Son-day crash

Wowza.

What a week.

Well, the last couple days anyway. I want to start taking him on a dedicated field trip on Thursdays. Most of the time that will mean the Zoo because the zoo is awesome and I have a zoofriends membership and the zoo is awesome.

I also started including an art project into his week. This week was handprint art.

which was cool

He did better than I thought he would. I put him in one of my old shirts. He thought wearing "daddy shirt" was pretty cool.

it was also adorable

Saturday was crazy busy. I had to get up early to make cookies for the bake sale, shop the craft fair (I got something awesome, photos in a week or two), then head to Norman for a birthday party. Was a ton of fun and for the most part Jo did well. At the party, Jo started getting very fussy, but it was almost an hour past his nap time after a day of running around. Honestly, I don't blame him. I was tired and cranky too.

Today, we acknowledged the children's ministry volunteers at church. Jo really didn't do much with that (the older kids did). So we made sure to thank his teachers privately. He's really been doing well at during sunday school and at the MDO (or so I am told).

So we are very tired today and likely tomorrow may be a bit of a recovery day because Tuesday is State Fair day with Mommy (who will finish her 5th 12-hour shift in a row tonight). We are VERY excited she will be home for a couple days). The other day Jo said "where's mommy? she's working." to himself.

What a Son-day!

One of the most interesting things about being the SAHD is how much more time I get to spend with Mo. This is unexpected because part of the way this works is she works and extra 12 hour shift each week. (I spent a year doing 50+ hour weeks, it's tough and she's amazing). We kinda assumed that this would mean we either wouldn't see each other as much, or potentially even less.

But here's the thing. We only have to worry about her schedule. Jo and I are available more or less whenever she is. This means whenever she does have free time, we are good to go. We don't have to juggle my schedule or daycare or anything.

The only thing getting in the way is her homework. She is in her last year of this masters degree and it's no joke hard work and takes up some time. When she is done, we will be golden. For now, we do what we can.

But, the other day she woke up with Jo and got him fed so I could grab a couple minutes of sleep and shave in peace. When I was ready I told her I was ready to take Jo so she could get going on homework. Then this happened.

"I got that done when Jo was eating breakfast"

"What?"

"It's done for today, I got it done."

"go shower, we're going to the zoo. High five."

Then we went to the zoo.

And everything was awesome forever. 

Cranky Son-day

So we went to church on Sunday. Jo was kinda cranky in the morning, but not too bad. Then fell asleep in the car and slept through the first part of service. This was nice, and quiet, and sweet.

And could not last.

He woke up and was a complete pill through sunday school, the ride home, basically the rest of the day in general.

So, I figured, he was already upset and cranky. May as well cut his hair.

May have over done it.

Dad-time Son-day

This week Jo went to the new MDO. It was a rougher drop-off than I thought it would be. He loooooves the toddler room at school. It's actually pretty tough to get him out of there when church is over. However, it took a good bit to get him to detach and go to the room on Wednesday. His teacher told me he was mostly fine and did good with the other kids.

I never believe people when they say he did fine.

I mean, when I do stuff with him, like go to the store...

Yes, it's as big as him. Everyone in the store smiled. 

Or play outside in the water...

love that thing.

Or whatever, he does fine. Maybe 1 in 10 times he is fussy or difficult. But in my mind, 10 seconds after I leave a room, his eyes glow red and he is horrid for hours on end. Then, people are too nice to look at me and say "Sir, your son is the anti-christ, here is holy water...do what needs to be done."

But, no matter how good he is, I need some time just to myself. I think everyone does. Not everyone gets it, but they need it. Last night I was able to just go out of the house without him. Went to Game HQ. I never buy anything there, or stay longer than 20 minutes, but I like to poke my nose in every now and again. It was nice to just kinda get away for an hour or so.

Super-slide Son-day

We went to TX yesterday for Miles' birthday. We've been looking forward to it because it's about the only time we get to see the Hendrix.

well, that and the In-N-Out burger. 

