A Week Of Projects

My sweet mother has been coming down to Virginia in July to help me out with home projects for at least the last seven years. No project is off the table! We have painted. We have sewn. (Ok, mom has done most of the sewing.) We have going shopping for furniture and always found a deal or too. Really, my mom has been a godsend when it comes to having someone to bounce ideas off! And when I say I have a goal for the week, I know it will get done. 

This year was a little bit different since my mom came down more to watch the boys than complete projects due to B's tournament. However my mom would not be my mom if she did do something! So thank you mom for helping hang the kiddos bathroom hooks!!!

You can also find me at A Stroll Thur Life

Southern Welcome

Hello Lobster Meets Peach readers!  I’m Amie (aka “Former Blogger A”)... a daughter, wife, mother of two, former blogger, and lucky local friend of our dear Eileen.

Ei recently asked me if I would write a guest post for her lovely blog, and I couldn’t be happier to oblige.  Since this is my first entry to Lobster Meets Peach, I first want to say a big Thank You for welcoming me to this beautiful little corner of the internet.  It might be a virtual one, but it’s a neighborhood all the same and I am honored to be a part of it! 

To carry on the welcome theme, I thought I’d share how our family recently welcomed our new next door neighbors to the community. I always love taking fresh baked goods to families who are just getting settled in their new homes.  This time though, we took a different route.  We still included sweets, but they were provided by our favorite local shop, Joy’s Dream Bakery.  Joy makes the freshest, yummiest confections.  We picked her white chocolate raspberry and tiramisu cupcakes. 


  
My sweet almost nine year old son made handmade a card, which my sassy little six year old daughter decorated with a picture inside. 

We capped off the gift with fresh wildflowers from our backyard garden, placed in a mason jar that we filled with stones to anchor the delicate flower stems.  Truly, is there anything a mason jar can’t do?!

What’s your favorite way to welcome someone to the neighborhood?

Before & During

I bet you thought B and I just sat on the sofa and eat bon-bons while the boys were fishing. Maybe you thought we were at the spa getting pampered. Or reading John Green books poolside but you would be wrong on all accounts.

B and I spent our Sunday giving her (and the boys') bathroom a little make-over. It all started because all three of my children seemed completely incapable of using their towel rack. All of the damp towels that I was picking up at the end of the day was starting to give me a nervous tick. So my grand idea was to take the offending towel rack down and replace it with three hooks. Easy right?

Before

After Hubby took the towel rack down I repaired the holes in the wall. As I was sanding my patch job, I was reminded of how much I dislike white walls. And since I was going to have to re-paint the walls anyway, why not re-do the room? I have a feeling this line of thinking is the reason Hubby rolls his eyes every time I say "but it will be a little project."

During

While I made a huge mess during the process I think the kiddos' bathroom is coming along nicely! The holes have been repaired and painted. The brass hardware was replaced so it now matches the faucets and the new shower curtain has been hung.

Now I just have find some nice accessories and hang those hooks!

You can also find me at A Stroll Thur Life

Magic Carpet Ride

I started a job in a new city right after college. To say that it was an exciting time would be an understatement! I found a super cute one bedroom apartment in an adorable town north of Boston. While I had the rent money I did not have a ton to finish my first place. When my Gram and Pop heard that I was in need of pretty much everything they went up to their attic and filled their car with all the things they thought I could use.

I was beyond grateful for all of the goodies they brought me. Really their generosity helped make sure that I didn't go into debt while trying to make it on my own. That being said there was one gift that I really loved and still love. It was my great uncle's rug. This colorful and classic rug has been with me ever since that first apartment.

I fear it is way past its prime and that I need to find a replacement very soon. You can see how worn it is in the picture below. Now pretty much all of the edges are unraveling. With three energetic kiddos the rug is becoming a hazard. But I am really having a hard time letting it go....

I know that I should not be so sentimental about a rug that has seen better days but Pop was so pleased that I loved his brother's rug as much as I did. There is also the fact that Pop is no longer with us that makes this even harder for me. Pop was always so giving of his time and love and I have allowed this old rug to be a symbol of his generosity. 

But even my mother (Pop's daughter) let me know on her last visit that it really was time to get a new rug. She was kind enough to remind me that Pop would have been so happy that his granddaughter and his three great-grandchildren used this old rug for so long.

Have you ever had a hard time letting something go? And do you have any rug suggestions for me? 

