Blurb Blog Books/Scrapbook Coupon Code

For those of you who make blog books, you have until Tuesday (Jan 31) to create a book on Blub and get 20% off using code NY2012. For those of you not familiar with blurb, check out this earlier post. I actually have started doing a blog/scrapbook. I post all the info from my family blog into a book but do my own design instead of using one of Blurb's templates. I've done at least five books with Blurb and the quality is fantastic and the program is easy to use.

New Year's Tree

I saw a fun post on Our Best Bites on how to make a New Year's Tree, so I thought I'd try it out. I took all of the Christmas ornaments off the tree and replaced the tree with balloons filled with chocolate gold coins and sixlets candy inside. You can also put real money and little notes with fortunes, quotes, or jokes inside. I also found hats, glasses, clappers, and noise makers to decorate with. My kids love it and have been playing with all the decorations already.

Make a photo collage of school art projects

My son makes at least one art project at school everyday and so we decided to come up with a way to display them. I ended up just stringing some twine on an empty wall in his room.


He has made a lot of projects since September and his display area was full, so we took all the projects down and took pictures of them and then I created a collage in Picasa. See how to do that here. In January, when I make our 2011 scrapbook, I'll insert the collage picture, so we can always remember his fun art projects on one page instead of 36 pages.

Master Bath Remodel

What we did: Purchased new, taller vanity and painted white, new counter top, added new light fixtures and mirrors, added brushed nickel faucets, knobs, and handles.

What we did: Replaced carpet with tile, angled the new bath tub, replaced large window with a smaller one. Still need to get new rugs and add some color with artwork and towels.

What we did: Repainted and added knobs.

What we did: New flooring and toilet.

While we were in escrow, a pest inspector found dry rot in both bathrooms. So, on top of our already long list of things to fix-up with the home we got to add renovating two bathrooms. Yipee! We are first time home buyers and we had no idea what we were getting ourselves when we decided to redo the two bathrooms. The main bath was straightforward, but the master was quite the project due to the fact that not only was the rot in the shower but also in the wood work around the bathtub. The tile on the counter top was also falling off and very dated, so we decided to get a taller vanity (since we were replacing the top anyway) and countertop. It turned into one massive project.

After looking at all kinds of bathroom design ideas, we ended up sticking with a very neutral color. We purchased 18" porcelain tile for the floor and the same 12" porcelain tile for the tub and shower. For an accent, we went with a glass tile and we did 2" travertine for the shower floor. Our shower before was super small and just barely could fit a person, so we wanted a larger one. However, that wasn't possible since there was a massive window in the bathroom. So we decided to purchase a smaller window to create a larger shower. We also turned the tub on an angle to create more space and built a step up to the tub to make it easier to get in and out. Overall, I am happy with the tile. I did learn that the small glass tiles don't come perfectly straight on their sheets and that bothered me, but I have gotten used to it and don't notice as much anymore.

We purchased an unfinished vanity that we had painted white along with the rest of the cabinets in the home. We also used the same knobs and handles in brushed nickle that we used throughout the home.

One of the biggest challenges for me was picking out a countertop. My dilema was that I really don't like the look of granite (unless it is a solid color, like the black did in my kitchen, but I didn't want black in my bathroom). I like solid colors. I really love quartz products, but they weren't in the budget. I found some travertine and marble I liked, but I found in the research that I did that they are higher maintenance and I think harder to keep sanitary since you can't use many types of cleaners on them. So....I looked into solid surfaces. I wasn't sure how I felt about acrylic. I thought it may look cheap or cheesy. However, I found someone who was willing to come to my house and bring samples. I liked the product and he had a competitive price, so I decided to go for it. I asked for an extra thick, solid white countertop with seamless sinks. We used a product made by Samsung called Staron. The end result? I am in love! It does not look cheap or cheesy, but very sleek and sophisticated. I am so happy we went with acyrilic. It is easy to clean and maintain and looks great.

