Less than two months... 31.

It goes by fast.  In less than 2 months I'll be done with "30."  How does that happen?  In any case, I had to look at my list again and see how I'm doing.  Not bad, I'd say, but there are a few on there that I already know I won't accomplish (haven't taken the dog for a walk in a month, so that one is out.)


I have a few friends/family that want to help me with the "Get a massage" one, and participate with me.  Anybody else want to help with the others? :-)

Big Changes at the Lantz House

The pictures will say it all...

Officially moved Heidi to her new "Big Girl Room."
(Thanks Nana & Pops for your help last week!)

Newly painted dresser, new quilt set, and moved the decorations
from her old room.

She LOVES her new bed.  She wants to jump on it, have
dance parties on it, play on it... and she even sleeps on it...
sometimes.

Since the new bed/room has gone well, we're set to attempt the BIG ONE...
Potty Training!  Saturday through however long it takes!  Here are some of the
supplies we've stored up, along with lots of activities that will keep us close to
the potty and at home all weekend.  Wish us luck!

Heritage...

Dear Grandpa Emmerich,

I know you're not around to read this, but I felt like I should write it anyway.  I've been thinking about you a lot lately as Matt and I prepare for Baby #2.  The reason is this...

In about 1952, you got some furniture when you were stationed in Germany with the Army.  I'm guessing my mom, Dale, was about 2 years old then.  I have no idea in which room you used this furniture, or if there were other pieces with it.

My mom tells me that your daughter, Dorothy (my aunt), refinished the furniture for you and Grandma, maybe sometime in the 70's?  It's now 2011 and I just finished refinishing that dresser and nightstand that you owned back in the 1950's in Germany.

I've been thinking about you because you loved to work with wood: building, carving, shaping, forming - and I can only hope to become half the carpenter and woodworker that you were.  I've started quite a collection of tools. :-)

I hope that you'd be proud that the furniture you got in the military was well-used by your family, refinished by your daughter, re-refinished by your granddaughter and will now be used in your great-granddaughter's room as we prepare the baby nursery for your new great-grandson.  I think you would be proud to know that even the girls in your family are holding up the hand-craftedness gene that you had.  Maybe someday Heidi will refinish the furniture to match her house when she is a mommy.

Thanks for your dedication to your family and for loving your daughters.  They've passed it on to me and there's a whole new generation that will have your heritage.

Love, Your Granddaughter,
Darcie

Feeling content, and life is full...

I want to be a Blog Mom.  One of those ladies that I follow on blogs that take tremendous photographs, do creative crafts, have a house that is totally cute on every wall and every surface, have time and resources to do all those things, who decorate their houses for every holiday and who even will show their dirty laundry and dishes to the online world - but in a cute way... And they do it with 5 kids!

But I'm not. I have 1 kid, and 1 on the way.  I have a part-time job and freelance graphic design business, and a rental house next door that always needs fixing or raking or something.  I have projects going all the time, but I don't take pretty pictures of them, and my husband would be glad forever if I finished them all and didn't start any new ones. :-)  I have laundry in the dryer from today that has not been folded, dishes in the sink that I didn't want to clean, and dog slobber on the rug in the living room - and it's too cold to take it outside to wash it.

But... do you want to know what I did today?
I woke up and made muffins with my 2-year old daughter.
We ate breakfast.
We watched one of her "baby" videos.
We made lunch together.
We dressed up in our scarves, coats and mittens and played in the snow. (in Texas!)
She took a nap.
My friends came over and we watched LOST Season 6.
My daughter woke up and we played in the snow... again.
We came inside and had a "pool" party in the huge tub in our bathroom.  Both of us.
Bathing suits and all. And bubbles.
She smiled the whole time and said, "I wuv you, mommy" about 10 times.
We put jammies on and had breakfast for dinner. Toast and eggs.  And pudding.
Then we played with the dog til bedtime.
Tucked her in with her books.

So, what did I accomplish today?  I didn't do any chores, or fun projects or crafts.  I have nothing to show for today except some photos of us in the snow. (and bad ones, at that)  My daughter probably won't remember anything we did today.  She's only 2 1/2.

But I will.

Boy, oh boy!

We are so excited to announce that Baby Lantz #2 is a boy!  We had our sonogram last week and we're pretty sure we can say with 100% accuracy that it's a boy.  (we won't post the indecent photos of that. :-)  We are very excited and looking forward to a new chapter in our lives, complete with footballs, wrestling, sports, blue clothes and other boy-ish stuff.

Here's our little guy!