It's Ironic

Today, I am at home- sick. Being sick is no fun- especially as a mother. This morning I had to get my girls up and out of the house before I threw up on them. Yep- the stomach bug has hit our home. Emma got it late Saturday night and has since passed it on to me. 

It's ironic because yesterday with her not feeling good, I was enjoying her wanting to cuddle with me and hold her and have her sit on my lap as we watched movies all day. Kaitlyn was even being nice to her- which is a rarity. TODAY,I am feeling none of those things. TODAY, I feel quite hellish as I try to take care of myself. As I do the 6th load of laundry between the two of us. As I try to catch up on work. As I try to take care of myself. 

It's ironic because I love taking care of others- specifically my husband and daughters. I take great joy in rubbing their back as they lay on the couch. I know this is kind of unpleasant to think about, but I truly enjoy it. I can't be the only one. I like that I can make them feel better. I like that being their mom, I get first dibs on taking care of them. 

It's ironic because I absolutely hate taking care of myself. It's a real problem I have. I'm sure both sides of motherhood can agree. Whether you're a working mom or a stay-at-home mom, one thing I always read about, hear about, or see {about :/} is that mothers typically have a hard time treating themselves or sometimes even doing small things to take care of themselves.

Last month I actually did something about it and went out on a Girls Day Out with my sister-in-law. We kept it super simple. We went to get pedicures and then went to Ikea- sans children. We were gone for the afternoon and it was perfect. There was a kind of theme going on: YOLO. You only live once. We got the Deluxe Pedicure. So yeah, we totally lived it up.   :)

Friday Favorites

This girl. 
She's definitely a favorite of mine. I love her to pieces and 
cannot imagine my life without her. She is beautiful, kind, smart, compassionate, determined, talkative, thoughtful, curious,funny, 
and such a joy to be around. Her favorite food is hot dogs and her favorite song is "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." She still likes to cuddle me and sit on my lap whenever she gets the chance. She made me a mother and I will forever be eternally grateful to her. 

Friday Favorites

This is the start of a new beginning. 

A weekly series. 

Something I will try to attain every week. 

Welcome to Friday Favorites. 

I'm hoping this will get me in the habit of regularly posting. :) 

Here we go: Post #1. 

My life can be pretty mundane. Get up, get myself ready, get the girls ready, leave the house, go to work, stay there for what seems like forever (on most some days), get in the car, pick the girls up, go home, dinner, shower , dishes, fold laundry (or not), watch a little Netflix with the husband- if we're lucky, go to bed. Wake up- repeat. 

Now, sometimes this gets me a bit down. It's not always fun to do the same thing day in- day out. I mean, I don't know about you, but I need a little excitement in my life. Sometimes that involves making plans for the weekend, having a family date night, planning on watching a full length movie (in one sitting, no less), creating something, or even trying a new recipe. Friday Favorites is going to encourage me to look at the things I live everyday and find the good, the bad, the ugly, and the beautiful. 

This week, this includes a new plant and some new pictures I've put up in my house. Emma asked me the other day why I buy new things all the time. I informed her that I don't buy things all the time, but I do like to get some new things, sometimes, to make our house more beautiful and more comfortable. We have only scratched the surface is making our home "ours". We have a long ways to go.

First up, my new plant. We got this bad boy from Lowe's two weeks ago. I'm in love. I love the vibrancy it brings to this little corner of our kitchen. It smells good and puts off a good vibe. I'm quite obsessed with green plants these days. This has been a great addition to our kitchen. I've had the pot for awhile now. Waiting for the perfect plant to put in it. This only set me back $12.98. Quite a steal, if you ask me. Now, to keep it alive. 

Second, my new pictures. I love pictures. Like LURVE them. Especially when they are pictures of my favorite people. These two pictures make me happy every time I pass them. Every. Single. Time. I can't help but smile. These girls are beautiful and my absolute favorite people in the world. I got the frames from Ikea, they are these. And for $6, that's something I can handle. I developed the pictures at Walgreens with a 40% discount and $15 later, I have this wall I adore. I used poster board as the mat and just taped the pictures right in the center. Ikea frames are such an odd size, this was the easiest, cheapest way to get a mat. I'm really pleased with how it turned out. Black and white for the win!   

