We have tile!

The tile is finally in and I think it looks really nice, even though these were all "budget friendly" choices. You can't go wrong with gray and white I guess :)

Major progress on the master bath! 

Saturday night fever

Molly gave us a preview of her hip hop recital tonight since Jason will be traveling next week. It's pretty entertaining ... especially at about 1:50. That's when she breaks out the really good moves. Enjoy :)

A punch in the gut

I'm not being clever with my headline ... that actually happened. Another girl hit Molly in the stomach earlier this month on a field trip and it has revealed a much bigger problem that Molly is having at school. One of her best "friends" has been tormenting her for most of the year. I have hesitated to use the b-word (bullying) because it is so loaded these days and people are sensitive about it. But Molly's teacher used the word on the phone today because that's what's happening.

I won't get into all of the details, but we knew that this girl had been competing with Molly and putting her down for a little while. What we learned more recently is that she has been kicking her under the table and giving her rough hugs around the neck that hurt and she won't stop when Molly says to stop. She has also been telling Molly not to work on her math work at school if she gets too far ahead. And she has been taking things from Molly's backpack (including a tooth that Molly lost at school ... gross).

I've been encouraging Molly to play with other kids at school, but apparently, whenever she tries to do that, her 2 friends from daycare (including this girl) follow Molly around and harass her and the other kids until Molly just gives in and plays with the daycare crew. 

Basically, it's just the worst. Molly has been so stressed out lately and has started saying for the first time ever that she doesn't want to go to school. The last time they had a half day, she was so happy because it meant that there was no recess and she didn't have to worry about who she was going to play with. 

The good thing is, the school year is almost over and we finally have the full (or closer to full) picture of what has been happening. The teacher is going to keep a close eye on everything over the next few weeks and is also recommending that Molly be assigned to a different class than this girl in 2nd grade.

As much as I hate to do it, we're also going to have to switch her into a different daycare next year. She'll never get out of this "friendship" as long as they have 3 hours to spend together after school every day. 

The teacher also recommended that we schedule as many playdates with other kids as we can over the summer once Molly is out from under the watchful eye of her oppressor. She said Molly is friends with everyone in the class and it is a shame that she's been held back from playing with them at recess. The teacher didn't know that part of the story, or about the violence, until recently. They have a different set of "supervisors" out on the playground for recess and the kicking has been happening at daycare "whenever the adults aren't around" according to Molly. 

I feel like this year has kind of been a lost opportunity for her - socially for sure and probably also academically. But it is what it is! We have a plan. We know what's going on. I bought a book (Little Girls Can Be Mean ... sounds appropriate, right?). And best of all, summer is almost here. I blocked off a chunk of weekends on the calendar to keep open for playdates, pool, and beach time. Hopefully the next 3 months will make up for any stress she had to go through last year!

Still a happy kid, even with all of this drama going on :) 

  

Love it or list it

We should have had our renovation filmed for an episode of Love It or List It. Not that it's going badly, but we have run into a few of the classic plot points ... a flooring order that fell through due to a strike in Spain, and now the dreaded "knob-and-tube" wiring!

Neither issue ended up being that big of a deal. We picked a different color for the floor that I'm now convincing myself I like even better, and we only had to add an extra couple of days to the electrician's workload to redo the wiring. The big (good!) news is that the inspection(s) are happening Friday/Monday and then if all goes well, we can start really making progress with tile and drywall. Fun!

Here are a few pics of the work in progress ...

The layers underneath -- old wallpaper in the tandem room closet

Supplies!

The master bath

Closet

Best of Paris

What a week! I arrived in Paris last Sunday for a 4-day workshop and then Jason joined me on Thursday for a long weekend of intense sightseeing.

We strolled along the Champs Elysees (forgive me for not adding all the accent marks here ...) and The Seine, saw the Arc de Triomphe and Tour Eiffel at night, toured the Musee d'Orsay, visited Monet's Water Lillies at the Musee de l'Ongerie, saw The Thinker at the Jardin Rodin, marveled at the stained glass in Sainte Chapelle and Notre Dame, and checked out the view from Sacre Coeur.

Sounds like a lot, right? It was, but in between all that, we also had a lot of time to just relax and experience life in Paris. We walked around the different neighborhoods, took the Metro, saw the city in lights, sat in cafes and watched the people go by ... it was wonderful.

