Living Room

In house news...we've moved on to the living room. This is not to say that our other projects are complete, because they are definitely not. However, the living room is where we entertain those who come to visit us and it currently is less than welcoming in all of its white-wash glory. This weekend to spackled and sanded down the walls and marked off for the chair rail. Then it was on to painting! The two tones we have chosen are Vanilla Bean (a very pale, creamy yellow) and Sesame (a light silvery-brown). Both of these colors are the same as the stitching in our cranberry silk window treatments, so I think they will really compliment the room. I'm also very excited about the chair rail and am hoping it gives some depth to this otherwise boring area of our house. It's taking a TON of work, though, because all of the baseboard needs to be redone, along with the ceiling, crown moulding and window trim. We're looking forward to having this room done so I can finally find a matching living room furniture set and feel proud to entertain!! We'll keep you updated on the progress!

Sparta, NJ

This past Thursday and Friday, Ryan had to travel Marypaul Labs in Sparta, NJ for work. I decided to take some time off and join him for the ride. We boarded Phoebe for the first time, and we hear that she wasn't too thrilled with our decision. I spent my time shopping at Olde Lafayette Village to take advantage of their being no sales tax on clothing (it's 8.25% here in Syracuse) and got some excellent deals. The shopping outlet was very quaint and wasn't very busy (since most people were working). They had this great little place called The Village Barkery, so I picked up some homemade doggie treats in hopes that Phoebe wouldn't be quite so angry with us for leaving her behind! It was so nice to have a few days to relax and not think about the work that was waiting for me back at home...and the work Ryan went to do only took him a few hours, so we got to spend some "quiet time" together without worrying about animals to feed and dishes to pick up!

Happy Birthday Ryan!

Yesterday we celebrated Ryan's birthday! We had a really great and relaxing day. Unfortunately, I couldn't seem to come up with the 4 rechargeable batteries necessary for camera function, so the only pictures I have are on my phone (and they're not great, so I'm not posting them). We enjoyed a great dinner at Ichiban with the Pops and also had a fun night on Saturday with our friends, Nick and Mary. I had gotten Ryan a drum set that he really wanted, but once it arrived, he decided it was "too frivolous"...so he returned it for some more "practical" video games and a new set of hair clippers (please contain your excitement)!