Kelley’s Place

We were thinking about going camping over the labor day weekend but after the temperatures dropped Friday into the 50’s (colder at night) we decided to scratch that idea. We decided that if we couldn’t do that we should finally buckle down and do our remodeling project in the office.

Our office (or could be used as a fifth bedroom) is the only room we haven’t remodeled on the first floor. We basically haven’t been able to decide on what to do because it is all thick wood paneling on the walls. But, we finally chose to paint over it all.

So, we got up early this morning and work pretty much strait though the day finishing at about 10pm!
We were really hoping to get everything done in one day but we still have a few things to get finished up tomorrow.

What we did:
-took down the old panel ceiling and ceiling light
-pulled down all the nails (hundreds and hundreds of them from the ceiling tiles!)
-took off all the light and outlet covers
-painted the wood panel walls, and built in bookshelf, ceiling trim (taking 3 coats to cover wood)
-put up new dry wall for the ceiling (thankfully Mike came over and helped with this because the drywall sheets were SO heavy!)
-installed new ceiling fan/light fixture

still to do:
-finish up painting trim and bookshelf
-tape and mud seams on drywall, then paint ceiling
-install two new windows (waiting for those to come in, they have to be special ordered)

I think we might have been able to do more with a little less help from two little people underfoot all day. But, really the kids were great. They understood we were trying to get this project done so they played nicely together much of the day.
I am happy with getting so much done, but Jason and I are both so tired now. I hope we can muster the energy to finish the rest up tomorrow. I will put up before and after pictures soon.

I know, I know, I really shouldn’t have a whole post devoted to a story about poop. It’s so gross, it’s so disgusting, it’s so something I should not be talking/writing about! Wait a minute, I’m a mom of two little kiddos…things having to do with poop consumes about half of my waking hours (and even some of my should-be-sleeping- hours as well!)!

So, how can I not stop to write a little something about my potty training blunders!?

Yesterday, I purchased a few big Rubbermaid containers to store some of the kid’s toys in the playroom. But before the even made it to the playroom Joshua had to use the bathroom bad (apparently really bad) and he found a different use for my new, clean, pretty pink containers!

When he told me he had to use the potty I thought the bathroom door was open and he could go right in but someone one had closed the door and he couldn’t open it himself. Joshua knew he wasn’t supposed to go in his underwear so the next best idea was to climb right in my container and use that as his makeshift porta-potty! He came right to me afterwards and confessed”. :/

The little guy knows how to improvise anyways! Oh the joys of potty training!

Has anyone ever tried making there own laundry detergent, dishwasher detergent, and hand soap before? I would have never really though about it until I read about all the chemicals that are in the store bought kinds. I have always wondered how we could use dishwasher detergent to clean our dishes when it says on the back of the container that if you swallow any of it call poison control right away… I just hope that my dishwasher rinses all the soap off really well!

I searched and found out that it seems to be common for people to make their own, natural soap recipes.
I would like to try this soon (now lets see if I actually find the time to…). First I will have to buy some of this Dr.Bronner’s Sal Suds on Amazon because it is the staple to all these recipes.

Homemade dishwasher Detergent

1/2 c. Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds
1/2 c. water
1t. lemon juice
3 drops tea tree oil
1/2 c. white vinegar

1T. per load, recipe makes 12-15 loads ( costing .05-.06 cents per load).

Dishwashing/hand soap

Mix 1/2 c. Dr.Bronner’s w/ 3-4 c. water

Homemade Laundry Detergent

1c. Dr.Bronner’s Sal Suds
2 c. water
1/3 c. salt
1 c. baking soda (or washing soda)
vinegar as needed

Warm salt and bs in water until dissolved< transfer to 1 gal container, add soap and fill the rest of the container up with more water.
use 1/4 - 1/2 c per load, add 1T vinegar during rinse cycle (for fabric softener and disinfectant) (don’t use any essential oils)
Recipe makes about 64 loads (@1/4 c. per load) (cost about $4 total or .06 cents per load).

*I also heard that this recipe is fine for front load washers and for washing cloth diapers in.
I will have to try just a little out at first to see if this is true. I don’t want to ruin anything!

This is the first year of our feast countdown kick-off party. I hope to make in a yearly tradition. We are all getting very excited for the Feast in Florida coming in a few weeks. To keep the kid’s questions of “is it Feast time yet” as bay I thought I’d have this little party to prepare them.
I made a rainbow cake, little banner, and a colorful paper chain for the “party”.
We ate dinner and talked a little about the Feast. Then we all had cake while I explained to them about how the paper chain works (one link for each day until the feast, and that they could take one off daily, when the links are all gone the Feast will be here, etc.). They loved it and are excited to make the paper chain much, much smaller.

(please excuse my disastrous house in this picture!)

I love making Rainbow cakes with kids. It is perfect for me because it’s not that hard!
Take you favorite white cake recipe (I always use my mom’s recipe (for cake and frosting) that she used for our birthday cakes growing up) and split it up into four-six different bowls. Then mix a few drops of food coloring into each bowl making each a different, bright color.
After that put each color of batter into the center of the cake pans, one on top of the other, so that each color is still showing. Sometimes I leave it like that and sometimes I swirl it around with a knife.
Bake, frost, and you’re done!
My kids love seeing all the different colors inside when I cut the cake.

I thought this was so adorable when I found Sophia and Jason had fallen asleep in the living room. I think she will forever be a daddy’s girl- I love it!

We went to the Little Farmer orchard yesterday. We go every year when the weather is cooler and look at all the pumpkins (and I’m sure we will go back sometime in October). It is just the perfect fall activity. But we decided to go a little early to get some/eat some apples. And lets just admit it, we couldn’t wait any longer for some of their famous caramel apples!
We went right when it opened (around 10am) is it wasn’t very busy yet. We had a great time.

I was trying to change Joshua’s diaper during church services today in the hall (they have no place private to change babies there) and Joshua started yelling that he wanted to use the potty. In an attempt to keep him from disturbing services (he was loud enough to be heard in the main room) and to get him to actually make it to the bathroom on time, I picked him up pants around his ankles and started running (yes running, in heels!) down the hall towards the bathroom (hoping that I wouldn’t get sprayed in route). I forgot that some of the people were sitting in the overflow room down the hall listening to services. So I look and there are all those people staring at me and Joshua’s bare butt going full speed down the hall!
Mom- embarrassed; Kid-proud he made it to the potty.
Just another typical day in the life of a mom…

I have been extremely busy lately, meaning I am exhausted. I am pretty much on auto-pilot right now so I will apologize in advance if this post doesn’t make much sense and/or doesn’t say anything of much importance (like my posts ever do!).

In addition to being so busy, I have been battling some kind of allergies this week that is just zapping all the energy right out of me. I don’t recall ever having a problem with allergies this time of year before so I am lost on what it could be.

I don’t think I have ever sneezed so many times in a row before! I should have kept count in an attempt to set the world record or something!
I broke down and took some allergy medicine last night to try and get some relief and boy did I! I was so out of it. I took the kids for a walk but stayed near home for fear that I might wander off and get lost. I was that out of it! Jason thought it was hilarious that I could be so effected by common non-drowsy over the counter medicine. Needless to say, I don’t take medicine often.

Anyways, the kids have been good. We are all looking forward to this weekend, not because we have any big plans, but because we have no plans at all.

I found this really cute idea for a crayon roll. I liked the idea because it looked like a good solution to having crayons roll all over the tables and floor when we are in the middle of services at church (a plus for everyone around us as well!).