little mini kitchens for kids to pretend cook? I love them. Maybe it stems back to playing with a cardboard box with marker drawings to make a stove and fridge...I always wanted the real thing. We had some family friends with kids who had all that stuff, plus power wheels and a real playhouse. The kids who have that stuff never appreciate it...
Anyways, it's not just any play kitchen, it's The Pottery Barn Kids Pink Retro Kitchen. It is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. Austin could have proposed to me with that kitchen instead of a ring. The only problem is...it's like 400 dollars for each piece in the set. The sink is 400, the stove is 400, the fridge is 400- you get the picture. What is the point of only having one piece? How can I cook my pretend stew on my pretend stove without getting pretend veggies from the pretend fridge? So, my chances of ever getting that kitchen are non- existent. I still like to visit it though, at the local store whenever I'm in Walnut Creek (though I saw they went out of business? what is that about?). ( I'm so crazy about this subject that I started writing about it by writing the above paragraphs before the event below even happened!!)
Okay, so along with this, I have also awhile ago seen commercials for the indescribable "Rose Petal Cottage" Which you can watch two commercials about here (the first video is cuter, but the second one shows the outside of the house better- sorry, I'm crazy):
Have you ever seen anything cuter in your life? So, this was also something I thought would never, ever be attainable- not only is it a whole play kitchen, but a play nursery, laundry room and sitting room! In the most adorable house that ever lived! So, yeah- I liked it a lot, but forgot about it due to the fact that we have no money, much less money to spend on a huge, expensive toy like that- it costs $400 in stores when it comes with all the stuff. So...imagine my surprise when I was at TJMaxx and saw THE Rose Petal Cottage (and all the "sold separately" items also on the shelves)- for only $140!?! I freaked out and called Austin, who was like what the heck are you even talking about and made me realize- yeah, $140 is still a lot of money, even if it is an amazing deal to come down from $400...so...I just started obsessing over that now. I went and visited it several times and looked up all the accessories and checked on Craig's List all over the country, etc. Totally crazy, I know.
The week before Valentine's Day on Saturday, one of the few Saturdays Austin has had off this month, we were running errands and I begged Austin to let us swing by to see if "my" playhouse was still there. It was and I was begging Austin if we could just get it because the price was now $99. I thought he would just remind me that that is still a lot of money- because he's right- but actually he got this really weird look on his face and was like "You're putting me in a tough situation right now" all serious and stuff. I was like huh? He was like "I guess I have no choice- I have to tell you otherwise you'll be really sad- I have to say no to this playhouse...because I already bought it for you on ebay for Valentine's Day!!!!!" Well of course I freaked out getting all loud and people probably were like what the heck? Then I bought all the accessories that TJMaxx had to offer with the last of my birthday money.Yay!!!!! I just couldn't believe that Austin did that!! I give him a lot of crap for being the "typical accountant husband" who is obsessed with our budget (he does like to be very on top of it!) but he is also the most romantic guy ever and is always doing over the top things to surprise me and make me happy. So, on Saturday before Valentine's Day, which is when we celebrated, we set it all up while Macy was sleeping and had her come out to see it!!!! It was one of those "commercial moments" I felt like. She was so funny about it though- she walked right over to it and opened the door and went it without any pause- like she was this hot shot girl who knows everything. She is so funny.
It has been one of the MOST exciting presents I have ever gotten. I am so so happy everyday when I walk out into our family room and see it. It just delights me. I can't believe that I actually have something like that! Oh, and I think Macy loves it the best too, by the way. My favorite thing yet was in the first few minutes, Macy went to the play sink and turned it "on" and "washed" her hands- Austin looked over at me and said "You were right, this is the best present ever."
