Over the past month or so, my posting both on the blog and social media has been pretty sporadic. I mentioned on Instagram stories last week that something happened recently that has just sort of stolen my joy. I promised to catch you guys up, so today I’m breaking out of the rut I’ve been in the past few weeks and starting with a little life update post! So let’s talk about what went on behind the scenes last month – the good and the not-so-good.
Let’s start with the good.
We’re Vaccinated!
G and I both received our second dose of COVID vaccine a couple of weekends ago and, although it put me out of commission for 24 hours, the relief that comes from knowing we have antibodies now makes it all worth it. It also means we can soon start safely merging bubbles with friends in town and I’m so dang excited about that. I know quarantine has been super hard on everyone, but I have really been feeling its effects lately. So thankful for modern medicine and all of the healthcare professionals who have helped get us through and to this point!
Beckham’s 6 Month Checkup
Beck is happy, healthy and LOVES food.. what more can a mama ask for? He’s currently in the 90th percentile for height, 75th percentile for weight and has a big ole 85th percentile noggin circumference 😉 I’d say those are pretty solid numbers! He’s started to really enjoy eating finger foods and even recently has taken to some of his purees. I forgot how fun (but messy) this stage is lol! Watching him with his big brother is my favorite and his determination to get his Daddy’s attention absolutely melts me. Just this morning I had him sitting on my lap facing away from Garrett and he did something akin to a backwards somersault just to get a glimpse of his Dad. His big doughy cheeks and that toothless open mouthed grin brings us SO MUCH JOY.
Fischer’s Going to School!
The plan was for Fischer to start preschool last year, but with the pandemic those plans quickly got put on the backburner. However, he’s registered, been placed in class with his best friend and has his first month’s tuition paid for already! I’m so excited for him. It will just be two days a week, a few hours in the morning but it’s going to be so SO good for his social little soul.
Yard Projects
If you follow me on Instagram you may have seen our two main backyard projects that recently got completed. I gave Fischer’s playhouse a makeover with some weatherproofing paint and just love how it turned out. It has also seems to have renewed it in his eyes and his newfound interest in playing in it has made the three long days of painting totally worth it! I feared the little makeover was just for me – but from the moment I started working on it he began showering me with “thank you, mama!”s so that put those fears to rest quick. The other recently completed project was our long-awaited pergola that spans our whole patio. G and I have wanted a pergola since we became homeowners in 2014. Now, three houses later we finally have one and it makes us so SO happy. We had the guy install a polycarbonate clear barrier over top so I’m actually sitting on the patio as we speak while it rains and am able to stay dry. I tell ya, sitting out here with the aroma of our jasmine vines drifting across the yard accompanied by the soft patter of the rain around me makes for a wonderful work environment!
Just imagine this beautiful pergola white in a few weeks… can you see it?!
I’m actually in the midst of building a deck for Fischer’s playhouse in a corner of our yard that we don’t use and that’s almost always shaded. I have the posts set in the ground with cement – just need nice weather (and some spare time) to get the rest built 🙂
Okay and, with that, I think those are the main highlights of this past month! Let’s talk about the two main things that really caused my funk this past month.
Losing a Family Member
I mentioned last week that something that happened to our family recently had really stolen my joy over the past few weeks. What I was referring to was this. We recently lost a four-legged member of our family to really unfortunate circumstances. Now, before I say anything else, just know that this was probably one of the hardest decisions we’ve ever had to make as a family and we did NOT make it lightly. That said, I know there will be some of you who may judge what I’m about to say and label it as irresponsible or something similar. All I can say to those people is that my babies have to come first. Period.
A few months back – actually I think I was still pregnant with Beckham, so several months back, our dog got out of our yard and bit our neighbor. She was okay, he didn’t break the skin, but the mark he left on her leg made it clear that he meant her harm. After that incident, we began looking into options for rehoming him, but those efforts were half-hearted and we attempted to correct his aggression with more attention, walks, etc. Fast forward to a little over a month ago now and it happened again. Except this time it was in our home – he bit Fischer. Again, he didn’t break skin, but the marks he left were very very clear. That was the last straw. We had to give him up. We tried rehoming him to someone in our neighborhood, but after that went poorly (he showed his aggressive side there too), we knew we needed a third party to get involved. We waited on a waiting list of a no-kill shelter for a couple of weeks and during that waiting period my anxiety and fear for Fischer’s safety only climbed and climbed. As tough as that waiting period was to endure, it served as helpful reassurance that we were doing the right thing. The day of our dog’s interview at the shelter was so hard. He had to pass a behavioral test in order to stay and, if he did, he would be gone forever. I honestly didn’t think he would pass and that when I said goodbye to him that afternoon that I’d see him again in a couple of hours. But he did…. And I didn’t. And I cried. A lot. Of course I felt like we failed him in some way, but I think the truth of it was that he was never going to feel comfortable in a home with little people.. so it was time for him to move on. Sucks, though, y’all. It truly feels like we lost a part of our family. It gets a little easier with each passing day, but I think I’ll always miss that little face. But as I said to G amidst the hurt, “I’d rather feel really crappy about this now than be sitting in the emergency room with one of our babies down the road.” And that’s all I have to say about that.
The Cursed Bathroom
I swear this bathroom project has been cursed lol. Someone commented on one of my Instagram photos recently asking for the ‘after’ of the bathroom demo and it was so depressing lol! This has been the most frustrating project. You guys, we have bought and returned THREE different tubs that haven’t fit right in our alcove and have a FOURTH sitting upstairs. WHO KNEW how differently tubs could be shaped and measured??. We’ve tried tubs made of composite material, acrylic and fiberglass –the fourth one is a porcelain coated steel tub which is what the original was. We tried to go nicer than what we had, but at this point I’m settling for the good ole fashion size, shape and material. BUT GUESS WHAT?! IT FITS! Just last night we took it out of the box and dry-fitted it in the space. It’s not completely perfect but we can work with it! We’re in the process of getting some of the components fit right, getting it level and Garrett is working on reworking some of the PVC piping for the drains. Once it’s installed we can finally move on!! A few of you have asked some questions about this process so I’ll get on Insta Stories and address some of them today or tomorrow!
And there is the update! Here’s to moving forward from a tough April into a fun and productive May! Here are some things to look forward to this month:
- Bathroom progress!!
- Patio projects: refinish our furniture ; spruce up our flower beds
- Building Fischer’s deck!
- Spring cleaning continues
Leave a Reply