wup.

this week we mainly just focused on continuing to settle into the house.

my sister came to stay the weekend, which was awesome because, a) i love seeing her, b) the kids love seeing her, and c) she's a machine when it comes to getting stuff done.  she helped us

- paint the living room, 

- hang new light fixtures,

- cut our box spring apart so it would fit up the stairs (and then helped todd carry it up the stairs while i sat on the couch like a very pregnant lump),

- scotchgard my dining room rug,

- and even watched the kids so todd and i could go on a date.  it's like she's made of magic.  the kids will vouch for it.

in addition to all she helped me with, todd also finished putting the bunk beds together (we had been waiting on a replacement part), helped me pick out (and installed) the pulls for the kitchen drawers, set up the guest bed in the basement, and assembled my china hutch and cut a new beadboard back for it.  all in a single weekend!  it was madness.

other than church in the park this weekend and our regular weekly commitments (including todd's last softball game of the season), we tried to lay low this week.

the kids got popsicles as a special treat.

and then to offset my resulting 'indulgent mom' status, i started giving them the daily chore of vacuuming the rug under the dining room table.  it's still novel for them, so it's going well now, but i'm guessing in a week or two they'll start seeing it as an actual 'chore.'  and i hope to add more to their list soon.

and lastly, here's what i look like at 38 weeks pregnant.

and here's what i look like right after todd tried to take a picture of my 38-weeks-pregnant backside.  totally glam.

and that's it.  in case you missed anything else this week,

here's a post with an all-of-us-smiling family photo.  history in the making, people.

here's one in which i give you non-expert and non-exhaustive advice on how to spray paint your kitchen cabinets.

here's an opportunity to win a car.

flower power.

so, how's schaeffer cooking?

i've noticed that this pregnancy goes relatively unmentioned on the blog (as opposed to my pregnancy with, say, atticus, during which i chronicled my every. single. development and thought and whathaveyou).  so now that i'm just a little over two weeks away from my due date, i figured it might be time to mention how stuff is going.

girlfriend is pretty active when i find myself resting, although i've been moving around so much getting the house unpacked that i frequently don't consciously feel her until later in the evening.

i'm growing slowly, and tracking about two weeks behind 'normal,' but i'm not super worried.  all my babies have come right around or shortly after their due date, so i'm thinking i'll probably have closer to three weeks before we get to meet this chica.  it's hard switching doctors this time around, because i know what's normal for me, but they don't, so slow weight gain and slightly-off measurements are concerning to them.  but whatever.  (i'm just dreading finding a new pediatrician, who doesn't know our family well enough to know that our babies have all tracked in the first percentile for growth until after their first birthday...ugh.  that's some drama.)

my latest cravings have been for, and i quote, 'shellfish in some kind of butter and wine sauce.'  oh yes.  baby schaeffer is already quite the foodie.  no cherry-lime slushies or hot dogs for this little lady.  (although, i could go for a frozen coke right about now.)

i have had the. worst. back pain. of my entire life.  the other day, i tried to get off the couch, and my back seized up so badly that it not only effectively paralyzed me, but i was also quite confident that i was going to pee myself and not be able to stop it.  luckily that didn't happen, as i was on our (admittedly already disgusting) couch and, experienced though i am in the field of urine clean-up, i wasn't sure how to ever get adult amounts of pee out of it.  but seriously, though, this back thing is getting out of control.

i still haven't preregistered or toured the hospital yet.  i don't even know exactly where i'm supposed to go on the hospital 'campus.'  i should probably find the time to figure that out.  i'm actually really under-prepared for this birth: i have no idea if i want an epidural or not, and i have no idea who will take our kids while we're at the hospital and my parents are on their way up.  the midwife gave me a birth plan sheet to fill out, with questions like, 'will you want us to dim the lights?  do you want any special music played?' and i'm like, 'are you joking?! how am i supposed to know that?! if i want you to dim the lights when i'm in labor, i'll just be all, 'dim the lights now, please.'  (or something jerkier if i'm really far gone.)'

