The Best Intentions*

Ah, it was a summer of good intentions.

As the school year wound down last year, I made such big plans for the summer. Write every day! Work on my book! Tackle a bajillion house projects! Decorate everything! Buy new dresses! Read every day! Run a race!

…but I got pregnant instead. :)

It has been the laziest, most relaxing two months I’ve had in years. And I needed them. July was spent laying in bed or on the couch most of the day, trying to ward off waves of nausea with gingerale and crackers. All those house projects I wanted to do (remove wallpaper, paint downstairs bathroom, scrape paint from upstairs tiles, etc) suddenly seemed… huge. And I just couldn’t face them. You would think that all that time being still would leave me with oodles of time to blog, and really–that was my intention–but again, I just couldn’t do it.

First it was all the secrecy–I was so afraid I’d let something slip before I was ready to make the big announcement. Secondly, I was just drained. My creative juices were dry. Lastly, I’ve been so dissatisfied with my blog layout that I just couldn’t stand looking at it. haha!

So you ask, why not change it? I tried. WordPress is not nearly as user-friendly as Blogger, and there are not nearly as many cute themes and backgrounds to choose from as there are for Blogger. I’m also a bit… particular. I’ve had a look in my mind forever, and I could never find anything that came close to it.

…until yesterday. After writing yesterday’s post it was like something caught fire again. I kept coming back to my blog to look at the layout and see what could be done with it. I played with a few options, but ultimately decided that the whole thing had to go, and it was time to roll up my sleeves and design my own.

So, welcome to my new look! I’m still tweaking the fonts and playing with some minor design changes, but I love it so far. I like that it’s clean and bright, and I think it’s kinda cute.

And, I made it myself.

(WHAT?)

Seriously. I found a plain, white customizable template from wordpress and spent all morning designing a new header, searching for a background image, inserting photos, etc etc. I can’t believe that I waited so long to do this–granted, it took some time (I should have been cleaning the basement… sorry hubs!)–but I am in loooove. I like looking at my website again.

I hope you do too. :)

Anyway, back to good intentions. My Six Months + Six Dresses project kind of came to a standstill. After my last month I noticed that I was, um, expanding a little around the middle. For a long time it just looked like I was putting on weight, and I did not like having my photo taken. So, the end. haha! I would like to finish it now though, I only have two more dresses to find and I will rock out with my baby bump! I will do my best to find you one for September!

On that theme, I also let my Summer of Dresses Project fall by the wayside. I’m so sorry about this–I was so so so excited about it, then I dropped the ball. Fail. Maybe we could extend into the fall? I love me some cute dresses + boots!

Annnnd the house. Oh, the house. The Hubster has been working so hard on some amazing additions and changes to the house. Our deck is nearly finished and it is going to be beautiful. We’re (read: he’s) also in the beginning stages of finishing the basement so that we can move our office downstairs and have a room for le bebe when he/she arrives in February! Amidst all that there have been ceiling fans, cables, dresser sanding, beautifying/organizing the garage, and a myriad of other things. He’s really turned out to be quite a handy Hubster, and I have been so, so grateful for all he’s doing…

…and tell him so. From my seat on the couch. ha

I’m ready to get back into a routine though. I feel like myself again, and I’m actually looking forward to getting back to work. I miss teaching, and I hope I really enjoy these next few months before my maternity leave!

So, lazy summer, I bid you adieu.

I’m ready for fall.