in which I fantasize about living somewhere tropical
September 13, 2006
Yesterday I lit a fire in my wood burning stove.
After complaing about being cold all day and the house having an indoor temperature of 59 degrees, and after calling my husband to whine several times, I broke down and lit it.
Conversations with my husband during which I may or may not have said, “Sure, you get to go to work where there is heat, grown-up conversation, and restaurants. While I sit home shivering calculating the price of heating oil and wondering what the price would be for selling my plasma.” I know, you are jealous. You wish you were married to me.
And my husband may or may not have answered, “Then light the stove, but for the love of all things holy stop calling me and complaining. Do you think I like being here?”
And I may or may not have answered, “Why YES I think you do like being there!”
*******
Photos! Because when you have nothing to write about share photos. It’s like the comic book version of my blog.
Yesterday was horse back riding. My batteries were fully charged so I got lots of pictures. That all looked much like this one.
My daughter wearing what she called her cowgirl outfit. From this I assume that cowgirls wear denim skirts and rain boots two sizes too small.
Cowgirls also like to stand on fences and be photographed in black and white.
And then they like to bathe.
This is the tub that I refinished. We have been without a tub in our house for two years. My two youngest children have never had a bath in a big tub, at least not at our house. I’ll probably write a whole post of it’s own about the bathroom since it is *almost* finished. Just a tiny bit of painting and hanging the door back up.
Gone are the days of multi tasking in the kitchen, like this:
And a little bonus picture, the kids sitting and eating at our new table and chairs. I love the little chair that Miles is sitting on. I have a thing for little chairs anyway, but this one makes me wish that I could buy them and make all the kids sit on them. So what if some of the children are bigger than me.
Please notice my five year olds pissed off face. How dare I take a picture and not get him the bottle of pancake syrup RIGHT NOW. He is dying after being asleep for and without food for ten hours.
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Great pics. The bathtub turned out fantastic.
IM me when you have time, I have some news.
September 13th, 2006 at 10:41 ami just died a little when I saw your tub. sadly when we redo the upstairs I do not think the floor will hold one of those beauties… sniff sniff.
September 13th, 2006 at 10:54 amDontcha know, that’s exactly what cow girls do. I would use my snow boots when I was little though. Those are beautiful chairs in the kitchen…someday I’ll have them.
September 13th, 2006 at 11:00 amYou’ve brought me out of lurker status by your amazing photographs. Your home is beautiful! It looks like it belongs in a Better Homes and Gardens spread. The re-finished claw foot tub– who are you? Martha Stewart in disguise!?
Oh, and your children are beautiful as well. But don’t mind me as I continue to drool over your tub.
September 13th, 2006 at 11:05 amI hope you’re nice and warm now. Occassionally I telecommute from home, and pretty much insist on the same nice temperatures they have in the building at work.
Cas
September 13th, 2006 at 11:33 amAnd the shoes are great!
Love love love the photos….and that you have a wood burning stove.
September 13th, 2006 at 11:44 amBEAUTIFUL photos, as always. Your children are darling as ever (love the cowgirl shots) and your home is to die for. The tub looks fantastic!
We’re COOLING DOWN (no joke) to 98 degrees today. I want to be cold.
The grass is always greener.
September 13th, 2006 at 11:47 amI like photos on a blog. The more the merrier. Adds a dimension.
What was wrong with the other table and chairs? I like the Miles one - a friend has something similar. I love IKEA.
September 13th, 2006 at 11:53 amMy husband is at a conference this week, in St. Louis. Where he will sleep ALONE in a hotel room and eat fabulous meals in a restaurant and talk to adults ALL DAY LONG.
I’m sure he’s miserable.
September 13th, 2006 at 12:04 pmI like your comic book version!
September 13th, 2006 at 12:41 pmAs soon as you rehang the bathroom door, I’m coming over to take a bath. Just so you know.
September 13th, 2006 at 1:05 pmI want that chair. And a skinny little butt to go with it.
September 13th, 2006 at 1:14 pmLOVE the tub! And the photos. And the horseback riding lessons.
September 13th, 2006 at 1:14 pmAny tips on refinishing a tub? Our bathroom is also almost done….except for the tub needing a little work, a new toilet, a built in, a little more panelling……geez…i’m starting to get depressed!!!
Love the little cowgirl. My girl is currently going through the princess stage (please tell me it doesn’t last long)!!!
September 13th, 2006 at 1:48 pmConsidering it was 94 with 75% humidity here, I’ll trade ya.
September 13th, 2006 at 1:49 pmI had that exact same conversation with my husband- only in my mind. Saves time that way, the conclusion is the same either way. Yes I’m jealous too of my hubby going off to work all day in a nice warm climate-controlled office, interacting with intelligent (adult) people, doing a job he is skilled at and highly regarded for. It was 63 deg. INDOORS here last time I checked.
September 13th, 2006 at 2:41 pmI love seeing pictures of your house! You have great decorating sense and the rooms always look very nice!
September 13th, 2006 at 3:54 pmI want that tub! That has always been a dream of mine, to have a claw-footed tub. Beautiful.
