All-Girl Bedroom

Avery's new "big-girl" room has been a work-in-progress for me this summer, and it's been so much fun! I'm not quite finished yet, but I thought I'd share what I've done so far.

I decided to go with a vintage look with lots of pinks and neutral colors. Originally, this room had the most hideous John Deer green trim color with white walls. I softened the look quite a bit by painting the walls Baked Brie (Olympic) and the trim Horseradish (also Olympic).

I found the rub-on word art at Hobby Lobby and just had to snatch it up! The window came from hub's parents' farm - it was already a really nice old green color, so I didn't even need to paint it! I'd still like to find appropriately-sized shutters to go on either side of it.



My mom picked up the little bookcase at Goodwill, and I painted pink and distressed it.

She also had found the bed at Goodwill and I love it! It's a big bed for such a little girl (queen size), but she's adjusted very well to it. We wanted to keep a larger bed in the room to use for guests. And, to be honest, I just loved this bed too much not to use it!


My grandpa made this dresser for my mom when she was younger, and she didn't have room for it anymore, so she gave it to me. I updated it by painting it white and changing out the drawer pulls. It made a huge difference!


The hardware floor was very worn and stained, so I just decided to paint over it. It's a bit of a pain to maintain, because scratches become very visible, but I really like the light color.

I found the sweet little side table for a couple of dollars at a yard sale last year. I painted it pink and distressed it, like the bookcase. Oh, and I bought the bedding in the clearance section at Ross. Love that store!

Like I said, the room is a work-in-progress, so there are still a few things I'd like to do, but overall, I'm happy with how it's turning out.

Three cheers for little girls and pink!

Aimee Needs

I saw this on someone else's blog and thought it was pretty funny. Just Google your name and the word "needs" and see what the top 10 results are.

Here are mine...

1. Aimee needs our help - please reach out to her!
2. Aimee needs another adventure.
3. Aimee needs to go potty.
4. Aimee needs to spend the next few months training in the ring.
5. Aimee needs a caring family to cherish and pamper her for the rest of her life.
6. Aimee needs a mommy!!!!!
7. Aimee needs advice on her relationship with her boyfriend.
8. Aimee needs to know that she is, demonstratively, more important to her mother than the use of drugs.
9. Aimee needs a foster home.
10. Aimee needs to sell records and make a profit.

Apparently I am a poor orphan who just needs some loving...please help!

Patio Makeover (for cheap!)

One of our projects this summer was to spruce up our sad, sad patio in the back of our house. I'm a bit embarrassed to even show the before pictures, but here you go!

The patio was made of concrete blocks that were falling apart, the grass needed to be re-done, the concrete steps needed to be painted, and it badly needed some landscaping.

before

You can see how terrible the patio looked here. Just gross.

another before

after

Some inexpensive things that we did to give the patio a facelift:

1. Painted the iron banister a fresh coat of white and the concrete steps brown. We also removed the screen door and painted the doors and trim.

2. We poured pea gravel on top of the concrete blocks. It's not an ideal surface for a patio, but it is much less expensive than brick or stone. Someday we want to replace it with stone pavers, but it works for now. It definitely looks better than the concrete!

3. We did buy some stone pavers to surround the patio.

4. We planted perennials and annuals around the patio.


5. I found this cute little patio table at a yard sale and it was already repainted and the seat covers were recently replaced, so I didn't even have to do any work to it!

6. We are working on reseeding the lawn. It's been a work in progress and a learning experience for hubs!

All in all, we spent several hundred dollars and the difference is huge! Although, I must admit, lots of our sweat went into it! It feels immensely satisfying knowing that we did it all ourselves!

Can I just say?

There is something so satisfying about seeing your baby's poo going

down.the.toilet

instead of into a diaper that

i.have.to.clean.


This has been potty training week and, although we had a supremely rough start, it is now going quite well.

Keep your fingers crossed.

It Must Be Fall

The air is getting cooler, the leaves are falling, and it puts me in the mood to bring out my domestic side and do some cooking!

I made some old fashioned chicken corn noodle soup this week and it's delicious! I canned about 12 quarts - it's so handy to have on hand for a quick meal!

Here's the recipe I used...

PA Dutch Chicken Corn Noodle Soup

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken
2 large carrots
2 medium onions
3 celery ribs
1 bunch fresh parsley or 1/8 cup dried parsley
12 ounces frozen corn
1/2 (6 ounce) package wide egg noodles
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:
1. Rinse chicken and place in large pot and cover with water.
2. Add salt.
3. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.
4. Slice celery and carrots and chop the onions and parsley.
5. Remove chicken and set aside to cool.
6. Add celery, carrots, corn and onion.
7. Remove chicken meat from bone. Discard bones and skin and add meat to the pot.
8. Bring back to boil and simmer for 20 minutes.
9. Add egg noodles and chopped parsley.
10. Bring back to boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
11. Pour soup into canning jars and put lids on them.
12. Place jars in canner and fill with water to the top of the jars. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 2 hours. Let stand to cool.

I tripled the recipe and it made about a dozen quarts. You could also freeze the soup instead of canning it, if you prefer. It's super time-consuming but so worth it!!


And it's time to make grape juice too! I imagine that heaven will smell just about like my kitchen did while I was making it!

Here's the link to the recipe I had posted last year. You MUST try it.

This is what I do

*sigh*

I tear apart the office/playroom and rearrange it with absolutely no planning or thought. On a perfectly nice and quiet Saturday morning.

And I totally blame my mother. (sorry mom)

I've been doing this type of thing since I was five years old. Just ask my sister. And, yes, I totally learned it from my mom.

It is my burden to carry.

Mini House Tour

I've talked about my cousin Miriam's house before, so I thought I'd just take you on a little tour. The atmosphere is just so cozy and inviting!

She saw this old hutch setting on someone's porch and she had the nerve to ask them if they wanted to get rid of it! Luckily, they did and she refinished it and made it her own...



Her mudroom...


The master bedroom...
Every time I stay at her house, I'm inspired! I love how she turns functional, everyday items into something fun to look at! And, she's thrifty, just like me!