update!

We had such a full weekend and MANY MANY trips to Lowes. My parents came up and My awesome dad helped Steven install our new counter tops. It all started friday with a trip to the tile store to pick out my decorative tiles. After that the tile work began. It was sooooo much more work than I thought it would be. All afternoon on friday , all day sat and sunday morning we tiled. We did stop saturday night to take my dad to dinner for all his help. It was nice to sit and relax after a long day. Now the painting begins! My Mother in law who is so great to always help me paint anything is coming in the morning and let the paint flow!

REALLY!

The other day I stood in my kitchen looking at my new fridge and the MILLIONS of finger prints all over it. Well when you read in the book that came with it, it has a ton of things you can't use to clean it and only one that you can (mild soap and water). SO I try the soap and water it did not work. Well I decide to come to the trusty internet and see what people on here suggest. I sit down and type into google "how to remove finger prints from a stainless steel fridge". Well this directs me to a web site that you ask a question and anyone can answer it. Come to find out someone had already asked this same question and there were tons of answers yipppee so I begin to read. Now most of them had the same answer to go to walmart and buy the wipes they make just for this (I did not know they made them). HOWEVER I read just one more down and this is what I come across! (note: I took this from the web site AS IS I have not changed it in any way)

I know your kids put their hands all over the thing. I have the same problem. Best is to prevent the prints instead of cleaning all the time. I took a 12 volt car battery and put it in the lower cabinet next to the fridge and ran a wire behind it and connecting it to the copper water intake pipe. After a few bad shocks my kids will not get near the thing. I keep some rubber gloves on top for when I need a beer or something to eat. Good luck.

OK OK WHAT THE HELL! Who is this person and WHAT is wrong with them! I am not totally sure what amazes me more the fact that he is giving his children " A few bad shocks" or the fact that he keeps rubber gloves on top of the fridge so he can still get TO HIS BEER!

I seriously laughed out loud when I read this. REALLY really oh my gosh you just know this has got to be some kind of hillbilly because there is no way someone in their right mind would do this! Oh and the fact that he keeps rubber gloves on top of his fridge to get his beer does not help his case!

REALLY!

Today is the day!

Tonight when Steven get's home he will begin to tear apart my kitchen. I have avoided it all weekend. Now however it is time to dive in and get our hands dirty. To live on food that can be microwaved or stuck in the oven. Time to eat on paper plates with plastic forks and cups! I am soooooooo excited to see it done. I have wanted to do this for awhile and now I am within 2 weeks of being done!!!!!!!!!

Photo shoot!

So here is just a small taste of the photo's we did today. This is Jaide and Michele they are both sooooo stinking cute! Check out www.torribellphotography.blogspot.com to see more. I will be adding more as I get them done!

Remodling Round 2

New kitchen faucet check!
Various remodel supplies check!
Most of the tile check!
More tile check!
New fridge check!

Husband who tolerates and goes along with all my awesome ideas PRICELESS!

So as most of you know about a year and half ago we remodeled all of the house except the kitchen. Well we painted and put new wood flooring in the kitchen but all the rest was the awesome original 1987 decor! I HATE IT! So I decided (yes it was me) that WE (yes me and steven) would remodel the kitchen and bring it into 2010 and look brand new! So A few trips to Lowes and Home Depot and more money than Steven would like. We are about to begin the task of tearing out counter tops and installing new tile counter tops. A new tap , stainless steal hood, Painted cupboards, New crown molding, Bead board, and trim. I will put this out here now Steven is so great to just go along with ALL my projects. So I will keep you updated with photo's on the progress.

Such a slacker!

