ORC - Week 4

I tried to plan ahead. Really I did! I have a big event tomorrow at the kiddos' school that I have been working on since last school year. This event has sort of taken over my life this week. So I knew that I really needed to plan a project that was easy but would make a big impact for my One Room Challenge. Sounds easy right?

After I hung up my new curtains from week 2 I just loved them. But I then started really disliking the art-work we had over the mantel. In this case I am using "artwork" as a loose term since all that is hanging over our fireplace is a map of Gettysburg Battlefield. It might not be a piece of art to some but to my history-loving Hubby it is a masterpiece. 

Anyway, it was not so much the subject matter that I had a problem with but the matte around the print did not work with my new curtains. So I needed to find a replacement.

This is where my "easy" project started. I had a mirror in our basement that I had gotten a year ago. The only thing that was "wrong" with the mirror was that the color was nothing like the picture online and it would have cost me more than I paid for the mirror to ship it back. It has been just waiting for a make-over!

I had some paint that I mixed to match the blue of my curtains. I painted the frame and used a rag to rub some of the paint off because I wanted to keep some of the ombre effect that the frame already had. This is where my easy project became big headache! My perfect blue paint started to look more teal than blue. Plus I was out of "free time" and I had to just stop. Ugh!!!

So the paint has dried and it is more teal than canton blue. And my "easy project" has become an ORC fail!

What do you think I should do? Live with it a bit or just keep trying?

Follow my progress:

Week One

Week Two

Week Three

You can also find me at Calling It Home.

TGIF IV

I am so over the moon that it is finally Friday!  After a week of endless "vacation wash", I see a light at the end of the tunnel.

{1} Boy Crafts

If you been reading this little blog for a while you know that B and I enjoy a good craft. Not so much with my boys.  But a book from a used-book sale is changing all that.  Turns out my boys do enjoy a little craft time as long as it involves pirates!

{2} Ikea Hack

Speaking a little projects, I am hoping to try my first Ikea Hack this month.  Kelly of Olive Lane has really inspired me!  I will let you know how it goes...

{3} Date Night at Home

My sweet in-laws are watching the kiddos a night this weekend so Hubby and I can have a date-night. Since we where gone last week, we decided that we would really enjoy a relaxing night at home.  I am looking forward to making Ina Garten's Scallops Provencal.  Her recipes are a go-to for me!

{4} Happy Birthday to Me

My birthday is next week so I should get myself a little something.  I think this tunic would be perfect. Don't you agree!?!

{5}  Sidewalk Chalk

When the weather has worked with us the kiddos and I have been getting outside as much as we can to play.  For what ever reason my children never seem to bore of sidewalk chalk.  I let them go all out on our driveway.  I just love seeing what they create!!!

Thanks so much to Hello! Happiness, The Good Life Blog, Carolina Charm and A. Liz Adventures for hosting this weeks link party.

A Sharpie Bouquet

About two years ago my daughter formed a strange obsession with Sharpie markers.  She has even added "limited addition" Sharpie marker sets to her Christmas list the last couple of years.  B shares this obsession with her Aunt so I guess it is a family thing.

When B's Aunt A graduated from graduate school this summer we thought the best gift we could give her would be some new neon Sharpies.  But as always I wanted our gift to look a little bit cuter so I asked B to turn the markers into "flowers".  Luckily for me my daughter was up for the challenge!

B took a couple of sheets of card stock and cut them down into squares.  Then using the same technique we used to make paper snowflakes, B cut out a basic flower shape. 

 I am sure that it is considered bad manners but I think it is so cute that she sticks her tongue out while concentrating on cutting.  I just take it as a sign she is working hard!

After B had cut out the flower shapes, she wanted to do a little extra so she outlined some of the petals with some of her very own Sharpies.  (I am sure that you were not surprised by that extra set.)

Once all of the flowers were carefully cut out and decorated I helped B make a small "x" in the middle of each flower.  Then we slid a Sharpie into the center "x" to make the stem of each flower.

I am super proud of my SIL and I am also proud of B giving a gift that I am sure she would have loved to keep for herself.

School Art

Now that we are on summer break I have begun to sort through all of the kiddos' art work that made its way home this school year.  I love all of their beautiful creations but I have to be honest for years I just packed the year's worth of art into tupperware boxes.  The boxes filled with art work made their way to the basement storage area - never to see the light of day again. What a waste!!!

This year I thought I would try something new.  During the school year I only saved art that "spoke" to me or was very meaningful to my children.  By the last day of school we had a pretty good pile.  While I would loved to have framed the art in its original state that would have cost me a small fortune and I would have run out of wall space in no time!

