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dancerjodiYes, I am officially done with the winter. I don't want to look at snow and ice anymore. I'm starting to think of what we'll do with our freshly-cleared yard this year, and am excited to share it with Mina.
An old steam radiator in one of our bedrooms (Brian's collectables room) has been leaking for a while, but lately the leaks have gotten quite bad. We went out on Saturday morning for plumbing supplies at Home Depot and the plan was to try and get it fixed, and to cut out the section of damaged wood floor around it. There was so much water damage and mold under the floor, that 3/4 of the flooring had to be removed, so at that rate, it all went out. Thankfully our junk guy was free to come pick it all up from the curb that day, as the city wouldn't take it. Under the cheap Ikea "wood" were 3 layers of vinyl, over presumably the original hardwood. Why oh why did some former owner start covering the hardwood?! Given how messy that tile is and how not-level the floor is, the easiest/cleanest way to make it nice again is wall to wall. It is getting installed on Thursday, and in the meantime most of Brian's collectibles are in our bedroom, which is not fun.
Brian noticed last weekend that our dishwasher was leaking. I'm hoping we can find a DIY solution to get it to stop with the water. He and I need to talk about the floor. It is also Ikea wood (why oh why would you do this in a kitchen former homeowners?!). It may be time to finally tile, the prospect of which is challenging with a 2 year old. My dad came out and tiled a tiny bit of the kitchen a while ago, in our back hallway. The litterbox lives there, and the cats were peeing (by accident) out of the box and it was soaking into the floor underneath. Dad cut out the smell/rot and put some cheap but nice looking 1' ceramic tiles down with a threshold to divide it from the kitchen. I think it may be time to extend the work, but it was not something we were planning on doing.
Thankfully, our tax refund was nice and has arrived. We're using it to pay for our NYC trip, and some should pay for these repairs.
I'm wondering if I want to try and drag my butt to the gym at work on off-dance class days (Wed and Fri) or if I'd be better off getting up earlier and working out at home. I have an hour for lunch and the walk to and from the gym next-door, plus shower time only allows a 1/2 hour workout. The setting there isn't too inspiring. I'm excited about clear sidewalks coming so that we can spend more time walking around our hood again.
Mina has been lots of fun and lots of challenge lately. She's doing what she should be at this age, pushing boundaries and figuring out how things in her life work. I'm just amazed each day at her language and her retention, and her logic. I'm gushy over how much of a snuggle bug she is. I'm proud of how much she loves to create art and "read" books, and sing and dance. So hard, but so much fun.
We went to the New England Aquarium on Sunday, all excited to share the touch tank and the penguins and sea lions and just wonder of it all with her. It was a learning experience for Brian and I, to be sure. We were kind of snapping at each other in trying to get together and get out of the house. I didn't think we were "fighting" so clearly, but Mina told us to kiss each other (and make up) while we were driving into the city. We told her we loved each other and loved her and that we were OK, and just let the conversation go. We did have fun at the aquarium, but the $ (2 adult tickets and painful parking - but we didn't want to allow for the time that taking the T would mean) was an ouch. Mina liked the touch tank, and kept playing with a lever on one of those penny squish machines. She didn't care too much about the central tank at all. She was amused by the penguins for about 5 seconds. She liked being face to face (on the other side of glass) with a sea lion, though Brian and I felt like kind of bad parents, because the reason the sea lion was just sitting there was because he (or she) was going to town, humping a pillow thing. Mostly though, Mina just wanted to run around the museum, and have us chase her. I tell you, chasing a fast 2 year old in a place with a huge central obstacle and tons of people (roadblocks) was tough, even with 2 of us. We didn't have this issue at the Boston Children's Museum. The Acton Discovery Museum is much smaller/interactive and you're kind of on top of the kid in each room. This was scary though. I don't think we'll be returning until she's old enough that she's not running away from us like that (also, she'll have more patience for the T).
Live and learn. I feel like we have our stuff together for the most part, as well as can be expected. You have good days and bad days. But by the end of Sunday, I felt like the worst parent and worst wife ever, and just wanted to crawl into bed and cry. I was able to pull it together and get through the bedtime routine with her, and just try and enjoy the time. It did take me longer to get her to bed than we aim for (out of her room by 8), but I was feeling better by that point. It was a perfect example of why having Mondays off right now is so perfect for us. Who cares if the regular nighttime cleanup/packing/planning routine doesn't get done, because I'm home on Monday to try and catch up. Which I did.
