Halloween and closets?

Happy Halloween, I'm so happy today is here! Not because of Halloween but because tomorrow is November! I can't wait for the all Christmas radio station to start up. OK so down to business, today I tackled the coat closet, which is the door in the house that is routinely the hardest to close. 

 



 So I started by emptying the closet, yes all of this came out of the closet, shoes, wrapping paper, bags, purses, coats, hats gloves, oh and shoes did I mention shoes. Pulling it all out of the closet was the easiest part next came the sorting.

 So once it was emptied the closet seemed so big. We are so lucky that when we moved into this house it came with all of these amazing built in closet units with hanging bars and tons of shelves. Going through the shoes was the easiest part it seems the kids are always growing out of shoes but the too small ones always end up under the newer ones on the floor in the closet, so bagging them up for Goodwill went quite fast. Then came the things to throw out and there was a lot more than I expected, no wonder the door wouldn't close correctly. In the end a large bag of trash and a huge bag of shoes made their way out of the closet and into the trash and the Goodwill pile respectfully.

This is the after picture, everything in it's place. The door closes smoothly and I added a hook to the door for Iain's backpack, this is his first year carrying one to school so it was the first year one was needed. I am very pleased with the result and though it doesn't seem like much it was a big thing to get it crossed off my list and took the better part of two hours. I am feeling more and more organized all the time. Tomorrow if I'm feeling brave enough I plan on cleaning out the linen closet.

 Had to add these pics of the kiddos, Finnley is supposed to be the evil queen from Snow White but she really isn't so evil and Iain is of course Dracula, and I do have to say the cutest classiest looking Dracula ever. I'm lucky that neither of my kids are really into Halloween, we do the Halloween party with their school every year and that seems to be enough for them. Not to say they don't like trick or treating but it's more about seeing the decorations people put out than the candy or costumes. This year will not be a trick or treat year for us, the rain has washed us out. Tonight we will be watching Coraline and eating popcorn and handing out candy to anyone brave enough to venture forth in the cold.

Last but not least the pumpkin, our tradition is a Disney villain, and this year Scar from The Lion King made the cut. Usually we have two pumpkins but this year I'm just not really feeling the pumpkin carving so we will be happy with one. Hope everyone has a happy and safe Halloween.

rain and glucose

Before

Started the house deep clean and purge yesterday afternoon, actually I had a surge of energy just after 4pm, strange I know. So I am only too embarrassed to admit I have 5 junk drawers in my kitchen the two worst offenders being these two. It took about an hour and one large bag of garbage but the drawers are clean. Being a catch all for a lot of things that have other homes to go to makes the job slow work as things get put away in their appropriate place. I knew that this was an important task to tackle when my daughter 7 opened the drawer later to get a game for her Leapster and exclaimed "mom! the drawer is clean, it's so easy to open and close!" pretty pitiful commentary on my junk drawer skills.

 

After

The second step in my surge of energy was to scrub the drip pans under the burners on my stove top. If you have a gas range you know how easy it is for these to become splattered and dingy looking. The stainless steel stove top doesn't help either it seems every time you touch it there are at least finger prints. It feels so good to have it clean and sparkly again.

On another note, the rain has been coming down steadily for days now a few small breaks here and there but all in all a pretty soggy end of October. I have to admit a little gleefully though that I adore rain, it makes me so grateful for a cozy warm home. I know the kids would rather be outside swinging and I know Pixie would rather be chewing on a stick while laying in the grass, but I really do love hearing the kids playing school in their rooms and Pixie laying next to me snoring as she does while the rain patters the roof and windows.

In baby news, I am 26 weeks today and this boy is kicking like crazy, watching my tummy jump as he kicks and punches is an easy way to pass the time. This stage in pregnancy comes with it's own trials and today's was the dreaded glucose testing-yuck. It is amazing the things you forget after 5 years. The glucose isn't to bad to drink as long as it goes down fast but the sugar really hurts my stomach and getting it to stay down is my biggest worry. Though all went smoothly and I'm very happy this step is over and I'm ready to start the 3rd trimester, the date growing closer only strengthens the anticipation of meeting our newest family member. Finnley is very excited at the prospect of holding her baby brother and kisses and hugs my tummy goodnight every night. Iain is less interested but I'm sure that is more about his age, though he has expressed a deep interest in teaching the baby how to change a transformer.

Leaves

With the chill in the air and the trees dropping their glorious fall leaves we are getting ready for the winter ahead. We went on the fall fuzzy sock buying trip last week and I bought a set of purple with stripey and polka dot ones and some with aloe in the material, they are amazing, like silk. Every year we go through the ritual of turning the heat on, getting out the socks, flannel sheets, quilts, and warm pajamas, and I love it. I love summer don't get me wrong the time in the sun with your toes in the green grass and all of the amazing fruit and veg we are lucky enough to have in such close proximity, but fall and winter are my favourite. I love the idea of fall and winter, the popcorn, and hot chocolates, the decorating for the holidays, and the happiness of being indoors when the weather turns cold and wet and the heavy frost covers the world outside the windows. I have never been a big Halloween person, I do like the holiday but I especially like that as soon as it's over it's officially the holidays.

