Bedroom almost done

Finally a project almost finished!! My quest to get our house done is finally on the way!! Yeah, it makes my heart go pitter patter when I can finally get some projects done. My 1st place to start was to get to my daughter Olivia's bedroom. Sorry...I didn't take a before picture but it was all green and had absolutley no character. Now it looks like this.....

This is what is above her bed. The big red star I had hanging in our kitchen. The black frame is an old picture frame that I had. I used up some of my old scrapbooking letters and put Olivia's name all over the glass. The white shelf I found at a garage sale for $2.00. The picture below the shelf is a needle point that my girlfriend made for Olivia when she was baptised. It says, "Olivia Ann is a gift from God". I would still like to spell out

the word D R E A M in red letters in the empty space.

My sister made this adorable quilt for her for Christmas. I LOVE it. It is just what I imagined. I made the pilllow with the red ruffles on it. It is made out of an old bathroab and left over material from the quilt. All of the other bedding I got at a garage sale. The bed has drawers underneath. I received that for FREE from my ex mother in law. It always pays to stay civil :0) j/k    I love her!!

I picked this rug up at Target. It was the only thing that I splurged on so far for the bedroom decorations. It was $35.00 but I absolutley LOVE it!!

I made her curtains. The upper fabric was $4.00 a yard at Wal-Mart. I found the bottom fabric at the Goodwill--It was my all time score on that shopping day. I think I got 3 yards for $2.00--holy smokes I love it when you find something that you have totally been looking for FOREVER!!--the ruffle is made out of a flour sack dish towel.

I got her chair from my Mother in law and covered it with the matching curtain material. The Chair--FREE!

Here is a picture of the wall treatment that we did. I love love love the look of wainscotting. Did I mention that I love it!! I am going to do the whole house in it (maybe) I got the dresser with a matching night stand at the thrift store for $20.00. It totally matches the yellow of the room. I don't even really mind that it is beat up (notice the corner)

Her lamp I bought at the Goodwill for $4.00. I added a bit of rick rack and some fabric rolled flowers that I made embellished with some buttons. How cute?!?!?

These are pencil and marker holders for her desk. 2 spaghetti sauce cans and some scrap paper! Easy peasy!! I think I need to make her more.

The dreaded desk

Here is the dreaded desk--YUCK! It was FREE though. It just needs some TLC--which is on the list to get done as well as her door! They both are desperaretly crying out for a good coating of paint!!

Here is a break down of what I bought:

Paint   Cornmeal by Dutch Boy $20.00

Wainscotting 4 panels                $60.00

Trim and detail                          $100.00--which we have more to do some other areas of the house :0)

Rug                                          $35.00

Curtains                                   $6.00

Lamp                                       $4.00

Dresser and night stand            $20.00

Total:                                      $245.00

The only thing that I am really looking to finish off her room is an old farmhouse chandelier--I know I will find just the right one, and I know that it will probably cost me.

I also have this huge frame that I purchased on Craig's list for $30.00 that I will be turning into a bulletin board for her wall--THAT is also on the to-do list.

So I feel good that things are getting accomplished. Still going at a snails pace but at least it is going. Please stayed tuned to see what comes next.

We're talkin' CRACK!!

(front of our house)

Background of this post: A couple years ago in our area where we live there were many sightings of the local Sheriff's cars driving around. Apparently there were numerous meth/crack houses out here in the country.

Here is how a conversation went we me and a former co-worker who also lives out in this vicinity.

Co-worker: "Have you noticed all of the police cars driving around lately?"

Me: "Yes-I actually called the sheriff's department to ask them what is going on. They informed me that they are just "watching" our big country blocks because there have been reports of suspicious people and meth houses popping up."

Co-worker: "Oh-my-I have always thought there were some houses out our way. Hey- what about that house, where you go down past the creek, it has the fence, and horses in the pasture?"

Me: "Is there a little white house across the street from it?"

Co-worker: "Yeah-you know the one I am talking about?"

Me: "Well, yes I do--that is MY house!!"

Co-worker: "I REALLY like horses!"

Of course as soon as I got home from work I screamed at the hubby--OMG people think we live in a CRACK house!!! We NEED to get this place finished. He of course, in his typical calm manner said, "Really-wow that is funny!!"

