A New Bed

Our bedroom has always been my least favorite room in the house. It was a total mishmash of stuff. Absolutely nothing coordinated. And it was dark. I actually like a dark bedroom...it is in fact where you go to sleep...so dark is good in my book. But it was dark in a blecky, dingy, I want to kill myself sort of way.

To top it off, we were sleeping on a horrendous fifteen year old hand-me-down mattress that made my body ache like no other. And we were using Tim's bachelor-days' queen sized headboard propped loosely - not attached - against that horrid king size mattress.

I wanted a new bed baaadly. Not just a new mattress but the whole thing. Something official.

A while back I discovered Ana White and all her fabulous building plans.  I do like to build things.  I surfed through her website one night until 4 o'clock in the morning drooling over all the things I could build...but particularly over her farmhouse bed...bingo.

My biggest obstacle was Tim's headboard. It has huge sentimental value for him.  His grandfather built it for him as a welcome home gift after his mission. I couldn't just tell him to ditch his headboard. So I started dropping subtle hints about how badly we need a new mattress for the sake of our bodies, and how I'd found a really good deal on a memory foam mattress and how a memory foam mattress really needs to go on a platform bed, but we don't have a platform bed, but heck I could build one for cheap, and that it would be so cool for him to pass down his grandpa's headboard to Andrew (even though his bedroom isn't big enough for it with all his toys and crap).

Finally, after several particularly uncomfortable nights on our mattress, Tim made me a deal...if I could find a safe place for his headboard, I could build us a new bed.

Needless to say, I got to work immediately.

Headboard and footboard...



Painted, sanded and stained...It was at this point Tim got cold feet and said he wasn't sure he wanted to move out his old headboard. Ummm...a little too late now buddy.


I basically just built a floor for the mattress.

Then I totally split the butt of my pants as I was straddling the 2x4's.

I laid peg board on top to keep the mattress from sagging between the joists and still allow the mattress to breath.

I was having so dang much fun that I got to work on an itty bitty nightstand for Tim...

And a nice big one for me...

Done

It's still my dark little sleeping cave but seriously freshened up.  I'm not a big fan of matchy matchy furniture but until I'm in the mood to rip up the nasty green carpet and repaint the walls so I have more color options, I can live with it.

Plus I love looking at it all and thinking, 'I built all of that with my bare freaking hands'.

Pinewood Derby 2011

"Flame Insane"

This was Andrew's last year in cub scouts and therefore his last year doing the Pinewood Derby.

Every year his cars have been silver and this year was no exception. He is definitely a creature of habit. I made a flame stencil for him with my vinyl cutter and he did all the painting. He named it "Flame Insane".

He came in 2nd at his pack race and qualified for the city wide District Race at the mall the following month.


Districts 2011
Anxiously watching his car race down the track with his best friend, Ben.


Andrew's car was doing really well at districts. At the district races the last couple of years, there have been two unbeatable boys that have always taken first and second. You just can't beat them. I noticed that Andrew's car was keeping up with theirs pretty well, so when his name got called to go into the semifinals I was pretty stoked thinking he could get third or fourth.

In the semifinals, all the other cars started to slow down a bit but Andrew's never lost any steam. So I figured third would be a piece of cake.

After the race when they started handing out trophies I was totally surprised when they didn't call his name for third...or for second! He got first place! It was a pretty major upset in the world of Pinewood Derby here in Missoula, Montana. It was a proud mommy moment.

Elwood

On the way home from Discovery, we stopped by to check out Elwood the Donkey. Tim had read a newspaper article about him and how he's kind of a mascot for some of the regular skiiers that pass through on their way to and from the mountain. His pasture is right next to the highway so people stop by to feed him carrots and other goodies...he has a weakness for doughnuts. So on our way home, we picked up some grapes and powdered doughnuts and swung by to see Elwood. It's probably going to become a tradition.

Discovery March 2011

This was our last ski trip of the season. We hadn't been to Discovery in a couple of years and I'm so glad we finally got over there. I forgot how much I love Discovery. It's my favorite! We didn't have huge expectations for the snow conditions but it ended up being gorgeous. The best snow we'd skiid on in a long time. When we got there it was a white out, then the sun came out, then it would dump snow again, then the sun would come out...it did that all day long. Yummy!

Andrew and his cousin Jackson




Motherload

Lunch time...camera a little fogged up.


Last chair...one last quick run down Berkeley on some very tired, well used legs.


To be continued...with Elwood the Donkey.

Girls Night

Summary: Girls night/hotel sleepover planned by my sister for two of her daughters' birthdays + some preteen friends + mom and I + I had to drag Andrew along = 7 females and 1 poor, vulnerable 10 year old boy.

One smokin' hot grandma and Kelsey


Madyson and her friends

Andrew


We had been mildly joking with Andrew that we were going to paint his toenails when he fell asleep. He was pretty nervous. Girl stuff is not funny to him...at all. I had no intentions of actually doing it because I have witnessed the wrath of Andrew many times. But I made the mistake of telling my sister that Andrew is a verrry sound sleeper. So, once he fell asleep all heck broke loose on my poor kid. A bra may or may not have been strategically placed on him as well.

Other than taking pictures and laughing, I was NOT involved.


Unfortunately Andrew woke up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and discovered his nails (and he may or may not have found a bra). I heard him sobbing. I got up to find him trying to rub the finger nail polish off with toilet paper and water.

I felt terrible.

Mostly because he woke me up so early.

No seriously, I felt terrible. I helped him get the nail polish off and tucked him back in bed...and I haven't heard the end of it since.

Blacktail - March 2011

My blog is the same every year - skiing, lake, skiing, lake, skiing, lake...

We're boring.

Anyway, more ski pictures. This time from Blacktail, featuring me and Andrew, Kelsey and Maddy, and Kelsey's boyfriend Carson.

We had debated where to go that day and chose Blacktail because they had nearly 150" of snow. Unfortunately it was set up like concrete so it wasn't a very good ski day. But skiing is always fun with my beautiful nieces and the traditional Dairy Queen fest that always accompanies a Blacktail trip!

Cars, Andrew, Mads, Kels

Grandma Sue

My mom came to visit us in February.

Later, I found these web cam pictures on my computer.

Apparently she and Andrew were having some bonding time that I was unaware of. I don't know why these pictures are so funny to me. I guess if you really truly know my mother, you know that she is a tad bit insane. She has such a great connection with all her grandkids. She is sooo much like her dad, my grandpa :)