WATCH OUT FOR NAILS!

Hi y'all!! We have had MAJOR house progress so I needed to update. About a month ago, we had some minor foundation issues (because what would be a remodel without some foundation issues) and we got those fixed. Then we had some permit delays, THEN we had the great monsoon of February hit Dallas, THEN we had to let everything dry from the great monsoon of February… so for about a month we had absolutely no changes to the house. Which is stressful and not so fun. However, once everything dried and the sun came out, progress happened fast and guys this is SO fun.

They started by pouring concrete. We added a little square footage to the front (mainly for the front porch), a tiny bit on the side, a tiny bit to the back, and then a tiny bit to the back of the garage. (So that my giant car will fit. Apparently people in the 60's didn't drive XL yukons.) Here are a few shots!

The kids put their prints on our new home. Sad part is, we think they started going over the hands and then realized their mistake so now we only have Emma's and one of Luke's hands. (We didn't realize it until the next day when the concrete had dried.) :(

So excited to make their mark.

Watching the concrete being poured.

Just your average afternoon with a princess and Lightening McQueen, watching our new home being built. ;)

Then the day I walked up to see a giant hole in the house!! I was shocked!! I didn't realize that much of it would come down!! It looked like a tornado went through the middle of the house.

This was the same day, a few hours later. :)

Progress...

More framing...

This was very exciting to see today!! We are really starting to see a glimpse of what it will look like in the end! 

Rewind to yesterday. Our WONDERFUL, AMAZING, TALENTED designer Tara (who also happens to be 35 weeks pregnant with her third babe therefore isn't tired AT ALL) has been working SO hard to complete our finish outs before her sweet baby comes. We scheduled a time to meet yesterday and I arrived to see tile samples, carpet samples, floor samples, pictures, etc. spread all over her dining room and y'all I MELTED. Our house is going to be SO gorgeous!! (and I can brag on it a little right? Since I'm not the one who designed it???) I'll share a few pictures I took below just because I can't wait…

Kitchen backsplash and counter tops.

Master bath.

Emma's bathroom

Exterior

Possible carpet for stairs

My personal favorite… the boys' bathroom. I mean, the wallpaper?! All the heart eyes.

About 15 minutes into my meeting I get a phone call from Brian. He is in the ER because he ran by the house and stepped on a nail. It went through his shoe, and into his foot!!!! OUCH. I would have died right then and there. Or at least fainted. But he drove his not-so-happy self to the ER, and literally hopped into the ER where they had to PULL THE NAIL OUT. (Without numbing by the way because he still had his shoe on.) I mean, I would have told them to knock me out. Give me an epidural. I don't want to feel anything from the waist down!!!! They gave him a tetanus shot and a prescription, and he went back to work. I am still in shock. He's currently at the country club so clearly he's fine, but my goodness I can't imagine. Here are a couple shots he sent me while he calmly waited in the ER for the doc. (I mean, I would have called an ambulance…)

Nope. I can't.

After seeing those awful pics, I'm going to leave you on a better note of my family celebrating St. Paddy's day last Saturday. ;)

Love these bigs.

Harvey is in a hat phase. He wants to wear all the hats. Just like "dada."

Emma LOVES having her face painted. She will wait in line for HOURS. 

Luke wanted Lightening McQueen and this was as close as she could get. Haha

XOXO,

Lexi

Christmas and House Update

So it's official. I am the worst at blogging. I just missed the whole month of December so I'm going to add a few pictures to quickly summarize some of the fun we had.

We spent an evening at the Hilton Anatole's "Peppermint Park" with the Dowlings. This was really fun! Not very crowded (although it was very cold so that could be why?), cute train ride, games, little shows, and story time with Mrs. Claus. We had a lot of fun and then went inside for dinner since we were freezing outside!

Emma and I were invited by some sweet friends to go to a "Nutcracker Tea." This was SO fun and something that I would love to make a tradition until Emma is old enough to enjoy the actual show. We had tea, sandwiches, dessert, watched a few dances from the show, and then we got to meet the characters and get "autographs." (The autographs were Emma's favorite part.) She loved telling me which dance was part of the which part of our book at home. :)

Emma with Sophia and Claire. These three sweet girls will start kinder together next year!

I took the boys to the Trains at Northpark one day while Emma was at school (sshhh don't tell her.) They both loved every minute!! 

