When I turn 4

According to Grafton, big things are going to happen around here when he turns 4.  Our lives will forever be changed.

"When I turn 4, I will eat green beans." 

"When I turn 4, I will take a shower instead of a bath."

"I'll go to Owen's house to play when I'm older.  When I turn 4." 

"I will like that, when I'm 4." 

"I will ride my bike when I get older.  When I turn 4." 

For some reason, I'm getting my hopes up, which is probably not smart because I'll just be highly disappointed on his 4th birthday when he refuses to eat green beans with his birthday cake.

My poor child has lived the first 3 years of his life with a semi-feminine, very baby-ish room.  So I told him that he could have a big boy room when he turns 4, but since we are now moving, he is going to get it sooner.

I have made my first purchase for the new home, and it was for G's room.  I have big plans for the space and cannot wait to get it all put together.  Here's the bedding that I found (on clearance) at West Elm. 

The problem?  He wants superheroes in his room.  Which is totally against my religion.  But then I found these vintage prints.  Totally doable, right? 

I'll let you know how it all comes together! 

Make it stop!

My eye has been twitching for the last 2 weeks. Which in my world means stress. Hmm...I can't imagine why.

Everyone always asks if we are ready for another remodel. And at first I was all, hell yeah! Bring it baby. And now I'm thinking to myself that I might be slighty nuts. A coworker told me I was crazy this week and now I'm beginning to think that she was right. This time around will not be anything like the last.

Last time we hired a general contractor. We moved out of our house for 8 months. We had zero kids. We renovated an average sized home. Life was good. Easy Breezy. I was able to yell at the GC, the tile guys and carpenters when they screwed up.

This time? Yeah, this time I am the general contractor. We are moving into the house and renovating at the same time. WITH A 3 YEAR OLD. The tile guy? That would be my husband. He better not screw up.

In other news, last weekend we went to the Railroad Revival Tour Documentary screening at SXSW with our  neighbors.  Afterwards, Mumford & Sons and Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros put on a show and it was SO GOOD.   Then half the neighborhood decided to stay up until 3am on the front porch.  I don't think my eye twitched all day! 

You gotta plan?

Dumb question.  Of course I have a plan.  I have so many plans that I can't turn my brain off at night.  I can't even take a weekend nap because of all of the goodness going on in my brain right now.  And I love me some naps.

We are currently in the process of planning the space, gathering estimates and finalizing our budget.  A realistic budget, if that's even possible.  This week we are meeting about paint, carpentry, tile, cabinets, wood floors, countertops and tree trimming.   And then we have 4 weeks until we can officially call the house ours and start doing some damage. 

When it comes to rooms, I think I am most excited about the kitchen space.  While I love my current kitchen and want to keep the same style, I'm going to go bold with this one; bold being a relative term.  Here are a few of my inspiration pics (thank you pinterest).  If my space turns out half as great as these, I'll be damn happy. 

Totally random thought, but I'm now wondering if my use of the semi-colon is correct.  I am sure Helen will tell me.

PMB 2.0

Here we go again!

The Burlesons have officially lost their minds.  Back in October, we had a wild hair to go look at a house on the market one street over.  A big house.  Too big for 3 people.  I think alcohol played a factor. 

By November, we were getting our house ready to put on the market. By December we put an offer on the new house, contigent upon the sale of ours.  By January, we had an offer on our house, and by February we were signing papers. 

Closing date is April 13th.  And then the fun begins. 

The new house is a Belford home, built in 1930.  It was originally built as a duplex and still has 2 kitchens, one upstairs and one downstairs.  There are 6 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms, and 3800 square feet.  All of which need work.  Every single square foot. 

So, it's back to the blog to document our adventure.  I'm thinking I can just keep the name PMB...Pimp My Belford??  Or maybe Pimp My {big ass} Bungalow?  What do you think? 

Here are a few pictures to confirm just how crazy we are.  You think the last remodel was fun to follow?  Just wait for this one. 

Reindeer Games

Over the holidays, my neighborhood had a bit of a problem with the local reindeer population.  Two reindeer made their way into Old Town, and then they decided to mate and reproduce.  To add to the fun, they invited their friends and Santa into the hood.  And let me tell you, these kids were not shy. 

The first spotting.  My yard on December 16th.  Right next to my for sale sign. 

Their first rooftop appearance.  With my husband. 

They even made their way into our homes when we were out of town.  You know...to take advantage of the bedroom. 

