Erin, Author at The Sunny Side Up Blog

New House

06.03.13

House is painted!

Ok. Here is where I last left you with a new house update. The color on the left of the picture below was my original pick. I looked at one shade darker and it was darker than I wanted (not shown here). So I had my painter just enhance our original choice to 150% of its natural color (shown on the right). And we had a winner! Ready to see some before and afters? I just love a good before and after!

{BEFORE}

{AFTER}

{WAY BEFORE}

{BEFORE}

{AFTER}

{BEFORE}

{AFTER}

I’m so thrilled to be done with rock and exterior paint! Definitely two of the toughest decisions for me during this whole building process. Now all major decisions for the exterior have been made and I can just focus on finishing the inside. There are still things to be done on the exterior. Black shutters for a few windows, doors painted (probably going with black to match the shutters), finish the roof, railings for balconies (starting those tomorrow), some additional trim on the columns, and a few minor changes and touch ups with paint here and there. But we are close to being done on the outside! And it feels great. :)

My garage doors are so filthy! It’s hard for me to not take a scrubbing brush to them. I have to fight the urge every time I’m at the house. :) A lost cause until landscaping is done.

Pavers are all done.

And we have started planting trees!

On this week’s agenda:

– More cabinets and built-ins are coming
– First wave of counter tops and sinks will be installed
– More tile work in bathrooms
– Exterior balcony railings
– Rock for porches and outdoor space floors installed
– And they are going to dig a hole in the backyard for a trampoline. I think Kenny and I are more excited about it than the kids are. :)

So it will be a busy week at the house! And we still have two more weeks of school left which are jam packed with field trips and final projects and parties and everything else you can imagine. I’m so ready for summer. And so jealous of those of you who are already out of school! I’m mostly looking forward to not packing lunches and NO HOMEWORK. Again, probably more excited than the kids are. :)

Enjoy your day everyone!

p.s. Thank you so much for all of the past sweet comments about the house AND for your help with the paint color! So grateful for all of my blog friends. :)

xoxo, Erin

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Parenting

05.31.13

Dear Addison,

My sweet sweet girl. My sweet SEVEN year old! No way. I can’t believe you just turned seven. I think I’m in denial. Serious denial. But as hard as it is for me to see you growing up entirely too quickly, I have to say that I just love the stage you are in right now Addie. LOVE it!

Yes, as a toddler and young child you kept things interesting. To say the least. :) And we loved our stubborn, moody, curly headed firecracker to pieces. But oh how you’ve changed!

You are such a little delight these days. Happy all the time! And such a little pleaser. You love to make your mom and dad happy. You love to make Ellie happy. You love to make your teacher and friends happy. You find so much joy in doing what’s right and making other people feel good. Your smile is simply contagious. I get so excited to pick you up from school each day Addie because you run into my arms with the biggest smile on your face. Pure joy! And I know you will outgrow this at some point, so I soak it up and squeeze you tight every day and remember how lucky I am to have you in my life.

You are smart Addison. So so smart. While we often hear how much you look like your mommy (and I love that!) you clearly got your daddy’s intellect. :) Sure you love to be creative and play like your mom and sister, but you are a problem solver and critical thinker at heart. You love learning and are always asking questions. You are also an amazing listener. You pay such close attention to what is going on around you and you retain information so well. You always amaze us with the things you remember and understand at such a young age. You are also a hard worker Addison and I hope you never lose that quality. It is one of my favorite things about you. You never give up and you always give everything your full attention and do your very best. You will go so far in life with your kindness and ability to work hard. You are a teacher’s dream with your work ethic and stellar behavior and you have had an amazing year in first grade.

While your dad has big dreams for you – Harvard with multiple medical degrees or maybe a nuclear scientist or perhaps someone who saves the world by solving all of our environmental problems – you and I know what direction you are really heading… FASHION!

