Sunshine. And rain. And sunshine. And rain.

Weather can be very human at times, can't it? As springtime approaches, we get so many mixed signals. There is such a moodiness about each week, like the sky can't decide what to wear. Should I wear sunshine today? Or should I put on a few of these clouds for a little downpour? All I know is that when that sun comes out and the temperature goes up a bit, we are out the door. Sunday was a beautiful day, one that makes you say, "C'mon Spring! You're almost there!" even though you know deep down it's going to hide away again until just the right moment. At least it gives us those glimpses into the beauty that is to come.

So, back to Sunday. First we had a baptism, which was awesome. I think that's the first time I've watched Casey baptize someone, actually. He had to run out the door soon after to give a ride to the person he just baptized, but came home a little later carrying some good home cookin' from Bofields! I'm talking chicken strips, fried okra, mashed potatoes, corn and rolls. The works. And the best part was that our little family sat out on the front porch enjoying the food and the sunshine together...Miles ran back and forth to the food more than sat, but that was to be expected.

Today was another nice day, so we went to Sonic for lunch and sat out on the benches instead of in the car or going home to eat. Miles sat there, swinging his legs and eating his fries and popcorn chicken (yes, we eat a lot of chicken). Then it was all about running once again.

Each year I grow to love spring more and more. I think I've always said that summer is my favorite season, but that is not true at all. As our lives have become more and more about going through our own winters of suffering and sadness to arrive at springtimes of joy, my appreciation for the parallel grows.

Praise God for spring!

Somebody's wearing the pants

I think I mentioned it before, but I've been knitting these adorable drawstring pants for Miles. The yarn the pattern requires is Rowan Denim, and it actually fades like denim when you wash it! Pretty neat stuff.

Anyway, I took a break from working on the pants last fall because I suddenly decided to knit everyone a gift for Christmas at the last minute, so all of my knitting time -- plus the needles needed for the pants -- were taken up with those projects. The unfortunate thing is that I am knitting the largest size in the pattern, which happens to be for an 18-month-old....meaning I'm already five months behind. I am now getting near the end of this project, and I have to say that the pants just might fit Miles. I mean barely. Maybe uncomfortably. For a day.

Either way, I am putting those things on that boy and taking a picture, because I have not knitted all that yarn up just to wait for the second kid to wear the pants!

The continuing tale of the cough

Miles had a sort of mini-relapse this weekend with his cough. Casey and I got more worried last night when he coughed on and on, and neither he nor we were getting to sleep. We went in to his room after midnight to give him a breathing treatment, and there he sat, just looking out of his crib and coughing away. Poor little guy.

So we took him back to his doctor today. It was not a good feeling, especially since it seemed like major deja vu of our visit three weeks ago. Miles was pale and very lethargic just like that February 18th visit, so our main concern was that he might be sent back to the hospital. We were even sent to get a chest x-ray just like the time before. Casey and I made jokes a lot of the time, I think because we were nervous about what the doctor would tell us.

Fortunately, the pneumonia had not returned, but Miles' lungs are very irritated. We have to up the breathing treatments from two a day to three, plus he is on another antibiotic and a steroid. He missed most of his afternoon nap, but this evening he was pretty much back to normal as far as behavior, running around and eating well. So far this evening I haven't heard him cough once, so praise God for that!

Colors...Skype...colors again

As it turns out, Summer Harvest on our laundry room's walls was a bit too...summery? harvesty? Maybe it was just a bit too much. The hue is good, it's the shade we have a problem with. The solution is just to move up (or is it down?) one shade to Moonlit Yellow. That way we still have the yellow we want, only a little more understated. I asked Casey when he would be getting the new paint, to which he responded, "Oh -- I'll be getting it today!"

This morning my mom and I were on Skype for about half an hour when I noticed that my aunt, who is my mom's only sister, was online as well. So I called her to see if she wanted to have a conference call with my mom and I, which of course she wanted to, and not a minute later there we were -- all talking together for free on our computers! Now, this might not seem like a big deal to you, but consider this: my aunt lives in East London, South Africa. She is eight hours ahead of us, so while it was almost noon here, it was almost eight o'clock at night where she is. I haven't had the chance to speak to my aunt in a couple of years now, so it was a treat hearing her voice (with my uncle chiming in from the background). The funny part was, I was the one who set up the call, and then the two sisters just took over the conversation! Not that I minded, it was actually very humorous. But you can imagine what it must be like for my mom, whose only sibling lives on the other side of the world, and it's been that way for nearly thirty years. I don't know how they do it. That's what makes the Skype thing so cool (shouldn't I be getting paid to plug them this much?). You're instantly connected -- audio and/or video -- and it is free.

