Walker Update
Little Walker is officially in his “I’m growing so fast you can’t keep up” era.
He was giving me glorious three-hour stretches at night—meaning he only woke up twice. But then something drastic happened. He started sleeping for 6 and 7 hour stretches on the regular. The cause? He found his thumb. I was a thumbsucker when I was a baby, but have never wanted a thumbsucker because you can’t just take away a thumb like you can take away a pacifier. But honestly, I didn’t think about the self-soothing aspect and now I’m not mad about it. Weening him from his thumb is a future Crystel problem.
Crystel Update
I’ve still been tired during the day (who isn’t?), but I finally have just enough energy to start going to the gym in the mornings. We found a great local spot here—something we never had close by in Omaha, and now I’ve got my classes I can go to.
So here’s our new routine:
- I hit the gym at 6:15 a.m. before the kids wake up and before Stuart goes to work.
- Stuart goes in the afternoons after work.
I always feel so much more human when I’m exercising regularly, but my motivation lately has been… let’s just say “hibernating.” During pregnancy I had this lofty goal of working out six days a week, and I actually did it. But now? I need the accountability of physically going somewhere and having an instructor tell me exactly what to do. Four days in and I’m still waiting on those magical “energy bursts” everyone talks about, but hey—it’s early.
On the Home Front
Big news: we’re getting brand new kitchen cabinets! Our current ones are small, poorly designed, and basically the kitchen equivalent of that junk drawer you’re scared to open. Instead of trying to Frankenstein them into something usable, we’re going to sell them and put the money toward better ones.
If you want to see all the plans we have for the house, check out the walkthrough video I made.
They won’t be fully custom, but we’ll customize them after they’re installed so they fit the space perfectly. My biggest requirement was as many drawers as possible for the lower cabinets.
We’ve been installing new flooring in stories this week – have you been seeing it?!
And I’ve been designing our office built-ins in SketchUp like the hyper-organized renovation planner I pretend to be. My plan is to make a very detailed mockup of the build in sketchup first, down to the last cut. Then see if I can whip out the build in 5 or 6 days. Do you think it’s doable?! I’m planning to build the doors for it – glass front doors, even.
Honestly, I might dedicate a whole newsletter just to the built-ins because the design process has been fun, and I think you’d love seeing the plans… unless that’s just me geeking out over storage space.
Other Random Life Bits
- Stuart is officially back at work, but thanks to the military (and a pile of “use or lose” leave leftover from residency), he has a ton of time off before October.
- We’re planning to tackle the kitchen during that time.
- Also plotting a trip back to Utah to see family.
For now, it’s just the usual chaos: kids, renovation projects, and me trying to keep my eyes open past 9:00 p.m.
What I’m Loving This Week
Kid’s Adjustable Noise Cancelling Headphones
It’s obviously been a bit loud around here and thank goodness Malcom will actually keep these headphones on.
It is so much fun to watch your family pitch in and help. The girls do great! Enjoyed watching the floor install.