We would have liked to have stayed longer, even overnight, but it just wasn't feasible. As it was we got back just in time to let mo get her homework done before homework. Mo has 11 months left till she is done with her Masters degree. That should free up our flexibility for awesome things like spending a weekend with the Hendrix.

The party itself was pretty normal for the Hendrix...

...and by "normal", I mean "awesome". 

They were, as always, amazing hosts and the company they keep is wonderful. Every time I go, I meet some new friend of theirs who is awesome. It was also good to see Jennifer and her kids.

Here are a few of the highlights as the party continued:
First, Jenn and Shonda went down the slide.

Then, Jack went down...fully dressed.

Then, the magic happened.

Science Son-day

Today Jo had his dental check up. He did okay. Some crying of course, but come on. How often do you go to the dentist and not want to cry a little? What's weird is he loves to play with the toothbrush the dentist gives him. Just carries it around with him. We don't use it for brushing, we have another one for that.

After the dentist I was going to take him to the playground at the zoo...but it was HOT and a little busy. So, I figured I would give the science museum a try. He may be too young, but...we'll see how it goes.

It went well. 

He was pretty skittish at first. Little confused, little overwhelmed. He would have happily spent the entire day going up and down the stairs. Guys, seriously, the science museum has so many stairs. I felt bad about skipping my workout today until I was on my 5th time up the stairs.

He finally got interested in things that were not stairs.

Then, he found more stairs...

All in all, it was a successful trip. The science museum is a little pricey, but for when the weather is unbearable, it's a good way to get Jo out of the house. The annual pass may or may not be worth it.

Staying Home Son-day

Most of my closest friends already know this, but many others do not. At the end of May I lost my job. Technically, the position simply ceased to exist. I'm not going to dig into the details or my financial stability (both are fine). That's just not something I want to discuss or a real concern.

A more interesting, and vastly more relevant, discussion answers the question "So what the hell are you gonna do now?" 

I don't really know. I've applied to some school jobs (school psych and various levels of administration) with no real success. Either I am not really considered or the offer is a bad fit. Job hunting is exactly zero fun. Mo suggested she make some career/job changes so that I could be a stay-at-home-dad. Right now, that is the most likely scenario.

This last month and a half has been, by a WIDE margin, the best six weeks of the past...six years or so. Jo still goes to daycare most days, but I spend way more time with him. I've gotten stuff done around the house I never expected to get done. I've freed up Mo's time and (hopefully) given her more time to rest and get homework done. I'm happy, relaxed, and feel better about basically everything. I'm losing weight like crazy (with absolutely no effort whatsoever). 

In short, I wish I had quit two years ago. 

It's a weird transition though. I have my daily, weekly, monthly, and seasonal to-do lists. I have list of activities to do with Jo when we pull him from daycare. I have contact information for several mother's day out programs. (I've even made jokes about how completely sexist that term is). 

I think it will work out fine, and I'll keep job hunting for the right job. I'm even working on filing for unemployment benefits. I am not at all convinced it will be a long term thing. But, if it turns out to be...

I can think of worse ways to spend time.

Son-day Carnival of Evil

To keep myself busy in this oddly stage of my life I've begun doing just about anything there is to do. Chores mostly. Helped dad with some of his school stuff. Nothing major yet.

I took this week off work (which is basically a tomb) to do some job hunting, burn off my overwhelming amount of PTO, and get some house stuff done.

The last storm blew through and beat the roof up, they should be replacing that this week (a day or so of hammers, Hooray!). Around that Mo and I hope to get the kitchen finished (finally, it's been a year) and paint a few rooms. Looking forward do it. 

One of the things I did this last weekend was build a carnival game with my dad. It was for the school carnival down at Dove and it was clever. Basically, it's a shooting game where kids fire squirt guns at toilet paper until it cuts off and falls. Neat idea. Worked perfect until it was set up outside and the wind became an issue. We made couple adjustments and everything is fine. We'll box it in when we have the chance. We are hoping to build a few more, it was fun. 