...but I locked Macy in the car with my keys at 7 at night in the Pittsburg Walmart parking lot. Seven at night is dark out here. Pittsburg, for those of you not from around here, let's just say that a few months ago there was a drive-by shooting at the entrance of said Walmart. in the middle of the day. and this was night. yeah...not so good. Soooo- did I mention that I suck? I honestly don't know what happened. I left to go shopping at like 3:30- I knew it was a bad time to go out, but I had no food whatsoever and Macy's nap sched just made it that way. This was a big shopping trip because it is the beginning of the month and with our cash system, we are usually down to bare bones by the end of the month. I had to go to Winco and I had a lot of household items to get and I didn't want to drive to the other side of the world for Target (which I love), when I was driving right past Walmart on the way to Winco. So, I took forever at Walmart because I was trying to decide on what to get for a shower gift (I guess I'm a little obsessive compulsive about gifts) and so it was getting late and Macy was not so happy that I was being a crazy so I guess I was a little frazzled by the time I got to the car and somehow- honestly I really don't know how- after I put my purse/diaper bag on the front passenger seat, and Macy in her carseat, I pressed the automatic lock button. Awesome. When I tried to open the door to put my list on the seat too, I was like- "Wow. I am so awesome." Basically, I was totally freaked out as lots of homies and homeless people wandered through the parking lot as I was yelling through the glass trying to tell Macy it was okay. I called Austin right away and he called AAA and they said that it could take up to 20 minutes to get there, so they were sending the fire department too. Lovely. I just wanted to die that I had done this to my little sweet baby again in the SAME WEEK! Poor Macy was strapped in her carseat just crying for me. At least she had her sippy cup and her blankie? If only I hadn't buckled her in! One of her favorite things to do when we get home from anywhere is to press the "lock" button before we go in, so she would have know exactly what to do if she wasn't freaking TRAPPED in her carseat. So, as I waited for the circus to show up, I flagged the little rent-a-cop guy driving around in his flashing lights car and asked him if by any chance he had one of those jimmy thingys to pop open a car. He didn't speak English very well, so he didn't understand when he said he didn't have a jimmy and I said don't worry about it, I called people to come help. He said "Don't worry? I am very worried about your little baby!" Yay. Let's add to the craziness by having you park right in front of me so your flashing lights are right in my poor frantic baby's eyes. Poor Macy was just beside herself by this point. It was so maddening to not be able to do a single freaking thing. Oh, but one good point- one of the homies told me I was wearing a really nice sweater- so that was good. It was probably only about 20 minutes total- but that's a long time to a baby and to a panicked mom!- before the tow-truck guy and the fire truck pulled up together. It was quite a little show for everyone. Austin had told me too that I should expect it to be hard for the guy to get the door open because when he locked his keys in once, it took the guy like half an hour or something. Thankfully, though, the tow truck guy popped it open in five seconds! He put a little wedge in the window jam, snaked the thingy down and pop- she was free!!!! I was so happy to hold her and finally be able to comfort her! Poor little Bunny was so confused and sad! She was okay though, so that was all that was important, of course. Then, just in case you thought I still had any sanity left, let me assure you I did not because I went grocery shopping. Austin is working until midnight every night because it is busy season, and though he offered to go, I couldn't make him do that so late and tired as he was and also there were ten hundred things on my list. Macy was actually really good though, because I gave her whatever she wanted. A big thing of Sour Patch Straws? Sure! Muffins? Sure, Baby! String cheese, raisins, and croissants were also among the things I bought that I wasn't planning on, but Macy requested. Grocery shopping could be really easy if I had no rules and lots of money! We made it home unharmed, with many thank-you prayers. My friend Val came over to comfort me (we had planned to watch The Bachelor- I told Val that she would prob think I wouldn't want to anymore after all the crap, but I needed to watch it to take a break!!) and brought me cookies ( I love you, Val!). Anyways, I was telling her about this and we totally got to laughing about how maybe the first lock-down was to prepare Macy for this one. I totally do think it was good for me to have been through that at the church before it was in this horrible circumstance! We were also laughing about how poor baby was traumatized and maybe the reason why these keep happening to her is because Heavenly Father is trying to teach her patience! Ha! It kind-of worked because she was good at the grocery store! (Please don't think I am a bad mom- I really think it was quite an amazing thing that I could laugh about it so quickly afterward!) Anyways...apparently I have broken a mirror or something because this is nuts! =)
