Weak Week

I am in a slump.

I have no energy, no time, and I have accomplished nothing.

I seriously have no idea what I have spent this week doing.

I haven't blogged much.

I have only been on Facebook and Twitter via cell phone, so I haven't sat in front of my computer all day.

My house is a disaster.

The laundry isn't done.

We haven't gone anywhere.

Or done anything.

No crafts.

No baking.

The week has slipped away and I have no idea how.

I am so very tired.

From nothing.

Oh, and I've gained 5 lbs since Saturday.

*lightbulb*

I have spent my week eating candy bars.

Walking from room to room telling the kids what to do or what not to do while eating junk food.

I can't believe I am just now realizing it.

Time to put the candy away so that I can have a fabulous week next week.

I'm sorry I don't have my act together right now.

Hopefully I will be back on track soon.

Until then, you can all do a happy dance for The Girl.

She had her second parent/teacher conference on Monday and brought home another perfect report card.

Her teachers said she is a perfectionist who is excelling in mathematics.

The Girl rocks my world.

What a proud mommy I am.

A big fat proud mommy.

Have a wonderful day, folks.

Eat a piece of chocolate for me, will you?

Pottery Barn vs. Dollar Tree

About a year ago, I was at a friend's housewarming, and I noticed she had metal letters on her fridge.

They caught my eye because I had the same letters at home on my fridge.

The only difference was her letters were adorable.

My letters were neon colored plastic eyesores.

Fast-forward a year, and see the lightbulb appear above my head.

I could make my own awesome metal fridge letters!

{Minus the metal.}

After making this project, I tried to come up with other projects that could use the leftover spray paint.

While brainstorming at Dollar Tree, I came across packs of wooden magnetic fridge letters and numbers.

Brainstorm success.

I bought two packages of letters and one package of numbers.

I took the kids outside and had them lay all of the numbers and letters face up on a piece of cardboard.

I sprayed two coats of metallic spray paint all over everything and let them dry for a few hours.

I put them on the fridge and had the kids spell out their names.

Then I spent twenty minutes breaking up a fight, dealing with temper tantrums, and kicking myself.

So awesome of me to purchase two packs of letters so that the kids could spell things.

Like their names.

Their names that require three R's between the two of them.

Yeah, two packs didn't cut it.

Best.Mom.Ever.

So besides the minor mistake that increased the amount spent, this project should have cost me about $3.

Not bad considering I could have spent about $60 (not including tax or any numbers/symbols) if I had purchased them at Pottery Barn.

{Or a whopping $90 after realizing my "R" mistake!}

They're not the same quality as Pottery Barn, obviously, but the faux metal works for me for the price.

And the letters flow nicely in my kitchen.

Pottery Barn:

Mine:

I have a busy schedule ahead of me- I'll try to come back with some more crafts this week.

Have a great Tuesday, everyone!

New Police Car

We got a new police car over the weekend.

And it's not at all like Hubby's  good ol' Crown Vic.

It's even fancier.

And the kids have been driving it everywhere.

(I like polkadots. However, I do not like seeing polkadots on my walls proving to me that my camera lens is filthy and has been in the hands of a small boy.)

We promised The Girl a Power Wheels when she was about 2 years old.

We finally made good on our promise.

The box was heavy.

After opening it, it didn't look like too much trouble to put together.

And then we removed the plastic wrap and my livingroom became chaotic.

Hubby worked hard putting it all together.

(Using my pink screw driver.)

And while he worked on the important parts of the car, The Boy made siren noises and set up a pretend car using some of the parts.

They played with it all Friday night.

And when it was bedtime, The Girl found it hard to part ways with her beloved new toy.

Sleeping in it was impossible, though.

So she found the next best thing.

And crashed.

Saturday we went for a loooong walk/run.

(5 MPH is fast. Watching your kids whiz by you on the sidewalk is a crazy adrenaline rush. Keeping up with two speeding, giggling children was hilarious. And exhausting.)

When they came home, it was lunch time.

I told them they couldn't eat in the car.

So they found the next best thing.

I'm not a fan of them eating where there's carpet, but I opted to avoid the fight and watch them enjoy their lunch.