Update on the laundry room: Casey didn't actually buy the Moonlit Yellow yet, but only because he wanted to bring one more sample home to make sure we didn't want that instead. After looking at them in different lights, I'm pretty sure I still like Moonlit Yellow. I'm thinking I have to like it, because I don't think he's going to paint another color after this one.

There's no place like Home Depot

My husband has a weakness. It is one that I'm sure many are familiar with themselves, men and women alike, but probably this is a weakness more common with men. Ladies, since you and your husband bought that house, I'll bet there is one particular place where he is spending a lot of his time. You know it, don't you -- that huge building with the inviting orange logo on the front...

That's right: Home Depot.

I can make a simple mention of our need to visit 'The Depot,' as I call it, and you can see the gleam forming in Casey's eyes. Then they glaze over as he begins to imagine all of the things he might add, plant, renovate or paint. That last one is the one he does most and does best. If I want a room painted (and if we've both agreed on a color), it is pretty much guaranteed that Casey will have it done -- this includes prepping the walls (spackling, sanding, wiping down), priming then painting a couple of coats -- in about two days.

Don't get me wrong, I too adore Home Depot. I think (since becoming a homeowner, anyway) that it is a very magical place with magical things that can make my house oh-so-pretty. I just don't have the same enthusiasm for the work as Casey, bless his heart. But I love that he loves to do that kind of work. I mean, he really enjoys it. Me, I am happy to let him paint away as I sit in front of the TV with my latest knitting project.

We decided just recently to make some changes to the laundry room. It is the room we move through many times a day, because it is where we enter and exit the house from and to the garage (for us it is very strange to think of using the front door). Because of this, we wanted it to look as inviting and as sunny as possible. And what could be more sunny than yellow? Now, the laundry room is not a big room by any means. But if Casey and I have learned anything in the past few years, it is how to use every bit of space in an efficient way. That doesn't mean we've made it happen all throughout the house, but we are getting there. Slowly but surely.

I recently talked here about some of our new organizations, one being the big set of shelves I wanted to add to the laundry room. I just love it! I'm still working on exactly what I want to put there, but it's mostly full at this point. One of my best ideas (I'm bragging because these ideas are far and few between -- cut me some slack!) was to take down the big brown kitchen-looking cabinets above the washer/dryer in order to open up the room just a bit more. In their place we'll have some nice, open shelves across that wall.

When we moved into this house nearly three years ago, the laundry room walls had a very quaint wallpaper on them that we actually liked. It was neutral and had a sort of garden theme going on in small pictures. I didn't think we'd do anything to the walls for a long, long time. Then I saw some renovations in a magazine and my mind went to work. I think it was the idea of the perfect yellow along with removing the cabinets that made us think, Okay, now we have to do this!

One thing I love about Casey and I visiting 'The Depot' to pick out a paint color is that somehow we have always been able to eventually come to an agreement on one color. We will do our own individual searches, then come back together to compare our finds. I've learned that, no matter if you think you know what color you want, you will still take some time looking through every shade of that color. And I don't know why this is, but the names given to the paint colors always seem important to me. Why is that? Not that I'll necessarily reject a color based on its name (our dining room is painted in 'Cold Cash'), but I can be influenced.

The color decided on for the laundry room is called Summer Harvest. One that Casey had found before that was called Bicycle Yellow, and in his opinion was too much a 'radioactive yellow.' I don't know what it is, but when the color is chosen, it is so exciting! Even more exciting is when the paint person punches in the code and mixes it all up together on that machine thingy, then pries the lid open to reveal your paint and uses a hairdryer on the spot he or she puts on the lid. Anyone not familiar with this whole process is at this point saying, "Huh?!?" Just trust me...it's thrilling.

So far, the cabinets are down (why didn't we take a before picture?), the wallpaper is peeled, the walls have been sanded/spackled/wiped down, and the primer is on. See what I mean? We only went to Home Depot last night, and before we went to bed Casey had that wall primed. Our new white shelves sit in the garage as they await their new home on the laundry room wall, and even though I realized later on that having open shelves means making sure things look a little neater at all times, I'm okay with it. Wasn't making this room look better the whole point after all? And so, I am very excited to see the finished product. If it looks as good as it does in my mind, maybe I'll share a photo or two.

And if I know my husband, the final coat should be up this afternoon.