WOW I have been such a slacker lately! SO here is what has been going on in the Blackburn home! Saturday me and Steven went and saw the movie Avatar. I know I know we are a little behind the rest of the world. It was really good! Then we went to our favorite restaurant Corbins after which we went and tried a new frozen yogurt place in Syracuse. It was a ton of fun. So then sunday I had a headache which at the time I didn't realize would turn into the flu on monday! So onto monday and tuesday both were spent with a headache and body aches. Wednesday I crawled out of bed and stumbled down the stairs to clean my house because they finally were bringing my new fridge. It was delivered and looks great. I LOVE the fridge on top. Why did someone not think of this 20 years ago! On to today not much today . I have a couple of photo shoots coming up that will be fun! I am totally excited for these. They will be all my creativity they will let me take whatever kind of photo's look great! :) This weekend not much either though. You know the same ol same ol. Grocery shopping at walmart, fixing the dishwasher, try try try to get feeling better. That I have found is soooooo hard as a mother you just cant get sick! As I lay in bed with a headache and body ache's with kids wanting me to do EVERYTHING. I fondly think back to those days when I could lay in bed sick watching tv and any time I needed anything I would YELL at mom and what ever I needed would appear minutes latter. Now I beg my children PLEASE for the love of your mother please get me a bottle of water to which there reply is one of "ahhhhhh why me I'm busy get someone else" to which my reply is NOW DANM IT! It will take me 10 painful minutes to go get it and them 1 grrrrrrrrrr! Then my sweet steven comes home and will get me anything! Oh how I love that man.

14 awesome years!

Steven and my anniversary is on Feb 10 th so it has passed. I have mentioned in earlier post's that since it is so close to valentines day we spilt them and I plan one and Steven the other. Well I planned valentines day this year so Steven is now in charge. We are going out this weekend and I have no Idea what he has planned. Now I have asked him several times with anticipation on my face what he has in store for us. The reply is usually the same, a smile comes to his face and he plays coy and say "Oh I don't know" you know I really think he doesn't know he just wants me to think he does. Anyway we shall see this weekend !

So in anticipation of my weekend out with my wonderful husband of 14 years here is a list. I don't know what to call it because it is just a mishmash of a few of my thoughts from the last 14 years!

1- I know I am not a perfect person or even someone who is close but when I am with Steven I never feel like I have to be.

2-Steven just fits! He just plain fits everything our hands, my head on his shoulder, his T-shirts, and his slippers.

3-Never NEVER pull out one of his nose hairs while driving down the road! This leads to a very angry Steven! YES I learned this one the hard way. Although we laugh at it now HE was not laughing with me then. lol Sorry I still laugh! I am laughing as I type.

4- I love Steven with a goatee. In a recent turn of events he had to shave it off for work. He has had to keep it off the last week and a half. I laughed for the first few days but now I am glad he can grow it back!

5- I hate it when steven drinks energy drinks! I tell him they are a heart attack in a can and he drinks them to irritate me! (I just know that is why he does it) lol

6- Steven Freezes at night and I melt so I kick off the covers and he puts 5 quilts on himself!

7- Steven hates to ride in the car with me! I do not know why either. I am a good driver. I don't speed , tailgate, slam on my brakes, and I always signal. I happened to be driving ONE time and I made the comment " I think I can gun it and go" So I have NEVER lived that statement down. Steven continually says "Kids if your mom was driving she would just gun it and go"!

8-Steven ALWAYS does those little things for me he knows I HATE doing. Like scrapping out food dishes that have been in the fridge longer than a day or two. Taking the garbage out. The laundry (yes you just read that right). Steven does most of the laundry well his and the kids. I like to wash my own. As I have said he is awesome.

9- I love to spend every minute I can with Steven. People say things like "He is my soul mate" or "He is the air I breath" thats not how I would explain it mine would be "He is my Happiness" or "My day Is always just a little darker with out him". Everything is just brighter and happier with him.

10- As for me the last 14 years have been a wonderful ride full of twists and turns unexpected hills and mountains to climb. There has been sun and rain back tracking now and then but always an adventure filled with laughter. What I do know after 14 years is I love this adventure what ever it brings and I cant think of anyone better to spend it with!

Sad!

I write this with sadness! LOL ok so it's not that bad however they brought my new fridge today. Well I unloaded the fridge onto the cupboard and they came in and after a little maneuvering the old one was out and loaded into the truck. Then it was time to unload the new one. After they had gotten it off the truck we realized the handle was on the wrong side and it would open to the wall. This model does not have an interchangeable handle. SO now they had to unload the old one and haul it back into the house and I had to refill it. I had to call Home Depot and now it will be another week to send one with the handle on the other side.

On a brighter note Steven got my new water heater installed and it is Heaven. I can take a whole shower and not have cold water blast me! I can take a 45 min shower ( I know that wastes water but it was soooooo nice after the quick ones I have been having) with warm water the WHOLE time!