Ikea Hack Completed

I finally did it! As some of you know I started thinking about this Ikea Hack in July but for a ton of reasons I was not able to get to our "local" Ikea until last month. And when I say "local", I mean it is so far away that I had to rope my poor in-laws into coming over and taking care of my kiddos after school. (Thanks again Mil and Fil!!!) Then the weather took a turn...a very cold turn. Did you know that you should not use spray paint in temperatures lower than 50 degrees? Neither did I!  I can't even begin to tell you all that I have learn because we have had to improvise as we have furnished our home. (Hubby's note- I don't know why she used "we" in that sentence, I had nothing to do with it. I can't even pick out my own clothes much less attempt to decorate a house.)

This  project has been a lot like my theory on home decor: your home should grow and change with you. I have great ideas and vision - that has never been my problem. We simply can't decorate our home from head to toe in one shopping spree. Therefore our home is always evolving. And I am more than ok with that. I have enjoyed all of changes we have made and I really love all of my DIY projects.

So I guess my biggest lesson in my Ikea Hack is that sometimes projects take time. Don't feel like a failure because you can't do all of the projects you "pin" as soon as you "pin" them. You will get them done when the time is right for you and your family.

One Room At A Time

In 2005 we moved from a small town-house into our current single family home. We have painted, arranged and rearranged rooms yet it still does not feel "done" to me yet. I am sure I could over analyze why this is but instead I am just going to start "finishing" rooms this year. One room at a time....

As to not overwhelm myself, I am going to start with the smallest room in the house; our office. This poor room has become a dumping ground that needs some love. So I have challenged myself to clean out the office and make it work for our family in less than two months. Wish me luck friends!!!

Before & After

Not sure about your home but ours starts out looking neat and orderly but then Christmas morning happens. Total anarchy if you ask me!

Neatly wrapped gifts before....

One hot mess after!!!!

ORC - Week 10

In the beginning of October I decided to take part in Linda's (Calling It Home) One Room Challenge Link-Up. Simply put, you had six weeks to make over a room in your house and each week you would give an update. The idea sounded great to me! I had known that I wanted to make-over our family room since May but had yet to get around to it. Thanks to Linda I was going to have my family all done by the second week in November...or so I thought!

Unfortunately L's hospital stay put a stop to all of my plans. Getting L better was all that matter and I just took a break from my make-over. Slowly after L was feeling better I started to put the finishing touches on our family room and I am now happy to report that it is complete!

The two pictures above my "before" pictures. 

The room color and furniture all stayed the same so I guess you could call this more of a refresher rather than a total make-over. Either way, I am pleased with the results. Before this room had more of a moss green feel that did not seem to flow well with the rest of the house.

While the room is still filled with different colors the feel of the room is now blue, which works well with our open floor plan. (By the way, I love the idea of an open floor plan but living in one is a different story!)

After ten weeks, six curtain panels, four pillows, one painted mirror and some new accessories I am calling it a day! Now all I have to do is get ready for Christmas....

Follow my progress - 

Week One

Week Two

Week Three

Week Four

Week Five

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

A Big Old Mess

After having to put all projects on hold while L was not well I am finally getting things done around the house. The only problem is that I just seem to be making things worse not better! I moved all of the furniture around only to pretty much put everything back where it was in the first place. My painted mirror was finished and hung but now I am second guessing the color. Not to mention that I think I might have hung it too high. 

I am full of self-doubt and I fear it is holding me back. I mean really, we are hosting my brother for Thanksgiving. I should be putting the final touches on our house not tearing it apart!!!

Hopefully wise words from my father-in-law will come true....."Sometimes you have to burn the farm in order to save the village." Please tell me I am not the only one trying to do too much!

Trying Not to Get Ahead of Myself

Bad news - we are not going to be able to travel up to New Jersey this year for Thanksgiving. Good news - we are hosting my youngest brother for Thanksgiving. (Hubby's note- Better news: He is bringing beer and I don't have to drive anywhere!) So I have been cleaning like a mad woman to get our home ready for next week. It turns out that a family of five can make some big messes! 

Much of my day today was spent cleaning in our formal living-room. I have to be honest while I love this room, I just don't get to spend a ton of time in there. In fact for most of November I have only gone in the living-room to water the plants. After dinner....in the dark.

So imagine my surprise when I noticed that my Christmas cactus has tiny buds! Since I feel like everything is losing color outside I was so excited to see that soon my plant will be filled with beautiful, bright pink flowers. 

