You Would Look Cute In This

Dear Ellen
Sign up for Zulily and the will email you daily deals. It sounds annoying but it's all maternity and kid stuff and they really are good deals.
xo
Me

Dear Schmellen,

Oh, man, you are going to croak when you see Roost. I know you are not in cooking mode at the moment, but I also know you will be again in five seconds.

I like the clean bedroom advice. It is much easier to adhere to now that we have a larger closet. That is my new dumping ground, but it is slowly getting cleaner too. I got all wooden hangers and enough shoe storage. Storage makes me happy.

Complain to the grandparents to be that it sure would be nice to have some wood, batting, fabric and a staple gun so you can have a cushy headboard against which to lean while nursing baby. That should do the trick.

Hee hee,
Hannah

Chores

Dear Hannah,

Have you seen this website? Flylady.com - she's a woman on a mission and a ministry to help people take care of their homes. In anticipation of the New Year, I resolve to take care of my home.

Currently our most neglected, least attractive, and most cluttered space is our bedroom. According to Flylady:

"Your bedroom should be the cleanest room in your home. Many of you still use yours as a garbage/clutter disposal for the rest of the house. If your bedroom is clean and clutter free, then it becomes an inviting haven for building your relationship with your spouse. The best gift you can give your children is a strong marriage. This is true whether your children are 2 or 40 years old."

Besides decluttering, I want to create clear zones - sleeping, dressing, and rocking baby. Also, we need a headboard. The room feels out of balance and so I did a little research on Feng Shui. Here is what I found. We need a headboard for which I have no budget - as in no $. So, I'm thinking something like this. I've got some other ideas posted on pintrest here.

What do you think?

Love,
Ellen

Speaking of which...

Dear Hannah,

I finally joined pintrest and found this fun website All for the Boys (this is in direct response to my Mother's concern, "I just don't know what to do with little boys!") and this cool project from Katydid and Kid.



I want to make it now!

Love you so very much,
Ellen

Ps. Thank you for the sweet photos!

Proof

Dear Ellen, below is proof that you were meant to mother a boy.






Recently having a little boy has meant things like finding a shriveled Cheerio in the poinsettia pot. Or a crayon in the bottom of my essential oil room freshener. It turned the whole bottle green. It means being handed a booger as if I wanted it, and waking up to my husband and son playing with Dad's old He Man characters.

I think, however, if we ever do have girls, we will be surprised by how similarly indelicate they are. They will probably still hand us their boogers. They'll just do it while wearing tutus.

I like...

Dear Ellen,
I like 1, 2, and 4. They have the desired combination of color pop for your situation, combined with timelessness.

I speak with authority that perhaps I don't actually possess, but I'm just telling you what my gut says.

xoxo
Hannah

Pillow Dilemma

Dear Hannah,

I'm pondering pillows for my living room and bedroom.

For the living room, the walls are Whetstone Gray, the couch is beige-ish tan, and the current pics are cream with silvery-blue designs.

For the bedroom, I just got new bedding from IKEA. It's dark slate gray with a blood-orange throw for the foot of the bed.

Here's what I've been able to find so far... (they are all from etsy)


Lauralaurelie


MarthaandAsh


ElemenoPillows


KarensDesignerFinds


AnnasFabulousThings


SewSusieDesigns


Mazizmuse


frumafar


ClassicByNature

What do you think? I need your professional opinion here!

xoxo,
Ellen

So, to Sum Up...

You are pregnant. And now you are thirty! This is a big year for you, Schmellen!

Flowers

Dear Hannah,

I'll have pictures of the bump after this weekend, don't worry. But here is a funny flower story. So, last weekend, I helped out with the middle school musical. My job was to make sure the kids put their props back in the correct place and cue two techies when to push on sets. It was a tough job, but someone had to do it. My sweet mother came to the production with a big bouquet of flowers. One of the students in the audience asked my mother, "who are the flowers for?" She responded, "My little girl." "Oh, what part did she play?" "Well... I guess she's not that little." Then she had to awkwardly explain that I wasn't IN the play, I was a teacher helping out with the play. I got the biggest bouquet of all the kids and I was thrilled! I love my mommy.

Here are some pretty pink roses for you - wish I could hand deliver them!