This house, our house has been with us for my whole teenage and adult life. Doug along with his brothers and his dad lived here through their high school years. I was in high school when Doug and I starting dating. The first time I came here, frankly I thought to myself, OMG what is this place. It was 4 men that lived here--you can imagine. I soon realized this was the place that everyone came to when they had no where else to go. It was the place where we all partied in our high school years. It was the place that I spent many nights and weekends at. It was the place that I moved into when I was in my twenties. Doug and lived here until we bought the small house across the street. We lived there for many years-eventually we outgrew that house. Doug's dad lived in the BIG house across the street. The decision was made-we would switch houses. We swapped for awhile until we converted a shed on the property into a house for Doug's dad--we built a bedroom, kitchen, bathroom etc. He now lives on our property and we rent out our "little house across the street."

We came in full force with the inside, ripping out walls, building up new ones, totally redoing the upstairs. That was 5 years ago--we moved in before we were actually finished with everything. There is a TON that still needs to be done.

Normally, I am not the kind of person who really cares what other people think.

It CRACKED me up at the time---but for some reason now I don't find it so funny. It has been bothering me for some time now. Every once in awhile I keep replaying that conversation in my head.

Reality is--this is my house--it is NOT a C R A C K house it is where me and my family live. It is where we eat our suppers, play games, snuggle on our couch, watch football, have movie nights, b-day parties, family bbq's, it is where my kids run and play, where they build forts in the hay mounds, look for bull frogs at the creek, sit in the big mud puddles that get created in our driveway every time it rains, it is where we cry, laugh, and lay our heads at night.

It will eventually get finished, I know, but I am being impatient. So this year I am hoping we are going to work hard at getting things done. I also know that I shouldn't care what people think but reality also is people do judge you by what your house looks like. I just want something I can take pride in. So someday my house will hopefully look like this.....

(source)

What's your Style?

I have been having a bit of a dilemma lately. I am wanting--maybe NEEDING to redecorate our home. Not only redecorate but actually do some remodeling, tearing things up and stripping things down.  Stay tuned for my upcoming posts about "The House Unfinished" you might actually be appalled-he he!!

My dilemma is....I am not sure what my style is. I love the look of old things, vintage prints, distressed furniture, kind of shabby chic but not to shabby BUT I also like the look of modern clean line furniture. Nice modern accessories. Oh what to do???? Well, take a quiz of course! I found a quiz on line--"what's your decorating style?" B I N G O -- just what I needed. If you go here http://www.sproost.com/ you can take it too!! So here is what I found out. I am French Eclectic  this is what it said about that style:


French Country, like its name, somehow manages to both be formal and casual, classy and unassuming at the same time. You like your spaces to feel inviting from the moment you (or your guest) opens the front door and this feeling should continue even after you've entered your most formal room. Even though there are French antiques here and gold details there, the rustic elements provide a balance and warmth that seems to say, "come in, relax and stay a while." Your love of antiques leads you to flea markets, garage sales and hours of eBay hunting.
Materials

The materials and pieces you are drawn to play on the mix of formal and casual. Many of the pieces look like they were passed down from your great-great-aunt (even if they are brand new!) and you managed to upholster them in a way that made that piece both then and now. Much of the furniture is wood-framed and the wood is either left natural (hey there rustic!), painted white (hey there country!) or even gold (hello refinement!). And many times there is a strong mixture of all of these. If you find yourself leaning much more towards the "country" side of things and away from the Parisian side, drop the gold details and replace them with wrought iron.

Colors

When it comes to color, you are drawn to bright and airy options. Thoughts of the French countryside are key - warm colors such as yellows, reds and oranges hinting at fields of gold. But the nice thing about French Eclectic is you can just as easily go in the opposite direction: pale blues and greens hinting at acres of lavender fields and expansive blue skies.

Space Planning

When you think about laying out your French Eclectic room the key is to invite people in and encourage them to stay. So furniture should be grouped nicely to encourage intimate conversation and the main pieces should be comfortable in both look and feel. There should be plenty of places to set drinks, prop feet and lean back. And yet the functionality of these pieces doesn't necessarily mean that they aren't beautiful antiques or replicas.

Yummy!!!

