Birthdays in Heaven

Remembering Grandma....

DIY

Yay! The carpet went in today, so I'm slowing putting the room back together again. I thought I'd share a DIY project from a while back.

Making headboards has been a fun project for me. I've made 4-5 in the last few years (not all for me!!). When we changed from a queen to a king a while back, I had an excuse to build another one.

I don't have construction pictures, but it's pretty easy. Here are the steps:

• Determine the size and shape you'd like, and cut a sheet of plywood to the desired dimensions.

• To give the headboard more depth, creating a more chunky look, screw 2X4's around the perimeter of the back of the headboard. If doing a curved top, cut out another curve out of your plywood.

• Cut dense foam in the same shape of your headboard.

• Lay out a large piece of quilting batting on the floor, enough to cover the whole headboard plus an extra 5-6 inches around all sides.

• Lay your headboard frame, with foam on top of this batting. Staple the batting to the back side of your frame.

• Follow the same routine with the fabric of your choice. Avoid any fabric with stretch.
• A few options for mounting. You can either buy semi flush mounting brackets, or 'hang' it up, like we've done with this one. Some heavy duty nails into studs and you're ready to hang it up, using the ledge that is created with the 2X4's. It's super sturdy, and not going anywhere!

Add any embellishments: I did tufting on this one, you could nail on upholstery tacks or just keep it simple!

We thought it was OLD!

Okay - how about a departure from my regular ramblings...

If you know me well, you probably know that I love a good home reno project. I also love all things related to design and decor. So, since that's what is happening in our house right now, you're invited to come along and take a peek.

This week's project is our master bedroom. We haven't touched it since moving here about 6 years ago (has it been 6 years??? and we're still in the same house?!?).

Anyway, the carpet has always been on our radar for replacing one day.

It's pink.

Plush.

Oh yes! Are you loving it? It's in pretty good condition, but seeing as how all the other bedrooms in the house have newer carpet, we were pretty sure that this lovely pink must be original to the house. So we'd talking about 34 years. That in itself is enough to make me cough up a dust mite! And the pink....well that was another motivating factor!

You can imagine our surprise, when we pulled out the carpet a few days ago, and found the previous home owner's name, who only lived here a few years, written on the back of the carpet.

Not so old, after all. I guess that explains it's good condition!!

Anyway, with the carpet out, it's a great time to paint, so that's been my project for today. Thankfully the boys have allowed me the time to do two coats already....thanks in part to a new 456 piece Lego set (I'm sure he'll have a 'review' posted to Youtube sometime soon!).

(getting his 'review' all set up!)

And so, the carpet gets installed tomorrow. None too soon....we've got bedroom furniture in the dining room and sunroom, and our mattress in the living room entrance. Yes, we've been sleeping in the living room.

No need for any late night drive by's, you hear?

Brady Boy

I have been delighting in my big boy, Brady. He has been bringing so much fun into my life! He fills me with love, with pride, with wonder and amazement. He says the craziest things, and sometimes the most profound things.

His love of reading has been one of the best gifts to me. My Brady, barely 5 years old, is growing up so fast! It is incredible to watch him read, to listen to him, and to witness his growing understanding of the world around us. Very much like his dad, Brady has become a 'fact' guy. The precise information that he 'keeps in his brain' always astounds me!

I came upon this scenario the other day. He has a book about the Titantic that he loves to read to me. When I walked into the room and saw this, I needed a little explanation.

He was reading the book to Nate. He told me that he was in the Titanic, and Nate was in the Carpathia (did you even know that the ship that came to rescue the survivors was called that?).

And then, there is that cute innocence that is so adorable in kids. In an email he sent to his Grandma and Grandpa (whom he hasn't seen in 4 weeks now) he ended the letter with this line:

"I miss you a lot but I still love you!"

And I love that as I'm transcribing the emails he sends, he tells me where to put the exclamation marks!

Looking back...

Here's something I shared with all of you one year ago. Even if just one person finds hope and courage through this verse, it's all worth it. From March 25th, 2010:

Here's my prayer:

"Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul."

