Our new Bathroom

So below are the before and after pictures of our bathroom Renovation. It looks awesome now, and feels like a completely different bathroom. The pictures of the bathroom before don't really show how bad it really was- it was really disgusting, so take a look.

The bathroom before the renovation had a very disgusting dirty bath liner, which was just held on by just glue basically. The tub was old but wasn't in horrible shape, the toilet was gross and old as well, and all around the bathroom were teal and black tiles on the wall, which were done very poorly and were also very dirty and disgusting. Before the renovation the walls would always get this brownish stuff on the walls- Joe says it is because the man who lived in the house before us most likely smoked in there, and the walls were just horrible because of that. There was an ugly mirror/medicine cabinet in there, as well as an ugly light fixture and an old cheap cabinet. I don't have a picture of the floors but they were the cheap peel and stick flooring type of thing. The worst thing about the bathroom was the plumbing the electrical- Joe had to replace all the plumbing and all the electrical in the bathroom. Nothing was done to code and Joe was shocked of how bad it really was. There was also no fan in the bathroom which was a real pain. Now take a look of what the bathroom looks as of today.

As you can see there is quite the difference. We started by ripping everything out, and I mean everything. Joe replaced all the plumbing and electrical like I said before, he installed a fan to vent outside, and we put all new drywall up. After that we installed a brand new bath tub, we tiled around the bath which we both love- and considering it was Joe and my self's first time tiling we did an excellent job. I found the tiles at Rona- and Iam so happy of how they turned out. After that we installed the laminate hard wood flooring- which is almost the exact colour as our real hard wood in the rest of the house. We did tile originally however we hated how it looked so we ripped it up. It looks so much better with the laminate, and very clean looking. We then got the toilet installed, as well as the vanity and medicine cabinet- they are all in a nice dark chocolate brown. Joe then installed the fixtures for the shower and vanity. We went with quality Moen fixtures - the shower head it amazing...amazing water pressure and water coverage. We then painted the walls a nice lavender like colour- it's call winter coco. I then bought a nice shower curtain, flower hooks, a bathmat, to go with the colours of the room.

An update...

Good Afternoon,

Mother and myself just came back from an appointment with Dr.Bhyana. I just needed to see her briefly to get a requisition for blood work before I see Dr.Spence (Heart specialist) early in January, and also get her to write a note for my work to say I may miss a few days due to my pregnancy. My work has been extremely unreasonable and I got spoken to about missing a day and a half in November...even though I was doing very well at work, and collected the company $16 500.00. Dr.Bhyana's office wasn't busy at all which was a very nice surprise, it's awful when that little waiting room is packed with a bunch of sick people. I really do like Dr.Bhyana, she is a very caring nice lady. Not like most doctors I have seen. She is soft spoken and not intimidating like alot of men doctors, I feel like I could tell her anything, which is a nice feeling to have with a doctor. She wrote out a note and put exactly what I needed it to say, she also mentioned sick leave, and that whenever I felt I needed to go on it she would fill out the paperwork. She said because Iam considered a higher risk pregnancy that I would have no problem going on sick leave before my maternity leave.

So my plan as of now is to work until the end of February and then go on sick leave until closer to the due date and then from there go on mat leave. I think I can last that long at work, At the end of February I'll be 26 weeks, so I think I will be ready to leave Aktiv Kapital and take it easy at home...however I'm sure I will be kept busy with the doggies. It will be nice when Ellen and the boys come at the end of March, so we can have little outings, as well as Talize trips...lol.

Speaking of Talize I went there yesterday to look for some new pants because I have grown out of all my pants, except for my black yoga pants which I wear everyday ahah, however I can't really wear them to work so I needed to find some work pants that are comfortable and don't cause me pain while I sit for hours at a time at work. So I went and looked in the small maternity section and it was quite the joke...hahah, I couldn't not laugh when I looked at the jeans. They were huge, There was no way I was fitting into any of them, They were all made for very large women and they look so funny with the front pouch, so unattractive it's hilarious. I just pictured Joe's face if I ever put jeans like that on, he would laugh his ass of...haha. The only thing I found was a pair of black work pants that are alot like my yoga pants and fold over..I think this alot better then the front pouch going over the belly...I don't like covering my belly and feeling so kept in, I find it uncomfortable. So I did buy the black very comfortable work pants and I also bought another pair of work pants that are just in a bigger size and are not maternity pants. These should do for abit at least. Once I'm done work it's moo moos for me...hahah. No probably not unfortunately because it will still be cold but I think I will stick to yoga pants. Practical and so comfortable.

