A Forty Year-Old Ranch

Halloween Goodies

2011-10-22T18:12:00.001-07:00

We are getting geared up for Halloween here! When I went to the Dollar Tree last week, I saw the cutest Halloween goodies. So this week, I went back and decided to make little bags filled with treats for the kiddos' friends and cousins. I bought a pack of 15 paper Halloween bags and my daughter stuffed them with candy and a few other things.

I found these free printable tags at The Twinery to attach to each bag.

We also made some white chocolate covered marshmallows by dipping marshmallows in melted white chocolate and my daughter decorated them with sprinkles. We then tied them in little baggies and added them to the goody bags.

I am sure all the kids will enjoy them, I know my daughter sure enjoyed making them!

Fall Mantel

2011-10-12T10:19:00.000-07:00

I decided a few weeks ago, that I would begin putting out my fall decor. I pulled the box out of the attic and set my mantel up with all the things I'd collected and made for it last year. I lived with it for a couple of weeks like that, and I just was not happy. I personally believe that Pinterest is to blame ;) Have you seen all of the gorgeous fall decor floating around over there???

Once I saw all of the beautiful fall wreaths, table settings, mantels, and such, I decided I HAD to try and spruce up my mantel. So I found this gorgeous wreath by Martha Stewart and decided to try a slightly modified version.

Like a good blogger, I did not take any pics of the process. Sorry! I simply took a $1 store wreath and hot glued the leaves all around it. Then I hot glued the pine cones and acorns to the wreath. After I finished all the gluing, I went through and folded the tips of the leaves in half to give them some texture.

I hung it on an old window and used the same banner from my mantel last year.

I added a vase of wheat and a cornucopia on the left side.

And a vase with the remainder of the acorns and the book pumpkin I made last year.

I am loving the book page projects right now in case you cannot tell ;) What about you? Were you inspired by Pinterest or Blogland when it comes to your Fall decor?

Partying at:

Picnic Table

2011-09-26T14:16:00.000-07:00

When my husband built our screened porch this spring, we got rid of the huge table that was previously under the carport. We temporarily replaced it with a tiny two person bistro style table that we had been cramming our family of four around for dinners outside. A couple of months ago, my hubby built us a new table and bench. It suits our family much better and can sit around 7-8 people.

I wanted a picnic style table, but also loved the farmhouse table I saw from Courtney at French Country Cottage. So I took elements from each. My husband built the table and also a bench that he attached to the wall. Our two kiddos had tipped over the chairs a couple of times, so I thought a bench attached to the wall would be safer.

Since he built it, we've spent many nights eating dinner outside. I love it. The screen room is quickly becoming my favorite room in the house. Especially since he also replaced the old chain link fence that was knocked down in the storm, with a brand new privacy fence! I told you, we've been busy! I haven't had a chance to decorate much yet, but I am really excited about getting started on that next summer.

He's Here!

2011-09-12T12:35:00.000-07:00

I have been out of blogland for a couple of months. It's been hectic here for sure. We have had many projects going on, and a few days ago I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy! I thought I would take a minute to introduce you to the newest member of our family :) . Clark was born weighing 9lbs 3 oz at 37 weeks! A big boy for sure. We are all head over heels for him. And we are slowly adjusting to life with 3 kids now. I think the transition from two to three is harder than I expected. We are definitely outnumbered! Here are a couple of pics of our beautiful boy. These pics were taken by my very talented sister in law Lisa.

I am very excited to share the projects we worked on in the past couple of months. So I will be posting those soon! For now, I am going to attempt to sneak a nap in, haha!

Patio Furniture

2011-07-05T10:47:00.000-07:00

It was a very busy Independence Day weekend at the Forty Year-Old Ranch! They say that women go through nesting towards the end of their pregnancies. However, I really think that my hubby is going through it right now. He is running around like crazy trying to get the last few things checked off the to-do list in the next two months. We had those storms come through that we are still trying to fix things from. We also have the kiddos room we are working on, along with a few other projects around the house. No project is easy with two young children running around, but we both know that once we add a newborn to the mix, not much is going to get done around here for awhile! So he is definitely always working on something.

I cannot say that I did much this weekend, other than pick out rugs and fabrics, and stand there looking over his shoulder with my hands on my hips. But I just have to show off what he has done!

First off remember the wrought iron patio set we found at Goodwill a few months ago for just $20??!!

Well, hubby painted them a beautiful blue-grey. A color that he actually suggested!

I found a beautiful outdoor rug on clearance at Target for just $35!

And these beautiful cushions at Home Depot on clearance for just $5 each!

For now, I have just added a few hydrangea blooms. But I am looking forward to adding a few vintage accessories to the tables. I just *LOVE* all the colors together!

Stay tuned for all the other projects that have been going on around the Forty Year-Old Ranch!

Partying at:
Inspiration Friday @ At The Picket Fence
Feathered Nest Friday @ The French Country Cottage
Transformations and Treasures @ Pink Postcard

A Pinwheel Party

2011-06-28T09:55:00.000-07:00

My baby girl just recently turned 4! I had seen a post on Hostess With the Mostess that inspired me to create a pinwheel themed party for her. I had found some adorable paper and large pinwheels at Hobby Lobby and went to town making dozens more pinwheels to decorate with. The pics are once again, courtesy of my wonderful sister-in-law, Lisa.

We had a small candy bar, with treat bags for all the kiddos to make themselves a yummy goody bay.

I made a banner using more of the scrapbook paper and a few paper pinwheels.

My wonderful Step-Sis made the cupcakes, and I used the same scrapbook paper to make little pinwheel cupcake toppers.

I cut some fresh hydrangeas from our enormous hydrangea bush in the front yard to use for decoration. I love that we are able to have fresh flowers around the house all summer long!

Lisa, my sister-in-law also made her adorable shirt and bows!

Other than being extremely hot that day, everything turned out adorable! The kids all had a blast and my daughter loved her pinwheels. Thank you to my wonderful SIL, Lisa, and Stepsis, Zonia! I couldn't pull off these parties without you guys!

We are about halfway done with the kids new shared room. I completed my first "real" sewing project this week, valances for their room! Definitely not a professional, but I am pleased with it being my first project. I will be sharing those very soon!

Vacations with kids

2011-06-16T05:46:00.000-07:00

First of all, I apologize that I have not had many projects going on in our home. I have a number of things on the "to do" list, and hope to get to them very soon. We just got back from vacation and are trying to get back into our routine. I wanted to share a couple of simple ideas that I have come across over the past few years when it comes to vacationing with kids. This year my daughter was old enough to really create some special memories, so I really wanted to do a few simple things to help her capture those memories.

My first idea was that I decided to bring along a jar I found at Target for her to create her own memory jar. I found the idea at Martha Stewart. When we got home, we filled it with sand from the beach, shells, a small piece of driftwood and pictures from our trip. I hot glued the pictures onto the jar. I also made a small tag labeling the trip and tied it around the lid using some twine.

I decided to display the jar in our den along with a few other vacation related items. I set the jar on a vintage suitcase with an antique box camera, some fresh hydrangea blooms from the yard, some candles, and a vintage postcard.

My second idea I discovered few years ago on our way to Jacksonville. I read an article in a magazine on the plane about creating memories on vacation. There were several ideas for vacations in the article, but the one that stuck with me the most was an idea about postcards. So I decided to try it out. Every time we went to visit a spot on our vacation, I picked up a postcard. I wrote on the back of it about our time, and then towards the end of the trip, mailed them home. Once we got home, we had a postcard waiting in the mail. And for the next few days, more came in. We only had my daughter at the time, and she was really too young to understand. But this year was different. She was so excited about getting her postcards when she got home. And it really helped bring up memories she had of the trip. I scrapbook the postcards, too. So it really helps document our vacation.

What about you? Do you have any ideas for vacationing with kids that make things even more fun for them?

We have started working on the bedroom situation for the kiddos. We are finally through our crazy-busy, early summer phase. So, now that things are calming down, I will be able to focus more on getting things checked off the to do list before the baby comes! So stay tuned!

My Little Man's Party....

2011-05-19T10:38:00.001-07:00

Well, it has been almost 3 weeks since I last posted! We've been working like crazy around here clearing trees, dealing with the insurance company, finding out the gender of the newest addition, planning for vacation, planning birthdays, and beginning the process of rearranging rooms for the kiddos! Crazy, I tell ya'!

But in the midst of all of it, my little guy turned two. So I decided to throw him a "Manly Bash." I have gotten inspiration all over blogland, so I have many names to drop throughout this post. Gotta give credit, where credit is due!!! Who would have known manly themed parties were so popular?!

I first read about the theme at Yours, Mine, & Ours. She did an adorable party for her one year old son in the Manly theme. Once it came closer to my little man's day, I started googling to get more ideas. I was really shocked to see how many ideas on this theme there were! Pulling inspiration from all these wonderful parties, left me not having to come up with much on my own! And with my pregnancy brain lately, I am glad I didn't have too ;) . On top of that, I had so much help from wonderful family members, that the party turned out wonderful.

Here is how his party ended up. Most of the pictures are taken by my wonderful sister-in-law, Lisa.

To welcome all of our guests, I put out an easel with "Happy Birthday, Max!" on it and a few balloons at the door of the screened porch.

I made manly signs for all the food and drinks, and my mother-in-law made him an adorable tie t-shirt. I got the inspiration for those ideas here.

I put glass Coca-Cola and Cream Soda bottles into metal buckets with ice.

I found my inspiration for the cake here, which my talented step-sis made. And I made several mustaches on a stick for guests to try on from a tutorial I got here.

I made a banner using scrapbook paper, grocery bags, and twine. And also made a clothes line to hang pictures of my little man from using twine. I had found the idea to use grocery bags for the banner and the picture clothes line idea here.

Here is one more shot of the table set-up.

I want to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who helped make my little man's day so special! I love you all!

Oh yeah! I bet you all were wondering what we found out at the doctor ;) We will be welcoming another baby.....BOY to our family in September! I am so excited!

Southern Storms

2011-04-28T10:23:00.001-07:00

Seeing the coverage of the storms that hit the South/Southeast yesterday, has been heartbreaking. So many homes destroyed, lives taken, and families devastated. We were very fortunate. We did get damage, but thankfully not much to our actual home and we are all completely safe.