We spent an afternoon outside at Santa's Village in Richardson.  This is made up of little houses and at night you can go in each house and do a craft, get a cookie from Mrs. Claus, watch some performances, etc. However, the lines are usually awful and it is typically cold so the past couple years we have just gone by during the day. You can't go in the houses but my kids LOVE to run around and peek in the windows! 

We started this tradition just last year, but we love spending an evening at the Galleria. We like to watch the ice skaters, ride the elevators, and eat dinner at Mi Cocina by the big tree. It is so beautiful at Christmas time!

This year we went to Christmas Eve brunch at our country club. This was really cute. We ate tons of yummy food and they had cookie decorating and the Polar Express playing in one of the rooms. It was a really cute and fun set up. (Side note: Brian was just elected a board member at our country club. Yay Brian!)

This was at church on Christmas Eve. I loved Harvey's little smock, even though he wouldn't stand still long enough for a picture. 

This year, we allowed Luke and Emma to exchange their gifts on Christmas Eve. I took them each shopping separately and they were both adorable this year choosing the perfect gift for each other. They were so sweet opening gifts and hugging each other. Luke chose a mermaid ornament, smelly markers, and a necklace for Emma, and she chose a paw patrol sticker book, coloring book, and toy for Luke. This exchange made my entire Christmas. :)

Christmas morning! (Harvey won't sit still and Luke's shirt is unbuttoned. Whoops!)

Emma wanted to dress like me. I loved every minute. We spent Christmas with my family in Keller this year.

We spent NYE in Brokenbow, OK with some sweet friends. This is our third year to do this and we hope to continue this tradition for years to come! We met these sweet friends only a little over three years ago when we moved into the neighborhood and they became fast friends family. They are our village. I couldn't do life without this #golfwidow by my side. 

Happy NEW YEAR from Harvey! 

Harvey loves taking group pictures. This is our annual matching pj pic in our cabin.

Speaking of annual pj pic. My high school friend, Julie and I, plan to make our kids wear the same striped HA pjs for a pic every Christmas until they outgrow them. Or until they get married. One of the two. We figure we have a good chance. #jackandemma or #lukeandlila #harveyneedsadate #juliehaveanother

PJ party with more sweet friends Claire and Drew!

I took Emma to see this movie and it was AMAZING. We loved every minute and listened to the soundtrack the whole way home. And ever since. Go see it if you haven't!

HOUSE UPDATE:

So these pictures are a few weeks old, and more framing as been done so I'll have to post some, but basically they have started framing. These pictures probably mean nothing to you and aren't exciting at all, but I wanted to post them for my benefit. They have framed out most of the inside and knocked out the back wall (they are pushing the house back and off to the side.) I went by today with Tara and we made a few changes. It's crazy how every little thing has to be discussed. Today we changed the shape of one of the walls of the powder bath and the seat in the master bath. FWP guys. We have chosen most of our fixtures and appliances, but have yet to finalize those decisions. I feel like the last time we did this, we rushed through and I kind of would randomly choose things and this time I am putting SO MUCH more thought and time into every little thing. I would give a sneak peek but we truly haven't decided on anything yet, however Tara has convinced us polished nickel and brass are the way to go this time around. ;)

Happy New Year! 

XOXO,

Lexi

DEMO DAY

Last week we went shopping with the great Tara Lenney. She is wonderful and has such an EYE for design that I was not blessed with. We went to Ferguson's in Dallas and we pointed at things we liked and did not like and now we just wait for her to send us the fixtures she chooses for us. This is SO MUCH easier than our last house. Last time, I was like 43 weeks pregnant (well it felt like it), and Brian and I went to HOME DEPOT of all places and we were all "sure, that looks good" but really we didn't have A CLUE. I wish I could hire her to just follow me around every day. Can you imagine the Target shopping?? Yes, I like that buffalo check but maybe a little smaller or in a different color? AND THEN POOF, it appears. I digress.

Back to demo. They started today, and I was beyond excited. I drove by the house I think 3 times? Then after school, I piled the kids in the golf cart and we just casually popped in the doorway to take a quick peek. I didn't want the kids to get in the way or you know, step on a nail, so we just peeked in the doorway and I snapped a few pictures. SO, really that is all I've got. Nothing too excited. But worth documenting, yes? :)

On another note. Remember the epic tree in the front yard. There is one in the backyard too. And it drops about 16,000 acorns in the pool every. single. day. Poor Brian cleans it out and five minutes later, it is full again. Any advise from pool owners? Do we need a cover??