We learned a few key phrases from my mom before the trip and felt like that saved us from acting like total Americans (we couldn't believe how many people we sat next to at cafes who didn't even attempt a basic "Bonjour" or "Merci ... come on, man!). My favorite phrase of the trip was definitely "eau du robinet, s'il vous plait" (tap water, please) ... it earned smiles from a few French waiters who seemed to appreciate the effort. In general, communicating in Paris was much easier than I thought it would be and people were pretty friendly and helpful.

We had hoped to take a day trip to Versailles, but ran into logistical problems with the Paris Marathon and train station closures. So that means we'll have to come back! There's still plenty to see and do, cafes we need to visit, and macarons we need to eat. Au revoir, Paris!

Selfie at the Arc de Triomphe

Tour Eiffel. These 2 fraidy cats only made it up to the second level, but still, it was quite the view!

Feeling French in my new scarf :) Purchased in Montmartre after climbing the hill to Sacre Cooeur

A flower shop and motorcycles ... this corner felt very French

We took this picture for Molly ... a fancy chocolate shop that specialized in ducks :)

Impressive-looking clock at the Musee d'Orsay. We saw a really cool exhibit here: Beyond the Stars. The Mystical Landscape from Monet to Kandinsky

Surrounded by Water Lillies ... hard to pick a favorite, they were all so beautiful

Time to chill

Our vacations have taken on a pattern now that Molly is in elementary school -- 2 weeks at Christmas, 1 week for Spring break, and a few long weekends over the summer. I love it. Every trip seems to come just when you need it, and this Spring break was no exception.

We went down to Florida for a week of what I like to call "active R&R." There's golf, swimming, and tennis ... but also plenty of time for reading, relaxing, and eating. I finished 2 paperback mysteries, so that's about as perfect as it gets from my perspective :)

I was a little worried that Molly would be bored without any other kids, but we managed to schedule a playdate with another little girl in the neighborhood while Jason and I played golf. And, after going all out in the pool every afternoon, it seemed like Molly needed as much chill time as the rest of us (by chill time, I mean time on YouTube kids watching unboxing videos ... we were relaxing, what can I say?). She also got a kick out of playing with my "old fashioned" Barbie clothes from the 80s (one-shouldered Dynasty dresses, parachute pants, and backless tuxedo tops, ha!).

We also had good family time, playing board games and hanging out on the back porch before dinner. It got me feeling ready for summer ... and retirement. Only approximately 19 more years until I can turn "active R&R" into a permanent lifestyle :)

Molly loves Florida ... 

Bonding with my girl

Daddy daughter time

Waiting for the SpaceX launch

Hanging with her Grand P's

Fixer upper ... part 2

It seems so long ago that I first posted about our "upcoming" renovation. Well, now we're finally (allllmost!) ready to start. Decisions have been made ... supplies have been ordered ... permits have been obtained. Now we just need our contractor to wrap up his current project so he can switch the focus over to O'Gradyland :)

I am keeping my fingers crossed that we can start at the end of the month, before Spring break, so we can miss a good chunk of the demolition work. Realistically, it's probably looking more like April. C'est la vie!

The overall planning process hasn't been too painful. Jason and I are pretty decisive, and we've been able to piggyback off a lot of the hard work that Susie and Sean did planning for their kitchen and bathroom renovation (thanks, guys!). Things just take longer -- and cost more -- than you want them to.

For those who are interested ...

Final floor plan.

Bathroom vanity design. Note: This does not reflect our tile or fixture choices. We'll have dark gray tile on the floor, white tile on the walls, and an array of chrome Kohler fixtures.

Linen cabinet. Oh blessed storage!

Jason's side of the closet

MY side of the closet ... even though I'm constantly paring down my wardrobe to the essentials, I'm dying about having All. This. Space!

My closet inspiration, and what I'm hoping it ends up looking like. We'll have light gray cork on the floor, shelving and drawers will be white like this, and I LOVE the idea of having a fun purple bench in the middle and glam lighting up above. Our window will be off-center at the far end, but I plan on balancing it out with a framed piece of artwork or a full-length mirror.

It's going to be crazy at our house until May with all of our master bedroom furniture crammed into the guest room and my office, cabinets and supplies stacked in boxes downstairs, and contractors coming in and out of our house for 8 weeks. But hopefully it will all be worth it!