I want this Friday Favorites to be a place where I embrace all that is good in my life. To showcase some of my favorite things I've experienced in the week. I have so many things I'm grateful for and truly love in my life. I'll just start documenting it, now. :)

Cruising- Part 1

This last week (January 31- February 7) we were away on a family vacation. Our entire family traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico to set sail on the Jewel of the Seas- a Royal Caribbean ship. To say it was amazing would be the understatement of the year. 

It. Was. Amazing. 

This was my first cruise and it was definitely a daily adventure, especially with our two little sand monsters. The girls had a great time and thought they were hot stuff the entire week. 

There were 16 of us total. <Surprisingly enough, I didn't get a picture of everyone. I think maybe someone else did.> 

Two parents, four siblings plus spouses, and six children. 

Needless to say with our circus group, a lot of people recognized us by the end of the cruise. Getting on and off of elevators was quite a sight. Clown car anyone? Yeah, we're awesome. 

DAY 1- January 31

Day one started with our flight out of Salt Lake City to the beautiful city of San Juan, Puerto Rico. We arrived very late 

that night. The minute we got off the plane and walked through 

the airport- in air conditioning, no less- I don't think I 

could have prepared myself for what lay ahead...outside. 

Humidity. Oh, sweet humidity. I hate your guts. 

I lived with you when I was in St. Louis, but since moving to Utah I have not thought twice about you. You suck. My hair and I were not impressed. The minute we stepped outside, my hair curled in unruly spurts and we were instantly hot and sweaty. Talk about a shock to your system. We then stood in line for a good 40 minutes before we got a taxi and went to our hotel for the night.  

DAY 2- February 1

We woke up this morning ready to start our day. I think we were all excited to start our new adventure we had been talking about for over a year. We had breakfast downstairs in the hotel and caught up with the rest of family who had arrived the day earlier in the afternoon. We had some time to kill before we had to board the ship. We headed to the beach which was just down the street from us. 

The girls each got a new swim suit and were thrilled when we told them they could put them on. They also couldn't wait to wear their flip flops. We walked down and took up our spot right near the water. The waves were quite strong so we didn't really get in the water. Kaitlyn wasn't sure about the water and sat on my lap the whole time we were there. Emma loved running from the waves and playing in the sand. Sand is the worst. Especially with small children. When we got back to the hotel room and got both girls in the shower, there was sand everywhere. 
And when I say everywhere, I mean everywhere. It was amazing. 
We cleaned up, had lunch in town, and then proceeded to the ship. 

The check-in process was pretty easy. They had a ton of check points. I guess they want to make sure you are who you say you are...six times. Once we got on board, we headed straight to the buffet. For those of you who have never been on a cruise, expect to eat your weight in buffet food. There is food readily available at all times. All. Day. Long. No joke. I'm still having withdrawals as I type this.  From here, we go to our stateroom- which is smaller than you would think. There was a queen bed (two twins pushed together) and two bunk-bed-like beds that folded out from the ceiling. The girls loved these beds. And, good news, no one fell out. That was always a relief waking up and seeing both girls tucked snugly in their beds. Or, in Kaitlyn's case, sitting up looking at me- willing me to wake. We had dinner in the dining room that night and then went out to the ship deck to watch us push off. This was quite a sight. They brought in these huge ropes that were attaching us to the dock, they sounded the horn and we embarked on our 7-day cruise. After that, we danced with the kids. By now, it was quite late so our children went to hang out with their cousins and a few of us went to Karaoke. Ben and I performed "Love Shack." Sadly, no pictures were taken. However, take it from me, we both looked amazing and sounded awesome. :) We slept quite good that night. I think it was the best night sleep we had the entire week. I felt a little nauseous, but when I woke the next morning, I was feeling great and ready to take on St. Thomas. 

Goals

Goals. To me, this can sometimes be a four-letter-word. You know the one you say and then instantly feel bad about. For me, I feel bad because I have been known to set goals and then not attain them. And that makes me sad. Especially when you write them down, come across them throughout the year, and realize none of them are underway. Like not even close. 