Blah blah. This post is a lot of boring, mundane stuff, but that's the majority of life, right? Through it we had lots of hugs and kisses and laughs, which is the best I could say about a weekend.
An old steam radiator in one of our bedrooms (Brian's collectables room) has been leaking for a while, but lately the leaks have gotten quite bad. We went out on Saturday morning for plumbing supplies at Home Depot and the plan was to try and get it fixed, and to cut out the section of damaged wood floor around it. There was so much water damage and mold under the floor, that 3/4 of the flooring had to be removed, so at that rate, it all went out. Thankfully our junk guy was free to come pick it all up from the curb that day, as the city wouldn't take it. Under the cheap Ikea "wood" were 3 layers of vinyl, over presumably the original hardwood. Why oh why did some former owner start covering the hardwood?! Given how messy that tile is and how not-level the floor is, the easiest/cleanest way to make it nice again is wall to wall. It is getting installed on Thursday, and in the meantime most of Brian's collectibles are in our bedroom, which is not fun.
Brian noticed last weekend that our dishwasher was leaking. I'm hoping we can find a DIY solution to get it to stop with the water. He and I need to talk about the floor. It is also Ikea wood (why oh why would you do this in a kitchen former homeowners?!). It may be time to finally tile, the prospect of which is challenging with a 2 year old. My dad came out and tiled a tiny bit of the kitchen a while ago, in our back hallway. The litterbox lives there, and the cats were peeing (by accident) out of the box and it was soaking into the floor underneath. Dad cut out the smell/rot and put some cheap but nice looking 1' ceramic tiles down with a threshold to divide it from the kitchen. I think it may be time to extend the work, but it was not something we were planning on doing.
Thankfully, our tax refund was nice and has arrived. We're using it to pay for our NYC trip, and some should pay for these repairs.
I'm wondering if I want to try and drag my butt to the gym at work on off-dance class days (Wed and Fri) or if I'd be better off getting up earlier and working out at home. I have an hour for lunch and the walk to and from the gym next-door, plus shower time only allows a 1/2 hour workout. The setting there isn't too inspiring. I'm excited about clear sidewalks coming so that we can spend more time walking around our hood again.
Mina has been lots of fun and lots of challenge lately. She's doing what she should be at this age, pushing boundaries and figuring out how things in her life work. I'm just amazed each day at her language and her retention, and her logic. I'm gushy over how much of a snuggle bug she is. I'm proud of how much she loves to create art and "read" books, and sing and dance. So hard, but so much fun.
We went to the New England Aquarium on Sunday, all excited to share the touch tank and the penguins and sea lions and just wonder of it all with her. It was a learning experience for Brian and I, to be sure. We were kind of snapping at each other in trying to get together and get out of the house. I didn't think we were "fighting" so clearly, but Mina told us to kiss each other (and make up) while we were driving into the city. We told her we loved each other and loved her and that we were OK, and just let the conversation go. We did have fun at the aquarium, but the $ (2 adult tickets and painful parking - but we didn't want to allow for the time that taking the T would mean) was an ouch. Mina liked the touch tank, and kept playing with a lever on one of those penny squish machines. She didn't care too much about the central tank at all. She was amused by the penguins for about 5 seconds. She liked being face to face (on the other side of glass) with a sea lion, though Brian and I felt like kind of bad parents, because the reason the sea lion was just sitting there was because he (or she) was going to town, humping a pillow thing. Mostly though, Mina just wanted to run around the museum, and have us chase her. I tell you, chasing a fast 2 year old in a place with a huge central obstacle and tons of people (roadblocks) was tough, even with 2 of us. We didn't have this issue at the Boston Children's Museum. The Acton Discovery Museum is much smaller/interactive and you're kind of on top of the kid in each room. This was scary though. I don't think we'll be returning until she's old enough that she's not running away from us like that (also, she'll have more patience for the T).
Live and learn. I feel like we have our stuff together for the most part, as well as can be expected. You have good days and bad days. But by the end of Sunday, I felt like the worst parent and worst wife ever, and just wanted to crawl into bed and cry. I was able to pull it together and get through the bedtime routine with her, and just try and enjoy the time. It did take me longer to get her to bed than we aim for (out of her room by 8), but I was feeling better by that point. It was a perfect example of why having Mondays off right now is so perfect for us. Who cares if the regular nighttime cleanup/packing/planning routine doesn't get done, because I'm home on Monday to try and catch up. Which I did.
Blah blah. This post is a lot of boring, mundane stuff, but that's the majority of life, right? Through it we had lots of hugs and kisses and laughs, which is the best I could say about a weekend.