But that's not all, I am ALSO Traditional Country this is what it said about that style:

Traditional Country


Even if your backyard isn't acres of farmland and you don't actually have a chicken coop, your house sure brings you back to a time when that was the case. You love spaces that feel casual and lived in. Furniture is practical and comfortable, and yet at the same time its very stylish. The best part of country style is how much it highlights collection and found objects. Antiques here, garage sale finds there and Aunt Milly's hand-me-downs throughout. Unique items that used to serve very practical purposes are now on display, and their history seems to permeate the home. Each space in the home seems to invite friends and family to come in and stay a while. There is a true sense of home felt throughout.
Materials

When it comes to materials in Traditional Country homes, think rustic, warm and comfortable. Wood or natural tile floors, natural or painted wood tables and chairs, and natural materials on the soft furnishings. Stripes, plaids and florals are popular and often all are mixed in one room. Soft vintage leather and suede are common and wrought and rusty iron also reinforce the rustic nature of the rooms. Large wood pieces of furniture are very common, and help manage storage throughout the home. Wallpaper is very popular and most often highlights floral patterns. For traditional country, the concept of minimalism is avoided at all cost. It's the collections that give the space character and reinforce the lived-in nature of the spaces.

Colors

For color, spaces can go either bright and airy or soft and muted. Think of the countryside in spring and summer with yellows, bright greens and blues. Or you can go for more of a fall country day, and go a bit darker but still stay in the earth tones. Dark browns, reds and greens. Either direction you go in, be it light or dark, the key is warmth. Traditional country rooms rarely, if ever, feel cold.

Even more yummy!!
I L O V E it!! So I am on a quest to make my house resemble one of those pictures above.

What's your style?

Label Heaven

Happy New Year!!! Out with the old in with the new--isn't that how the saying goes? Well we have been getting out the OLD here. Isn't that what everyone does when the New Year rolls around? I'm not sure about what happens at your house, but that is what definitely happens here.

I have been feverishly getting rid of junk I mean stuff!! I have donated bags of our goodies to the local thrift store. I have given some clothes to my sis and have just thrown out the garbage.

I bought myself a handy label maker too!! Woo-Hoo! I have always wanted one. My pop in law gave me a gift card for Christmas so that is what I went and purchased along with a huge mungo cutting mat and some NEW bic markers--they make me happy!!!

I am going to label EVERYTHING in our house. Well maybe not everything but pretty darn close I think. I want need a house that functions. I get so tired of searching for stuff.

Happy New Year everyone--I am off to label.

I thought this was funny! If you don't get rid of stuff this could happen to you :0)

The BIG 4-0!!!

It's finally arrived. The BIG one. I can't believe that I am 4 decades old. This b-day is a time for celebration. Not a big celebration. Tonight my family is going to go out and eat, my brother-in-law is going to take care of my children for the weekend so Doug can go hunting and my sister has planned a scrap booking getaway for me, my mom, herself and some of my friends. Just what I wanted to do for my birthday. I can't think of a better way to spend it.

Turning 40 is also a time for reflection for me. It has brought me to a point in my life that I feel good about things.  In my 20's I thought I knew everything and I found out I knew nothing. I wanted to party and be FREE. In my 30's I still thought I knew everything and I had a mid-life crisis. Now at 40 I KNOW that I still don't know everything and I am o-kay with that.

Here is who I am:  I am a mother of 4 a miscarriage of 1.I am 40 and still changing diapers. I am addicted to Mt. Dew and cigarettes. I am a wife to an amazing person, a sister with one other sibling, a daughter of two fine parents, a friend of many, an auntie to 3 amazing kids. I have been divorced twice. I live for chaos, I don't like lazy, I despise people that are fake, I have gained 50 lbs., I am always trying to chase a dream, I am not better that anyone else, I crave peace and quiet, I believe everything happens for a reason, I know that when you surround yourself with positive people and positive things, good will come to you. I am a helper, a giver, a follower and a leader. I am a do-er and so much more. I have been down and out in my life, I have sucked up my pride and used a food shelf, and been on food stamps.

I believe in true love. I know this because he came back to me.

I have been peed on, pooped on, puked on and sometimes just plain shit on. I have loved a lot and have been loved. I have had some completely awful relationships. I have been loved by hands that have turned around and hurt me.

