Sunday, September 18, 2011
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Tuesday Ten~ What a month
What a busy and fun time we have had!
1. Embellished Living had it's first big craft show over spring break. It was 3 days of people telling us wonderful things about our items. Everyone really gave us great feedback and surprisingly thought we were a company like Home Interiors! What! How awesome is that? We did much better than we anticipated and had fun in the process. Our next show is only a couple of weeks away now and we are really excited about it.
2. Travis and I took a big step and left our girls for 5 days! It was the first time we have both been away from them at the same time like that. They were happy with my mom who was great and came here to stay with them so we could go to VEGAS!!! We went for our friend Wayne's 40th birthday! It was a total surprise for him which made the whole thing even more fun. Can you really think of anything better than escaping for a few days and hanging out with some great friends? Fantastic
3. Sadly our trip had to come to an end but even worse was most of us came home sick (My sickness started there) The trip was worth every second of sickness we endured though, I think we would all agree
4. Vegas may have been a very dangerous thing for me for several reasons. 1. I got my first massage, it won't be my last ;) 2. I got my first facial, it too will not be my last. 3. I discovered craps, I am looking forward to playing it again!
5. Girl Scouts has been busy! Prior to Vegas we went to the zoo for an overnight trip, it was very cool and the girls enjoyed it. The week after Vegas was time for me to prepare for our very last camping trip as a troop. We had such a great time! It was very bittersweet for me and left me very emotional knowing I was walking away from these girls that have been a big part of my life for years now. I will really miss seeing them on a regular basis. Despite all the BS that has been a part of scouts the girls are fantastic and I have loved being a part of their lives.
6. I have convinced everyone that it is a great idea to do an end of the year party playing laser tag with scouts. I am so excited for it cause I know they are all going to have so much fun.
7. Along with planning our camping trip when I came home from Vegas I was also planning an Italian themed party for the same weekend. In fact, I had to drive to camp Friday, come home Saturday afternoon, host a party Saturday night and drive back to camp Sunday morning. BTW it was 1.5 hours away... The party was to honor my late FIL's birthday. We about 10 guests not including us, had food catered from a local Italian place (cause lets be real) and we had a lot of Italian wine and beer and shots, lol. We had a great time and it turned out to be a good party. I am not a hostess so I was quite worried but it turned out to be a fun night so I'm relieved.
8. Mykenzie is working hard at trying to earn her bronze award in girl scouts. It is taking up some weekends but she is excited that she is going to get it. Her group decided to work to help local no kill shelters as their community service project.
9. Kaylee is playing soccer now. Well kinda... She had her first game while we were in Vegas so we missed it. My mom took her though and she had fun. We went to her next game. The the next weekend she was at camp, but it was freezing and raining so I am glad she couldn't go. This past weekend she had to miss again but this time cause she was sick and throwing up :( Poor kiddo is still home from school today, though she seems to be feeling pretty good so fingers crossed she can head back tomorrow cause she is bored out of her mind and really wants to go.
10. Easter has come and gone. Luckily Kaylee was feeling good on Easter Sunday so she was able to enjoy hunting for her eggs and her basket and she got to help color color eggs on Saturday night. They were both happy with their goodies from the Easer bunny this year.
8. I hired a cleaning lady. It was a one time thing cause I had so much going on I just didn't have the time before the party. I left my house that morning with so much guilt that someone else was cleaning my house. Then I came home. My house was clean, and I didn't clean it. It was fantastic! I can't justify it on a regular basis but it was certainly a nice treat.
9. The school year is winding down. I cannot believe how fast this one has gone, I guess I probably say that every year though.
10. I am in the process of gathering pictures of my girl scouts from the past 6 years and making a video slideshow for each of them. I have no idea how to make this happen, if anyone knows a good, free program to make that happen I'd love to know about it :)
1. Embellished Living had it's first big craft show over spring break. It was 3 days of people telling us wonderful things about our items. Everyone really gave us great feedback and surprisingly thought we were a company like Home Interiors! What! How awesome is that? We did much better than we anticipated and had fun in the process. Our next show is only a couple of weeks away now and we are really excited about it.
2. Travis and I took a big step and left our girls for 5 days! It was the first time we have both been away from them at the same time like that. They were happy with my mom who was great and came here to stay with them so we could go to VEGAS!!! We went for our friend Wayne's 40th birthday! It was a total surprise for him which made the whole thing even more fun. Can you really think of anything better than escaping for a few days and hanging out with some great friends? Fantastic
4. Vegas may have been a very dangerous thing for me for several reasons. 1. I got my first massage, it won't be my last ;) 2. I got my first facial, it too will not be my last. 3. I discovered craps, I am looking forward to playing it again!
