Monday, July 16, 2012

My Nesting Addiction

Decorating - never tried it but always wanted to. Hanging posters of Kirby Puckett and Freddie Prince Jr. on the walls doesn't count. I'm talking about really decorating a house - matching colors and styles, creating a "feel". I've never done this for a number of reasons the two major ones being 1. I don't have the money and 2. I don't have the 'eye' for it. However, this baby inside my belly is giving me an urge to finally put things on our walls. Without much of a budget for new items I searched through unpacked boxes to find treasures for our walls. I also came up with a 'game plan' for each room. Here is what's been happening so far:


JACK'S ROOM:
My vision was to stick with our red, yellow, blue and green theme as well as be easy to update once #2 comes. To get the look I used frames we already had, painted a couple so they would fit the theme, and added a few items from Dylan and I's keepsakes. The frames are a great way to display photos and Jack's artwork and will be easy to update often.

  
This is my little artist. Jack loves to get messy with paint. Above: watercolors, I cut them down to fit in the frames for his wall. 
Below: shaving cream, food coloring, and glue, finished piece displayed in the big yellow frame (and on the cardboard airplane behind him!).




The Wall!
Another wall is for marvel superheroes. Dylan has had his eye on these metal posters for a long time. We purchased them in a cute little town called Fredricksburg. There are a few more we will purchase over time. 


Jack loves having pictures on his walls. When I peek in on him at the end of nap time I usually catch him doing one of two things 1. reading books or 2. pointing up at his walls saying, "Daddy." He thinks they are all Daddy!

OUR LIVING ROOM:
Not much to show yet but I am really proud of the shelf we hung this past weekend. It was a shelf my grandma bought for me to display the dolls she gave me each birthday. I sanded it down and then painted it a maroonish color (its the same color that our other living room wall is painted). Besides the fact that we hung it too high (which is actually good since our son is climbing now!), I just LOVE this addition to our big empty wall. The birds were a housewarming gift from my Aunt Jenny.

Its crazy how once I allowed myself to start trying now I just can't stop thinking about more ways to decorate! I'm loving this new hobby. I have a lot more ideas I am excited to get up on our walls. I'll keep you updated!

Jack stacked those by himself! I'm a proud mama!

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Happy Birthday USA!

I am so thankful for the freedoms I have living in the United States of America. Mostly, I am thankful that we are free to worship. Its amazing to be able to pray in my home and in public without fear of persecution. It is the greatest blessing to be a member of God's family and to freely worship Him. 
When I am weak, He is strong,
When I am down, He lifts me up,
When I am confused, He tells me Enough,
When I seem to be unnoticed, He sees it all,
When I am filled with Joy, He is too! 
He is my Rock.
He is Unending Love and Amazing Grace!

I am also thankful that the Nealous Clan had a wonderful day celebrating the 4th of July together.
Before we headed out to the lake for fun in the water with our church, this mama had some baking to do. Don't you worry though, she had her handsome helper right by her side the Whole time!

My Helper cleaned the beaters for me.

He also tested the blueberries for sweetness.

He showed mama where to put them.

Then he tested a few more!

Nealous Clan in Red, White and Blue

Jack's American Flag

Hope you all had a relaxing 4th. 

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Family Date Night

This past Saturday was in the upper 80's! Such a relief from the 100+ days we have been getting. So Dylan and I decided it was a great evening for a Family Date Night.

It all started with a bike ride to...

...the Park! Played some music,

did some climbing,

strolled with Mama,

practiced my balance, 

had a deep conversation,

practice saying waving, "I Love You",

smiled for Daddy,

did a little more balancing,

"Hey Daddy, how'd you get up there?"

So handsome!

found a cool pole,

put on a little show,

honked the horn,

drove the car,

raced down the slide,

smiled for Mama,

learned to climb up the slide,

threw the tunnel,

and finally time to ride home.
On our ride home we stopped for dinner at our favorite restaurant, Chick-Fil-A!

It was PERFECT! I loved being outside, Jack loved getting to adventure and Dylan loved ending with Chick-Fil-A Lemonade! We all had a wonderful time just being together doing what we love.