Tuesday

Would you prefer the truth or a white lie?

I say would you prefer the truth or a white lie, because when someone asks "How are you doing"  you often say fine or great.. even if in reality your heart is breaking inside and you are holding back the tears. See my reality is that I often appear fine and I try to convience myself that I am fine. Yet, inside I am still hurting. I busy myself with projects around the house, studying for my masters program and teaching before I let myself admit my feelings. I had months that went by that I wanted to cave up in bed and just cry. After those months I refused to let myself feel sorry and just stayed busy. I guess what I am saying is because I say I am ok doesn't really mean I am ok. It is a white lie to you and a white lie to me also.. because if I say it enough maybe I will convience myself of it.

I thought I was over the hurdle of being hurt, anger and upset about my loss of my child. I thought that the tears would stop and I could just mourn that I lost my child. That was until last night. We are blessed by the Lord with friends that are so spectacular that they are like family. They take care of us when we are hurting, they laugh with us when we are happy and they cheer us on when it comes to achieving our dreams. What better friends could you ask for right? Well those great friends are so incredibly generous that they have passed down major items you would need for the first year of a baby's life. Recently they gifted us with a bouncer, swing, boopy pillow and a couple other items. I thought it was awesome and I was so appreciative of their generousity.

Than last night Nate came home with more baby items in the car from our wonderful friends. I lost it. I don't know what triggered these emotions really but I started crying and couldn't stop. I started thinking about the misscarriage how my emotions have changed so much over the past months but it doesn't hurt any less. I than realized that if I hadn't had my misscarriage I would be holding a baby soon. I would be giving birth any day now and I would have a baby.  I would be holding and loving on my child.. but God had other plans. I have so many people tell me just know God had plans for your family and that the Baby needed to be with God. I understand that it makes you feel better to tell me my baby needed to be with God. But I think that is a load of crap for you to say to me unless you have lost your child.  Unless you have been where I have been and went thru the pain physically and mentally don't give me this God has your child bs.

Please understand that I trust God and I know he has a plan. And I truely believe my child is in heaven and one day I will meet him or her and hold them.  But for someone to tell me these things when they haven't been there is hurtful and doesn't lessen the pain for me. It angers me. It angers me when someone says this to me and they have a family or a beautiful baby and have never lost a child. How can you tell me this when you haven't even been there and you have exactly what I wish for so bad.

So please understand that deep down I am hurting. I am hurting and I don't need to hear from you to trust my faith and that God has a plan. Because in my lifetime God has made me fear him, hate him and love him and I know that there is a God. I know that he has a plan but it isn't for you to tell me so you feel better about my loss.

I write all this and it may feel like these are harsh words. But it seems that women that have never felt loss like to use these nice words to me and it truely is a stab at my heart. Yet at the same time I have meet wonderful women in real life and in blog land that have had infant mortality and miscarriage. It is comforting for me to hear other womans stories that have survived and have seen the darkness I have been to but now are in the light. This is comforting because they aren't speaking words just to make me feel better. They are speaking words because they know the pain and they know how it feels.

Last night I found the beautiful blog called Life Rearranged. She is doing a whole section of posts on infant mortality and miscarriage. It is true sadness but she is doing it to make people aware and raise money and in a sense help woman like me who are still in a bad place.

I read her post from : A Different Kind of Mother – Julie Carson {infant loss/miscarriage}. Which I have copied and pasted below because I feel these words resounded in me and helped me.




It was a happy normal day.







I had been contracting all weekend.






The ladies at bible study were giving me tips on how to jumpstart labor.






Funny tips.






I had my last OB appointment that afternoon.






The clothes were washed.






The room was painted.






The crib was built.






The suitcase was packed.






The carseat was safely buckled in the back of our car.






We were ready.






But in fact, we were far from ready.






Not ready in any sense of the word.






Not ready to hear the words “there is no heartbeat.”






Not ready for the dark and scary road that suddenly was in front of us.






The road we were forced to suddenly walk.






A road where babies die.






Where arms are empty.






Where planning a memorial and choosing a casket are part of the journey.






Two days later I gave birth to our 6lb. 8oz. daughter






Joy Emma.






Our daughter that we would never see take her first steps.






