hiatus

I don't know if you even noticed, but I haven't posted for a while.

I decided to take a spur of the moment hiatus of sorts from blog land.  I turned my time spent while Callan naps into productive moments around the house.  Now that I look back, I don't even know what I actually accomplished, but the break was nice, nonetheless.  As much as I enjoy my daily blog fix, I think I'm going to cut it down to once or twice a week (if that), unless something truly remarkable happens that I JUST HAVE TO SHARE.

Anyways, here's what's been going on around here while my little guy does this:

I finally got around to making a pillow that's been on my (forever and a day long) to-do list.  It's made out of two napkins from Target (from a pack of four), that I picked up a while back.  I bought the napkins thinking they'd be adorable for a summer dinner party.  But really, who am I kidding...?  I'll never throw a summer dinner party that calls for cloth napkins.  Let's get real.  So now I have a cute pillow. 

I added a layer of batting behind the front side and stitched a grid-like pattern.  You can't really see it though.  Oh well.

I even put in a zipper.  MY VERY FIRST ZIPPER.  It wasn't nearly as bad as I was expecting, but I need more practice.  I have feared zippers for years, despite my friend's reassurance that they really aren't that difficult.  She was right.  I just need more practice.

I've been trying to get our room primed so we can get some paint up on the walls.  Slooooow going.  It seems that every time I get a paintbrush in-hand, Callan wakes up.  Maybe I'll be done before the end of August.  Ha.  In the meantime, graffiti is fun. 

We also just got rid of the wooden lattice that was nailed up over the windows of the sunroom.  There is, surprisingly, so much more light in there, now.  Who knew lattice could block so much sun.  I can't wait to clean, both the inside and outside, paint it, revamp the flower bed, and do something about those "support" trellises.  Still lots to do, but it's a start.  That pile of stone, brick, and planters pulled out from the fenceline doesn't help the appearance, as of the moment.  Maybe by next summer we'll have some noticeable improvements out there.  Here's hoping.

Here's all the lattice we took down.

And I think I may have finally settled on something for the mantle.  For now.  What's up there, has been up for a week, or two (?), and I like it.  I whipped up the paper doily bunting the other day just to add a little something else.  It's kinda fun. 

I'm still undecided as to if I should paint the mirror, or not, or whether to keep it vertical, or put it on it's side.  And that empty teal frame is just waiting for a new family picture.  We need to take one.  It'll stay empty until I actually feel like doing my hair.  It's just too hot to get the blow dryer out these days. 

So that's what has been going on around here in the past few weeks, along with the typical cleaning, laundry, and baby chasing.  Callan is a crazy crawling, cruising machine.  He keeps me busy, that's for sure!

Here's something I'm looking forward to:

In just over two weeks, my mom and grandma will be coming out to visit for a few days, then Callan and I will be flying back to NJ, with them, for about a week to meet our niece (finally!).  We desperately wish Travis could come with us, but with both a trip to CA and NJ planned for later this year, he needs to save his paid time off.  Understandable.  But we'll miss him terribly.

That's it for now.  Off to chase Callan.  And hopefully get to the sink full of dishes...

lazy susans turn productive

You know when you move into a "new" house and the previous owners leave behind a bit of yuck?  Well, the corner/lazy susan cabinet in the kitchen was one of those areas that had a bit of yuck.  Including a tin of sardines, a bottle of MSG {I'm not kidding!}, and some gooey gunk on the lazy susans and bottom surfaces of each of the cabinets {upper and lower}. 

They started out looking like this.
{The lazy susans were already taken out at this point.}
A weird green color.

My father-in-law pulled out the lazy susans while they were visiting during the week of Easter.  I gave them a good scrubbing and then two coats of primer and 2 coats of paint.  Ahh...so much better.

Then the insides of the cabinet got the same treatment.  I, literally, had to get INTO the bottom cabinet to paint it.  It was quite the sight.

See the difference?
{Top cabinet painted, bottom cabinet not painted.}
The white is so much better!  

And now all of the stuff that was cluttering the counter is neatly put away in these cabinets.

And now to do something about those red cabinets...

Have a fabulous weekend!  

I'll be finishing up a few little things in Callan's room this weekend and will hopefully share it with you on Monday!

Woo hoo!

inherited garden

I love the fact that we "inherited" somewhat of a garden in purchasing our home.  We have two peony plants, one of which is currently blooming,

and four rose bushes.  One is in bloom, three are getting close.  There's nothing that brightens my day like fresh cut flowers.  They make a room smile.  

Happy Friday!  Hope your weekend is sunny, inside and out.

days like today

call for a pot full of chili.

flowers & fabric

 Aren't these flowers beautiful?

They're amazing.

I snipped a few to bring inside to enjoy.  They make me smile.  

I love that we have beautiful flowers sprouting up in our yard.  Happy surprises.  I can't wait for my two peony plants to bloom!

