Reblogged for my sister…sending good thoughts + hugs + real estate dreams. 

An update on the boys with the killer smiles:

Wells is on the MOVE these days…crawling, pulling himself to stand, pulling on my pants leg, climbing onto furniture, walking while gripping coffee tables and couches, standing over and over and over and over again in the tub, and exploring every electrical cord, outlet, night light, dog dish, vent, cabinet, and shoe. #wearescrewed

Fitz is also on the move, albeit career-wise as he starts grad school in less than two weeks. #schoolshopping?

Wells has a play date tomorrow with his suburban buddies. He is the oldest of the group and has the least amount of teeth- zero! #gummygrins

Fitz and I have a double date tomorrow night with neighbors from our old digs in Chicago. They moved to the suburbs around the same time we did- different areas, but huge renovation projects for both of us. Conversations will include words like drywall, budget, and permits. #scintillating

July, continued

• Fitz captains the new pontoon boat:
  
• We didn’t forget about first mate Theo:
  
• Wells decides to take a happy nappy:
  
• And Wells decides that he is ready for solids by chowing down on sweet potatoes:
   

July

• More Ravinia, more Botanic Gardens
• A 4th of July fireworks viewing on the beach in Glencoe in what can only be described as downright MISERABLE heat.
• A longtime friend gets married in Iowa City on a HOT summer day, and I speak at her wedding:
   
• When we head to Iowa City, we leave Wells with my brother and sister-in-law (our very first time away from him overnight!). We bring Theo and my breastpump. Both have a swell time.
• Iowa City is heaven:
   
• Theo agrees:
  
• We check out Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney in concert at Soldier Field on a rare parents night out with brother Matt and soon-to-be sister-in-law Nikki:
   
• Feet officially go IN the mouth:
• Hubbard Woods becomes our go-to area as we can walk there with the stroller, dine al fresco, and walk home as the baby sleeps:
  
• I take Wells as my date to Ravinia to see Seal and Macy Gray:
  
• We head to Minocqua to the family lake house. During our first night, Wells refuses to sleep and we begin to lose sanity. He quickly realizes life is more fun when he is well-rested and good times resume:
  
  
  To be continued…

March

• Try to get a grip on parenting. Mess up all the time. Walk around like a zombie.
• Oh sleep, I miss you so much…
• Recovery is not easy, but I tough it out.
• Breastfeeding is not easy, but I tough it out.
• Wells smiles for the first time. Start to feel like I am getting the hang of things.
• Stress level at all time high as I am furiously packing moving boxes while husband is at work. When he gets home, he loads all boxes in car, and drives them to new house before work the next morning. Do this for several weeks. 
• Come home from a Target run and find Theo like this:
  
  
• Take one last walk around the South Loop with Wells during an unseasonably warm day:
  
   
• Leave our first family home together. Walk through each room and exchange ‘remember whens’ and chuckles. Feel a lump form in my throat when I look into our great room and see Theo standing alone against the backdrop of the city:
  
  
• Goodbye Chicago, goodbye South Loop
• Cry a little bit…
  
   
• Stare at our old building as we drive away.
• Smile as we pull up to our house to begin a new chapter. Theo is excited too:
  
   
• Get settled into our new digs. 

January

• Full-on nesting mode in our South Loop condo as we prepped for Baby A’s arrival. 
• Full-on renovation mode as our house under went a major gut rehab. 
• Full-on business professional mode as I continue to work until a ‘false alarm’ labor scare at 39 weeks. I take the hint to slow the F down.
• Received an iPhone for Christmas and life immediately improves. I take my first photo and it looks like this:

tinyhousesmallspace:

The Edge - Whitsand Bay, Cornwall, United Kingdom 

A luxury tiny house rental…

Sweet!

homedesigning:

House with a Pool Inside

I grew up with a pool in my back yard. You know what would NOT be fun whatsoever? 

A pool IN MY HOUSE.

Ever get a whiff of chlorine? 
The stench of chemicals would be so intense, not to mention anytime someone dove or jumped in and splashed water, one would constantly worry about staining a chair, getting water on an electric source, and having a stranger misstep and take a plunge. 

No thanks.