Front Entry Remodel!

Nate and I had been thinking about putting tile in our entryway. We had it picked out and just hadn't scheduled a weekend. Next thing I know my best bud is back from Germany and headed out of town again in a week. Karin agreed to hang out with me AND majorly bless me with her expertise in helping me in our project.  We wanted ceramic tile flooring, but ceramic tile flooring requires a thick cement sub-floor which wouldn't be possible if we wanted to open our front door ever. We chose Snapstone Tile Flooring. It is a porcelain tile glued to a rubber backing and they "snap" together and are placed right on top of your existing floor. Once the floor is in, all you have to do is grout and add your baseboard trim back on.  Karin and I worked on it all of yesterday while the guys entertained the kids. She headed back home to the cities late last night, but we kept their kiddos for a sleepover. Nate and I cut and placed the final pieces today. I spent the afternoon grouting. I'm incredibly sore and tired, but it was very worth it! I can't believe that little miss clumsy/accident prone me can handle a wet saw with skill!

Before

It begins...

Karin makes the first cut on the wet saw we borrowed from our friend Steve.

Halfway done and my knees started aching. I grabbed some foam and duct tape.

Almost done!

I thought I'd let Nate place the last tile!

Ta Da!!

Oops, I have one little tiny square to cut...

This is how small it was, tough one to cut on the wet saw!

All done!

Happy Birthday Nate!

Elyana wanted to work towards her cake decorating badge for American Heritage Girls. She had her nose in my cake book looking for the perfect cake to make her daddy. She decided she wanted a "game" cake for a dad who loves games. It was a checkerboard cake. After dinner and cake, we went to the local Rochester Honker's Baseball game. Even though it was rained out in the 4th inning, I think it was still a wonderful evening!

Three More Photos

For some reason, these wouldn't post in my last blog update. The first photo is of silly Elyana in my grocery cart "wearing" her new headbands. We received a few chuckles in the store. The other two photos are of a few more updates we have done on the house. We replaced our rotting back door with this nice steel one. I still need to paint it and the trim white.  We also received an air mattress sleeper sofa from my mom that we put downstairs and so we rearranged our upstairs once again... I love the new arrangements and we're really enjoying our new couch.

Some photos from June so far...

On the last day of 3rd grade for Mikayla, the class brought in "camping" stuff and made blanket forts all over the room.

Here is Mikayla with her friends under their desks.

 

Then the 3rd grade teachers made a huge pancake breakfast!

Here is a craft that I made for the girls' American Heritage Girl Day Camp. It is a magnetic organizer to keep their service log sheets in.

 

 The next photo is of the other craft I did with the girls. It is a patriotic wind sock! Very easy to do.

The next photos are of the girls' swim lessons at the YMCA. Here they are on the way there. Mikayla was trying a nose plug. We found she could learn to dive if she didn't have to worry about holding her nose!

 Here is Elyana with her swim teacher! She was grinning the whole time, each time, for the 2 weeks.

Good-bye Kindergarten and 3rd Grade!

 The girls finished school this Thursday!  They both ended the school year with class picnic lunches. Elyana and I met Mikayla at the park for her lunch. I had to post a few end of the year photos. You can guess which is my favorite...

 

 

Refinishing the Cabinets!

Nate and I are still on our journey of getting the house ready to go on the market for when we save up enough and find our dream home.  My first week of summer break, my mom came up and helped me sand down, stain, and wax my kitchen cabinets.  Last weekend with the last bit of energy I had left, I continued on and sanded/painted the downstairs bathroom cabinets. I added hardware to the kitchen and the bathroom.  I believe it was a year ago that I redid the cabinets in the upstairs bathroom. Here are some before and after photos...

Check out the water stains before...

Lazy Susan Cabinet After.

Self portrait using my new power sander.

Letting the cabinets dry in the sun.

After!

Downstairs bathroom before.

After.

Another after, not sure why the photo turned out so yellow.  I refinished the medicine cabinet also.My mom bought us a new mirror to complete it.

A Couple of Random Photos

It's a bird, it's a plane, it's...Super Bubble Wrap Girl!

Here's a proud Mikayla showing off her 3rd Grade Marine Biome.