that's all i can think of right now.


okay, here's where you come in:  first, give me your best guess for arrival date and birth weight.  i'll just say that these were the other kids' stats:

atticus: 5 days past due, 8 lb 10 oz
penelope: 1 day early, 7 lb 10 oz
finneas: 3 days past due, 8 lb 6 oz

second, tell me how old she will be when she gets her first pair of glasses.

winner gets a car.

video vednesday: as they say in the movie 'jerry maguire,' "you had me at 'AIDS.'"

todd and i have been watching a lot of this guy lately.  so funny.

it's like i have my own HGTV show.

a while back, i posted a few photos of the progress in the kitchen, and i've gotten a surprising number of people asking questions about the spraying process. so in a weird turn of events, i'm about to give you some DIY home project tips.  seriously.

 

 

here are the top five most frequent questions i've gotten:

why did you leave the doors on when you sprayed?
because i'm lazy and wanted it done super quickly, and because i have a friend who did it the same way who swore it wouldn't look like a hot mess to do it this way.

what about the hinges? did you paint those too?
yepper.  my hinges are those kind that mount on the inside, so it really didn't end up being an issue for me, but the friend i mentioned above has visible hinges on her cabinets and i honestly think they looked better painted the same color as everything else.  but i'm also biased because i have this seriously irrational hatred of visible hinges.  i can't tell you why, but they kind of make me angry.  so camouflaged is better than shiny, in my weirdly specific and insensitive opinion.

how did you keep them from getting painted shut?
i don't know.  they just didn't get painted shut.  i had one drawer stick, but i just ran a razor blade along it and it opened fine.

what about the backs of the doors?
they're all brown and ugly.  but it's the inside of the cabinet, so stop being so worried about it.

how long did it take?
i could get a coat of paint on the entire bank of cabinets in less than five minutes.  i did a coat of primer and two sprayed coats of paint.  (a third coat of paint applied with a roller and a brush, to get the little spots the sprayer missed.)  i used benjamin moore 'aura' paint in 'white dove.'

*i will take updated pictures in which the plastic and floor paper are gone and most of the new knobs and pulls are on the doors and drawers, which is the current state of the kitchen.  i'll post those at some point.  obviously not today because i'm feeling lazy and i can't muster the oomph to get the camera out.

kay, unless there are any other questions, i'll take off my poorly-fitting DIY advice hat and put on my normal snarky blogger hat.  everyone's world will be back to normal tomorrow.





head on over to the candeo blog for today's Q & A: 'why 40 days?'

church in the park

yesterday was our church's first big service, held at a local park.  it. was. awesome.  the weather was great, it was wonderful to hear paul teach from the bible, we got to meet lots of new people, and there was a big lunch afterward.  265 people showed up! god's doing some really awesome things here already.

one drawback of having it in the park was that it was right next to the train track.  at least the engineer seemed friendly.

look!  we're all looking at the camera, and mostly smiling!  it's a july miracle!

and because he was so stinking cute about it, here's a bunch of pictures of finneas eating some watermelon afterward:

in related news (related to candeo, not to cute kids eating watermelon), our church will have its first official launch service on september 8.  we are praying god would bring people in to hear the gospel and celebrate with us!  todd's organizing a 40-day countdown blog that starts tomorrow - read along and pray along with us as we gear up for the big day!  even if you're not in the area or able to attend the big event, we would still love it if you'd pray with us.  (i'll be writing a few posts over there as well, so keep your eyes peeled for some snookie references.  on a church blog.  you know how i do.)

 

this week's 'wutup.'

wow.  this week has gone so quickly.  i feel like i was just writing last's week's 'what's up weekly'  (also delinquently, if i remember correctly).

last friday night we drove the kids down to drop them off with my mom for the weekend, and headed back up to bust. our. butts. working on the house before the move-in on sunday.  we primed (and primed again) and painted (and painted and then painted) the trim.  it made us both want to die and also cuss someone out, but we got there.  the trim is looking all crisp and fresh and like something justin timberlake would probably approve of.