Here are pretty flowers made BY you -



It feels good to be back!
Love you,
Ellen

awww

Do you know how cute your house is? Next up...post of YOU. Your house isn't pregnant. Haha. But, I'm really really proud of you for posting...just gettinerdun!






In other news, I miss flowers. And you. How about bringing me both?

Oh...and...what would you do with the piano if you moved it? I do like that spot.

xox
Hannah

Finally

Dearest Friend,
I've decided to come out of hiding and finally post again. Oh, and I'm pregnant! But, you knew that. Anyway, there is a lot to catch up on. First of all, I went to IKEA last weekend with my friend Bijal and had a blast! My purpose in going was to fix two problems we have in our living room.

1) We have no storage except for the cubbyholes in our coffee table.


2) We are using a piano for an entertainment center. Not efficient use of space exactly.



So, I got a new Expedit! It's 2 squares by 4 squares. We're thinking about putting it either under the Rwanda painting in picture 1 or in place of the piano in picture 2. What do you think?

Another problem to solve. This is going to be the baby's room. Oops.



I'm open to suggestions!

It feels good to be back :)

Love,
Ellen

Gender Neutral

...and do you have something you'd like to share with the class? :)


...

Body Mass Index

Dear Ellen,

You know with a title like that, this is going to be a good one! So, I was just at the sleep doctor for a follow up appointment with my CPAP (pressurized air) machine that I use at night. He walks in the door joking about Old MacDonald EIEIO.

The doctor plugs in the memory card from my breathing machine into his computer. I got the equivalent of A+, which we know is important to you and me for some reason. Then my doc looked down at my chart and said, "I see you've gained ten pounds."

"Yeah," I responded. "I'm working on it. I have this thing where I gain weight in the summer and lose it in the winter. I'm backwards from most people. I think I eat more when I'm happy. I'm happier in the summer."

No response; he's charting. Then my 3.5 year old makes crazy noises and acts a little rambunctious.

"You silly boy," Doc says. You better be good or Mommy's not going to cook you any lunch. Or, she's going to cook it and eat it all herself. So she can be happy."

"Whoa...that was mean!" I say.

(Parenting moment where I have to respond or redirect my 3.5 year old).

"You know, Doc, you ought to know not to say mean things about women and their weight. I'm surprised you don't know that by now."

Smiling and charting, he says, "I just speak the truth. I have no filter."

Then we move on into more productive territory like BMI and healthy weight and that if I want to redo my sleep study to see if I still need the breathing machine, I should lose some weight so that I don't skew the studies. In my mind, 'lose some weight' means get back down to the weight the sleep study was done at so we can isolate and eliminate the variable of the sleeping aid I took for the sleep study and see if I really do have 'hypopnea' or if it was drug-induced.

Doctor charts out loud. I wonder aloud "Does it make a difference how you write this up? I mean, I'm not asking you to lie, but if you make it sound like the re-study is my idea then insurance might not cover it."

I agree to talk to insurance and see what they will cover. I'm still nervous about this because a doctor stamp of approval with minimal details strikes me as sometimes a better option than all the minutae, because insurance companies will pounce on any detail and harp it to death to try to prove why something doesn't need to be covered. Anyway. At some point in here I tell him I signed up for Zumba.

"I don't know what that is."

"It's a Latin dance cardio class."

More charting.

As I'm leaving, the doctor says, "I'll reschedule you for a revisit within one year and you can call if you lose weight. We're talking significantly lower than the weight you were at when you started the study."

"Wait, what? What does that mean?"

"I mean like my weight."

"Um, what is that?"

123.

"Why do I have to weigh what you weigh?"

"Because if you're not significantly lower than when you started, the insurance won't pay and you're wasting your money."

"I'm not trying to change that variable. I'm talking about the sleeping aid."

Apparently he missed that part.

"So I will call you," I continue, when I weigh (previous weight minus 1) and I've talked to my insurance about what they will cover.

We're out in the common area by this point. Actually I think the door was open and we were heading out right around the time the doctor told me I need to weigh what he weighs. Bear in mind I'm taller than he is. All the staff behind their computers know how much I weigh now, if they were listening.

As I'm walking away, he calls, "Okay, but until then I've got you scheduled for one year."

