Snag, roadblock, setback

Or you can be like me and just say "Oh shit."


Did you know that when you're pregnant and have a cold you cannot take Nyquil?  Or Dayquil?  Or Tylenol PM?  Or practically anything else?  Therefore you have to just be miserable?  I have a cold and I'm dying because I can't go to any of my go-to remedies!  I've been drinking decaf hot tea all weekend long and I'd give my kingdom for some Nyquil right about now.


However, cold or no cold, this was the weekend of the mural and I was going to do it if it killed me - which it kind of did.  Observe.


It started with the chair.  You remember, the best chair ever?  Well, after I wrote about it I found myself looking at the pictures over and over again and having second thoughts about the color.  I'd made my peace with the fact that it didn't rock but I was told that an ottoman is something that cannot be forgotten.  Apparently, ottomans are a must-have for the late night feedings and such.  Luckily, I'd already found one that I was full-out drooling over but the colors they offered wouldn't work with the chair, nor would it work with the wall.  I consulted my team of trusted advisors (my girlfriends that care about this sort of thing) and they helped me to arrive at my decision:  Get the ottoman and switch the chairs.  Check it out!

Still the best chair ever, now with the best ottoman ever joining it!

I love it so much!

I'm going to find a girly lumbar pillow and throw and it'll be great!

I also offset the rugs because in the words of my trusted advisor Carolyn,

 "I know I have two rugs on top of each other and I totally meant to do it and I love it... so?" 

Sunday morning was mural day and I was all set!  I'd had a nagging sore throat and I felt a little puny but I really really wanted to at least start the mural, so I rallied and was up by 8am.  However, I was nervous and needed to do some warm-up painting first.  I needed to do something easy to boost my confidence as I'd never even attempted something like this before.

Drew had been wanting a chalkboard in the kitchen since forever and when I was at Lowe's I picked up some chalkboard paint and it was the perfect warm up project.

The chalkboard will be the inner panel.

I carefully taped the panel, having a little trouble with the beveled edges but I was confident that I got a good seal.  Ha.

I was soo pissed!  I had to score a clean line and now will have to 

scrape off the excess with a box cutter blade since we don't have anything smaller.

This should have been my clue to stop.

But I was on a roll.  I'd gotten my supplies from the garage and there was no turning back!  I went ahead and painted the inside panels of the cabinet in the dining room as well since sometime down the line Drew wants to turn it into a bar.

This went much faster and was much cleaner

because there's a groove between the two panels.

However, I'd recommend something other than the standard issue blue painter's tape because it really doesn't get a good seal on the edges, which is where it counts.  I've heard good things about Frog Tape and I'll be using that on my next painting project.

With no more chalkboards to paint, I couldn't hold off any longer.  If I was going to do this mural it was now or never.

 That's one big-ass wall

 Measure twice, cut once.  Or measure a few times if your tape measure

isn't long enough.

That's a big-ass wall

Assemble your tools.

I got several round brushes from Michael's since I have no clue what I'm doing.

Patch the nail holes and test the brushes.

I was looking for brush thickness, not penmanship and I chose the number 2 brush.

By this time I had to stop to take Drew to the airport.  I was feeling pretty run down but encouraged and I was thinking I actually might get the mural done Sunday night!  Next up was more measuring - I needed to figure out how many lines would fit on the wall and then figure out some form of word spacing so it would all fit without looking cramped or too random.  But that would have to wait until I came home from the airport.

Luckily, the previous owners left the paint they used and right before I walked out the door I painted over the patches and my practice words so it would be all dry by the time I came home.  I dropped Drew off and drove home carefully, planning my moves - maybe after a small nap.  The weather was starting to get nasty and of course I left my phone at home so when I walked in the door I went straight to the kitchen to call Drew and let him know I got home okay.  I was on the phone with him as I took my coat and shoes off and changed back to my painting clothes, so he was on the line when I walked back into the nursery and went

"Oh shit."

"What?  What happened?"

"Ooooooh shit."