Graduate from high school.






Get married.






Have children of her own.














Everything we planned, everything we knew, changed that day.






We were parents without a child.






Grieving for a future that we would not see.






Dreams that would not come true.






Our hearts broke that day.






We became different people.






What we did not realize is that we became better people.














Stronger people.






People who have more strength than we ever imagined.






Love more fully.






Care deeply.






Live passionately.






Serve thankfully.






Give generously.






Long for heaven like nothing else.






That day I never would have imagined the legacy that Joy’s short life would leave.






The people who have been changed and encouraged.






The mother that I am now is an entirely different one than I would have been without Joy.






Every day is a gift.






Every moment is precious.






I am abundantly blessed.






With my three sweet girls here on earth and with my sweet girl in heaven.






My daughter that I will see again.






Hold again.














I realize now that the months of mourning and grieving are just the dark brushstrokes on the beautiful, wonderful painting that is my life.






The painting that is still so much a mystery, but a wonderful masterpiece that will all make perfect sense when it is completed.






I simply cannot wait for that day.






* * * *






This series is not just a litany of stories.






My goal is that it helps heal. Encourage. Glorify.






In conjunction with this series, we are also supporting one another in love by fundraising for the Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep Foundation.


If you would like to read more on this please visit : http://liferearranged.com/category/infant-lossmiscarriage/

I cried myself to sleep last night and I woke up to more tears. I drove to work crying. But I keep telling myself that God wouldn't show me this pain if the human body, mind and soul weren't so resilent. I know that the human mind, soul and body are because I have made it thru so much already in my short time here on earth. So I trust that GOD is leading me to woman that will help guide me thru this pain, he is guiding me to him for comfort and providing me with friends that will be generous even if just causes me pain. Because pain is part of the grieving game and one day I won't feel it as bad. Yet I will never totally heal from this. There will always be a scar on my heart.

I'm sorry for the lenghty post.. but I needed to get the words out. I needed to say how I felt. So if you read to this part I thank you for reading and supporting me in my healing. May I complete this marathon in life with God, family, friends and faith by my side.







Monday

Spring Break is over - Project 13

Before Pics of Antique Dresser & Antique Rocker

So Spring Break has come to a close.. and I started/finished many projects that I will show you over the next week or so. I can't wait. But do you remember the dresser and rocker I had done by Simple Matters? I decided I didn't want to spend my break inhaling fumes painting a dresser- so I left it up to Jannet. I love her! Check her out on Facebook under Simple Matters Page. She is awesome!

Well I picked up both the rocker and dresser over the break. We were going to install the kitty door to the garage and clean out the third bedroom. But we only cleaned out the garage- we had a lot of busy busy during the break. We went to Louisana for two days with friends, visited my cousin in ICU at th hospital, cleaned the house, I took a final and wrote a paper, gardened and painted other furniture.. Lowes is my best friend this break. We also spent a ton of time with friends which is always great!

So this weekend we will install the kitty door and move the cats out of the third bedroom. Till than the dresser is in my formal living room blocking one side of the double fireplace and the rocker has found a temporary home in our guest room (where pics were taken).

Without further adue.. here are the new and improved dresser and rocker..






Aside from the fact that both are not in there furniture homes (third bedroom) yet.. but still  aren't they magnificent?? Hello that rocker makes me drool.. from a pink wood with 60's funky material to a much more sophisticated paisley with white to make it sweet and ready for a baby. I added the love pillow.. because hello I love it! I can't wait to chill out in it with a lil one. Or just sit in waiting for a lil one. It looks just like my grandpas and I love that it reminds me of great family. My mom loved the results so much she is having her rocker reupholstered by Jannet too. Ha.. she should listen to me more when it comes to decorating! (Side Note my Mom discovered Angry Birds on her Ipad this weekend- our relationship will never be the same. If you have ever played angry birds than you know it is addicting and relationships are sacrificed for other's need for angry birds.).

I decided to keep the original hardware on the dresser to pay tribute to it's hertitage. I love that Jannet scuffed them up a bit and put a tad of pewter on them. It gives em a little bling but not too much. I really think it turned out superb! I am completely obsessed with my projects. I will dream about them once I start them and I was nervous that the handles would ruin the dresser. But I think they are awesome.