As for fixtures, I found them at Lowes. I went with Price Pfister line on everything but the roman tub faucet (they did not have one in that model) so I found a very similar one made by Glacier Bay. I also found my two white mirrors at Lowe's. I found the two light fixtures on Amazon.

There still are a couple of things left to do. I still haven't purchased a shower door. I'll post pictures of the shower when the door is installed. I also am eventually going to buy new rugs and wall decor. But it is functioning and we are really enjoying our bathroom. I am just thankful we no longer have carpet in the bathroom!

Decorating My Entryway

As those of you regular followers know, we recently moved out of our small condo into a home. We really don't have any furniture, so are house is pretty open right now. Our living/dining room is the first room that you walk into and it doesn't have any furniture. However, I wanted it to feel somewhat welcoming and decorate at least the entryway for now. My first order of business was to get a rug. Since our doorway entry is at an angle, I thought a circle rug would works well rather than creating another angle with a rectangular rug. I had a hard time finding any circular rugs that I liked. I wanted something plain since I don't know how I am going to decorate the rest of the room yet. I found this rug online at Home Decorators. It works fine for the purpose. It isn't my favorite rug in the world, but I wanted something simple.

I also knew I wanted a bench in the entryway. I decided on white, since I have used painted white wood throughout the house so I felt it tied in with the style in the home. I found the bench on Overstock. I found the basket to hold the shoes at Home Goods and I just added a piece of felt to the bottom so it didn't scratch my wood floor.

I made the pillow covers using the steps from this earlier post. I found the lime fabric at JoAnn and the floral pattern online called Paradise Ivory Double Blooms. I found free subway art at this site. I am going to swap the art with each holiday and between I will have the quote that is now in the frame. I had it printed as a 16"x20" photo at Costco for around $6. I found the white frame at Aaron Brothers.

I made the hanging mason jar vases by purchasing a small piece of pine at Lowe's and sawing it in half so I had two boards. I painted the boards with two coats of white paint. I bought two hose clamps and my hubby drilled a hole though the clamp at secured onto the board. I then added a picture hanger on the back of each board and secured the jars into the clamps and hung on the wall. Super easy. I now just have to make sure I have at least some kind of flower blooming all year to keep the jars full.

Laundry Room Reveal

Our laundry room was in need of some freshening up when we purchased the house. The flooring was pretty trashed and the cabinets were dated. We just did a few things in that room that really made it look more modern and fresh.

-Painted the cabinets in Kelly Moore's Swiss Coffee using Behr paint
-Added brushed nickle knobs to the cabinets
-Painted the walls using the color Haze by Behr
-New tile flooring from Lowe's
-Added shelving below the cabinets. Shelving and bins from IKEA.
-Added a picture to the room with a quote that I love about laundry...."As I do more laundry, nudists seem less crazy." Ha ha. Laundry does seem to be never ending.

Atlas Shrugged Review

I can tell when I really enjoy a book because I am still thinking about it long after I have finished. I recently read the book Atlas Shrugged on a friend's recommendation. I must warn you that the book is intimidating due to the fact that it is so huge. We are talking 1100 pages! It took about 300 pages for me to really get into the book, but once I did I was hooked and I neglected my family for a couple of days while I read every minute I could.

The book was written 50 years ago, but there are many parallels between the book and what is happening to our government and society today. Apparently, many liberals in Hollywood fought hard against a movie coming out about it. Some favorite quotes:

"Watch money. Money is the barometer of a society’s virtue. When you see that trading is done, not by consent, but by compulsion—when you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing—when you see that money is flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors—when you see that men get richer by graft and by pull than by work, and your laws don’t protect you against them, but protect them against you—when you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming a self-sacrifice—you may know that your society is doomed. Money is so noble a medium that is does not compete with guns and it does not make terms with brutality. It will not permit a country to survive as half-property, half-loot."

"Contradictions do not exist. Whenever you think that you are facing a contradiction, check your premises. You will find that one of them is wrong."

"I swear by my life and my love of it that I will never live for the sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for mine."

