Where Our Story Begins

2 Weeks? Seriously?

2010-03-25T23:01:00.001-07:00

Agh! It has been exactly two weeks since I last posted. I'm so so sorry. Hehe.

We have been so busy around here. The girl started dance {what a cutie patootie!} and the boy started soccer {which I am coaching...eek!}. Last weekend, I tagged along with Hubby to a disc golf tournie. After the game, he was tossing a mini disc around with a buddy, fell and tore a ligament in his ankle. No more excuses! I have started many-a blogs in the past. Life would get in the way and I gave up. So, I am coming back this time. Thank you to everyone that called me on it.

What got me back today is the $5 Challenge at Living with Lindsay. She issued a challenge to her readers to create a spring decoration spending no more than $5 at a dollar store. Before posting I took a sneak peak at a few of the other entries. Wow! These ladies are great!

I was inspired by this little birdie and my new found obsession with making cake plates.

First, I spray painted my little friend with Heirloom White. After that he got a "glaze" bath with some brown paint I had laying around mixed with a little water.

I found this vase on one of the aisles at the 99 Cent Store and I fell in love with the color. So pretty! I immediately went looking for a white plate. I did not want a cream plate competing with my little friend.

Glue glue glue, paint paint paint, camera ate some pictures, blah blah blah...and here is my very simple, very cute Spring decoration. **This is a inside, night picture...I will be replacing it in the morning when I have good light**

Breakdown:
Birdie - .99
Plate- .99
Vase - .99
Bag of Moss - .99 {used less than a third}
Bag of Eggs - .99 {used halfish}
Paint & Glue - on hand

There we are...under $5 and we have a new Spring worthy decoration.
I just hope the kids leave the eggs alone. There is no candy in them, kids!

Now, go check out the other beautiful decorations.

Chalkboard Recipe Board

2010-03-11T15:42:00.000-08:00

The internet is used a lot around here for recipes, despite all the cookbooks stuffed in the cabinet. The bad part about this is that I waste a lot of paper jotting down recipes so I have them in the kitchen {I am too messy to take my laptop near any kitchen appliance}. I saw crafties using chalboards as menus and I decided to try it as a Recipe Board.

This is what I started with.

This was really thrifty because the frame was in a garage sale box, the black paint has been used for a couple other projects and the chalkboard paint was given to us by my father-in-law for the kiddies playroom {there's still enough for that project!}. The frame was super duper scratched up.
I scratched it up a bit more, sprayed the frame black and the glass chalkboard.

Let it dry, put it back together and voila!

I can take it to the computer with me, write does the recipe and put it up near my prep area. I can also write down recipes from books that I don't want to ruin, like my new retro cookbook from yesterday {that's where this St Patty's Day inspired recipe is from}.

I love it and I can not wait to use it! Unfort, tonight we are having hot dogs and tater tots...no recipe there!

- Laney

I am linking to:
100 Ideas Under $100 at Beyond the Picket Fence
Strut Your Stuff Thursday @ somewhat simple {giveaway!!}
Get Your Craft On Thursday @ Life as Lori
Transformation Thursday @ The Shabby Chic Cottage
Show Your Stuff Party @ Fireflies & Jellybeans
Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest
Feature Yourself Friday @ Fingerprints on the Fridge
Frugalicious Friday @ Finding Fabulous
Make sure you stop by and comment on these fabulous projects!!

Isn't She Lovely, Isn't She Wonderful

2010-03-10T12:16:00.000-08:00

Wordless Wednesday

kinda

These were my thrift store finds yesterday. Love my new {old} chair and retro cookbooks. Yay!

And...since I already used a few words...while your sitting there, check out the giveaway at It's the Little Things sponsored by Dimples & Dandelions {awesome baby & kids store}.

- Laney

Mommy Made It Monday - Crafter's Apron

2010-03-08T12:20:00.001-08:00

I, for one, think this is the cutest thing I have ever made! I searched and searched the internet for the perfect Crafter's Apron pattern. I liked a little bit of a lot of them. At 10pm Saturday night, I decided to just jump in and create my own from what I had learned {reason for no tutorial or pics}. After a few mistakes, some only perceived, a ton of ironing & planning, and a lot of love I created something that I love! I am definitely going to have to wear something other than sweats while using this. It deserves at least that much respect. Hehe.