 

This is what I think is a Chinese Maple in the backyard, during the summer it always seems so sad and puny it's tucked way back in the corner but in the fall when the leaves turn this lovely warm red it seems to finally be happy.

Crochet, crochet, I have been completing orders but not too many. I decided that I didn't want to take on any large orders this year while I'm pregnant and because I will be so far along by the time Christmas rolls around. The free time though has allowed me to be able to make some things for friends and family I've been meaning to. This sweater being one of them it's a gift for a birthday party coming up and I can't wait to have it finished, the colour is amazing it's a dark blue but almost purple too, I love it so much I'm thinking of making up some mittens in it for Finnley and me.

Just to prove I followed through from the last post my tiny grey baby beanie, perfect for a newborn head. I've added a few more baby items to the stash as well since having come across a new second hand kid's clothes store. I love the idea of having gently used tiny baby items, they grow so fast and it's easy to see with some items why they were so loved.

On a last but not least note I have decided it is time to clean out my house, I mean really clean it out. I know nesting is part of having a baby but this is desperately needed, everything needs to be organized and what is determined unnecessary needs to move on to new hands via the Goodwill. Future posts will hopefully have some cleaning and organizing to go along with it. If you have any awesome tips in the area or words of expertise or encouragement they would be greatly appreciated.

Mish Mash

Around the house...so much has gone on since I last blogged, and believe me it's not because I didn't want to, in fact even feeling a bit guilty because I was still reading up on all my blog "friends" out there to see what was happening in their worlds. So here is a mish mash of some of the things around our house.

 



 
Crochet is still going and going and going, crocheting things for us as well as gifts and orders for others. Headband/ear warmers are my new favourite thing to make. In fact there are a few things for sale on my page if anyone is looking for a holiday gift and haven't figured out what to buy that certain someone yet.

 
The kids had 1/2 day at school yesterday and today but the weather has been less than ideal for outdoor excursions. Today when I picked them up from school it was raining buckets so after lunch we all snuggled up in warm jammies, blankets, and favourite toys to watch A Christmas Story. Yes I know Halloween hasn't even passed yet but we are in the full swing of Christmas and the holidays here. I have always been a sucker for this time of year and with last year's fiasco with the car hitting our house it seemed as though we "skipped" it so this year we will be making up for it.

 
This is my new Keurig coffee/tea maker, my wonderful husband bought it for me. We had switched to french press a while ago and I still love my press but he was thinking ahead to after this baby comes. He figured it will be a lot easier for me to make a single cup of coffee if I only have to push a button while holding a new baby. So sweet. I also thought that when I get busy and leave my sad cup of coffee sitting and getting cold I won't feel so guilty about making a new one when it's only one cup at a time.

Just because she's such a cutie-Pixie is 10 months old now and 110lbs. of gigantic baby love. I think all the time how I would happily have another English Mastiff any time. She is the easiest dog I've ever had, she never jumps up, only barks when she is "talking", sits politely but watchfully when I answer the door, doesn't pull on the leash even Iain can walk her, no digging and best of all she doesn't destroy things. She steals toys especially stuffed animals and socks all the time but once she's done she leaves them either in the backyard or around the house she doesn't lay around gutting or tearing things, I love that. She is even that gentle with her toys she still has her pink dragon which came home with her. We love her so much.

 
Since finding out we will be adding another bundle of boy to our family we have been slowly adding baby items to our stock pile. With all of the lovely things we have been given and the things we have found I'm starting to feel prepared, it has been 5 years since we have done this after all. I am loving the polar bear items I've come across and I think the little grey one with the orange stripe may be our coming home outfit. I'm also loving the waffle material I'm finding it's so cozy for this deep winter baby, and the elephant one was just lucky, I found it at Nordstrom Rack on crazy sale and it is the softest organic cotton, just love it. The car seat is on order, and the baby dresser/changing table will be bought and assembled and filled next week. I have been stocking up on cloth diapers since we first found out I was pregnant. Between the ones I bought and those I was given by my generous cousin I have about 75 diapers. We have a little while to go to finish our prepping, about 15 weeks or so but well on our way.

 
I have been crocheting little baby beanie hats to keep this little one warm, today a grey one is in order.

 
I ordered a Baby K'Tan this time to use as my carrier, with Iain I used a Moby which I loved and still have, I just wanted to try something new this time and the K'Tan is very Moby like but different and I can't wait to get a little boy snuggled up warm in it.

Last but not least baby's 1st chewy, some people call them loveys but in our house they have been chewys for years, neither Finnley nor Iain really took to theirs until they started teething and would chew on it for soothing. Hence the chewy title, in the picture of Iain above you can see he still has his and he sleeps with 3 of them every night even at 5, so happy they still work for him.

So that's a small update on what has been happening around our home, I hope it wasn't too long winded. Have a lovely Friday.