On the Move: Furniture Shopping

Since moving in to our new house, we do a lot of furniture shopping. Sometimes it's more like furniture perusing considering the amount of items we still need to purchase. Dad and I prefer to shop together because we both need to be involved in the decision, so where Dad and I go, so comes B!

This has been interesting considering the amount of items most furniture stores contain and the fact that many of those items are fragile and don't need toddler snot strewn across them.

Checking out our new sectional for the basement. Note the snacks on the table.

Luckily, he has been decently behaved and left all furniture in its original state. No scratches, dirt stains, milk, or snack residue left behind. 

But furniture shopping is tedious and boring. We have looked at innumerable coffee tables and just can't seem to find the perfect one. This usually comes from a difference of opinion between mom and dad. I usually have something pretty specific in mind, or at least I think I do, until I see the options and become instantly overwhelmed. Dad has a harder time because he can't picture anything in the space unless it looks like what we had previously. He likes to ask about the return policy before any purchase...ya know, just in case. Fortunately, we have yet to return anything! 

Seen previously, our new kitchen table from Nadeau. B loves the bench, Dad was super nervous about the "no return" policy.

Otherwise, there is a lot of wandering and staring. And so the convo goes. 

Well, what do you think? Do you like the color? What about the size...is it too small? Do you think it will fit the other way? What if we moved the other end table over? Could we use the thing in your parents attic? Oh, I have an idea, what do you think about...

This is in between chasing B - who discovered bunk beds are AWESOME - and fending off sales people! We clearly won't be getting bunk beds until both boys are old enough to handle them. And we won't be purchasing anything from the saleswoman who asked if he had chocolate on his face. No, it's a boo-boo. What kind of people would we be letting our kid in a furniture store with chocolate on his face?!? She then said, "be sure he doesn't scratch it, they get itchy during the healing process." Which I translated to mean "be sure he doesn't scratch it and get blood on our new furniture...OK, thanks."

B found a chair for himself at Nadeau (not on the furniture list). Note the "chocolate" on his lip.

The search continues. The next items on the list include a coffee table, new end tables, recovering chairs (don't want to think about selecting fabric), art for above the couch, nursery decor, and a bedroom suite for B's room (probably coming from Nonna and Poppy's house). 

Post furniture-shopping fun in the new ENO from cousins Chris and Debbie!

Update...better later than never!

It's been a while since I wrote a blog post. It's sort of embarrassing considering how strong I started, but it's hard to keep the momentum and inspiration. I take that back, the inspiration for content is there, the inspiration to sit down and write is not always close behind. 

So much has happened in our world since my last post. Let's see...

• I went to LA for work for 10 days. It was such a great professional experience and I hope I get to do it again. Dad came to visit for a couple of nights which was really nice considering I didn't get to see him as much as I would have liked! We got to stay in a beautiful hotel, eat good food, and spend a bit of time together.  

Mini monkey bread for dessert after lunch at Salt Air in Venice. Divine! 

View from my room at the Fairmont Santa Monica. 

• We decided to start trying for baby #2. This proved to be a bit more difficult than we had intended, but after a visit to our specialist, Dr. Malizia at Alabama Fertility Specialists, we were able to conceive after only one round of Clomid. On what would have been my mom's 59th birthday, July 14, we found out we were having another little boy! 

B is ready for football season.

I think he gets his sweet tooth from me. Has to eat the icing first!

• We put our house on the market, sold it after about four months, and bought a new one! We lived with the fantastic Nonna and Poppy (my in-laws) for three weeks in between and moved in to the new house on July 2. It is HUGE - comparatively - and we will never move again. We have just the space we need and moving is not fun, especially during your first trimester of pregnancy. Big kudos to super Dad for basically doing it all himself, and my MIL who is an expert packer!

  

  We had a ton of people come thru our house. But we found the right buyer with the help of the Josh Vernon Group! 

  
  

  

  B loves the new kitchen table from Nadeau! He has breakfast on the bench, and dinner on the end left chair. 

• We have been on several lovely vacations, including two beach trips to Orange Beach with family and a parent's getaway/Dad's work convention to New Orleans. We also made it to Gulfport for Memorial Day to celebrate Aunt Lala's birthday, and tell the family that we were pregnant! 

  

  At Fisher's in Orange Beach (April 2015).

  

  In Orange Beach before heading to dinner (July 2015).

  

  Roasted cauliflower and bone marrow at Domenica in NOLA. 

  
  

  

  Muffaletta, salad, pulled pork sandwich and Brussels at Cochon Butcher in NOLA.

  
  

  

  French toast, scotch egg, and boudin and grits for brunch at Angeline in NOLA.

• Barrett turned TWO! Life with B has been entertaining and honestly, fun! Several months ago he hit a point where he was very difficult to wrangle. He wanted to touch, pull, grab, push, and hit everything. He is incredibly inquisitive, which I love, but can be maddening at times. Then one day I realized he wasn't so much like that anymore. He seemed more comfortable with his surroundings and aware of what things were, so he was less compelled to investigate every item and/or place. On a daily basis he learns or says something new. I still don't understand what any of the words mean, but they are coming. Family meals are fun because he enjoys them, encouraging us to "sit, mom!" and "sit, dad!" Next step...lose the pacifier at night time (already gone from naps thanks to school!) and upgrade to a twin bed. We will need that crib for when baby #2 gets here in January!

  

  Blowing out his birthday candles!