Sometimes I feel like I'm setting myself up for failure. You know what I mean?

Not this year. This year I have two important goals. One is a personal goal and the second is a family goal that we came up with together. 

Personal Goal: 

FINISH. 

Seriously, that's all. Finish. 

Start something and then finish it. 

Commence something and finish. 

Or, finish something that has already been started. 

For those of you who have seen my kitchen...yea.

I started crocheting a blanket for Kaitlyn while I was still pregnant. Honestly, this was three years ago I started this. Recently I came across said blanket. It was a hot mess. It had been moved around one too many times. So, I cut the cord (literally and figuratively) and started a different project- finishing off the yarn I had purchased and started on years ago. 

I have made two scarves with this yarn. One for Emma and one for Kaitlyn. This makes me extremely happy. Not only because I finally finished a project I started about three years ago, but because I was able to make something for my girls, that they will love and cherish. Well, at least for the next few months. Hello, Winter Wonderland. 

I love being creative and making things with my hands. Here's another story about when I was pregnant with Kaitlyn. It was a Sunday morning and Ben and I started nailing some board and batten on our kitchen walls. This was a Sunday in July and it was excruciating hot. And I was 8 1/2 months pregnant. We decided to put our nail gun down and take Emma to the neighborhood pool. Long story short, about 8 hours later, Kaitlyn Nicole was born. That kitchen is still not finished. Everyday, it looks at me and taunts me into finishing it. I always make excuses...I need a new sander. I'm too tired. I need to do laundry. I'm feeling lazy today. I would rather take my children to the park. I'd rather just eat in the living room so I don't have to look at it. Nope. Not this year. I'm gonna finish those kitchen walls like my life depended on it. 

Because, at this time in my life, it does. 

Last year, I had a hard time. I felt like I was personally and professionally at a stand still. I was always tired and I wasn't happy where I was as an employee. I felt like I had no control and if something didn't get done, I was always ready with an excuse. Not. This. Year. Nope. Nuh-huh. I'm taking control. This is just one way to do that. FINISH. 

<here is that kitchen wall in all its glory. also, i need to take down this merry christmas sign>

Family Goal: 

TRY NEW THINGS.

My husband is, what some would call, a home-body. He loves to stay home. He'd rather not go out. Ever. He has consistently claimed that he would be totally and completely happy if he lived in the mountains with no one around for miles. Well, except for his family. :) He likes us just fine. However, with his home-bodiedness (that's a word), it has been difficult to try new things. It's like if we do, it isn't up to snuff and he'd have been happier if we had just had dinner at home. Or the girls misbehave, or something is spilled or dropped and we all start crying...while we're trying to order drinks. Not this year. This year, we are going to try new things, and we're going to enjoy it. 

This past weekend, we started this goal by trying a new restaurant we have never tried, but have mentioned on multiple occasions that we would love to try it. We did. It wasn't that great, but we did it. We also saw a movie that afternoon with the wandering Kaitlyn. She last about 45 minutes. And then we spent some time walking back and forth in the back of the theater. And then we went out to the hall. It was a lot of fun! No, but seriously. I'm really glad we tried these things. 

This year, courtesy of my parents, we have passes to Thanksgiving Point and we're looking forward to trying that out throughout the year and seeing what it's all about. 

We also went ice skating as a family for the first time. Although, now that I think about it, I don't think Ben and I have ever been ice skating together. Ever. Turns out it's a lot of fun and our girls thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Here's proof. 

I'm glad I have these two goals this year. I feel as though they are attainable. 

We started a bathroom a few months ago and we WILL get it finished this year. 

All because of my goal. 

Just kidding. ;)

Bathroom Reno. Day 1 & 2

Yes, you read that correctly. We have officially started our bathroom 

renovation on our upstairs loo. 

Three years ago, I started day dreaming about out upstairs bathroom. I devoured Pinterest, read every blog and tutorial, and watched way too many YouTube videos. 
Two weekends ago, we headed to our local Lowe's and bought $1,300 worth of supplies. 