September 13th, 2006 at 4:02 pmI love seeing pics of your cuties, also.
The tub looks fantastic! I think the cowgirl outfit is perfect. She makes it work! And I love the green in your kitchen. It’s lovely.
September 13th, 2006 at 4:27 pmWow Chris, I love that tub! I want one, we are planning on building our own house or possibly buying a older house and I definetly want a tub like that! Collin who will be 2 on Sept 30th has a chair just like Miles & lord help you if anyone else sits in it, he gets soo mad…
September 13th, 2006 at 4:34 pmGah, sometimes I read this blog and wish I had seven kids of my own. That is how good you are.
September 13th, 2006 at 5:42 pmWow, our AC is still running here, with fans to keep the air circulating; but I used to live up north and know the cold well, definatly fire up that stove! Love the cowgirl in b&w, beautiful picture of a beautiful girl.
September 13th, 2006 at 7:32 pmThe cuteness just killed me. I think I fell over and died.
I want to come over again! So many changes since I was last there!
September 13th, 2006 at 8:50 pmOh and I forgot that Josh and I got into an argument last night about turning on the heat and I said absolutely not because I won’t start paying the absurd heating bills in SEPTEMBER, and while we were arguing, Tango and Murray are wandering around shivering and looking pitiful, poor mites.
September 13th, 2006 at 8:51 pmWow. We just refinished a bathtub very much like yours! It’s wonderful, isn’t it? The space! The splashing!
September 14th, 2006 at 12:45 amThis made me giggle because I have these same conversations with my husband, only the roles are reversed.
Great pics of the kids. I love the cowgirl outfit.
September 14th, 2006 at 1:27 amMy girl wears rain boots with her cowboy outfit, too! So cute. I can not believe you went so long without a tub. Amazing!
September 14th, 2006 at 1:42 amBeautiful home; beautiful family! The b/w pic. is to die for.
September 14th, 2006 at 2:51 amHee hee, I think you’ve got our table! Dh couldn’t wait to move to a bigger place so he could *finally* get that table from Ikea–a table we all can fit at along with the food, too!
Your bathroom looks lovely. Can’t wait to see more pics of it. And we’ve been known to bathe our babies in the sink, too, even when we have had a bathtub.
Can your son gallop yet? Please tell me he can’t gallop yet. If he can, I think I’ll just throw myself off my horse next weekend and be done with it, damn it. My 9 y.o. brags that she can gallop “without holding onto the saddle”. Bite me. I waited 25 years to finally get riding lessons and I feel like such a fool on that damned horse….
Love that phrase “comic book version of my blog”. I’m going to have to adopt that one for myself. I’m often doing a “week in review in pictures” on mine when I can’t get around to typing anything up.
September 14th, 2006 at 6:26 amNeato bathtub! My sister has one, I love taking showers there and feeling all Victorian.
My husband has been whining about going out to dinner and drinks with clients. If looks could kill, I’d be asking for help with the body.
September 14th, 2006 at 9:07 amI love your photos! Especially the before and after photos you have in your house set, although the kids are adorable and everything. You have *almost* inspired me to tear down our 1985 wallpaper and actually paint. I’m so amazed at just how beautiful you are making your home. Maybe a few more shared demos and I’ll be off my @$$! You rock Chris.
P.S. From a 100% Texas girl, the ‘cowgirl’ has made my day! 
September 14th, 2006 at 9:30 amUGH its cold here too, and thats a revolving conversation I have with my dh all the time… lol altho my dh owns his own stonewall masonry company, so he doesnt get the luxury of heat either…. thats prob why he thinks we dont need it on yet
But I have a 4m old and a 2y old, so I say Bring on the heat! Anyways, LOVE the colors and the tub 
September 14th, 2006 at 9:54 amI only count five kids…
September 14th, 2006 at 10:45 amLovely pictures. But if you do decide to move to the tropics, you might not want to tell your little one that maple syrup is sometimes hard to come by down here.
Just’ sayin’.
:o)
K.
September 14th, 2006 at 11:03 amHow is your home so amazingly free of clutter? And yes, it does look like you live in a magazine. I feel we are growing apart, Chris (kidding). Up against all this cheery perfection, your 5-year-old is just adding a little dose of reality. My mom still whips out the snarly picture of me taken on one of our beach vacations; thirty years later she still thinks it is hilarious.
September 14th, 2006 at 2:01 pmI just opened up our electric bill and let’s just say, the amount is pretty darned close to the monthly mortgage payment on our first house. Apparently, we are air conditioning not only our house, but the entire neighborhood. (Also, in making that statement, I have officially turned into my mother). Forgive me, but I am a teeny tiny bit envious of the temp at your house.
And let me add my compliments on your bathtub. Beautiful. We moved from a beautiful 100 year old house to this big ugly 70s-style brown (apparently, uninsulated) house to be close to the grandparents and the beach, but I miss things like high ceilings, crown molding and clawfooted (?) bathtubs. Thanks for giving us a peek.
Finally, it goes without saying that your children are beautiful,but my favorite is the look on your five year old’s face.
September 14th, 2006 at 9:48 pm