The entire apron is lined, as well as each pocket. The top pockets are all larger and there are 4 pencil/pen/brush pockets on the bottom. The sash is made out of the same material as the back lining. I think the eyelet ruffles makes the whole thing. And, yes, I know I can't sew a straight line to save my life. Literally, if someone had a gun to my head and said, "sew a straight line, punk" I would die. I'm ok with it, though.

You do need to help me with a decision, though. I wanted to attach something that I can attach pins to as I take them out of fabric or hold them before I put them in. So, to bird or not to bird? That is the question.

Let me know what you think!

Linking up to some fabulous blog parties!
Just Something I Whipped Up @ The Girl Creative
Making the World Cute Monday @ Making the World Cuter
DIY Project Parade @ The DIY Showoff
Make Your Monday @ Twice Remembered
Made It Monday @ The Persimmon Perch
Motivate Me Monday @ Keeping It Simple
Made By You Monday @ Skip to my Lou
I know it's a lot, but at least pick a couple and go through the links. They are so fun & cute!

The Little Mommy Who Could

2010-03-07T12:24:00.000-08:00

Happy Sunday!

I was sitting here thinking about all of the projects I have left for March and I realized...there is so much to do!

I figured I would post a list of all the projects that we need to finish this month {I'm sure I will think of more along the way...sorry, Hubby}.

Downstairs Bathroom
Finish painting trim
Find frame for Hawaiian picture & hang
Put shells in jar
Put soaps in jar
Clean up paint mess
Add ruffle to shower curtain
Frame mirror
Make starfish art & hang
Buy one colored towel to match room
Place basket with TP under cabinet

Kid Space
Paint walls!
Decide on doors or curtain for closet
Paint closet doors with chalkboard {if we decide on them}
Build bookcases
Set up VCR {yes, you read that right - I have a bunch of VHS tapes for them to watch}
Paint & attach desk
Frame board games (a la infarrantly creative}
Have kids make art
Print & frame kids' pics
Curtains??
Organize!!!

There are a few other odds 'n' ends things for the Kid Space. I'm just not super duper sure on them, yet.

Figuring I really want to get these things done by the 19th{uh...12 days!}, I need to get busy, busy, busy! Like, complete 2 tasks per day busy. I think I can! I think I can! The Little Mommy Who Could. Ok, sorry.

Tomorrow, I will finish the painting, clean up the paint mess and decide on the closet doors. Plus, I have something so stinkin cute for Mommy Made Monday. I can't even believe that I/me/myself made it! Actually, I better go finish it.

- Laney

Blog Giveaways!!

2010-03-05T15:51:00.000-08:00

There are a few giveaways on some of my favorite blogs and I thought I would pass the info along!!

Thomas Paul Tree Tote from Made by Stephie.

Vintage Hankie Apron from Ruffles and Stuff.

Dwell Studio products from The Busy Budgeting Mama.

Good luck!!

If you have a giveaway going on, let me know and I will add it to my list.

DIY Apothecary

2010-03-04T21:54:00.000-08:00

If you follow the DIY blog world, you have seen a million of these. If you don't, then this is totally my original idea {wink!}.

I started with this gaudy gold candle holder I found at the Salvation Army and knew I could help her.. This picture does not do it enough injustice. I also started to work again before I remembered the pictures. Ugh!!

I used Krylon Black Satin {real exciting, huh?}. It took two coats and now she is beauty-ful! {Pics are bad...overly cloudy this afternoon}

Here she is in all her glory. I also got this jar at the SA. I will glue it to the base, I just didn't know if I would like the way it looked, so I decided to live with it for a little while. I have decided I love it and will glue it tomorrow. That's my living room in the background, but I will be putting this in my downstairs bathroom.

FYI: The candlestick and jar were a total of $2.35!

Tomorrow is half off day at the Salvation Army {yay!}, so we will be headed over there after dropping my son off at school.

Wordless Wednesday - Dream Playhouse

2010-03-03T22:30:00.001-08:00

Imitation is the Sincerest Form of Flattery

2010-03-02T16:11:00.000-08:00

Right? I hope so!

Back in December, Disney from Ruffles and Stuff posted a tutorial on repurposing old baby/toddler tights into super cute knee highs! Of course, I had to try it.

I could only find one pair of old tights. The rest must have been given away. Boo.

First, I cut the legs off of the tights. I have another use from Ruffles and Stuff for the top of these tights.

Then, I rolled the top of the tights to the inside and pinned the elastic slightly below the top. It was easy with this pair because of the horizontal lines . Yay for easy!
When I had the elastic in the right spot, I used a zigzag stitch to sew the elastic to the tights.