I will not die if I see macaroni and cheese somewhere on the floor.

And I know I will remember them jumping for joy when I told them they could eat on the box that held their toy car.

The toy car that they will outgrow much too soon.

One day cardboard boxes won't be exciting.

And macaroni and cheese will be considered food for kids.

Like my favorite movie says, "Sometimes it's the boring stuff I remember the most."

A kept promise.

An unusual place to sleep.

A bent rule.

Kid food.

Happiness.

Remember the boring stuff.

You'll miss it when it's gone.

Have a great Monday, friends.

Midnight Note #2

If you visited my blog tonight, you might have noticed the craziness.

I hope you didn't come when it was super awkwad over here.

I was trying to make a new BIGGER header, and had some major malfunctions in doing so.

I figured it out.

After everything went wonky.

Then I decided to create new page tabs that looked a little fancier.

I didn't even know where to begin.

So what did I do?

I asked Stacey because her blog has some pretty nice looking page tabs.

And guess what she did?

She told me exactly how to do it.

Step by step.

Late at night.

And when I was confused, she explained in detail.

It is amazing how many helpful and kind women there are out there in blogland.

{And OMGoodness, I came across her blog only minutes before emailing her. I will be spending lots of time looking around her fun crafty space soon!}

Thank you so very much, Stacey.

And I am so very sorry to anyone who questioned their vision while stopping by here tonight.

Two and half months into blogging, and I'm finally figuring out my way around.

{Sort of.}

Goodnight, all.

It's a Major Award!

Yes, Mrs. Hervey, I am stealing your blog title.

Because anyone who quotes A Christmas Story can be my friend.

And friends copy each other all the time.

{Man, I am awesome at creating excuses, aren't I?}

In all seriousness, this is my second blogger award and I am so very thankful.

My very first "blogger friend" honored me with this award over at her amazing blog.

{This girl can decorate anything with any budget. And the end result will always be, "whoa".}

Thank you kindly, Amanda.

You are beyond rad.

And your description as to why I deserve the award made me grin.

From.Ear.To.Ear.

With this little title, I get to list 7 other blogs that I feel deserving.

I would like to list my top 7 favorite blogs in no particular order.
(Amanda, you made the cut, but already won, so I guess this technically is my top 8...)

Joy's Hope

I found Julie (and blogspot) via Drew B. I was chosen by Drew to get a complimentary photoshoot, and wanted to know how the previous photoshoot winners had dressed for their shoot. I came across Julie's link, and became a follower before I really knew what a follower was...from my old Blogger account. I can relate to her in the best and worst ways. She makes me laugh. She makes me cry. She makes me think. And when she asked me to start a blog, I did.

{Joy's Hope- Ginormous Chalkboard}

Fingerprints on the Fridge

Rachelle is funny as hell and can decorate with the best of 'em. If she didn't live on the other side of the country, and didn't already have a BFF, I would be applying for the position. On a daily basis. Her family is adorable and she's awesome. 'Nuff said.

{Fingerprints on the Fridge- Mudroom}

No.17 Cherry Tree Lane
Rachel is one of those women who speaks her mind and makes you proud when she does. She is ridiculously humble and beyond talented. Her love of everything vintage makes me smile. I am waiting for her to teach me how to go to an estate sale- it will happen. If anyone has any ideas on how I can bribe her into doing so, let me know.

{No.17 Cherry Tree Lane- Lamp Makeover}

Trey and Lucy
Tanya has crazy cute style and I love that she can rock any look while also being a mama. Her tutorials are brief, detailed, and fun. I have a list a mile long of crafts she's made that I want to do, too.

{Trey and Lucy- Silhouette Necklace (coming soon!)}

Cookie Mondays....Ice Cream Sundays
Heather has the cutest kids in the world, and she's making the world prettier again...she is due with another little "C" soon. Woot! She is real and always makes me laugh.

{Cookie Mondays...Ice Cream Sundays- Maternity Re-Fashions}

Get Craftin'
Ana Paula has an imagination that makes me jealous. I have no idea how I came across her blog, but hit the "Follow" button after seeing her blog for about 3 seconds. I love her projects and style & have quite a few of her tutorials ready for me to tackle.