5. Girl Scouts has been busy! Prior to Vegas we went to the zoo for an overnight trip, it was very cool and the girls enjoyed it. The week after Vegas was time for me to prepare for our very last camping trip as a troop. We had such a great time! It was very bittersweet for me and left me very emotional knowing I was walking away from these girls that have been a big part of my life for years now. I will really miss seeing them on a regular basis. Despite all the BS that has been a part of scouts the girls are fantastic and I have loved being a part of their lives.
6. I have convinced everyone that it is a great idea to do an end of the year party playing laser tag with scouts. I am so excited for it cause I know they are all going to have so much fun.
7. Along with planning our camping trip when I came home from Vegas I was also planning an Italian themed party for the same weekend. In fact, I had to drive to camp Friday, come home Saturday afternoon, host a party Saturday night and drive back to camp Sunday morning. BTW it was 1.5 hours away... The party was to honor my late FIL's birthday. We about 10 guests not including us, had food catered from a local Italian place (cause lets be real) and we had a lot of Italian wine and beer and shots, lol. We had a great time and it turned out to be a good party. I am not a hostess so I was quite worried but it turned out to be a fun night so I'm relieved.
8. Mykenzie is working hard at trying to earn her bronze award in girl scouts. It is taking up some weekends but she is excited that she is going to get it. Her group decided to work to help local no kill shelters as their community service project.
9. Kaylee is playing soccer now. Well kinda... She had her first game while we were in Vegas so we missed it. My mom took her though and she had fun. We went to her next game. The the next weekend she was at camp, but it was freezing and raining so I am glad she couldn't go. This past weekend she had to miss again but this time cause she was sick and throwing up :( Poor kiddo is still home from school today, though she seems to be feeling pretty good so fingers crossed she can head back tomorrow cause she is bored out of her mind and really wants to go.
10. Easter has come and gone. Luckily Kaylee was feeling good on Easter Sunday so she was able to enjoy hunting for her eggs and her basket and she got to help color color eggs on Saturday night. They were both happy with their goodies from the Easer bunny this year.
8. I hired a cleaning lady. It was a one time thing cause I had so much going on I just didn't have the time before the party. I left my house that morning with so much guilt that someone else was cleaning my house. Then I came home. My house was clean, and I didn't clean it. It was fantastic! I can't justify it on a regular basis but it was certainly a nice treat.
9. The school year is winding down. I cannot believe how fast this one has gone, I guess I probably say that every year though.
10. I am in the process of gathering pictures of my girl scouts from the past 6 years and making a video slideshow for each of them. I have no idea how to make this happen, if anyone knows a good, free program to make that happen I'd love to know about it :)
Monday, March 07, 2011
Transformation Complete!
Ok. Well it isn't totally done. I still have to make curtains, but I have the fabric. Since I can't sew I am hoping my mudder will make my curtains for me while she is visiting next month ;) This project has been on my mind officially for a year and a half. I have wanted to do it and have been talking about it now for what seems like forever. It was a lot of work. It caused great frustration due to the fact that my walls are apparently not straight (thank you Old South). It isn't perfect but I love it! It makes me happy. It makes me *ALMOST* like doing my laundry. That's right folks my laundry room re-do is done!!!
Soooo. What did we do?
Soooo. What did we do?
1. Awhile back we replaced our washer and dryer. At that time we ripped the old wire shelf out and repainted the room grey and took the door off.
2. As we finally started this project up again we started by hanging 2 cabinets that we bought at lowes raw and painted black.
3. Mod Podged Scrapbook paper to the inside of cabinets.
3. We hung 2 shelves in between the 2 cabinets
4. We built a cabinet to go beside by dryer with hanging bars for clothes.
5. Finished the top of the cabinets with crown to pull them all together.
6. Added a chandelier
7. Built a drying rack to hang on the wall.
8. Made a bin for missing socks...
9. Embellish a cute tray and add some decor to shelving (including some cute clothespins from Embellished Living ) I still have things in mind for the top of the cabinets but have more important things I need to purchase currently.
10. Turned what used to look like this....
Into BLISS!
