Waving the White Paint Chip

Alright, I give in...I chose the wrong color white. As in, I'm not seeing much difference between Polar Bear from Behr and good old Kilz. Bummer. At least I haven't put the shelves back up, right?

On the bright side, I did find a color for the walls. After Tony saw the various shades of green on the wall, his comment was, "Do you like that?" Smart man isn't he!

As soon as I said, "No, not really." He added that he wasn't fond of it either. As if I couldn't tell that from the way he posed the question!

So, after failing at choosing a white paint color, I decided to head to Sherwin Williams for a little advice. It's amazing the difference a professional can make. All I did was explain my white fireplace and golden oak trim. An employee pointed me right to a few colors. What do you know? I brought them home and like them all!

I'm basically going to paint the walls the same color but with a green/gray undertone rather than a golden/brown undertone. (If you know more about color than me, which is very likely, you may think I said that all wrong, but it does make sense to me!) Basically, it makes me happy.

It's not the only thing making me happy right now...

Check out this fabric my friend found for me. She's going to make me some pillows for my updated family room. Love! (Now, I just have to come up with a way I can do something for her. She not only sews, but she also gives awesome hair cuts. Compared to that, I've got no skills!)

But I do have new fabric and I can't wait to see it turned into pillows!

I Painted The Fireplace White (Or, My Husband Is Really Patient!)

Well, hello old blog of mine! Tonight you're just going to have to be that old long lost friend that I turn to when I need advice. Well, at least the advice of your readers. Is anyone still out there? (Little Brother, I'm talking to you!)

A couple of weeks ago, my little man started kindergarten. My oldest daughter, Ann, also started first grade. Needless to say, even though I still have my three year old at home, it was rather quiet around here. Perhaps that's why I did what I did.

The thing I did was to venture out to the garage and open our giant bucket of primer. Then, armed with only a foam paint brush and a desire to brighten up my family room, I began priming my red brick fireplace. I didn't wake up with any plan of painting the fireplace, but I did it all the same. I guess it's just how I roll.

Four years after buying the house, the only thing we had changed was the furnishings. Well, we'd also added that cutie in the picture to our family.

By the time I picked my kids up from their first day of school, I had a primed fireplace. All that painting, as well as playing with my three year old, helped to keep my mind off of how fast my kids are growing up.

Well, by the next week, I was painting the shelves surrounding my fireplace as well as the mantle. Much sanding, priming, and painting later and I have a LOT of white in my family room. So, now I've got a white (possibly too much so) fireplace and shelves and I've got no idea what to do with the rest of the room. That isn't exactly true. I'd like to paint the walls green. However, I'm having a hard time coordinating with the couch which I have no desire or means to change. It's green, of course. I guess I kinda have a thing for green. So...

Hello White! I think? I like you.

To make a long and boring process short, I've got a very white fireplace and surrounding shelves combined with walls that are basically tan and all sorts of shades of green that I'm trying out. I suppose I should also mention my rather dated wood trim. After paining all the brick and wood that makes up the fireplace wall, I have NO desire to paint the trim. At least not anytime soon.

I'd probably be more forgiving of the trim if I didn't feel like it limited my color choices so much.

There you have it. (That is if you're still reading!) Now, it's your turn to weigh in with some thoughts. I'd rather go with a more modern look. At least as modern as you can go with an 80s traditional two story house!

Your thoughts?

Organizing Paper Peak

I have a tendency to make easy tasks difficult. I think about and plan things for so long that I'm tired of doing them before I actually do them. Just ask my husband!

Our house recently became proof of my problem. It was more cluttered than it had ever been. Adding Christmas into the mix was a recipe for disaster. So, I began to successfully declutter. However, I never did anything about my pile, okay piles, of paper.

It was easier to ignore those piles since I had so much space for them. My husband recently installed a microwave over our oven which gave me all the counter space that our previous microwave had occupied. However, I also had paper piles on our desk and on a table in the basement. I was getting tired of it, but didn't know where to start.

Late last week, I was talking to a friend who is naturally organized. I started asking her questions about what she does with her papers and she explained her simple system of using binders and folders. It dawned on me, (finally) that I was making paperwork out to be a larger task than it really is.

The same day I talked to her, I headed to Target and bought a few supplies. I began tackling my piles. I even tackled piles in the basement! I realized that part of my problem was I had started too many filing systems and never just stuck with one! (The story of my life!) Currently, in our giveaway pile I have one file drawer, one file box, three 13-pocket expandable files, two 7-pocket expandable files, countless folders and who knows what else!

Now, more than two years after my husband bought me two larger filing cabinets, I'm finally using them! I'm not sure it will stick, but for now, three binders and two filing cabinets are doing the trick and taking up much less space than my former plethora of failed filing systems.

Perhaps 2011 will be the year I finally defeated the paper pile, uh, I mean, piles!

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!

We May Not Have Clean Clothes, but I Know Where to Find the Cumin

This was originally posted at the end of February. Seven months later, I can say the system is still working well. It is one of the few things I've organized that hasn't be a mess two hours later. Truth be told, I sometimes open my spice cabinet and just stare at it. It makes me feel better about the stuff bomb that seems to constantly explode in all other areas of the house.

Please be sure to head over to Shannon's at Rocks in My Dryer for more "kitchen management" tips.

A while back, I wrote about joining in on Org Junkie's Monthly Organizational Round-Up. I love to organize, much to the frustration and humor of my husband. So, I thought this sounded like fun. Org Junkie has designated a room of the house for each month. I thought that couldn't be too hard.