Once we get the third bedroom cleaned of kitty stuff & Nate's bookshelves with tons of book..plus painted with a fresh coat of paint. I will move the furniture in there and show you all pics. I can't wait to see the results. Till than you can be jealous of my made over furniture! 


And you can wait in anxiousness of what I did over the break ;) 

Friday

Kitchen & Dining Room Updates- Continuation on Project 12

    

First let me say Happy Spring Break! Wohoo!! I made it. After a long 1/2 day at work (I am blessed to get 1/2 day Fridays) I went to Target and found the most awesome hurricane lantern by Smith & Hawkens. I love that line at Target.   The Hurricane is  Awesome with seagrass. I got the meduim sized one and thought it would look stellar on the dining room table I am thinking now I need to go back and buy the extra large one two! But I had to show you.. oh look at my beautiful chairs too! Aww.. seagrass. My dining room just feels like we are sitting in Hawaii still on the beach eating fish tacos. DONE! I finally achieved what I wanted.

Now on to the kitchen progress! My new light fixtures for the hallway and above the sink have come in today. I picked them up and they are awaiting to be hung by Nate.  I really want to update the lil fan above the table but it is going to have to wait till we take down the light above the island so the light above island and above the table all match. Plus it cranks out some air for those summer months.  I went for a bronze finish to match the switch plates and cabinet hardware. I know we have alot of stainless steel also in our kitchen but I am really drawn to how it looks against our pine cabinets and our backsplash. I also didn't want to have to buy all new hardware :).  I was considering painting the kitchen and decided against it. Instead I took InspiredRoom's advice and lightened it up by adding touches of cream and white. Here is the before
 
Before with reds all over.. Made the kitchen seem dark when it gets tons of light and is actually a very large kitchen.  To NOW: Light & Airy
I gave you the hint yesterday! The hint was the new cream valances that have a subtle hint of pattern on them. I put them up last night and had not put the slip covers on them and Nate wasn't sure yet. I think he was afraid they were too bland and had nothing else to match. But with my new slipcovers they all blend so well.  I love that it breaks up all the pine in the kitchen and they are linen! I adore linen. Sorry I didn't exactly press them before pictures ;). I love that you can still see the carved legs and it looks like my chairs are wearing a skirt! This was such an inexpensive makeover. I originally wanted to paint the chairs white, but Nate really likes wood tones. So to find a happy medium I felt these slipcovers were appropriate. I have seen similar ones online that just cover the tall parts of the chair but not the actual seat. Our seats are padded and covered and the upholstered part didn't match my new light and airy kitchen. So continue to skirt the seat was perfect.

I still want to add a white fruit bowl to the table and replace our red utensil crock on the island with a simple white one. Other than that I have just removed the reds.. I also purchased $5.99 rugs at target to replace the area rugs at the french doors out to the pool and by the kitchen sink.  The french door in the kitchen even has stain glass in it.. don't think I have ever shown that. I love the stain glass it reminds me of my mom and Grandma. They both love stain glass. I went for cheap and plain simple rugs so that if they get ruined from chlorine pool water and dogs I won't get upset. 

Since our kitchen is so large I wanted to break up the tile a little more. I was going to put our sisal rug from the living room in the kitchen because I just ordered another from PB on sale (8X10 rug on sale for less than 100 bucks) and with my gift cards. But I decided I wanted the plain sisal rug to go to our master bedroom and the new sisal rug to go in the living room. All our floors in the house are wood or tile. I like area rugs in the larger rooms to keep the toes warm.  The current living room rug is just sisal.. the new one actually has a border of brown on the edge. I will show pics as soon as they come. Since I decided not to move the LR rug I was back on a hunt.. our kitchen and living room see the most traffic especially during warm months when the pool is in use.  We all hang in the kitchen to chat, eat, get out of the sun- it is the hang out spot. I started to consider an indoor outdoor rug than since the durability. That is when I came along this:

It is a gorgeous indoor/outdoor rug from PB. I ordered it and it will be in the kitchen soon! Can't wait- best part is you can take it outside to spray with a hose to wash and hang dry. Plus both sides have the stripes so if one side sees more wear- flip it over. Great features for a house that I hope will eventually have lil ones in. But for right now we do have three fur balls living here and plenty of kids that visit (esp in summer for the pool). 