But my mom had a clever idea to re-use it beyond the carnival. Basically the idea is to set it up for Halloween. Kids come tricker treating, great play the game, the kid who wins gets an extra piece. Then, have a donation box for Wounded Warrior, St. Jude's, Humane Society, or whatever. If you make a donation, you play for a full-sized candy bar and get a BIG squirt gun. Prolly load the squirt guns with red water and put zombies or something behind the toilet paper, just to make it gruesome. 

The face of genius. 

Time

A few years back I used to play world of Warcraft. Then I stopped playing. For about a week I had no idea what to do. I couldn't remember what I did with my time when I wasn't playing Warcraft.

Now, I am sitting here at my desk. I have no homework. Jo is hanging out with his grandma (she invited him over).

I have no idea what to do.

I'm not bored, and there is a plethora of things I could do. There always is. Anyone who says "there's nothing to do" has never been to a library and doesn't know that Project Gutenberg is a thing. There's plenty I can do. I own a house for heaven's sake. It's a 30 year old house, there is a ton to do. Most I can't afford, but there's stuff to do. But there is nothing I have to do. I can sit here and stare at the wall if I so please.

More to the point, I don't know what I want to do. I haven't had that luxury in so long I'm confused by the question. I can't even seem to generate options. I'm just sitting here like. "People sometimes choose what they do with their time?" These are of course strange people, wise enough to avoid grad school. I envy these people.

So, here's a picture of Jo. Mo sent me this picture before the MFT exam. Evidently, Jo was wishing me good luck.

Triumvirate of Emotional Extortion

These the the three greatest (worst) examples of emotional extortion in existence. Regardless of your views about any of them, you will happily hand over money to make the sadness stop. 

But it won't. 

They will haunt you for all time. If you can successfully watch all of them and feel no pang of anguish, no grief at the stark pain of reality, then I challenge that you are broken, wrong, and likely soulless. Potentially, you're just from Nebraska. To numb the the grey waste and unending bleakness to feel anything. 

Behold, The Triumvirate of Emotional Extortion!

First, I give you Linkin Park...somehow using their own brand of music to suck hope out of existence. (totally one of my favorite song now). 

Yup, listening to that on repeat...for a solid hour. 

Next is Sarah McLachlan, whose music can only be made sadder by adding animals. Adding abused, injured, sick animals is beyond the pale.  

This next one is not on You Tube that I can find. It was painful before I had a son. 

Now it is just agonizing.

Click HERE at your own peril. 

If you have viewed these videos and feel nothing, then I cannot pray for your soul. 

You don't have one. 

Resolute

Ugh, January. Fine, let's review. 2013 was a rough year for Jeremy. Although buying the house, my grad work, my dad's heart attack, and other miscellaneous events were enough to cause me great deals of stress, the greatest source of stress was my job. I don't like to talk about my work life on any kind of public forum unless it is a good thing. As such, I don't talk about my work life much on public forums. Suffice to say, I'm far from satisfied with how my work is going. 

Otherwise, most of the year's disasters had some kind of silver lining. 

Finding and buying the house was stressful, but I am pleased with the choice and I feel the price was fair. We got it for several thousand below appraisal value and our rates are decent. The house itself is generally well built, if dated. Most of what needs attention is cosmetic. I just hope the popcorn ceiling is not asbestos. 

I am almost done with grad school and met some wonderful people who I hope will be friends for years to come. The education itself has been life changing. 

Although the heart attack was absolutely horrid, my family is eating much better than we ever have. December was an expected mess of snacks and fats, but less salt than ever before. We've mentioned how we have a hard time eating out now, fast food is just soooooo salty. 

So let's take a look at the ol' resolutions of 2013. 

1. Get through the MBA program. 

Well, I switched to the 8-week courses option and those went surprisingly well. I was terrified they would absolutely cripple my ability to pass the classes. Not so, I had to sacrifice some other activities, but I think it is the best option. Only 1 more class. So, although I did not technically meet this resolution, I certainly lived up to the intention. 

2. Son-day posts every other week. 

This was one of the things I had to sacrifice. I just did not have the energy to keep up with the daditude blog. So, although many photos were taken, few were posted. Here's a picture of Jo on the thing my parents got him. 

He likes to 'go hide' in the bottom part. 