So I did the unthinkable - I cut my children's works of art!  Cutting the pieces into smaller sizes made it possible for me to frame them in simple frames from the dollar store.  I used the mattes that came with the frames as a template, trace and cut.  Pieces of art work that were 12 x 16 and bigger easily were cut to fit into smaller frames.

In no time at all I had a pretty gallery of my children's beautiful works!  Now all I have to do is decide if I want to keep the group together and hang them on the wall going down to the basement.  Or I could break the group up and hang the art work in each kiddo's room.  What do you think?

You can also find me at Savvy Southern Style, No Minimalist Here, Home{work} Wednesday and From My Front Porch

Whirlwind Weekend

I do not think that we could have packed one more activity into this past weekend.  I mean it was not stop action from the moment the kiddos got off the bus this past Friday!  My in-laws kindly came to our house in time to greet the older two off the school bus while I packed the car for B's first ever field hockey travel tournament.  As soon as the car was all packed, B and I were off to Pennsylvania!

The whole car ride up B was bubbling with nervous energy.  It was too cute how she could not stop chatting!  God-willing she will be this chatty with me for years to come!!!  She might have been so willing to talk since I let her pick all of the music.  I listened to more One Direction than one adult should have to in a lifetime.  Honestly I am a little worried since she thinks that they really are good musicians.  Hopefully she will see the error of her ways before she reaches college.

I have to be honest, I was a nervous wreck about this tournament   You see these girls practice together twice a week as well as play on rec teams but they have yet to play a game together as a team.  It is one thing to pratice together, it is another to play a game together.  But this mom had no need to worry, they were great!  The girls won three out of their four games and came in second place.  The best part for me was that my father got to see Betsy play and we both enjoyed her beaming smile every time she came off the field!

While it was nice to get away for a bit with B and enjoy many girly giggles, there was too much to be done at home.  So after B's last game we headed home.  M has a big event coming up and I needed to make sure that he has the proper outfit for his big day.  We might not be Kennedys but look at these two!  How could you not vote for them!?! (Hubby's note: With the lip biting and thumbs up L looks like he is doing a Bill Clinton impression.)

After spending what I am sure Hubby thought was too much money at the mall (Hubby's note: That is the correct assessment) we headed to Lowes.  Since we will be having so many guests for M's big day I felt like our house needed some new accessories too.  I might not be known for having a green thumb but I do think my planters look pretty good if I do say so myself. Hopefully they will look just as pretty next Saturday!

Deep Clean

We have a big family event coming up so I have started a "deep clean" this week in order to get my house ready.  I fear poor Hubby will have to deal with me smelling like Murphy's Oil Soap for a little while longer.  Is it just me or does everyone else start one project that leads to another project that leads to another?  And before you know it your home looks even worse for the wear, even thought you have been cleaning for eight hours straight!?!  God, I hope it is not just me!!!

One of the many projects that I started yesterday was moving all of my MIL's mother's linens from the sideboard to my Great Aunt Peggy's hope chest.  (I was hoping that this would make more room for my serving dishes.)  When I opened the hope chest I could not help but notice the "aroma sign".  I had never seen that before since when my mother used this chest it was filled to the top.  The hope chest is at least 60 years old and smells of wonderful cedar but I am still not sure what aroma tightness is!

While carefully moving Granny's linens I found an envelop that had three tags in it and I am not sure why.  Two of tags were for table lines from Ireland and one was for a damask set from Japan.  I would love to know why Granny saved these tags.  Were they wedding gifts?  Maybe gifts from Pop-Pop?  Or were they special for some other reason?  And I would really love to know which linens belong to these tags.  Since they meant so much to Granny I would like to make sure that they are well preserved - meaning not used by my children.

Or maybe it best that I don't know!  I would like to think that Granny is happy every time one of her great grandchildren gets chocolate all over her well loved napkins. (Hubby's note- She would have been especially happy if it was from a Tootsie-Roll, a personal favorite of her's. Miss you Granny and Pop-Pop!)

You can also find me at From My Front Porch and No Minimalist Here

Project Procrastination's Leftovers

After I had finished painting M's desk I was left with just enough paint to give L's bookcase a quick make-over.  L was just over the moon when I started painting.  And it had nothing to do with the fact that his white bookcase would now be navy blue.  L was overjoyed that he would have something in his room that was just like M's desk. To say that M's little brother adores him would be a major understatement!!! 

