Our first piece of wall art...that's actually ON the wall.

I love Pinterest. I think we all do. However, its so hard to make a decision. I just want to do it alllll.

So, while doing my nightly scroll through the great world of Pinterest, I found a pin I thought was perfect for my breakfast nook area. I knew I wanted something that would fill up the wall but also something that was kind of different. The thought of a gallery wall crossed my mind a time or two but I didn't want gallery walls everywhere. I plan on doing to do one in our master bedroom one of these days...

Anywho, onto what I actually decided.

This was my inspiration:

Liz Marie Blog

I loved it... and her blog! Her style is just so fun and cozy. And see those cute prints she has hanging up there? I downloaded a few from this cute little blog and put one in my frame in my kitchen. Some of you saw it on Instagram:

Back to the pallets!

So, I showed Tyler what I wanted to do... and he pretty much turned into my hero after that. We went outside to look for boards to make it and BINGO, a pallet sat there ready to be torn apart! yay! Only problem is, that pallet put up a fight. For like over an hour. Bless his heart... he got two good boards out of it for me. Thank goodness two ended up filling that wall better than three or I might have had a dead husband...

After they were popped ripped off, I washed and stained the boards. Meanwhile, my awesome brother was coming through town and stopped by Lowe's to get me some materials such as eyelet screws for the wire to hang from and clips for the pictures. Thanks bro!

Here are our progress shots...Sorry for all the iPhone pics but my camera has been shooting blurry lately and I just fixed it.  We finished this project in a few nights! That like never happens around here...

  

And here is the final product! 

My materials list:

2- 4ft boards from a pallet

Dark Walnut wood stain

4 eyelet screws

Picture Hanging Hardware

Picture hanging wire

Silver binder clips

Bring on the Christmas cards people.. I have a place for them all ! 

What do you guys think? 

Happy Halloween - Happy Fall - Happy Door

Hi all!!

Hope everyone had a HAPPY Halloween! We had nasty weather here in KY, so I'm sure plenty of Trick or Treaters weren't thrilled! Since we live out in the middle of nowhere, we didn't get any kids... but we bought candy anyway and had one cute kitty treater on our hands :)

We just ate candy and relaxed that night. My kind of  fun!

Ok, so I'm a little late on the 'Hey look at my fall wreath I made' pictures, but I wanted to get my door & table painted and the swing hung up first.

The tape off...

June watching the first coat dry

The swing before...

And the after...

The boys figuring out the swing 

Tyler, looking a little scared to test it out...

And here is the final... for now. I still have a project for the house numbers up my sleeve!

Fall wreath money shot!! Still trying to figure out why my camera is reading blurry lately! arrrgg!

The color on the door is Stratton Blue by Benjamin Moore. It reads so different in each shot... sometimes green, sometimes blue and sometimes a more teal look.

Either way it reads, I love it so much! My goal was to have a happy front door. 

Done!

A matching garage!

Anyone remember our lovely gray garage??

Here's a refresher:

Ouch. That thing was ugly. Thankfully I no longer have to look at that mess! A few weekends ago, Tyler and dad finished power washing, painting and adding siding.

THE AFTER!!



Now everything matches and it looks wonderful! 

We just have to add the light back on the front and maybe replace that door... or at least re-paint it. You know how much I love to paint.

Speaking of paint... Tyler painted the lean to roof black. See his in action shots below...

It looks soooo much better! I'm so grateful to have a two handy men in my

 life & family that is always willing to help!

 

See those windows hanging from the roof? Yeah, that's our next battle! We hope to get that sun room closed up before winter... mainly so June can watch the snow fall all day!

 That diva always gets what she wants... she is pretty strict and definitly knows how to relax ;)

 

 

The one with the Heirloom Red Door

I posted this photo on my Instagram a while back... you may have seen it :)

 

When I saw this photo on Pinterest, I knew I had to have this color in my house somewhere...

 

BINGO! Back door it is. Perfect spot for a pop of color. So, I took the plunge, bought the paint and we got down to business..

 

 

Mom came over to help me with the task... She secretly loves painting. If she sees something while we are out shopping and doesn't like the color, she will buy it and paint it. haha! I laugh but gosh we are so much alike its scary...

We found out June likes to paint too... just couldn't stay out of it! She is always getting in the middle of things. Curiosity paints the cat.

 

Now, I'm happy every time I walk through the front door and see that pretty red door!

 

Final Product :

 

What do y'all think?

 

Would you ever make a bold statement with paint like this?  

 

Leave me a comment :) 

The one where we finally painted the bathroom...

Well, we finished the bathroom last month but I never blogged about it. Big surprise right?

Anyway, it took us a few days to sand, tape off and finish touch ups but its all done now!

Behold, the bathroom... with no artwork ;)

 

Also, check out these shelves we made with old scaffold boards.

Mom & I totally thought this would be awesome (typical). Dad, not so much. He just couldn't understand why we wanted old nasty boards. It's rustic Dad.  Trust me it will look fine. And it does! yippie!!