3. Attend either martial arts or fitness class once a week. 

For the most part, I pulled this off. During an exam week or other high stress week, I missed class. I also messed up my back for a couple weeks and missed then too. It sucked but it was another one of those sacrifices I had to make. I owe my instructors a huge thanks for their patience and understanding. In May, all this school non-sense is over and I will have free time to work out. horray!

4. Reduce my books by half. 

During the move, a bunch of books went to Half-price books. I added a few to my digital library, which I have no need to reduce. I've kept some of the best ones and although I would like to reduce my possessions further, I may be done with my books for now. It may not be half, but it feels like half. 

5. Save 30k toward the house down payment. 

We didn't quite reach 30k, I think we hit 27 or so. Turns out, we didn't need 30k. Let me tell you though, writing that check was crazy. Had we not moved on the house in 2013, we would have easily met this goal. Ultimately, a success to be sure. 

A series of things.

We had our first christmas in the house. Karen and Tamara came down and stayed a few days. T is still here for a few more events. Then life will start moving back to normal. 

Dad continues to improve. Seems his meds were a bit off but seem to be under control more. He's also getting better about not over-extending himself and keeping the strain on his heart to a minimum. For a guy like him, that's prolly the hardest part of the whole mess. 

I raked the lawn...it was horrid. I am so looking forward to getting those trees out of the backyard. I'm really glad we got rid of the one hanging over the house. I'm not sure it would have stayed up through the ice storm we had last week. It was a half inch of ice on...everything really. 

No photos right now, but the kitchen is coming along. Mo chose a light switch plate that required me to change the wiring on *all* the switches in the kitchen. Not my favorite part of the ordeal, but it's done and they look good. The stone backsplash is coming along too. We're nearly done!

In Jo news, he is now a crazy 2-year-old. He started getting speech therapy a few months back. Not sure if I mentioned that. Curiously, his speech path is one my old professor's wife. That's neat and his speech is getting better. More words and phrases all the time. Still hard to understand and likes to grunt or make noises rather than talk, but he's getting there. 

We also changed daycare. We LOVED the daycare at Integris, but we needed to disconnect Mo's job from our childcare. So we put him back into the daycare he was in when he was a tiny baby. He's doing well there and seems to fit in well. 

Finally, I am about to start the last class of my MBA. I'm nervous as hell, but ready to get this wagon rolling and graduate. I'll be with 2 of my long-term project group mates, I couldn't hope for better. I'm not convinced there is better. Not sure what is going to happen once I have the degree. This semester will be full of changes I think. 

My happy student

I have this one student who I like very much, but sometimes I really don't like her. I know that doesn't make sense right now, give me a few more sentences.

See, she's a really upbeat and positive person. You know the kind. The kind that somehow, magically, naively, almost childishly sees the good in just about everyone and everything. It's like somehow the sheer irritating mess of the universe just passes over her without touching her in the slightest.

Now, I know her well enough that I know she gets down. She even complains sometimes. She gets sad. She get angry. She carries mountains of stress and anxiety more often than not. So, you might think her normal personality is some kind of 'fake out' or a facade. Basically, a lie she tells the world to keep from going insane.

Maybe it is, but I don't think so. I think somewhere along the line she decided to be happy and then (and here is the important part) learned how to be happy. (I used italics, so you know it's important).

Lots of inspirational messages will want you to 'decide to be happy' and that's all well and good. Not horridly helpful though. I'd love to decide to be good at drywall installation. Until I actually learn how to do it, that little decision is pointless.

So, I like her because her personality is upbeat and pleasant.
I really don't like her sometimes because she's so good at something I don't know how to do.

How did she learn to be happy? I have no idea, but I'm gonna figure that out. Then I'm gonna learn to do it.

Recovery and Countertops

Last time, I mentioned my dad was in the hospital. At the time we really did not have a very clear idea of everything that was going on. Basically, two things tried to kill him at the same time. Oddly enough, because it was two things, neither succeeded.

