A Little Room Spruce Up

I'v had the floral rug you see below for a few years and it was getting on my nerves.  I always got a lot of compliments on it and I know it was a fun rug but over time I got tired of it.  So that's where the room re-do started.... I needed a new rug... which turned into pillow, some new art, and a new lamp.  

Before:

After:

It's still not totally done because nothing every really is... but I like it better.  We are renting this house and if we weren't I wouldn't have the tv armoire anymore, the walls would be a different color,  and things would be much different in this room altogether but until we have purchased a home I don't want to buy new things and change much.  I bought the sectional right before we sold our Brentwood house and it hasn't fit in our WC house very well!!!  We want to buy this house we are in if they'll sell it to us.... and if not, we want the one across the street (which they may sell in 3 years--- that's a long time so I don't know if I can wait!!) but until then I am just making things work the best I can.  My favorite purchase in this room is the "ocean life" art and the coffee table tray which I found at homegoods and it was exactly what I was looking for!!!

And here is the opposite wall (sooo done with the red chairs!).

The end.  

Another Paint Project That I Didn't Want to do But I'm Glad I Did

Our family room is pretty dark in this house.  I've been hating this old armoire but it fits our tv so well and I love being able to close the door on all the tv junk so I just couldn't get rid of it.  So I decided if I lightened it up it would probably lighten up the room!

This is the look I was going for although this armoire is much cuter than mine with all the details:

This is how it turned out. This is not a good photo because you can't see the details but I did rub stain on it and that gave it more of a worn look.  I really should post a better picture.

And here it is in the room.  This photo has really bad lighting so just imagine that it looks much better in real life!  I really love it now!  It might not be totally my style anymore but it does the job and it's cute. I will post a pic of the whole room when it's done... hopefully soon.

Another project that I was dreading like crazy but I'm so glad I went for it and got it done.  It made a world of difference in this dark cave family room and really brightened things up!  And I think it cost $50 or less for paint, new knobs, stain and brushes.... so much better than buying something new since I don't even know what I want anyway!

We Have Grass

There is still a lot to do- like put a path in the back, and add some bushes and other decorations. For now, it looks so much better.

Also, my friend Laurie at tip junkie is having a give-away. It's a good one.
Check it out here!

What's New

Our yard is finally getting done and I am th- rilled.

The weeds have all been chopped and removed, and new, nice dirt has been put down.  The grass arrives on Friday.  I know my neighbors are excited too.  We have been the crappy yard house since August and it was pretty humiliating.  My parents raised us doing yard work and keeping our yard looking nice so to look like such a dump for so long was painful. Now we can feel like good neighbors again.  Just in time for spring too, my favorite season.  After pictures will be posted next week.

The Garden Project

We finished our garden project for now. In the spring we'll fill it in a little more. But for now, isn't it great? It was fun, the kids actually worked really hard, and for once, I enjoyed yard work. It is nice to have something alive in our yard- next up... grass.... hopefully soon!

BEFORE

AFTER

Break Project

I am in love with my children.

It is their 2 week break and we are working on a project.

I had been trying to come up with something we could do together everyday. I knew we needed to work on our yard (it was a foreclosure so everything is dead) but I wasn't sure if they'd be excited about that.

In the spirit of Elder Uchtdorf's General Relief Society Meeting talk, I decided to talk to them about making things beautiful and how we could transform this ugly section of our yard into a flower garden.
Surprisingly, they were totally into it.

First day of break, yesterday, we went out and started... they worked for 2 hours!! Keep in mind they are 7, 6, and 3. Two hours of working in the yard! I kept waiting for them to get tired and go in.

We tore out all of the half-dead rose buses, dug up their roots, and weeded the whole area.

They were having so much fun too.

Today we mixed a bunch of new soil in, got all the rocks and sticks out, and flattened it out. We are also going through a book of plants and flowers and trying to pick what we want.

Tomorrow we'll start planting.

Digging out the roots was the best part- they would scream and cheer when we would finally get one out.

Macey had her moments of helping ...

But definitely played around a lot too- she was busy taking calls and rummaging through her purse.

Stay tuned....

I Believe-- Fixing Up Free or Used Furniture

I believe in acquiring free furniture and fixing it up.

Why pay full price for furniture that you might not like in a year or two? Why pay full price for furniture that your children might accidentally wipe their sticky, cherry-juice fingers on? I just can't do it. I must have used or free furniture only. I like to change up my decor frequently anyway.

Dave and I just finished the orange chair. We're still calling it that, even though it is no longer orange. It was a fun project. Dave did the hardest parts. He's good at stuff like that. I did the easy stuff and made the pillows.

Some have said, about my choice of fabric, that it is "grandma" or "church foyer-ish." I chose it because I needed some color in my life!! My family room is just too neutral with browns and blacks only. I needed some cheer. So I picked the brightest fabric I could find. It livens up the room and I like it. In a few years, if I change my mind, I'll recover it again. Or find another chair on the side of the road.


I give you... the chair....

Before:

After:

Stuff

First item of business: I know you're dying to know my anniversary gift. I was dying too and tried to get it out of him early. When we were first married, I always could. Now he knows my tricks and he stood strong and withstood them.

To celebrate we went to dinner at CPK, the temple, and then dessert at Fenton's. Apparently going to the temple is all about the food for me. I must have delicious food before and after or it just doesn't feel like a complete temple trip.

