Garden Basket - Master Bedroom DIY decor Part 1

I know no one is on the edge of their seat waiting for the Master Bedroom reveal - but just in case you were wondering, it's still a work in progress. For some reason I thought finding the perfect driftwood and eclectic group of frames/artwork for a gallery wall would come together quickly. Ya, not so much. But it IS coming together so I wanted to share the little details that I complete along the way.

I found this adorable little garden basket at Michael's on clearance for $3 and knew it would be perfect to hold a knick-knack or two on our dresser.

Although "Blossom" is perfect for Spring, it won't work for the rest of the year and I'm only a decorate-for-the-seasons girl up to a point. So I busted out some painters tape and our wall paint and added a stripe to cover up "Blossom" and added a few stripes along the handle. Then I used sandpaper to distress it out a bit more.

It looks darling on the dresser along with my Mother's Day tulips and a starfish.

I have a thing with having one piece in a room match the wall color. I think it looks elegant.

I get such a thrill out of little things like this. Do you find trinkets at stores that you can't wait to makeover to fit your space?

10 Minute Rule

Happy Belated Mother's Day!

My Mother's Day was the same as the previous two - Mr. G wakes up and takes Noelle to get me a newspaper, a Mother's Day card, and flowers (he's not so good in the gift department). Then we head to church and enjoy the day together.

Being a mom is by far the hardest thing I've ever done. Every day is a challenge, but also a joy and a precious gift. Gazing into their eyes takes my breath away because it is so amazing that they are my children. My little people who I love beyond words. I desperately want to be a good mother to them.

Which brings me to the topic of this post. One is much easier than two. Being out numbered during the day has left me scrambling for time to do chores, shower, run errands, etc. Before Noah, I would wait to do everything during Noelle's 2 hour nap so she could have all of my attention in the morning and afternoon. And even with 2 hours I usually didn't get it all done or have much time to myself. Well now I don't have 2 hours alone so a few weeks ago I started doing chores throughout the day with a 10 minute limit. This system allows me to have

1. Plenty of one-on-one time with both of the kids

2. Time for myself

3. Sanity.

Basically I know it will take me 10 minutes to do most of the chores around the house. Instead of tirelessly attempting to get them all done at the same time I give myself 10 minutes periodically throughout the day to do ONE chore.

For example, in the morning while Noelle is eating breakfast and Noah is hanging out or napping, I take 10 minutes to unload the dishwasher and load the dishes used for making breakfast. Then later I'll take 10 minutes to fold laundry or vacuum. I've found that the max I've spent on one chore is 15 minutes and that's when extra attention is needed. Before I start the chore, I let Noelle know what I'm going to do and ask if she would like to help. She loves throwing dirty laundry into the washing machine and helping me fold the laundry (she finds all of her clothes and puts them in a pile).

When the 10 minutes are up we play in her playroom or do some reading or coloring. This way she helps me, then I help her. She looks forward to doing chores now because she knows that it won't last long. Rather than me always saying, "Mommy has to clean up" I now say "Let's dust the living room together then we'll play with your doll house."

Now I use the time that I have when they are both napping to have a few minutes to myself. I also use the 10 Minute Rule for blogging, facebook, finding coupons, and emails.

Looks like my time is up!

Have a great week!

Noah 12 Weeks

A short clip of my sweet boy.

Winning and Free Stuff

I saved over 60% on my Target trip yesterday!

Here is what I got for free or close to free:

Suave Shampoo $1.89

.50/1 Suave Professionals

.75/1 Suave Professionals Target Q

= .64

Suave Hair Spray $2.74

Free Suave Professionals Styling Product (up to $3.00)

= FREE

2 Jergens Natural Glow Lotion $1.99

2 $1.50/1 (does not exclude trial size)

= .49

2 Revlon Tweezers $1.87 each

$5/2 Revlon Tools

= FREE

Revlon Nail Clippers $1.97

$2/1 Revlon Tools

= FREE

Two more $5/2 Revlon Tools coupons printed out at the register so I'm going back to use them up and hopefully get 2 more, then 2 more, then 2 more. I currently have 4 nail clippers and 4 tweezers. I'm stocking up to give to my church.

Merona Boxers 30% off for $3.50. I'll check back this weekend to see if they go half off. There were several patterns on clearance.

My FREE Febreeze Teacher Appreciation Giveaway came yesterday!

I got a Green Citrus wooden wick candle and flameless luminary. They smell amazing!

I'm a WINNER!

I checked my e-mail this morning and was thrilled to see that I won a Mystery Envelope from Totally Target! Mystery Envelopes were a quick giveaway yesterday. I *really* wanted the Target P&G insert, but I can't wait to see what's in my envelope!