"Love is our response to our highest values. Love is self-enjoyment. The noblest love is born out of admiration of another's values"

I highly recommend the book. For a summary of the book, click here. I also just saw that they recently made a movie of the book. It is a three part movie. Part 1 was out this past spring in theaters and will be on dvd this fall and Part 2 will be out in theaters soon after that. Yay! I've attached a trailer (with commentary) of the movie. I love who they cast as Dagny, the protagonist. She is just like I envisioned her in the book.

Busy Bags

My friend had the wonderful idea recently of having a busy bag swap. A busy bag is an activity for young children that teaches them a skill as well as keeps them busy whenever you may need them to be. Whether it is at church, on a car ride, or just at home. Rather than have them watch yet another tv show, you can give them a great learning activity instead.

We had a group of 14 women. We each made 14 of the same busy bag activity and then we got together and swapped them. So we each came home with 14 different activities for our children. My son has tried several of them already and loves them. I am hoping we will do another one soon since they were such a hit.

Here are some links with ideas for busy bags.
Button Snake (this is what I did for my bag)
List of ideas here, here, or here.

Race Car Birthday Party

My son wanted a race car birthday party this year. I had to put it together quickly, since my husband was going to be out of town when I was planning the party so I just had a couple of days to plan since there was no way my son was going to have the party AFTER his birthday without driving me insane asking about the party every five minutes.

I found tons of great ideas on this site here. We ended up keeping it simple. I had a breakfast party and I made the cake out of a stack of donuts that looked like race car tires served with fruit, bacon, and juice. The kids painted their own wood race cars and played pin the car on the race track. I planned on setting the table up like a race track and using these adorable road cones for cups, but since the party was earlier than planned they weren't delivered in time.


For his birthday cake that night, he had a race car cake. He loved it! It was super simple, too.

Race Car Track Cake:



Supplies Needed:
-One package OREO cookies
-One cake mix
-Frosting (see below)
-Coconut
-Green food coloring
-Car for top of cake
-Toothpicks
-Construction paper

Frosting:
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 tsp vanilla

I made one cake mix and then baked in two round cake pans. I cut the top of the cake off to make flat and flipped cakes over onto a piece of cardboard I covered with aluminum foil. I frosted the cake. I untwisted all of the Oreo cookies and the side without the cream I put in the food processor and crushed into a fine powder. I then poured it around the perimeter of the cake to look like the road. I then placed the Oreos with cream around the side of the cake to look like tires. I then dyed the coconut green and placed in the center of the cake to look like grass. I then took a spoonful of frosting and put it in a bag and piped it in lines to look like the dashed lines of the road.

Next, I cut out three triangles out of construction paper and taped to a toothpick and placed them by the road. I then found a checkered image online and put my son's name over it and printed it out to look like a race banner. I put a toothpick on each side of the banner to hold it up.

Baby bow giveaway!

My friend has a business called Redwood Ranches and she and two of her friends make the most adorable hair bows, clips, and flowers. She would love to spread word about her business and has offered a giveaway to you! All you have to do is become a FB fan and leave a comment there saying you have done so. Thanks, Rachel! Entries end on July 31.

Moments That Matter Most

This video brightened my day...I hope it brightens yours.

Necklace and Braclet Jewelry Organizer Board

After we were first married I bought a really nice jewelry box like my mom had. Growing up I loved her jewelry box and I was excited to have my own. It is a beautiful box, but it just hasn't worked organized my necklaces well. I never can seem to find the one I am looking for and they often get tangled and I have a hard time shutting the doors because the box is overflowing. It basically was a big mess. I have really been into organizing since moving into our new place, so one of my projects this past week was to find a new jewelry solution. I purchased a $6 cork board at Wal-Mart and hung it on my closet wall and put push pins on the board and put my necklaces and bracelets on them. Done. Nothing fancy, but it works great. I can see all of my necklaces easily and they don't get tangled. They are hanging in my closet right by my clothing so I can put on my jewelry immediately after getting dressed. I love it. If you wanted to dress it up a bit you could cover the cork board with some cute fabric, using the method I used for my flannel board here.