A very large, old tree fell into our backyard, missing the house, garage, and shed.

We also had a fairly large limb fall from another tree onto the roof above my daughter's room, and then onto the heat and air unit.

For now we are playing the waiting game. As you can imagine, there are tens of thousands of insurance claims in our county alone. Many people had damage to their homes and other property that was far worse than ours. So for now, we wait. We will start clearing the debris soon, to see how much damage we really have. No matter what we find once we clear the debris, we know for sure that none of it has structurally damaged our home to the point where we have to leave. Everything is a fairly easy fix; fences, possible roof repair, repair of our air conditioner unit. Nothing major.

Please pray for those who have been devastated by these storms. Their are many around the South who lost lives, their entire homes, or family members. Tornados are always a frightening thing for us here. They last for just a few minutes, but the devastation is indescribable. A few days ago had marked the two year anniversary of a very strong tornado that ripped through our city and took 2 lives. It was just a mile from our home. I still remember, I was 2 weeks away from delivering my son. I looked out the front door and could see the funnel cloud over the trees in the distance. I grabbed my then 1 1/2 year old daughter and we camped out in the hallway until it passed. We were so blessed, it missed us completely. This time, our city doesn't seem to have near the extent of damage that the tornado two years ago caused. But some of the damage from this storm is right in the same area as the tornado two years ago. My heart goes out to all the families who lost loved ones or homes in this line of storms.

Herb Garden

2011-04-21T14:33:00.000-07:00

We recently inherited an antique wagon. I loved it immediately and knew exactly where I wanted it. I have always wanted an herb garden and I knew it would be the perfect spot to have one. So I set it inside the new screened patio and went to the local nursery and picked up a few herbs. I planted them in terra cotta pots and set the pots inside the wagon. I really liked it, but thought it needed something more. This is the part where I admit, I completely forgot to take a picture of the wagon beforehand ;)

I decided I would try adding the words "Fresh Herbs" on the front. So I found the font I wanted, printed it on cardstock, and cut it out using a razor blade.

I then taped it onto the front of the wagon and sponged the paint on.

When I pulled the card stock off, it needed some touch ups. So I used a thin brush and tried to straighten up the edges. Then my hubby sanded it a little, to distress it. And VIOLA! My little herb garden :)

I'll be partying here this week:

Inspiration Friday @ At The Picket Fence
Feathered Nest Friday @ The French Country Cottage
Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest
Transformations and Treasures @ Pink Postcard
Junkin' Finds Friday @ A La Carte

Spring Mantel

2011-04-14T14:44:00.000-07:00

I finished up my spring mantel this week. I decided to keep it very simple. The barn wood sign was a perfect centerpiece and I didn't want to detract from it at all. So I used a few organic elements, and kept the colors green and white. Here is what I ended up with:

I am really enjoying it! It might even stay up through the summer. Hope everyone is enjoying the beautiful spring weather!

I'll be partying here this week:

Inspiration Friday @ At The Picket Fence
Feathered Nest Friday @ The French Country Cottage
Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest
Transformations and Treasures @ Pink Postcard
Junkin' Finds Friday @ A La Carte

Change is a Good Thing

2011-04-12T11:14:00.000-07:00

"Lots of changes, ol' Max. Lots of changes."

I hear that movie quote often in my head right now. Please tell me someone knows what movie its from??

Anyway, I figured it was time to fill you all in on my lighter posting habits lately and some other changes going on in our lives right now. I have spent the past couple of months chasing after a three year old and a one year old in between running to the bathroom and running on fumes because of sheer exhaustion. Want to know why? Well, if you guessed that we are expecting number three, you'd be correct! We will be welcoming number three sometime in mid-September. I am happy to say that the morning sickness and the shock of soon being completely outnumbered by little people is starting to subside here in our house. The exhaustion, not so much. Our 3 year old daughter has taken the news well, except she demands it be a girl. No matter how many times we tell her we have zero control of that matter, she continues to let her feelings be known. She wants a sister. Period.

So once we find out the gender (in just a couple of weeks), you will be seeing some posting on room rearraging and such. In light of this news, I finally decided that since we were gonna do this whole multiple kid thing :), I'd better start to enjoy cooking. And it needed to be healthy to boot. Because lets just say in the past two pregnancies, I gained slightly more than the... um... recommended amount. I have been checking out healthy recipes, and trying lots of new things. I had NO idea how delicious and fun healthy cooking could be. I have found a few new wonderful blogs that I am loving getting new recipes from and my family is certainly enjoying it too. I want my cooking to become something my kids miss once they grow up and move out, like I do my grandmothers' cooking. So it's something I will be working on. Maybe I will even share some of the recipes we try with you guys!

I am telling you about these changes to say that the posting around here will probably not pick up too much. And it will probably focus more on smaller projects for awhile versus full on remodeling. We have birthdays, vacation, anniversaries, and starting to homeschooling my daughter for preschool this fall coming up. And I'll have to fit in giving birth somewhere in it all, hehe. Life is hectic right now here. I still plan on posting, crafting, renovating, thrifting and all that fun stuff. But it at least explains why I am absent at times and why topics may not be full on remodeling projects for awhile. This will probably never be a blog with a post every day. It's more like a once or twice a week, kind of blog. I hope thats ok with everyone.

Well, that's about it for the changes around here. I will be posting my spring mantel in a few days, so be sure to check that out!

Barn Wood

2011-04-04T12:06:00.000-07:00

My husband's parents had been carrying around several old pieces of barn wood for awhile. It came from an old barn on hubby's grandfather's property that was torn down years ago. I had been eyeing it since I came into the family. When my mother-in-law cleaned out her garage, she decided to give it to me. And it has been sitting in my garage ever since.

I had been trying to think of the perfect use for it. And then it hit me! I decided I would try using it as the centerpiece for my spring mantel.

First, my hubby attached three of the boards together and cut them all the same size. I then used my trusty Cricut machine and the storybook cartridge to cut out the branches, birds, and font out of black vinyl and vintage sheet music.

I am almost finished with my mantel. I have just a few more things to do. I decided to keep it very simple, and I am really loving it. The bright green, chippy paint is perfect for Spring. And best of all, the vinyl will just peel off if I ever want to change it up!

I'll be partying here this week:

Inspiration Friday @ At The Picket Fence
Feathered Nest Friday @ The French Country Cottage
Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest
Transformations and Treasures @ Pink Postcard
Junkin' Finds Friday @ A La Carte

Spring Is Here!

2011-03-22T13:19:00.001-07:00

I am so, SO happy spring has decided to arrive! Our yard is beautiful with all the trees blooming and the first signs of life returning. All the windows are open in the house. We are enjoying the beautiful, warm breeze and the 80 degree temperatures! We've eaten dinner almost every night in the new screened patio.

And do you know what spring means???? It means people are getting that itch to start spring cleaning. Which means Craigslist is all abuzz, and yard sales are popping up left and right! Its like music to my ears :) I recently found a gorgeous antique settee on Craigslist that I wanted to share. We had a chair in this spot in the den that I didn't love. So, when I found this for $120, I jumped on it and put my chair on Craigslist for the same amount. It sold within a few days, making it an even swap!

I love it. The lady I bought it from reupholstered it. I love the fabric she chose, and she did a really good job reupholstering it. My kiddos love it, too. It is just the perfect size for them. In the evening while we watch tv, they climb up and read books. I think if fits the room perfectly!

I'll be partying here this week:

Inspiration Friday @ At The Picket Fence
Feathered Nest Friday @ The French Country Cottage
Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest
Transformations and Treasures @ Pink Postcard
Junkin' Finds Friday @ A La Carte

It's Done!

2011-03-16T11:17:00.000-07:00

We finished our screened patio this weekend. I was so excited to have it done. The Hubs still wants to put a few more pieces of trim work up, but for the most part, we are finished. Now all it needs is decorating :) Here is what it looks like now.

And here is how it started out. It was just a carport. We never used it as a carport though, because there is also a detached two car garage at the end of the driveway.

It wasn't a hard project, but we definitely hit some snags along the way. I think the biggest thing was trying to use the spline technique to get the screen in at the top. There are systems sold that are supposed to make the entire screening in process very easy. They consist of vinyl tracks in which you use spline and little wheel to push the screen tightly into those tracks. We decided against using this system because it was much more expensive. We opted to staple the screen into place and then cover the staples with trim. However, the existing carport roof had a spline groove at the top, so we'd planned to use spline at the tops of the screen, and then staple the rest. When we started trying to actually work the screen and spline into that groove, we quickly changed our minds. We got so frustrated that my husband added some pieces of wood at the top, so we could staple the entire thing. Stapling the screen in was almost foolproof. I think most people could do it very easily. But we found using the spline and grooves to be a difficult technique. And by not using the entire system of spline and tracks it ended up costing us under $400 to complete this project. Can't beat that!

I am hoping we will be able to add a ceiling fan, get a nice table set, and find some great decor for the room this summer. We have already been really enjoying it. I know it is going to be so nice to be able to sit outside and not worry about the pesky mosquitos! Here are a few more pictures.

I am also so excited to share my latest Craigslist find! It is amazing, so stay tuned :)

I'll be partying here this week:

Inspiration Friday @ At The Picket Fence
Feathered Nest Friday @ The French Country Cottage
The DIY Showoff Project Parade
Transformation Thursday @ The Shabby Chic Cottage
Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest
Transformations and Treasures @ Pink Postcard

It's Coming Along

2011-03-09T12:27:00.000-08:00

The crazy weather we've had here lately has really thrown us for a loop! Its been raining like crazy and going from 60 degree temps to 30 degrees the next day! It is making for slow going when it comes to the screened porch. But we are getting there.

Hubby has one wall completely done with screen and lattice. The other wall still needs screen at the top and he needs to add the door. And of course, he will then have to trim it all out to make it pretty. The door needs to be treated with polyurethane so it will hold up to the elements. It will have to wait until we have some nice weather though. Fingers crossed that we will get some this weekend!

I have been looking for decor to start collecting for the new porch. But so far I just have not found what I am looking for. I will just have to wait for the garage sales to start. We need to find a new table set too. So I have been scouring Craigslist and hopefully will find one soon.

Here is our progress so far.

Hopefully, I will be back next week to show you the finished product!

Home Goods and A Start....

