Little Einsteins.

The next Smothers Brothers, perhaps?

swimmingly.

Here's a pictures of our future Michael Phelps. Rowan's been loving the swimming lessons this year. A huge difference from last year where he spent most of his time reading the letters on the walls of the pool room.

He's been jumping in and out of the pool and swimming (with his floatee) without holding on to Daddy. Pretty soon he'll be off to class with Andy and Daddy will have to start swimming with Henry!

In other news, we made some progress around here this weekend. We emptied out the basement to start work on the new "playroom" this week, and we are moving forward with converting the playroom back to a bedroom -- thanks to lots of babysitting by mum mum and papa. The clock is ticking. . . let the countdown begin!

friday. phew.

Hellow, snow. We meet again.

It's Friday. Time to make some progress on de-cluttering this joint. Andy has a birthday party tonight -- "from 5 to 8 pm" -- as he tells everyone. He is most excited to stay up past his bedtime. I'm sure he doesn't very much care about the party itself. Every morning for the past two weeks, the very first thing he has told me each day is how many days are left 'til the party. And now that it is finally here, I'm curious to see what his new "thing" will be to talk about in the mornings.

Okay, here's wishing you (and me) a very productive weekend and fingers crossed, let's see this snow melt for good! Come on Spring!!!

Not too many inspired links to share this week, but here's what I've got!

• This spicy soup is so yummy. We made it with kale instead of collard greens, and it hit the spot! (via Design Crush)

• Have you ever seen the Northern Lights? I never have, but would really love to some day. These Norwegian Lights photos are spectacular (thanks, Tom, for the tip!).

• How fun is this idea? The Jealous Curator interviews some of her favorite artists while pretending to have brunch with them? I love it! And I love the mixed media hand-embroidered work of Shaun Kardinal. A double-win!

So there you have it! Have a great weekend, and I'll see you back here on Monday! xoxo

what do you think?

I need some opinions. Please tell me what you think. If you were a cute [of course they'll be cute!], young, (probably) kid-less couple looking to buy your first home, would you be off-put by the playroom? Would it be a red flag to you that we are using our guest bedroom as a playroom?

Here's how it looks today.

Here's how it looked at the time we bought it.

What do you think? Is it necessary to convert it back to a guest bedroom to give the illusion that we have "plenty" of space in this house and we are not bursting at the seams? Would putting a twin bed in the room help? Or would that make people think we have one of our kids sleeping on the main floor by himself. Does the room need to be completely neutral and not a kids' room at all?

Please leave a comment below and let me know what you think. We could really use the help! Thanks! xoxo

flashback.

I was looking through old photos yesterday, and thought I'd post pictures of what we were doing on this date over the past few years. It's kind of amazing how quickly things have changed!

2010

2011

2012

And now here we are. Henry one week away from his first birthday.

The days are long, but the years are short! Let's make the most of each special day!

nostalgia.

While I know I wont really miss the pink tiles in this bathroom (in fact, the next house we purchase probably will still have it's own sherbert-colored 1950s bathroom tiles, who am I kidding?), it probably wont be this exact shade of salmon pink. And these boys won't be this exact age. And that is why, I will miss it. And I already know, my heart will ache when I think about these days gone by. And the baths they shared in our pink-tiled bathroom.

information overload.

After this weekend, my mind is spinning.  We have taken in so much information in such a short amount of time. It's hard to process it all. Numbers are filling my every waking hour, and have even crept into my dreams. Trying to time the sale and purchase of a new home in the next few months, trying to get the prices we need on both, packing up all of our stuff, moving away from the friends that we've made and doing it all gracefully. . . it's all a lot to think about.  But thinking is what I will do. . . planning, processing, replanning, reprocessing. . . but what if. . .then. . . replanning, reprocessing.

And somehow. . .Deep down I know. It will all work out.

friday. phew.

My taskmaster has been keeping me on schedule with the new quilt, so we officially have a finished top. This weekend I'm hoping to finish the backing and get the whole thing basted so that I can start quilting next week!

inspecting my work.

So, here we are, the weekend again. What are your plans? We are going house hunting -- an exciting and terrifying prospect. Not sure what else is on the agenda, but to be honest, for me, that in itself is enough! Hope that you have a beautiful weekend, and I'll see you back here on Monday. 'Til then, here are this week's link loves to keep you busy:

• Check out this amazing cut-paper art. So intricate and vibrant! (via design sponge)

• Here's some great news for me! Say your goodbyes 24 months earlier than originally planned. . .

• A list of ways to bring art into everyday life.

• This guy really, really loves his Pentax 67.  And he's awesome.

• Did you see this New York Times article? Baby dolls that look so human they could fool even Michelle Duggar. (thanks Tom!)

artistic style.

It's really interesting to watch how differently the boys approach things, especially the creative process. Andy, much like I was as a kid, only likes to create if he can replicate something that he already knows that he likes. He never wants to invest his energy in doing something and have it come out not looking the way he wants it to. That's why when we paint rocks, or make collages, or do anything, really, he needs to know "what am I making?". And if there is a picture on the box, he needs to see it, study it and try his best to recreate it.

He's structured, thoughtful, sometimes too hard on himself, and likes to please. He's also quick to quit. Andy tends to get disappointed if he fails to meet the standard he has in his head and will give up in frustration. I have to encourage him to keep at it when the picture is going outside of the lines.

On the other hand, Rowan just dives right in. Sometimes he knows what he is making ahead of time. Other times he makes, and then determines what it is. And because of that, he's always happy with the results. 

He's daring, not worried about meeting any particular standard, and flexible with the outcome. He also sometimes is too eager and ends up knocking the paint over, he's messy, and he refuses guidance or advice.

Vincent Van Ro

Isn't it interesting to see how this little process is reflective of their overall personalities and what's important to them? And isn't it amazing how different they are!

the saddest boy you'll ever see.

On Monday I took Henry and Rowan to the doctor for their well visits, and ever since, Henry hasn't been doing too "well". In fact, he's been downright miserable. The combination of teething and shots is really making him sad, sad, sad.

On Monday night, Henry didn't fall asleep until almost 10 o'clock, which is unheard of. Here he is with daddy watching some Market Warriors. You can actually see the reflection of the television on his drying tears in the one below.

My poor, sweet little hen, please feel better soon! Mommy loves you!