Basically, he had a bacterial blood infection. We're not 100% sure how, but he did. It got serious and an ambulance was called. We think he may have had a heart attack on the way to the hospital. The heart attack he had has a nick-name. It's called the Widowmaker. It earns that name. Here's the irony: If he had not had the blood infection, it's likely the heart attack was going to happen with no warning and just kill him outright. BUT, because the blood infection tried to kill him first, the heart attack was treatable. BUT, the heart attack had to be treated first before they even found the blood infection. So, because two different, intensely dangerous, conditions both tried to get through the 'kill you' door at the same time, they got stuck and failed comically.

Surviving,
Like a Boss. 

It was a really intense few days. He stayed 10 days in the hospital and then a couple weeks at home recovering with a PICC line and a drain line. The drain line hurt and we were all happy to see it go. Since it came out, his recovery has been intense. He still gets tired pretty easy and has to watch his exertion, but he's back to work and getting caught up.

I could EASILY fill a blog about how great Dove Academy (where he works) has been. They had flowers in his room before he even got there. The principal came and visited. They've been nothing but awesome through the whole thing. I'll leave it at that.

So, today, I was able to get him to help me redo the sink. Now we also redid the countertops. Well, Mo did. I just primed them. So, here are more before and afters.

Before

After, lights on

After, lights off

Here's a close up of the counter tops. This Giani Granite stuff looks surprisingly good. Mo did a great job.

See that new switch? I did that. It was hard, but it works. 

You might notice, the faucet looks different and the sink is now stainless steel. That is what Dad I did together today. It took most of the day and we are both tired now.

But, it looks really, really good. 

Vacation renovation

The week before last I took a vacation from work. This is the first time I've taken a vacation in three years. That was a mistake.

I'm just going to put this right here. 

It was nice being away from the clinic for a bit. Spent time with the family, worked on a couple house projects.

Jo is doing well. He's seeing a speech path, he's babbling a lot and it's getting to be consistent, but it horridly unclear. Not really words. It's getting better slowly. He started daycare and that is going well too. While I was off work we took him to the OK Aquarium

armed with blanket and glowing eyes, he fears no shark. 

It was fun, but the trip was long and hard on him.

My glasses broke just before the vacation. I had to get a cheap pair to cover while my real glasses were put together. They are the cheapest pair that eye mart would sell me.

hello ladies. 

Mo convinced me to get prescription sunglasses. They came in just before I drove down to TX for Jack's "I'm not in the Marines anymore party". Fun times. However, he was disappointed that my mom did not come visit too.

Jack sad. 

But it was good to see the Hendrix and I could not be more proud of him and excited about his new job.

The rest of the vacation was spent dealing with finishing stage 1 of the kitchen make over. The painting and such was easy, just time consuming and an exercise in patience. The new hinges were a nightmare but eventually they got sorted out.
here's some before and after shots.

before

after

before

after

before

after

So that's stage 1.

About 20 minutes after the photos were taken, I ripped that horrid laminate backsplash off. The next stage will be to add some under cabinet lighting. Then paint the counter top, then do a new backsplash.

But right now, we're dealing with my dad who is in the hospital.

Settling in

Today, I spent the majority of the day at the house with Jo and Pooka. I unpacked almost all the boxes, certainly all the ones that can be unpacked. I took off the cabinet doors to prepare them for a simple restoration and to update the hardware. I'll post some before-and-after stuff when it is done. I also cooked my first meal there. Nothing fancy, just chicken tenders.

It was a good and productive day. I am pleased. I then came home and worked on some more moving stuff. Some of that did not go as planned and will cost me a little money. I'm annoyed but not terribly shocked. I've grown up moving and moved many, many times. Each move, either something breaks, you lose something, or both. Usually both. I've lost many things and many things have broken.

Just once, this needs to be true.

So, I was annoyed, but ultimately I have one very solid comfort. This house is the physical embodiment of my hope that I will never have to move again. I'll still lose things and things will break. But, it won't be because of a move.

I know that someday, something may happen that will strongly influence or force me to move. The house could be destroyed by a tornado. A person in my immediate family could win the lottery. The house is old, a billion things can go wrong and require that I live somewhere else. But, they are all fairly unlikely. That gives me hope.

