Videos of Zach at 16 Months

The following videos are for my mom's birthday present, as well as for the enjoyment of the entire family that doesn't get to see each step of Zach's growing up as we are so far away. For those of you that get this notification emailed to you, you have to go to http://www.wilhelmsens.blogspot.com/ to actually watch the videos. Be sure to mute the playlist on the left and turn up your volume to hear his little voice. They may take a few minutes to buffer, depending on the speed of your internet connection, but they're worth it. Enjoy!

Swing Delight

Nana and Bapple

Cat Rider

Eager Drinker

Mini-Extreme Home Makeover

When you've lived in a home as colorful and comfy as ours was in Pleasant Grove, it's tough to move into something less than half the size and as hideously appointed as our rental here in Dallas. The walls in this house ranged from chalky white that looked like they forgot to paint over the primer, to tacky, multi-colored wallpaper. But with a few gallons of paint, a few new fixtures, and a lot of time (why does painting always take SO much longer than you think it will?!), we are much more at home here.

I still have a few rooms to go, but it may take a little while longer until I start the next project. The owner lives in CA, and the agent said we could paint in neutral colors. (Red is neutral, right?) Also, keep in mind there are dozens of other things I would love to do if we owned the place, but we will be out of here within a few short years, so I shall refrain for now! Unless I get really bored or we get rich!

BEFORE: Lovely mauve wallpaper made me want to spend even less time in the kitchen than is already programmed in my genes.

AFTER: I know some of you will have a heart attack, and others of you don't know any better, but I painted over the wallpaper in several rooms. *gasps* I actually researched it online and found several experts that agreed that if you're absolutely not willing/unable to take down the paper (which I have never done, but have heard it is a pain, not to mention there was no way that was happening with a 14 month old), then you can use an oil-based primer directly on the paper to prevent water from getting through the paint and paper, followed by regular latex or oil paint. Of course I did not research this until AFTER I had already painted over the bathroom wallpaper. You will soon see why the oil primer is recommended.

Anywho- I used what I thought was going to be a light beige, but it tuned out to be a darker, grayish beige that contrasted unpleasantly with the counter tops. Oops. I redid the small molding bright white to contrast. Not my favorite room or colors still, but better than before, right?

BEFORE: This guest bathroom wallpaper was reminiscent of Rainbow Brite. I could not find a decent matching shower curtain, so I shopped the "Oops" shelf at Lowe's. I hope we love the color, because for $35, we found a 5 gallon bucket of this relaxing taupe. We also bought some lighter paint we can tint it with so every room we use it in doesn't have to be the same shade.

MIDWAY: We also spent about $15 on bronze fixtures (which were surprisingly complex to install. You'd think toilet paper and hand towel holders would be a standard size, right? Wrong.) I love bronze lately. Really, anything but polished chrome will suffice.

AFTER: I seriously bought at least 5 different shower curtains in varying color schemes looking for the least expensive, acceptable option. A surprisingly valuable lesson I learned in this process was that it turns out that it is more economical for me to buy the more expensive one I liked from Target in the first place, because every trip I took to TJ Maxx, Ross, Marshalls, etc. to find that perfect, discount-priced pattern, I found many other items I liked, as well. As a result, much of January was spent bargain shopping, spending way more than I ought, and then taking twice that time to make returns. With a bit of luck, the Target curtain went on sale, and I haven't looked back! I could even use the red towels I already had, which saved me even more.

What's that, you ask? Oh, 2 tiny drops of water got on the wall after I washed my hands one night. I brilliantly decided to get a towel wet and mop-up the drops. Streeeak! So it turns out that water goes right through latex paint into the wallpaper, causing "water stains" to stay forever. Oh well. It still looks better than Rainbow Brite, right? And I know for next time to use an oil based primer over wallpaper first. I'm sure that water will rarely come into contact with the walls in there- we mainly use that bathroom to bathe Zach!

BEFORE: Whoever originally decorated this home when it was built in the 80s had a knack for picking out gorgeous wall coverings, as evidenced by this stunning floral border, no? I was actually going to leave it and just paint the rest of the wall (and no, that is not a shadow on the white wall. It is a line where the chalky, primer-looking substance on the left meets the grayish white on the right. Classy, huh?), which I did. But it still looked so hideous, and we were expecting dinner guests in an hour, so I just painted right over the ugly, peeling border! Don't you all want to hire me to be your interior decorator? I don't know why I waste valuable time fixing teeth when I could be making millions on HGTV decorating for the stars!

AFTER: One great thing about making over a hideous room is that even minor changes make for a world of improvement. I was especially happy with how the taupe makes the dining room more formal and inviting, rather than the chintzy white breakfast nook appearance of before. And kudos to Corey for picking out the gorgeous orchids for my Valentine's gift. (Although I have dangerously been pining for the Islands ever since...)

BEFORE: And lastly, the living room, where we spend most of our waking hours. I knew we had to preserve some of the spicy color from our PG home. I apologize for the before picture- I already had the blue painter's tape up- I couldn't cover this monotonous white fast enough!

AFTER: Not bad, huh? It immediately felt so warm and cozy, in contrast with the stark blahness of the white. We only did the two opposing walls, as the others are vaulted and we have no ladder. It will also save us work if we have to repaint it a neutral color ("oops" taupe, anyone?) when we leave. Just a little splash of color is all a lot of rooms need to give them a whole new feel. I absolutely love my new living room, and found the perfect shade of red after much study and prayer ;)! Just don't ask me the name of the color, because Zach peeled off the label and ate it, which is better than eating the paint, right?!

I also bought several items to put on top of the ledge, and as part of my Valentine's gift, Corey hung the clock. Don't ask me how he did it, as I previously mentioned that we do not have a ladder. It must be those sweet basketball shoes he got for Christmas. The wooden block "W" looks a little out of place amongst the other metallic, scroll-script objects. I love the globe, though. I may change things up a little, but it works for now.

So, there you have it. Our little rental house is becoming a home, not just as a result of it looking more warm and comfortable. We are already making memories here in Texas. It will be the place where little Zach grew from infancy to childhood, where Corey became a doctor, and where our little family will hopefully grow bigger.