I don't need many shirts at this point, I already really like showing off my little tummy so I like tighter shirts compared to the maternity shirts you buy that are really loose... but again the bigger I get the more room I will need. So of course I went and looked in the baby section in Talize for maybe a little to long...an hour of so hahah. And wow! so many cute things! If I already knew the sex I would have bought alot already. I must say though the boys section was very weak compared to the amount of girls baby clothes. They had the cutest baby girl clothes ever!! so many cute summer dresses my god... I had a couple in my cart because they are so cheap that why not buy them in case we do have a girl...however they were all around the size 6 months range and by that time it will be cold here so there was no point of buying little summer dresses, which was unfortunate because they were beautiful. I told Joe that when I got home, and he said
"Why are you buying dresses?? where having a boy" He is pretty convinced were having a boy, which worries me because I have a feeling were having a girl...hahah. We will see soon.
I did end up buying Osh Kosh short overalls, in a very nice washed out denim, which are for Baby Strong when he or she is 3 months. They were brand new with all the Osh Kosh tags still on it and only cost a couple $$ so why wouldn't I buy them. They had so much nice stuff, alot of stuff for when they are older so I will just have to wait. I told Joe I want to know the sex by Boxing day because Talize is having a store wide 50% sale on everything so I could go and buy all the cute things.

Tomorrow I have a cardiac ultrasound to make sure there is nothing seriously wrong with me, and then on Wednesday I have an appointment with Dr.Gratton (My OB) Iam going to try and see if they can do an ultrasound to determine the sex of the baby, but I doubt they will do it before 18 weeks, but I will try my best. Lots of appointments this week but by Friday at 3pm I will be done work for 9 days and then I work for 3 days and then off for another 4 days. I can't wait for the much needed break and Sister Jane will be here, so that's very exciting.

I have to go home now though, Take Care!!

A ridiculous article..

I read this ridiculous article on aggressive dogs and this is what the moron had to say about german shepherds :

German Shepherds can be really dangerous dogs because they are aggressive guard dogs that would actually attack an intruder, even worse killing the person. German Shepherds are sometimes used as police dogs because they are trained to kill or injure. If owned by a normal citizen, they can be very dangerous. Like, suppose that one of your family members came in to visit and the dog was not tied somewhere. What would happen, the dog would bark or attack. Even worse, kill. These dogs can be trained to aim for arms and legs.

This man is just ridiculous. First of all a dog is aggressive if they are trained to be aggressive, you don't get a german shepherd puppy that is already trained to be a guard dog. A human trains a dog to be aggressive, whether it's beating the dog, not feeding the dog...there are many ways a human can make a dog aggressive, and yes a german shepherd can make an excellent guard dog for many reasons, they have the power and strength to harm someone, intimidate intruders, they are easily trained to do whatever their owner says, and they will do whatever it is the owner wants because german shepherds are extremely loyal and will do anything to please their owners. This guy cracks me up also because he says " they are aggressive guard dogs that would actually attack an intruder" he says that like it's a surprise a guard dog would attack an intruder....what kind of guard dog doesn't attack intruders?! that is what they are trained to do you idiot.

I consider myself and Joe normal citizens I guess....and we own a german shepherd. In what way can Marley be dangerous? This man clearly knows nothing about the breed. The only way Marley would be dangerous to anyone is if someone was harming Joe, myself or even family members of ours....in this case I would expect Marley or any dog for this matter to do whatever they could to protect their owners...also I would imagine he would be dangerous to intruders, which in my opinion is one of their duties. I feel good that if Joe was ever away and I was by myself at home I would have Marley to protect me, its a nice feeling really. Most dog breeds would be dangerous in both of these examples.