I have wonderful memories from high school and just like everyone else I was picked on. I still have friends from high school. I use to try and hang on to all of them but I now know that sometimes that is not possible. People grow and people change and sometimes it is impossible to do. They all shaped me, have given me wonderful memories, have been there for me when I least expect it, have made me cry and made me laugh. I know that because we don't talk everyday or I don't believe in their ideas or agree with what they have decided to become does not mean that I do not appreciate them or think of them often.

I have had a parent with cancer and have watched 3 of my close friends lose their mothers and father to the horrible disease. Which makes me appreciate life and my parents even more.

I believe that forgiveness is a powerful thing. I know this because I have been forgiven by many and I have learned to forgive myself.

I believe in spirits, and life after you pass. I know this because when I am having rough times and can't seem to wrap myself around them I will see my grandma. A cardinal always shows up when I least expect it.

I believe you need to try new things, not be afraid, take a chance and just go for it. You might fail but that is o-kay. Who cares what others think of you. This has been the hardest lesson for me to learn.

I know that besides my children there is one person I could not live without and that is my sister. She is truly my best friend. She will tell me when I am stupid, when she is proud, when I need to shut up everything a sister should be.

I believe that every single person on this earth needs to have at least one person to believe in them.

I believe you should continue to give--give anyway you can. You never know when you will need help.

I believe in karma. You know what they say--it's a bitch-baby

After writing this I realized that 40 is not going to be bad at all. I am not so much that tough girl I use to be. I can still hold my own, I won't agree with people "just because". I will stand up for what I believe in and I don't care what others think. It doesn't matter that I don't wear a size 9 jean anymore!!

Learning life lessons is a great reason to celebrate!!

Donations of time

Wowee!! I can't believe that I last posted back in September. I NEED to and WANT to get MUCH better at that.

Well here is some of the reasons why it has taken me so long. I have always had a real desire to be a helper. To help those that need it, to help people see that others need our help. I have always wanted to be part of something bigger. To get to that person that I want to become I have started donating. Not just donating things but donating my time.

First I joined our local PTA at our schools. This has consumed (in a good way) a huge amount of my time. But you know what? It is totally worth it. The reponse we have received is tremendous. What better gratification-knowing you are helping out to make things better. When we started the PTA we did a back to school clothing drive. We had a TON of clothes that we collected and set up FREE of charge for anyone in our community to come and take whatever they needed.

We then put on a huge Halloween bash for the local kids and their families. With great success we partied with over 350 children. Donating time here consisted of baking, setting up, shopping, decorating and greeting people at the party.

In November we put on a 12 hour scrapbooking day. We had almost 40 ladies attend and requesting that we do it again in January.

In December we are holding our 1st annual Expo/Vendor Fair. There will be over 40 vendors.

Has it all been easy? NO. There has been frustrations along the way, things have been forgotten, people have made mistakes. But in the end-so far-it has all been worth every minute of my time. I have come to meet some extremely great women, have bumped up my business skills and just plain feel good about myself.

Secondly I have been donating goods. Anything we no longer need or is functional for my family is going to go and help others that need it. Our town is sponsoring a Secret Osceola Santa (S.O.S). This is benefiting any families in need in our community. I have been dropping stuff off for them to hold a garage sale to raise money for their cause. Anyway to help out!

One of my biggest pet peeves are people who say they don't have time. Really? You don't have time for what? What is interfering? I know we are all busy--but if you stop for a second and look around-really look around you just might notice someone that could use your help.

So this Holiday Season get out and donate some of your time. What are you waiting for?

This year I might even stand out and ring a bell!!

The Girl's Bedroom

So here is what I have been working on. I love to decorate and now that I have become an official, stay at home mom (sahm), it has given me the opportunity to actually get some stuff done and to get my house to look like I want it to! Yeah!! It still has a long way to go...baby steps. Being a SAHM means that you have no paying job-Yeah!--not really--which means everything  I decorate with has to be done on the cheap. If there is something that I find that I REALLY need want, then I need to either figure out how to make it or I need to save up for it. And quiet frankly saving these days takes a long darn time.