Then they started multiplying.

And asked their friends to join in on the fun. 

They even decided to get busy in our cars...while listening to Christmas CDs.

On New Year's Eve, a few of them decided to visit our lovely Prom King. 

Another rooftop visit with the entire gang.

Partying with the crew.

And finally, one of these pesky critters decided to be really cute, and decorate my yard with lights.  Yep...my realtor even drove by and saw this one, along with all of the planes making their way to and from the Georgetown airport. 

Peace Out 2011

Happy New Year!  The past few months have been complete craziness around here.  My number 1 goal in 2012?  RELAX.  We shall see if it actually happens.  Before I can get on with 2012, I need to wrap up last year.  Then I can cross this off my to do list and relax.  At least try to.  Here goes...sorry this is a bit of a snooze.  I'll spare you and start with October.  That's when the party started.   

Back in October, Will and I went up to Dallas for 2 Avett Brother shows.  I. LOVE. THEM. I can't get enough. 

Then our neighbors hosted a Halloween party.  Movies in the backyard, crazy costumes, dancing, keg stands and Jack in the Box tacos at 3am.  I would say it was a success. 

We had family pics taken by Jackson Wright Photography again.  He's great.  Grafton and Will are great.  Me?  Not so much.  There was seriously only one picture of me that was worth getting.  I have got to get better at this family photo thing.

In November, we had the big party for Chip and Noel's marriage!  I blogged about it a bit but still need to show pictures.  It was damn fun.  Except the part where we went to bed at 1am and got up at 3 to head to the airport. 

Will and I went to Palm Beach for a golf tournament that he was selected to play in.  I'd say it was pretty uneventful but lots of fun.  Is that possible when you see that bag of fun below?  I guess it is with new friends and lots of wine and golf.  Our club won 3rd place, which was great, considering last year they came in DEAD LAST. 

Then we put our house on the market.  SHOOT ME NOW.  I have no clue why I thought this was a good idea.  There is a house for sale a street over from us now that we both really want, so why not go for it, right?  This is where I should go ahead and admit that I am not a risk-taker.  And this shit is risky.  They have since accepted our offer so now we just  need to sell ours.  Interested?? 

As soon as we got back, the neighborhood holiday partying started  And it has just been downhill ever since.  Holiday Happy hour(s) and the Hood's annual Thanksgiving dinner kicked it off.  I have to put the S on the end of Happy Hour because it's never just an hour.  Or two. 

Thanksgiving was quiet around here and I loved every minute of it.  It was the first time in a while that I have had 5 straight days off of work and stayed at home with no plans. 

Grafton turned 3 in December and he got to have his first legit birthday party, complete with the Tumble Bus!  How great is it to have 12 kids over for a party and they arent even in your house??  Highly recommend.  The only FAIL was singing Happy Birthday to G.  He wasn't digging it at all.

Then we had birthday dinners, holiday dinners, happy hours, reindeer games and a kick-ass neighborhood Texmas party, complete with tequila tasting, bare asses, gymnastics gone crazy and a fight to end the night.  Good times. 

Then it was off to Tennessee to spend 5 relaxing days with my family for Christmas.  I think I left the house twice. 

10 hours in the car with 2 adults, a 3 year old, a dog and my sister's cat and we're back in Texas to get ready for our annual NYE party. 

And finally, the Burleson's New Year's Eve party.  This year the theme was Prom.  Although, we didn't party  like a bunch of teenagers.  No....It was more like a bunch of dirty ass college kids.  Lets just say that at 3:45am the drinks were still flowing and there was dancing on the coffee table.  We have hundreds of photos so I'll have to sift through and pick out the best of the best to post.  The party definitely deserves it's own post. 

Okay, now I'm caught up and ready for the new year.  BRING IT!

Gift Guide for the Kids

This should be easy, right?  Nope.  Not when you have a 3 year old that is obsessed with superheroes.  I couldn't fill this with Batman, Spiderman and Buzz Lightyears, so this is what I came up with. 

1.  Cardboard Playhouse/Rocketship (I scored these at Kohls for $17!)
2.  PlaSmart Plasma Car
3.  Superhero Capes (I am lucky enough to live with Super Grafton, who wears his cape every weekend)
4.  Spooner Board
5.  JCrew Crew Cuts tees
6.  Work Bench (personally, I would not want this in my house, but it's not about me this time)
7.  What Does It Mean to be Green? 
8.  TOMS