His example is what cracks me up the most. He says if family members were to come in the house what would happen if the dog wasn't tied up. He goes on saying that they would bark, attack or maybe even kill...WHAT!? Is this guy for real. First of all german shepherds that aren't used as guard dogs are family pets..and make excellent family dogs. In the UK they are the 4th most popular breed of dog, and in the US they are 3rd most popular. They are very loyal and protective of the members of the family so for this guy to say they would attack a family member walking in the house is just simply ridiculous, and he can't be taken seriously.

People like this just kill me, and make it hard for people that own the breed to have to hear this kind of garbage. Dad took Marley and the clan to the ravine today and he said everyone that saw Marley put their dog on a leash...Joe and I have been experiencing this since he was very young. The other day in the ravine when Joe, dad and myself took the dogs out a women turned around when she saw us and then said " My dog doesn't like german shepherds" You may be surprised that Joe and I have heard this from many people. At the dog park it is the same thing, people always get nervous when Marley plays with their dog. It's sad really. It will only get worse in my opinion...so many parents today make their children scared of everything, especially dogs, and especially certain breeds. I always see parents with their children cross the road when were walking Marley, and I can just imagine what they are telling their kids. Joe's cousins cried when they saw Marley, and were absolutely terrified of him, it was like a tiger was standing in front of them. They wouldn't even pet him. The one time we took Marley to Komoka Park and some women said to us " My child is afraid of dogs" First let me tell you this "child" was probably 9 years old. My first thought was , why do you take your loser of a kid to Komoka Park where there are dogs everywhere...then I said "That's great your child in scared of dogs...what's your point? " Marley didn't go close to where the kid was, I wish he did though. I'm so sick of these people...basically saying my kid is afraid of dogs so please leave...Me and this lady had a few words for eachother and eventually Joe started giving his opinion to this cow after she called me a witch. She was mad Marley was off leash, and if he ran up to them, jumped on them or did anything like that I would understand....but he didn't do anything...So I told her my dog needs freedom just as much as her horrible rat like child, and why can't we all just get along. He did nothing, nothing at all...but she was one of those people that always has to make an issue of things and try to take people down...and guess what I have no time for people like this, and I will do as much as I can to put them in there place.

Anyways It's time for me to go home...Joe is finally work off.
Bye bye for now! Pics of the bathroom to come...it looks awesome!!

Megan

Kate...my opinion

So Kate...I wouldn't call myself an experienced person however Iam one to think I live by some routine.

Work is work and there isn't much way around that, so we just accept that so we can get our paycheck and pay the bills...however some time in your life wheather it's now or when you have children, or even when you get a dog your going to have to accept that routine is part of life, which isn't a bad thing...It doesn't mean you have to do the exact same thing everyday, it just means you have structure in your life.

First of all you should have the feeling of "I can't wait to come home". Now, I know my job is abit different, but the minuet I sit down at work I think to myself "I can't wait to go home". The number one reason is of course to see Joe. You need to love who your coming home to, or else this will make routine alot harder for you. If your excited about spending time with Lucas, then it doesn't really matter what you guys are doing.

But in all seriousness I don't really get why your even mentioning routine. You work and then you can do whatever you want for the rest of the day. You have no pets, no children, no house (I say this because a house does take some time and work) no huge bills or anything...so I don't really know why your stressing about this.

Just because you work and have an apartment doesn't mean you can't go out and do fun things. Joe and I go out all the time, go on adventures with the dogs, and do projects aroung the house. Anything we do together is fun and exciting to us...and I think that is how it should be.

Unfortunatly your not a celebrity, you don't have endless money, you aren't going to be doing different and exciting things each and everyday. The key is to be around people that really make you happy.

Thats all I have for now, I got to go. I hope you get what I'm saying.

Hello there..

Well, It's a pretty gloomy day in London Ontario. Not very cold, just rainy and wet... but hey I'll take this to snow any day of the week. As long as it snows for Christmas I'll be happy. It has been so mild that they haven't even begun the ice rink at Victoria Park. I walk threw the park everyday from my parking spot on my way to work and they are in the process of putting up all the lights.