 

oh, did i fail to mention i'm starting a new 'shabby chic' trend in clothing?  men's boxers + men's tshirt with big rip in it = oodles of feminine charm

then, in a scenario i can't fully remember, i somehow got that 'i'm so tipsy' song stuck in my head, only the words became, 'i'm so thrifty, i'm so thrifty.'  (please don't ask me why on earth that original song is anywhere in my memory bank in the first place).  the modified version was the best hiphop song i've ever heard in my life, and i'm pretty sure it will launch me into stardom someday (which is how i will end up with the clout to launch my new clothing line).

on sunday, a bunch of guys helped us load up our stuff onto the moving van one last time, brought it over, and unloaded it here.  it was a rough day.  i kept seeing stuff come off the truck that clearly would not fit in our new, smaller house, and it was super overwhelming to try and figure out what to do with it.  in a total, god-ordained turn of events, a friend is having a garage sale this weekend and asked if i have anything to throw in.  um, yes, yes i do.  so i'm hoping to make some sweet moolah and rid my life of some seriously unnecessary clutter.  if you're in the market for some new anything (furniture, kitchen islands, kids' clothes, flour sifters), come on down.

anyway.  what was i even talking about?

oh right.  the rest of this week has been a massive effort to unpack and get settled.  we are far from there, but trying.  we ordered bunk beds for the kids, but they arrived without all the pieces, so that half-bed/half-bundle of lumber is just sitting in the middle of our floor, but such is moving.  my friend jenni, who is amazeballs at decorating, came over yesterday to help me paint and arrange my living room, so we're at least closer on that front.

i mentioned that our hot water heater was broken, but it is now fixed and we can wash laundry and we have a lot less money!

and in bakery news, i'm 37 weeks pregnant.  i have three weeks to find the baby clothes in the stacks of boxes.  good luck to me.

 

you can see that this is the week we had no hot water and i stopped caring.

and finally, in upcoming, you-won't-want-to-miss-this news, JOIN US FOR CHURCH IN THE PARK ON SUNDAY!  not even kidding, this has been so much fun to look forward to, and i can't believe it's this weekend already!  if you come, let me know and we can meet up - i promise to have showered beforehand.

 

just to clarify, this is in cedar falls.

and in case you missed the rest of the week:

here's how much i hate moving.
here's how nasty our furniture is.  seriously biohazardous.
here's how i managed to soak in someone else's tub by candlelight.

happy trails, y'all.

well, hello there, unexpected silver lining!

i'm just going to come out and say it: we haven't had hot water in our house since we moved in.  not really sure why, although the indicator lights on the the water heater would suggest that the flammable vapors from the freshly polyurethaned floors tripped some sensor that caused it to shut off.  and though we've had two service guys come look at it, we're not sure when it will start back up.  if at all.

excellent.

on the plus side, not only have i gotten to 'ma ingalls' it by boiling water to wash my dishes (and most things that make me feel like ma ingalls makes me feel better about life), but i have not had to do much laundry this week.  (i'll probably regret this part next week, when we have hot water, and i'm having to catch up on all the stuff that piled up this week.  but i'm enjoying it now!)  additionally, i have gotten to bum showers at my friend jenni's house.

it might not sound like much, but let me paint you a little picture:  i show up at the door all dirty and unshowered, and am greeted by hugs and 'welcome home!'s from the family, like they don't even notice how gross i am.  then they insist that i probably want to take a bath, not a shower.  and they're right.  and then their daughters go and light some candles and gather up some decorating magazines and set out towels.  and then i'm all like, 'it's not awkward for me to just hang out all bath-y in your house?' and they're all, 'no! not at all!'  and then i'm soaking in the tub for like 45 minutes astonished that this is actually my life.  and then i get out and dress myself and otherwise try to be presentable, and they're like, 'how was it?' and i'm all like, 'best thing that has ever happened to me.  ever in my life.'

