A house a home: part 2

When Grandma and Grandpa began discussing leaving their home of 50 years because it had become to much work, Matt and I started to ponder their future with them. You see their two sons, Mark and Charlie, don't live close. One is in Crested Butte, 5 hour drive from Denver, and the other lives in Wisconsin. The really hard part is they and us always assumed this would be Nancy's department...but that is not what God had planned so there is no time to sit and worry about what might have been because the thing we do know is that she would want them to be happy and safe.

I digress....as Matt and I began to have conversations about how we could include G and G into our family home, we began to think about leaving our home. Maybe we could find a home with a Mother in law suite or build one? As we started to do the research we discovered this was a much easier idea in our heads than reality...unless you have a large budget or a decent amount of land. The other problem was geographical because neither party wanted to leave the general area we live; Arvada-Golden area.


During all this movement Grandma and Grandpa decided they felt like a burden to us, they just couldn't feel comfortable having us take care of them as they age and we continue to build our family. Something Matt and I disagreed with but had to respect. So as soon as that door opened it closed. And once again I turned the plan over to God.


Than they did something suddenly, they listed their home for sale and began to look at independent senior living. Grandma began to see a reality in saying goodbye to their home of 50 years and it scared her. She began asking us to buy their house....so Matt and I took a day or two to really think about this.

Its the perfect layout, Three bedrooms upstairs, one downstairs. We could expand our family easily.

It has a huge yard with a view of the mountains.

Its less than a mile from Majestic View Park and Nature Center.

Its the house Nancy grew up in and where Matt lived during his high school years (when his parents moved north.) Mason's bedroom could be the room his Grandma grew up in...just slightly sentimental.

Us being there would give Grandma and Grandpa a sense of comfort in their aging years, they could be close to us in location and they could visit as much as they wanted.

It all seemed pretty perfect.

So we agreed to buy it! But its never that easy....

A House A home: part one

Our little Entrada house is not just a house,its a home!

It began as a college house for Matt and Nick, purchased in May of 2001 by Steve and Nancy.
It hosted several LARGE gatherings of drunk college kids and several room mates. The walls were adorned with life size Victoria secret posters and a mixed bag of handy down furniture.

Its the house where I first met Matt in the fall of 2002.

 where he swooned me with his golden locks and cute smile.

Its the home we first lived together, graduated college, started careers, became engaged, came home to as a married couple AND

  brought our baby boy home too.

Its were all of our siblings have lived and left (even Cade for a few months.)

 Where Matt and I stood sobbing in the kitchen after Nick's moving truck pulled away to Arizona because it truly was the end of an era.

Its where someone near and dear to us has been mourned and missed, everyday!

Its where neighbors have become our friends and where people look out for each other and their animals while away.

Its on the outskirts of Golden, the town we love so much...near the mountains and the miles of trails we love to hike and run.

Its our 3 bedroom 2 bath 1170-sq ft home. It ain't fancy but its our first home and its been a great home.

Sure it has its negatives, like it backs up to a decently busy road.

The kitchen needs some updating and more space.

The living room and dining area are small and on cold days when everyone resides there it feels really small.

BUT the biggest negative is the layout of our house. The upstairs only has two bedrooms and the third bedroom is two stories down in the basement. And according to Mason, that is where the monsters live.

Yes, expanding our family could be done, people do it in far "worse" situations. The kids could share a room in time.

BUT maybe we have outgrown our little home?

And as God so often does, plans have presented themselves....

What's cookin' good lookin'

Mason is bonkers about cooking.

and once you let them help you once

they want to help you every time

So I just set up a "safe" station

while he explores I can do the other cooking!

His current favorite is lemon with sugar! Ha!

Note to Self: I need to order some kid cooking items for his Easter basket. 

I know there are a million blogs about cooking but this recipe for "Jalapeno Thingies" by the Pioneer Woman is worth blogging about.

 I make these frequently when we have guests over and they are devoured.

Here is the link:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/07/bacon-wrapped_j/

She details it quite well on her blog.

The only changes I make is adding some cheddar. I do some with just Cheddar for my husband that doesn't like "creamy" things (man is he missing out) and some combo. I also do them in the oven on broil instead of a grill. I place them on a lined cookie sheet on a cookie rack, so all the grease can drain off.

 Also we tried them on a burger (suggestion by our friend Chris Valdez) and they were delish!

Just wanted to share. Happy Monday!

Can we bottle some of that energy?

A lot of Mason pictures in this post, I guess when you are parent that is what becomes of pictures and things you talk about. I swear I still have a brain and can talk about interesting things but he is the core, the substance, the light of our eyes..ok you get it!

We have been keeping busy these days. We were getting ready to list our house and to buy G and G's house in Arvada....we still our. Its just not a next week thing more of a next year thing. Its a long story and a whole other blog post (I will do soon) but for now we are going to hand over the timing to God and let the doors open as they will.

 So back to our crazy two year old, with Mason I have discovered the more activity the better. I try to balance our weeks with my work and lots of activity mixed in with the normal weekly routine. As with all things, some days are much easier than others. Thank god on the challenging days there is always wine...of course in the evening when he is in bed!

This past week we fit the zoo amongst other things into the schedule. The Rockies are back in action but instead of participating in the opening day madness we went to the zoo with ten thousand other people who had the same idea.

Mason got his hippo climbing on...