**not a huge fan of the thing under the window.... it is either coming down or getting painted blue or white. The curtains will be the same material as seen above on the tray.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Makin' It Monday
Here are a couple of the things I have worked on lately. This first pic is of Mykenzie's new night light. She has been sleeping with her overhead light on again lately so she needed something else. Made from a glass block and using Sure Cuts Alot for images.
This next thing is a sign made for my BILs business. He needed something for on his office door. Name and phone numbered have been blurred out. The hat and t shirt show his logo. It is far from perfect but it came out alright. The Paradigm font is Nails
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Reading
Kaylee is officially a reader. Yes I know she is in the first grade and should be reading, but she is reading! I am amazed at how fast she seems to catch on to the whole concept. It was such an easier experience with her vs. Mykenzie. Mykenzie hated it and struggled. Kaylee just did it like she always knew how and never really had an issue. I used to yell and argue and totally stress out with Mykenzie on a daily basis, and I have never had to do that with Kaylee.
Is it because she is the second child? Because she started in preschool at 3 years old vs Mykenzie's 4 years old? Or simply because it just came easier for her? I don't know why or how but it snuck up on me how quickly she became a good reader. I am thrilled it was easier this time around and that something I had been dreading 4 years ago ended up being effortless. I love that she can read and enjoys it. I love that even though Mykenzie had a rough start she loves to read now and is constantly asking me for new books. I often put her to bed at night reading a book and find her the next morning book in hand because she woke up and wanted to read some more. We have come a long way but it is good to know that everyone in our house throughly enjoys relaxing with a good book
Is it because she is the second child? Because she started in preschool at 3 years old vs Mykenzie's 4 years old? Or simply because it just came easier for her? I don't know why or how but it snuck up on me how quickly she became a good reader. I am thrilled it was easier this time around and that something I had been dreading 4 years ago ended up being effortless. I love that she can read and enjoys it. I love that even though Mykenzie had a rough start she loves to read now and is constantly asking me for new books. I often put her to bed at night reading a book and find her the next morning book in hand because she woke up and wanted to read some more. We have come a long way but it is good to know that everyone in our house throughly enjoys relaxing with a good book
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Tuesday Thirteen
1. Cutting crown stinks :( I wish I could figure it out. When I do I may put it everywhere to practice over and over again. I need to make 4 cuts, that's it. Hopefully a tutorial Chandra found me will help.
2. My project is still not done thank you crown molding ^^^
3. Yesterday was Valentines Day. Travis and I went out to dinner and a movie on Saturday and had a good time. It took us many years but I am glad we make time now for some date nights.
4. I busted my butt in my bedroom last week. I finally pulled something together for it. I started it in June! I threw some homemade art on the wall and cleaned up my craft area to add some decorations to my shelves. Much improved. Looks like a room now. Onwards and upwards
5. While cleaning my room I cleaned out all of my drawers and cabinets in my bathroom. I ended up with a bag of stuff I have no idea why I was keeping. Happy to declutter that part of my house. Makes mornings easier already.
6. The sun is shining! We are having a beautiful weather week and it is fantastic!
7. Tomorrow is a half day of school. I may take the girls to a movie, depends on the homework situation.
8. Mykenzie's teacher is in the hospital. She is having issues with her heart. I only know bits of what Mykenzie has told me cause she doesn't know much. Say a prayer for her and her students. They are worried about her.
9. Kaylee is sick again. She is coughing like crazy. Poor girl. She is always the first in our house to catch the germs floating around.
10. I need to get my hair done. Really bad. It is awful. I am waiting a couple more weeks since we are getting ready to go on vacation and will want it done before we go.
11. Ana White and all of the rest of the people who build things and act like it is really easy are liars. It is not easy to build things. It in fact is really hard. It is fun, but it is not easy.
12. Girl Scout cookies are in! If you haven't ordered and want some, I can still get some for you, just let me know. We have already eaten a ton. I need to walk away and hop on the elliptical instead. yikes!
13. I have a girl scout service unit meeting to go to tonight. I cannot begin to tell you how much I do not want to go. I have to drag my kids cause Travis is out of town. I haven't been to one in a while though so I guess I have to suck it up and go. Damn it. Only 3 more left after tonight.
2. My project is still not done thank you crown molding ^^^
3. Yesterday was Valentines Day. Travis and I went out to dinner and a movie on Saturday and had a good time. It took us many years but I am glad we make time now for some date nights.