I hope I never have to move again. I want to live in that house, raise my children, and offer safe haven to my family. All that gushy stuff you see people post about 'live, laugh, love' and stuff like that. I want that. 

damn you pinterest, damn you.

For me, it's odd. I've rented most of my life. Sometimes we lived in the house the church had for the preacher, but that is kinda like renting in a weird sort of way. I've never really understood why people get so bent out of shape about how 'bad' apartments and renting are. I think it's fine. Some are better than others, but it's not bad, there are some really nice parts too. When we were looking for a house, and closing, and packing, I had no really deep motivation to get out of the apartment. I was comfortable. But, the more time I am in the house, the more I want out of the apartment - the feeling is more intense than I expected. I can't explain it right now, it's odd.

The House

Well, the appraisal and inspection went through without adding new complications. That pretty much means we will be closing on the house by the end of the month. We want to me moved in by June. I figured I would post about it and share some photos.

It's in NW OKC more or less at the corner of Counsel and 112nd in the Willow Creek Estates neighborhood.

it needs a paint job.

The yard is Rye Grass. They probably did that to increases curb appeal because it's green no matter what, but you have to reseed every year. There used to be a big tree in the front yard (I saw some old photos) but I bet one of the ice storms brought it down. Structurally, the house is rock solid. No foundation problems, no interior issues. It has good bones.

I'd like to give the front walk and steps a bit more curb appeal. Not sure how though. The little tree and the hedge are just out of control huge and we don't like them. Maybe a patio or fresh walkway.

We'd like to extend the roof line down the driveway so my folks will have some covered parking. Have to see if the HOA will let that happen.

this is the floorplan

The house is cavernous big. Well over 3k sq. ft. The back section is an attached apartment the original owners (we are the second owners) built for a grandmother. That's pretty much our use for it too.

Front Living Room

This is the front living room. The photo is taken from a raised entryway. We want to re-tile the entryway and redo the entryway closets. Those book cases are not built it, they just look like it. They will get moved, likely into the spare bedroom or the dining room (which you can see through the opening in the back of this picture.

I'm thinking a large sliding barn-door to seperate the dining room (which will likely be my office/man-cave). Alternatively, a door hidden as a fake bookshelf. A window seat for that window is something I want to do for Mo. Otherwise, this room will be the main living room with the TV and such.

In this photo, of the den, you can see the entryway tile in the bottom left corner. It's gotta go, as do the ugly railings. The 1970's lighting in the left corner of the den is as good as gone. We may or may not redo the brick of the fireplace, but the shelves need to be redone with a new stain. The wooden pillars will likely be removed. I'd also like to open up the wall into the kitchen. The door to the right goes into the living room of the apartment.

Here you can see the apartment living room and the doors. I'd like those door replaced. One option is hidden door made to look like a wall or bookcases. Maybe a sliding barn door. Not sure, but something that serves are a better boundary to the apartment. My folks need their privacy and so do we. I'd like to take out that wall in the back. It creates a pointless hallway and I don't like hallways.

The kitchen is decent sized, but the cabinets and counter-tops need some love.  The appliances are very nice, we just need a microwave and a refrigerator. Mo really wanted a flat-top stove and this kitchen has that. Someday, we want to completely redo the kitchen, but for now we are going to stain the cabinets. There is a doorway on the left that goes into the laundry and to the garage. There is also a half-bath there. I like the big window on the right, but it goes into the apartment. The french-doors on the window are cheap and don't close and I'm not sure what the future fate of that space will be.

You can see a door through the window. That is the external entryway into the apartment. It's important that remains. We may have to wall up the window to offer my folks a place to hang coats and have an real entryway. It's not a huge deal, but something to think about.

This is looking from the kitchen toward the den. The door on the right goes into the formal dining room. That wall will almost certainly be walled up to create more counter space (and because there is no reason to have a door into my office from the kitchen). The little table and bookshelf there is going away soon too. There's just no need for it and just about anything would make more sense.