And tail sliding..

while I caught up with my girlfriend Lauren and her little guy, Camden. Isn't he a cutie pie? They are so much easier at this stage but I just heard he is crawling so good luck Roots!

By the time we got home from the zoo a nap was needed!

By my third attempt of laying him down I couldn't see or hear him on the monitor so I went to check..

He had put all his bed belongings and himself under the fitted sheet!  "Ya mom, find me."

A nap in his bed wasn't in the stars this day...

 I think there is a short window for Mason to take naps and when I miss it he goes to crazy town. He literally starts climbing the "walls." Some days I just deal but this day we were meeting my parents, their friend Lisa, and Matt in Golden for dinner. He NEEDED TO SLEEP.  

So I put him in the car and before I even got the harness buckled on his seat he was out! 

 I drove Lookout Mountain. I rolled down the windows and listened to some tunes and acted like I was taking a mini road trip.

I even got out of the car to take some scenic pictures of our recent fire. 

and our little town tucked between the Mesas.

After the 40-minute recharge (for both of us) he was back and ready for more action!

so we chatted with the chickens and waited for the rest of the crew!

And when Dad arrived his little guy couldn't get to his arms fast enough! They have such a cool bond.

And patio dinning with Grandma and Papa was a lovely way to spend Friday evening.

My dad, who is already Mason's favorite, took Mason over to the firehouse. Mason got to go inside and climb on the real fire trucks and they even gave him a new fire hat.  

He was a pretty happy kid and we hadn't even made our way over to the ice cream parlor yet!

I can tell April is shaping up to be a great month!

What do monsters, dinosaurs, toe nail clippers and showers have in common?

Lets see what have we been up to since I last posted...well Mason got a new pair of Thomas the Train Crocs that he insists on wearing everywhere and I screwed up our child. Yup don't take parenting advice from me...

I am not sure why I did this...I think I would like to place blame on my dad but really I just need to talk to the woman in the mirror and admit its my own doing.

It started with our hot water closet on our upstairs level. This unknown room had become a fascination to Mason, we obviously do not want him in there so I told him that is where dinosaurs live. When he would ask to see them I would tell him they are sleeping. Fear Tactic #1.


Than about 6 months back when Mason started not listening to me AT ALL I would use fear tactic #2 to get him to stop doing whatever mischievous thing he was doing. For example, we needed to leave the house and he would say "No" and would want to stay upstairs unsupervised...the first few times I would try to grab him and this would turn into a fun game of chase and my blood pressure would soar and my head would spin. When I would catch him a nice tantrum of kicking would ensue so I thought maybe if I try to trick him, scare him, this will end the battle. I would tell him "ok bye, watch out for the monsters!" and head down the stairs. Seconds later he would come screaming down the stairs and we could leave....

At this point you think I would have enough common sense to ask my self "at some point is he going to start having nightmares about this or is scaring your kid really a good move?" But it all seemed to be working so I stuck with it...well it still works but now we have constant conversation about monsters and dinosaurs, especially right before bed. That's right I lied to my kid and I screwed him up! Lets hope its temporary.
And to top it all off he has developed some additional fears about showering and toe nail clippers.

He usually gets a bath but if we are in a hurry we just throw him in with one of us...try holding a slippery wet toddler that is screaming bloody murder and wiggling like a baby pig, not easy. I think this fear is interesting because he has no problem sticking his head in the sprinkler or the pool!

The toe nail clippers or for that matter touching his feet is a whole other ball of wax...

We like to tease him and ask if he would like to take a shower and he likes to tell Matt and I "I'll take shower tomorrow." and "lets cut toe-nails Tuesday."  Already procrastinating.

I keep telling him you can not put off today what needs to be done tomorrow so at least I have that piece of parenting going for me.

We do have a particular and spirited child and I wouldn't trade him for anything BUT I will remind him of these silly fears when he gets older. Some he created on his own and others his mom brainwashed him with...that way he can blame me for whatever issues he might have.

Keeping us on our toes

I think Spring is around the corner because last week on my run I saw this rattle snake. It just barely became roadkill by our stroller. Yikes!

Mason hasn't had much of a reprieve from illness, this last virus turned into croup which is hanging on like a crazy ex-girlfriend.  He sounds like a chain smoker and has a lovely barking cough that rears its ugly head in the middle of the night, poor dude! There isn't much doctors can do for croup but offer a steroid to reduce the swelling in the vocal cords...otherwise hot steam from the shower, humidifiers, and cold air are your best chance at providing comfort.

Its funny how kids can be so stubborn. I HATED shots when I was younger, to the point I would embarrass my parents at the doctor's office. A team of nurses and doctors would have to restrain me. My son on the other hand decided he would rather have a shot of the medicine than take it in the form of chocolate. After the nurse and I tried to persuade him to take the oral version he continued to refuse and so he got a shot. The shot did not go well either and telling your two year old "I told you so" doesn't do anything.

Despite not feeling well Mason has found enough energy to keep up with his usually shenanigans, like covering the dogs with all of his bedding. I do SO MUCH LAUNDRY! Sorry green peace.

Or throwing a roll of toilet paper down the stairs before I can grab it from him. "Cleaning up after your kids is like shoveling during a blizzard, sometimes its just pointless."

And why is it that kids like to color everything but the coloring book? I tell ya, two is a lovely age but sometimes I think my dad was right on when he would say:

"I always love you but sometimes I like you best when you are sleeping."