You were born with a love for clothes and fashion and I have no clue where it came from. :) You have so much fun putting together different outfits and you have loved doing this since you were old enough to talk. I have to say that so many times you walk in dressed for school and I think WOW. Now that is cute! And I never would have thought of putting that top with that skirt and those leggings. It’s a true talent of yours. I’m to a place now where I seriously go to you for advice. Should I wear these shoes or these shoes? Which earrings look best with this dress? You have impeccable taste and I will not be shocked at all when the day comes that you own your own fashion line. I’m sure you’ll throw in a few outfits that aren’t “itchy” just to please your sister. :)

Speaking of Ellie, you are the best little sister Addison. The other day El lost one of her favorite toys and was so worried about it. You told her “don’t worry Ellie. If you can’t find it I will give you all my money so you can buy a new one.” Your grandma overheard this conversation and got a lump in her throat. We all know how hard you work to earn money and how hard it is for you to spend it! But you would do anything for your sister. She is your best friend and you love her and look up to her so much.

We always talk about how lucky you are to be a little sister AND a big sister. Ellie isn’t the only one who adores you! You have a little shadow who follows you around 24/7. We hear “where’s my Addie?” over and over every day. Your little brother wants to do whatever you are doing and while I know this is sometimes hard for you (he doesn’t quite understand that toys aren’t always meant to be knocked down and demolished) you handle it so well and are such a good little buddy to him. You get so excited when he learns new words and does well with his speech. You are like a mini therapist helping him learn. You always come running in to me “mom! guess what Kole just said!” and we cheer and do a happy dance and Kole feels like the king of the world. :)

You have a special relationship with your daddy. The two of you have so much fun together camping and joking around. You asked for a rubix cube this year for your birthday of all things! Flashback to my childhood! And I never liked those but it is so YOU! You and your dad have had a blast figuring it out and then messing it up so that you can figure it out again. Your dad always tells me that he loves that he “gets” you. You two are alike in so many ways. Both determined, strong willed, competitive, hard working and up for a challenge. Both perfectionists. El and I are a little more in the clouds while you and your daddy always have your feet planted firmly in reality. We help you two enjoy the journey and you and your dad keep us from running into major disasters. :) We all help even each other out.

Even though your personality is a mini daddy you have always been such a mamma’s girl and the two of us get along famously. You love to organize! We both get so excited about neatness and order. The other day you asked me if I would help you straighten up your clothes drawers because you love it when they are nice and neat. My heart skipped a beat! :) You love to cuddle and one of your favorite things is when we can have what you call “mommy Addie time” and hang out just the two of us. It’s one of my favorite things too.

You are such a special little girl Addison. Every night your daddy and I still tuck you in bed and follow the same routine we started when you were a toddler. We kiss you and then you wipe our kisses off. Then we say “hey you wiped off our kisses!” Then we laugh and we each kiss you again and whisper “you make me melt.”

You do make us melt Addison. Not a day goes by that your dad and I don’t comment on what an amazing little person you are and how lucky we are to have you for a daughter. Your sweet little personality brings so much love and happiness into our home. I can’t imagine my life without you baby girl. Love you so so much.

xoxo,

Mom

p.s. Stop wiggling that loose front tooth! You have grown up enough for your mom to handle at the moment. :)

xoxo, Erin

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Ellie and Addison

05.28.13

Happy Memorial Day

From our loved ones to yours.

xoxo, Erin

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Home Decor

05.23.13

Fun decor (model home)

Do you love to go through model homes as much as I do? Every time new home developments are going up I love to take a walk through the model homes. The models are always decked with so many beautiful moldings and furniture. Yes – they are totally staged and far from what “home” really looks like. And they are usually full of way too many silk plants and overly themed bedrooms, but still. So fun to get decorating ideas that you can tweak and apply in your real home. I went through some model homes recently and thought I’d share a few pretty pics I snapped with my IPhone.

Loved this ceiling.

I also loved this display shelf. Minus one or two silk plants. :)

How cool are those floors!?

I thought this was a fun idea for a fireplace mantel – just a painting and two pictures on the right side. The painting isn’t really speaking to me, but I love the simplicity of this.

LOVE this formal dining room. Aren’t those lights cool? It made me want to add a brick wall to mine.