This is the dining room. I was aversive to getting rid of the built-in hutch, but neither Mo nor I like it. I'm not sure anyone does. Plus, we don't have good dishes and don't care if we ever do. Then, Mo and my mom thought this would be a good 'man cave' space for me. I though that was cool, we never formally dine or have any interest in ever doing so. So, The hutch will be taken out and a wall put there. I'm thinking a door to the left of the hutch so I can access the half bath. Then, redo the wall so the laundry space is better. The door to the kitchen will be walled up because it will serve to offer more counter space. I'm also thinking I may cut the room in half (or so), to make a space for a pantry. Not sure. Lots of options, but it's a big room and I don't need that much space.

Here is the master bedroom. It's nice. The curtains will be changed (and hung correctly). Repainting is almost certain. That door is smaller than a standard door. Moreover, I think it used to just be open to the bathroom. We may change it, I'm not sure.

This is the master bathroom. Behind the picture is the shower and toilet. Through the door is a closet. There is also a closet in the bedroom...so lots of closet space, but no tub. It's weird.

This will likely be Jojo's bedroom.

Hopefully, a future nursery when Mo and I try for another baby. For now...spare bedroom, storage, play room? Basically, whatever Mo wants to do with it.

This is the fourth bedroom of the main house. That window opens into the living room of the apartment, not to the exterior of the house. We are going to turn it into a doorway and let this room be an office space/spare room for the apartment. My folks need a little more space and a room for computers and such. This will do that. I'm thinking the doorway from the main house to this room will become a sort of 'secret door' made to look like a picture wall or bookcase. Still accessible, but not obvious or noticeable.

Here, you see my parents entry into the living room of the apartment. Not much in the way of a real entryway. You can see the kitchen through that window. Really not sure how to deal with that space. It's weird.

Although, the apartment living room is probably the best room in the house. It has a great view of the backyard and has a very open feel to it. When we redo the flooring (pergo throughout) it will get rid of the mismatched carpet. around the corner to the right is the rest of the apartment.

The kitchen/dining area is a little small and funky. Not sure what can be done here, but my dad is pretty clever. That closet has the water heater so it can't really be used as a closet. That's kinda my issue with the apartment, not entry space to put coats and such. It's goofy. I know there is a solution, just haven't figured it out yet. Ultimately, it's not my problem. It's my folks space and they can damn well do whatever they want with it.

This is the apartment bedroom. It's bigger than the picture makes it look, but it's not huge. The doors on the right go to a closet and the bathroom. They are thinking about making the back wall (to the right of the window wall) into a patio door that opens onto the side lawn. That way they have their own private small yard. I think it's a great idea. I don't have any real say in the interior of the apartment, that's their business. If it changes the exterior, Mo and I have a say, but we are totally on board for the patio door and side lawn. I think it will look good and give my folks an added sense of privacy. An exterior space they can do whatever they want with. It's a good idea is my point.

The back yard of this house is just nuts. It's well kept and pretty. Dad and I want to rebuild that shed into a usable workshop. Those two stone areas are neat, but I'm not sure what function they will serve. The large flat one will make a good space to work on things until the shop is built. The other...I have no idea. It may be removed to offer more running space for Jo. The deck is nice too, but the wood is old and badly sealed. A few of the trees are in bad shape and need to be taken down.

That ivy has to go. Maybe a fence or something around the electrical pole (decorative but will keep Jo away from it). That tree is tilting badly and need to be taken down. I LOVE the stone walkway. I also want to enclose the AC unit in something a bit more decorative.

That swing is massive, and old, and showing it's age. We may cover the deck and almost certainly get a new swing that takes up a little less acreage.  We want to fence up the rest of the yard too. Part of what you see is the neighbors yard and in the back is the green belt. We still want to access the greenbelt though, so a fence with gate is likely. The wood of the deck needs to be replaced. Maybe with something a bit more durable. I'd also like to extend the roof a bit to make sure my folks have covered access to their door. Because it's Oklahoma.

Well, that's the free tour of the future Casa-Medders. It's big and we have about a billion projects. There is literally not one room that doesn't need some kind of work. But, we have time and we are patient. It takes time to make a house a home.