I can't believe I am going to say this but...my little Christmas cactus has put me in the Christmas mood before Thanksgiving. But don't go all crazy thinking that I am decking the halls and all that. One holiday at a time and in order...that's my rule and I am sticking to it!!!

TGIF XI

Since I am working on making-over our family room I thought that I would share with you some accessories that I simply "need". And by "need" I mean that I will only be buying this items if I find a money tree and/or we win the lottery!

{1} Blue & White

I just love these jars from Wisteria. They would be beautiful by themselves or with flowers. Since I already have lots of blue & white china in the front of the house as well as the back of the house, I think these beautiful pieces would help balance the first floor.

{2} Fabric

Ok these are not wish list items since I already have purchased all of the fabric that I need for my make-over. But I just could not help but share a little sneak peak since I am giddy about my new fabric!!!

{3} Ceiling Fan

Our family room is a two story room which gets a ton of beautiful, yet hot, sunlight. For that reason I would love to put in a ceiling fan. Hopefully someday soon we will install one but I don't think it will happen in 2013. 

{4} Cashmere Throw

Who would not love to be wrapped in a cashmere blanket!?! I would happily take the second cashmere throw from the bottom.

{5} Ottomans

I would love to find a replacement for our coffee table. And I am starting to think that an ottoman is the way to go. Hubby just loves to put his feet up after a long day, so an oversize ottomans seems to be the way to go. Too bad this ottoman starts at $1800!

Thank you so much A. Liz Adventures, Carolina Charm, Hello! Happiness and The Good Life Blog.

ORC - Week 1

I feel like this is a two for one - you get to see my family room as it is now and then you get to watch me slowly transform it. So not only will you be getting a little house tour but you will also get a make-over. What's not to love!?!

Our family room is a bright and open two story space. It is also part of an open floor plan so you can see the family room when standing in most of the other rooms on the first floor. You can look down into the room from the second floor. So after our two front rooms were updated this summer our family room has been calling for a little make-over. If not thing else I feel like it will help with flow of our home.

The room was painted a cheery yellow a little while ago. Since the paint is in good shape and  painting this two story room is not an easy under taking - the color stays for this make-over. The sofa and chair will be staying too. I had them re-covered this spring plus they are so comfy my family would revolt if I even thought of getting rid of them.

So what will I be changing for this make-over? The curtains for sure! They matched the old slip-cover and have seen better days. And after the curtains have been made-over I will be working on some new threw pillows to coordinate with the new curtains. I need to do something about our coffee table! Then I plan to freshen up the accessories. Oh and maybe some new lamps, too!

Man that's a lot to do in six weeks. I better get started!!!

You can also find me at Calling It Home.

Ran Out Of Time

It was just one of those days where all I did was run all over town. A lot of very important yet boring things got done but nothing that you would like to hear about.

So I thought I would give you a little sneak peek of our dinning room. I have been happy with how it is coming along. I only wish there were more hours in the day to get everything done!

Home Repair - Part 2

We are continuing to make progress on our front-door repairs.  The new door was installed and our contractors set out to make us a decorative top for our door that meets the HOA requirements and didn't leak.  I can't tell you how giddy I was that they could meet both goals!!!

I loved how they made a point to use some of the old decorative pieces that were still usable. Many comments that drew me to this contractor were that they did not tell you to "buy-buy-buy".  Personally I like that they looked at this project as a puzzle and they fit new and old pieces together.

I think it is safe to say that our neighbors are overjoyed that our door is finally "pretty" and no longer an eyesore in the neighborhood.  All I need is a day without rain or the threat of rain!  I simply want to paint the trim but Mother Nature is not working with me at all!!!

In the meantime I am driving Hubby crazy with all of my paint samples for our two front rooms.  Benjamin Moore's "Bradstreet Beige" (top) and "Carlisle Cream" seemed great in the store but once on our walls I was no longer sure.  I am thinking I should try "Stone Hearth", "Indian River" and "Pashmina".  Thoughts?

You can also find me at Savvy Southern Style, No Minimalist Here, From My Front Porch

Home Repairs - Part 1

It would be the understatement of the year to say that I am far from pleased with the builder of our house!  During Hurricane Sandy we sprung a couple of leaks and the biggest one was around the front door.  After dealing with our insurance company and waiting for several contractors to submit binds we finally started work on the front door a couple of months ago.

