Super-nesting

As a side-effect of my pregnancy personality, I’m especially scatter-brained and I’m having a lot of crazy side-thoughts. I’ve color-coded this post so it’s easier for you to read. Anything in red is probably just nonsensical babbling that isn't really relevant and you don't really need to read. Or you can, just don’t take it seriously, because it really just distracts from the main point of this post. Which is basically that I'm a whiny toddler and I want what I want and I want it two hours ago.

As I think I mentioned before, I’m about 6 months pregnant. The little squirrel will be here in approximately three months and one day, if he’s a timely guy (I think you can tell a lot about a kid based on their due date/arrival date. O, for example, showed up a couple of days late. Not terrible, but he is sort of a dawdler now. I hope this one is a little more schedule-conscious and can help his big brother out). This means I’m in full-on nesting mode… I’m talking FULL. ON. Not painting rooms or purchasing nursery decor. Bigger projects. Like knocking holes in walls and floors (to move basement stairs… not to just have a hole in the floor. As cool as it could be, it would be awfully hazardous with kids running amok). Since I know it’s probably not realistic to completely turn my floor plan upside down, I thought it might be a good time to take on a smaller, easier project.

One thing I’ve wanted to do since we moved in is tear out our carpet. Is it terrible? No. Honestly, it’s in surprisingly good shape for everything it’s been through. I’m just a borderline germophobe, and that existing aversion to all things “icky” is amplified with the prospect of a new baby in the home. Our house sat dormant for who knows how long before it was purchased and uprooted from it’s former foundation and moved to our plot. Then, construction workers traipsed through it on a nearly daily basis as they repaired walls, dripping drywall mud and dragging tools across it. I think with a good deep steam cleaning, it would be alright (definitely not beautiful, but livable for a while).

Why not just have someone come in and take care of all of my carpet to get rid of the “ick”? Because that’s what a sane person would do. Because one of the first things I noticed when we moved in was that this carpet was covering beautiful hardwood floors throughout our dining room (who carpets a freaking dining room? Someone without kids, apparently), living room, hallway, and bedrooms. Basically the whole house, with the exception of the kitchen and bathroom. Of course when I saw that, I immediately wanted to tear out every shred of carpet in my home and refinish those suckers! I’ve got a toddler and a dog… and a mean case of the “pregnancy dropsies” myself. My carpet is anything but clean, and it’s not going to be that way for a very long time. Why not eliminated the problem altogether and get something that’s a little easier to clean? Especially if it’s already there! It’s like my own little gold mine in my house! (okay, not a gold mine, but definitely a diamond in the rough)*

So, what makes more sense than tearing out your carpet and refinishing your floors when your 6 months pregnant? Um… not doing that, probably. Or that’s what Tots thinks anyway. Fun-hater. When I brought the idea up to him, he shot it down immediately, shattering my dreams. Something about it not being a necessity and being a lot of work, I think. I sort of quit listening after he said no and started plotting how and when I could do this without his help. 

Of course the first person I called was my dad… and oddly enough, he agreed with my husband, that this was probably not the time to take this project on (What the heck, dad?! You're supposed to be on my side! It's probably your fault I'm this crazy anyway!). Like a toddler throwing a tantrum, I huffed and puffed and kicked and screamed- in my head. It went a little something like this “No, no no no. I WANT IT! I! WANT! IT! NOW!” (Not bad, right? I learned from one of the best.) I think all I outwardly did was sigh heavily and give a disgusted look.

So then, with my two main resources acting as roadblocks, I did what everyone does- I googled it. Surely this is something I could still pull off, right? Oh… I would need to tarp off the areas of my house that I’m not working in? Okay. Well, the dining room is really the only way to access my kitchen and mudroom. McDonalds and Subway for every meal! Sweet, that’s a silver lining, right? What else? Uh… it takes about a week for the poly to completely cure before I can move my furniture back into that room? Crap… I could move my dining room furniture and my bedroom furniture in the living room for a week. I guess O could live with grandma for a week. What’s what? I need to worry about ventilation? Ugh. Nebraska weather… this probably won’t happen until mid-April, if I need to be able to open my windows! Wait… I’m pregnant. Duh. There are certain things I am not allowed to be around, and things that are probably borderline “okay” but still not recommended. Floor dust and stain/polyurethane fumes probably fall into one of those two categories.

Long story short (or not, really, because if you’re still reading this, you just read the long story), I’m at a dead end and feeling pretty frustrated about it. I’ve resigned myself to the fact that this project will not be happening until after the little squirrel makes his appearance. I suppose I need to find a less fume-y project that I can complete on my own until after he gets here. Perhaps I’ll finish one of my 50 half-finished projects in the garage? Ha. Right.

In other news, my birthday is coming up! I’m debating about what I should put on my “birthday list” (I don’t really get a birthday list, I’ll just find something I really like and tell Tots it’s my birthday gift when I casually bring up purchasing it). I’m thinking a Kreg Jig… anyone have one? All I’ve heard are great things, but I’d love to hear your reviews too. I’m also thinking Kreg Right Angle Clamp might be in order too.

* I know many of you will come at me with the argument of carpeted floors being warmer and more comfortable, and you’re not wrong, but I have a million and one arguments for wood floors… I’m not going to make them all, but if you didn’t know already, we are dog people (see this post). I never had an indoor dog as a child and always desperately wished for one, so I will probably always have one as an adult (neener-neener, mom). Dogs are messy and mine especially seems to be a carpet-killer. This reason on its own is enough for me.

**It really seems like I made Tots out to be hard-ass dream-squisher bad guy here. He's totally not. He actually probably accommodates my crazy more often than most would, so maybe this is why it comes as such a shock when he doesn't (cautiously) jump on board the crazy-train.