{Get Craftin'- Bib Necklace}

Crap I've Made
Char has the best blog name EVER. She makes some pretty awesome projects and teaches you how to make them, too. Read about her crap. You'll love it.

{Crap I've Made- Split Twirl Skirt}

Go check out these ladies and their amazing stories and talents.
They definitely deserve this award!

I'll be back to blog next week.

Have a great weekend!

Mini-Kitchen Makeover

Have you ever re-arranged the furniture in a room after a few years and thought, "Wow. Why didn't I do that sooner?!"

Yeah, me too.

As I begin to plan The Boy's bedroom makeover that will take place this summer, I started getting ideas on how to re-arrange other rooms in my house.

Unfortunately, the only room that needs a minor facelift is the kitchen.

Um, have you ever done the research on what kitchen makeovers cost?

They are so pricey that they use an entirely different term: remodel.

I would like to remodel my kitchen for free, thanks.

So I did.

You will be shocked to realize that moving everything around on your countertops makes the room feel completely different.

Okay, maybe not shocked to find out, but I was so stinkin' excited, I decided to spread the word.

I had a few things I wanted to add to my countertops, and a few things I wanted to remove.

The perfect combo, no?

This is the most simple change ever, and it makes me nearly as happy as my bedroom makeover does.

Before:

After:

The kitchen window faces the backyard.

Those are toys and things that belong on the patio in the first picture.

Hubby hoses down the patio and each and every toy/chair/item outside and puts them up on the ledge/planters when he waters.

It makes the kitchen look crazy sometimes, but that's just life.

Keeping it real.

Before:

After:

I painted the cabinets when The Boy was an itty bitty baby, and there are several little dings in the paint from over the years.

You forgive the imperfections, right?

Before:

After:

I am in {love} with the glass apothecary jars at WalMart right now.

I used a few for the kids' Valentine's crafts, and I had an extra one I couldn't wait to put to use.

It now holds my legal drug coffee.

Before:

After:

In the first photo, you can see that my Family Rules are no longer around.

The Boy can take full credit for that one.

{crash}{"Uh-oh, Mama!"}

So, I replaced it.

I had a bunch of spray chalkboard paint leftover from this project, so I taped off the edges of a dinner plate, got paint everywhere that it wasn't supposed to go, and displayed my goofed-up project for all to question admire.

I still don't know what I want to have the sign read.

Suggestions?

The soup tureen is my grandma's. She said she doesn't need it anymore, and I think it's delightful.

She has some super awesome items at her house.

{Feel free to picture a Z-Gallery or Pottery Barn ad rather than the typical "grandma house", though. I could spend a week blogging about the treasures she has all over her home and how none of them are purchased decorations, but rather, actual unique items she has picked up from all over the world. She has been everywhere. Twice.}

Before:

After:

So there you have it- a free kitchen makeover.

Try it for yourself.

If anything, your kitchen will get a good cleaning out of it.

:)

Have a wonderful Wednesday.

New Button & Answers

I finally played around with Photoshop and created an 'I've been featured' button so that I can start blogging about the amazing things you guys do/make/believe in.

What do ya think?

Too bright?

I love your input.

Please be honest.

Oh, and if I feature you anywhere on here, you'll know.

I will contact you.

After that, feel free to grab a button.

I will be featuring someone for the first time this week.

Will it be you?

To answer the questions you asked me last week:

1. Q: What is your pet peeve?
A: My #1 pet peeve is bad service. For anything. Anywhere.

2. Q: What is the number 1 challenge you have had as a mom?
A: Being thankful. That's the honest truth. I am too often wanting when I should be praising. I want more babies. I want fewer tantrums. I want them to pick up after themselves. I need to remember at all times to be thankful. There are too many women who wish for nothing more than to be called "mom" by someone, and too many women who take that title for granted. I don't want to be one of those women.

3. Q: What has been your biggest accomplishment as a mom?
A: I will ask my children this very question when they become adults. I.Have.No.Idea.

