BIG News! Long Story...

Hello Friends! We hope all is well and Spring was super productive! We have not been so productive! Funny thing about life, you plan, and then BOOM, life gets in the way. I was very excited to have the Lake House Project be complete so I can get back to my world, my home, and my blog. Remember that thing I just said about life getting in the way of plans?....Well, here's the story.

The last bit of the Lake House I started feeling not so well and was pumping myself with caffeine pills just to get through the days. I thought I had the flu, then walking pneumonia, and was just trying to brush it off. Some days I simply felt like I couldn't stand. If you know me, you know this is not like me at all. I have never taken a nap as a adult and a 70 hour work week is the norm. So the final week of this Lake House Project I had to take a bit of a backseat (for five months I was basically alone on the project with help coming in from LA on occasion).This was a bummer, because this was the fun part. Five months of managing sub-contractors and materials on a full reno - not to have any fun at the end. Fail. 

So I had some previous obligations which were paid for, like going to Texas for my brother-in-law's graduation and I figured I would take it easy. Well, I was beginning to REALLY REALLY REALLY not feel myself when I would sleep, but not feel rested. It was like I wasn't living myself, just observing. 

We had a miscarriage the previous month and I knew my cycle was a bit off and thought maybe this lasting "ill" feeling had to do with that. So we decided to make a Doctor's appointment while we were in TX, and I figured I may as well take a pregnancy test while we were there just so we can say we did and get an appointment.

Welp, that pregnancy test was positive! Many mysteries solved. Much anxiety about all the caffeine I had taken to get through the days. I was in "working condition" for about another two weeks. I could drive, cook, do laundry, and basic stuff done. Then, that kinda ended. I am nauseous 95% of the day and vomit when I do something as simple as sit up. Watching TV, or going on a computer is a complete chore. I can't stomach anything. I thought I would brave a business trip to London. Sit. Fly. Sit. Conference. Sleep. No big deal. Not so much. I puked the entire plane ride and spent more time with my hotel toilet then I did doing ANYTHING in London. I took photos from the cab, and didn't eat a single full meal. I came home and immediately canceled my trip to FL where Joey and I planned on telling my dad in person. Bummer.

So DIY projects - not happening by me. Blog posts - I am on day four of typing this little guy to get you in the know. However I think I will be able to swing some information posts! We have SO many things we NEED to do and we are SO excited to share all of it - I just need a few more weeks (that's what we are hoping!) and I can crawl out of bed, and from beyond the bathroom floor and get my hands dirty. I am sure some of you are reading this and thinking how on earth can she complain! I seriously wish I was one of those people who were "I love pregnancy! This is great", but I don't and it's not. I hope it gets better soon, but eating white bread and being face down in bed drooling on a pillow isn't my idea of a good time when invitations to Summer fun get passed and I haven't eaten grown-up food in over a month. This is going to be my only rant-rave-and-complain post. This blog isn't about pregnancy, constipation, and hugging your toilet. Promise.

In the mean time I will leave you with a photo of our last DIY project! New ultrasound photo next week! Here is the little bean the side of a sesame seed! He/she's already as big as a kumquat now!

Daily Dosey Doe

Everyday we have adapted to some ritualistic habits that went unnoticed until recently. We thought we would share what we do on a daily basis to help keep our home (and our minds!) in a condition we can be proud of, and manage. It's easy to let life take over and neglect things here and there, but over all we are pretty proud of the habits we adopted with being new home owners. Is there anything you do every day (or almost every day)? If so, please share! We would love to know!

1. We make the bed every day. There is something about crawling into a made bed at the end of a long days work. It also makes the bedroom look clean and serine. I remember as a child HATING to make the bed, and I am pretty sure Joey never made a bed before we met, but now, as proud home-owners, we both take on the responsibility and it's a little thing that makes us happy.

2. Clean the floors. Now most people probably don't need to clean their floors on a daily basis. We do. We have two puppies and a kitty running around this joint 24/7 and boy can they leave a trail of dust behind them! The only way to combat this is a daily sweep and swiffer, of not, things would get gross real quick!

3. Walk around the house. We don't do this every day, but we do it most days. We pop outside to see what new flowers are blooming, discuss what color we want to paint the house, and brainstorm about what we need. It's a nice 5 minutes we get to spend not really working on the house, but day dreaming together what will be.

4. Purging useless things.Like junk mail, old receipts, plastic bags, etc. It's amazing how much junk you wind up with while settling into a new home. We are constantly sifting through mail and junk and filling up contractor sized bags with waste. Good thing we aren't horders, or we would already have a house filled with junk mail.

5. Check off something on the almighty to-do scroll. Our list is long. Very long. If we simply do laundry, or get part of a large project done, we are happy. Doing something every single day keeps us motivated. Seeing results is the best reward ever.

6. Cooking homemade meals.We cook almost every night. Since we met we have cooked almost every night. I really enjoy it and Joey is always pleased with home made yum to fill his tum. Honestly we don't always cook together, but we eat together every night no matter what the day brings. We cook so much, we finally decided to sign ourselves up for a CSA program!

Deciding to be more Green, or whatever you want to call it

Is it possible I have been "green" since I was five years old? I have always been teased by my dad that I am a hippie. It's funny because I don't think any of my friends view me this way. I am in fact a vegetarian and decided to become one at five years old. Joey is the one and only boy I have ever even dated that ate meat. I am not saying meat is right or wrong, it's just not for me. I don't like the way it tastes and I don't like what it's made out of. Joey on the other hand is steak and potatoes all the way. Making dinner, as I love to do, has always been a fun task of satisfying my "hippy-dippy" ways while keeping a meat eater happy. I love using fresh produce and have always felt awful we never composted the remains (living in an apartment doesn't really support composting). Behold, homeownership now allows us to not only have wallpaper, but a compost of our very own.

Our Outside Composter

We wound up with this beauty for a few reasons. First, the price caught our attention. For the high ratings this received on Amazon, we were thrilled it was $20-$100 LESS than it's competition. The Soilsaver Compost Binis just one option of composters of course. You can buy ones you can spin around, or ones like this you have to mix yourself.  We decided on doing a little bit of extra labor (once every 2-3 weeks, not bad, right?) in exchange for having a sturdier composter. From our research we gathered it will take 2-4 months to turn our veggie peels and coffee grinds into valuable soil our yard will love. 

Our Inside Composter

This little guy had mixed reviews, but sometimes you have to take a chance. We thought it matched our "future" kitchen the best. Norpro Ceramic Compost Keeperis his name, and we found him on Amazon too. We think he is handsome enough to keep on the counter and the refill pads are cheap enough to not get upset about maintenance. Those pads are really the only thing that needs to be bough after your purchase of your composters. 

If you are undecided about composting, let us give you some pro's and con's, and hopefully we will help you decide!

Pro's to Composting:

You will have to buy less garbage bags!

Less of your waste will go to the garbage man!

Less trips to the curb to drop your garbage bags!

You will create super nutrient soil which you can use in your garden or yard!

Minimal work and minimal money to get going!

Con's to Composting:

You will have to maintenance the bin every few weeks by mixing it or spinning it

You will have to do a little trash management (what can go in the composter and what cant?)

It takes a few months to give you that rich soil (the hotter the environment, the quicker the composition)

We'll let you know how it goes in a few months! In the meantime tell us what you do around your house to be a little green. We are always curious what other people are doing and how they do it! Our next step may be a solar powered kitchen! News on that soon!