As I awoke to the sweet strains of Old McDonald and BINGO!, I realized with a start that today is the first day of Ike's summer vacation. Moms everywhere know what this means -- basically that time for showers, house cleaning, and blogging is suddenly diminished to the point of non existence. Le sigh. So while you may not see me more than a few times a week while Ike is running rampant through the house, smearing jelly on anything that will stand still, be not afraid (at least that's what I'm telling myself). I'll still be around.

I also want to say a big huge sloppy THANK YOU for all your kind and generous comments last week. It's amazingly comforting to hear from people I both know and don't know -- many of whom have been there, done that, and lived to tell the tale. And for those of you without kids, don't worry too much. It's not all tears and sleep deprivation. It's also a lot of hugs and sweet baby kisses and funny stories about legos and pizza that make no sense.

So, short post today. But I'll probably be back tomorrow and until then I need for you to put your heads together and figure out how to make my kitchen look like this. It could happen, right?

Ike's room is almost done, the nursery has been painted, curtains just got boughten for the fireplace wall, I've made 8000 trips to Ikea recently, and I still need help with the master bedroom and kitchen.

We have lots to discuss. Stay tuned.