4. Q: Where in Southern California do you live?
A: An hour from the mountains, an hour from the desert, and 15 minutes from the beach. I live where people vacation. I live where houses cost way too much money, where a few too many people are fake, and where backyards aren't as big as they should be. I live where the sun is almost always shining and where a huge percentage of my high school classmates still live (and now raise their families). I live 11 minutes from my husband's office, and directly across the street from my daughter's school. I live in Orange County and I plan to live here for the rest of my life.

5. Q: What would your ideal breakfast, lunch, and dinner be?
A: Breakfast: Not a fan. Never have been. I love breakfast foods, but not at breakfast time. If I had to eat like a normal productive member of society, I guess I would have a waffle with fresh strawberries and whipped cream. And by "a waffle", I mean 10. Lunch: Mozzarella sticks with marinara sauce, a supreme chalupa from Taco Bell, and a White Chocolate Mocha from Starbucks. Venti, please. Since this is wishful thinking, you'll have no problem driving to three separate places for me, right? Dinner: Tie between Big Mac, cheeseburger, & large fries, or half of a pepperoni stuffed crust pizza from Pizza Hut. If any of the above aren't available, I will resort to eating an entire pan of brownies as a meal.
{I do not turn down food. Not ever. I eat All.Day.Long. I was once told that I have the metabolism of a male olympic triathlete. If I could just put the fork down, I would probably be at my ideal weight and would stop whining.}

6. Q: How do you like your mani/pedi's: Au natural, bright, neutral, crazy wild stripes, french, etc.?
A: Pedicures: Crazy. Bright. Fun. I hate feet. I also only wear flip flops. {Unless I'm clubbing with Hubby or in Vegas.} I have a nail art stencil that I use to give myself pedicures. I'll post about that soon. Manicures: What's a manicure? I haven't gotten one in about 15 years. No joke. I used to get french tipped full sets randomly as a teen {and even a few times as a mom}, but it's been a while. My hands never look nice.

7. Q: If you could change anything from the past, what would it be?
A: None of your business.
Kidding.
But seriously, it would be a do-over for a reason. It wasn't cool of me, and I am not proud of it. And yet, if I went back and changed that one thing, I would not be here today.

Hope you got the answers you wanted and I didn't scare you off.

{I finished my mini-kitchen makeover today...come back tomorrow to see what I did.}

Happy Tuesday, everyone.

Midnight Note

I widened my blog.

Why?

Because when you have to squint at your pictures after reading all of your posts, it's time for a change.

I put up the poll.

You sweethearts said to keep it as is.

I listened to the one person who decided to be honest and tell me to change it.

In doing so, I lost my fancy fonts, page divider, and signature.

Get ready for those to all change on Tuesday.

I like change.

I also liked my blog before.

All I wanted to do was widen it.
I changed the header, too.
A bit bigger, a little more color, and changed the word "live" to my favorite font.
Busy, busy.

I also managed to break my Photoshop program tonight.

I am on a serious roll.

Now is not the time to buy a Lotto ticket or jump on a plane to Vegas.

I'm now totally down in the dumps, tired, and didn't do any of the things I tweeted about earlier.

Wahhh.

Goodnight, readers.

Let's hope tomorrow is a better day.

Freebie (well, kind of...)

How was your weekend?

Mine was crazy.

If you follow me on Twitter, then you know just how crazy it was.

Hubby went camping with my dad for the weekend, so the kiddos and I were left at home to hold down the fort.

With his crazy hours, I think the kids just figured he was at work the whole time.

And work was the topic of the past 24 hours.

Hubby owns his own business, so while he was gone, I was supposed to help him out and create some user accounts for him.

I am not an idiot.

{For the most part.}

I listened carefully when he gave me directions, and showed him with confidence how well I could take instructions.

He was proud and left me to do his job.

And in one day, I managed to mess up everything.

Seriously.

I broke his company.

I made more mistakes than my pouty face could save me from.

I decided to spend the weekend cleaning the house, so that when he came home to a spic and span home and clean kiddos, he would be in a good mood.

{It helped that he missed us, too.}

He fixed the problems and proved to me that my research on cemetaries for my imminent death was silly.