 So let's get started. I had mentioned before that the girl's (the twins) wanted a little bit more grown up room. Their room use to be pink on all 3 walls and 1 wall was a light yellow and light green stripe. Very cute but tooooo babyISH for them now. You know when you are 8 you need to be grown up. We started by painting the walls a very nice purple/lilac color. I laid down a tan rug that I already had--no need to purchase anything new.

Next I added curtains. They are a fab sheer lilac with some great girly swirls. I got these darlings at a garage sale for the great price of $2.00!! Can't beat that!  Art work for the walls....

The upper picture is framed scrapbook paper. I got the frame at a garage sale for .10--yep one dime--it was brown and a tad beat up. Out comes the trusty white spray paint. The 3 picture frames were also purchased at a garage sale about 2 years ago. I think I paid $2.00 for them. The "paper" inside them are actually gift bags that I had saved from past birthdays. I just cut them up and framed them.

Above are my before and after frames. I bought these babies at the local Family Pathways Thrift Store. All 3 of them cost me $3.00. Two of them were a peachy color and then other had some great detail to it. Once again I got out the spray paint. I painted them all white. The girls are getting into the whole peace and love thing. Instead of adding a head board like originaly planned on doing I decided to frame some "art" for above their bed. The "art" is actually 3 school folders that I purchased at Wal-Mart for $1.50 on clearance. I just cut them in half, used some 3M poster stick on tabs and stuck them to the wall. I then framed them with my new fun picture frames.  The chandelier above the bed was also purchased at Wal-Mart 3 years ago for $7.00 on clearance. It was origianlly hanging in the hallway outside the girl's bedroom. The bed sheets are a fantastic purple and pink polka dots--bought at Target-once again on clearance for $12.00. I LOVE polka dots!!

Stay with me--I am almost done.

The girls made these ceramic plates at a birthday party a couple years ago. What a great way to preserve them and a super cool way to add something personal to their bedroom. I bought 2 shadow boxes at Wal-Mart. They were each $10.00--a little spendy--but not to bad--I couldn't wait to get them done and I didn't want to wait for them to go an clearance. You might be able to get them a little cheaper at Michaels but I wanted them NOW!! The frames were originally black--painted them white. I backed them with a brown scrapbook paper. I used a super strong scrapbook adhesive tape. It is the kind that you have to cut and then pull the red strip of paper off of. You can purchase at any place that sells scrapbook supplies. This will give the paper and the plate great hold. I then used Gorilla Glue and I glued the plates right onto the paper. Super strong hold!!

Next the rest of the bed...



I should have picked up the penny before I took the picture--oops!!

I wanted to add a bed skirt but I didn't want anything plain. I bought a simple brown bed skirt from Wal-Mart. It was $14.00--once again my impatientness ( I don't think that is a word but it works) took over. No waiting or searching for anything on clearance. I had some purple ribbon from my scrapbooking stash. I used some fusible web and ironed it on--let me just say EASY and I think my new best friend (besides spray paint)!! I stitched on some cute buttons that I had. I think the whole thing cost me $17.00. 

The last thing I have done in the room....

Bench for the end of their bed (before)



Notice the markings?--yuck! there were dark spots and marker on the top





Here it is all painted up. I primed it first and then painted it a glossy white. It was a chest I picked up at a garage sale years ago. And I mean years-like maybe 5 or 6. I don't even remember how much I  paid for it. Maybe $10.00. Over the years it had gotten a little rough. The paint didn't cover exactly how I wanted it to. I think I should have maybe actually rolled some paint on for this project but it wasn't so bad that I feel the need to re-do it. The front panels are once again scrapbooking paper. One 12x12 sheet cut in half. I spray adehsived the back and stuck it on. 

If you noticed-I do alot of shopping at Wal-Mart (only because there really isn't any other options around here) and garage sales (because I LOVE IT) he-he and I hold onto alot of stuff. Maybe someday I will post pictures of our pole sheds--they are full of stuff!! I am getting better and getting rid of things though :0)

The only thing I think I have left to do for their room is paint their doors-both the entry to their bedroom and the closet door--of course it will be white and I need to paint a chalk board to hang on the front of the door so they can write KEEP OUT on it.  One kid's room down 2 more to go!! I can't wait to get started.