These supplies include but are not limited to: 

Tile, Grout, Grout Sealant, Thin set, Hardi Backerboard, Special screws for said Backerboard, Fibratape for the Backerboard, Shower valves, Tub, Window

This past weekend we stripped everything down to its underpants studs. 

Oh, yes, the bathtub is in our backyard as we speak. We are those people. 

Here are some pictures and descriptions.

Step 1 was removing the old tile. The longest wall was the easiest because there was a lot of water damage. Which means tiles were already barely  hanging on. Which means the Backerboard behind it was water-damaged as well. It was quite the dirty job, but it was totally invigorating as well. I've been wanting to do that since we moved in 3 1/2 years ago. :) The two short walls were more difficult because there was no water damage. These were a bit tougher to pry remove from the wall. 

Step 2 was removing the insulation and bathtub. 

Step 3 includes cleaning everything up. This one I am not looking forward to. 

All of this was hard work. My hands are scratched up, my back hurts, and that room is currently filthy and drafty as all get-out (the insulation has been thrown out). However, I am so proud of it, it's ridiculous. We're actually renovating our bathroom ourselves. Can I get a hallelujah! Some good thoughts our way would be nice as well, as we tackle our pipes in the near future. Good thing my handy hubby knows what he's doing. :)

I am so proud of us, I can't even stand it.
No, seriously. I can't stand it. I wish it were just done already. Oh well, I guess those are the breaks when you DIY.:) 

Routines

Routines, who needs them? Me- I do. I need them very badly. I'm a mess without them. Anyone else?

FACT: I am a mom.I have two daughters. I wish I could give them everything I can. I fear, everyday, that I am making bad choices and mistakes that will affect them in the future. 

FICTION: I am a failure. Yes, I make mistakes, but I am not failing them as a mother. I provide them clean clothes, food to eat, a safe house to live in, and unconditional love. I read them books and help with homework. We paint finger nails and pictures to hang on our wall. I work hard to provide for them. I want them to look up to me. I want to be a good example for them. I want their answer, when asked who their hero is, to be me. Is that selfish? Maybe. But, I don’t care. I want to be someone they want to be. 

WISH: I wish I would stop beating myself up when I feel inadequate. Or feeling guilty when I have to yell at the kids to get them to listen to me. Because I’ve said something four times. Because they still ignore me. And then someone gets hurt because they didn’t listen to me. And falls off of the couch because they refuse to stop jumping on it. 
{Please tell me I’m not the only one}
I can’t tell you how many times I have gone to my husband crying asking if I’m a good mother. Every time he says I am. Every. Single. Time. So why do I doubt myself. Why can’t I see it the way he sees it?

TRUTH: A lot of things have been happening in my family.    <Both good and bad> 

We've had a family tragedy, grandparents have come to visit, I've accepted a new job, I've been late to work almost everyday this past month…and, well, life in general. I feel like we've been off our A-Game and it’s high time we get back on it. 

Quite frankly, not being on a routine is exhausting. 

I hope that from here on out, I can just keep calm and mother on. Take a deep breath, go on a walk, and/or eat a cupcake. 
Whatever it is that will help me get it together.

Pinterest Inspired: Bow Garland

Isn't the internet a wonderful thing. You can see and learn so many things. I find it to be inspiring. This past week, I catching up on a blog I personally adore, Dear Lizzy. She is so creative and her post on a DIY Garland was just the ticket I needed to get my creativity back. My goal now is to post at least once a week. I know, lofty.  :)

This project is so easy. If you have a Silhouette or Cameo machine, you just find the design you want, have the machine cut it for you, and then glue it all together. If you don't have one of these machines, find a template and cut it out by hand. Lord knows that's what I used to do before I got my Silhouette 5 years ago.

This project took me a total of 3 days. Projects don't happen over night. I can't seem to get a project done in one day to save my life. This was good though, because I had help and input from my two helpers. This would've gone a lot quicker had I been doing it by myself. But, isn't it more fun when you have cutie pies like this helping? OK, OK, let's be honest-  that's debatable. Even though I have girls, they sure can fight with each other with the best of them. This project, while easy, was not made without blood, sweat, and tears.            