If you are a friend of mine, I appreciate the words of encouragement on my personal Facebook page.

Looks like the viewing and funeral I had planned for myself will have to wait.

Until I break his company again.

Stressful weekend over.

House cleaned.

Now I just need to tackle the laundry.

Hubby borrowed my camera while he was gone, so I wasn't able to do any projects around here.

I will also be tackling my kitchen this week.

Now that my trusty little camera is home, she has her work cut out for her.

For my mini-kitchen makeover, I made a little sign that I will be framing.

I haven't decided on the size, frame, or location yet.

But here it is.

Do you want it?

Take it.

It won't cost you a penny.

Unless you print it out.

:)

It was made by me in Photoshop and can be enlarged to an 8x10 size.

If you want it bigger or customized in any way, email me.

My Etsy shop is on the way.

Hubby set up all the business-y stuff for me tonight.

{happy dance}

I hope you start your week off right.

{coffee helps}

Cheers, friends.

Seven Questions

Please forgive me for the lack of posting lately.

I have decided to take on 6 trizillion projects at once, and have no idea where to begin or when I will ever finish.

We also added two more pets to our family today.

We are now up to 13.

Life is a bit chaotic.

Apologies.

Anyway, not long ago, a sweet lady named Brooke told me that she had something fancy for me over at her blog so I went and checked it out.

That kind new blogger gave me my very first blogger award.

{happy dance}

And while reading other blogs, I see that the award comes with a request.

{oops}

I am supposed to list 7 things about myself.

Any 7 things.

That you don't already know.

You have no idea how hard it is for me to come up with even one.

Since I am new to blogland, I thought it would be fun for my sweet new followers to ask me questions instead of randomly listing information.

Since I can't think of 7 things.

:)

I'm not sure if this will even get 7 comments, but I'm throwing it out there...

Ask me anything you'd like to know.

I'll answer 7 questions.

{Unless I come across more than that...}

Ready? Set? Ask.

Grown Up Sale

Okay, so before I completely ignore this little blog to figure out how to create something new and exciting, I decided a mini-post would suffice for today.

I {heart} sales.

Big time.

Clearance racks, thrift stores, yard sales...oh how being cheap gives me such a thrill.

I'd like to share with you a little, tiny, itty-bitty sticker that makes my heart skip a beat:

Beautiful, isn't it?

Who doesn't love a great sale, right?

But this little sticker just so happens to be on a tag from a store that The Girl can just barely start shopping at.

Yup, she finally grew that smidgen she needed to in order to wear clothes from Justice.

If you'd like to buy her something, please contact me for the mailing address.

We all know her closet is looking bare.

Feel free to send me a box full of money and diamonds while you're at it.

:)

Have a wonderful Wednesday.

Kiddie Table Facelift

The Boy often confuses himself with a Sumo wrestler.

Not sure why.

And boy, can he cause some serious damage.

His latest accomplishment was destroying our kiddie table from Ikea.

Granted, I built the thing myself before I realized that wood glue and Ikea furniture were a match made in Heaven.
And maybe the table isn't brand new.

The table was for The Girl's half birthday when she turned 18 months old.

{Yes, we celebrate half birthdays.

If you are my friend, you have made fun of me for this.

And now I have the last laugh because I have an awesome new table in my livingroom.

Woot.}

So, The Boy got ahold of the table.

A few screws put in by Hubby, a couple coats of Bergundy spray paint, random roughed up spots and sanded edges with sandpaper, and some chalkboard paint made his wrestling partner as good as new.

This little beauty matches the non-existent rare parts of the livingroom that have color.

A bit wild, huh?

Bergundy pillow.

{gasp}

Colored photos.

{gasp}

It's true- my entire first floor is decorated in neutral tones and black and white photos.

One day I'll post photos of the kids' rooms so that you can see where all of the color in our house is hiding.

I love that the table The Girl got when she was 18 months old is in the same room as the artwork she made at the same age.

And I love that the kids are no longer putting stickers on the little chairs to tell them apart.
Because their world would come crashing down if they shared chairs, right?
Their new way to identify their chairs makes me happy.