I love love stripes if you can't tell. The last rug I ordered was stripes for the dining room (see in first pic my last PB rug purchase). I feel stripes are safe and never go out of style.. yet they are still fresh and fun! So that is the updates so far in the kitchen.. oh I almost forgot. I got a soap dispenser that reminded me of sea glass and some new washrags in my inspiration colors.
Sorry mid day sun was streaming thru. There is the new washrag, soap dispenser and our honeymoon Hawaiian Bamboo Surf Cutting Board. We love it. Aren't they just fun and casual. Beach Vibe? Summer Vibe? Coastal Vibe? Hope I achieved one of them..

 
Ill post pics of the PB rug as soon as it is delivered. I ordered online because our local store didn't have my Garden Rug. Talk soon and enjoy Spring Break.
PS.. I pick up the nursery dresser tomorrow from Simple Matters. I am sooo excited.

Thursday

Busy Busy Bee- Project 12

Before

Whitewashed & a coat of Blue
Close Up
Dining Room with 4 Chairs :)
Herbs starting to Grow Yea!!!

This week has literally been a week of  Insert Four Letter word here starting in an H ending in a Big L.. it has been non-stop at work (meetings, grading, parent emails/conferences), students just going crazy because Spring Break is so close, tons of assignments for my Masters Program and the house a total wreck because lack of time to organize and too many projects started at once.  I am in deep need of vacation in such a bad way.  But for relaxation what I do.. find more projects to do..lol.

I'm one of those people I think of projects while I am going to sleep, showering, driving to work and I will think about them, contemplate them and obsess until they are done. I think I mentioned that I spoke with Melissa from The Inspired Room about our kitchen. I was getting really TIRED of the red.. it is just not me and is too warm. I know people like Red it is actually my hubbies fav color. His office is St Louis Cardinal Red.. but I don't like it all over my house. I like neutral with a punch of color. So I search for my inspiration for the kitchen with out re painting and adding the neutral tans and whites with a touch of blue..
Than it hit me sea spray wreath I have ( I kinda have a rug and wreath addiction).. this is my inspiration for my kitchen- the colors, touch of classic traditional, touch of vintage with modern.. love it. So on my long hallway wall are some vintage iron wall decor in a red color. The color just didn't fit the new kitchen. I went to the garage and got a plain dry brush and white washed the wood. After it dried I distressed it and re hung on the wall. I liked the white. But it was just too white and too much of a contrast on the walls. So I went back to the garage and found some leftover Blue Paint from the upstairs (all the rooms are various shades of blue-robin, teal, aqua, sky) and dry brushed over the white being sure the distressed areas were still noticeable as well as the white. The finished product is above. I really like it and once you see the whole finished kitchen I think you will too.

On top of my kitchen decor project with paint, finally the two other seagrass chairs came in. Nate originally bought the first two seagrass chairs for me as an anniversary gift on our 3rd year. We were living in our first apartment together. I loved them so much and had wanted them so bad but couldn't afford them while in college and working as a bartender and nanny.  When he surprised me with them I was so excited and I still love love em.  The only thing I hate is my cat will try to sharpen her claws on them..ugh. I have been wanting to get more but at one point they were back ordered in my color and then I just didn't have it in our budget. Finally I did. So I ordered them and they came today. The newer ones are a slightly darker color. But I think they match fine because of the color variation of the seagrass. Aren't they beautiful??  Dining Room is officially DONE!! 

Oh and the Herb Garden I planted on the kitchen window has sprouts in all three containers..yeah!









Here's a hint on a future post to come in the kitchen.. good luck on guessing.


HINT!!