The bookcase needed many more coats than I thought it would.  Maybe it was because it was a high-gloss paint?  Or maybe because I used a roller and not a paint brush?  Either way, I was lucky that I had just enough paint to finish the job!

When L came home from preschool today I was happy to show him that his bookcase was finally finished.  His smile was worth all the work!  Now what do you think the over/under is on how long it look this neat?

You can also find me at From My Front Porch and No Minimalist Here

Not A Single Thorn

I don't want to jinx things but I think that Spring has finally come to NoVa.  And I for one could not be happier!  Spring just makes our weekend ten times better.  No one was freezing at the field hockey and lacrosse games on Saturday and the weather was just perfect for hanging out with neighbors later that day.  While the kiddos ran a muck, I enjoyed a lovely chat with some of the other moms.

Besides sports and socializing, we got a lot done around our home.  I folded more wash than humanly possible yet I am still not done.  (My mother-in-law has been known to call me Our Lady of Perpetual Laundry with good reason.)  Hubby set-up a new wireless router so hopefully I will not have to miss any more time blogging.  Hubby also went to a local nursery with the boys on a recon mission.  We are hoping to plant several trees this Spring and we want to research this project before we start digging holes in our yard.

While the boys were looking at trees B and I made a run to World Market for a bench that I had seen online.  Not only was the bench in stock, it was also on sale.  Winner-winner!!!  As we were waiting for the bench to be brought out of the stockroom B saw a bench cushion that was a perfect match for the umbrella we already have so the cushion quickly made its way into our cart.  We also found two coordinating pillows that would be perfect for our Adirondack chairs.  I was just giddy as we loaded up the car with all of the new deck goodies.

As soon as we got home, the kiddos and I started putting the bench together.  I have put furniture together from World Market before and had no issues.  And the bench was no exception!  There is nothing like putting together a piece of furniture in less than an hour.  It always gives me a "Super Woman" complex for an hour or two.

Unfortunately this time I was not riding on cloud nine for long since the "perfect" cushion was not perfect at all.  It was way too short and too wide.  What a bummer!  So back to World Market I will go and the hunt for a bench cushion and pillows will continue.

I could not stay bummed for too long since we had our first dinner of the season on the our deck.  Grilled steak, rice & lentils with salad and strawberries really hit the spot after a super busy weekend!  And the best part was that not a single child had a "thorn" as we went around the table for Rose and Thorn tonight.  Oh how I wish that I could give my children "thorn-free" weekends for the rest of their lives!

You can also find me at Savvy Southern Style and From My Front Porch

Getting Things Done

Over Spring Break I tried to tackle some unfinished projects. On one of the days that was nice enough for the kiddos to run around outside I spray painted the lamp my mom fixed the last time she was here for a visit.  As always I took forever with my prep work.  Please tell me that I am not the only one who spends as much time taping as they do painting!

This was my first time spray painting and I was so grateful for everyone's helpful hints.  I took the slow and steady aprouch.  I was happy with how even the spray paint went on but I was freaking out about the color.  It looked nothing like the can!  I took some deep breaths and finished what I had started.  Then I walked away....

Boy am I glad that I didn't give up. I love the way the paint dried! The color is just what I envisioned it would be; a cheery red. And everyone in the house seems to like the lamp's new look too. Both of the boys are fascinated with its shine. I fear it will be covered in finger prints before Friday.

So now that the lamp has gotten a makeover I feel that my table needs to be restyled too. Or maybe I should just re-do the whole family room! I am sure Hubby would not mind at all!!!!

You can also find me at From My Front Porch and No Minimalist Here

Mad Science

Crafting has taken the back-seat for B.  She is totally into her science fair project at the moment.  B choose to make sugar crystals in water, grape juice and ginger ale.  At first B had a hard time with her hypothesis since she is totally Type-A.  I still think that she is not over the fact that her hypothesis can be wrong and she will still get a good grade.

We had a fun afternoon mixing sugar and the different fluids.  B and her brothers were more than happy to drink the left over ginger-ale on a school night.  But as B pointed out it was all in the name of science. I just love my sassy gal!

So now B is just sitting back and documenting what she sees each day with her three different sugar mixtures.  Personally I hope that she learns an important lesson totally not related to sugar crystals.  I hope that she sees that sometimes the processes is more important than the results.

Also I hope see learns that mason jars have endless uses!!!

Wrapped To Gift

Growing up my Grandma and Grandpa would bring a box of goodies from a local bakery to any gathering at my parents.  It was always a white bow with piece of red & white twine holding it all together.  I just liked the look of the box simply because I knew there were a ton of sweet treats in the box that my Mother would never have bought for us!