My present was a new lens for my camera!! I hadn't asked for it, so he surprised me which rarely happens and I'm excited about it. It is a wide angle lens which means you can get more background while still being close-up on the subject, or you can shoot landscapes, and big groups. I am taking a BIG family photo at our family reunion this summer so it will be perfect.

It was perfect for getting us and the whole temple in the shot below. I realize the settings are messed up on this photo and it is too light. Woops.

The next item of business is this: Dave and I have started the process of becoming licensed to do foster care for infants. I can't wait. Unfortunately, you have to wait. It takes about 4 months for the licensing to be complete. So, in September sometime I will get my first foster baby to take care of.
Why are we doing this, you might wonder? Well, Macey is 3.5 and going off to preschool in August. I still don't have a baby. I want a baby. We've thought about adoption and don't quite know if it's the right road for our family, yet. So this will be something to do in the mean time, at the same time, helping babies who need help.

I went to the informational meeting and was totally sold on it. Our county has 18oo kids in foster care and they need good homes where these kids can feel love, feel safe, gain trust in adults, and thrive. My home is perfect for that, so why not offer it? Plus I will get to take care of newborns. Maybe even someday we'll do grade-school children. One more thing, if there is a baby that we are fostering and that baby goes up for adoption, we would have first chance to adopt. When you adopt through the county, it is free. Doesn't it all just sound so great? I can't wait.

Third item of business: I'm working on a project with Dave. Remember in October when I picked up that orange chair off the side of road? We're recovering it now- we tore the whole thing apart on Monday and now we're fixing it all up. I'll post pictures when finished.

Chair Re-covered

Here it is: Great-grandma's chair finally recovered and fixed up a bit.

Before:

After:

The Closet Makeover

For a reminder to you all of how messy my closet WAS...

Before (my side)

Before (Dave's side)

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Keep scrolling

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Ta-da!

After (my side)

After (Dave's side)

I got rid of TONS of clothes and even hung a fun little curtain to disguise the shelves

But don't worry, the shelves are clean behind the curtainThe pictures do not do it justice people.. it looks a million times better and I feel much better.

Let's hope it will last!!

And now I need to go shopping to fill the empty spaces!



Just kidding Dave

The End.

Closet Picture Challenge

You know that yucky feeling of regret you get sometimes when you do something you wish you hadn't done? That's how I felt after posting pictures of my sick closet. Well, you all made me feel better. Thank you. Please enjoy the closets of my friends below. And check back on Friday to see my closet make-over!

First up we have Laurie!! Her picture had to be first since her closet is spectacular and adorable! I love the baskets. Great job Laurie! I want to be like you. This picture has inspired me to go even further in my make-over!

Next we have Tanyetta.

She says,

"1st photo: My husband's side of the closet. Yes, sadly, we have to share closet space. Do you see how organized his side is? Every time I go into my closet, I see his organized space and want to cry. OR mess up his side of the closet out of jealousy of course."

"2nd photo: Here's my side: Need I say more?"

Tanyetta, I feel for you. And you're super good at making a sad, hopeless face... it makes me want to come over and help you! But I can barely help myself as you all know!



Next up we have Summer. She says,
"Well, my house was built in the 70's and there is really no such thing as a closet. It is SOOOO small that I have to go through and get rid of things every 2-3 months! My biggest problem are my purses, bags and belts. Poor little things have no real home and just kind of sit in a messy pile every day. What I would give for a nice walk in!!!!" Summer, I do hope you get a nice walk-in someday cause your adorable purses and clothes need a home where they can feel happy and loved. I love your stressed out face! And next time you're getting rid of things, mail them to me? Please?



Presenting Celia's closet. She says, "

I'm relieved to tell you these are the before pictures from last
month. My closet has been clean for one month now. It is easier to
get dressed, but I still throw stuff on the ground.

Don't worry, I'll make sure to send you a photo with it clean. I couldn't have Stie
divorcing me, now could I?

Celia, your closet made me feel better and I do want to see the after pictures!!


Heeeere's Shally! She says, "

Here is part of my closet. I am a messy closet person too, (we should start a support group). My biggest problem is shoes. I flip them off my feet onto the ground. This was actually a tame day, there are usually clothes everywhere too... drives my husband crazy. We recently moved into a new house and we each have our own closets. He loves it! I do too, because he is not nagging me to pick up my stuff! I felt so much better about myself when I saw your post... I am not alone!

Shally I had never before thought of having a messy closet person support group. Maybe we should start an online one?


Say hello to Audry! She says, "

My closet is always a mess and Trent gives me a hard
time about it. I've been trying to be better about
cleaning it, and had done that the day you did your
post, so this is a staged version of my closet. I had
to ask Trent to help make it look like it usually
does.

Audry I am feeling such a trend here with messy women and clean men! Why do our husbands all have clean sides of the closet?!? And does Tatum sleep in there?



Last but not least we have Jeni. She made this nice collage of her closet and pointed out each thing to me. It made me feel better. She also told me if she dies to lock the doors and don't let anyone in so they won't find out her secret! I think we ALL feel like that Jeni, don't worry. Hopefully if we died our husbands would quickly throw it all away before anyone found out.


Hope you all enjoyed the messy closet photo gallery! I know I felt much better having viewed them all. We're all just trying our best right? I keep the rooms that I hang out in clean for my viewing pleasure, so a messy closet is not a big deal.

Stay tuned... Friday is my big makeover closet reveal!!
You don't want to miss it!!