Hmm...if only I had a super cute model to show you the finished product...

These knee highs are the cutest thing and one of the best ideas I have seen! Bug l-o-v-e-s her new "socks". I beg you to please go here to see the Ruffles and Stuff tutorial!! She has more details in the steps and he daughter is adorable in the different knee highs.

Kitchen Cart to Family Center

2010-02-26T16:55:00.000-08:00

{{Random: I can not think & type while being sprayed with invisible Spidey web}}

I have been going to the Salvation Army for awhile, but I had never ventured into this thrift store down the street from there. On a whim, I turned left instead of turning right to go home one day. I looked around for a little while {probably on the phone, so I wasn't paying attention} and then I stopped in my tracks. There it was...the kitchen cabinet-like piece that I had been searching for. It was the size and shape of a kitchen cabinet and was in ok condition {obviously I have high standards...}. Believe it or not, this is hard to find. The dressers and antiques are a little fancy for my breakfast room, at least for now. This was going to be for my Family Center.

As usual, I got a little excited and ahead of myself as I got ready to paint. This was kinda what it looked like before {minus the towel rail, wheels and the knobs were round wood}.

You get the idea...right? I did manage to get a picture after the doors and top were off.

I also seem to have managed to lose all the pictures of the doors I took. The first day and second! What does my camera have against doors?? Luckily, the steps for the doors were the same for the base. First I took off the knobs and hinges. Yucky wooden knobs, huh?

Then, I sanded and primed. I taped trash bags to the inside of the cabinet because I wanted to keep it natural.

The Family Center

I bought oil-rubbed brass knobs. The screws are too short for the drawer, so the front is temporarily screwed on...as long as the kiddies don't go within 5 feet of it, it should stay up. Eep! I tried to search the garage for screws that will work, but couldn't find any. I did find a huge spider though {or I should say it found me}. Yuck.

The finished picture is not great, but it has been dark and cloudy here all day. The color of the cabinet is a much prettier blue {Wildflower Blue by Rustoleum}. I will attempt better pictures in the morning. Tonight, I am going to finish some organizing of the Family Center and post those pics for Family Friday. We also finished the inside of the Kid Space closet, so you will be seeing that as well.

- Laney

I am linking to:

Thrifty Thursday...on Friday

2010-02-25T17:34:00.000-08:00

The smart guy I am, I fell down the first set of stairs yesterday. Luckily, I was not holding my daughter {she was watching though and tried to pick me up}. I was sore last night, but this morning it was worse. The inside of my arm is bruised, my ankle hurts {no swelling} and my upper leg is in a lot of pain. No permanent damage...I don't think!

Due to my mad stair walking skills, after grocery shopping with Bug {my daughter} I mostly rested instead of finishing my Thrifty project. I will show you the transformation in the morning...just needs a few final touches!

On a happier note, Living with Lindsay is having a $5 Challenge. She has challenged bloggers to create a gorgeous Spring decoration using $5 worth of items from the Dollar Tree {or the like}. Since the Dollar Tree and 99 Cent Store are my homes away from home, I jumped at this challenge! I will be taking a trip to these fantastic shops in the next couple days. Please comment with ideas!

There are very simple rules that you can check out by clicking on the Challenge button below.

- Laney

Wordless Wednesday

2010-02-24T11:02:00.000-08:00

Kid Space

2010-02-23T18:22:00.001-08:00

I haven't started working on the Kid Space, yet. We will be starting in the next couple days and hope to be done before our guests come. In the meantime, here are a bunch of ideas & inspiration for the room! I don't remember where they all came from because I have been saving them up for so long.

Originally, I was thinking bright colors (lime/aqua/orange) tied down with a neutral color (brown), but I really like this teal & blue together.

On one wall, we are going to build bookcases. I really want the first one, but it might be a little much in the smaller room. We are almost definitely going with the second. Pottery Barn Kids

Land of Nod

Check out Knock Off Wood for plans to build your own!!

The large closet in the room will be organized. I am ~~making~~ sweetly asking my hubby to put wire shelves in half the closet and the other half will house the TV entertainment system. Organize It Mom!

I am going to use chalkboard paint on their closet doors so it gives them a way to draw on the walls and it be ok. You’ll see why we need this in the Before photos!

Then we need some art on the walls! I am going to ~~take 3 different colors~~…hey, I can’t give all my ideas away! Here are a few other ideas, though!