2011-03-03T12:27:00.000-08:00

I can officially say I have been to Home Goods now! We drove about an hour north to buy something off Craigslist for the kiddos on Friday. As we were pulling off the interstate, I saw a huge shopping center with a Home Goods in it. So once we made our purchase, we made a pit stop at Home Goods. It was amazing! I could've walked around the store for hours. But my kiddos had been in the car for an hour and were not very happy about shopping. So I took in everything as quickly as I could and left empty handed. I will definitely be going back in the very near future.

Saturday, my hubby decided to start working on screening in the patio. He got all the lumber and supplies and began working. It has been slow going because we started getting sick Sunday. Its been a rough winter with sicknesses for us. We are on the mend, though, and thankfully it passed through us all pretty quickly. He is about to get back to working on it. Only two sides of the patio need walls built and he already has one framed up. So it shouldn't be too long now!

A Space of My Own

2011-02-23T11:04:00.000-08:00

I would love to have a beautifully decorated and organized little craft room. A room where I could be completely alone to create all by myself. A little place to escape and quietly have a cup of coffee. Something like this.

Photo from Country Living

Unfortunately, we just don't have the space for that. So, I had made do by cramming my stuff into a corner of my husband's office.

It was never pretty, and never well organized. Everything was thrown on top of a desk that was entirely too small and impossible to use. Much of it overflowing onto the floor, my husbands desk, or anywhere else it could find a resting spot. It needed some help. I had bought a couple of scrapbook organizer boxes at Michael's, but they sat on the floor next to my spot in the corner for almost a year. When I saw the same organizer boxes go on sale, I bought three more and decided to make myself a new station. From there, I assembled them all and got them situated the way I wanted them. Then hubby added a piece of shelving to the top and mounted it all together.

I found an old office chair in my in-law's garage, and reupholstered the seat in a cute floral fabric. I think I will paint the frame of the chair once the weather warms up.

It's not perfect or pretty, it's not a room entirely my own, and the room itself is in need of a new paint color. But I love having my own little corner, where everything is in it's place and easily accessed. I don't have to worry about curious little fingers messing with projects I need to leave out overnight, or my hubby trying to find his laptop under the mountain of scrapbook stickers. No one else uses that spot, but me. So in it's own little way, it is perfect! :)

Now if I can only figure out how to work that sewing machine!

Finally! A Goodwill Find!

2011-02-15T11:09:00.000-08:00

First off, I have been a terrible blogger lately :( ! I have had a million things going on in our little corner of the world. And finding time to do a project, work on the house, or even clean my house has been nearly impossible lately. So, I apologize. With the warmer weather, I am getting so excited at the idea of yard sales and getting work started on the few projects we have lined up.

In all of the craziness, I stopped by the local Goodwill the other day just to see what they had. I NEVER find anything at Goodwill, ever. I get so jealous when everyone in blogland shows off what they find at their local thrift stores, because the few thrift stores we have here don't ever seem to have anything. But that day I scored big!

I found a wrought iron patio set in need of a little TLC there. It consisted of 4 rocking chairs and a coffee table. Each piece was marked $7.99. BUT it was half off day!!! I scored the entire set for $20! I cannot wait until it warms up so I can bust out the spray paint and get her all fixed up!

I am thinking of spray painting the set black, but a fresh coat of white might be nice too. What do you think? Our big project this summer (fingers crossed) will hopefully be screening in that patio. We have mosquitoes really bad here and it makes it nearly impossible to enjoy the yard during the summer. I have such a vision for the space and I am really hoping I can find the perfect thrifty treasures this year to pull it off. This set will fit in perfectly with what I have in mind! And maybe once we get the momentum going with one project, we'll have the guts to tackle that brick wall in the den ;) .

A New Tool

2011-02-05T11:48:00.000-08:00

I just bought a new tool that I am so in love with. I went to JoAnn's and found their shape punch collection on sale. They are basically hole punches that cut out a certain shape ( I know, I am probably the last person to discover how great these things are). I picked up the butterfly, but will probably be going back for a few more. I thought I'd use it for scrapbooking. But I quickly learned the possibilities are endless with this thing! I have been hot gluing butterflies to everything! I cut butterflies out of scrapbook paper, sheet music, and even an old dictionary.

I had been looking for a way to display my daughter's art work in the playroom. I saw a post by Vanessa at Southern In My Heart. She had used clipboards to display her kiddos art work in the playroom. I didn't have any clipboards on hand, so I decided to use clothes pins. I modge podged some sheet music onto them and carefully nailed them into the wall. I then made a little banner above it with more sheet music and a few butterflies :)

Speaking of the playroom, I wanted to show you what I have recently discovered pocket doors are perfect for. My daughter is three and a half, and I started working with her this year. I am a certified teacher, so I have been tossing around the idea of homeschooling my children. I haven't made my decision yet for the school years, but I knew I at least wanted to homeschool her in the preschool years. I knew I was going to need a place to go over the basics with her.... calendar, colors, alphabet, etc. So I decided to use the back of the pocket door in the playroom. It works perfect for us right now, because no one knows it is there. And because it is always put away when not in use, so my one year old cannot ~~destroy~~ play with it. I took these pics last week, so ignore the fact that the calendar is a week off ;)

I'll be partying this week at some of the parties in my Linky Tab!

My God Box

2011-01-28T13:09:00.000-08:00

I have always struggled with worry. In fact, it's a struggle that several members of my family have as well. I know that worry is not from God and that worrying will not change any outcomes. But I still find myself lying awake at night with it all. When I saw a post on Ella Mae's Barn Gathering about the God Box, it really hit me as something I wanted to incorporate into my own home. The concept was to write down your worries, put them in the box, let them go, and trust that He would take care of them.

I went to Hobby Lobby a few days later, and found this red box in the Christmas clearance section. I placed it with a picture that my Mom cross stitched for me years ago. I added in a lamp, a jewelry box my hubby made for me, and a handmade kaleidoscope we found during our time in Florida. It's a quiet space in the corner of our bedroom, with an antique chair and side table that I can sit quietly in during nap time. Perfect for focusing on those things that I need to hand over to Him. Things I need to trust He will take care of in His time and in His way. And even though my kiddos are still to young to understand the concept of it all, I look forward to passing it on to them later on.

I also wanted to thank Rondell at Something Nice and Pretty, Holly At Hoosier At Heart, and Lauren at West Furniture Revival for thinking of me with the Stylish Blogger Award. Be sure to check out all of their lovely blogs!

A Little Inspiration

2011-01-18T13:21:00.000-08:00

I am having a hard time getting the creative juices flowing right now. But since I put up my winter mantel, it has gotten me thinking about my den. The den was the room that sold us on this house. I loved the fireplace, bookshelves, brickwork and the high ceilings. I knew it had so much potential. We've come a long way in there since we bought the house three years ago, adding new hardwoods and painting all the cabinets and trimwork. But the decor is mostly stuff I've just thrown together. Here's how it looks now.

I am loving all the white rooms I am seeing lately and that is really the direction I would love to go in this room. These are the rooms I am currently drooling over.

Photo From Pottery Barn

Photo from Ideal Home Magazine

Photo from Country Living

The leather couches really need to stay. Let's face it sippie cup spills are much easier to wipe up off of leather. But the chair could definitely go. I don't think I will ever be able to convince my hubby to let go of that coffee table. We got it at a yard sale before we got married, and the entire table top pulls up to make one huge tv tray. And we actually eat dinners as a family there on lazy Sunday evenings *blush*.

I would love to add a big chandelier and get new curtains. The entire back wall of the room is also exposed brickwork. It makes the room very dark. I am considering painting it all. But I am super nervous since it will be a permanent move once the first brushstroke goes on! The biggest thing that I am dying to add are some beams running across the ceiling. Can you just imagine how much brighter it would be with all the brick white and some beautiful white beams running across the ceiling? Oh, it sounds heavenly!

Who knows when (or if) any of this will actually happen. After tackling that major bathroom renovation before the holidays, my husband is enjoying the down time himself. There is something about the drab winter weather that just makes you want to curl up next to the fire and do nothing!

Well, I am off to see what's going on in blogland and hopefully get my butt motivated to get started on something...anything!

Winter Mantel

2011-01-13T11:41:00.000-08:00

I am finally going to share my winter mantel. We have gotten so much snow in the past week, so this mantel is fitting in perfectly right now.

I knew I wanted to try using all whites. So I shopped around the house for items to use. I did buy the snowflakes at the Dollar Tree for 50 cents each after Christmas. Everything else, I made or was something I already had.

I shared the info on the coffee filter wreath here.

I added a couple of candles and a small white plate on the left side of the mantel. I set one of the candleholders on top of a roll of twine. I love the natural look of the twine.

On the other side of the mantel, I added a bigger white plate on top of some old books. I then added a snowflake Christmas ornament to the center of the plate and a small vase of white flowers.

I also added another snowflake and a grouping of snowmen on a side shelf.

Like I said in a previous post, this is making me want to change a few other elements of the room to white. It just seems so simple and elegant. Hope you are all enjoying the snow like we have.

I'll be partying here:
Inspiration Friday @ Southern In My Heart
Feathered Nest Friday @ The French Country Cottage
The DIY Showoff Project Parade
Amaze Me Monday @ Dittle Dattle
Anything Related @ All Thingz Related
Transformation Thursday @ The Shabby Chic Cottage
Strut Your Stuff @ Somewhat Simple
Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest

Coffee Filter Wreath

2011-01-06T11:30:00.000-08:00

I have been wanting to try a coffee filter project for awhile now. Then I saw this gorgeous wreath over at All Thingz Related and fell in love. I knew I had to try it. It took me about an hour to do and was fairly simple. Rebekah posted all the instructions on her site, so be sure to check it out if you want to try it. I do recommend adding a dab of hot glue to hold each bundle of filters in place on the wire form because mine moved around alot.

I have made it the focal point of my winter mantel along with a little banner I made from scrapbook paper, vinyl lettering, and twine. I messed up a little in cutting out the first triangle, but I say it just gives it character ;) . I am loving the gorgeous whites on the mantel in my living room so much right now that I am very tempted to change out a few other things to white as well. I will share the whole mantel with you in a few days. This is just the sneak peek for now.

Hope everyone has a fabulous weekend!

