'94 Palomino Project

     Nick and I always have some kind of project going on. This past spring it was a dune buggy and a craftsman riding lawn mower. Now it is a pop up camper. We love being in the great outdoors and traveling. Having a camper was the most logical way of us being a able to this. Most everything is already packed all you have to throw in is clothes and food. Hook up the camper and off you go.

    We started camper shopping the end of September. The thinking was people would be wanting to sell them for cheap so that they wouldn't want to store the camper over the winter. We looked at dealers and individuals off of Craigslist. Our budget was $3000. Every camper we looked at at the $3000 mark came up short. They just weren't as nice as we expected. I came across a posting for one about 8 miles from our house that had everything we wanted but a 1994 model but only $2000. We went to look at and it was great. My only issue was the dated pink ruffley curtains! Yuck! Who puts pink curtains in a camper?! Anyway Nick gave the guy $1700 and the camper was ours. We were so excited that we set it up as soon as we got home. The next day the curtains came down! As we sat in our new humble aboded the talking started and the to do list got longer. This how it always works with us. First it is just a little bit here and there then it turns in to a long to do this and we are running out of time.

      After taking out the awful curtains I ripped out an extra seat/storage area next to the bench seat. There is something about a Fat Max hammer, a pry bar, and the sound of breaking wood that makes you want to keep going. So on to the cabinet that held the ice chest. It was a cheap foam cooler that had a drain in the bottom that emptied under the camper. Out all of that came with a worthless step up to one of the beds. Now on to the pump sink and built up counter top for the stove. The stove is one of the those that go from inside to a bracket on the outside of the camper. Thinking about this we would never really use the stove inside so the counter top went away.

                With demo done on to the paint. It is always good to have friends in different trades. We called our friend Justin the painter and asked if he any paint and primer left for us to use. Of course he did. I chalked every seam let it dry and removed all the cabinet doors. The next day I primed all the cabinet doors and cabinets. Let it dry for 24 hours then painted it all with a high gloss white. Word of advice it takes forever for high gloss paint to dry in 50 to 60 degree weather. I ended up sticking a heater in the camper to try to get it dry a little faster.

Corner where the ice chest was.

Dinette area

Layout

Bench seat 

Checking out the flooring .

 Done with new counter tops and storage.

Never got to reupholster the cushions.

Getting the hang of things just in time for change.

Porter turned 1 and I finally felt like we were getting the hanging of things. From May 2012 to December 2012 we were in a groove. Mason turned 3, had his first t-ball  and football season, potty trained and started preschool 2 days a week. Mason became more independent and so did Porter. Nick was making great strides in college. I was keeping the house under control and even had some time to focus on somethings I enjoyed doing. Took a summer vacation to Grand Lake in Oklahoma. Mason is a born fish. We bought a camper and revamped it. Took it the week of Thanksgiving to Hot Springs Arkansas. Had a great time. The boys love camping.  Everything was great.

 Mason and his t-ball trophy. July 2012

 Porter June 2012

 The boys and Santa December 2012

 Before pictures of the camper. October 2012

 Hot Springs Arkansas November 2012

 Worn out from our Grand Lake Oklahoma vacation June 2012

 Masons first fish April 2012

Me and the boys at the Kansas City Missouri Temple open house April 2012

All and all things were busy but easy. The beginning of January Nick and I started talking about moving to the city so he could be closer to work and college. He was wasting 1 to 2 hours of drive time every day. Time that he could be with his family. Also gas was a huge expense. For 2 weeks we looked for a home. But nothing that fit our budget or our needs. We were blessed to finally find a home through friends at church. It fit us, Nicks side work, was close to work and school, and fit the budget. By the way I hate car and home shopping. It stresses me out. Everything was looking great. The day after we signed on the house it finally hit me that I didn't feel right. Well come to find out I was pregnant! What! That cant be!! We are moving in 2 weeks. I have so much to do! Totally overwhelmed the only thing I knew to do was pray. If this is what my Father in Heaven has planned for us then He is the only way to get us through it. There must be a reason He has given us this miracle at this time. Now how to tell Nick. I had our friend Ryan who owns the local pizza joint in town make a pizza with a 3 made with pepperonis on it. Nick came home from school and told him dinner was in the fridge. He opened the box and just stared at it. "Whats this for?" "Our 3rd house?" I just stared at him. Then he looked and me and goes "Really? " "No way" Laughing my response was "Yes. There is going to be a number 3 in September."  It took us 2 weeks to just absorb the news. We didn't say anything to anyone. We focused on packing, moving, cleaning and trying to make the change easy on the boys. Got everything moved and then the morning sickness started. I never felt that bad with the boys. Some days I could barely move. The winter was awful. Between Mason switching schools, trying to unpack, get settled, the SNOW, and me being sick winter took its toll on me. March we took a much needed trip to Blanco Texas. It was nice, relaxing and warm. Spring warmly welcomed (besides the snow on May 4th!). I was feeling better. The house was looking like a home. We were getting use to the idea of #3. The day came to find out what #3 was. I was all ready that morning to put the boy bedding on the crib and unpack all the boy clothes. Nick and I went to the hospital where they took us back to see our baby. Both Mason and Porter made sure we knew they were boys from the moment the ultrasound started. This was different. The baby kept moving and wanted nothing to do with the doppler. She tech kept trying to get the pictures she needed but this baby was not helpful. Then she said "I think its a girl." Nick was quite. I was in shock. After an hour the tech decided that I should just come back another day. We walked out of the office and I asked Nick "Any response?" He smiled and said "I get to buy pink camo!" This baby has been a surprise since the start.  We weren't planning on a baby, or a baby girl at that.  I am not a fluffy girl. What is a girl going to do in a house with 2 big brothers? A redneck dad? A tomboy mom? It seemed wrong to mix a girl in this family. Then Nick reminded me that her brothers will keep her grounded, her dad will always project her and if she is lucky she will end up like her mother, the girl he fell in love with. He is amazing! 