Monday

Spring has Sprung at the E's Casa- Project #11

Mounding Flowers around the front tree & mailbox
Mounding Flowers with my trailing rosebushes in front beds
My Easter Lillies coming up in the bed under the bay window
we added new bouganvia to the planters & trailing flower ground cover in the back- sorry Ill have to take a close up of the back bed..
Hanging baskets for the gazebo (also mounding)
Trailing flowers for the planters on the spa brick (there is a cover on spa to keep the birds out and heat in)
boungavia for the planter by the swing on the deck
trailing flowers for my strawberry planter
Herb Garden for the window sile in the kitchen

If you didn't already know I work for a private school and on Fridays we have a half day.. which means I typically get home around 2 pm instead of the regualr 5pm.  So it seemed natural to have mulch dumped in the driveway friday so we could start the backyard. We thought we would only be able to get the back done before dark and do the rest Saturday. But since we built up the beds  for the past two years with mulch twice a year we didn't need as much mulch this year, which meant less work really.  We started mulching around 3pm and finished around 5:30. We trimmed the palm trees and crate mertals next.
But the three yards of mulch only covered the backyard beds and two of the front yard beds. We were so tired that we decided we would get more mulch Saturday. The mulch place only delivers with a load of 3 yds or more so we went to Lowes and got 10 bags of mulch, tomatoe plants, bell peppers, jalenpeno peppers and onions, as well as tons of flowers to add to the garden. I love spring and I always end up spending about 100 bucks for flowers that last till fall. I feel it is so worth it to add color to our yard because we enjoy our back yard so much in the warmer months. 
 Most of our plants except some of the hardy palms basically go dead looking all winter and come back in the spring. Alot of them especially the cana is coming up and I love seeing it come up and get as tall as the fence and flower. My favorite large bird of paradise plants on the fence are brown and I thought they didn't make it thru the freezes but they both have babies coming up at their bases..so there is hope and as ugly as a brown plant is I have to let it be to survive. So I planted trailing flowers in the planters, bouganvia which is a favorite of mine and mounding flowers in the hanging baskets and in the front of the house. Every year I plant Boungavia in the planters by the pool and the planter that Nate says is throwing up by the spa.. it is a planter that looks like is is sideways (I'll have to take a pic of it).  But once the cold comes they go dormant and loose all life other than their roots. Last year I left them in their planters and it took till August for them to bloom (they got leaves). I was much less patient with them this year. I transplanted them all except the large on in the throw up pot by the spa into the garden. That way the garden they can get larger but also I can have some color in my pots now. So I added new bouganvia to the large pots and one smaller pot that had a hibiscus plant in it last year (it died due to freeze).  On top of my bouganvia we also planted tons of trailing and mounding flowers. They are my favorite because I love to see the flowers spilling over a pot. I planted similar plants in the pots on the spa last year and they got huge! They were gorgeous.. so I can't wait to see them mound and trail this year. As always I add hanging baskets around the gazebo for a touch of color. I loved the mounding penunias and last year I did pink so I felt purple would be a wonderful touch of color this year.

Thankful Nate loves flowers and yard work as much as I do. He loves seeing the progress it makes and watching our yard develop over the seasons. Ill post pics once everything is green, full and lucious in May! May, June & July my backyard looks like a tropical oasis instead of dead!

I also added a mini herb garden in the kitchen window! Can't wait to use them.. well Nate to use them.

Hope you enjoy my pics and Ill post some of when the lilies are blooming and the yard is lucious soon! Happy Spring!


Friday

Spring is here.. well at least in my living room- Prject #10





The house is still decorated and ready for St. Patty's but it is the time of year where all the flowering trees and bushes are blooming. I love this time of year and I want the house to feel the same way- springy!
I feel in love with these Robert Allen fabrics that have an awesome Hawaiian Name! They are called Kukula Pinata & Kika Pinata. I thought they were so lovely and had a hard time finding two of each becaue the fabric is now discontinued. If you know me I adore stripes and I loved that these had spring colors and aqua my favorite color. I got two striped and two flower covers and inserted my own pillows. Waaa laa Spring is here. I love that our living room is neutral with pops of colors in accessories like the hydrangeas, my candles, and pillows. Thus way it is always easy to update with new seasons and trends. But I usually stick to things I love more than trends.

I also ordered the book that Melissa at Inspired Room recommended "Live with what you Love". It is a great book and has made its way under my candles, shells and corks on the living room table till I finish reading it. It is about incorporating heirlooms into your house and items you love and how to display them.

