Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween from the Haus of Kendi!

Cutest little scarecrow ever!

From the "What Was I Thinking?" File

Don't start plumbing projects after 8:00 pm. It doesn't end well. Just leave it until tomorrow. Unless there is water spraying everywhere.

Our kitchen sink has been problematic lately. I thought I fixed the drain a couple of weeks ago when I pulled the measuring spoon out of the drain. But it's been plugging up again and I'm out of drain cleaner. I needed to finish some dishes tonight, so I ran down to the basement to grab my snake. I thought, "this should be quick and easy."  Wrong. The snake got caught and I couldn't pull it back out. Only option was to take the trap apart to figure out the problem.

The technical aspect of this was pretty easy. Unfortunately my bucket wasn't big enough to catch all the water/sludge that came out when I took the trap off. Do you know how bad rotting food smells after it's been fermenting in the plumbing for who knows how long?

So I cleaned up the mess, got the trap cleared out, and freed the snake. Done right? Nope. Put everything back together and ran the water to check for leaks. And there it was…water filling the sink again. In a moment of brilliance I thought I'd try the snake again. It's currently lodged in the drain and I'm in bed. I'll try again tomorrow.

The Bear Den #5

It's been a while since the last update.  Gunnar is full on into two years old.  Some days he's the sweetest little chatter box you will ever meet.  Other days he's a tiny tyrant.  But every day he is a little boy.  I have to stop referring to him as a baby because he is not that anymore.  He's become more responsible around the house.  He is expected to help clean up his toys and put his hat, coat and shoes away when he comes home from school.  He even helps with the grown up chores, like sweeping, every now and then.

Papa made him a "tower" for his birthday which helps him reach the level of the kitchen counters. He likes being up there when Kevin and I are in the kitchen making dinner. Gunnar will help get ingredients from the pantry and fridge for his favorite meal, PB&J.  He will pick out a plate and when his meal is ready, he climbs into his highchair all by himself. He's also turned his tower into a mini jungle gym.  

Gunnar talks ALL the time now.  He is way ahead of his class on vocabulary.  He can be sassy and incredibly sweet.  He also gets an attitude and he can be a smartass sometimes. But he has good manners so we're going in the right direction.  Plus, he's quite charming and he knows it.  It makes it very difficult to be mad at him when he flashes his cute little smile. He also loves to sing.  At bedtime we sing Baby Beluga, Watermelons (Down by the Bay) and Ants (The Ants Go Marching).  In the tub it's Row, Row, Row Your Boat and The More We Get Together.  When Dada is taking him to school, there is always a rendition of The Wheels on the Bus.    

There are also high fives, fist bumps, hugs, blowing kisses, raspberries and tickles.  He says goodbye to all his teachers and friends by name.  But we need to work on just Mommy and Dada disciplining the dogs and he still hits when he gets really mad.  We read books every night and watch our favorite cartoons which include Bubble Guppies, Sofia the First, Clifford, Chugginton and Thomas and Friends.  We've settled into a routine and I think it's helping all of us a great deal.

We are very slowly and surely getting settled into our new home.  Gunnar's room and play room are the spaces the most complete.  Then the dining room.  I'm trying to decide on how I want to decorate the master bedroom but it is so hard because I like so many looks.  We were getting a lot done during the summer when Kevin worked 4-10s.  But he is back to his school schedule so a lot of the work has slowed down.  Aaaaaannnnddd....Kevin started classes for his PhD!!  It has been quite an adjustment but we've got the hang of it now.  So, hopefully, in 4-5 years, we will have a doctor in the house.  :)

That's all for now!

Cheers!

Gunnar's 2nd Birthday - Part 2

Here's the party!  It was a monster theme.  Lots of pinterest projects and a whole day to get ready.  I'm happy, for the most part, about how everything turned out.  Some projects were better than others. It was the first time we had people over to the new house so I was stressed beyond belief.  I got all ambitious and invited people I work with...including my boss.  Everything had to look great.  I think people had a good time.  Gunnar made out like a bandit again this year.  

Cheers!

Here are the details:

These looked like bacteria to me

The goodie table.  The stuffed monsters were from Ikea and were a $1!

Monster bubbles.  So easy!

I'm going to try and make a photo number every year.

Both entries were turned into monsters.  The big orange monster is our bookcase covered in fleece.

Not the best picture of the cake, but there were monsters around the food and the frame with his picture was a monster too. 

This was a complete pain in the butt to make...

Here's the Photo Booth this year!

And here's the fun!

Like I said, spoiled!

Opening presents is serious business!

Gunnar's 2nd Birthday - Part 1

For Gunnar's second birthday, we took the day off of work to go to Sea Life Aquarium at Great Lakes Crossing.  We had never been there before and I heard good things about it.  It was small but they had really nice exhibits.  There were quite a few of those bubbles that you crawl into that put you into the action of the animals.  The touch pool was nice but my favorite was the tunnel and the big bowl that had the stingrays.  Some were trying to jump out!  

After the aquarium, we walked around the mall.  Gunnar played for a while on all the riding toys that cost a fortune.  We had A&W for lunch and he played in the kids playground and had a lot of fun there.  Then we went home.  It was a good day.  :)

Cheers!

Gunnar's First Birthday - Part 2

On the eve of Gunnar's second birthday, I realized that I never showed the party from his first birthday!  I was so proud of it.  We worked so hard to make my vision come true.  The theme was " Time Flies" so it was all about airplanes.  Almost all of my projects came out the way I wanted and we had a great group of people to share the day with.  I hope Gunnar looks back on these some day and sees how much he is loved.

Cheers!

Here comes the photobooth!!

Half way!

I totally haven't had any pop for almost 7 months!  SEVEN MONTHS!  That's longer than Lent. I'm really proud of myself.  I'm pretty sure that I'll be able to honor my New Years resolution and make it a whole year.  But, then what?  I don't think I want to give up pop for the rest of my life.  But it would be nice to only have pop, maybe, once or twice a month?  Idk.  I really didn't think that far ahead.  Just really pumped I made it this far.  

Yesterday I decided to go cold turkey on another one of my "vices".  I'm giving up my gossip magazines.  I buy them too much and they are expensive for a weekly thing.  I'm going to stick to the 4 monthly magazines I can't live without.  I hope this forces me to go back to reading books when I travel or have free time.  I hear there's a new Harry Potter book coming out at the end of the month...

Cheers!

Father's Day 2016

I think Kevin had a good Father's Day.  It was kinda hot so we tried to do fun things outside. I got him a hammock so he had to set that up immediately and we went for ice cream at the The Parlour.  They are known for giant sized servings of everything.  It was a fun day.

At The Parlour, Little Man got his very own sundae!

I think Kevin likes his present...

Father's Day pic.  This is the new spot.  (Until I plant some flowering tress by the house :)