New Wood Flooring

After 'thinking about it' for well over a year now, Kate and I finally got around to changing out the old carpet and cracked tiles on the first floor of our house to new wood flooring and new tiles.

Originally, we had grand plans to install the wood flooring ourselves. My Dad pulled it off and it looks fantastic in my parents' house. But then I found myself commuting to Longmont every day and Tessa was born....and to our surprise we just didn't have the time or energy to devote to such a project. So after doing some shopping around, we decided to purchase the materials from a local shop called Petersen's Flooring & Design. After another couple of estimates, we chose to let them do the installation as well.

And let me tell you, we couldn't be happier with the results!

The process would take about three days. First thing though, Kate and I had to clear out all the furniture that we could from the first floor. This led to some clever (and not-so-clever) methods of cramming stuff into the upstairs office, a little in the bedroom, some in the hallway, and the rest on the patio outside. In the end, all that was left downstairs was the two-piece couch set and the kitchen fridge.

The first day involved the ripping up of all the carpet and old tiles. (It was a little jarring to come home and find the place all torn up!)






The second day was very impressive as the installers finished the living room, the kitchen, the downstairs bathroom, and part of the foyer hallway. The last day was finishing up the foyer and the 'step' at the base of the stairs.

I was at work most of the time but Kate and Tessa were trapped upstairs while the Petersen's guys did their work. Tessa was a little rattled by all the noise and didn't sleep great but she weathered it pretty well. The cats were another story; I'm pretty certain Rune is still mad at us. :-) I had moved the mini-fridge and the microwave upstairs to the bedroom so Kate could have lunch and snacks during the day. And in the meantime, she got some work done that she needed to upstairs and online.

And as I mentioned, the results were great!








Even Tessa seems to like the new floor!



We went with a bamboo wood that's supposed to be pretty durable and easy on your feet. We made sure to put sticky felt pads on the bottom of all our furniture to avoid scratching. The tiles are a little rougher than the old ones...but Rune in particular likes the way it feels on her fur when she rolls around. :-)

It feels great to have it done at last! In fact, it's galvanized Kate to make progress on the repainting that we wanted to do. I'm hoping to have some time this summer to finish sanding and finishing the stairs that my Dad replaced a couple years back. It's a lot of fun to start getting things done!

As always, thanks for reading! Have yourself a really good day!

Half a Year of Parenthood

Okay, okay...I know I should be updating more often than a quarter of a year. I'll try to do better.

(Those who believe that obviously don't actually know me.) :-)

Our daughter Tessa turned six months old on Monday. It's hard to believe that Kate and I have been parents to such a wonderful blessing for that long. I find myself in that old paradox where it feels like she's always been part of our family...and yet she still seems so fresh and new to us. I don't want her to grow up too fast...and at the same time I can't wait to see what she learns to do next.

She has grown up amazingly fast, I think. Just recently we finally took down the lovely handmade cradle that my Dad made for us because Tessa just doesn't fit into it anymore. Please observe...

This is Tessa lying in her cradle for the first time when we brought her home:



And this is Tessa trying to squeeze into it at the end of May:



See the difference?

You don't?

How about this...?

This is Tessa with her Mommy back in December:



And this is a more recent picture (May) of Tessa with Mommy:



She's getting big!

Okay, last one...

Here's Tessa in her car seat at about four days old:



And here's Tessa at exactly six months:



She is rapidly turning into her own little person!

She's rolling over like a pro now and seems to be grasping the concept of 'skooching' though she hasn't mastered it yet. She gave us a scare a week or so ago when she rolled right out of our bed while I was half-dozing. Naturally she was fine - just startled, which got her crying for a while.

She loves to stand up (with help from her Mommy and Daddy). We're holding an "Excersaucer" for Emily and Jason and found out that Tessa loves it! She'll play with the toys but mostly she likes bouncing up and down.

While we were at my parents' house, we also learned that Tessa loves to swing. Kate is trying to make regular outings to the nearby park so Tessa can plop down in the bucket swing for a while.

She's showing an interest in solid food, staring at it when Kate and I have dinner. Kate's still exclusively nursing on demand but we'll probably be considering some homemade food options in the next month or so.

She's also a grabby little thing. Anything that she can get a hold of, she will...and usually ends up cramming it into her mouth. Last Sunday, we left our church bulletin within reach and she mangled it. At her well-child doctor's appointment this morning, she had fun shredding the paper lining of the examination table.

I'm not going to lie and see that everything is absolutely perfect all the time. Tessa has her moments...like when she refuses to settle down and take a nap, even though it's obvious she (and her parents) need one. Or when she gleefully explodes out of her diaper for the third night in a row. Or when she grabs a hold of Mommy or Daddy's hair, yanks hard, and won't let go.

But these are all minor things and they quickly pass. Truly, Tessa is a joy and a wonder and I love every single opportunity I get to watch her grow.

Happy Six Months, Baby Girl! Daddy loves you so much! :-)

As always, thanks for reading...and I hope you're having a great day!