What we all thought was going to be a quick fix was anything but that!  Almost as soon as our contractor started taking down the trim work above our door we knew things were not done right the first time.  Nails under the door's top decorative piece had caused cracks which were letting rain in behind the siding.  The top decorative piece was not put on correctly which basically caused water to pool behind the piece and have nowhere to go.

The water damage was unreal!  There was nothing that could be done but to order a new front door.  But unfortunately the new door took a long time to come in.  I can only image what the neighbors thought of our "work-in-progress"!

I am happy to report that our new front door came in and was installed this week.  It was an all-day job but that don't bother M and L.  My two boys sat and watched the whole thing from beginning to end.  I hope that the contractors, who were great all the way around, were not put off by all the questions my boys asked.  What is it with little boys and power tools!?! 

Nothing like have a gaping hole in the front of your house!  But I honestly did not care about all the flies that got into the house, I was just overjoyed that someone knew what they were doing and did it right the first time!!!

By the end of the day we had the new door that we needed! The guys did such a great job we had them do a few other much more minor projects as well. Even though they were smaller projects I think they will make a big impact in our living and dining rooms. I can't wait to show you the end results!

You can also find me at Savvy Southern Style, My Uncommon Slice Of Suburbia and No Minimalist Here

Laughing All The Way

While some might have been dreaming of a white Christmas, we were enjoying a small snow storm on Christmas Eve.  

After a couple of small outfit changes - boots not heels- we slowly made our way to Christmas Eve Mass.  This year's children's choir truly did a wonderful job!  B found great humor in my excitement but I could not help it...they played all of my favorites!!! 

After mass our resident grill master, Hubby, treated us to a wonderful grilled pork with just the right amount of "kick".  The kiddos were so excited they could barely sit still for dinner. Luckily they were willing to work with me and take some photos in front of the tree.

"What fun it is to laugh and sing!"

Rose And Thorn

This is the season for hustle and bustle!   So much to do but so little time!!! Which is why I really enjoy a boring old Monday night family dinner.  No crazy menu that takes forever to make.  And no need to clean the house from top to bottom since my kiddos are not impressed by an immaculate house.

While B was still in preschool we started doing "rose and thorn" at the dinner table.  Each person at the dinner table informs the rest of the best thing that happened that day (the rose) and the worst thing that happened that day (the thorn).

Some days the thorns are hard to hear but I would rather hear about them then have my children hold them in!  (Side note - how cute are B's pink and green nails?)

Lucky, Hubby and I have been blessed to hear many "roses" at our family dinner table! And no matter what comes during Rose and Thorn, our kiddos seem to just make each other laugh.  And laugh and laugh! 

If a child's laughter is not a "rose" I don't know what is!  What do you do to get your children to share the highs and lows of their day?

Wouldn't You Be My Neighbor

When we moved from our townhouse to our current house there was no neighborhood to check out since it was all new construction   And it would be a lie if I told you that didn't make me nervous   "What would my new neighbors be like" was a thought that ran through my mind a lot!  Since there were no house to drive by and/or stalk, we really had no idea what we going to get.

I can't not tell you how lucky we were!   Hubby, myself and the kiddos love our 'hood!!!  And this weekend we got to hang out with them at our annual cul-de-sac Christmas party.  In October the ladies came over to my house for coffee and we picked our date.  Since it is always a progressive dinner, we also assigned three houses a course and "teams" to each house.  This year our house was the "dinner" house.

After a week of projects and cleaning I finally had the house ready by Saturday night.  And I have made up my mind - the rug in our dinning room must go!!!  Plus it will be getting a fresh coat of paint once we replace our front door that was damaged during Sandy.

So for one and a half hours, 15 adults and 18 kiddos enjoyed a dinner of spiral ham, roasted lemon and garlic chicken, green beans, twice baked potatoes and biscuits.  Sounds like a southern Christmas dinner to me.  But I could be wrong since I am a Jersey girl.

I have to say that I enjoyed the "dessert" house the most.  It was nice to not have to worry about being in charge of anything at that point.

Plus our sweet dessert hostess remembered B and L's food issues.  Dessert Wiz A made not one but two gluten free desserts and if you were not told they were g-free you would have never known.  Wiz A made a flourless chocolate cake which was unreal!  She also made chocolate chip dough truffles  which were not only gluten free but also egg free.  A win win in my book!

We all had a wonderful night with great neighbors.  L even enjoyed dinner the next day as his breakfast.  What Southern boy would not enjoy ham and biscuits on Sunday?