But I chickened out. :) My sister has a brick wall in her formal dining room that she and her husband put up and it is gorgeous too.

I do believe I will. :)

Navy is always fun.

I especially liked the print on these chairs.

These stairs were gorgeous! Fun sitting area – you know – if you get tired half way up.

There’s even a place for the dog to take a breather.

This is such an easy arrangement for a picture gallery. Saving it for future inspiration.

The right side of this media built-in was a bench seat. I don’t know how much that would get used in our house – everyone wants to be facing the TV. :) But it sure looks pretty! Plus you all know I can’t resist anything that has a few wide planks in the background.

Want to see the whole room? It was my favorite!

Ahhhhh. LOVE this! Love all of the crisp white with pretty blue accents and dark furniture. And I especially love that coffee table! It’s huge! My kids would be camped all over that thing with every toy imaginable so fast my head would spin. It wouldn’t be a coffee table in our house. It would be a fort and a boat and a barbie party pad. :)

Like I said, model homes may be a bit staged, unrealistic, and a little too perfect, but they are also full of fun inspiration! Thanks for taking the tour with me. :)

Happy Thursday friends!

xoxo, Erin

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Uncategorized

05.21.13

Everything and Nothing

Well hello all! Sharing a few pics from the past few days. Kenny took the girls camping over the weekend and the girls were worried that I would feel lonely.

So they filled half of my bed with their “friends” to keep me company. Lucky me. :) They made me promise to look after them all and keep them in my bed so I slept among stuffed dogs, monkeys, and of course – several pandas.

Speaking of … when I saw this shirt at Gap I knew a certain someone had to have it. :)

Kole loves to have complete access to the girls stuff when they’re gone. The monkey backpack works for school, but when he’s home his real favorite is this old pink backpack of Ad’s. I always smile when he puts it on and starts marching around the house. It’s almost as big as he is.

He’s hiding from me in this picture. I love it. :) This has got to be one of my favorite things about toddlers – when they close and cover their eyes and think you can’t see them anymore. It just never gets old to me.

When Kole wasn’t messing with the girls things he started a new little trick. Putting all of his toys (along with a few towels and blankets) into one huge pile on the playroom couch. I can only handle so many messes like this one before my skin begins to itch. :) So after a while I took him in the backyard for one of my favorite toddler activities. If you have a toddler, take notes…

Get a bucket and a paint brush. Add a little water to the bucket and teach your little one how to “paint” the wall. This is my favorite way to occupy a toddler in the summer time. They love it. And by the time the wall is finished the water has started drying so it’s time to start again! I told him what a great painter he was and thank you so much for all of the help. He was in heaven and I was able to get the dishes done and watch him from the kitchen window. Score for both of us.

My girls used to do this for hours when they were little too. :)

Of course a little organizing was in order. The kids’ bathroom cupboards were getting cluttered again.

So I cleaned them.

I wish I could show you some “after” pics of my scrapbook space but I’m afraid I went a bit crazy and only made the mess in that room even bigger. :) It always gets worse before it gets better, right!?

We met friends at the park tonight for dinner and I brought a fruit salad and my favorite fruit dip. I’ve shared this before, but thought I’d post it again in case anyone missed it. Because if you missed it and haven’t tried it yet, well, I just think that’s a true tragedy. It is GOOD.

Whip together:

8 oz. cream cheese (softened)

7 oz. jar of marshmallow creme

2 teaspoons of Maraschino Cherry juice

Perfect for summer BBQ’s! Love this time of year.

K. That was a bit of a random post! Everything and nothing. Works for me.

xoxo, Erin

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Uncategorized

05.17.13

Tackling this weekend…

Could my so called “office” be any messier? Yup – those are Christmas pictures still up. Yup – that’s wrapping paper and random organizers all over the floor blocking the door way. Yup – those are piles of kids’ school work and art work and pictures and scrapbook supplies and albums and projects (started and then forgotten) and office supplies and ribbon and a Victoria Secret bag (huh?) and dolls and puzzles and who knows what else all over my desk.