The lovely flowers pictured were treats from the hubby and he brought in the mail which had the new PB catalog and Ballard.. love him! I put the yellow beauties in the kitchen and the pink ones on my nite stand. I love fresh flowers and the hubbs knows it.

In other news I am over all the red in the kitchen and Melissa at the Inspired Room gave me some great tips. I don't want to repaint the green I just dont want the accents to be so bold and loud (red) so stay tuned for some changes. I purchased another sisal PB rug yesterday for the living room and the current one will be moving to the eat in breakfast area in the kitchen.  I also found two more of our dining room chairs (they were sold out forever) on sale with free shipping so I bought two more. They should arrive over Spring Break and we can now sit 4 in the beautiful chairs and two more on the bench!! We have a bench that is resident in the kitchen that we move to the table in there and the dining room to use for additional seating. I'll take pics soon and share! Can't wait to show you all the updates. Hopefully we can install new lighting too ;) wishful thinking on my part..lol



Wednesday

Simple Matters Makeovers for ME :)- Project #9


Alannah Vintage Rocker- Before


Mirror which will be painted white






Paisley Material to refinish stool and rocker














If you haven't discovered Simple Matters yet you definitely need to check out her website, blog and facebook page! I purchased a beautiful antique black headboard/footboard for our guest room and she is currently refinishing one of our antique dressers to put in the nursery (see previous post).  Well Jannet at Simple Matters finds vintage pieces and re-finishes them for others.  She has the business out of her home on the side in addition to being a stay at home mom. I applaud her awesomeness to refinish pieces others want to throw out. On top of that I love that it is green, and it is furniture that is quality furniture but yet antique, vintage, classic with a story that is going in our home.  Love it.. gushing sorry. Simple Matters recently posted a huge lot of new/old furniture that she was going to refinish to the clients taste.. I fell in love with the vintage rocker above Jannet calls Alannah. It reminds me of the chair my Grandpa used to sit in everyday in his den and my mom now has one in her living room.  Recently I spoke about the post Inspired Room did on making your home resemble you and living with things you love and have meaning. I am really striving to make rooms resemble us and our history. The crib is the same style Nate and I had as babies. The dresser is an antique and now the rocker looks just like my Grandpa Tom's.  I also thought it would be a nice addition and it could be used in multiple rooms other than just a nursery.  I went ahead and purchased it from Jannet.. paid the deposit to start the work(good thing because some other ladies had their eyes on my rocker Jannet named Alannah). She is going to paint Alannah's wood white to match the other existing pieces that are going to be in our nursery and to lighten the look.  After she is going to recover in my choice of fabrics. Ideally if it was going in our master room I would have done a linen with  blue ticking strip (PB inspired). But it was going in the nursery probably for a couple of years and will later take residence in our living room or master. The colors in all of these rooms are consistently shades of  blue, white and chocolate.  I needed to find a classic fabric that  wasn't too trendy but also with those colors and not to masculine or girly. I thought stripes first but I wasn't thrilled. I kept going back to the paisley design.  I bought the yardage and it is being sent to Jannet to refinish.  I think the paisley will fit the era of the rocker well and might even look like it was made for it.  I also found a stool on etsy that I am going to paint and recover to match the rocker.. perfect!  My mom's and Grandpa's rocker's had a matching foot stool and seeing how the chair will be in the nursery first and later in our living areas of the house I felt it needed something to kick up our feet. I am going to paint the wood of the stool white too and cover in the exact same fabric and the feet of the stool don't match Alannah but our beautiful Jenny Lind spindles from the crib.  Here is the bonus- Nate loves watching golf and rocking in  his office chair ..I think he will be watching lots of golf in our new addition of Alannah. Hoping Jannet will have Alannah and the dresser ready around Spring Break.  On top of all that goodness!!! I found an awesome mirror too! She is going to paint it white so I can put it in the nursery or it might find residence above the mantel for a bit.  I can't wait to see all the pieces in our cleaned out 3rd bedroom (cleaning out over spring break). I think it is going to be the perfect mix of vintage classic mixed with modern.. just my style.

Enjoy the before pics and I hope to post after pics soon!! Wohoo Spring Break is 6 work days away!!!! I can see the light..