I'll be partying here:
Inspiration Friday @ Southern In My Heart
Feathered Nest Friday @ The French Country Cottage

My Favorites of 2010

2010-12-29T18:53:00.000-08:00

It seems like everyone is posting their favorite projects of the year, so I thought it would be fun to join along.

This has been a huge year for not only me, but my entire family. My husband started working in the family business, my baby boy turned one, my sweet girl (who I swear I just had yesterday) turned three, I amped up my addiction to yard sales and Craigslist, I began my blog, and renovated/redecorated over half the rooms in our home. We've made so much progress. Here are a few of my favorite projects of 2010.

The Playroom/ Front Living Room:

The Entryway:

The Laundry Room:

My Book Wreath:

Yard Sale Chest:

Distressed Canvas:

Fall Mantel

My favorite project of all was our Master Bathroom.

I hope everyone has had a wonderful year. I am so excited to see what 2011 holds for everyone. Happy New Year!

Linking Up Here!

Merry Christmas

2010-12-24T09:15:00.000-08:00

I want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas. I hope you enjoy the next few days with all of your families'. My two children are filled to the brim with the excitement and magic of the season. And we are loving all the family time we've been blessed with over the last two days. I am looking forward to the rest of this special time. My house is filled with the sights, smells, and sounds of Christmas.

From my family to yours, Merry Christmas!

Poinsettias

2010-12-13T11:24:00.000-08:00

I decided I wanted to make some felt poinsettias the other day. They are so beautiful and I thought they would look great in the garland that I had wrapped around my porch posts on the front of my house.

I had seen a couple in blogland that were my inspiration. One over at A Rosy Note, and another at Gwenny Penny's Haul Out the Holly Party. Both are just gorgeous examples! Mine are a little different, no sewing involved. Here is how I did it.

Supplies Needed:
Red Felt
Green Felt
Red Pipe Cleaners
White Pom Poms
Hot Glue Gun

First, I cut out the petals. Keeping one side flat and cutting to a point on the other end. I did not use a template, just free handed it all. You'll need eight petals per flower. I tried to cut four slightly smaller than the other four.

I then took four petals and overlapped each petal, like this.

When I got to the fourth petal, I overlapped it on one petal, and tucked the other side underneath the petal next to it. I then did the same with the next four petals and glued the two sets of petals together. It should look like this.

I then added some small white pom pom balls in the center.

Then, I cut a green leaf, the same way I cut the petals, and glued it to the back of the flower to stick out behind the petals.

All that was left was hot gluing a red pipe cleaner to the back as a way of attaching it to the garland.

Pretty easy! And here is the finished product all over my house.

I'll be partying here this week:
The DIY Showoff Project Parade
Deck the Halls @ Between Naps on the porch
Amaze Me Monday @ Dittle Dattle
Anything Related @ All Thingz Related
Table Top Tuesday @ A Stroll Thru Life
Transformation Thursday @ The Shabby Chic Cottage
Strut Your Stuff @ Somewhat Simple
Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest
Inspiration Friday @ Southern In My Heart
Feathered Nest Friday @ The French Country Cottage

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Christmas season. Only 12 days to go!

Christmas Cards

2010-12-08T16:55:00.000-08:00

I'd like to introduce you to three bloggers. Three bloggers who have made my Christmas cards exceptionally beautiful this year!

A few weeks ago, I posted about winning a giveaway at Pink Postcard. The woman behind Pink Postcard is Denise, a very talented blogger. She has a beautifully decorated home and her blog is one of my favorite reads!

The giveaway was a design credit with Megan at Red Pearl Designs. Megan contacted me soon after the giveaway and we decided to go for a custom Christmas card design.

I waited until we were able to get some family pics taken by my sister-in-law, Lisa. She is just starting out in her photography business, Lisa ReAnn Photography, but her photos are already amazing! She worked with my two ~~heathens~~ children with the patience only a mother of two small children could. A mother of twins to be exact! Her photography site is currently under construction, but she can be found over at Twin Inspiration, her adorable crafting blog! She managed to get some beautiful shots, and I knew they would be perfect for our cards.

So I sent a few of the pics over to Megan, and boy did she work her magic! Megan is a very talented graphic designer and an absolute pleasure to work with. She created a beautiful Christmas card for us. She can handle just about any graphic design need you may have, so be sure to check out her blog and website. Oh and while you're there check out the beautiful designs she has been creating! If only I'd known about her when I was getting married. Her wedding invitations are to die for! Here is the card she created for us.

To say I am happy with the pictures and the card design, would be an understatement! I am so excited to send them out. So just in case you've never heard of or visited these talented ladies' blogs, please be sure to check them out!

Our Christmas Mantel

2010-12-05T15:06:00.000-08:00

Our house is just about done being decorated for the holidays. We started the day after Thanksgiving, and the only thing left to do is hang the outside lights. I finally broke down and bought an extra tree for the front living room/playroom, for the sole purpose of letting the kids decorate it with all of their homemade ornaments. I wish I'd done it sooner because they are loving it! We have made several ornaments so far, and will be making more.

Our mantel is completely different this year. I was really excited to find some great deals at JoAnn's the weekend after Thanksgiving on Christmas decor. I was not thrilled with how the mantel came out last year, so I knew I wanted to try something totally different.

Here's how it came out.

I got the two trees, the wreath, the reindeer, and the garland all from JoAnn's. The frame was a garage sale find. And of course, I copied the letters from Ms. Mustard Seed ;)

It's much more colorful than I usually go for, but I really like the change. It really feels like Christmas, especially considering we had flurries here all day today. Our first snowflakes of the season. We don't usually get snow in Tennessee this early. So the kiddos were pretty excited to see it.

I cannot wait to see what everyone is up to in blogland for the holidays! I'll be linking up to these parties this week, be sure to check them out!

The DIY Showoff Project Parade
Deck the Halls Part @ Between Naps on the porch
Amaze Me Monday @ Dittle Dattle
Anything Related @ All Thingz Related
Table Top Tuesday @ A Stroll Thru Life
Transformation Thursday @ The Shabby Chic Cottage
Strut Your Stuff @ Somewhat Simple
Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest
Inspiration Friday @ Southern In My Heart
Feathered Nest Friday @ The French Country Cottage

Master Bathroom

2010-11-28T16:03:00.001-08:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I am stuffed!

Our bathroom is finally finished. It was a long three weeks of work, but it was so worth the wait. We'd been without the shower for a year, but had still been using the sink and toilet in there. So I had no clue how inconvenient it would be to not be able to use the extra toilet and sink! Completely sharing one bathroom was tougher than I thought it would be.

Here is what our bathroom looks like now.

We ripped out the entire shower, down to the studs. And built a brand new one, using the Schluter-Kerdi Shower System. We opened up the entire shower by removing the wall that was between the shower and sink, and removing the bulkhead at the top. We removed the old shower door, and opted for a shower curtain for now.

Here is the shower before.

Here is what it looks like now.

My Hubby even added a niche for our shampoo and soap.

He also ripped out all the gold flecked tile on the wall and floors throughout the rest of the bathroom. He then added beadboard, a new toilet, new light fixture, and new tile floors.

Before:

Ater:

I then painted the beadboard and trim a creamy white and the walls a beautiful grey. I added grey and white fabric to the medicine cabinet to hide all the junk in there. And found a pedastal sink storage unit at Target.

And a few more before and afters.

I still have some accessories to buy, toilet paper holder, robe hook, iron the curtain around the sink ;), etc. But I am so happy with how it turned out! And we managed to stay right within our tight budget.

Linking up to the parties in my Linky Tab.

Wow!

2010-11-23T16:45:00.000-08:00

It's been a crazy week here. I've been running around cleaning my little heart out and accessorizing my newly finished bathroom! Some awesome things have happened to my little blog in the past week.

First, I won a giveaway at Pink Postcard for a $25 credit to Red Pearl Designs. I can count on one hand how many times I've won something, so it was pretty exciting! And I thank both of them for hosting such a great giveaway!

Second, my blog was featured Sunday at The Hand Me Down House. Amanda bought her childhood home and she and her hubby have been fixing it up. Her blog was one of the first blogs I came to find and love when I began blogging six months ago. So it was such an honor to be featured on her blog!

And last, but certainly not least, there are now over 100 lovely bloggers taking this journey of home renovation with us! It means so much to me that you all have chosen to follow along!

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving! Enjoy all the family time. I know for me, family time feeds my soul. So I cannot wait!

A Little Wheat Goes A Long Way

2010-11-18T17:39:00.000-08:00

We are in full swing here getting ready for the family to come in for Thanksgiving. The bathroom is being finished up, and a few more projects are underway. I recently saw a bundle of wheat at the grocery store. I brought it home, split it into smaller bunches, and managed to use it in several places to add a harvest touch to the decor.

These are pictures of my grandparents who are coming to visit.

I am amazed that one bundle of wheat went so far to add that perfect fall touch to my house! I will be back after the holiday to post pictures of our finished bath and a few other projects that we hope to complete. I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with family, food, and fun!

Linking up to a few of the parties in my Linky Tab.

A Magical Time & A Sneak Peak

2010-11-14T14:32:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd share a sneak peak of the progress in our bathroom. But before I do that, I wanted to paint you a picture of what was happening in my den earlier this evening. The temps dipped down to a freezing 56 today ;) so I decided to turn the fire on. When I went to find some music on our cable music channelss, I saw the holiday music channel was now available. Yay! My children both sat quietly in front of the fire, listening to Christmas music, and playing TOGETHER for an entire hour! Normally, I would not expect them to play together well for long. They are one and three, so sharing isn't something that happens often yet. But there is just something magical about this time of year that brings families together. My fall decor is still up, and will be for another week or two. But you can definitely tell Christmas is right around the corner. And I am so ready for it!

So here are a few pics of the progress. We have the tile up in the shower.

Now we need to do the floors, grout the tile, install the beadboard, paint, and put the toilet and sink in! I cannot wait.

A Few Good Finds

2010-11-11T19:02:00.001-08:00

The bathroom reno is in full swing. We are about to start tiling. We went to Home Depot tonight to pick up the tile and supplies WITH our two young kids. Not the best idea! For some reason, my three year old does not find shopping for home improvement supplies interesting. :)

I'm taking a break from the bathroom reno to share a few finds I've picked up at yard sales the past few weekends. All of my finds were $1!

I found this little antique frame.

A pair of these candlesticks.

