What We've Been Doing

Just a few fun things we've done over the past week that I managed to take a picture or video of.

Finger painting. He loves getting messy!

Preston discovered this box all on his own. He played with it forever and whenever he watches this video he giggles really hard. I love it!

The sound on this is awful. It didn't transfer right from the video recorder where it sounds just fine.  However, it is just too cute not to post. Preston's friend came to play the other day and he got a kick out of pushing her around on Thomas.

Wee! We Wee-Ride.

Preston is obsessed with bikes. He points them out everywhere we go. We decided it was time to take him on a bike ride and put to use the bikes that have been sitting in our garage for over a year collecting dust. After a good amount of research we settled on the Wee-ride front mounted child bicycle seat. We read tons of conflicting information on which was best for children bike trailer vs. rear mount vs. front mount. I guess no matter what there is risk involved.

We went on a short ride last night and Preston was all smiles the entire time. Nate and I also found it relaxing and decided we should do it a lot more often, especially in the summer!

Destruction Derby

Oh - destruction derby! It has been way too long since we last went to one. We have a secret love for them - yes, we may be a little red neck. We have had the Hot San Jose Nights Destruction Derby on our calendar for four months now and there was nothing that was going to keep us from attending. We forgot our camera but were able to snap a few pictures and video with a phone. Preston wasn't sure what to think. I don't know if it was the loud noise or the cars running into each other that had him on edge and concerned at the beginning, but by the end he was a little more relaxed.

4th of July Festivities

Our 4th of July weekend was rather eventful! My brother and his family came to visit from Oregon. Preston loved spending time with his cousins. We spent Saturday in San Francisco checking out Fisherman's Wharf, the Golden Gate Bridge, Lombard Street and Poly Anne Ice Cream and a few other tourist things. On Sunday we ventured over to Half Moon Bay to do a little geocaching and see the tidal pools. Monday the festivities started off with a ward pancake breakfast, then a picnic in the park. After the park we came home and went swimming at our pool. In the evening we went to watch the local fireworks show. By the end of the weekend I think everyone was exhausted but it was so fun to spend time with family.

Waiting for In-N-Out at Fisherman's Wharf

 

Watching the sea lions. There were only 4 or so. It's sad that they aren't there anymore. Here Preston is pointing out the boat coming in!

Cousins! We were lucky to get this shot in. All they wanted to do was run around.

Jason and his boys checking out the water

Preston's car buddy. Tyson would read to Preston in the car and just entertain him.

Ryder got so much joy out of running through the water

Preston got joy out of throwing sand

The Jacobson boys looking for sea glass

Their 1st geocache find. Ryder made the official snag.

Looking in the tidal pools. We saw tons of small hermit crabs

4th of July breakfast. Preston is obsessed with bikes and scooters.

Our friend, Chris Cooper, happened to bring some extra scooters for the parade. Tyson and Ryder were so excited to use them.

The playground floor was too hot for bare feet. They went on to get a frisbee and couldn't get off fast enough.

Tyson is getting pretty good at swimming on his own. The boys loved the pool.

Mirror Re-Do

Over two years ago we bought a mirror at Williams-Sonoma's sample sale. It was a really cheap price for the item and I loved it. In the warehouse it was a gorgeous off white color. When we got it home - I realized it was more of a yellow color and just didn't seem to look right anywhere. It sat in a closet forever because I didn't know how to change it. I loved the character it had and was so scared to mess it up by trying to paint it. However, I finally realized the only way we would use it was by changing it.

I took the plunge. I started by sanding it down, then priming it. After that I spray painted it blue and put on a glaze tinted dark brown. Overall, I think it turned out great. I do miss some of it's previous character but it is now usable for our home.

Front Room Collage

The house projects are still going on here but at a much slower pace now that Nate has started his new job. In our front room we have a big wall over our couch that I haven't known how to decorate since we moved in. The space felt overwhelming to me.

After a trip to IKEA over a year ago I saw some picture ledges that I thought would work. We only bought one so I didn't feel overhwhelmed trying to fill it at first - fulling planning to buy a second one down the road. The picture ledge was a little more difficult to put up than we anticipated and we also hung it in an awkward place. If we put another ledge below it, it would be way too low. If we hung another one above it, it would be way too high. We were a little stuck but the single ledge wasn't doing it for me. Then, to couple the problem IKEA stopped selling the length of the picture ledge we had. I told Nate I wanted to change things and he said "No". He didn't want to deal with patching up the holes created by the ledge or trying to figure out how to remove the anchors we used to hang it. So - the ledge stayed but I didn't love it.

In January I read an article in Women's Day magazine that inspired me on how to decorate the wall. It mentioned one of the best ways to fill a big space it to use a bunch of smaller items in various shapes and sizes. This time when I told Nate I wanted to change the wall he reluctantly agreed.

Below are pictures of what we came up with. I like it soooo much more than the single ledge. It really does fill the space and has more personality.