Ladybug Birthday Party

We had a ladybug birthday party for my daughter this past weekend. I was terrible at taking pictures, so I don't have as many as I would have liked to but I thought I'd pass along some of the ideas.

The Invite:
Below is the invitation to her party. I just found a fun lady bug image I liked online and a fun black and white poka dot image online as well. I created the invite in Photoshop Elements and had the invites printed at Wal-Mart as 4"x6" photos.

Display:
We were going to have the party outside on our patio but we had been finishing up planting a flower bed in time for the party and didn't even think about the smell that comes with fresh dirt. Our back yard basically smelled like a barnyard so we moved the party inside. I had a picture of the bday girl in a black frame and a vase of red flowers to go along with the red and black lady bug theme. I had red plates and cups and black utensils and napkins. I had a red and black balloon. I made a banner using black yarn and small clothes pins with pictures of her each month of her first year. The birthday girl was also wearing a cute little lady bug shirt. I had a lady bug costume, but she wasn't feeling well that day so I didn't want to put her in anything uncomfortable.



The Food:
I served these adorable ladybug cracker appetizers. I made this delicious Southwest pasta salad and had some bread to go along with it. I had a tray of strawberries with a dip which is made out of a 8 ounce container of strawberry cream cheese and 8 oz of marshmallow cream. For dessert we had cupcakes. I used a yellow cake mix and added zest from one lemon to it and then I frosted it with this lemon frosting. I made lady bug toppers to put on top using the same lady bug image I used on my invites. I printed twelve of the images to a page and printed them and cut them out in a circle shape. I then cut red card stock in a slightly larger circle and glued the ladybug cutout to the red piece. I then taped a toothpick to the back and stuck in the cupcake. They turned out really cute and were delicious. We served with some delicious Breyer's vanilla ice cream.

Photo credit: Taste of Home

Kitchen remodel

We've been busy updating the home we recently bought the past couple months. We still have a lot to do, but it is coming along nicely. Below are some before and after pictures of our kitchen and breakfast nook. I absolutely love my black and white kitchen. I went back and forth on whether to do white counters or black. I really love white marble counters, but they are so porous and chip so easily that they weren't practical and Caesarstone was out of the budget so we went with beautiful black pearl granite and I am really happy with it. It is a happy room and I love cooking in it.



For those interested (I really appreciated blogs that told me where they bought everything) here is what we did:

-White cabinet paint is called Kelly Moore Swiss Coffee (using color match w/Behr paint)
-Brushed nickle knobs and pulls from Lowe's (sold in bulk pack)
-Franke black granite composite sink from Lowe's
-Kohler Simplice Stainless steel faucet from HD
-Hickory Flooring (yes, i went with the Hickory over the bamboo because it has a matte finish and is already distressed, so any dings the kiddies give it will blend in better) from Simple Floors
-Whirlpool clean steel fridge and GE cleansteel dishwasher (no fingerprints!) from Lowe's
-Whirlpool stainless steel stove with five burners (love it!) from Lowe's
-Wall paint: Haze by Behr (sold at HD)
-New pantry cabinet (we bought unfinished at Lowe's)
-Granite is called Black Pearl (We extended the counter tops so we can have bar stools)
-New window (middle one in bay)

I love my kitchen and am so happy how it turned out. I still have a list of decor projects, but the bulk of the work is done in there. More rooms to come as I finish more projects.

Freezer Jam Pectin

I noticed at the store today that the no-cook freezer jam pectin I have recommended in the past has been redesigned and has a new look. So when you are at the store looking for it, this is what you are looking for.

I have bought mine at WinCo and Wal-Mart, but you can also order online here. It's the perfect time of year to make your strawberry freezer jam. I am hoping to make some later this week.