So now when I give a baked good as a gift I like to present it in a way that reminds me of my Grandparents' sweet treats.  And it beyond easy to create the "bakery look"!

All you need is parchment paper, red & white twine and a sweet treat.  For L's teachers I bake my banana bread recipe but instead of using one large tin I used four mini loaf tins and bake them for half an hour.  

Once the bread has completely cooled wrap it with the parchment paper much like you would a gift box.  Just make sure to tuck sides under.  (I guess you could tape them under but I never have.)

Then I take a long piece of baker's twine and double it on itself.  (Again this too is like wrapping a gift box.)  One trick that I find helpful is to place the ends of the twine under the top twine before I make my bow.  You can make sure that the twine is really snug this way.

Then simply make a bow and trim any extra twine if needed.  A cute and yummy gift!

You can also find me at Savvy Southern Style and No Minimalist Here.

My Relationship With Legos

We were in the middle of a Lego epidemic in our house. It seemed as if Legos were having Legos.  Ever time I turned the vacuum on in M's room I would hear that horrible rattling sound that let me know that I had sucked up yet another Lego piece. Mom fail!

See Legos are "it" for M. He loves them like nothing else and he is wonderful at putting them together. My sweet boy who cannot focus most of the time to save his life can sit for hours to finish the most complicated Lego sets. M also just loves putting together extra pieces to make his own creations.  

Take a part, put together and repeat! This was the vicious cycle that we were in and I needed to do something before I lost it!

So I decided to sort all of M's Legos by color and store them in tupperware.  (I bought tupperware at Target and the Dollar Store.)  I really thought it would be a simple job but it truly took a ton of time.  Like it took a couple of days! But I really think that it was worth it and so does M.  He can find pieces faster and clean up is easier for all involved.

Here is to order in our homes no matter where you live!

You can also find me at Savvy Southern Style, No Minimalist Here, Kelly's Korner, and Dixie Delights.

"B" Mine

Yesterday afternoon B started working on her valentine cards as soon as she finished her homework.  She was beyond giddy!  We bought the "Mustache Card Kit" from Paper Source.  I don't know about you but I could spend hours in that store.  I always find something new there that I simply "need"!

The kit included heart shaped cards, googly eyes, labels and pre-cut mustaches and hats.  The kit also included extra black card-stock so B could cut out different accessories for her "heart-men", which she loved since she is a creative gal.

B spent hours working on her "heart-men" but finished making all of them before dinner.  Now she has the hard job of figuring out who will get which "heart-man".  

I guess I needed a break this year because in my mind this was a great compromise between a box of valentines from Target and a three day project from scratch.  What kind of valentines are your kiddos making this year?

What The What!?!

So some how my daughter has out "cooled" me in even in the blog world!  Sweet Family Sweet Life was kind enough to let B guest post in a way. Sis was stuck home sick and mom had to work so Sis spent the day making duct tape bows. And man did she make a ton!



Sis, we hope that you are feeling better! And I might say that I am beyond jealous of B.  My own daughter had a "guest post" before me!!!

Is There Nothing Duct Tape Can't Do

Yesterday was a "snow day" for us.  See, flushing ice-cubes really does work!  So B took the time to do a demonstration: how to make a duct tape bow.  It was not until B signed up for a after-school class that I had any idea how many crafts one can make with duct tape.  

First B cuts three stripes of one pattered duct tape and three same sized pieces of a different pattern. Then she cut two small and skinny pieces of the second pattern.  B likes to line them up on the table as pictured above.

B starts attaching the first three stripes as shown above.  She takes her time lining up each strip.

Next B takes the other three stripes and carefully lines them up.  She places "sticky' side to "sticky" side so that it forms what is called duct tape fabric.  (Who knew there was such a thing!?!)   B says you should take your time placing the top layer.

B then trims all four sides.  This forms a clear rectangle that she will begin to fold.

Then B folds the duct tape 'fabric" as though she was making a paper fan.  After she finished making her fan she trimmed off any extra "fabric" and then folds the fan in half to find the center. B takes a small piece of duct tape and wraps it around the middle of the fan.

B uses more than one piece to wrap the "fan" which will soon be a bow.

Then B pulls apart the fan at its ends.  This will form the bow.

B feels as though turning down the "ends" really makes the bow look big and pretty!  She added clips and hair ties to her duct bows so she can wear them.  

B would also like to let you know that you can make a bow tie this way too.  No need for the boys to feel left-out!!!

Linking up with Kelly's Korner