A few deep breaths, fresh air and much needed family time

Still there?

Oh good!!

I know you've been seeing a whole lot of family and a whole little of crafty or sewing these days...

But sometimes (and most times lately), fresh air, sunshine and a day with my fantastic four is just what the doctor ordered!

Don't worry, dust hasn't swallowed my sewing corner just yet! And believe me, the ideas are flowing. What with all the many late night nursings and plenty of time to day (er night??) dream, I've had lots of time to scheme up some great projects for when things settle down again.

During those wee hours of the night I've also had a chance to step back and come to terms with these last few crazily busy months. If only I had realized what one seemingly far-fetched job interview would really mean for my nice and routined life... (a life that used to have plenty of sewing time in it!)

Well now I know!

And typical me, even though I had the perfect space to vent all about it on my blog I never did. I think deep down I knew I just had to keep moving, because admitting how stressed out and overwhelmed I really was would just make it all come crumbling down. But now that it's all over and my husband and I can laugh at how funny, crazy and unbelievable it all was, I thought you also might enjoy a disbelieving chuckle and a glimpse into just how not "crafty mommy blogger perfect" our last few months were :)

So join me in a head shake and sympathizing smile as you read the highlights of it all week by week...

Week 1
My husband interviews for job and actually gets offered the job a few days later

Week 2
He accepts the job and ridiculously soon start date

Week 3
Start date arrives 3 weeks after interviewing for the job forcing my husband to leave me pregnant, with 2 toddlers to pack and sell our house in Arizona while he moves to Oregon for this new job

Weeks 4-6
I obsess over keeping the house immaculately clean for showings while trying to pack and take care of 2 toddlers without my much needed wing man

Week 7
Christmas/New Years

Week 6
Plan and host a baby shower and Sienna's third birthday party

Week 8
Spend a few days driving all around town with my car door stuck OPEN and bungee corded down until I figured out how in the world to get this car to a mechanic and home again with me and the kids alone.

Week 9
I somehow (and still don't know how) survive Jonah's first major fall and stitches without Daddy to make it all better

Week 10
Pack, decide to take the house off the market, interview property managers, find renters and hope to God that my husband approves of all these huge decisions I'm making here!!!

Week 11
Find a house to rent in Portland from Phoenix without really ever spending substantial time around Portland... very tricky!

Week 12
Realize that there is NO WAY our current large yet over-full house is going to pack up and fit into even the biggest size house available to rent in our price range in Portland

Week 13
Try to sell, donate or throw out more furniture, toys and clothes that I'm ready to come to terms with even now...

Week 14
Pick up and actually drive the most ginormous Uhaul truck they make!

Week 15
Finish packing, cleaning and moving our beloved home that we put so much blood, sweat and tears into remodeling ourselves... And say goodbye to our dear friends and family.

Week 16
Drive alone with the two kids 23 hours across three states to our new home.

Week 17
Arrive, in the pouring rain and freezing temperatures, to our new home in Portland, Oregon.

Week 18
Realize that nope, actually, we still don't really like cold weather and rain! Uh oh...

Week 19-24
Begin getting used to the cold weather and rain, learn to play indoors a lot more and start to see the sunshine between the clouds (in more ways than one)

Week 25
Welcome our third baby into this world!!

Weeks 26-30
R.E.S.T.

Phew!!

Almost three months apart was hard on our family, but looking back I can see what a test of faith it all was and how the past few months have drawn us all even closer together than we were before. Not only does absence make the heart grow fonder it definitely made me MUCH, MUCH more appreciative for the wonderful, helpful husband that I have. I think he missed me and the kids a teensy bit too :)

But for the record, I don't want to do this ever again!

Home-made with a smile

And a few desperately needed sunny shinny days
(or I should say not rainy days)

To motivate us to start exploring our new landing, which was greeted by easily the most adorable peddler dog in the world at the Portland Saturday Market complete with his own "smile" sign!

How could you not smile even as we watched the clouds start moving right back over our heads minutes later...

Rain or shine I decided that it was time to start home-making this place into a home!


So, grab your own cup of tea, take a seat and I'll give you a little look at our new digs!

Ding dong!

Come on in...


Don't be shy now!

Here is our lovely living room adorned with far too many pictures for the wall space...

but I've had a hard time cramming our already too full house in Phoenix into this smaller house in Portland. So um, yes, you'll have to just tell me it looks ok anyway :)


Exhibit 2 of cramming...

Turning our entertainment center into a dining room hutch...

We just took out the middle part and the TV and voila!

Wouldn't have guessed it would you?!

Then we have the much coveted, loved, played on and yes, fallen down STAIRS!!!

We've never had stairs in our houses before and the kids just love them.

Up those glorious stairs are 3 bedrooms, but my 2 most important critics voted best room in the house to be the special princess and prince charming room...

Don't ask what makes it that besides it's inhabitants, but that's what the kids call their room. Hey, if it gets them to go to bed there, then call it the Taj Mahal if you want to!

Along with the royal theme we've got going here, Sienna likes to tell me to go to sleep in my queen room after I tuck her in bed every night...

So, alas, our "queen" room.
(Apparently Daddy doesn't have any of his own rooms in this house...)

Even the back yard is claimed by the Great Window Streaker!

We wash windows a lot around here as you could probably guess...

But that shouldn't make Daddy feel too bad since my kitchen is no longer sacred space as our landlords "conveniently" designed it with bar stools directly in front of my main counter space....

Perfect for little diggers to sneak in a pre-taste or two while I'm cooking!


Another great part about this house are the beautiful green views we have out our windows.

I love Phoenix, heat and all, but you do tend to get a lot of cinder block views from first floor windows...

And last but not least, the most spectacular homemade home-making part of our new home:

Of course!

What else were you expecting?

Oh ok, the Welcome Home Mommy and Baby Sebastian sign Daddy made with the Sienna and Jonah was pretty spectacular too!


That's about as far as I've gotten lately with crafting and home making... but you have to admit that growing a baby while moving to a new city is no creative task to scuff at!