I recently finished this project.  All it is is words printed on fabric, and a few pieces of fabric sewn together and thrown into a frame.  It was more or less a test run to see if I could get my printer to print on fabric.  It was a success, so I plan on making another with more ideal fabrics.  But I'll keep this one up until I make it's replacement.  No rush.

Here's the other sewing project I was working on.  My grandmother has been making these for as long as I can remember.  I wanted to try my hand at it.  It's cute, right?  Not bad for my first attempt; certainly far from perfect, so don't look too closely.  My intention was to use it as hoop art, but...

...it doesn't fit.  

With all that fabric on fabric on fabric...it's too thick.  So now I'm on the look out for a frame or some other way to display it.  Ideas? 

Today's plan is to get started on painting this room.

 What a disaster.  And you'd think we have triplets with all those baby entertainers.  Ha!  Once the walls are painted, we'll finally be able to get the room put together.  Really looking forward to that moment.  This will be my last painting project before my in-laws arrive for their week long visit on Monday.  Lots to do before then! 

wall art

I doubt you remember, but back in early December I created a "keep dreaming because it's never gonna happen" Christmas list.  Travis actually got me one of the items on that list!  And guess what?  It FINALLY got taken out of the box yesterday.  

Yes, yesterday.

Yeah...it took me over 3 months to unpack it from the box it was shipped in.  But that's because it was waiting for the perfect wall space to call home.  Here it is - hung for the long haul.  It's the perfect wall for this artwork and the colors are just right for the new digs.  Loving it.

It took me, like, half an hour to hang, but it looks great.  Totally worth it.

{the top of the bookshelf has yet to be accessorized}

Today, so far, has been better than yesterday.  Callan hasn't been nearly as needy, and he's napping much better.  Happy baby, happy mom.  I've even been able to make a little progress on those two sewing projects that I gave you a peek at yesterday, as well as a mini painting project.  Hoping to share one, or two, of them with you tomorrow!

weekend in pictures

 This weekend was beautiful.  Warm and sunny.

On Saturday, we took a quick trip down to OKC to pick up a part for Travis' motorcycle.  I told Travis that if we made the trip, we had to stop in at Habitat for Humanity's REstore (which ended up being mostly a bust).   The best part of our trip?  On our way from the motorcycle dealership to REstore, we spotted a Dunkin' Donuts!  We had NO CLUE that OK had DD, I practically fell out of my seat when I spotted it while driving down the road.  Just ask Travis.  I kind of have an obsession. 

Once we got back home, Travis spent a good part of the afternoon/evening out in the garage working on his bike.  Callan spent some time out there with him helping gnawing on his toys.

While Travis and Callan worked in the garage, I got some cutting in (primer) done in the dining room.  We made a pretty significant dent in our project list this weekend, too.  Good stuff.

 Callan and I hung out in the backyard for a little bit.  Guess who's starting to sit up on his own?!

I just love productive weekends.   And my little family.  <3

switchplate

Sure we have a bunch of big projects to tackle around the house, but there are tons of little ones too.  Like this one...  

I really can't stand the "ecru" or "off-white" or whatever color these switchplates are considered.  They just seem grimy, even when clean.  White ones are much fresher - and preferred around our place.  This is totally a personal thing, so my apologies if you are a fan of the "ecru" ones.  You can have all the ones I'm replacing.  Deal?  Deal.  We'll be replacing any "ecru" ones little by little. 

So, there's this multi-switch in the kitchen backsplash.  One switch controls the kitchen lighting, one controls the pot light over the fireplace, and one controls the sconce that we recently disconnected in the living room.  We use this switch every day so it was one of the first ones to get replaced.  On our last trip to Lowe's, I picked up a new white switchplate.  Easy fix, right?

You would think.  It didn't even cross my mind to consider the switches.  Duh.  I guess I'll be picking up a few switches on our next Lowe's run...

Looks like eggs, doesn't it?  The switchplate is the whites and the switches are the yolks.  I had eggs for dinner last night...gimme a break.  ;)

Crazy exciting post, I know.

Oh.  Real quick.  Do you know what kind of plant this is?  Because if it is what I think it is, I'm gonna do a happy dance!  Peony?

1974

Let's pretend it's 1974.  You walk up to our house.

You push the intercom button to announce your arrival.  And you think to yourself..."An intercom.  How high tech!"

And notice our terribly ugly, gold mailbox.  Well, if it was 1974, you'd probably think it was pretty groovy.

 From the {now disconnected} command central in the living room, I tell you "I'll be right there" or "C'mon in!"  But thank goodness it's not 1974 anymore...because this whole technological wonder is going bye-bye.  (So is that mailbox.)

And now we're left with a big 'ol hole in the wall.

Every room has a "call box", so to speak.  Er, had...because since these pictures were taken they have all been removed and now we're left with gaping holes in the guestroom...

  ...and Callan's room...

 ...and the master bedroom...

  

We have some hole patching to do!