I ended up cutting a lot more than I probably needed to, but I'll use the extras for other things. Kaitlyn might get one in her room, or I'll keep them around for gifts or cards. They're 3D, so they're kinda extra fancy.

DIY Scarf Corral

I got this beauty in the Target Dollar Spot. It was originally marked $3.00 but was on sale for $0.90. They were having an awesome sale where things with a black dot were 90% off. It is an Over-The-Door hanger thing and it was already yellow, so I knew I wouldn’t have to tweak that and spray paint it- which I probably would’ve done.

I saw this just laying in the bin- lonely and sad, envisioned the beautiful potential, and viciously threw put it in my cart. It was like a swan story that played out in my mind over the course of 10 seconds.

Fast forward 1 ½ months. I got my husband to cut off the bits that are supposed to hang over the door. It is now a flat, swirly, wonderful scarf corral. If you have been following for awhile, you will remember this post of the His and Her messy dresser picture. A lot of that mess on my side were scarves. I was waiting for something magnificent to come along to put them on display. These scarves are literally my pretties. I am obsessed with them and would like to add to my collection ten-fold. No, I am not kidding. 

Until then, this works perfectly. Right now, I have it hanging on some 3M Command Hooks. I will probably move it when I figure out the rest of my room. For now, this is a perfect spot for it. I love it. And my  husband loves that my side of the dresser is a little bit cleaner.

A Quiz for My Daughter

So, I've mentioned how much I appreciate keeping a journal (if you missed that, you can find it here). I have one for me, one for Emma, and one for Kaitlyn. I don't write in them very much consistently, but today was an exception.  I wrote these questions down awhile ago and thought I'd share today. I love asking Emma questions and hearing the answers-- I'll do the same with Kaitlyn. Their unsolicited, very innocent answers are something that I appreciate. Sometimes they make me laugh and sometimes they leave me scratching my head. Since when do I dress up?

It was a lot of fun doing this with my first born and hearing what she thought about me and her perceptions to things around her. 

Here we go...

1.What is something mom always says to you? 
I love you. 

2. What makes mom happy? 
Being good.

3. What makes mom sad? 
Being bad. 

4. How does your mom make you laugh? 
Tickle me and make funny jokes. 

5. What was your mom like as a child? 
Good. 

6. How old is your mom? 
50 hundred 60 thousand

7. How tall is your mom? 
Motioning with her hands...this big. 

8. What is her favorite thing to do? 
Dress up

9. What does your mom do when you're not around? 
Do the dishes. 

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for? 
Dancing. And singing while your dancing. 

11. What is your mom really good at? 
Singing.

12. What does your mom do for a job? 
Snowbird. 

13.What is your mom's favorite food? 
Steak.

14. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be? 
Abby Cadabby on Sesame Street. 

15. What do you and your mom do together? 

Clean up and make cookies. 

16. How are you and your mom the same? 

Because we both have Emma names. 

17. How are you and your mom different? 

Because we don't look the same. 

18. How do you know that your mom loves you? 

 Because you always tell me and you give me kisses and hugs. 

19. What does your mom like most about your dad? 

*silence* I don't know. Doing the laundry. 

20. Where is your mom's favorite place to go? 

Ikea.

See how simple her thoughts can be? What makes your mom happy? When I'm good. Love that. I try to do things with her ever so often. It's fun to see how her perceptions change and her answers vary. Fun things I also quiz her on are the essentials that, I think, are fun for her to look back on when she's older. Like, favorite color, food, song, etc. It's fun to see things change, but sometimes stay the same. One constant for her is her favorite song-- which is "Somewhere, Over the Rainbow." It's the song that she always requests for bedtime, or when she's scared or not feeling well. I love that this is something we'll be able to look back on and remember all of the good times. i.e. not when she tried to flush the diaper down the toilet or write on our walls with permanent marker. :)

A Wall of Hearts

I am slightly obsessed with stickers. So is my eldest child. This was the perfect Saturday afternoon project to do with her. I used to joke that my favorite color was polka dots. While this isn't entirely true, I've never met a polka dot I didn't like. There's just something happy about them. I didn't use polka dots this time, but that doesn't mean someone else couldn't. 