4. I busted my butt in my bedroom last week. I finally pulled something together for it. I started it in June! I threw some homemade art on the wall and cleaned up my craft area to add some decorations to my shelves. Much improved. Looks like a room now. Onwards and upwards
5. While cleaning my room I cleaned out all of my drawers and cabinets in my bathroom. I ended up with a bag of stuff I have no idea why I was keeping. Happy to declutter that part of my house. Makes mornings easier already.
6. The sun is shining! We are having a beautiful weather week and it is fantastic!
7. Tomorrow is a half day of school. I may take the girls to a movie, depends on the homework situation.
8. Mykenzie's teacher is in the hospital. She is having issues with her heart. I only know bits of what Mykenzie has told me cause she doesn't know much. Say a prayer for her and her students. They are worried about her.
9. Kaylee is sick again. She is coughing like crazy. Poor girl. She is always the first in our house to catch the germs floating around.
10. I need to get my hair done. Really bad. It is awful. I am waiting a couple more weeks since we are getting ready to go on vacation and will want it done before we go.
11. Ana White and all of the rest of the people who build things and act like it is really easy are liars. It is not easy to build things. It in fact is really hard. It is fun, but it is not easy.
12. Girl Scout cookies are in! If you haven't ordered and want some, I can still get some for you, just let me know. We have already eaten a ton. I need to walk away and hop on the elliptical instead. yikes!
13. I have a girl scout service unit meeting to go to tonight. I cannot begin to tell you how much I do not want to go. I have to drag my kids cause Travis is out of town. I haven't been to one in a while though so I guess I have to suck it up and go. Damn it. Only 3 more left after tonight.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Makin' it Monday
Well for the past couple of weeks I have been quite busy making many things. The day has come that I can share them with all of blog land. Along with some wonderful ladies and great friends, Chandra, Moncia, Stacie and I have created a facebook site dedicated to our crafts. A place where people can get adorable handmade crafts for themselves or as gifts without actually having to do the work to make them. Our stuff is really cute if I do say so myself and I have some of it all in my house. Check it out, let us know what you think and place an order with us :)
http://www.facebook.com/Embellished.Living
http://www.facebook.com/Embellished.Living
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
Tuesday Thirteen
1. The weather here (and all over the country) has been miserable. It is so dreary outside. I hate being cold but would happily take the cold weather as long as we had some sunshine!
2. Speaking of cold, I have not been able to get myself warm for 2 days. Seriously cold to my bones.
3. The project I have mentioned a couple of weeks ago is almost done. I have 2 things left to do and it will be finished. I am already enjoying it though. Should be done by the end of the weekend
4. Travis is in Ohio. They bought another house so more renovations needed to be done. Hopefully this one will be up for rent by the end of the week.
5. The past week brought us sickness. Kaylee strep throat, and me some kind of stomach bug. Kaylee ended up being home from school 2 days last week. I ended up with a sour stomach for most of the week. Not fun. Happy we all seem to be good now
6. Been doing a lot of crafting lately. Having a good time and crossing fingers people love everything! More details to come...
7. I found a book I want to read... However, when I tried to place a hold on it at the library it wouldn't let me. Guess it is that time again when I have to actually go so they can verify my address again. Wish I could just do it online
8. We had a leader meeting at my house on Friday night. I *think* we all decided that we are walking away. It is bitter sweet. Happy to be done, but will miss parts of it. Plus I feel bad Kaylee has to be pulled from it.
9. Since this is Mykenzie's last year of scouts, I decided to sign her up for 5 nights at GS summer camp. She is going to be roomed with her friend Emma and get to try a bunch of different activities which will be cool. I think she is going to love it!
10. We are going on vacation!!! By we, I mean just Travis and I! I CAN'T WAIT! My mom is coming here to watch the girls. We are escaping with some great friends and are going to have a fantastic time! Seriously can't wait!
11. Looking forward to getting our income tax money back.... if we can ever file. Still waiting on the LLC taxes to get done :(
12. Just had to take my car to get looked at again. The dashboard lights seem to always take a few seconds to come on, my oil light has been coming on since we were in ohio, and my brakes were grinding. He called to tell me my brakes are fine. yay! Couldn't figure out the oil light cause it never came on for them, of course ( I technically never told them about the dash board lights since carmax already told me they couldn't figure it out, was gonna take it back to them) So I go this morning to pick it up.... car wont start on first or second try, starts on 3rd try but that darn oil light is on. So I go back in and the guy comes out to mess with it. Apparently my battery was dying. They said that should fix my dashboard light problems and the oil light. Fingers crossed
13. It has taken me all day to write this. I have been squeezing it in here and there all day. At least I posted something this week.