Psalm 143:8

The Report

I should have known better. I was using the last time Nate went in as my guide - the time that he was a perfect patient and did so amazingly for his whole appointment - but today's appointment was about as different as it could be. My own fault....I certainly should have had Don come with us, but I thought I'd be able to do it on my own again.

Well, the drive in was great and horrible! The roads were perfect - but the passengers.....well, not so much! Malfunctioning DVD players, sun in the eyes, hearing "no appointment" how many times from Nate, whining and complaining. Doesn't that just sound like a great start to the day?!

To summarize:

Nate refused to take his shirt off at the clinic. There was crying, arguing '2 year old style', and just plain old refusal to do what we needed him to. The ultrasound technician didn't even try, but brought in Dr. Soni instead. She did an 'abbreviated' echo on Nate's heart (that's code for 'the child made it impossible to do a full study'!), while he sat upright in my arms, with his sweatshirt on (yes, she is a pretty amazing cardiologist!).

Things are about the same as last time. Not worse, so that is a good thing. The band is still where it was after surgery, ie. it is no tighter now than it was a year ago. But Nate has been gaining weight more consistently, so as long as he is medically well, we'll wait a bit longer. We'll go another 3 months and see where things are at then. She'll also communicate with Toronto after that next appointment to keep them in the loop as to where we're at. If at any time he's not doing as well, they will definitely go in and get that band to a tightness that they want - to help reduce the leaking from his valve. No electrical issues showing up right now, which is also good.

Maybe we're just now heading into the terrible two's....would that explain the changes in Nate's behavior? We did lose out on a couple of months last year; one month in Edmonton and the next 3 months at home. They have kind of become a 'black hole' when we think back! So even though he's turing 3 next month, maybe in his mind, he's really only starting on those 2 year old issues now!

Thanks for praying - hope your weekend is a fun one!

Friday appointment....

Brady, Nate and I will be heading to Winnipeg tomorrow morning! Nate has an appointment to see his cardiologist, Dr. Soni.

A few prayer requests:

* Good driving conditions (really don't want to deal with icy highways and poor visibility!)

* A co-operative Nate (in the last month or two, we've been seeing a stubborn and let's call it 'negative attitude', I need a happy and compliant Nate tomorrow morning!)

* A miracle (God is in the business of changing hearts....I'm asking Him to change Nate's!)

As of right now (11:15pm) Nate is still wide awake here. Praying that we all get enough rest for what is required tomorrow!

Wishing you all a great weekend ahead!

One year ago...

It is so hard to believe that one year ago, this is where our lives were....

Time has a funny way of making events feel so long ago at times, and then, like it was just yesterday.

So many emotions, thoughts and memories in my heart today!

Looking Back

Today I'm thinking back. One year ago we left for Edmonton, for Nate's surgery. I'm sure that for the next month, my thoughts will go back to where we were exactly a year ago. I'm so glad I blogged through our experiences. It now gives me a chance to go back, and as hard as it is, read about our daily experiences and my thoughts and emotions. I can go back and re-read all of the encouraging notes that so many of you left for us. You may not know how much those words of hope and encouragement meant to our family. I thank God for each one of you....for everyone who prayed so earnestly for us during that time. Here's a little blurb from the blog entry I did after arriving in Edmonton.

It's been a pretty emotional day for me. Every step of the day brought us closer to the reality of what is ahead. Saying good night to Brady on the phone tonight was also incredibly hard.

Nate is blissfully unaware of what is to come, and that just breaks my heart.

So, you'll have to bear with me this month. Although it's hard, emotionally, to 'go back' to those days, it allows me and you to see how far we've come, and how faithful God has been, even in the dark days.

While I'm Waiting

I've been moved and challenged by verses in Ephesians.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21

Immeasurable more....exceedingly, abundantly, above and beyond.

He is able.

The waiting can be hard, no matter what you circumstance. No matter what your prayer is.

But He can take that prayer, and do something SO much more.... exceedingly more than you can even imagine.

And while we wait, we trust Him, we honor Him with our worship....with our praise.

A good friend sent me this video, take a few quiet minutes to watch it.