Wednesday, February 29, 2012

February's Favorite Things

 Beautiful mornings,

 black coffee,

 pops of red,

 bathing babies,

 his and her toys, joined together,

 my sonshine,

february glambag.

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Still Learning






I have given myself some time to ponder a personal situation, one that I'm not going to elaborate anymore on besides this tiny reminder, and I still feel the same.  I wanted to make sure I'm not being irrational or acting rash. You can only take a person's ... nastiness ... for so long before you decide your life is just better off without them in it.

Sunday, February 26, 2012

DIY Curtains

So I've been pretty busy in the bedroom this past month. Well, truthfully, it's always busy in the Church bedroom, but this past month I've been busy with things that are appropriate to share on the internet ;)

Take my new curtains. Aren't they purty? I made them last weekend!


Making curtains is seriously the easiest sewing project ever.  Not only are they easy to make, but it's cheaper to make your own than buying premade panels, and - the best part! - they're perfectly custom to your style and your space.

My house came with wood blinds that perfectly fit in every window, but they're just plain, white, and ordinary (Cupcake, anyone? One of my kids' favorite books lol), so we don't actually need curtains.  But trust me, you do need curtains.  They really dress up your space and they add texture and interest.  They make your room feel done.

If you don't want to buy some, or you have a fabric that you love, then definitely think about making your own.  This is actually my fourth curtain project to date, if that's any indication of how uncomplicated this project is. 

I made the curtains in my son's room:

...the panels in my daughter's nursery:

...and the window treatment in our upstairs bathroom:


And it's so EASY.




And so worth it.

 


If you're curious, here is a before - with the original panels from when we bought our house - and after, with the curtains I just made.

Friday, February 24, 2012

Dining in Style

Clean eating is still going strong for us, but I gotta say, it can be frustrating to put the time and effort into shopping for healthy ingredients and then come home and put in the hours to make the meal, only to have my kids eat a couple bites and be done. 

I stick with it though.  A month ago the four of us were grossed out by asparagus. Today, it's one of our most favorite vegetables.  It's working and we're getting there, but it's definitely challenging.

One of my personal challenges was our dishes.  I've never bought new dishes.  For the past 13 years, since I've been living on my own, I've been using these old-fashioned country blue & pink daisy set that was handed down to me.  They did the job but they weren't cute. At all. 

So for the past month, I've been buying pieces here and there to create a dinnerware set that was more our style.  I bought an ecletic mix from TJ Maxx, Anthropologie, and Pier 1, and now I completely look forward to setting our dining table. Who knew something as simple as the right dish pattern could spice up dinner?




Sunday, February 19, 2012

DIY Tufted Headboard


 




 



 




I'm pretty sure this is my most amazing DIY project yet (and definitely the most cost efficient one).  

I have been coveting this tufted headboard from West Elm forever.  At least a year. But for our king-sized bed, its $500 price tag - for just a headboard! - has kept me from buying it. 

SO I MADE ONE. And it's seriously so awesome. I LOVE IT. Love, love, love it.

And I made it for a fraction of the price.  Just over $100 in fact. And it's custom - right down to the fabric, the color, the number of buttons, the height, the length, everything.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Our Valentine's Day


 

Spent a few minutes in quiet stillness, enjoying the morning and my coffee, before my babies woke up, then it was strawberry whole-wheat pancakes for breakfast and a bit of before-school silliness.



When Narls and Em got home, we dumped out their Valentines and went through each and every one.
I so remember doing this when I was a child :) 




Clay and I agreed that we weren't doing presents this holiday, but he still surprised me with lovely flowers.


Although the biggest surprise was how similar the cards were that we picked for each other.  We bought them at different stores, too.  So crazy.  Great minds, huh? 


Not only did we pick similar cards, but unbeknownst to each other, we both got little gifts for our kids (guess that what married life is like- buying presents for your kids but not each other haha!). Clay bought them each a lightsaber (Star Wars is huge in our house right now), and I bought Narls some Star Wars guys and Em a mermaid.


And we spent the night playing.


 

It was perfect.

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Clean Eating: Whole Wheat Strawberry Pancakes for Valentine's Day

A healthy breakfast without any added sugar or artificial food coloring.