Dr. Seuss Birthday Party

My sister, Tina, is the Queen of planning parties. She threw my Nautical Baby Shower back in January and has thrown the most adorable birthday parties for her two little ones. For my nephew Evan's 2nd birthday she put together a Dr. Seuss themed party. Here are some pictures of the fun day.

"No! Not in the house!" Said the fish in the pot.

"They should not fly kites. In a house!

Delicious Cupcakes!

I loved the cotton candy-topped cupcakes.

Food Table

Blue Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries and Green Eggs & Ham

Peppermint candy napkin holders

Red Fish, Blue Fish Centerpieces

Marshmallow Cat in the Hat pops

House Decor

Tina made this DIY balloon wreath for the front door. She lost count on how many balloons were used. I can only imagine.

Tina with the Birthday Boy

Teacher Appreciation Week 2011

It's lovely to not have to think of fun DIY gifts for people - because other far more creative bloggers do it for me!

I found this super cute idea over at Domesticated Lady. My kids are not in school yet but my husband is a teacher so Noelle and I made these for his co-workers. Stop by Domesticated Lady to print out the water bottle printable for free - there are also several more great Teacher Appreciation gift ideas. I love the POPular Teacher bags of popcorn.

I chose Crystal Light Peach Iced Tea and happened to find perfectly matching ribbon for a buck at Michael's yesterday.

I also made this little tag.

HAPPY TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK to my teacher readers!!!

New Coupons and a Mother's Day Deal

New Month = New Coupons!

There are many new coupons on my favorite coupon sites.

Target.com & Coupons.com

Head on over and print them while you can. Even if I don't necessarily need the product right now, if I see a high value coupon I print it and hold on to it just in case there is a store deal or matchup in the future.

Free Mother's Day Card

Go to Tiny Prints for your FREE Personalized Mother's Day card. I made one for my mom and mother-in-law. Use code MDCARD - just for today - and get $3.99 subtracted from your total which makes the card FREE. Or have the card sent directly to the recipient for .44 cents.

30 Day Shred - Day 1

I decided last week that I would start - make that re-start - the 30 Day Shred on May 1st. There was just far too much chocolate in the house last week to begin then, and the 1st of the month just sounded better. I did the Shred before I got pregnant with Noah and although I didn't see any weight loss, I did tone up a bit and was happy with the results of my mediocre attempt at mirroring Jillian.

So today is Day 1. I'll admit that I very much dislike exercising so I remind myself while I'm working out that my body works for me 24 hours a day, the least I can do is give it 30 minutes. And so it begins.

My Goal:

My pre-pregnancy weight was 140 pounds and I reached 165 by the end of the pregnancy. I'm now at 138 and my goal is to get down to 130 pounds. And get my butt in shape (literally!).

Hanging Bird Cage Tutorial

I was asked how I went about painting and installing the bird cages hanging in Noelle's room so I put together this quick tutorial.

Supplies:

3 Bird Cages

3 cans of Spray Paint

White Chain - approx. 10 ft.

3 Decorative Ceiling Hooks

18 volt cordless drill (what we have)

1. Find three Bird Cages in various sizes and shapes.

I found the two smaller ones at Antique Stores and the tall one at Ross.

2. I primed the cages first.

Although it's probably not necessary, I primed all of the cages before spraying them with color.

3. Pick three complementary spray paint colors and spray the cages. Make sure to keep the spray can at a good distance away from the cage to avoid dripping. It took several coats to cover all of the angles of the cages.

I choose Antique White, Green and Baby Blue.

The spray paint really brought out the details in each of the cages.

4. Decide where you want the cages to hang and guesstimate how much chain you will need.

I had the guys at Lowe's cut 10 ft of white chain.

The white bird cage hangs 28 inches from the ceiling, the blue bird cage 32 inches and the green bird cage 35 inches.

5. Decide on placement of the cages and where the holes in the ceiling will go. You have one shot at this so make positive that you LOVE where they are. I had my dad and Mr. G dangle them from the ceiling then mark with a pencil where each hole was going to go.

6. Take a deep breath and drill the holes in the ceiling and install the ceiling hooks.

I let Mr. G take the lead on this step. It helps that he is 6'6" and doesn't require a ladder most of the time.

7. Hang the bird cages from the last chain link and close the link for a secure hold.

And that's it! A fun and unique way to add character and dimension to a room.

See more of Noelle's room HERE

Board and Batten

Our Master Bedroom walls are finally done! I thought it would only take us a couple of days, but a 2 year old and a 2 month old make things...interesting. Needless to say it took us several days longer than planned but the outcome is fantastic. I am thrilled with the wall color:

Gray Cashmere by Benjamin Moore

The morning sunlight brings out the green tones of the paint, in the afternoon the walls transform to a rich blue and in the evening the room has a more sophisticated gray appearance.