"Babe. What happened? What's wrong?"

"The paint is the wrong color!"

I mean, it was lighter when I put it on, but I figured it would dry darker!  Or something!  I dipped my finger in the can and smeared some on the wall, hoping that my eyes were playing tricks on me.  It was lighter!! 

Shit.

This was a custom mixed color!  How. in. the. HELL am I going to match a custom mixed color!  I just assumed it was right!  All this time!  But the two cans of paint that I had matched our bedroom and the sitting room, not this room!  Shit!

I was so traumatized I laid down and took a nap.  This little discovery pushed me over the sickness edge and I was all of a sudden very tired.  Besides, it always helps to look at a problem after you've had a good nap.

Once I woke up, I had no choice.  I have to try and match this color, so I bundled back up and headed to Lowe's.  I pulled every bluish-gray paint chip they had and prayed that one of them would work.

I came home and taped every one of them to the wall.

Even though I only found one even remotely close, it's not an exact match.  I've never tried to color-match before and I don't even know how to begin with a custom mixed color.  I'm trying to tell myself that this is only a snag, a minor setback if you will.  It's not the universe telling me to quit kidding myself, that there's no way I'll be able to undertake such a big project and I should just put a tree wall sticker up there and call it good..

I'm going to Sherwin Williams on my lunch break.  The previous owner worked for them and I know that much about the paint.  I'm crossing my fingers that maybe it's not a custom color.  Maybe they have it right on their wall and I'll be able to solve my little roadblock by tomorrow.

Cross your fingers for me!

The Girlfriend Fairy

Dude, can y'all tell when I write about one thing when I really want to write about something else?  Am I that transparent?  Because I have had something rolling around my brain but I hadn't quite figured out how to address my point.  I blame you if this comes out all wrong, Anonymous.  Kidding kidding.  I don't mind being called out.  Anyway...


One of my favorite bloggers wrote a post a while back and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since I read it.  This blogger is an amazing writer and I love her honesty and her words always jump off the page, almost to where you feel like you know her.  Of course, we can only ever know a blogger as well as they permit us to know them, but she's a pretty good open book and what I've read is awesome and that is one girl I'd like to have lunch with.


The post is worth a read, but if you don't read it, the gist is that she made lists:  one very specific detailing what she's looking for in a man and the other what she's wanting out of the upcoming year.  The list about the man caught my attention the most because my own Hubs has a lot of the things on her list.  In fact, hold please - going to re-read the list.


.....


Of the 18 things on her list, Drew has/is 12 of them.  I read her list and was like that's Drew!


Then I got to thinking about my life and my own relationship and I wanted to ask her and now you.  Say you get all that stuff - what are you willing to put up with to get it?  So often, we think of the good qualities in a person and we don't spend a lot of time dwelling on the bad.  Which is as it should be, because none of us would ever dare get into a relationship if we spent too much time thinking about the bad stuff.


However, that's life.  You may find a man who is well-educated, motivated and comes from a good family and wants boatloads of kids but (speaking only for myself) that does not make it any more ok that he's addicted to video games.


And before I go further, remember I am talking about me and my life and what doesn't work for me.  So if your man is all about the video games, or sports or whatever else, put down the stones.  I'm not talking about you.  I don't even know anyone whose husband is addicted to video games.


We all daydream about what we want in a mate or even a job (second biggest chunk of your time.)  But we rarely think about what are we willing to put up with or even give in order to receive what we want.


I remember when I was a kid, my mother used to yell at my dad constantly about shaving in the sink because he would never rinse it out when he was done and it drove her nuts.  A little thing, but those little things day in and day out are enough to make you temporarily forget all the great things.  My dad has never ran the streets, she always knew where he was, he always did his best to provide for us, but many a time the walls would shake with my mom yelling "Cliiiiiiinnnnt! Your hairs are in the sink again!!!!!!"  I'd hear married girlfriends gripe and I found myself internally rolling my eyes, wondering why they were nitpicking over such dumb stuff.