2. Speaking of cold, I have not been able to get myself warm for 2 days. Seriously cold to my bones.
3. The project I have mentioned a couple of weeks ago is almost done. I have 2 things left to do and it will be finished. I am already enjoying it though. Should be done by the end of the weekend
4. Travis is in Ohio. They bought another house so more renovations needed to be done. Hopefully this one will be up for rent by the end of the week.
5. The past week brought us sickness. Kaylee strep throat, and me some kind of stomach bug. Kaylee ended up being home from school 2 days last week. I ended up with a sour stomach for most of the week. Not fun. Happy we all seem to be good now
6. Been doing a lot of crafting lately. Having a good time and crossing fingers people love everything! More details to come...
7. I found a book I want to read... However, when I tried to place a hold on it at the library it wouldn't let me. Guess it is that time again when I have to actually go so they can verify my address again. Wish I could just do it online
8. We had a leader meeting at my house on Friday night. I *think* we all decided that we are walking away. It is bitter sweet. Happy to be done, but will miss parts of it. Plus I feel bad Kaylee has to be pulled from it.
9. Since this is Mykenzie's last year of scouts, I decided to sign her up for 5 nights at GS summer camp. She is going to be roomed with her friend Emma and get to try a bunch of different activities which will be cool. I think she is going to love it!
10. We are going on vacation!!! By we, I mean just Travis and I! I CAN'T WAIT! My mom is coming here to watch the girls. We are escaping with some great friends and are going to have a fantastic time! Seriously can't wait!
11. Looking forward to getting our income tax money back.... if we can ever file. Still waiting on the LLC taxes to get done :(
12. Just had to take my car to get looked at again. The dashboard lights seem to always take a few seconds to come on, my oil light has been coming on since we were in ohio, and my brakes were grinding. He called to tell me my brakes are fine. yay! Couldn't figure out the oil light cause it never came on for them, of course ( I technically never told them about the dash board lights since carmax already told me they couldn't figure it out, was gonna take it back to them) So I go this morning to pick it up.... car wont start on first or second try, starts on 3rd try but that darn oil light is on. So I go back in and the guy comes out to mess with it. Apparently my battery was dying. They said that should fix my dashboard light problems and the oil light. Fingers crossed
13. It has taken me all day to write this. I have been squeezing it in here and there all day. At least I posted something this week.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Have I Told You Lately?
Have I told you lately that I love you?
I LOVE my pantry. I just pulled everything out of it to repaint my shelves (I didn't poly them the first time and things have stuck) I FINALLY got everything put back away after being piled all over my kitchen for days. I was just reminded how much I love having that space. The best thing I have done in this house so far.
I LOVE my pantry. I just pulled everything out of it to repaint my shelves (I didn't poly them the first time and things have stuck) I FINALLY got everything put back away after being piled all over my kitchen for days. I was just reminded how much I love having that space. The best thing I have done in this house so far.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Subway Art?
Subway art is everywhere right now. I decided to give it a try too. This is my second attempt, the first was me painstakingly cutting out stencils and stenciling on a canvas. This did not work so well. I had a lot of paint bleeding and it just didn't turn out, which was sad cause I think it would have been really cute. Who knows I may revisit it one day and try to fix it. In the mean time I will settle for only printables. Here is what I came up with today. Nothing great, but for 10 minutes of playing around it isn't bad either. I am sure the more I mess with it the more I can figure out. Here is a glimpse of the first attempt
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Tuesday Thirteen
1. My kids have been in school 5 of the past 39 days. Granted some of those days are weekends, but with Christmas break beginning at 11:30am on December 17th, we were out of town the week of Jan 10th when they were to go back to school, Jan 17th was MLK day so no school and the 21st a snow day! Wow. I would have loved to have had this amount of time off when I was a kid.
2. During all that time (including when we were out of town for over a week) they only missed 2 days of school due to snow days the week we were gone. This makes Mykenzie VERY happy because she didn't have a ton of make up homework to do.
3. If you haven't gathered from the above posts, we have had a lot of snow here! After the snow we have here already this year and the snow from our Ohio trip, my kids have seen more snow in the past couple of weeks than they have in their entire lives!
4. Our water heater broke... joy. Good news, we went and bought a new one and Travis put it in himself. Saved us a bundle!