The Board and Batten gives the room the Beach Cottage look that we want, and accompanied with the new decor, the room looks fantastic. You'd expect an ocean front view out of our windows. It was definitely well worth all of the extra and unnecessary work.

(old throw pillow)

The Master Bedroom Reveal is coming soon!

He is risen, just as he said.

There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the woman, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.

He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay."

Matthew 28:2-6

Thank you, Jesus for conquering death, for washing my sins away. HE IS RISEN!

Happy Easter!

2 Months New

One of the things I couldn't contemplate before having Noah was the ability to love another child as much as I love Noelle. Then he was born and my heart doubled in size. I can't describe the feeling - just overwhelming love. This little boy has totally won me over. I am crazy about him.

There's something so familiar about Noah. It's like he has been here all along. Like I've known him my entire life.

Noah is 9 weeks old today and here is what he has been up to:

Smiling and cooing! Just adorable.

Discovering his hands. He watches them move around just in front of his face.

Holding his head up and picking his head up from a laying position.

Kicking his legs and waving his arms constantly.

Looking for people when he hears their voice.

Sucks his fingers and hands.

He has outgrown all Newborn clothes and is now in 0-3 & 3-6 month clothes.

Noah likes:

• Bath time. He has never cried during a bath. I took out the infant hammock so he sits in the tub and kicks his legs in the water.
• Being held and spoken to. He will listen and smile at whoever has him.
• Mam pacifier. It has been a life-saver.
• Fresh air. He loves being outside looking around and taking everything in.
• The Fisher-Price swing. He takes his late-afternoon nap in it.

Noah doesn't like:

• Being in his car seat.
• When mommy drinks milk. I went lactose-free for him, but I slipped and had a glass the other day. He consequently had major gas the entire day.
• Being swaddled. He'll wiggle and wiggle until he is free.
• My right boob. The boy has been a "lefty" since the day he was born. I thought he'd grow out of it by now but it seems to be getting worse.
• Getting his diaper changed.

Noah's Daily Sleep Schedule:

6am - Up to nurse and then lays back down for about an hour - (grunting and pooping) - while mommy gets a bit more sleep. He usually goes back to sleep until 8am.

8am-10am - Awake

10am-12pm - Nap time

12pm-3ish - Awake

3pm-6pm - Nap time

6pm-9pm - Awake

9pm - Time for bed.

Noah usually sleeps for 5 hours, nurses, then sleeps 4 more.

I think we have a pretty good routine going for now.

I love you sweet Noah.

Master Remodel Day 1

One day down - hopefully only a few more to go! Mr. G is on Spring Break so we are working hard at *finally* decorating our bedroom. The walls in the room are stark white with white chair railing (as shown above).

On the agenda: (updated list)

Take down the chair railing -- oops, shouldn't have done that.

Paint the walls

Cut and Paint the board and batten

Install the b&b

Paint another coat of semi-gloss to the installed b&b

New bedding and decor for bedroom

Update bathroom

It took several attempts to find the perfect color but the 20 bucks I spent on sample tubs was well worth it. At first I was going for a pale blue with gray tones, then I decided to go pure gray, and just before I lost all hope in finding a color I loved, I found Gray Cashmere by Benjamin Moore.

I am absolutely loving the way it is turning out. It is a blend of gray, blue and green - which works with the Beach Cottage-inspired room I'm going for.

I have to say I am apprehensive about putting up the board and batten. I know it will look great in the end, but getting there is most likely going to be a challenge. We are going to have to take down the base boards and either cut them or get new ones because they tapper on the top and we need a flat surface for the board and batten to sit flush on.

Today we ripped the chair railing on two walls and it almost sent me into cardiac arrest. Demolishing perfectly good chair railing -- am I crazy?? Why do I get these ideas? Sometimes I wish I was content with white walls and matching bedroom sets.

Wordless Wednesday

To My Peeps

I'm a sucker for Peeps and when I saw these adorable Peep treats on the blog Eighteen25 I had to make them for my Small Group (Bible study group - but more than a Bible study so we call it Small Group).

These were so simple to make and who doesn't love a Peep?

Supplies for the Peep Presents:

Peeps

Snack Bags

Card Stock

Stapler and Double sided tape

Peep Topper Printout

It only took about 30 minutes to make 7.

Thanks Eighteen25 for the lovely printout!

Coupon Surprises!

I had a minute to organize Noah's diaper and wipes shelf and was pleasantly surprised to find a little yellow circle with "$30" in the middle on one of the boxes in Noah's closet, which could mean only one thing - COUPONS!

Please don't be expired, please don't be expired.