in related news, another friend watched my kids a couple of mornings this week and bathed them for me while they were there.  who knew that a crazy hot water heater could result in me being so spoiled and not having to do any work?

so.  all in all, this whole 'no hot water at my house' thing really just results in me getting to soak, kidless and responsibility-less, in a candle-lit bath for a while, while thumbing through magazines and letting someone else take care of the kids' hygiene.  i bet you wish your hot water heater was on the fritz as well.

video vednesday: doodoodoodoodurrrrr (that's my best transcription)

(todd wishes he had thought of and made this. i love how much he loves it.) thanks jes!

come and sit a spell. over there on the wipeable leather arm chair.

we bought our couches before we got married.  todd's parents offered to buy us furniture for our new home as a wedding gift, so we got to pick out new stuff from day one!  and you know what?  i'm pretty sure i will still love those couches with my dying breath.  those turned arms.  that camelback shape.  the traditional turned legs.  the extra-wide seat for people like me and abraham lincoln who need a little leg room. (i'm still crossing my fingers that he comes to visit someday.  i realize it's implausible, but if he does come, he will be comfy on my couches.)  yeah, they're a weird gold color, and the cushions are starting to get a little mushy, but i will recover those things a million times before i have to get rid of them before their time.

however, one thing i did not pay attention to when buying furniture as a young, never-been-married, never-had-kids moron (not the wise, educated, worldly woman i am now) was whether or not the upholstery fabric was washable.  i bet you can see where i'm going with this.

it is not.  it is dry-clean only.

so not only is the fabric gold, but it is covered - and i mean COVERED - with all kinds of nasty stains.  three babies later, and those couches are still telling the tale of every episode of baby spit-up, every time a toddler cried and buried his snotty and tear-streaked face in the couch, every time liquid medicine was administered and subsequently spilled or spit out, every time i have spilled my water during night-time nursing (oh yes, water stains them too).  i'm not saying it strongly enough when i say they're DISGUSTING to look at.  all gold and splotchy.

so i'm trying to figure out what to do with them.  i have tried covering them with slipcovers in the past, but a) no company makes a rolled-arm, camelback, T-cushion slipcover and so they always look wonky and fit strangely and cover up the shape i love so much, and b) cotton?!  slipcovers are made of cotton?!  like that's going to keep anything from soaking through onto the couches underneath.  they should make slipcovers out of bullet-proof vests lined with those weird foil thermal blankets.

at this point, i'm hoping a good professional cleaning and some massive scotchgarding action will do the trick, but i don't know, you guys.  they are pretty bad.  maybe someday in the future i will become besties with a seamstress with a bunch of time on her hands and a generous heart, and i can get them recovered in some kind of pretty, stain-repellant, stain-hiding, inexpensive, indestructable, good-smelling upholstery material.  until then...any ideas for me?

this is real life.

i would just like to start off this monday by saying that i hate moving.  hate it.

i hate that we had a bunch of guys moving our crap into a house that is nearly half the square footage of our old house, knowing that we don't have room for it all and that i'll have to sell a bunch of it and so much of their effort was in vain.

i hate not knowing where the baby clothes and baby swing and whatever else is.  i hate that our life and our stuff is in such chaos so close to when this baby is due.

i hate having a smaller kitchen and not knowing where to put everything.

i hate staring at boxes and random furniture arrangements and not knowing where it all will go.

i hate that the piano that i defended so loyally to bring with us (when todd and all our movers wanted me to leave it behind) betrayed me by gouging and scraping and peeling the ever-living crap out of the beautiful floor that todd slaved over.

i hate that our dining room table is about to bite the dust now because it couldn't handle all the pressure of moving.  what a stupid pansy.

i hate that our bed doesn't fit up the stairs and now we have to sleep on a double bed like a middle school girl.  a single, solitary middle school girl.

blah.  happy mondays are for d-bags.  the rest of us like to start out our weeks wallowing in self-pity, am i right?