I am going to either build a kitchen for Kaitlyn for Christmas or re-purpose something extremely unexpected!

Definitely will put one of these in!!

Yah right! In my d-r-e-a-m-s!

Any ideas for the Kid Space??

- Laney

The No Ruffle Shower Curtain

2010-02-22T17:42:00.001-08:00

Mommy Made It Monday

My first real post! Yay! Not only that, but I also submitted this project for The DIY Showoff. Visit The DIY Showoff for amazing projects from wonderful women {some men, too I would guess}.

Ok, so this shower curtain was supposed to be ruffley, inspired by this Anthropologie curtain:

Anthropologie

The tag on the white fabric I bought said it was 72” wide. So, two yards should have been 72”x72”. Am I crazy? Don’t answer that. Instead it was only like 2 ft wide. Big “boooo”. I was too anxious to get this done now, so I improvised. I took the beige and added it to the bottom. It looks way too boring for me, like something you could buy at Wal-Mart for $10. Not what I was going for! What do you think?

First I hemmed the side and top edges of the white fabric. I found this little goody that actually says it is for roman shades. I knew that there was no way I would be able to add grommets to my curtain, but this would be perfect!

I had no idea how I wanted to attach the tan fabric to the white fabric. I tried a few different ideas and only had to rip the seams 3 times. I was very ~~frustrated~~ patient.

I tried to just ruffle the tan….nope!

Luckily, my wonderful hubby brought me my mommy crack…Diet Pepsi!

I decided just to sew it straight and see how it looked. Eh.

The walls in the bathroom are being painted a dark sage, so I think I may take some light weight sage and add some ruffles where the two fabrics meet…hide that seam. Good idea?

I am proud of myself, though! I never would have thought I could make even the simplest of shower curtains.

On another note, the two rooms I promised my hubby I would focus on are the downstairs bathroom and the toy room. Mostly because we are supposed to have overnight guests {non-family for the first time} and they will be staying in the toy room and using the downstairs bath. I wanted to get the toy room organized so guests didn’t feel like they were sleeping in Toys R Us {a ransacked TRU, at that}. It just made sense to get the bathroom done at the same time. What does this mean for readers? You will mostly see projects from those two rooms throughout February and most of March.

Let me know what you think of my first real post!

- Laney

How It's Going Down

2010-02-21T18:58:00.000-08:00

My vision for this little blog is to post {almost} daily about decorating our house, thrifty transformations, items I design and make {decorations, stuff for the kids, stuff for me, gifts, etc}, organizing our home and about my adorable little family. I have promised my hubby that I will focus on one or two rooms at a time to remodel. Where Our Story Begins will also focus mostly on those same rooms, but sine this blog is mine we may get a little off track.

I have started at least 5 blogs in the past. I have never made it past week one. I try to make it too perfect and find my bloggy voice before I introduce it to anyone. Not this time! I am jumping head first and will figure it out along the way. Bare with me and, please, offer advice if you have it! I have been following many blogs for a long time and would love to be as successful as some of those wonderful ladies!

One thing that I think will keep me posting is to have a daily plan that is the same every week. I may not follow it to a T every week, but I thrive on schedules, so I think it will work for me. Right now, here’s my plan:

Monday: Mommy Made It Monday {crafts & projects that I make for our home, the kids, myself or gifts}

Tuesday: I want to spend a day each week posting inspirational pictures, words, etc. {There’s no cutesy matchy name…boo}

Wednesday: Wordless Wednesday {a picture says a million words}

Thursday: Thrifty Thursday {transformations & re-purposing of items I found at the thrift store, Craigslist or my neighbors trash }

Friday: Family Friday {this is our Family Night, anyway, so it seems like the natural thing to post about}

Saturday: Featured/Guest Blogger {I will feature a blog or blog post that I especially like or we’ll have a Guest Blogger}

Like I said, I may not stick to this every week, but for the most part I will. Just go with me and we will see what sticks!

- Laney

There's this house....

2010-02-21T18:57:00.000-08:00

In this house, on a quiet suburban street, lives a man, a woman, two funny kids, a tiny dog and a noisy hampster. Most nights in this house you will hear laughter, some nights there will be the hustle and bustle of a busy family…every night will be filled with love and creativity. This small family is about to embark on a journey of making this house a home. This is Where Our Story Begins.
Welcome to my blog, my own little piece of the internet. Every family’s story begins at home. Right now, we have more of a house than a home. Follow us as we create a home through thrifty decorating, family organizing and a lot of love!

Laney