Too much has happened since the last time I posted.
We found out we're expecting another baby, a boy, due on October 12th. I finished Josh's toy box, and used a whitewash-type stain. It turned out great, thanks to Tom's tips and workshop.
We also started and finished re-doing the office. What a job that was! It took us awhile to figure out what flooring we were going to use. We finally settled on Pergo Select American Oak that we got from Great Floors. All the stores, Home Depot, Lowe's, independents, had different colors to choose from. We really wanted to match our wood floors as closely as possible, and we were pleasantly surprised when we found this option. Liz cleared out the carpet and removed everything from the room (It was everywhere!) Liz painted the room Benjamin Moore Desert Tan, the cubby for the shelf Audubon Red, and the ceilings a flat Linen White. We finished the floors together in record time, taking just over 4 hours. We bought all our new cabinets, table, and file cabinets from IKEA, and Liz worked to assemble all of them! The upper cabinets were the first to go in, and we quickly realized (from Tom) that they weren't going to hang on the studs without some help. So Tom helped me rip an 8" piece of 3/4" oak plywood the length of the room to hang the cabinets. So they are up now and aren't going anywhere! Next we needed to fit the butcher block countertops into the L-shape of the room. We had to cut the 96" length to 90" and we used our circular saw and a guide board that we had screwed on. One clean cut later, we put them in the room to check, and they fit! I screwed on all the adjustable table legs, and then used 3 heavy duty steel mending pieces to attach the two tops together in the corner, so we wouldn't need a leg in the corner for support. It worked great! It was overkill, but who knows who might want to sit on the table in the corner, or hang from the cabinets. Next we started the built-in shelf. We got the wood from Dunn's Lumber and loved our shopping experience there. I had them rip 1x12" boards to exactly 8" and rip the 'scrap' again to ~2" that I could use as 1x2's to support the shelves (again on Tom's suggestion). I cut all the pieces one day, and painted them all outside the next day in Desert Tan, to contrast with the Audubon Red in the background. We put them up that night, and it turned out great, despite the fact that the corner wasn't very square. I used the air nailer to attach the boards down on the 1x2's for extra stability. Liz loaded up the shelf with textbooks and other heavy stuff, and there's no sign of bowing so far! Only time will tell now... So that was it for our office project. Way too much detail to include on this home project, but it was a big deal for us, and it looks great!
Now Liz is in the middle of studying and doing homework for three actuarial courses. If she can complete all the homework and pass the final exams the third week of July, she will get credit for another Exam! So until then, we will hold off on our next home improvement, redoing the upstairs guest bathroom! We plan to paint it a natural color, pull the toilet, put in ceramic tile, a new faucet, towel bar/ring, and light fixture. It's one of the few rooms in the house that we haven't painted ourselves. Most of the others we liked, for example, the master bath, front living room, and Josh's room. We will have to repaint the hallways and ceilings sometime. Another big project that got postponed from last summer is refinishing the deck. Yikes! That'll be a lot of work!
So I could say that we're also getting ready for Baby Boy #2, but to be honest, we haven't done much at all! We're trying to decide what we're going to do for the holidays this year. The Wentzien's are headed to Baja, Mexico for Christmas, and we decided this wasn't for us and our 8-week old and 2.5 year old! We're thinking maybe an extended Thanksgiving back in Arkansas and St. Louis (with a 4-week old...)
I just submitted all my application materials for the MS in Medical Engineering program. The UW Bioengineering department will let us know if we get in the last week of August. I decided to opt for the non-thesis option because I would've had to have picked out my thesis topic and got my advisory committee before July 1st. Good luck with that! No wonder no one has done the thesis since they started offering the non-thesis option a few years ago! This past year of classes was relatively lame compared to the first year. Imaging was good, but I thought that Human Factors was particularly bad. Regulatory Affairs & Intellectual Property was better than expected, but still not really worth the tuition! I also started taking the Bioengineering seminar this past quarter, and that was a good class for only one hour a week. I only attended 2 of the 10 lectures on-campus, so I had to watch from home and write up 1 page summaries of all the rest. Not a big deal though since I could do it all from my laptop.
We have been fortunate to have developed new friends in the past few months. We have enjoyed many dinners out with Tom & Karen, plus they have been invaluable sources for advice as well. In return, I have been able to help them with their computer troubles and set up a wireless system for Karen's new laptop. The Stakelum's have become friends as well, and Josh has spent more time at their house than I can keep track! He enjoys his friend Eddie as well as his sisters Brigid and Caelan. Caelan is closest in age to Josh (she's 11 months older) and they have become good playmates. Though Josh seems to worship the ground Eddie (4) walks on, and Brigid (6) is always kind and motherly towards him. Now that the weather is finally nice outside, the kids have really enjoyed riding bikes and digging in the dirt together. The neighbors who are original owners, have kids that are graduating high school or getting close. Laurie & Nicole have said they enjoy the 'turnover' of the neighborhood and the sound of "big wheels" on the sidewalks again. You'd think that Rory (7 months older) and Sam (5) next-door would become fast friends, but it hasn't yet, even though Josh really enjoyed their backyard and 2-3 rooms of toys! We have loved getting to know Patty & James Dean and their son Nicholas (who's 2 months older than Josh) and new baby Madelyn. Other friends include Denise & Monnie and their 1-year old daughter McKenna who are looking to move back to Atlanta, but it hasn't happened yet. We are thankful for all our friends out here!
Since this has become the longest post ever, I will close now until the next time.