Three packs of these to spell out Ho Ho Ho. I have big plans for these for Christmas.

This toile tray.

A little hanging wreath.

These vintage looking candlesticks.

And an adorable little chippy white bowl.

I hope to be posting pics of our bathroom very soon! Joining the parties in my Linky Tab.

The Bathroom

2010-11-07T11:59:00.000-08:00

First, thanks for all your suggestions on my armoire! I am hoping to get to it very soon.

I am so excited to share what Mr. FYOR, aka my husband, has been working on. Our master bath. It's actually more like a closet than a bath. But it's a very typical size for the style and age of our home. It consisted of a small pedestal sink, a toilet, a shower stall, and zero storage. The layout itself, small as it was, actually worked for us. Our plan has always been to eventually make a master suite out of the office and laundry area, so this will eventually become one of the kiddos' bedroom and private bath. Here's a before pic.

I had to get my husband to stand outside on the a/c unit next to the bathroom window to take the pic, because there wasn't much room to take one in the actual bathroom.

The tract lighting had been a temporary fix using something we already had.

And the color was chosen in an attempt to match the gold flecks in the tile. Not my best design choice ;)

It needed some help! On top of all that, about a year ago the shower pan and drain began crumbling and leaking. So for the past year, we've been using the hall bathroom and slowly buying stuff/ preparing for a renovation.

A week ago while I was taking care of the sickies, the hubs asked if he could "pop" a hole in the shower wall to see what he would be working with. Two hours later, I walked in to find this.

Kind of a big hole, huh? He was pretty proud of himself. So, the entire bathroom is now gutted down to the studs. The only real issue we've run into so far (fingers crossed) is a little mold. But we expected that with the leak, so we treated it immediately. He is fixing the plumbing and about to hang the drywall! Hopefully, I will have a new bathroom to show you guys in a couple of weeks!!!

Shutters and Some Advice

2010-11-03T11:43:00.000-07:00

What a crazy weekend! We had a great time trick or treating but the kiddos caught a cold. While I've been busy taking care of the sickies, my husband has also been busy working on a project in our master bedroom. I will be sharing what he is working on in my next post ;) But for now, I'll share one of the other many projects that has been going on in our master bedroom!

I've been trying to transform our room into a cozy, shabby chic cottage-y retreat. I had the idea to use old shutters instead of blinds in the room. I figured I couldn't get any more cottage-y (that's a word, right?) than old shutters. So I ~~stalked~~ checked Craigslist and found three sets for $20! With a little modification by the hubs, and a new coat of white paint, my bedroom windows got an adorable makeover.

I also found this antique armoire on Craigslist. I love those beautiful curves and the extra storage it provides us. But there is something about it, that I am just not over the moon for. Yet. I *think* it may the be the color, painted by the previous owner. It's hard to tell in these pics, but its a mustard color.

So I need your help. What would you do to revive this? Our bed is a gorgeous antique with white and mustard colored chipping paint. So I thought the color would be perfect with the bed, but it's just not doing it for me. I am thinking of painting it white, and distressing it so the mustard color comes through. But I'm still not sure. What do ya'll think? I can't wait to hear your suggestions!

Costumes

2010-10-27T11:31:00.000-07:00

I thought I'd venture off my usual topic path of home decor and share my kiddos costumes today. Last year, I made their costumes. It made me feel so good to do that for them, as silly as that sounds. It also saved me a ton of money. SO I knew I wanted to try and make them again this year. I know it isn't something I will be able to do forever, but it's nice for now.

Here is a pic of my little garden gnome and fairy from last year.

Because I can barely work my sewing machine, I have to keep the costumes simple. So when I saw this pink owl costume at Following Phubie, I knew it would be the perfect costume for my daughter. It was very easy, she had the templates to print right in the post, and I used fabric glue to construct the entire thing.

I then came up with the idea to make a squirrel costume for my son.

I went and bought some fur and used a brown jogging suit he had from last year. And the rest was just trial and error. I cut enough of the fur fabric to fold it in half to make a long rectangle.

I glued the open bottom and side edges with fabric glue, stuffed the tail with batting, and then glued the top edges.

After that, I just rolled the top of the tail to look how I wanted and added a couple of hand stitches to hold it in place.

Then I added the felt to the chest of the jacket, ears at the top, and pinned the tail on.

Sorry for the pics. It would have been easier to nail jello to a tree than get my one year old to stand still for a picture. I did manage to get one of them together.

I think they both make adorable woodland creatures! I was really nervous about the squirrel costume since I had no tutorial or even a picture to go on. But I think I did alright!

Laundry Room Facelift

2010-10-24T12:47:00.000-07:00

We have, or should I say, had a dirty little secret about our house. Our laundry room. It is located off of the office all by itself and the only thing it has going for it, is the large size and extra closet for storage. The office used to be the one car garage off of our kitchen. It was converted into living space before we'd moved in. Both rooms need so much work. The problem is that in a few years, our big plan is to gut the office and laundry space and make it into a master suite across the house from all the other bedrooms. So we couldn't justify spending much on the facelift when it will hopefully all get torn out in a couple of years. I had to be creative, and remind myself how much impact just a coat of paint would make. I'll give you a little sneak peak of the finished space before I scare you with the pics of what it did look like!

To be honest, I cannot even believe I am going to share the before pics. Most of our family members haven't even seen this room. I feel like there should be some kind of horror music playing while I share these, haha!

This was the walls.

And this was my feeble attempt at covering the water heater.

Like I said, because we hope to gut it all in a few years, we couldn't change anything major like the paneling or water heater. So we worked with what we had. I had my hubby build two bulkheads out of wood he had lying around in the garage to hang curtains from and hide the top of the water heater. I then put two curtains up that I found at Target for $10 on clearance.

One curtain to hide the water heater, which is right beside the washing machine.

And one to hide the little alcove beside the closet that houses the litter box, circuit breaker, and mops and brooms.

I bought another curtain on clearance at Target, and used it to cover the existing roman shades. And Hubby added a shelf under the windows. Unfortunately, the studs were not centered on the window, so he had to place the shelf a little off center.

He also hung a shelf over the washer and dryer.

I then painted every surface of the room with a coat of creamy white paint. And we hung a light fixture that we'd had laying around.

All I had left to do was accessorize a little.

Overall, I am pleased. I wish we could've changed the floors, put up drywall, gotten a tankless water heater, etc, etc. But to be able to walk into that room without getting creeped out is a success in my book! Ok, maybe that's a little dramatic ;) , but it really does look so much better.

Our total came to:

Paint.............$25
Shelving........$0
Accessories...$2
Curtains........$26
Rod...............$6
Lighting........$0

Total.............$59

Not too bad for a nice facelift. Almost everything we used was lying around in the garage.

Just one more before and after shot.

Before.

After.

Linking up to some of the parties in my Linky Tab.

Pumpkin Delight

2010-10-21T23:09:00.000-07:00

I saw this recipe for Pumpkin Delight over at Cottage Cozy. It looked delicious and easy enough for me! So I went to the store and got all of my ingredients ready. Then, the kiddos and I decided to make it. It's a very easy recipe to follow. And as you can see, we had a really good time, even though I don't normally love to cook.

The smells of fall quickly filled my house. And the result was an incredibly delicious dessert! Just like Carrie says, its a cross between a cake and a pie. It has the cake crust, a pie filling in the middle, topped with pecans and sugary cake-y crumbles. Delicious!

The Mile Long Yard Sale

2010-10-20T11:44:00.000-07:00

My mom and I met up a few weeks ago to head out to a mile long yard sale. We had so much fun, and found some great stuff. My first find of the day was this tea set for $7!

I've been having trouble getting it to shine up like new. A reader suggested Maas cleaner, so I will be on the look out for that.

My next find was this adorable white side table for $7!

We both found some great old books for 50 cents each. I used mine on my fall mantel. And we also both bought some mums.

My last item was something my mom bought and gave to me, an old flour sifter. She bought it with the intention of using it, but found another one later that was in a little better shape. So she gave this one to me!

There were some really great antiques everywhere. And I love being able to share special time like that with my mom!

Linking up to a few of the parties in my Linky tab!

Awards

2010-10-14T21:21:00.000-07:00

I was tagged and received a few awards today. Claire from Bless My Nest passed onto me the Versatile Blogger Award, One Lovely Blog Award, and the Stylish Blogger Award. She asked me to tell a few things about myself that you may not know.

1. I am kind of a neat freak. I make beds every day, have a weekly cleaning routine, and have been known to clean the playroom while my kids were playing in it.

2. I am a first born, and a *slight* perfectionist.

3. I do not love to cook.at.all. I wish I loved to cook, does that count?

4. I would love to restore old houses or have a booth in an antique shop one day.

5. I may have a love affair with craigslist, considering I check it daily.

6. I am a total choc-a-holic!

7. I do not have a green thumb. Ninety-nine percent of the plants that come into my house alive, do not remain that way for long.

The tag was from Lisa at Twin Inspiration. She asked me these eight questions.

1.) What is your favorite food?
Anything seafood. I was born in Louisiana and have to say that if I had to pick my last meal, it would be a crawfish boil.

2.) What do you love most about blogging?
I love the inspiration that I get from this wonderful community. There are so many talented women out there!

3.) What is your favorite time of year? Why?
Fall! I love the smells, the colors, the food, the traditions. I could go on and on.

4.) What is the one thing you just can't live without?
My morning cup (or two) of coffee.

5.) What is the last movie you watched?
Ha! I am not one who watches many movies. I kind of have a hard time sitting still through them, no matter how good they are. I don't remember the last movie I watched the entire way through.

6.) If you could visit anywhere in the world...where would it be?
Italy. I've been wanting to go for years! Hopefully one day.

7.) What do you listen to while driving?
Lately, a little country mixed with some Avett Brothers.

8.) What is your favorite T.V. show?
Of all time, Gilmore Girls. I don't admit that often. Not because I am embarrassed by being a fan of the show, but because I
am actually that weirdo that named her daughter after a tv show. Yep, my three year old's name is Lorelei. I couldn't help it. While I loved the show, I loved the name even more. And it suites her to a tee!

Now you know a little more about me! Be sure to check out Bless My Nest and Twin Inspiration. Thank you both for thinking of me!

