{st. patrick's day}

{ah, that's going to be so much fun!}

Tim and I were walking Mason through the park and a woman with a stroller walked by. Tim immediately said, "Ah, that's going to be so much fun!" in the softest, sweetest voice.

I am so thankful for the wonderful life I have, but a part of me feels like it's missing and the hole is getting bigger as each month passes. Sometime last spring, my mind switched. Before that I had been so happy living my fairytale with Tim - just the two of us, enjoying each moment together. That's what we had turned our life in to and it was amazing, for a while. As soon as we decided we were ready to start our family, our life hasn't been about us, it's been about what is to come. At first, that was really fun. We would talk about our future family all of the time - how long we would take off of work when the baby came, ways to visit Carrie and still go hiking in CO with an infant, how we were going to put a car seat on the scooter, where my dad's baby bassinet would go, how we shouldn't plant grass because we will be too tired to wake up early to water it, and every other thing you could imagine us saying. We already began adapting our lives to our new family. We imagined our new family to be coming sometime this year, but we're not even close.

I don't know how Tim does it, but nine months later (I know, in the realm of life, it's a second! It sure feels like a decade when you're living it, though) he is still as excited as he was the day we began trying. He's the only way I am saying sane during this process. Inevitably, I cry at least once during each period. I keep telling myself that the longer we have to wait, the sweeter it will be. It's hard sometimes, but I truly believe it! The day we find out, I will be in tears more than the last nine months combined. That time, though, not from frustration or feeling sorry for myself, but because I know that Tim and I are about to experience the most exciting and love-filled moments of our lives. I imagine in those moments, Tim, Mason, and I will be walking with a stroller through the park and Tim will look over at me saying "Ah, this is so much fun!" in that soft, sweet voice.

This is one of my favorite photos of us and it's exactly why I shouldn't get frustrated. 

I already have everything I will ever need - 

my love at my side and the wind blowing through my hair.

{jamesport}

The video says it all...Jamesport is happenin'!

In all seriousness, though, we had a great time road tripping!

{SPRING}

Spring is, by far, our favorite time of year. It is the smell of worms, the tulips breaking through the frozen ground, and the wonder of things to come. We just love watching things thaw out and get their color back. It is when everything comes alive again - including us. Whenever there is a hint of sun outside, we are there. We have already cleaned our flower beds, put in a watering system for each garden, and had a few dinners on the patio (under the heater, of course).  Spring just makes us feel good.

Last summer was the first year we really had a lot of gardens. I guess once we got started, we just couldn't stop. In general, we have many flowers that are natural to the Midwest, so they grow fast and like our hot summer days. The only thing is, we (actually, just Tim) spent so much time, money, and effort keeping our gardens watered. Whenever we went out of town, we had to either ask the dog sitter to water the plants, or rig up some hoses to reach everything. We decided this year that we would put soaker hoses throughout the garden. We have spent the last few nice days doing just that. It didn't take much time and the pay-off is going to be huge.

We are definitely learning as we go. I think that's the most fun part. It's just trial and error - each year we learn from the one before and it gives us so much more to look forward to.

Below is a picture of the hoses. We still need to mulch over them

{window shelf}

My list of things to do around the house is quickly dwindling. Thank goodness! A few years ago we remodeled our kitchen - we tore it down to the studs and started from scratch. For the design and decor we tend to be on the minimalist side. Neither of us like things sitting out on the counters, cluttering up the little space we have, so we don't really "decorate" in the kitchen. Well, that was getting old and our minimalist style needed refreshed. It started with the vintage sign I made. That was actually the first thing we hung on the walls in there since remodeling. We couldn't imagine putting holes into the new walls until we found the right decor. Waiting pays off - it's perfect for the space.

In trying to keep things off of the counters, I decided to add a window shelf. My goal was country/clean with an airy feel. As much as I appreciate and enjoy modern design, I tend to lean toward elements that look like they've been around forever. I started my shelf with a new piece of pine and some brackets from Home Depot. I wasn't feeling the style of the brackets, but by painting them white on the outside, their shape was emphasized. Visually, they ended up falling into the wall, which I really liked. I also painted the edge of the wood for the same reason. I "roughed up" the wood with various materials and it took on a rustic look. Overall, I am really happy with the finished product. It doesn't stand out too much or interfere with any light coming into the kitchen.

{american red cross}

my original inspiration

On one of my many snow days I went to the Mission Antique Mall. One of my favorite places to go. I had been looking for "art" for the bathroom, but knew I wanted something very simple. I came across this American Red Cross flag - original from the '60s. I thought it would look great hanging alone in the bathroom. It was definitely a statement piece without saying "Hey, look at me!" I saw the price, though, and decided against it. When I showed Tim, he said "Samantha, you could make this..." LIGHT BULB ON!

Three snow days later...and I went for it.

After I had the flag sewn, I stained it in tea. This is what really made it look original.

Now it hangs all alone in our new bathroom.

 I am really happy with the way it turned out. Unfortunately though , it doesn't photograph well. The bathroom is too small for me to take a picture of the space as a whole. Ahh...small spaces. Gotta love them.

** Side note: Thanks to Grandma, I didn't even have to leave the house for this project. I used her sewing machine, grommets and grommet hammer. I have all of her art supplies in my basement, but hardly know what's even down there! Surprise!