Oliver's new digs

We have three bedrooms here at the mansion, including the master.  We did have Georgi and Oliver sharing a room, and Margot doing what she does best- living independently.  Though the bundle of baby boy joy will be sharing our 10x12' space (aka master suite) for a couple of months, we're moving kids and getting the nursery ready.  The girls are sharing the bigger room, jr. jr. will be taking over Marg's room, and Oliver has been booted to the landing area (it's actually pretty comfy cozy, and all the necessities fit not quite as tight as sardines in a can).  It's hard to be resting when I want to be nesting, but by Sunday the bed rest will be lifted and I'll be full-throttle. Until then, Andrew and Oliver are in charge of most changes...I do things like arrange shelves and pull up blankets and fluff pillows (the super crucial stuff).

This post is about Oliver's territory, but let me paint you a picture of how Margot is doing in the twin bed/new room. The first night, right to sleep- no protests or demonstrations.  I was like, hey are we the awesome parents with the perfect kids or what?  The next day for nap, a little negotiation required.  The second night, minimal fuss- not bad.  Okay, the past two nights?  Hell.  Two nights ago we heard little feet scrambling (there arose such a clatter, very seasonally appropriate I guess).  Andrew went up to lay down the law, ended up laying down in G's bed because she was upset about Marg.  Homeboy fell asleep and an hour later came down to report Marg was still awake but seemed tired enough to stay in bed. Congratulations on being the most attentive parents in the world? Thank you.  Plus I'm pretty sure that's the night she fell out of bed too.  Yesterday I didn't even try to have her nap in the bed, I put her back in her crib.  Perfect peace and quiet for 3 hours.  That brings us screeching to last night.  Baby girl seemed real tired (crabbier than a wet hen), so we thought she'd go right to sleep in that cozy little twin bed made for someone 5x bigger than her.  Wrong.  Again.  Ten minutes after being tucked in- shuffling, clunking, more shuffling.  I went up to her room where she had all the lights on (with the exception of the night light, which she had unplugged), and Georgi was sleeping like a hound dog.  Put M in bed, sang 14 rounds of Silent Night, and tiptoed back downstairs while holding my breath.  Ten minutes later this scene was repeated.  I Silent Nighted her to sleep, but she was up before 7 this morning to get a jump on her over-tired five hour crying session that led right up to her nap.  Sheesh.  I'll give you one guess where angel baby will be dreaming of sugarplums tonight.

Back to Oliver...

At the top of the stairs we have a pretty big landing (as far as landings go...not a gymnasium).  We set up a twin bed we got off Craigslist last summer, packed as much of Olive's treasures in as possible, and now it's a bedroom.

Andrew painted the bed BM's Stampede.  The quilt was my first quilting project I made for Andrew when I was in high school.  Glad I married the guy and got it back. ;)

I had picked up six of these heavy brass brackets at a garage sale last summer just because.  Because I like junk and like collecting it.  In this case, the junk wasn't actually junk and I had a use for it within the decade.  We also have barn wood, garage wood, chicken coop wood at the ready for things like this.  Things to talk about on these shelves: the plastic hangers in Oliver's basket o' specialties- those are bows for shooting presharpened pencils.  Also pheasant feathers from a fall hunt, a book on how to train hunting dogs...too bad Hector's such an old dog, I don't think he'll be learning any new tricks.  There's a magnetic flashlight hanging on his tackle box, binoculars at the ready just in case, a picture of his beloved hound.  I guess we're raising a little sportsman.

Thanks to the DNR and county fair, Oliver now stops aquatic hitchhikers.  We don't have a boat.  

I won the bid for this bulletin board at my great aunt and uncle's auction a few years ago- most stressful 30 seconds of my life.  Okay, that's not true.  Anyway I love the saying.  Also in this picture you can sort of see the edge of the window. There is indeed a window in this space, I just crop it out because it's framed by the unsightly raw edges of pink foam insulation and sheet rock.  'Trim windows' is on the to-do list.