This space has been the most neglected area of my house and a total catch all for any and everything lately. This weekend my goal is to dive in and pack up the scrapbook room! Major purging is in order. I want things cleaned out and packed in an organized way so that it’s easier to move it all into my new office space. Kenny and the girls have fun plans on Saturday so my fingers are crossed that I can stay home and get it done!

I’m sure my little monkey will be a huge help as always.

Enjoy your weekend!

xoxo, Erin

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New House

05.16.13

Ready for paint!

A few exterior pics today!

We have officially gone from a yellow house (with a fabulous blue porta potty in the yard – adds a nice touch, don’t you think?)…

to a white house! Which is not the final destination! But one step closer! This is the primer color. And it is BRIGHT! I can’t approach the house without sunglasses. And a hat. And I still squint. :) The windows and doors and rock are all taped off and covered in plastic. We are primed and ready for paint! In fact, the white trim was all painted today. Which is hard to tell because well. Everything is white. :)

Back of the house.

Another yellow…

to white.

This is the shade of grey we are leaning towards right now. My painter put it up around this window so that we could see what it will look like with the white we chose for the trim. I really want the black roof to be a contrast so I’ve been leaning towards lighter colors. Man. Exterior paint has been so hard! In the beginning I was trying to match the stone, but whenever I’d try out a warmer grey it would look too green or too brown. Plus the colors look different during different parts of the day (in the shade/sun) and on different parts of the house. Our painter is putting up this color one shade darker tomorrow and then I need to just make a final decision. They will start painting as soon as I say GO. I’ve been so indecisive about color! Kenny told me today that it’s amazing I was ever able to make the decision to marry him. I quickly answered that decision was a breeze because it wasn’t nearly as important as big decisions. Like what color I should paint this house. ;)

The above pic I snapped with my IPhone so it’s a bit grainy, but it’s a good shot of the paint near the stone. Both of the windows in this picture will have black shutters on them so I’m trying to envision the whole picture once landscaping and all of the finish details are done to decide if this is the right shade of grey or not. That has been the tricky part with this whole building process. Envisioning the end result! I’m great at deciding if I like or don’t like something once it has already been done. :)

The other thing I’m considering is all of the pavers we have in the front and back of the house. They are a cool grey closer to the paint we’re leaning towards. The pavers are grey (cool) and the stone is a bit more brown (warm) with grey mortar. Fingers crossed it all comes together.

So! That is my decision at this point in the game! By this time tomorrow it will be made and done and my house will be well on its way to its final color!

Hopefully.

xoxo, Erin

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Ellie and Addison

05.14.13

Today

I was at the new house from 11:00 am – 8:00 pm. I had meetings with the tile guys and the counter top guys and the balcony railing guys and the landscaping guys and the finish work guys and the exterior paint guys and my builder. He’s a guy too. That’s a lot of meetings with a lot of guys. So many issues were worked out and so many details were discussed and so many notes were taken. My head is spinning and I am truly worn out.

Where were my kids during these meetings?

In school and then home with their dad.

Aside from the two hours they were riding scooters through the house.

These are crazy days/evenings for our family. All routines are tossed out the window. Homework is rushed. Dinner is rushed. House is always a mess because mom isn’t around to clean it. Kenny and I have so much on our minds right now and are beyond excited to wrap up this process. We are very much looking forward to a little more normal around here. A time when we don’t wake up in the middle of the night rambling about the door hardware bid or the shower back splash. A time when we have conversations that don’t involve electrical outlets and concrete pavers and paint swatches. A time when we aren’t so distracted and scattered with all we have going on. It will be a good time indeed!

In the meantime, the kids seem to be enjoying our new “normal.”

To them this is all one big PAR – TAY.

So I am going to put on my party hat and press on!

Maybe it’s time I buy myself a scooter.

xoxo, Erin

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Kole

05.10.13

Happy Mother’s Day!

Looking forward to all of the handmade love coming my way.

Hope yours is a great one!

xoxo, Erin

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New House

05.09.13

House update!