Can you believe I almost threw the table away?!
Happy Tuesday, everyone.

*edited to add: The chalkboard paint is the spray paint option purchased at Walmart for about $4. I needed 3/4 of a can, and it was super easy to use. Follow the directions on the packaging. Next step: creating chalkboards around my house for no reason other than chalkboards are rad and apparently easy peasy to make.
:)

Coke Addict Surprise

Hubby and I are Coke addicts.

I prefer Zero.

He enjoys Classic.

While grocery shopping last week, I picked up a box of his favorite.

After I got home, I ripped the box open like a wild woman to quickly hand him a few for him to take to his office.

Look what I found:

Looks like a rad little surprise, right?

Look closer.

Go ahead, click on the photo below and gasp in horror:

See the brown spots everywhere?

Not only did we get a Sprite, but we got a half-exploded can of Coca-Cola that generously covered the rest of the package.

I called and complained informed them of the surprise I got inside of my perfectly dry, clean box of soda.

The lady was so kind.

She said she was in Georgia and had a super cute accent.

She even understood my OC slang and laughed when I told her my experience was "not so fancy".

I will get another box free of charge.

Sometimes I just don't like surprises.

Truth.

Happy Monday.

Master Bedroom Completed

I'm almost all the way serious.

It's probably 98% finished.

The remaining 2% will bother me for the next few weeks.

And then I'll post another blog post about my room.

I know you can't wait.

Why did I choose to makeover my bedroom when I'm never in there?

Because I was never in there since it looked like this:

So I made it look like this:

It all started with a yellow cake stand and hand-me-down curtains.

My dad gave me the cake stand and told me that it was handed down to him and that even if it wasn't my style, it was a perfectly functioning stand.

My mom gave me the curtains because they block sunlight like no one's business.

So what does one do when they are given an awesome cake stand?

They decide to re-decorate a bedroom, that's what.

There is no rhyme or reason to my madness.

I just go with it.

I'm glad that I did this time, because the room makes me happy.

I like to be in it.

I had completed half of the room about a week ago, and finally finished the rest yesterday.

Before:

After:

Before:

After:

The desk was in our home office.

I begged Hubby to clear his computer and paperwork from it and bring it upstairs for me.

He did.

And soon it will be the home to my very own computer.

Because I have crashed too many a couple and I really don't think he likes me using his.

The shelf above my desk was a Craigslist find.

I love Craig.

It was $4.

It is old and has a huge crack in it.

I call it the shelf's scar.

Makes me wonder what happened to it.

Hubby offered to fix it.

This time I didn't want his help.

I like it as is in all of it's four dollar glory.

I did spray paint the hardware though.

The old stuff just didn't flow in the room.

Everything else is from Goodwill or yard sales.

Minus the books that I have in the basket.

Those are the few I plan to read soon.

My book collection takes over an entire closet in our upstairs hallway.

I {heart} reading.

Before:

After:

The Girl painted that armoire for me.

Yes, the entire thing.

By herself.

She started to paint it before asking for permission.

And I loved her thought process so let her have at it.

It is not a perfect paint job.

There are small spaces where there is no paint at all.

And I love her hard work so much that if she says it's finished, it's finished.

I spray painted the knobs and added a hook to the side for my robe.

Yes, most people leave their robes in their bathrooms.

Most people also leave cake stands in their kitchens.

Besides, certain small people have been caught using my robe to wipe toothpaste off of their mouths after brushing their teeth.

You can only wear a toothpaste covered robe for so long before your robe finds a new home.

And it's the only pink thing in my room.

Happiness.

I also added distress ink around the edges of the armoire to add some contrast.

It is super awesome in person.

I have no idea how I'm going to decorate the top of the armoire.

It currently holds our TV and DVD player on top.

Those will stay there.

We swapped the ginormous TV for this one that fits.

We can see it from our bed.

We have still yet to watch anything on it since it's been up there.

Everything else is left in the unfinished 2% that I mentioned.

Ideas are welcomed.

Oh, and I almost forgot the ugly child's chair.

{giggle}

Fancy.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

{I am linking up to these parties.}