This project could be used with any craft punch. I chose hearts because I want Emma to see all of the hearts, all over her room, and be reminded how much her momma loves her. Love that girl to the moon and back. 

Anywho, circles, stars, whatever you fancy. I originally saw something like this on The Hunted Interior website a couple of weeks ago. Once I saw how cute it was in her little girl's room, I knew I could replicate it in the cheapest/easiest way possible. Self-adhesive vinyl and a heart-shaped craft punch. You can see my inspiration here.

Here are some awesome pictures of me doing my thang. Step 1. Punch out your shapes into the vinyl. I found by cutting my roll in 2-inch sections did the trick. I did 8 hearts down one side and 8 down the other. No wasting here. 

 I know a very special, smart, beautiful little girl was enamored with how it turned out. And she helped me every step of the way. That's the other thing, if you're severely OCD, you might need to measure things out to make sure they all line up. We just went for it. There was no rhyme or rhythm here. Just put the hearts where they looked good and put them on as straight as possible. I did move a few to space them out a bit more. Hey, no one said I didn't have a little OCD in me. Just a little. I absolutely love when we do a project from start to finish and both of us are happy with the results and each other in the end. Her little friends were happy too. 

See all their smiling faces :)

This might be the happiest room in the house right now. As I type this I'm thinking of all the possibilities with these two little things. I could do polka dots with a gold vinyl or a glitter vinyl... or triangles. You can find craft stamps at any hobby shop. I got mine awhile ago with a coupon. There's always some coupon, somewhere. I know I refuse to buy anything at full price, so it works well for me. Same goes for the vinyl. From Hobby Lobby, it was $7.99- with a 40% off coupon, it ended up costing $4.49. And, I still have a ton left over. I didn't even use half of it for this one wall. 

And I love left overs. No matter what it's from. 

Real Life Reveal: Day 3

My youngest daughter is 19 months now. She started sleeping through the night at around 4 months. Lately, she has been getting up again. And by lately, I mean for the last 11 nights (but who’s counting).

This is part of the reason my house is a bit chaotic. Once bedtime comes and goes for my kids, I am on the couch in my own PJs watching something just for me. Most recently, this includes Scandal. Love me some Kerry Washington. 

Anyways, I am one tired momma these days. I need a minimum of 9 hours of uninterrupted sleep. When that does not happen, you’ll know.
 I'll tell you what gets me through it. Coffee. Lots and lots of coffee. Sometimes 3 cups of coffee. Sometimes more. It’s what got me through my school years- when I was going to school full time, while working a full-time job, while having a 1 year old keeping me up all night, every night, while trying to have something left over for my husband. It was the hardest 2 years of my life...but SO worth it.

Back to the point. Was there ever a point? Yes, there was.

Case in point.  I am tired. My house is a mess.

Here is a picture of what my closet looks like. You only get a picture of the one side because our closet door was knocked off its track by one or two of my children and we have not had the time or energy to put it back on.

I see pictures of beautiful closets. I drool over said pictures. It’s still not motivation enough for me to even finish painting my closet. That’s right folks. My bedroom was the first room we painted, over 2 years ago, and the closet is still unpainted.*Duly noted* I am aware how pathetic that looks.  Whatevs.

Real Life Reveal: Day 2

Do you and your significant other have very obvious sides of things? Like the bathroom sink, closet, or bedside? Me too. 

You see that his side is clear and mine is a hot mess. Yea. I"m working on it. 

I have clothes that still need to be hung up, picture frames that don't have a home yet, and if you look closely, you'll see a Nifty Knitter with some yarn attached. I started a "blanket" back when I was pregnant with Kaitlyn. Yea, she's 19 months now. I should work on that too. 

