Trading Spaces

Okay, so remember last week, when I posted about how our first night with all three children in the same room was bliss (yes, I believe that was my actual word choice)? Well, each night following that one got subsequently worse. I think "chain reactions of tears and screaming" more accurately describes the nights that followed. All right, maybe I exaggerate just a tiny bit, but there definitely was screaming (Ellie and Alex, I'm looking at you) and a few tears (same culprits, plus me).

So we put out the call to Grammie (she is still on summer vacation and Papa was in Sturgis), and she sped down to Sioux Falls for our very own Trading Spaces attempt. So there were no gay interior designers involved and we certainly didn't have $1000 to burn, but we did manage to cram most of the work into a 48 hour period with some pretty decent results. And also corraled a three year old and two 6 month olds during the entire process. That might have been harder than all the painting and cleaning!

Alex, getting in on the painting action. Man, can that kid move for not officially crawling yet!

We worked like maniacs to move Chris and I to the downstairs bedroom while Ellie moved next door to our old bedroom, and the babies stayed put in the original kids bedroom. Whew. Grammie blessed us with her painting, organizing, and cleaning skills and the end result is a vast improvement from all the kids in one room (and why did I think that was going to work, anyway?)

Of course, we forgot to take any "before" pictures, but here are some "after" shots of the kids' bedrooms.


Ellie in her new pink bedroom (she picked the color, of course)

The boys' modified digs, now complete with rocking chair (previously banished to the basement)

Thanks to Pat and Dale for the second crib!