5. Finally bought something I have been wanting... This means it is project time! Stay tuned ;)
6. Mykenzie's last basketball game was this weekend. She played great! She hustled for the ball. Was on top of her girls while on defense, grabbed a rebound, stole a ball to run it down the court, and took 3 shots. So happy that she finally seemed to be in the game! After that game I am sad to see it end, if it kept going she could continue to get better. I am going to find her a basketball camp for this summer
7. Kaylee has decided to play soccer. Haven't signed her up yet, it will be interesting.
8. Both of the girls have new friends. They are there own little look alike American Girl dolls. They carry them around and brush their hair and love them to pieces. Hope it continues and they don't just end up as one of the toys they beg for, play with for a week and then forget about.
9. I am currently doing a secret sister with some friends of mine. This is something like the 4th year I have done it. I seriously love it! I love the thrill of running up to my sister's house, hoping that I don't get caught to leave her something that I know will make her smile. I love opening my mailbox and finding a little something other than bills waiting for me. Knowing someone is thinking about you can turn your whole day around.
10. I haven't read a book since October. I need to make that happen. Problem is I need to find one that I am really excited about reading. Once that happens I will get back in the groove. I guess that means I am looking for some suggestions.
11. I have BIG plans for this week. I have that project I mentioned in #5 that will take a lot of time but I also have several other things on my list as well. Lets just say my new saw will get a workout this week! yay! I'm so excited. Everything works so much better in my head so hopefully it all turns out in real life! One thing that I wanted to do was repaint my pantry shelves and poly them, got that done. So nice to have one thing checked off my mile long list of home projects.
12. My fantastic friend Chandra got my sewing machine to work! Hopefully I can use it a couple of times before I manage to break it again ;) I have some plans to give that thing a workout too
13. Kaylee was Good Citizen for this past 9 weeks!! She is so excited. She is still so innocent and filled with wonder and joy over everything. I will be so sad when that goes away. Mykenzie was also acknowledged for not getting any checks again this 9 weeks and is once again in the no check club. Both girls did great on their report cards too. We are so lucky to have these girls, and we are so proud of them both!
2. During all that time (including when we were out of town for over a week) they only missed 2 days of school due to snow days the week we were gone. This makes Mykenzie VERY happy because she didn't have a ton of make up homework to do.
3. If you haven't gathered from the above posts, we have had a lot of snow here! After the snow we have here already this year and the snow from our Ohio trip, my kids have seen more snow in the past couple of weeks than they have in their entire lives!
4. Our water heater broke... joy. Good news, we went and bought a new one and Travis put it in himself. Saved us a bundle!
5. Finally bought something I have been wanting... This means it is project time! Stay tuned ;)
6. Mykenzie's last basketball game was this weekend. She played great! She hustled for the ball. Was on top of her girls while on defense, grabbed a rebound, stole a ball to run it down the court, and took 3 shots. So happy that she finally seemed to be in the game! After that game I am sad to see it end, if it kept going she could continue to get better. I am going to find her a basketball camp for this summer
7. Kaylee has decided to play soccer. Haven't signed her up yet, it will be interesting.
8. Both of the girls have new friends. They are there own little look alike American Girl dolls. They carry them around and brush their hair and love them to pieces. Hope it continues and they don't just end up as one of the toys they beg for, play with for a week and then forget about.
9. I am currently doing a secret sister with some friends of mine. This is something like the 4th year I have done it. I seriously love it! I love the thrill of running up to my sister's house, hoping that I don't get caught to leave her something that I know will make her smile. I love opening my mailbox and finding a little something other than bills waiting for me. Knowing someone is thinking about you can turn your whole day around.
10. I haven't read a book since October. I need to make that happen. Problem is I need to find one that I am really excited about reading. Once that happens I will get back in the groove. I guess that means I am looking for some suggestions.
11. I have BIG plans for this week. I have that project I mentioned in #5 that will take a lot of time but I also have several other things on my list as well. Lets just say my new saw will get a workout this week! yay! I'm so excited. Everything works so much better in my head so hopefully it all turns out in real life! One thing that I wanted to do was repaint my pantry shelves and poly them, got that done. So nice to have one thing checked off my mile long list of home projects.
12. My fantastic friend Chandra got my sewing machine to work! Hopefully I can use it a couple of times before I manage to break it again ;) I have some plans to give that thing a workout too
13. Kaylee was Good Citizen for this past 9 weeks!! She is so excited. She is still so innocent and filled with wonder and joy over everything. I will be so sad when that goes away. Mykenzie was also acknowledged for not getting any checks again this 9 weeks and is once again in the no check club. Both girls did great on their report cards too. We are so lucky to have these girls, and we are so proud of them both!
