our home: the boys' happy little bathroom

I have been waiting until the last finishing touches were added to the boys' bathroom before posting before and after pictures. You can see a couple of pictures of their bathroom before we took possession of the home here.

These were taken after a little bit of work had already started:

Gray cabinets and countertop. Blue sink and bathtub.

Detail:  Hardware, cabinet doors, and CARPET!

Extreme close-up of the lovely coordinating towel ring.

And on the mirror/medicine cabinet -- remember this for later!

STUNNING blue bathtub + handicap accessible grab bar + track from shower doors.

Track from shower doors is gone.

I'll spare you the five billion DURING pics.  Ryan's dad worked tirelessly on this bathroom.  He spent several work weeks in this little room while Ryan and I were at work.  

We saved the original gray tile bathtub surround, the medicine cabinet, and the cabinets.  That's about it. 

AFTER!!

Looking in from the hallway.  My husband laid the beautiful versailles patterned flamed granite floor from Tile Shop (as well as the laminate in the hallway).  Adorable hot air balloon vinyl decals from The Custom Vinyl Shop were those finishing touches I mentioned before.  I'm obsessed with how cute these turned out and I have been holding onto them for a few weeks, scared that I would mess them up somehow.  So easy!

Overview of vanity.  New and improved!  I stained the cabinets black.  We replaced the gray formica top with white cultured marble.  Ryan's dad added the tile backsplash surround.

New lighting.  Also, notice the framing around the mirrors on the medicine cabinet.  Ryan's dad built them.  Threw away the ugly swirly patterned ones above and BUILT these new ones.  That saved us a fortune!

New sink faucet.

Extreme close-up of the tile backsplash surround.

Another overview - notice the new brushed nickel hardware.

More of the decals!  And a new brushed nickel vent cover. Painted all the baseboards white.

Our beautiful shower curtain!  I fell in love with the simplicity of this and had to have it.  Painted the walls a sky blue to add some color to the room.  I purchased the shower curtain on clearance from Urban Outfitters. 

Original light gray tile with new accent stripe and toiletry shelves/boxes, no grab bar, and new jetted tub! New towel bar.

New tub faucet.

This custom tub apron was the source of a lot of discussion and agony for us.  It held up progress while we were trying to determine how to combine the old gray tiles with the new.  This is the design that Ryan and I finally came up with and Ryan's dad put it together for us.  I am so proud of this and love that it is totally custom.  Every time I bathe the boys in this bathroom, I'm happy.  One of the smallest rooms in the house, and definitely one of my favorites.

Another angle.

While I felt somewhat compelled to go with bright colors, I like that the room is whimsical and fun without being too childish.  This bathroom also serves as our guest bathroom and I think the colors/design will grow with the boys' changing interests.  I'm not crazy about the idea of characters but if that's what they want one day, the tile is neutral enough to look nice with a variety of themes.  I can't even believe the transformation this little bathroom has gone through.  Now we just need to work on the rest of the house.  

I'm excited to hear your feedback!

xo,

~C~

conversations with Theo: boogers and boobies

Late last week I posted on Facebook that 3 amazing things happened on the way from the babysitter's house to our house.

1.  Theo wanted me to sing songs from The Little Mermaid, one after another.  THATSMUHBOY!
2.  Theo announced that he had picked his own booger!!  And then he gave it to me!!  What a treat.
3.  When I got Dexter out of the car, he too, presented his tiny little index finger with a small "boogah" on it as well. 

Thank goodness for older brothers teaching little brothers the way, right?  While this may seem trivial, it is indeed big news.  If you've ever caught a glimpse of a big crusty booger glued to the inside edge of a toddler's nostril, you know a few things -- it's GOT to come out & it's NOT going to be fun.  Those suckers rip nose hairs out and lots of screaming ensues.  It's fun for no one (but oh, the feeling of success when you release that monster). 

As with all fabulous developments like this....there's the inevitable backfire.

Two out of the last four nights, Theo has called to me from his room.  The first night it was 2 different times between 1 and 3 a.m., to inform me that he had picked a booger and needed me to get it off of his finger.  Last night, it was shortly after he went to bed. 

Theo: Moooommyyyyyy!  Mommmmmmyyyyyy!  I neeeeeed heeeeeelp. 
Me:  (After rushing into his room) What!  What's wrong honey?!
Theo: (Exasperated) There's a booger in my bed!!! 
Me:  OH NO! Where is it?
Theo:  I don't know, turn on the light!
Me: No, we don't want to wake Dexter. It probably fell on the floor.
Theo:  Nooooo it's in my bed!!!  We have to find it!!  We have to find it!!!
Me:  (I run my hand over the sheet and he's right, we had to get that out of there. I would not have been able to sleep with that thing in my bed either!) Here it is!  I got it! Eww, it's really hard and crusty.
Theo:  Yeah! And it tastes like a cracker.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Also last night, I was in my bedroom getting ready to go to the gym.  I was in the process of changing out of my regular bra into a sports bra when Theo strolled in.

Theo:  (through laughter) Why did you take your boob thang off?
Me:  I'm putting on a sports bra so I can go to the gym.
Theo:  Why do you have to wear a sports bra?
Me:  Because I'm a girl.
Theo: {blank stare}
Me:  Girls don't like their boobies wiggling and jiggling when they exercise.
Theo:  Daddy's boobs are different from yours.
Me:  Yep, they are.  Do you know why?
Theo: Why?
Me: Because daddy's a boy and mommy's a girl.  That's just one difference between boys and girls.
Theo:  I'm a boy.  I have little tiny boobies like daddy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

xo
~C~

conversations with Theo

This morning, Theo came into our bedroom with his pillow pet and his kanket and asked to get in bed with us.  I love these rare snuggles from my almost three year old boy so of course I obliged.  We were stretching our arms upward in the morning light and comparing the sizes of our hands.

Me:  Your hands are getting big.  One day they will be bigger than mommy's.  Did you know that?
Theo:  Uh huh! But I don't have a ring on like you and daddy.
Me:  That's true.  Do you know why?
Theo: Why?
Me:  Because you're not married.  Do you think you'll grow up and marry a girl someday?
Theo: I don't know.
{The future grandmother in} Me:  Then you can have lots of babies!
Theo:  You know what I'm gonna do when I get bigger?
Me:  What?
Theo:  Reach up in the cabinet and get my own snack and shut the door!
Me: Oh! Well, yes you will be able to do that when you get bigger.  What else?
Theo: Get the remote and turn on the t.v. and watch a movie!  And when I get big again, I'm gonna poop in the potty!

Hopefully not in that order.

xo,
~C~