I did that thinking before sweet Baby Girl became a part of our family. Now, Baby Girl, thus far, is a mellow little one. However, she does have this little habit of wanting to eat every 2-3 and sometimes, bless her, 4 hours. This happens around the clock. Then, there are those other munchkins who live here who need things like food, clean clothes, and special time with their mama.

So, you can see how what at first seemed so doable, quickly became not so doable. Well, somehow, I did it. It is a good thing it is leap year and I had one more day in February to get something in my kitchen organized.

I chose my spice cabinet.

Here is a before picture.

As I cooked, I had to sort through the cabinet to find what I needed. Of course, whatever I needed usually happened to be at the top and in the very back.

Also, I learned that I had multiple containers of garlic powder, curry powder, crushed red pepper, and nutmeg. To top it all off, they were all partially used.

Now, here is the after.

I placed the salt and pepper shakers, cooking spray, and salt and pepper refills on the bottom shelf. The middle shelf holds the spices I use most while the top shelf holds those spices that I seldom use.

Finally, here is a picture of what I hope will make finding the spices even easier.

I took a Sharpie and labeled the top of each container. This way, I can easily glance and find what I need. Notice I put the containers with black lids at the front. Obviously, the marker wouldn't work so well on those.

So there you have it. The laundry still isn't finished, my hair is greasy, and the kitchen floor is yucky, but my spices, oh, they are in order.

Seeing Red

We finally finished our painting project! Well, we finished it nearly two weeks ago. So, maybe I should be writing that I finally posted a picture.





This is my view of the kitchen from the chair where I frequently sit to nurse Jane. Glancing at my red kitchen always makes me smile. For whatever reason, I've always wanted a red kitchen. I've also wanted a kitchen with a black-and-white checkered floor. I think we can all agree that it would be a mistake in this kitchen.



Here is my favorite touch. I found it at Kirklands, while enjoying a morning out with a friend.





And, now, won't you please share any ideas you have for decorating a kitchen. I know the picture above isn't the best, but the wall space is pretty bare. I don't have much space, but, I would like to add a few items to finish the look. Any suggestions? What works for you?


Happy Friday!

Uh-Oh, It's a Project

My kitchen is trashed and I couldn't be happier.

After all, it means that we're on our way to getting the kitchen painted. In fact, we got the wallpaper torn down today. Now, all that stands between a fun red kitchen and me are a coat of gray-tinted primer and at least two coats of red paint. Well, that and my tendency to be a pro at starting projects and very much an amateur at finishing them.

At one point today, Tony, who has taken the week off from work, was kindly using his vacation time to work on the kitchen. I, on the other hand, had wandered from the kitchen and was organizing Ann's closet. Clearly the kitchen will look better if Ann's closet, which couldn't be further from the kitchen unless it were in my neighbor's house, is nice and tidy.

Fortunately, I was able to refocus and joined Tony in the kitchen. Here is a little picture of our project underway.

And, a close-up of the wallpaper. It just isn't my style.

With any luck, by the end of the week, I'll be able to post a picture of the finished kitchen. And, who knows, my closets may be organized too.

Getting All Domestic

After finding this blog, I was inspired to make our house a bit more of a home. I was especially excited to find that she and others manage to be extremely frugal while creating beautiful homes.

I took a little tour of our local Good Will.

This is what I found.

I'm most excited about the mirror. It will look just right hanging in the hallway upstairs.

As for the serving bowl, I'm a sucker for anything black and white, so I couldn't help myself.

The small glass pitcher is just right for little hands to use. And, the green bowl will look lovely holding jewelry or spare change.

Finally, the yellow apron just makes me smile. It is the only thing that didn't come from the thrift store. But, it cost less that three dollars at Target, so I figure is should count.

Did you notice our sweet dog in the mirror? Poor Buck is the best if somewhat neglected dog. Being the only beast in a crowd of little children isn't always easy.

That's it. Now I just have to sweetly ask Tony to hang the mirror and I'll promise to watch the kiddos instead of letting them "help" with the drill.

Two of My Favorite Things

It is a joke at our house that I think everything looks better painted black. Of course, by everything, I mean things like frames, end tables, step stools, or wall cabinets. Things like that.

In fact, the only rooms where I don't incorporate a lot of black are my little girls' rooms. And then, I just use this:

This would explain why my finger tip is looking a bit gray right now. It would also explain the various pieces of furniture laying on top of drop cloths on the floor of my garage.

On that note, I'm off to spray some more paint.

You Don't Have to Convince Me

Today, as I roamed around the blogging world, I stumbled upon the Org Junkie's Monthly Organizing Round-up. I say count me in!


My husband affectionately, (at least I think so) calls me the most disorganized, organized person he knows. This is so very true. Therefore, I will certainly be able to find something to organize each month. In fact, I'll probably look forward to it. I likely won't stick with keeping it completely organized, but hey, maybe she'll do this again next year.

The first month involves picking something in the kitchen to organize. I know exactly what I'll do. This should be exciting--for no one but me and the few others who like to make organizing somewhat of a hobby.

Unfortunately, this organizing might drive my husband crazy as he'll have to figure out where I've decided to store things for the week. Actually, he should be safe for the first month as I'll be working on organizing the spice cabinet. I'm pretty sure he only ever reaches for salt or pepper.

Because I'm Nothing if Not a Procrastinator

I decided to wait until this pregnancy was full-term (today) before I painted the baby's room. Nice huh?

Before and after pictures coming soon, unless this baby makes an unlikely early appearance before I can finish painting.