Monday, January 24, 2011
Makin' It Monday
Want a quick and easy project just in time for Valentine's Day? Here ya go! All you need is a wire hanger and some burlap cut into strips. This project took all of 10 minutes to make. Super easy and quick, what could be better? Oh yeah, it is kinda cute too
Monday, January 17, 2011
Makin' It Monday
Travis and I put this together a couple of months ago. These are his dad's medals that he earned during the Vietnam War. Tony gave these all to Travis in June when we were in Ohio visiting. We brought the shadow box back with us when we visited him for Thanksgiving and he really liked it. It is now hanging in our loft with the addition of 3 of the shell casings (one for Travis and one for each of our girls) from the 21 gun salute at his funeral. His mother didn't even know that he had all of these. He didn't talk about it, but that first one in the box, that is his bronze star.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Sadness in our Family
My father in law Anthony Bolin passed away on January 6th. He fought a long hard battle and lived longer than many people thought he would. Our home is filled with sadness that he is gone, relief that he is no longer suffering, and happiness he has been a part of our lives over the past several years. Thank you Tony for moving forward and forging a relationship with Travis. Thank you for being a caring and loving grandpa to my girls. We will all miss you.
Sunday, January 02, 2011
Tuesday Thirteen
1. The girls are still out of school. The first week went by pretty quickly because we were still in Christmas prep and excitement mode. Last week was a mixture, so days seem to drag on forever while others flew by. This week I have a feeling is just going to drag. They are done. They are ready to go back and not be stuck with just each other all day. It is going to take forever to get to Monday.
2. Christmas decorations were taken down on Sunday. Now once again everyone around the country is going through withdraws because the houses seem sooo empty. Of course I don't want to put my same ol' stuff up again. It has been the same for 2 years and I am ready for a change. Sadly my budget isn't going to allow it so I am going to see what I can do with the stuff I currently have. Maybe I can move stuff around and pull off a change...
3. Cami got a hair cut. A much needed hair cut. I love how she looks when it is done but man I hate paying for it every 6 weeks!
4. I am going to start calling my dog Julio. If you can figure out why then I know you have the same guilty pleasure as me ;)
5. I added some more flooring to my attic yesterday. It is fantastic! Less than 1 sheet of plywood made a world of difference. I see more coming in the future.
6. We have finally caught up to technology and got a Blue Ray player. Well technically Travis got a Blue Ray... is it bad that I don't notice that much of a difference.
7. I spent the entire day cleaning my downstairs.... it still isn't finished. I must say though I am happy to have my house back. My decorations aren't what I want them to be right now but I am liking how clean my house seems without all the Christmas clutter. I love the way Christmas decor and lights warm up the house. Now that they are gone I am seriously ready for Spring to warm up my house.
8. I am ready to do some serious spring cleaning! I have cleaned out a couple of kitchen drawers and cabinets, and the drawers in my living room tables. What a difference to open a beautiful, clean organized drawer! Lots more to go.
9. Called and sat on hold for 30 minutes today to find out why it is my Flex spending card company is questioning 2 charges from our account. The first... Children's Heart, the second Murfreesboro Medical Clinic. What? Lady was super rude. I have the statements and receipts for both; however, one of them doesn't have the patient name. GRRR. Now I have to go and get a copy to send in before they decide to cancel my Flex account. I have 2 weeks. Don't get me wrong it is plenty of time for me in my current situation. If I were not lucky enough to be in my situation though. I don't know, I just think it is wrong.
10. I'm working on my bucket list. Looking forward to crossing some things off that list.
11. Winter breaking has been spoiling me. I am not sure how I am going to go back to getting up so early again next week. I haven't been waking up until after 8 this whole time! Fantastic!
12. Travis got an iPad for Christmas which means I get his hand me down Kindle. It is on my list of things to do to figure out how to use it. I never wanted one. I love the feel of a book in my hands. BUT, you can buy new releases cheaper on the kindle.... I guess I am going to give it a try. It will not replace my love of a nice hard back book in my hands though.
13. We are now down to a couple of days left for winter break. I am trying to figure out what we are going to do to have fun the rest of the week. Mykenzie's BFF is spending the night tonight and we are all going bowling in the morning. I want to take the girls to see the new Narnia movie this week too. Other than that I'm not sure, I am sure we can come up with something though.