Oh my word. Sorry for the slow week on the blog everyone! Things are hopping at the new house and I have pretty much been living there lately. In fact, tonight I’ve been considering just taking a sleeping bag on up and breaking my new bedroom in a little early. The only thing holding me back is a vision of what my girls’ hair might look like for school if Kenny is left alone in charge of the morning routine. Scary. :) Here are a few pics of some recent progress with the finish work.

Getting ready to start the ceiling in the master bedroom.

Beams went up first!

And then the tongue and groove! Which I prefer to call planks. :) The whole ceiling will be painted white and the family room ceiling will be the same. They started that ceiling yesterday. Yea for progress!

Entry paneling is finished.

And everything is getting a lovely primer coat of crazy bright white. I’m still torn on what color to paint my front door and dutch door and I have to decide quick because the color determines the finish of my door hardware which we need to order soon. Leaning towards black. Or maybe a fun blue? Probably black. Maybe.

This is the wall to the left of the formal living room. That wall was closed in the beginning stages with our architect but I decided to open it up so that the hallway wouldn’t feel too long and dark. Then I added a recessed niche and had the carpenters add some 7 in. wide planks. A fun backdrop for a photo collage! I have this whole room already decorated in my head. :)

Recent pics with the primer.

Planks for the ceiling over the kitchen nook. Crown will go up soon to finish the look!

Doors have all been installed and primed.

And here is a picture of the kitchen from last week. (Decided not to put planks in between these beams).

Right now my kitchen is full of cabinets!

And they are all over the floor!

And they are going to be installed tomorrow!

Not that I’m excited or anything.

xoxo, Erin

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Ellie and Addison

05.06.13

Weekends like this one

I want to remember weekends like this one.

Rainy weather.

Slow mornings in pajamas.

Toys all over the place.

Kenny’s phone fairly silent (rare).

Kole marching around the house singing “hi ho hi ho.. it’s off to work we go…”

(we’re a little obsessed with the seven dwarfs at the moment)

Sunday drive through pretty neighborhoods with tree lined streets.

Naps for the boys.

All caught up on laundry (also rare).

Waffles for breakfast. And dinner.

Lots of cuddling on the couch.

Stories at bedtime.

I want to remember how happy we are right now.

Especially during weekends like this one.

xoxo, Erin

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Addison

05.03.13

Favorites and Fashion

A few random pics today. I’m in a random sort of mood. :)

K. These are too cool. First of all, if you have a baby are you tossing GoGo Squeez snacks in your purse? These are all the rage around here and while I didn’t use them with any of my three (what rock was I living under?) I know I would have loved them. Healthy snacks for baby on the go! The only complaint is the not so baby friendly pouch cap. Pouch pops to the rescue! They simply attach to the top of the pouch cap. Wa-la! Now your baby can feed him/herself. In the car! On the go! Perfect for that transition period from bottle to solid food. I had to share them for all infant mom’s because my friends have raved about the pouch pops (babies love them) and I know I would have loved them too. Almost makes me want to have another baby to try them out. Almost. :)

Another favorite. Tried and true and I’ve shared this one before. I just bought a new MAC eye lash curler (my original one has gone missing – no doubt Kole has it stashed in a couch cushion somewhere…). One of my all time favorite beauty products! Makes my eye lashes so long.

This amazing necklace is from Banana Republic. One of the things Kenny gave me for my birthday. He picked it out himself. Well. With help from me that is. :) Isn’t it beautiful!?

I love it so much and I haven’t even worn it yet! Same with this other BP necklace my mom gave me a while ago. I need to figure out what to wear with them and just haven’t yet. So for now I just keep admiring them in this box on my dresser.

Two different friends gave me this scarf and earrings (also b-day gifts) but don’t they go well together?

I have loved wearing this combo.

And a fun yellow skirt for Spring I bought at Down East in Utah months ago.

I love the thick band at the top.

I just paired it with a white tank and my navy sweater and some wedges. Yellow and Navy is such a fun combo, don’t you think?

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