Kitchen Backsplash Project

Over Scott's Spring break one of our "to-do" projects was to install a backsplash in the kitchen. We debated for a long time and went to many home improvement stores and finally settled on a ceramic tile that is 3 x6 inches.





The before pictures


Before we started we layed out all the tiles

Cara was very much into helping on this project like most other projects we do.

Our little spacers would not stay unless we taped them to the tile, so that is why the back wall looks a little crazy in this picture
The completed wall (the color variations are because the sealer was recently applied and was drying
In this picture another coat of sealer was applied (to make it waterproof for cleaning) so the tiles look darker
The finished project!
We bought new ceramic switch plate covers to match the ceramic tiles
We are very happy with our completed project. We installed 20 square feet of tile because we have long cabinets in the kitchen, although half of it is only 5 inches high. The whole project cost less than $300 (tiles, adhesive, grout, sealer, tile saw, new plate covers, and tools to apply). We are proud of our DIY project!

Wow!

I took this picture the day she got her hair cut and it was straight. My baby looks so old! It is hard to deal with her getting older. At least sometime she still wants to cuddle, she still needs a kiss from Mommy to make her boo-boo's feel better, she still loves Mommy's attention and she is always asking Mommy to teach her something new. I dread the day that she stops wanting these things so for now I will treasure every single day and not think about the fact she is getting to be such a big girl!

Hair Cut!

For several months I have needed to get Cara's hair cut, it was too long and the ends were typically a mess since it was curly so I knew it needed freshened up. So off to EM Salon we went to both get haircuts on Wednesday!


She was very adamant that we leave it LONG, she was afraid they would cut it all off like the did mine!
Post cut and gorgeous. The stylist asked if I wanted it styled straight or curly to which I replied curly ( she has gorgeous natural curls might as well show them off). Cara was insistent that it be styled straight (later she mentioned straight is like the friends at school, the ones not blessed with beautiful natural curly hair).
She looks so grown up with her hair straightened!
Adorable!

Looking Cute!

Cara got this adorable jacket and t-shirt for Christmas from her cousin Charlotte. It also came with a cute skirt but it was a bit too chilly for skirts! I thought she looked adorable in it!

Daddy and Grandma's Birthday

We waited all day for Daddy to get home from work so he could open his presents! Cara was pretty excited if you can't tell by her smile!
A little birthday kiss!

High fives for getting him Iron Man 1 & 2 on blu ray!
Then after ballet that evening we had Grandma and Grandpa over for a birthday dinner followed by cake! Grandma's was pineapple upside down and Daddy's was fudge marble with chocolate icing
A a little snuggling to end the day!

Let's Go Fly A Kite!

When we were up in Ft Wayne we had a very windy day and Grandma and Grandpa have the perfect big yard to go fly a kite!

Disney on Ice: Princess Stories

For Christmas we got tickets for Disney on Ice: princess Stories from Grandma and Grandpa A! The princesses would only be traveling through Ft Wayne in Indiana so it was a good weekend to go visit and celebrate Scott's birthday!

Our Princess wanted to be Cinderella that day!
Waiting for the show to start
I had given her $10 for an icee to carry in her purse that evening. She was so excited to buy it for herself. Little did we know they would cost $15 (we love Disney right!)
Grandma bought her a Tinkerbell spinner toy
The ice show was fabulous, all of her favorite princesses were there except Tiana and Rapunzel (we told her they had to stay at Disney to greet fans)
Cinderella arrived on her coach
Cara was waving bye to everyone! We asked Cara what her favorite part was and she said "Minnie Mouse" Go figure, we see a Princess show with a small appearance from Mickey and Minnie and she said Minnie was her favorite part.
And once we got back home we had Scott's birthday celebration!
Cara picked the "5" candle! We won't talk about how many candles he would actually need this year!

ready for warm weather

With a little help from friends :) we are so ready for nice sunshine and warm weather!

Afternoon nap

Couldn't resist taking this pic of some cute nappers!

Ready for ballet!

just a few pics of our little ballerina ready for class the other night, showing us her moves!!

babysitting!

We had the pleasure of babysitting Reece a few days recently because his grandparents (his normal sitters) went on vacation! We enjoyed having a baby around the house!

A little princess shoes and a princess cape around the back never hurt anyone right?
Cara got to feed him a bottle
We dusted off Cara's old exercauser and put it to use!

Dressed and Ready for the concert...

Cara got herself ready for the jazz band performance on Saturday...the weather here was chilly, rainy, and gray! So our conversation went like this:

Me: Cara what are you wearing it is gray and rainy out

Cara: I know that is why I am wearing my raincoat

Me: Then why do you have sunglasses and a hat on

Cara: So I look cool :)

Family Room Redo

Found this old picture of the living room I had taken once we got the storage units from Ikea installed.

The walls were a smoky blue color
Now they are "fretwire" or a nice beige color. We recently upgraded to a 60" flat screen :)
Cara's artistic picture taking ability again
We are loving how the main floor has come together! Next on the project list is to replace all the door knobs with oil rubbed bronze and then replace the coffee table and end tables....I feel like I am living "give a mouse a cookie"..... Once you start you want everything to blend and match and just want to get it done quickly!