Woohoo! $30 of P&G brand coupons that don't expire until 9/2012. These diapers were a gift from my baby shower back in January so I'm positive that the coupon promotion is over but just in case you have boxes of diapers tucked away in closets around the house like I do, you might want to give them a check.

I got another surprise when I checked the mail - something I *must* make an attempt to do more often.

Target Coupons! Not so hot ones - it's the Pharmacy booklet - but one or two of the coupons may come in handy.

Then another surprise to end the day. I laid down with Noah on my chest and picked up my May edition of EveryDay and found a $5 off $25 Merona coupon. I just may go out this week and buy the adorable little dress I've been eyeing. It will be perfect for Easter.

Extreme Couponing FAIL

Did you watch Extreme Couponing on TLC this week? If so you watched four women take couponing to a whole new level - a crazy level in my honest opinion. I stayed up last night and played it on my DVR and could not believe the stockpiles in these families homes. They had groceries in every crevice. Absolutely ridiculous. There is no reason to have hundreds of boxes of cereal, just because it's free. Perhaps I'm alone of this, but clearing a shelf of mustard seems a tad...greedy.

Mr. G began watching the show with me and kept asking, "why?" and "what's the point?" He also asked why stores haven't put a maximum on purchases. In several cases they have, and I'm positive more stores will now due to the show's unrealistic and irresponsible portrayal of couponing. Mr. G retired to our bedroom after about 10 minutes because he "couldn't take the crazies anymore."

And now the blogworld is buzzing about one of the couponers, J'amie, who appears to have fraudulently used coupons on the show. She's the one who kept applying her hideous makeup throughout the show. Allegedly J'amie used UPC decoding to make her outrageous purchase. UPC decoding is basically (very basically) using a coupon for an item that the coupon wasn't intended for, which is illegal.

I first learned about UPC decoding when I used a B1G1 Free coupon for Men's Body Wash and when I looked at the receipt later that day I noticed that the coupon was applied to the toilet paper I purchased instead. It occurred to me that because the body wash and toilet paper was from the same family company that the register must have taken off the toilet paper.

You can read all about the Extreme Couponing drama HERE.

I'll continue to watch Extreme Couponing because, well, it's interesting. But I'm fearful of how the show will affect us normal couponers. It would be a shame if stacking and doubling was no longer allowed because people begin to abuse the system.

Baby Smiles Melt My Heart

Noah is all smiles these days. It just takes a "Hi Noah!" to get him to show his adorable toothless grin. It's irresistible!

Noah 6 weeks new

Since Noah turned 6 weeks old life has gotten much easier (he's now 7 1/2 weeks). He sleeps great at night - usually going down around 8pm and waking up to nurse at 2am & 6am. Sometimes he even gives me a break and falls back to sleep until 9am! What a sweet boy.

With each passing week Noelle adjusts better to her brother's arrival. She asks if he can watch her play, talks to him, lays next to him on his play mat, and includes him in her re-cap of the day. She's also much more understanding when I'm nursing him. She'll say, "Baby brother needs to eat now" and play quietly with her baby doll. Sometimes she pretends to nurse her babies when I'm feeding Noah.

The trick to Noelle's happiness is a consistent schedule of activities. She wakes up at 7am and naps from 1-3 pm everyday. Our Spring activities include:

Monday - Play date at the Park with several friends

Tuesday - Story time and craft at the Library

Wednesday - Library with Grandma to check out 3 new books, Ballet class in the evening

Thursday - Shopping with mommy

Friday - Play with her cousins, Emma and Evan.

When we are at home Noelle likes to play with Bubbles outside (or in the bathtub), play with her dolls and Barbies with mommy, color and paint, practice numbers and the alphabet, read books, help mommy with chores, and play dress-up.

I'm not sure if I've mentioned that Mr. G is going to have his first summer off in 13 years (since becoming a teacher). I can't wait! We have several projects planned including painting and installing board and batten in our bedroom and cleaning and organizing the garage. But mostly I want to enjoy spending time as a family. Is it June yet?

Peep Sushi!

A couple of my favorite things - Peeps & Sushi!

Noelle, Aaron and I had a blast making these scrumptious little rolls. I think they would be a fun Easter gift for any Peep lover in your life.

All you need:  Peeps (several different colors), Rice Krispies Treats and Fruit by the Foot.

I followed the Rice Krispies Treat recipe and scooped it into a 8x11 pan. Once cooled, I removed half and placed it on a sheet of wax paper and used a rolling pin to flatten it down. Then I cut strips out for each individual sushi piece.

For the rolls, I used either the head of the peep or the "guts" and wrapped a thin rectangle of Rice Krispies around it, then a strip of fruit by the foot. To secure the fruit by the foot, put a dab of water on the end and smooth it down.

They were almost too cute to eat. Almost.

Happy Easter Season!

-Amanda