Mother and I just came back from my appointment with my OB. Everything seems to be going well. They detected the babies heart beat and it is normal and everything is seems fine with the little babe. I have an ultrasound tomorrow which I always look forward to, hopefully I will get another picture to add to my collection. My book that I bought called " What to expect when your expecting" says my baby is about 3 inches long, and in this week it is starting to form vocal cords which is pretty neat.

All of my pants are pretty much too small for me at this point. I will have to go to Talize and look for some Maternity pants. However, I'm in the inbetween stage..I'm not yet big, but I do have a pot belly pig tummy so I can't fit into my size 3 pants no longer. If I could wear yoga pants to work there would be no issue, but unfortuantly I can't, I have a few days and no one has said anything yet, so I will probably push it as long as I can.

Well I should be heading home soon, Marley and Zenny are sitting here waiting for me. Just wanted to write a quick blogarino.

Take Care
xoxo

An update...

Hello Everyone

Happy Birthday Sister Jane! sorry it's a little late. I have been really busy lately so I apologize for wishing you a Happy birthday a little late. It sounds like you had a good day which is awesome. I'm so excited for you and Lucas to come visit in December, not to much longer.

So I'm feeling alot better lately, hardly any nausea anymore which is fantastic. Iam still really tired all the time, Lately Joe and I have been getting alot of sleep, usually a good 10 hour sleep. I just came back from an ultrasound appointment and I have another picture to add to my collection. It is so amazing to see our baby inside of my belly. He or She is a very active little one, Baby was jumping all over the place. The ultrasound women said how much baby was moving around. It was quite amazing to see my little baby jumping all around the womb, makes me so happy to know the little guy is doing well. I took a picture of the ultrasound image so you can all see. it is below..enjoy!

Baby Strong- 12 weeks

So our bathroom renovation is going good. It is alot more work then I thought. Joe has been working so hard and I'm so luckey to have him. He is so good at what he does, and knows so much. I like watching him work and I do tend to pick things up and I like watching all his knowledge go into his work. Once we started working on the bathroom we found out there was alot more work to do then what we originally thought. It was in quite horrible shape once we gutted it...the plumbing needed to be all re-done, the electrical needed to be all re-done, and the drywall needed to be all re-done as well. So right now we have the new bathtub in, the drywall is all done, and the plumbing and electrical are all re-done and work perfectly thanks to Joey. He also put in a vent fan which was needed. Tonight when he gets in we are going to work on the walls, and putty, and hopefully lay the tile floors.

Joe has been working very hard lately. He got promoted at work, and he is now working with the master plumber. He also got his own plumbing van which is awesome. He is thinking about taking his G2 gas technician course come January. He already has his G3, and the G2 is the next level. This would be two times a week for about a year, it's alot, but we think it's better to do it now, then when he has even more on his plate. I don't think I'm going to like it too much once the baby is born, but I know he is eventually going to have to do it so it may as well be now then when we have even more going on.

Christmas is coming, and unlike sister Jane I'm not looking forward to Christmas shopping, the busyness in the grocery stores and traffic all over the place. Joe and I are not spending alot of money this Christmas, there are many better places that money can go. Our Christmas presents to each other is the bathroom renovation, we set this in place before we started. There is nothing either of us really need, and I'm not a fan of having unnecessary "things" all over the place. Christmas to most people is about buying "things" and spending money. I love Christmas for the family time, food, traditions, and time off really. I don't mind a present or two, but going to Wal Mart at Christmas time and seeing hundreds of people spending so much money on such useless crap, all paying on there credit cards makes me sick. I hate it. Joe's family is the perfect example. Last year Joe's parents probably spent close to $8000.00 on presents for the family. It's all about show, seeing who can buy the most presents and who can have the most presents under the tree. They spend over $500.00 on me along. I didn't like it though. It felt wrong to me. They spent about $1000.00 on Ethan, it's just crazy. The crazy thing about it is that 3/4 of the garbage they bought last year is either broken, lost or in the garbage. Sorry Kate but it is consumerism. Joe told his parents not to spend alot on us this year. I think we are just going to ask for a video camera for both of us. We want one for when our little baby boo arrives.