Detail shot... what what!

Now, I need some baskets for the toilet area and something for that massive wall behind the massive tub.

Any suggestions?

Some ideas from others include:

1. Shelving for towels/soaps etc.
2. A hanging ladder from the ceiling (think outside the box, er, tub)
3. Plain ol big artwork

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!

I have some fun posts coming up for September:

Front door color
Bookcase rearrange
Painting the Garage
Front porch revamp
Backdoor Color
Master Bedroom Progress
Spice organization
1/2 Marathon Training
Whole30 Recap

Maybe by writing these out, I will actually blog about them! ;) Stay Tuned!

Why Tuesday August 13th was AWESOME!

Some of you may have seen my post on FB saying what an awesome day it was last Tuesday. Well, I'm here to spill the beans...

I'm.... pre...

pretty excited to get matched through the I run 4 Michael group!

Yeah, you thought I was pregnant didn't you? no? ok.

Anyway, I run 4 Michael is a group I found through another blog, Skinny Runner. I checked out the website and was so touched by what they were doing, that I wanted to be a part of it. Plus, I was going to sign up for a 1/2 marathon in November and what better motivation than to dedicate my runs to someone who can't run themselves?

So, who did I get matched with??

Sweet little Miss Emma from Milwaukee Wisconsin!

 Emma has CdLS. CdLS a genetic disorder present from birth, but not always diagnosed at birth. It causes a range of physical, cognitive and medical challenges and affects both genders equally. CdLS does not discriminate—it’s seen in all races and ethnic backgrounds. The occurrence of CdLS is estimated to be 1 in 10,000 live births.

Emma loves pink, is in love with Disney princesses, likes to do arts and crafts projects (perfect for me right?!) and is starting school soon! She sounds like such a fun little girl.. I can't wait to get to know her more along this journey!

If you are a runner (or someone looking for their child/cousin/nephew/granddaughter.. whatever, to have a runner) and are interested in being matched with someone, check out the I run 4 Michael FB page or website and sign up! I'm so glad I did :)


I map quested, then photo shopped how far away we lived from each other! My goal is to run 403 miles by this time next year! Only 401 to go!

I'm off to run a few miles this afternoon... day 3 of 1/2 marathon training is today! wish me luck!

The one where I visited Shannon & started the Whole30

To start August off right, I headed to Huntsville Alabama to visit my friend Shannon! We hadn't seen each other since my wedding!!  I'm so glad we put it on the calendar & nothing got in our way! Our plan was to craft, shop, catch up on life and start The Whole 30!

I only took a few photos but we had lots of fun!

Little Digby was there to supervise all of it. He is so cute!!

We got up on Saturday and headed to an Antique place where I bought a ceramic boot. Yes, you did read that correctly haha! I have a plan for it but for now, it's staying green with nothing in it. 

After lunch at Chipolte, we headed back to the apartment for some crafting! We both worked on our pinterest-y projects while watching fun movies like Hairspray and Legally Blonde. Shannon sewed a instagram pillow for her honey which turned out so neat! I decided on a star burst mirror. I've always wanted one and this was the perfect time to do it! 

I just bought a Hobby Lobby mirror and 3 packs of skewers. I evenly spaced the skewers around the mirror where I wanted the longest ones to be.

I did 6 on each side next to the first one I laid down. I just eye balled how far back to place them. Digby made sure I didn't miss any and occasionally played with a stick :)

And this is the semi finished product! I need to spray paint it but not sure what color yet since I don't know where it's going in the house.

What do you think?

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During my trip, Shannon, her boy  Justin and I decided to take on the Whole 30 together. Lots of you have asked about it and I will tell you... its hard but worth it (so far). Basically, it's rethinking the foods you are putting in your body.

Yes, that's a ton to cut out (bread, cheese, chocolate, DIET COKE!?!) but if you read on their website, many great things can come from changing your habits. There is a huge science behind it all. Check out their website and order the book if you are serious about trying it!

I'm on day 13/30 and I am sleeping SO much better, I can see a difference in the bloat I had in my belly, I feel full faster and my mind is more focused while I'm at work. Plus, Tyler and I have cooked pretty much every night which makes us feel much better than just ordering a pizza! I know what's going in my body and I'm learning to try new foods like dates & plantains. I've even made healthy mayo and ranch!!

I measured and weighed before I started and I can't wait to see the results in 30 days. They don't want you to measure or weigh during because it isn't about that; its about how you feel.

The first few days were hard for me because I had to cut diet coke out, but I made it through. Look how yummy my first day  was!

 So that's pretty much it! I will try to post the rest of my meals as soon as I get them all organized!

My trip ended with church on Sunday and eating Panera salads with our Whole30 approved ranch!

Thank you Shannon for such a fun weekend! I'm so thankful for your friendship! We will have to do it again soon!

Do you think you could do the Whole 30?
What is your favorite food you would miss for 30 days?
Have you ever made a star burst mirror?

Until next time...