So the last 3 months I have been decorating her room and filling  her closet. We finally picked a name, Lyla. I am now down to 6 weeks till my due date and cant wait to meet her. The boys love to pat my belly and tell her that they love her. She moves everytime she hears Nicks voice.  Guess we will see how I handle 3 kiddos.

 March 2013 Texas

 Estes Park Colorado June 2013

 Painted new knobs and lamp for Lyla's room

Lyla's bedding set

Will have to post more pictures of the projects I did in her room. 

The Start

All right in my frustrations today I thought I would create this blog. Confessions of Wanna Be Do-it All Mom. That sums me up. Who am I? Well as of today I am Sararose Althauser. (Guess I am that everyday) I am a mother of 2 boys Mason my oldest ( he is 2 1/2 are drives me crazy till he looks at me with that womanizer smile from his father and my heart melts), Porter (he is almost 10 months and is the sweetest baby in the world), wife of a very strong willed and sexy man Nick, daughter of two wonderful earthly parents, granddaughter, friend,  daughter of my Heavenly Father (who I try so hard to make proud), member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (there is a whole list take comes with that), Relief Society Secretary,  house keeper, chef, personal shopper, personal organizer, the cool wife to Nicks friends, personal trainer, sexy wife, therapist, gardener, crafter, photographer, accountant, mechanics helper, fun mom, disciplinarian, teacher, student, supporter, deal finder, reader, professional dieter, handyman, 24 hour caregiver and the list keeps going.

My mind always seems to be overloaded with responsibilities. The church encourages us to keep a journal. I figured it was because they wanted a record of what was going on in peoples lives during such and such time (I think of pioneers) or for genealogy. I was never that great at it. When I was a teenager it was a way for me to write down what was on my mind, to get it off my chest. It was a great therapeutic tool. Now blogging has made a huge following. So here I am needing to get some things off my mind. My boys are napping and I have a moment of peace. Even though there are toys all over the floor, the dishes need to be done and laundry needs to be sorted. Here I sit at the computer. I figured there has to be more women out there like me. It can't just be me that looks at all the mothers out there thinking that they have the secret. You know the ones. They are the ones that the house is always picked up (with out all the junk piled in a closet), they have their hair perfectly done, their clothes are perfect on them (no snot on the shoulder), can go to every activity, their husbands are always happy, and their children are lined up in a row and perfectly dressed. They don't have a care in the world. Where I seem to be drowning in the sea of overwhelming expectations. I try so hard to have everything in moderation, perfect balance. Most of the time it seems like I am spinning my wheels in a mud pit. Does this world have to many expectations for the modern woman? Or do we put them on ourselves?

Nick (my husband) always says he is a jack of all trades but a master of none. He has learned to do lots of things in his life time. If his friends need help with anything they call him. He can do it all. (But he is a master of   one thing Turf! This past year we figured he needed to be a master of at least one thing so he is going to college to complete his degree in Turf Management.) Back to my point. I feel like I am a jack of all trades. Some women take a hobby and focus on that one thing. I have lots of friends that have bought a camera, played with it and are now paid photographers. I have friends that love crafting or scrap booking and they are wonderful at it. I don't know where these ladies find the time to focus on one thing for more than 30 min. Do they put off normal chores? Do their husbands help with this? I am not trying to complain, I just want to know how! Please someone fill me in!

This is not complaining. Maybe from the outside my life seems like a perfect picture. This is what I wanted. To be a stay at home mother. A full time mother. We wanted to raise our children at home. This is my dream. When you are young you don't see all the responsibilities. So are these real responsibilities or just expectations I am trying to live up to?