Anywho, here is a glimpse at my dresser. I actually have a plan to get rid of some of my mess. Stay tuned early next week. I have big plans this weekend!  :)

Real Life Reveal: Day 1

I always think it's fun to get a glimpse into someone's life. Is that weird? I think it's just refreshing to see how others live. I am slightly obsessed with reading blogs and sometimes I get blog envy. Same thing goes with Facebook. My life  is nothing if it isn't a chaotic one. And you know what, I love it anyways. I love that sometimes we have dished in the sink from the night before because I felt it was more important to watch a movie with my husband or play hide and seek with my girls. Or to just lay on the couch and scroll through Pinterest for hours and hours. Let's be honest. 

I'm fine with it. Envy is for the birds. 

My bathroom is the one room that I clean only when I think about it. 

Something like after I shower and everything is misted over and I wipe down the sink with a wad of toilet paper. Something like when the trash is full and I actually take it out. :) 

Yea, last Friday Emma had a dentist come to her school to teach the kids about dental hygiene. I love when things like this happen to her because she learns something new and gets really excited to do it, and do it right. If you look closely, this is what you will see: a bottle of lotion laying on its side. 5 things of tooth paste and a length of yarn tied to a hair band- or a leash for Emma's dog, Sparkles. 

Sometimes a girl just doesn't have the time or motivation to clean up after herself and her family. 

Sometimes a girl would rather watch Scandal on Netflix. 

Love Blossoms Here

And by love, I mean plants. And by here, I mean on my piano. :)

I have been craving green lately. Ever since January ended, I have been ready for spring. We were at Lowe's last week for their Build and Grow program (the girls both made a letter holder for their Valentines) and I wanted to peruse the plant section. You can imagine it was pretty limited. I have been eyeing some awesome succulent plants on the interwebs, but they didn't have any I was looking for. Enter Plan B. A fairly large plant, on clearance, for $5. Sold. We got home, I got the babe to sleep and my firstborn happily watching a fairy movie. Momma got to work!

Supplies I used: 

1 Glass Vase I had laying around

1 Clearance Plant

1 Small Craft Paint Bottle

1 Small Paintbrush

I also brought out some puffy paint, because I thought it would be fun to make some designs and then paint right over them, giving it a kind of dimensional look. I did not have the patience for that step, and I painted the inside of the vase, so it just didn't end up working for this project. And yes, you paint the inside of the vase. I just poured a generous amount of paint around the inside, bottom and swooshed it around with my paintbrush. There is no rhyme or reason behind your swooshing. Just swoosh away. Make sure the entire surface is covered. I then turned it upside down and let the extra paint drip out, leaving a super smooth paint job. 

From the outside, it looked like it came that way. 

After it completely dried, while I kept touching it and making smudge prints waited patiently for it to dry, I put my plant in it and proudly put it on display atop my piano. I love it. It really does make me happier having something green in my living room. Something living for me to breath in. I'm not really a winter girl, and since winter will probably last for another 3 months, this will help tide me over until spring gets here. :)

Chalk It Up to a Win

Ben and I are really working at de-cluttering our home. We've been getting rid of things like crazy. In the process, I've come across some things that I have completely forgotten about. Don't you love that? I found this frame in my office/catch-all-for-everything. I got it on clearance at Hobby Lobby. I think I probably paid around $10 for it. It's fairly large and in good shape, but it just wasn't doing it for me. The glass had broken and I almost just got rid of it. Then I remembered all of these pins on Pinterest in regard to DIY chalkboard art. I knew this was what I had to do. We had chalkboard paint in our stash of paints and I already had the paint brushes on hand too. 

This was a free project. 

Here is my frame as it started. 

STEPS

1. Lay out your board in your work space.

2. I primed mine because I had the primer and I though it would help the chalkboard paint adhere a bit better. I'm sure you could skip this step though. Just sand a bit before you start with the chalkboard paint.

3. Let primer dry completely. 

4. I did my first coat of chalkboard paint with a foam brush. It worked well, but took forever. 

5. Coats 2,3, and 4 went on with a foam roller. This worked a lot better. I was able to really saturate the board and get good coverage. This is what I would suggest if you try this project. 

6. DONE!

I then lightly sanded the whole thing to smooth things out. At that time, you condition your board. Pretty simple. 

Once you're done doing all of that, put your frame back together, hang up, and enjoy your handy work. You just made a free/cheap project from start to finish. And, it only took one day working on it off and on. 

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