XOXO,

Lexi

Lately

We officially took ownership of our new home yesterday! We took the kids over late last night in their pjs to celebrate and they ran all over the house finding their rooms and counting the stairs. (It is a tri-level so there are a lot of stairs.) Demo is still scheduled to start on December 1. We met our designer yesterday who created a timeline for us and we discussed what our next steps are. I am SO thankful to have someone to help lead me this time around. With our last house, we actually used the same designer, however we didn't use her quite as much and I feel like we were flying by the seat of our pants the whole time. I'm feeling much more organized this time, which means I am much less stressed. I'm also not pregnant, so that helps. ;)

Meanwhile, we celebrated Harvey's birthday, Emma was a flower girl, and of course Halloween!

Harvey's birthday was spent at a local park with good family and friends. It was perfect weather, and such a good time. He hated his cake and preferred goldfish, but I'm sure he will come around. ;) The theme was "time flies" which was chosen by Emma.

Emma got to be a flower girl in my cousin Samantha's wedding. She had SO much fun and I am so grateful for that memory for her. I was a flower girl in her mom's wedding, super cool! This is Emma's second time to be a flower girl, but the last time she had just turned 2 and doesn't remember it. We had a blast. Our family is huge, but a very close knit bunch. I am so thankful for each and every crazy aunt, uncle, and over dramatic cousin. #youknowwhoyouare.


On Halloween, we went to an event at Alamo Drafthouse this year that was fun. There was a DJ, bounce house, games, prizes, etc. all over the theater. My kids had a lot of fun and wore me out. On top of that we came home and went trick or treating. This year was fun except Emma's feet hurt (her Cinderella heels were pinching her feet), Luke's bucket was so heavy that it was hard to carry (#fwp), and Harvey just wanted nothing to do with the whole event. He would not let me take him out of the stroller the entire time. To top off the evening, some scary man dressed as I don't even know what (it was seriously creepy) scared the living daylights out of Emma and she is still having nightmares. #thanks. All in all, memories were made. Dreams came true (Luke finally got to be Lightening McQueen) and lots of candy was consumed.

Up next, Thanksgiving! We love FALL.

XOXO,
Lexi

PS. I got Emma's school picture back and I melted.

Moving with 3 is NO JOKE

Before we moved, I priced a few moving companies and I was appalled at what they quoted us for a move. So Brian and I decided we could just do most of it ourselves and then leave only large furniture items for the movers. No biggie right? Ohmigah. Never. Again.

We rented a storage unit and began packing probably a month before the actual "move date." Every day I would pack 2-3 boxes and every few days Brian would take a load over to storage. This was fine and we got a TON moved this way. The hardest part was trying to decide what on earth we do not need for the next 8 months of our lives. Conclusion: Our kids have way too many toys. Fast forward to moving week. Brian took off Wednesday through Friday. We scheduled movers for Friday morning, carpet cleaners for Friday afternoon, and the housekeeper for Saturday morning. We can be out by Friday right?

My dad came over and helped on Wednesday and he and Brian spent ALL day moving stuff to storage with a U Haul. They ended up getting a second storage unit because they filled the first one. Thursday, we closed on the Little Creek house (tears!) and moved more stuff ourselves. I packed and Brian moved. Friday, the movers came and took 6 hours to move ONLY FURNITURE. What on earth?! They did wrap everything, but goodness Brian even took everything apart and "staged" it all in the living room. At this point, the remaining stuff we just started chunking in boxes. No rhyme or reason. Those boxes will be full of surprises when we open them next summer. Friday afternoon we closed on Stonebridge. On Saturday, we STILL had some things to move. It literally took us until evening to get the house completely moved and we had to be out my midnight. IT WAS EXHAUSTING. Oh, and we had to get a third storage unit. TOO MUCH STUFF.

It has been a week and we are finally settled in our rental. It is the cutest little house and we have the best landlords. ;) Emma and Harvey are sharing a room which works out really well. Harvey is still waking in the night, but Emma is really good about going right back to sleep. She just scoots over in bed so I can crawl in and nurse Harvey next to her. Sweet girl. Luke has his own room. He is my excellent sleeper- sleeps in and takes long naps… and I was worried about him not going back to sleep during the night if Harvey woke him up. It works out really well. I am most worried about sleep training Harvey because I plan to do that soon.