2. Christmas decorations were taken down on Sunday. Now once again everyone around the country is going through withdraws because the houses seem sooo empty. Of course I don't want to put my same ol' stuff up again. It has been the same for 2 years and I am ready for a change. Sadly my budget isn't going to allow it so I am going to see what I can do with the stuff I currently have. Maybe I can move stuff around and pull off a change...
3. Cami got a hair cut. A much needed hair cut. I love how she looks when it is done but man I hate paying for it every 6 weeks!
4. I am going to start calling my dog Julio. If you can figure out why then I know you have the same guilty pleasure as me ;)
5. I added some more flooring to my attic yesterday. It is fantastic! Less than 1 sheet of plywood made a world of difference. I see more coming in the future.
6. We have finally caught up to technology and got a Blue Ray player. Well technically Travis got a Blue Ray... is it bad that I don't notice that much of a difference.
7. I spent the entire day cleaning my downstairs.... it still isn't finished. I must say though I am happy to have my house back. My decorations aren't what I want them to be right now but I am liking how clean my house seems without all the Christmas clutter. I love the way Christmas decor and lights warm up the house. Now that they are gone I am seriously ready for Spring to warm up my house.
8. I am ready to do some serious spring cleaning! I have cleaned out a couple of kitchen drawers and cabinets, and the drawers in my living room tables. What a difference to open a beautiful, clean organized drawer! Lots more to go.
9. Called and sat on hold for 30 minutes today to find out why it is my Flex spending card company is questioning 2 charges from our account. The first... Children's Heart, the second Murfreesboro Medical Clinic. What? Lady was super rude. I have the statements and receipts for both; however, one of them doesn't have the patient name. GRRR. Now I have to go and get a copy to send in before they decide to cancel my Flex account. I have 2 weeks. Don't get me wrong it is plenty of time for me in my current situation. If I were not lucky enough to be in my situation though. I don't know, I just think it is wrong.
10. I'm working on my bucket list. Looking forward to crossing some things off that list.
11. Winter breaking has been spoiling me. I am not sure how I am going to go back to getting up so early again next week. I haven't been waking up until after 8 this whole time! Fantastic!
12. Travis got an iPad for Christmas which means I get his hand me down Kindle. It is on my list of things to do to figure out how to use it. I never wanted one. I love the feel of a book in my hands. BUT, you can buy new releases cheaper on the kindle.... I guess I am going to give it a try. It will not replace my love of a nice hard back book in my hands though.
13. We are now down to a couple of days left for winter break. I am trying to figure out what we are going to do to have fun the rest of the week. Mykenzie's BFF is spending the night tonight and we are all going bowling in the morning. I want to take the girls to see the new Narnia movie this week too. Other than that I'm not sure, I am sure we can come up with something though.
Makin' It Monday
I am going to use another project from Mykenzie's room for this weeks Makin' It Monday post.
After flipping through a Pottery Barn Kids catalog I came across a message board that I knew would be perfect for Mykenzie's new room. (it is no longer on their website) They ran around $240 on sale when I was looking. There was absolutely no freaking way I was paying that much! Insanity. Instead I picked out 2 fabrics, some cork 12x12 squares, a sheet of dry erase board cut into 12x12 squares, a quarter inch thick sheet of birch, and a couple pieces of molding.
I used spray adhesive to attach the fabric to the cork squares and I used velcro strip to attach each square to the birch incase we ever wanted to change it out. I love how it turned out and now that she has had it in her room for 6 months, I have to say it was a good project cause she uses it all the time. It was super easy to make and cost a LOT less than $240! Thanks for the inspiration though Pottery Barn Kids
After flipping through a Pottery Barn Kids catalog I came across a message board that I knew would be perfect for Mykenzie's new room. (it is no longer on their website) They ran around $240 on sale when I was looking. There was absolutely no freaking way I was paying that much! Insanity. Instead I picked out 2 fabrics, some cork 12x12 squares, a sheet of dry erase board cut into 12x12 squares, a quarter inch thick sheet of birch, and a couple pieces of molding.
I used spray adhesive to attach the fabric to the cork squares and I used velcro strip to attach each square to the birch incase we ever wanted to change it out. I love how it turned out and now that she has had it in her room for 6 months, I have to say it was a good project cause she uses it all the time. It was super easy to make and cost a LOT less than $240! Thanks for the inspiration though Pottery Barn Kids