Only now that I'm married do I get it.  The shit gets on your nerves.


Rather than outline all my husband's faults (because that's unnecessary), he's got them.  We all do.  I'm pretty, I'm well-educated, I come from a good family, I want children, and I like to keep the house clean.  But I have a teensy itty-bitty tiny bit of an anger issue.  Betcha Drew didn't put that on his list!


Dear Girlfriend Fairy,
Please send me a girlfriend with big boobs and long hair that comes from a good family and will be a good mother.  Oh also, can she throw things at my head when she's mad at me and throw my clothes on the lawn when we're fighting?  Thank you Girlfriend Fairy.


Somehow I just don't think that's how it went for him. 


We don't pray to the Boyfriend Fairy to send us a tall dark and handsome man that will also spend every. godblessed. Sunday on the sofa in front of whatever game is on.  Or one who flat-out refuses to do the dishes.  Or one who always forgets birthdays and anniversaries.


But what if that very same guy loves you to pieces and is devoted to you and does everything right in every other area?  Could you do it?  Think right now about the grossest thing a guy could do or the thing that gets under your skin the most and pair that with your version of Prince Charming.


For me it's spitting (and I've already talked about it so it's okay.)  My motivated, well-educated, comes from a good family, wants kids, handsome husband spits when he brushes his teeth.  The hock-a-loogie spits.  Every time.  And it makes my skin crawl every time.  A little thing yes, but mutiply two, sometimes three times a day by 365 days by three years and that's a whole lotta spitting.  It's not a deal-breaker and I will love him until the end of his loogie-spitting days because it is what it is. 


Prince Charming spits.


Princess Charming will take all your clothes out of your closet and dressers and make a huge mess when she's pissed.


But let's end on a light note - without putting your significant others on blast, what's the grossest thing you would or do put up with in the name of love?


What would your letter to the Boyfriend or Girlfriend Fairy look like?

My husband makes me laugh

I woke up this morning alone, hearing helicopters overhead.  Lots of them.  I thought they were in my dreams and I was a little disoriented upon waking and realizing they were real.  My first thought was someone broke out of jail - it's a few miles from our house.  Drew had taken Maya for a walk and I kind of started to worry.  If there was a bad guy on the loose, I'd really prefer my husband and dog to be home behind locked doors.


Thankfully, they came home a few minutes later and he told me I'd probably need to take a few extra minutes to get to work this morning, since there were helicopters everywhere.  


I may or may not have mentioned it, but I'm slightly obsessed with spies/trained assassins.  I don't know where it came from but a good spy movie or TV show and I'm hooked.  Hence my daughter's fetus name and the occupation I wish I could have.  So naturally, when we found out a tanker exploded on the freeway just around the corner from our house, my first thought was *gasp! Spies!*

I did a Google image search for the accident and instead

found a disturbing number of images for tankers that have exploded in Dallas.

Seriously, there were a bunch!  Tankers just be explodin' y'all!

I'm such a dork.

Anyway, I drove to work over a bridge with a birds-eye view of the freeway where the tanker hit.  It was pretty bad - there was a YOUGE black spot where it hit and I'm so glad no one died.  I called Drew.

Me:  You know that bridge right over the freeway?  You can totally see where the tanker blew up!

Drew:  Wow, that's crazy.

Me:  I bet it was spies.  *gasp!*  What if it was Michael Westen and he thwarted some mastermind's evil plan!  And he had to blow up the tanker to save the city!  BABE!

Drew:  Could be.  But I bet it was Agent S.

Me:  Oh yeah right.  I would have known if she left.

Drew:  Maybe not.  She is a baby spy, she's sneaky.  It happened at one in the morning and you were sleeping pretty soundly.

Me:  I was!!  What if our baby single-handedly foiled some evil plan and saved us and saved the city!!  And then came back before I even woke up!

Drew:  It's entirely possible.  In fact, it's highly likely.

I hung up with him thinking that we have the coolest baby ever.

My fetus saved the city - it's entirely possible.