Sheet Music

2010-10-11T17:26:00.000-07:00

We went yard sale-ing this weekend and found some very sweet treasures and only spent $9! I apologize that the background for the pics is my dirty front porch. I had to get away from curious little hands to snap these pics. And what you can't see is the tiny noses, mouths, and hands pressed up against the glass door watching me!

First, I found this old song book from the 1890's. Its in pretty good condition, and it cost me $1!

At that same sale, I saw this old bottle for $1 as well.

I then went to another sale and found these old hymnals, postcards, and more sheet music. I spent $7.

I had been dying to try a sheet music project. So I started by recovering some old yellow pears, that I'd had lying around. I used the music out of the Homer Rodeheaver book. It was the only one I could even bring myself to tear the pages from. And even it stung a little. But I do love the way my pears came out.

I still need to share my finds from the Mile Long Yard Sale that my mom and I went to. I am just having alot of trouble cleaning the silver I got there. I've used the aluminum foil in warm water method, TarnX, Brasso. Nothing is getting it back to its original state. Does anyone have any advice on another technique I could try? I have no idea if its real silver or how to tell.

Linking up to some of the parties in my Linky Tab.

A Fall Mantel

2010-10-06T19:17:00.000-07:00

This is my first time decorating my mantel for fall. And I needed to do it on a budget, so I pulled alot of inspiration from all the lovely ladies in blogland! Here's how it turned out.

I saw the little book pumpkin at Craftberry Bush and knew I had to try it. The books I found this weekend at The Mile Long Yardsale (which I will be sharing my finds from). And the vintage postcard in the frame came from The Graphics Fairy.

The Second pic is from this afternoon. But tonight, I added the little candles (see first pic) and liked that a little better. What do you think?

Linking up to the parties in my Linky Tab.

Our Nursery

2010-10-04T07:16:00.000-07:00

I decided I'd share my son's nursery with you today. We started on it when I was pregnant and got the majority of it completed before he was born. I don't have a before pic, but it was basically and empty room with baby blue, dirty walls. Now, over a year later, most of the baby items have been taken out. The changing table, mobile, bumper pad, etc.

Just a warning, the picture quality is not great. His room (like most rooms in our house) does not get a ton of natural light. As you can see in the pic, the one window he has butts up against a brick wall on the outside, giving it even less light. So I was forced to use the flash.

The whole concept came from this giraffe. The ribbon on his neck was put there by my daughter. It's his "reins." :)

My grandmother bought that giraffe after her and my grandfather were married. I remember it sitting in their office as a kid and playing on it. She handed it down to my aunt for her son's nursery. And it was then handed down to me. I decided to do a simple theme of giraffes. It was hard to find only giraffe items. But it finally all came together.

The first find was this bedding that my mom bought him. Please excuse the fact that the bedding is totally wrinkled. He doesn't use the bumper anymore, so I had to pull it out of storage.

Then we found the hooks and other wall decor.

I made the letters using scrapbook paper and spray adhesive.

When we found the nightstand, I knew I wanted to paint his dresser/changing table the same blue.

The toddler bed was my daughters and is now waiting for him. And the quilt was made by my Mother-in-law. A funny little tidbit- When I was pregnant, my daughter (who was not yet two) decided the baby would need something to eat when he got here. So she went to the pantry and got out a can of soup and set it in his closet one day when we were putting all the clothes away. That can of soup is still in the back of his closet. I need to throw it away, but everytime I happen upon it, I can't help but smile.

Here is a pic once more of the finished product.

Linking up with a few of the parties in my Linky Tab.

Fall Wreath

2010-09-29T06:52:00.000-07:00

I saw this fabric wreath over at The DIY Showoff a couple of weeks ago. I knew it was something I could do.

So I went to JoAnn's and purchased 2 yards of fabric, a straw wreath, and a few sprigs of fall accents. It cost me around $10 with a coupon. I cut the fabric into squares, and shoved it into the wreath with a screwdriver. I ended up using 1 1/2 yards of the fabric. It took me about an hour and a half. I love the result! It looks beautiful on my front door.

For a tutorial with pictures, check out Roeshel's post on The DIY Showoff.

Dish Rack

2010-09-26T17:22:00.000-07:00

I know, I said the mad posting about my kitchen was over. But I lied, I have one more project to show you guys.

I found this dish rack display cabinet on Craigslist for $30. The lady who owned it was calling it a dish rack/bookcase because of how deep it was. It really could have been used for either. But I knew my hubby could cut it down to a smaller depth to hang on the wall for displaying dishes. I don't have a before pic, but it looked the exact same only twice as deep.

I have to share the story behind it. I emailed the lady back and forth about it, finally agreeing on a time for me to pick it up that evening. It had been a rough day that day. I was in some shabby clothes, and hair, well, I dont even want to imagine what it looked like. I bathed my kiddos and put them in jammies before we went. Knowing I could just load up in the car, have my husband pay for it and load it up and we'd put the kids to bed when we got home. So, we load the kiddos up, pull up to the house, and the hubs goes in. All of a sudden I see him run out and wave me in. I gave him the death stare to say, " No, remember we talked about this, I am in no shape to be seen right now." He comes out to the car and lets me know that he went to college with this guy and wanted us to come in and meet him, his wife, and their three kids. Oh joy! They were extremely nice though. And my husband really enjoyed catching up with an old friend.

Anyway, this dish rack worked great in the space. That wall was calling out for something bigger and this suites it well. My husband cut quite a bit off the back, so I am hoping I have enough to make a small bookcase for my son!

Linking up to a few of the parties in my Linky Tab.

A Feature and a Thank You

2010-09-20T11:11:00.000-07:00

This has been a very exciting couple of weeks for my little blog!

Our kitchen remodel was featured at Domestically Speaking here . It was my very first feature and I was so excited!

I also have been so thrilled to see that there are now 51 wonderful followers! I am so happy to know that there are others who find our renovating/redecorating progression as fun as I do. I love sharing this process with you guys! I've said this before, the blogging thing was a little nerve-racking for me in the beginning. I am a fairly shy person and putting my home and my style out there for all of cyberspace to see was very overwhelming at first. However, I have had nothing but kind words. This blog has helped me gain confidence in my abilities and my own style. I've learned alot about myself and blogging in the short time I've been doing it. I've gotten some great advice and feedback. I love this community. It's full of people who genuinely enjoy seeing what others are doing in their homes and being inspired from one another. And all the kind comments and followers have led me to some amazingly creative blogs that I may not have found otherwise. I'm hooked!

So I just want to extend a huge thank you to every wonderful follower, everyone who's popped in for a visit, and for all the kind comments!

Welcome to the Forty Year-Old Ranch

2010-09-19T13:53:00.000-07:00

I mentioned last week that I'd found something for my entryway.

Here it is.

Last week, just after realizing the chest we'd just revamped was going to stay at the kitchen table, I went out for my usual yard sale-ing adventures. I stopped at a house and looked around. She had a ton of antiques, but a man was there buying every one of them before I could even ask. I went into her shed, and saw the most adorable telephone table. It needed a new seat and new upholstery. But other than that it was perfect to me! When I asked her the price, I tried not to let my jaw hit the ground. $7. Thats right, she told me this could be mine for the outrageous price of SEVEN DOLLARS! I didn't even try to negotiate.

The seat was falling in and the fabric was stained and nasty. So, hubby pulled off the old seat and cut me a new one out of plywood. Then, I reupholstered it in a grey damask fabric that was on sale at JoAnn's. I love the way it turned out!

I love the basket for the kids' shoes, but I may need a bigger one.

What do you think? I've been dying to use that color blue somewhere in my house and I think I finally found the perfect spot!

Linking up to some of these wonderful parties!

New Kitchen Seating

2010-09-12T17:56:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone has had a wonderful weekend. It was a busy weekend here. I can't wait to share all of our projects! I know all of my posts have been about my kitchen lately. I think this should be the last one for awhile. But I just wanted to show you this new bench that transformed my kitchen table.

I'd mentioned here that I'd started looking for a chest in my entryway. I found one on Craigslist for $20. It was made of particleboard and had been chewed on by a puppy. But I figured for $20, I'd take the chance and try it out.

I wood-filled all the corners and holes, pulled off the old trim, and then hubby sanded it all down. I primed it, and painted it with two coats of yellow. Then we took the sander to it, and re-upholstered the top. It was our first real attempt at distressing furniture. And I think we *may* have gotten a little too sander happy, but I am still pleased with the look of it. We brought it in the house and happened to set it down by the table just to clear out the entryway. Well, it never made it to the entryway. I loved it at my kitchen table.

And it is so much easier for my three year old to climb up to. I ended up adding a clear vinyl shower curtain to protect the fabric. I'm so happy that it worked so well at the table, because I found something even better for my entryway that I'll share with you guys later!!!

Linking up to some of the parties here.

Adorable Vintage Finds

2010-09-09T19:24:00.000-07:00

Today I found two amazing finds. I went to a yard sale one street over from me this afternoon. And this little old lady was a talker. She wanted to play with my kiddos, tell me about the neighborhood, and even knew much of the history of the forty year old ranch! She told us about the original owners, when the additions had been added, and let us know we were the 4th family to own the home. This is however, the first time our home has had children growing up in it. And as silly as it sounds, there are times when the pitter patter of my children's feet seem to literally make this place smile. It was so nice to be able to find out a few bits of information about our little nest.

I digress, back to my finds. At that yard sale, I found an adorable vintage nursery wall hanging. I fell in love with the colors. It fit perfectly in my son's nursery. I had to personalize it because apparently it had once hung in 'Pat's' nursery, but it was a quick and easy fix. My only regret is that we didn't find it sooner for him to enjoy a bit longer. Considering that he's already one we'll probably have to change out the baby theme in a year or five. Oh well, maybe I can convince the hubs we need one more so we can enjoy our nursery for a few more years ;) .

My second find of the day, came from my favorite antique store in town. An antique scale. Oh, I am so in love! I am trying to find the perfect spot for it. But it's definitely going somewhere in the kitchen!

I'll be linking up to the parties here. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

The Kitchen Before and After

2010-09-05T05:29:00.000-07:00

I was hoping to start on our master bath this weekend since it was a three day weekend. However, the stomach virus my hubby and kids had earlier this week (that I thought I'd avoided) decided to hit me Friday evening. I've just started feeling like myself again this afternoon. So, I thought I'd bump an older post that I never really got to share about our big kitchen remodel.

