so long, summer vacation

I'm sure I won't get much sympathy from those readers who work year round, but for this teacher who enjoys summers off, the time has come to sadly bid summer vacation farewell. . .  

It's been a great summer - I was reading over posts from the past few months, and it was fun to remember all that has happened.  I think the best part has been just being at home with Braden.  I'm still not sure that I am cut out to be a full time stay at home mom (I'm sure I could "cope" if given the opportunity!), but I have loved spending so much time with our little guy.  In fact, I teared up several times today when thinking this is our last day at home - it's almost as bad as going back to work after maternity leave.

Anyway, here are some pics of some our last moments of summer fun:

Yesterday Grandpa H., Aidan, and Addie brought a puppy over to visit . . .

I think both Braden and the puppy have grown since they last saw each other in July! :)

Yesterday we hit the pool one last time - we went later in the day after Billy got off work so that we could all enjoy it together.  Braden is such a little fish! He loves to splash, "jump"/step of the edge into our arms, and float around in his tube.  We're thinking we may need to take him swimming at an indoor pool this winter so that he continues to be so comfortable in the water.

Much to this Momma's dismay, Braden has decided that he much prefers walking to crawling - and that includes the steps!

He used to crawl up steps very proficiently, and I didn't worry too much about him on the stairs (except when he reached the top and would turn around ready to head down head first) - but now he insists on using the railings/spindles to "walk" very unsteadily up and down - be still my heart!  (We usually have the gates up and in place and only let him do this if we are right there to watch/help.)

I am just amazed at all that Braden can do these days - from taking his first steps to eating more and more "real" food, to learning to clap and wave - he's definitely making the transition from "baby" to "toddler."  I am so thankful to have been home to watch him grow and learn this summer.

And now that summer is over, it's time to see if I got everything accomplished on my list from June (found it when reading those old posts):

1. Spend lots of time with Braden soaking up that sweet smile and being momma instead of "Mrs. Hartsock" 

- DONE!! Loved it!!

2. Paint the kitchen and living/dining room 

- Done - see pictures below!

3. Exercise every day (no more excuses of being "too busy/tired after work")

- no comment (ha!)

4. Catch up on scrapbooking, paper and digital

- still need to work on this - sounds like a good winter project, right?!

5. Create a blog book (blurb.com) - am excited to try this!

- downloaded the software and my blog, but need to edit it

6. Sort out our closets and garage and get rid of things we don't wear/use

- did, but perhaps needs to be done again!

7. Clean the "dump" room/storage room - this task is waaaaayyy overdue, but the Type A organizer in me is actually looking forward to it! In fact, it will probably get done this week

- done, but this tends to be ongoing too

8. Read, read, read

- I am satisfied with the number of books I got to read this summer

9. Have carpet professionally cleaned or figure out how to rent one of those shampooer things and do it myself

- yes - had it cleaned and so glad we did!

10. Rearrange kitchen cabinets for babyproofing purposes

- still working on 

11. Wax and detail car

- done!

12. Learn/do baby sign language - we've been slackin' on this and really want to try it

- we're working on it - Braden is showing more interest, but hasn't signed anything yet

So here's our kitchen in "edamame" green . . . and the new curtains I sewed (yes, I sewed!!) . . . We originally wanted to get roman shade, but our window is a weird size, so it would have cost a small fortune to order a custom blind.  I really liked the old curtain (which was this same style, just didn't match anymore), so we decided to just make a new one. I/we couldn't decide on the new fabric, so I made 2: one in a light cream with a swirly pattern for spring/summer (first pic) and one in stripes of darker colors for fall/winter (2nd pic).  I made them both for a fraction of what a roman shade would have cost. :)