The kids have really acclimated nicely to everything. They love that we are staying in "Jack's house." (Jack is the son of our friends who are letting us use their home.) Jack and Luke are only 4 days apart in age so that's fun! They also love driving by our new house and talking about where their new bedrooms will be and their plans for a swing they want to hang in the front yard.

We met again with our contractor and signed off on the floor plan. Now, to the fun part, getting to choose everything! Then we wait until mid to end November when they can start the actual demo!

Our last stair picture at the Little Creek house.

Meanwhile, Luke had picture day and he is super adorable so I'll need to share that picture.

Luke's 3 year old school picture

We are getting super excited for Halloween and have decorated our new house with spiders and witches and pumpkins!

They love their matching Halloween pjs

We have a big month! Harvey turns ONE! Emma is a flower girl in my cousin Samantha's wedding, and of course we have Halloween, the State Fair, and several pumpkin patches to explore! Now if only this weather would cool off just a few degrees so I could actually wear some fall clothes…

XOXO,

Lexi

Epic Tree House

I wanted to share some pictures of the current state of our new home. It is gorgeous and unique. It has so much style. However, it was built in 1969 and needs just a few updates. We do want to maintain the style of the home, while adding in our own taste. Brian's taste is traditional. My taste is a little more modern, mixed with traditional. We typically agree on "house stuff" until I try to throw something crazy at him, like wallpaper. (I won that battle for the powder bathroom. I call that a win.) We have met with our contractor several times and have signed off on the basics of the home; the floor plan, the built ins, the windows, the FRONT PORCH #soexcited. I plan to sit on my front porch in a cute little rocking chair sipping' on lemonade wine every day when the weather is cool and the mosquitos are gone. So approximately two days a year.

A friend captioned this "epic tree house." Yes, we are keeping the tree.

These stairs lead to the game room.

The living room.

The kitchen is located in the center of the home.

This is the den, but it will soon be the master bedroom.
Notice the fireplace! SO COOL to have a fireplace in our master!

This is a downstairs guest room, but will soon be the master bath.

Beautiful backyard! The kids are so excited to have a pool.

We close on this house next Friday, but will not start the remodel until December 1. We can't wait to get started.

XOXO,
Lexi

Furlong Forever Home 2.0

Almost 4 years ago, we were in the middle of purchasing a beautiful home in my husband's dream neighborhood. The deal fell through and we were devastated. Driving around the neighborhood, we found a "Coming Soon" sign on a wonderful street called, "Little Creek." We ended up purchasing the home, selling our home in Plano, moving in with our in laws for 7 months, and doing a major reno on what we thought was our #furlongforeverhome. At the time we had one precious little girl who was about 15 months old. Fast forward a few years and we now have two more children (seriously, that's just crazy), and we are at it again. #justcalluschipandjoanna. Just kidding. I wish.

After living in the neighborhood, we have truly fell in love. The community is so wonderful, we have made some true friends who feel more like family, Brian can golf any time he wants #golfwidow, and the homes are beautiful. We knew we wanted to stay in the neighborhood, but we have sort of outgrown our home. We felt that, in the long run, the layout of our home was not quite as conducive for having 3 children. We stumbled upon a home that we could once again remodel (and re do all the things I wish I could change about ours!) while also having a little bit more ideal layout, AND a pool.

After purchasing the new home, and selling ours. (Fingers crossed- we close at the end of the month.) We will be moving into a rental in the neighborhood. The stars aligned and our good friends, who own a fully furnished rental IN the neighborhood, are allowing us to move into their beloved home for the next 8 months while we reno our new home. We are using the same contractor who remodeled our Little Creek home as well as using a good friend from high school who also lives in the neighborhood and happens to be an amazing designer to help us with the design aspect. Should out to Tara. She's awesome. And so stinkin' talented. Check out her website.

So I haven't been so great at this whole blogging thing… I've missed about 42 different major events in my kids' lives including the first day of school, but I'm going to try SO hard to blog about this reno.

The drawings of the exterior on our new home. 

Emma on her first day in the Pre K 5 class. She LOVES it!

Luke on his first day in the Pre K 3 class. Sweet boy, he looks so big!

OK, I'm off to surf houzz in hopes that some of Joanna's talent seeps into my brain. Or I'll just call Tara.

XOXO,

Lexi