My Dad Was Right

"Life is pain,"  Dad always said whenever we were complaining about something or going through a hard time.  Sometimes he'd say it in all seriousness and other times with a twinkle in his eye but the message was the same:  Life is not always one big happy party.
His words couldn't be truer as we are in the throes of remodeling our master bathroom.  Who would ever remodel their master bathroom before remodeling their kitchen?  Or replacing carpet?  Or about a million other home improvements that need to be done that people might actually see if they come to your house?  Well, we are those people.  We stopped using our shower six months ago {SIX!} when we discovered it was leaking water into the living room below. {Repairing the ceiling is the next thing on our list.}  The most frustrating thing about the bathroom was that the previous owners had just remodeled it themselves.  Unfortunately for us, they hired some 20-something, unlicensed contractor to do the work.  Apparently he doesn't know that sticking tile directly to sheet rock inside a shower is not going to be waterproof.  At all.  The only thing that makes me feel a little, tiny bit happy about the situation is that the bathroom was super modern and didn't go with the rest of the house so now I won't cringe every single time I walk into it.
Currently there is a bathtub and a toilet sitting in my bedroom, a vanity on the landing partially blocking the entrance to Ethan's bedroom, and boxes of tile, hardware, grout, and tools everywhere in between.  Walking through my room in the middle of the night when it's dark {because I'm pregnant and I always have to go to the bathroom} is like walking through a mine field.  And I have to put on shoes because of all the dust, debris, and tile shards.  It's so lovely.
Honestly, I'm hating every second of it but I've learned a few lessons through this whole ordeal.

1.  If it's not broken, don't fix it!  Which means we will never do a kitchen remodel because why would I do that to myself just because the kitchen is ugly and outdated?  It works just fine so it's going nowhere.

2. Order everything well in advance because chances are, even if you're getting grout from Home Depot, it will be out of stock.  I seriously just thought I'd pick out all the things I wanted and go pick them up at the store.  Not so!  It's a miracle everything is actually here in time to be installed.

3.  Never build a house.  Anything you want will cost more than what you think or expect it to.  Especially if you want something slightly nicer than generic builder-grade quality stuff.  You like that stuff you see on Pinterest?  Well guess what, it's way out of your budget!

OK, I'll stop with this depressing list.  It's a good thing most people don't feel the same way I do or my brother-in-law who builds beautiful custom homes for a living would be out of job.
Oh, and the icing on the cake is that Marcus sliced his hand open helping with the bathroom demo so that's an added price tag because his little ER trip was not part of the bathroom budget.
Like my dad always said, "Life is pain."

That 90 degree cut was from the corner of the marble vanity top impaling his hand as he tried to squeeze through a doorway while Randy was pushing from the other end.  It was a gory sight!

I'll post the finished product when it's all done.  Maybe.  I have low expectations on the whole thing coming together the way I envisioned it.  It's really unfortunate my brother-in-law lives in Utah.  He could've handled the whole thing while I sat on the couch eating bonbons.  But now I'm familiar with every aisle in Home Depot and Lowe's, know the best tile dealer and exactly how much tile is safe to load in my minivan, found an outlet where I can order windows and trim for dirt cheap, and I carry a tape measure with me everywhere I go. 

Memorial Day and a Trip to the ER

It was going to be a great Memorial Day BBQ because we weren't the ones hosting this shindig.  After spending all weekend working in the yard {6 yards of mulch spreading fun}, cleaning the house, and sitting through Marcus's first swim meet, we were excited to eat good food with good friends.  Little did I know I'd have to go to the ER minutes before the big BBQ.  I was making the most delicious salad ever and stabbed my finger with the knife when I was trying to remove a stubborn avocado pit.  I ran outside to Randy for help but he was covered head to toe in dirt so he was useless, plus we don't have a suture kit at home so he couldn't stitch me up anyway.  I wrapped up my hand in paper towels, kicked the boys' friends out the door, and shouted instructions to Randy as I ran to the car with hopes the ER visit wouldn't take too long because I really wanted to eat my salad!  I had been craving it all day. 
The ER was packed.  Luckily packed full of idiots, errrr, I mean non-emergency people who were quickly sent home.   After a couple of stitches I was on my way and I thoroughly enjoyed the one hour of solitude as I relaxed on a hospital bed.   The peace and quiet totally made up for my throbbing finger.  I made it back in time to eat the soggy remains of my yummy salad but at least my finger was totally numb so when Parker grabbed it and ripped off the bandage I didn't feel a thing. Happy Memorial Day, everybody!  It still doesn't feel like summer yet but since we're still going strong with school that's OK with me.

Marcus's first swim meet.  He was soooo nervous!

Randy slaved away for two days to distribute this mulch throughout our flower beds and used every bit of it

Smore's with square marshmallows.  A great idea!

Randy actually enjoys making smore's.

Seconds away from hitting his brother and being put in time out

In time out.  Oh, the drama.

A very intense game of volley ball

Utah {According to my iPhone}

We had a blast!  Skiing, getting together with friends and family, a quick trip to the ER for Marcus,  and cramming a whole bunch of fun into a short amount of time basically sums up the trip.

Bean warming up with hot chocolate and a cookie after a cold morning on the slopes

A post-lunch picture before hitting the slopes with the Berrett's

Lazy skiers

Cuzin Chaos

On the top of the mountain at Park City

Randy and his little brother Chad

Cuzins on the slopes - these boys ski better than me

Laura is my only sister who skis, but Linz was an awesome snowboarder and I'm sure she was there in spirit.  Happy 29th Birthday, Linz!

Park City

Bean is easily the cutest skier on the mountain

The Cuzins skiing together

My Dad doesn't ski but his posterity does.  These Cuzins are awesome!

Throwing rocks is a favorite past time at the Farmington Pond

Rocks + Sticks = Boy Heaven

Frozen {I only let them on the ice because the firefighters were there so I figured they were in good hands}

Sam and his orange hair

Cuzin Pajama Party

Playing HedBanz with Uncle Greg and Aunt Heidi

After passing out and falling down the stairs this boy had a black eye and a concussion

CT scan

We discovered Marcus's first two vertebrae are fused together.  More on this later

Parker was in heaven

Grandpa treated us to an adventure at the trampoline park.  See my photo bomb?

That's Randy flying through the air like an acrobat

As usual, I spent my time in the kiddie section

Marcus perfecting his back layout

Uncle Toby took the boys to their first NBA game, Boston Celtics vs. Utah Jazz.  The boys couldn't decide who to cheer for, and yes, they even made it onto the Jumbotron

Farmington sunsets can't be beat, except maybe in Okinawa

And if you survived that picture overload then you are a true friend.  Don't worry, there are still more pics to come featuring an epic dodge ball game with Randy's family.  Luckily no one was injured.