Big House Projects

We've got LOTS to do to get ready for baby #2!  Tess is moving next door into a new "big girl room" so that we can keep her room as a nursery for the little one.  This means moving our hundreds of books out of the guest room closet and into....where?  We had intended to make a built-in bookshelf and office center in our loft area, and since our garage is short on extra storage space, we decided to take the plunge.  We were able to make it happen because we have a GREAT cabinetry guy who charges very reasonable prices!  Below are pics of the bookshelves in progress, as well as the transformation of the guest room into Tess's big girl room, and the return of Tess's room to an official baby nursery. 

We owe HUGE thank yous to our dear friends Troy and Carrie for motivating us to do the painting ourselves by making it a fun get-together, and to my mom (Meg) for coming up to help us get both girls' rooms situated (there was TONS of baby stuff to unpack and put away!).  We're almost there!

Tahoe Weekend

Last weekend we spent 3 days and 3 nights up at Chad's family's home in Lake Tahoe.  We invited our dear friends The Cutlips (Troy, Carrie, Caden and Ryder) and The Stricklands (Kelly, Monica, Brandt and Reed) to join us and had a wonderful time!  With 6 adults and 5 kids (all 8 and under) there was plenty of activity, yet for me the time was thoroughly relaxing.  The boys played outside or did crafts indoors, Tess got lots of lap time and attention, and the ladies got in all the girl talk we wanted.  We watched the snow melt, ventured out into the rain, shopped the Village at Northstar, read magazines, watched HGTV and movies, and ate delicious food.  While we were there, I celebrated my 35th birthday just the way I wanted -- a quiet day surrounded by loved ones and delicious meals, with 2 naps included! We are grateful to have such a beautiful place available to us and we are blessed to have such great friends (and their kiddos) to share it with. 

Below are some of the pics I took ~ enjoy!

Weekend At Pebble Beach

We spent a lovely weekend in Pebble Beach this past Friday to Sunday, thanks to our dear friends Troy & Carrie Cutlip. Carrie's extended family shares a home on the 6th hole of the Monterey Peninsula Country Club, and occasionally she and Troy are able to schedule a few days out of town there. The house is less than a mile from the beautiful Seventeen-Mile Drive and minutes from downtown Carmel. We had some fantastic dinners out (accompanied by some remarkable bottles of wine!), the guys golfed at Rancho Cananda, and Carrie and I shopped and went to see "The Proposal." The house was so cozy and we got in some good TV time watching the U.S. Open, too. Sprinkled into the weekend was some great conversation and the knowledge that we are so blessed to have friends that are as close as (possibly closer than!) family.

Troy and Chad went to high school and junior college togther, and played on the same golf team. When we got married, we wanted Troy to be part of our wedding party, but he was scheduled to graduate from Fresno State on the same day. However, Chad got to be Troy's "Best Man" when he and Carrie got married. I knew Carrie (formerly Carrie Mullins) when she attended Fresno Pacific University for our freshman year; then she finished her degree at Westmont. It was fun to reconnect when she started dating Troy. They have 2 little boys, Caden (age 5) and Ryder (age 3), who are entirely adorable! They're the sort of friends we can truly be ourselves around and share openly with. Even when we don't see each other for a few months, we can pick up right where things left off.

We're so grateful they invited us to share a weekend with them at one of the most beautiful places around!