Tonight, I'm going to tear it up at Zumba. When I got home, I went for a run. I made myself eat lunch. Then I googled a BMI calculator, just for fun. It's weird, if I lose three pounds I will no longer be considered overweight. I know there is such a thing as ideal weight, and I should lose more than three pounds to be in the MIDDLE of the ideal weight for my height. But it made me wonder...if I gained twenty pounds and then went in, what would Doctor 123 say?

Love you,
Hannah

Heirloom Tomatoes

Dear Ellen,

Two words: Heirloom. Tomatoes. They are truly the best. Not just a fad, not just a fun phrase...just the best. And yes, I would like some goat cheese with that. Lots of it. xoxoxo

Um.....

....hello!

Lunch Break

Dear Ellen,
I am going to take a nap. And maybe when I wake up you will be done with work. Recently, this book has been kicking my ass. Again. In a good way.
Lovies,
Me

I Just Read 'Thomas the Imperialist Tank Engine.'

Dear Ellen,

Do you use spray PAM olive oil? If you say no, that's one thing, but if you say it's not good enough for you, I will remind you that I once saw you eat Bagel Bites.

In other news, check out this article from Slate. I don't remember if I shared with you my semi-joking unease with 'very useful engine' being the highest compliment paid on the Island of Sodor. "What about those handicapped trains," I wondered aloud to Ben. This article spells it all out in painful and humorous detail.

How you been, girl?

I love your coffee table vignette, by the way. My response is, I realize, one million years too late. The vignette on the mantle seemed, while touchingly a Hannah shrine...a bit too many themes? Keep the cup for 'cougar coffee' in the kitchen. Color-wise, I thought the painting tied in nicely with the four hot pink dots while contrasting nicely: garish detail v. playful asceticism. Bam, you can take that to the bank! I just made that phrase up!

Love you!!
Hannah

Sweet Caroline

Dear Hannah,

We just got back from a fabulous road trip to Minneapolis and on the way, we stopped in Kentucky to see some sweet friends. The sweetest of all was little Caroline. I thought you would love to see her room!

The hottie and the cutie


Sweet girl's room





Love,
Ellen

New Digs

Dear Hannah,

As promised...

Cool and warm just like we like it.



The print is from Matthew's great grandmother.



Do you recognize most of this?









The white cabinet is the bottom of the hutch that was in the corner of the kitchen in the old house. We took the top off and will use this as a buffet.



A close up of the new knobs. I'm in love with these cicada knobs from Anthropology.



We had a lot of help. Not only your advise and tutoring over the years, but also our friend Lori consulted and did a lot of the arranging. Matthew helped a lot, too.

Okay, I want your honest opinion. What do you think?

xoxo,
Ellen

Teaser

Dearest Friend,
Pictures are coming of the newly decorated digs. I just need to find my cord!
Missed you through the whole process is an understatement.
Love,
Ellen

Dear Ellen,
When is this going to stop being funny?
Miss you,
Hannah

I am a dork

Here is proof.

Dear Ellen,
You know how to crochet AND knit? Isn't that like...illegal or something? Or like being good at Geometry and Algebra? I was told if you're not good at one you'll be good at the other and I sucked at both. Are we talking about math or yarn now? I don't know! I'm terrible at all of it.

But, I'm glad you had a lovely day with ladies and yarn and wisteria. What's up with the cicadas? I think that might drive me bonkers!

I've been meaning to say something about your pallet coffee tables: cool! I have been seeing pallets everywhere now. Also, I loved your cozy clutter images. I've been meaning to say that. Pay special attention to what makes the clutter work. Those rooms had some serious architectural BONES, man. They give off the old English vibe. Also, there was still a color palette. Should I finish the job and talk about palates?? Pallet, palette, palate. You gotta love our language. Anyway, as far as the PALETTE goes, there is some serious warm and cool going on in all of those rooms. Do you see it?

Lastly, here are some before and after photos. You are going to have to provide the 'after!'
xoxo
H

Knitting: round two

Dear Hannah,

Technically, I should have called the last post crocheting: part one. Anyway, these pictures are from a few weeks ago. I meet with several awesome ladies on Sundays to knit and chat. This time, we met at Tina's house where her wisteria was in full and glorious bloom. It was a gorgeous afternoon and cicada free. I can't believe you never got to fully experience the Nashville cicada experience - more on that later this week.

love you,

Ellen