Ten Dollar Kitchen Makeover

It turns out that drinking too much caffeine, reading too many home decorating blogs, and staying up too late can lead to an impromptu redecorating project.

Of course, I'm the one who drank too much caffeine, read a few too many inspiring blogs, and started taking off my kitchen cabinet doors.

We bought this house a little over three years ago. Before we moved in, I was determined to paint the woodwork white. However, since I was pregnant at the time and had a two year old and a one year old to care for, you can understand why the woodwork never got painted.

Over the few years we've been here, the wood has kind of grown on me. My two major complaints are that it limits what paint colors I can choose and, well, there is a lot of wood!

I've been reading The Inspired Room and getting, well, inspired. I read a post where she showed her kitchen with a few cabinet doors removed and I thought, "Hey, I could do that!"

So, I did.

Feel free to ignore the light fixture that has needed to be fixed for quite a while!


Here are the details of my $10 Kitchen Makeover:


Two baskets from Goodwill-$3.00
Black Spray Paint - Already had.
Slim white vase from Goodwill-$0.49
Number 3 Sticker for Cooking Utensil Crock (not pictured)-$2.00


Well, look at that...the makeover cost me less than ten dollars. I was originally factoring in the cost of a can of spray paint, but since I already had it on hand...


I'm pretty excited about my "new" kitchen. I love seeing my white dishes! It may be silly, but it makes me smile!

**Ugh, I give up on trying to get the spacing right! Sorry!

One Proud Mama

This is Ann dressed up for Hollywood Day at her school.

Early this evening, Tony and I headed over to Ann's school for our first parent-teacher conference. We both enjoyed learning more about what is in store this year for our favorite kindergartner.

Her teacher had so many great things to say about her progress. We were so very proud of her! In fact, the only thing she really needs to work on is not being such a perfectionist. (Noooo idea where she gets that. Ahem.)

Ann also recently wrapped up an excellent first soccer season. She had so much fun. Well, except for the getting kicked part. I can't say I blame her. A pack of four and five-year-old girls running around a field can be a bit scary. Some of them are rather high kickers. I wouldn't want to be kicked in the stomach, so I couldn't blame Ann for being a bit shy of the pack. I'm guessing in a year or two, that will wear off and she'll be right there in the midst of the action. She still loved soccer and we enjoyed watching the games.

In addition to soccer, Ann has been taking dance lessons. I love to see her twirl and leap around the house. I makes me smile. Her dance moves have also taken on a bit of an edge that makes me chuckle. I have to be careful not to laugh at her though, because I don't want to discourage her from her fun. Of course, sometimes, I join in with her. Fortunately she's still too young to realize that I'm a bit uncoordinated.

Now that I'm writing this all out, I realize Ann is a busy little girl. She's been doing Daisy Scouts and loving every minute. Most recently, they had a police officer come and explain safety tips to the girls. Ann soaked it all up. I'm just waiting for her to remind me to look both ways and not to talk to strangers!

This year is the first year we've participated in church on Wednesday nights. I'm teaching the first graders while Ann gets to attend the Kindergarten class. Sometimes the younger two go to the preschool class. They all love it. I'm so grateful for a church that we all like so much. We are blessed!

Tonight, while looking for some photos for Tony, I came across some old pictures of Ann. For a moment, my heart hurt a bit knowing that I'll never see her sweet baby face or her three-year-old self smiling at me. However, as I came upstairs and watched her with her brother and sister, I realized that I wouldn't' have her any other way. I'm so proud of the person she is becoming and I thank God for the honor of being her mama.

Ann, your daddy and I are so very proud of you. Keep up the good work and never forget who loves you most! Know He'll always be there for you while your daddy and I will do our best. We love you!

Sometimes...

Someone else is behind the camera and I actually get a picture of me with my hubby!

That someone, (not sure who it was) snapped this picture of us while we were all in Colorado. So fun!

Wow, I Love Being a Mom!

My friends who know me well, know that the past year hasn't been my easiest at being a mama to my sweet little ones. Overwhelmed would be a good way to describe it. I still wouldn't trade my job, but I won't lie and say it's been very easy this past year.

Such a positive way to start a post, right?

Well, the past few months have been much better and though we still have rough days, they are certainly much smoother than they were last year. I'd like to give our awesome parenting credit, but I'm pretty sure it's only God and the fact that He's allowed our kiddos to get older and mature! (Well, maybe a little bit is due to our parenting, ha, ha.)

Anyways, these past couple of nights, I've found myself thinking more than once that I feel incredibly blessed with this life of mine. How could I not when my night ended like this...

Little Jane was taking sweet forever to get to bed. I'd been patient, but as it was quickly approaching nine o'clock, I was also getting frustrated.

As I took her potty again, she said, "Mommy loves me, Daddy loves me..." She continued by naming her brother and sister. I asked her who loved her most of all and she replied, "Jesus and God loves me." Then, completely unsolicited, she said, "God makes me so happy!"

I'm pretty sure there aren't many better ways to end a long day then hearing your sweet toddler exclaim those words.

Me too, Baby Girl, me too.

Enjoying the Moment

Tonight was one of those nights when I really just wanted them to go to bed already. I gave my children baths in record time and even brushed one kiddo's teeth while she was on the potty. (Yeah.)

However, by God's grace I was finally able to take a deep breath and slow down and enjoy them rather than endure them.

I was able to suppress a smile when my little man told me, "I love you two plus." He then went on to say that, "Daddy said two plus isn't a real number, but it is. It really is."

And because I knew that he thought "two plus" was the largest number ever, I said, "I love you two plus too." (Get it? He didn't, but he felt loved and that's what mattered!)

As I walked into my oldest daughter's room, she announced she had some songs to sing to me. So, I sat and I soaked in all her five-year-old cuteness. Her smile is precious with one front tooth missing and one slightly crooked because it's loose. She sang a song about coins and one about days of the week. (Those kindergarten teachers sure are clever!) I gave her one last hug and headed out.

However, as precious as those moments were, I still sighed a big sigh of relief when I realized my two year old had stayed in her room and presumably fallen asleep!

Yes, I'm grateful for the grace to enjoy the moments tonight, but I'd be lying if I didn't say I wasn't equally grateful for the peace and quiet the evening brings!

Good night!