Joey, Mar bar, and Zin Zen

Our Backyard in the fall time

Me in the hot tub, and Marley

Zenny Baby

Zenny is honestly the funniest, cutest little pup ever. She has such a halarious personality and no matter what she does you can't be mad at her because of how adorable she is. Marley and Zen are best buds, and spend all day playing around the house. Everywhere we take Zen we are stopped by people asking about her, no one has really heard of her breed so they usually have alot of questions. We bought her a little pink harness the other day, it has reflectors with little cherries on it. We had to get it because she refused to walk on a leash when she was wearing just her regular collar because she would just bite the leash. We took Marley and Zenny on a long leash walk the other day and it was quite pleasent..at first she was making quite the fuss, rolling around and making rediculous noises, but after a few mins she got the hang of it and did very well. It's so nice to walk a dog that doesn't feel like they are dislocating your arm the whole time...hahah. So now Joe walks Marley and I get little Zen, Works out perfectly. We must train them both to be very good on leash before I attemp to walk both dogs and a stroller...hahah, what a sight that would be. I do hope this can happen one day though..lol
Here are some pictures. Enjoy

Pavel - a video from the wedding

This a video the Nancy Seaton took...I forgot I even had this. The battery ran out so she wasn't able to get the whole ceremony...however Ellen I thought this was just great of Pavel, and you can show Hynek how good he did. Enjoy!

Zen!!!

Introducing Zen

Yes we got another puppy..

Little Zen joined our family Tuesday September 22nd. She is a Shiba Inu, which is a very rare breed. It is a Japanese breed and they are very hard to come about. I have only seen one in London and once I saw it I knew the next dog I was going to get would be a Shiba Inu. They are full of personality, and are just the cutest dogs. When they get older they look alot like foxes. We needed another dog because Marley is very needy and needs a play mate.We also looked into the future and when we have a real human baby he will need someone to keep him occupied, since we wont be able to dedicate all of our attention to him like we do now. Shiba Inu's are very active dogs and require alot of exercise like Shepherds..there are alot of similarities with the two breeds, however Shibas only get to be about 25 lbs...and since we didn't want another big dog, because I simply can't control two big dogs, we decided a Shiba was the breed for us. I find I relate alot to a Shiba, and in my opinion if I was a dog I would be that breed...lol.

So far she is doing great. Her and Marley are great together, he is already very protective of her. They play all night long, and it makes it so nice for Joe and I because we don't feel guilty anymore, looking at Marley laying down by himself. Now he is running around with little Zenny, and although she is small, she does keep up. I have to go though, still no Internet at the house, im at mom and dads. I will write again soon, i have really funny videos of Marley and Zen playing, however i dont have time to put them on...so here are a few pics of the new baby...she is just precious. More to come!!

Welcome to the Strong home

Hello there. I'm inviting you to take a look at our home - 1340 Wilton Ave. Here are some pictures of some of the rooms, however we still have work to do, and I will post more pictures in the future. We will be starting the kitchen renovations hopefully in the next couple of weeks. Enjoy!

Some of my favourite pieces so far...

I absolutly love this light fixture. I knew I wanted something different for this space, and not the typical formal chandaler thing, so I saw this at Home Depot and loved it. This is one of the pieces everyone notices when they come in the house, and everyone seems to really love it. At first when I was explaining this light fixture to Joe he was abit hesitant, however when he saw it in the dining room hung up, he loved it - I think i did well with this one and it really brings some character into the space.

This is a old man face carved into wood- Love it

When we moved into the house this mirror was already there, however it had no frame- Joe did an excellent job on the frame and stained it a nice colour. Adds alot of drama.



Haven't done too much in the bedroom yet...this is the colour that was already painted and we both really like it so were keeping it the colour it is. It is a small bedroom but it's cozy and gets alot of light.



Our Backyard....where we spent most of our time...

Just around home..





And a random...Joe jumping off the shed at his parents house...lol

Hope you enjoyed....More to come later.