Bathroom Remodel

Yes, I am still alive! These past two months have been extremely busy and stressful as we remodeled the home we just purchased. We have moved in and everything is basically done except for our master bath. I am still deciding which direction to go in that room, but I am really loving the vintage turn-of-the century look with white subway tiles and a hex tile floor. Isn't it beautiful? It seems to be all the rage right now...it seems like all blogs with bathroom remodel tutorials have gone with the vintage look with their own twist. I think it is beautiful and would love a bathroom like this first photo.


I also think this tile that looks like a wood floor is so cool. I never knew this existed!
Once life gets back to normal, I'll have lots of fun design posts to share.

Coral room ideas

I really love the cheeriness of coral. I think these coral rooms are beautiful.

Source

Source

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House Ideas

If all goes well, we should be closing on our first home tomorrow! I have been trying to decide on how to decorate the home. Here are some of the ideas I've found.

I love this dining set by Mackenzie. I also love the wall color. I am thinking about painting our living room/dining room in that color.

I love these curtains by West Elm for the living/dining room or possibly the master bedroom.

I love these rugs...I just am hoping to find a less expensive version of them.

I did end up going with the hickory flooring. I loved the bamboo, too, but the finish on the hickory was more of a matte and it was distressed so nicks and dirt won't be as obvious on it. Thanks to all of you for your opinions.

We are going to paint our kitchen cabinets white. I haven't decided on the counter tops yet. I am having a hard time finding something in our budget. Here are some kitchens I really am liking.

Source: Country Living
I like the contrast of the counters here. I believe this is soapstone, which I think is really cool.

Below: Source
I also like the lighter counter tops with the pop of color. I love the farmhouse/apron sinks in both of these kitchens.

We are excited to have a room for an office. I love all the color in this desk/crafting area.
I like the contrasting shelf.

I can't decide on a color for the master, but I am thinking of something like this.
Aren't these sheets by Garnett Hill adorable? I think they would be so cute on my daughter's bed when she gets older.
And I love this great quote board from Etsy.

Vote for favorite flooring

Okay, my FB and blogging friends...I am indecisive and need some help with my final decision for the flooring in our home. I have it narrowed down to hickory or stranded bamboo. Take a look at the pictures from the company we are ordering through and let me know your favorite. Thanks! :)

Hickory here or here or here
Bamboo here or here or here

Kids' Room Decor Ideas

I have been having fun looking at ideas for my kids' rooms. I am really liking this room by Pottery Barn for my daughter. It is painted in Milano Red by Benjamin Moore (which is really a dark pinkish color). I also love the white furniture and white accents. So beautiful! The large prints of the baby are also really a nice touch.


For my son, I really like the idea of an an aviation/reading room. I found these ideas from a friend on pinterest. Wouldn't this idea be cool but instead of saying "READ" in large letters I could display "FLY" and aviation related books or pictures. I also love the idea of having one wall of shelving to display books.

How to make a no-sew tutu

Every little girl needs a tutu, right? I've seen so many adorable pictures of baby girls in tutus that I just had to make one so I could snap my own photos of my little one. She has big blue eyes, so I decided to go with a periwinkle tulle. This was super easy and inexpensive to make. These would be great baby shower or birthday gifts, too.

Here's what you'll need to make your own tutu.

-Tulle (I ordered mine here at fabric.com), amount will vary depending on how the size of your child. I ordered two spools (6"x25 yard spool) and I used one and a half spools for my baby.


-1/2" elastic band (I bought a package a Wal-Mart)
-Staple or safety pin
-Scissors

Instructions:
-Measure your child's waist and then deduct about and inch and this will be how big you want the waist
-Staple or safety pin the elastic ends together. I left a little extra elastic overlap so my daughter can continue to grow with this tutu.
-Decided how long you want the tutu and then cut your tulle to twice desired length (since you will be folding in half and tying to the elastic). My tulle on the spool already came with a 6" width but if you don't buy yours by the spool cut into 6" strips first.
-Double knot you tulle pieces to the elastic. This is the most time consuming part. It takes about an hour, but isn't hard. It is a great activity to do while watching tv.


That's it. Once your tutu is as fluffy as you'd like, put it on your little one and snap some pictures!