When we bought the house almost three years ago, we knew the kitchen needed major help. The walls were white, the cabinets were white, there were no lights (except the light over the sink, stove, and the skylight), and there was no pantry. The island was white with white laminate countertop, and it was on castors. To top it all off, our fridge did not even fit into the designated space. The only good thing about the kitchen, was that the countertops around the sink and stove were Corian. White but Corian.

First thing we did was add a tile backsplash and cut the wall back to allow the fridge to fit. We then painted the upper walls yellow and added a crisp white coat of paint to the trim and bottom half of the walls.

Then hubby took all the cabinet doors down and sanded everything.

He even got rid of that country cutout over the kitchen sink!

Then he took the castors off the island, and affixed it permanently to the floor.

We painted all the cabinets with a coat of primer and then two coats of green.

He then took the cabinet doors that looked like this.....

And refaced them by adding lattice and woodfilling all the leftover grooves from the previous pattern.

He added a pantry, can lights, and a bartop that we bought from a salvage yard.

I added the wine glass racks and the plate rack to the old microwave hole above the stove.

And after adding all the new cabinet hardware, we finally put our kitchen back together! Here is the finished product.

Since we (by we, I mean mostly my husband) did all the work, we saved a ton of money. The pantry was taken out of his brother's house during a remodel. The island butcher block countertop and barstools came from a salvage store. The appliances were saved, for now, by adding a coat of black appliance paint to the oven. All in all, it cost us under $1200 to do this project. I think it made a huge difference! It is one of my favorite rooms in the house. We still need to change out the appliances, especially the white ones. But for now they have to stay.

I will be linking to these parties.

Redecorating the Kitchen Counter

2010-08-31T12:57:00.000-07:00

I decided I've had enough of my fruit theme in the kitchen. I've moved it from house to house for 5 or 6 years, so getting new accessories is long over due. Its still a work in progress. I have many more knick-knacks to find, but I think its headed in the right direction. First thing I did was redecorate the shelves over the sink. Just small changes, but it made a big difference!

Here is the before shot of each side.

And what it looks like now.

I'd bought the white dishes at an antique mall. And the black and white pictures are of my children and my grandparents. My grandmother recently gave me the little cast iron stove. I love it and the story behind it, too. She used to play with one at her grandmother's house when she was a kid. But once her grandmother passed away, she had no idea what happened to it. So when she couldn't find one like it, she decided to try writing into the classified section of her favorite magazine asking if anyone had one to sell to please send her a letter with a picture and a price. She received hundreds of letters, and people began sending her these little stoves ( for free!) along with cast iron irons and other old pieces. I think she received 30 or 40 stoves in all and made a few pen pals along the way. Such a neat little story to me and it makes it a very special to me!

The canisters on the counter were also changed. Here they are in the same fruit theme.

I fell in love with these rooster glass canisters at Old Time Pottery, and I added the vinyl words.

Then I added just a few more accessories.

And here it all is for now! Like I said, I still have a long way to go. There many more accessories I need to find. I moved from a much smaller kitchen (and house, for that matter) to this one. So it will take me awhile to get every space filled up. We've spent so long focused on the basics (like paint, furniture, light fixtures, and floors) that now it is time to start on the actual decorating. But don't worry, I'll share the entire process with you guys!

Linking up to the parties here

Yard Sale Chest

2010-08-30T13:52:00.000-07:00

There were so many yard sales this weekend. However, the only thing I found was an old hope chest. A friend of mine had told me she was looking for one. When I saw this one for only $20, I knew it had alot of potential and was long enough for her to put at the foot of her bed where she wanted it. It wasn't the color she was looking for, but it is nothing that some new trim, a fresh coat of paint, and an upholstered top cant fix! Here is what the chest looks like now.

I brought it in my house before bringing it to her, to photograph the before shots. I am in love with the way it looked in my front entry, though it was a little too big. So I will be looking for a slightly smaller one now for my house :).

Once we work on it and get it all repainted, I will be sure to post the after pics of it!

I am linking up to:
Debbie Doo's Garage Salen Party
Thrifty Treasures @ Southern Hospitality

A New Office Door

2010-08-26T12:20:00.000-07:00

Remember that old door I bought for $5?

Well, after alot of hard work, paint and new hardware we have a beautiful new door for hubby's office!

The door was actually too small. So the hubs added some width to it by adding a small strip of wood to the side. He used alot of wood filler and sandpaper to fill in the previous owner's holes. And then I painted the door. Once with some primer, and twice with Sherwin WIlliams Pro-Classic, a paint for doors and trim. We then bought a new mortise lock, and scraped all those windows! It took quite awhile, but I think it was worth it. He uses this room alot and needs the privacy away from screaming kids. This allows them to see him, but not bother him. And still allows all the light from the office into the kitchen, which was our main source of natural light in the kitchen! Only thing is it doesnt hide the mess, so I may try frosting the panes for some added privacy.

I will be linking up to:

Transformation Thursday @ The Shabby Chic Cottage
Strut Your Stuff @ Somewhat SImple
Power of Paint Party @ DOmestically Speaking

Baby Dresses

2010-08-17T11:14:00.000-07:00

I've seen it all over blogland. People using vintage baby dresses to decorate with. I knew my ladder in the playroom was missing something, but I couldn't quite figure out what to put on it. Then I remembered that I still had my old baptism dresses and blanket in a box at the top of my closet. So I hung them up on cute hangers and they look perfect in there! I wouldn't say these dresses are vintage (Ok, ok, maybe they are), but I still love the way they look and the fact that I finally get to display them!

Sorry about the lighting in the pics, it is a very dreary day here.

Steeple Clock

2010-08-15T17:59:00.000-07:00

I did hit a few yard sales on Friday morning. Managing to find a baby swing for a friend, and a few Gap sweaters for my daughter. But my big find this week came from an outing with my mom.

My love of antiques came from her. As a child, I can remember her dragging us through antique malls and hating it the entire time. Which is why she was beyond thrilled when I started showing an interest in them. So this weekend she invited me to go to some antique stores near her house, about an hour from me. It was something I had been looking forward to all week. And let me tell you, she did not disappoint! There are some awesome antique stores in her town! We found such unique items, but I passed on everything. Until we stopped at our last store, and I found this gorgeous clock sitting under a table in a booth. It was marked $65, but everything in the booth was 50% off! Making my total, $32.50! I had to have it! I don't know anything about it, and cannot find any markings on it anywhere. So if anyone knows about it, please let me know!

I will be linking up to:

Thrifty Treasures @

Concealing a Playroom

2010-08-09T13:17:00.000-07:00

About 6 months ago, my husband began working for the family business and needed a space for his office. Which meant the playroom had to be moved from its previous, fairly private spot, into the open, unused front living room to make room for him. When our toys were moved to that front room, it meant that as soon as anyone entered our house, the first thing they were greeted with was a playroom with toys scattered about. Not my ideal situation at all! So I stared at magazines and pictures in blogland for weeks, all the while realizing that the playroom had to stay. After all, a family with young kids lives here! So I determined I would try to disguise it. We purchased a couch (with a hide-a-bed for overnight guests) and bookshelves, and began purchasing other things at yard sales. I don't think my husband ever thought I'd actually be able to pull it off, but I did. And now when you walk into my home, the first thing you are greeted by is a small sitting room with a hidden play space behind it. And the layout works perfectly because the play space is still off the kitchen. Which allows me to watch the kids play while I make lunch, dinner, or clean. Here are some pics of the project.

Here is what the room looked like when we moved in.

Then we ripped out the carpet, exposing the hardwoods.

And then we filled it up with random things that had no home anywhere else in the house. So we cleared all that out, painted the walls, and started purchasing furniture and rearranged a million times, until finally I was pleased.

And now, this is what you see when you walk in my front door.

This is the play area, behind the couch. Those cabinets are filled with toys. And they used to be pink and yellow! But we painted them white.

Here is a view from behind the couch looking toward the front entry.

More toys behind the couch.

Hidden Kitchen area.

The rug in the play area, a clearance find from Target.

And all of the furnishings and decor were bought on Craigslist or at yard sales. I think including the purchase of the couch and bookshelves, I spent under $400 on this makeover!!!! I still need a few more little things here and there, and I am thinking of adding crown moulding. But I am so pleased with how it turned out!

I will be linking up with these parties this week:
Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch
The DIY Showoff Project Parade
Take a Look Tuesday at Sugar Bee Craft Edition
Show Us What You're Workin' With @ Me and My Bucket
Penny Pinching Party @ The Thrifty Home
Show and Tell @ Blue Cricket Design
Transformation Thursday @ The Shabby Chic Cottage
Strut Your Stuff @ Somewhat Simple

A Few Finds

2010-08-08T14:07:00.000-07:00

This weekend, on the way to grab a bite to eat, we found this door propped up against a tree in someone's front yard. We bought it for $5 and will be putting it on our office where there currently is no door to allow hubby some privacy while he is working. I will have to scrape the paint out of the windows, and repaint the frame, but I think it will be beautiful once it is done!

I also bought this china cabinet at an antique mall. It definitely wasnt a thrifty find, because I splurged on it. But I seldom splurge on anything and really, really loved this piece.

I added some contrasting paint to the detail and this is what it looks like now:

The dishes in the cabinet came from the same antique mall.

I am linking this up to:

Distressed Canvas

2010-08-03T11:12:00.000-07:00

I am not a great photographer, so a couple of times a year we have our kids pictures taken. Erica at Erica Foley Photography took them about two months ago, and she did an AMAZING job! When I saw the pictures, I knew I wanted to try the distressed canvas project that I had seen on Twin Inspiration done by my sister-in-law, Lisa from a project she'd seen at deliacreates.

The project came out good. My daughter's pictures for whatever reason look more distressed, but I did all of them the exact same way. I will probably try the black and white one of her again, because I wasn't happy with the image rubbing off right on her nose. But I do love the way the black and white one of my son came out! Now I just need to find some distressed frames for the two bigger ones!

I didnt take any pictures of the process. But here are the instructions on how to do it:

What you need:
canvas
gel medium
mod podge
paint brush
credit card

1. Have the picture you want to use blown up on regular paper from an toner ink printer at Kinko's or some place similar. It cost about $1.

