Math Equation?

Sand, Sun and 2 Hours at the Beach = 1 Tired Keegan
From inside the little blue bungalow,
Katie Jean

Outstanding in my Field

I guess it isn't in an Iowa corn field (I was born and raised in Iowa for those of you who don't know...), but I've still got a "green thumb". For those of you jealous Midwesterns, I have eleven rose bushes...this particular one has over 20 blooms right now! They smell amazing! The last picture is a glimpse of our family's garden. My biggest helper = Fiona. My biggest dirt thrower and strawberry eater = Keegan. Can you guess who is 18 months?
From inside the little blue bungalow,
Katie Jean

Summer @ The Little Blue Bungalow

The days are longer and the weather sweet as we enter summer in the Northwest. The kids and I are in official summer mode. On a given day we can be found riding trikes/ride-on, picking strawberries out of the garden, blowing bubbles, playing hide and seek in the backyard with the neighbors, dusting sidewalk chalk off our shorts, etc. Oh to be a kid again at summer...so blissful.
Summer also means Mom is in the garden weeding, picking flowers, and directing summer house projects, but I can hardly complain when we spend our days outside in the sunshine. (This is also the reason why my blogging entries are getting lighter during the past few weeks.)
Yesterday night I finished the Hodge podge basket from the conversion of computer room to Keegan's bedroom. What a relief! My Dad and I painted his room "Flip-Flop" (Actually a bright green...don't you just love paint color names?) last week when they were visiting. We also complied an awesome focal point with all of the old license plates where we have lived in his room. (I promise to add pictures later.) It turned out super cool and for $7.46 you can't beat the appeal, especially for a little boy's room. I don't save anything if it doesn't have a purpose so the fact that I've held onto these license plates for over 10 years is a mere miracle. The results were so awesome I'm thinking about sending it into a decorating magazine...if I find time.
We also finished replacing the master bedroom window a couple of weeks ago and really only have the patio/deck project staring us in the face for major home improvement projects. So...I guess it is onto the next project...entering receipts into our computer. Does it ever end? I'm longing to sip my Diet Coke out on our new patio, but I'll just have to wait a little longer 'cause it is summer at the little blue bungalow.
From inside the little blue bungalow,
Katie Jean

Daddy's Helpers

...And this is really who fixed the window.

From inside the little blue bunglow,
Katie Jean

Ironic?!?

I couldn't resist snapping a picture of this ironic combination. My health conscious husband, Drew, ordered me the new South Beach Diet Quick and Easy Cookbook which arrived yesterday. I eagerly opened the box this morning (after I worked out at the YMCA I might add) to find this interesting combination. I instantly started laughing when I saw the free coupons for the New Country Chicken sandwich at McDonald's tucked next to my South Beach Cookbook. Are you kidding me?

From inside the little blue bungalow,
Katie Jean

Never Ending Projects

Ah...do you ever feel like you've taken on too much? Just like most state's roads in the summer means "construction season"...the Britten household is now in official "project season". Unfortunately...our projects have swelled and now we are deep into three projects at the same time. Perfect.

Project #1: Demolition of back deck and replace with patio. (3/4 demolished) Thank you rain and more rain...I thought it was summer now in Seattle!

Project #2: Transition Den into Keegan's own bedroom including painting, redoing bed spread and curtains, and moving computer into our great room (2/3 done?, desk sold, computer armoire purchased and equipment moved over, hodge podge still needs finished sorted) Urg!

Project #3: Busted window Master Bedroom, Replace Glass and fix slide weights. (1/8 completed)
Unfortunately, this project got moved up on the list. The idiots that owned the house before fixed the glass with plexi glass and then painted over it. Beautiful. (Someone actually painted all of our windows shut! So we...ah...ah...hum...I mean Drew has been slowly getting all the windows working again.) We had already planned to replace the glass and fix the window for opening purposes, but locked ourselves out last weekend. Classic...so we broke into our own house. We decided we needed to fix it anyway so our master window now is a nice piece of plywood and we got into our house without a locksmith...thank you very much.

As you can read it is a bit hectic around our house in terms of "biting off a bit more than we can chew". It will all get done eventually, but it takes time. Of course, my personality wants it all done yesterday. But it is hard to move forward without my partner in crime Drew since he is so talented in the home improvement area. Unfortunately he had to proctor exams today and I'm home with the kids on a rainy Saturday. So what am I doing right now when I could be sorting through hodge podge from the Den? You got it...blogging! And that is truly why I am titling this piece the 'Never Ending Projects'.

From inside the little blue bungalow,
Katie Jean

Northwest Living

From inside the little blue bungalow,
Katie Jean

Wanna' See More Pictures...

If you are interested in viewing our entire collection of 10th Anniversary pictures feel free to go to: http://picasaweb.google.com/Drew.Britten/10thAnniversary

From inside the little blue bungalow,
Katie Jean

Picture This...

Thanks again to Grandma Bonnie for watching our two kiddos while we escaped to the Olympic Peninsula. Our 10th wedding anniversary was just amazing...a time to explore, reconnect, and enjoy nature. Personally, my favorite activity was sea kayaking. (I know this may come as a shock to many of you as I was worried about being "lost at sea".)

Kayaking was so peaceful...sitting low in the water, listening to the waves crashing, and witnessing bald eagles soar above while the seals kissed our kayak. Simply amazing! We paddled out to the Dungeness lighthouse, enjoyed a lunch on the lighthouse lawn, toured the lighthouse, and made our way back. Our guide was amazing...we saw things are our own pace...never rushed; just enjoyed the sea for what it was. It was a perfect day to celebrate our time together as a married couple...and how fitting in a tandem kayak.

From inside the little blue bungalow,
Katie Jean