2. Paint your canvas thickly with gel medium.

3. Spray the picture face side up with water. Get it very wet.

4. Place it on the canvas. I found they came out much better with my husband holding two corners, and me holding two corners and us both placing it on the canvas. Didn't seem to create as many bubbles.

5. Smooth it out with a credit card. And let the project dry overnight.

6. Spray the paper with water and begin to rub the paper off of the canvas with your hands. This will take a little while, and you will have to let it dry, and then redo this step again a few times to get all the paper off. Some of the picture will probably also come off, giving it the distressed look.

7. Coat it with a layer of Mod Podge and enjoy!

Tips:
~I did find that there was a point when rubbing off the paper where the canvas had almost dried, that I was able to get the most paper off. However, this is also the time when it seems you lose some of the picture, so be careful.
~Make sure you get all the bubbles out and let it completely dry before you start pulling the paper off.

This Weeks Yard Sale Finds

2010-08-01T18:47:00.000-07:00

This week, I really got some great stuff! I am so thrilled to share it all! First off, I found a lady on Craigslist who posted about a "vintage sale." I had to go. So at that sale I got.....

A vintage 8mm camcorder and the matching projector for $20, both of which still work.

An old antique library ladder for $10

And an old fan for $10, that also works.

We then stopped by an estate sale, where I was drawn to this hat for $4

I then found this antique screen for $4, that I added curtains to.

And then found a new rug for our bedroom for $15

My favorite find of the day was this antique bed. At our last sale, I saw it sitting in what I am pretty sure was the trash pile. When I asked if they would sell it, they told me sure and I took it home for $15. My hubby cleaned it up a bit and pulled off the big pieces of veneer that were falling off. But kept the chippy white paint as best he could.

I am in love! Now I get to start actually working on decorating and getting new furniture for our master bedroom. Its been neglected for way too long!

This was a big week. I spent a total of $78. BUT when I got home with the new bed, I listed our old bed on Craigslist and sold it for $80! So I really broke even!

I will be linking this up to

Ruffle Wreath

2010-08-01T05:30:00.000-07:00

I started a project this weekend using a fitted sheet. I had to cut the elastic edges off to work with it, leaving me with a pile of adorable green ruffles. I had seen this wreath, and kind of had an idea of what to do with them. It turned out cute, not as good as the hand made ruffles she used, but I am still pleased!

My pile of ruffles, all from one king size fitted sheet:

I then glued it around the wreath using hot glue:

I added a flower I had and was done:

Garage Sale Find

2010-07-26T11:49:00.000-07:00

We woke up this Saturday morning and did what we've done the past few Saturdays....went treasure hunting at yard sales. Funny thing was, this weekend I had no plan. No map of yard sales I wanted to stop by. So we got in the car and my husband started driving. We ended up in an older subdivision that we visit regularly and an older couple was having a huge moving sale. We walked through not finding much and on the way out, I spotted an antique trunk.

It was gorgeous and unlike any antique trunk I'd seen before. Almost the entire trunk is covered in this beautiful pressed tin. I was in love. But I wasn't so in love with the $40 price tag. So we walked away. We got about halfway out the neighborhood and I turned to my husband and said, "I think I am really going to regret letting that one go." So we rode around a bit more and decided to go back. When we got there, my hubby tried to talk them down. But the man explained to him that this trunk had belonged to his grandparents who used to take it on vacations. And it later wound up in their attic, where he remembers playing with it as a child. So he figured if he couldn't get his asking price on it, he'd just keep it.

And so I bought the most expensive thing that I have ever bought at a yard sale. When we brought it home, we knew the rust was going to be a problem. We did some research to make sure we weren't going to destroy an important piece of history by painting it. We found one almost identical that was in mint condition that wasn't going for that much on a trunk restoration website. So we decided to pick out a color and paint it. It turned out better than I expected!

BEFORE

And AFTER

I'm linking up to these parties:

My First Wreath

2010-07-23T19:16:00.000-07:00

I grew up with a very crafty grandmother. She is always making flower arrangements and wreaths for everyone. She even made all the arrangements for my wedding! Its something I have never tried my hand at. But when I saw several bloggers including Tales of A Domestic Goddess trying the book wreath posted by Living With Lindsey ,I knew I had to try to make this myself. I went to Hobby Lobby and bought a large styrofoam wreath for around $7 with my 40% coupon. But had I read the blog post first, instead of just being giddy while looking at pictures, I would've seen these were available at the Dollar Tree for you guessed it, $1. I used an old medical dictionary that I had lying around and went to work.

First I tore the pages out and folded the paper around the edge of a pencil eraser.

Then I added some hot glue to the tip of the paper.

And then I jammed it into the styrofoam.

It took me about an hour and a half to cover the whole wreath. This is my finished project. I love it!

It goes beautifully with my new yard sale chair! And I think it is going to be perfect in the room once we finish decorating. I have been working on renovating the front living area/playroom for a few weeks. Once I get it all finished up, I'll be posting pics.

Chalkboard Door

2010-07-20T13:06:00.001-07:00

When I married my husband, he had this very old piano that he had stored at his parents' house. When it came time for us to move it, we realized it was pretty much unrepairable. Pieces of it were literally falling off, and the stress of moving it pretty much did it in. We fix anything we can, so it broke our hearts to admit that this piano was gone. We took it and pulled off all the parts we could salvage to reuse. And we've been carrying these pieces of wood around for almost 6 years.

Enter said door. This was by far our favorite part of the piano. It was underneath the keyboard to access the foot pedals. Last week, I decided I wanted a magnetic chalkboard in the kids' playroom. As I sat there trying to decide how to make it, I remembered the old door. It was perfect!

The first thing I did was sand it down.

Then I took out the panels and painted them with two coats of magnetic paint. Make sure you get this stuff good and stirred, its very thick.

Then I spray painted the panels with chalkboard paint, and put it all back together! Voila!

Yard Sale Find

2010-07-20T08:16:00.000-07:00

I love dragging my family out on Saturday mornings to yard sales. You never know what you are going to find, and can usually walk away with one or two great finds. My husband and kids don't mind it so much either. Its kind of become a family outing, even though we don't get to do it every weekend. Our three year old picks a movie for the car the night before. On Saturday morning, we load up bright and early and the kiddos watch the movie and after a few stops we get breakfast. And by 9:30 or 10 we are back home.

This week, our only find came from the first stop. And it was a huge one. I had been wanting an upholstered rocker (you know, the Pottery Barn-esque kind) since I was pregnant with my first child. But had never come across one that I thought was budget friendly enough. I found this little gem sitting in the garage at a house. It was in mint condition, it looked as though it had never been sat in. When I asked the lady what she was asking for it, I was shocked. She told me $30! It felt like highway robbery! We immediately paid her for it and shoved it into the back of our SUV. I was so excited to get it home. It fits perfectly in our playroom/front living room. Here is a pic of it!

A little SPICE

2010-07-16T18:40:00.000-07:00

We discovered that our small(ish) town recently started doing a farmer's market on the weekends in the old downtown area. So we had to check it out. And while we did enjoy getting fresh bread and veggies, we were drawn to the antique stores, like moths to a flame! And we walked away with an adorable little find! I found this little spice cabinet in a booth that was labeled 50% off. I would have paid the $9 price tag, but $4.50 was even better! I took it home, sanded it down and spray painted it black. I liked the wood it was originally, but I thought the black would make the art stand out more. I am totally in love!!!!

Our Den

2010-07-15T15:53:00.000-07:00

This was a huge renovation for us. I've never thought my husband was in over his head, until this project. As you can see from the before picture, we had filthy white carpet, ugly cabinets, and horribly stained trimwork. This was THE room that made us by this house, so it was a room we had been dying to work on and bring it to its full potential.

We started out by pulling up the carpet. Only to find that when this addition was added about 30 years ago, they had laid particle board down over the subfloor to raise it up level to the rest of the house. And it was very old particle board, that was literally crumbling in the hubb's hands as he tried to pull the tackstrips up. So we enlisted the help of a good friend, and the men spent the rest of the evening pulling out the particle board. When we finally got down to the subfloor, we cleaned it and added another layer of plywood to raise it up to the height of the other floors in the house. We then put down the tar paper and began laying the hardwood floors. Did I mention those floors were given to us free! Oh yes, that was the best part! My inlaws had them leftover from their own house, so we were very thankful for that!

Five hours into laying the floors, we had only managed to get about 3 feet done. It was a Saturday afternoon, and the hardwood refinishing guys we had hired to stain the floors were coming bright and early Monday morning. We worked the rest of the night, and the next day my dad came to help. Finally, at about 11 pm Sunday evening, we laid the last piece of wood.

After the floors were finished, we began the painting. All the cabinets, moulding, and trim work were painted. That took another entire weekend. But when it was all done, it was oh so worth it! It looks exactly like I had envisioned! THIS is why we bought this house!

Before

Ripping out the carpet

Crumbling Floor

Laying the new wood

Even our helpful 3 year old pitched in!

AND..... the finished product!

Linky Parties

2010-07-02T19:19:00.000-07:00

Monday:

Tuesday:

Wednesday:

Primitive And Proper

Thursday:

Friday:

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2010-06-04T08:49:00.000-07:00

About the Forty Year-Old Ranch

2010-06-02T19:24:00.000-07:00

My husband and I set out to look for a home with "character" that we could fix up three years ago. We were living in a newer house that was hard to infuse ourselves into. And truth be told, it just never felt like home to us.

We saw the forty year-old ranch the day it came on the market. We had always loved the subdivision and when it came available our realtor called us immediately. I walked out of the house and swore to my husband that we would never own it. It was cluttered and dirty. It needed more updating than I thought we could ever possibly do. But it had everything we wanted in a home. As hard as I tried to fight it, I was always pulled back to this house. We prayed about it long and hard and both knew that was where we were supposed to be. We decided this on a Friday evening. The next Saturday morning, our house sold and that evening we put an offer in.

Less than two weeks later, we pulled the moving truck into the driveway of our new home. We cleaned our butts off, and started the renovations the day after we moved in by ripping out some old carpet. We haven't stopped since. It's our home, the only home our children have ever known. Its the place where, hopefully, all of their memories will be. And the safe place we can all come to, when life gets a little too scary. Home. This is OUR home.

Thanks for following us on this journey of making it our own.