Country Mouse Tales

A-door-able

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:54:00 +0000

**This is my 1000th post. I feel like that deserves a mention!**

We are moving back out into the mudroom for this post, sorry to bounce around so much, but that is how I do stuff around the ol' casa. So anyway...in the mudroom there are two doors. One leads in from the outside, and one then leads into the kitchen. For the visual learners...

Pretty simple. So anyway...as you can see, the doors are in relatively rough shape. They are solid doors, but they have seen their fair share of wear and tear. I actually kinda liked the black and white thing that was going on with the doors (they were the same) but the above picture illustrates the damage to the outside door. The bottom had been exposed to a lot of water (because the wheelchair ramp held it up again the door) so it was rotted at the bottom. We replaced that one (that is a different post though).

The door to the kitchen on the other hand, was completely fine, just a little dingy. I wanted to give it a fresh look to go with the rest of the mudroom, so I headed out and checked out some paint chips.

Let me tell you...this was a tough one to narrow down! In the end I went with 'Sauna' by Allen+Roth for Valspar, because it didn't have a purple undertones that a lot of the blues seemed to have. I picked up a quart of exterior paint in semi-gloss. And now...

It doesn't scream at you, but it is a nice fresh color in there! (Oh, don't mind the stuff on the dry sink, it kind of landed there and it looking a little more country than I would like) There are still one or two things we want to wrap up out here - like removing the now defunct dryer vent - but it is nice to have a room almost finished!

And for the sake of seeing how far we have come...

Have I mentioned how much I love to see before and afters? I really do.

Sidenote: I get asked pretty frequently if the floor gets dirty quickly, and I'm not sure how to answer. I guess so? That is the point of the mudroom though - to keep the dirt from coming into the house. It is an easy surface to clean, I just sweep and then use a spray-mop on any muddy spots.

Linking up @ Southern Lovely

Painting the Countertops

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 12:45:00 +0000

With a title like that it is hard to tell what this post could possibly be about huh? What can I say, I like to keep you guessing! Our kitchen has pink countertops. I have mentioned it a time or two, but until recently I didn't bother doing anything about it. Here is a true before picture.

Pink counters, pink blinds, old carpet...it was pretty stellar. Needless to say, the carpet was the first thing to go. We ripped that out as soon as we could, and continued the laminate flooring from the living room into the kitchen as well. Aside from that, we weren't ready for a full kitchen reno, which is what this will need, so we just left it at that.

UNTIL...I just couldn't take it anymore. Haha, I am home with the boys all day - and eventually the pink started to give me an eye twitch. AND THEN! I happened upon a clearance cache of Rustoleum Countertop Transformations paint. The color is Cobblestone, which I might not have picked if there were more options, but for $5? I'm good with Cobblestone!

The paint needs a few days to cure, so I did this on Thursday night before we left for a short camping trip - that way no one was tempted to rush it and start using the counters before the paint had cured. I gave the counters a good scrubbing, then a light sanding with fine paper. After that, and two coats of paint (which is SUPER fumey by the way...so watch that if you don't have good ventilation)...we were left with this...

Yes, the backsplash is still pink, one step at a time people!! Overall I am really happy with the result, especially for a $5 can of paint. This is obviously not a permanent solution to the kitchen, at some day in the distant future we want to completely replace almost everything...but still! It is a step in the right direction!The color turned out to be a little more grey than the can implied, but I actually prefer it to the picture on the can. Go figure.

The finish of the paint dried very smooth and glossy - it is a think paint, so it sort of smoothed itself as it dried. You can see in the above picture, however, that if your counter top has a flaw (in this case the seam is warped in the corner) it will definitely still show.

So far, it is great. Easy to wipe down, and much easier on the eyes!
Posting a before/progress picture like that always cracks me up. I think of before and afters as these amazing transformations, but in reality it's just one little step at a time around here! I figure it will be fun for me to look back on these when it is all said and done.

A Girlie Gift

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 14:41:00 +0000

Being a mom of two boys, most of my kid related crafts have a definite boy spin. BUT I am very blessed to have three beautiful nieces, so when their birthdays roll around, I love to try my hand at making something a little more girlie. Gemma turned two in May, and I knew that she loves taking care of her dolls and stuffed animals, so I rolled with that idea.

I found this sweet little picnic basket on Etsy (tt is very small, which was perfect for teeny little Gemma!). I loved that it had a handle, so she could carry it around the house if she felt like doing so.

I sewed a tiny little pillow and "mattress", and then tucked in an itty bitty baby doll (this was the first time I have bought a doll!), along with two little changes of clothing.

For a blanket I used a vintage handkerchief. I did sew a larger doll quilt (the pink and purple one in the pics) for her to use in her doll cradle, but I doubted my sewing skills could handle a quilt this small! I was so excited to give her her gift, and she did like it...

...but in the end...she mostly LOVED these little beaded sandals we got her!

How cute is that picture?

I loved trying my hand at a girlie gift, and I am looking forward to whipping up some more little treasures! Also?

SUCH a cute party!

Hand-me-down Furniture

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 15:56:00 +0000

Psst...the winner has been chosen! Meg M. - you should have an email from me!

About a week or so ago I was at my sister's house, and I jokingly told her that one day I was going to sneak over and steal her dry sink. She laughed and said "Ya want it?". They moved recently and didn't really have room for it, so she wanted to find it a new home.

I am sure you can imagine what my response was! Needless to say, I jumped on that opportunity, and now our mudroom is sporting a beautiful hand-me-down dry sink.

I love the way the wood tone looks against the whites and grays out there, it is nice to have a natural finish in there.

And those little white knobs? They might be my favorite part! One is missing, but I say that just gives it character.

Do you have any hand-me-down pieces that you love?

*After I posted I got a few comments from family, reminding me of the history of this piece. I neglected to mention, but this is originally from our Meme and Poppa's (my step-mom's parents) house, and I think it is so awesome to have little stories to go with it. Like my sister Ashley's comment below "they used to hide tic-tacs in there!". How cute is that?!

Living in Chaos

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 14:36:00 +0000

You know the little saying "home wasn't built in a day"? I say that to myself a lot. I love our little home. A LOT. But there is also a lot of work that needs to be done here.

Currently, our living room is at a standstill because my allergies have gone completely haywire and we can't sand down the skimcoat that Matt and our friend Daryl put up without putting me into a full out allergy attack.

Our kitchen has mauve countertops, knotty pine cabinets, and three different wall colors (and one wall actually stripped down to studs).

You never got to see this beaut yet did you? This was before we actually moved, but it is more or less the same now...just slightly cleaner :)

The bathroom? More mauve countertops, vinyl sticky tile floors, and one coat of primer only on the walls and ceiling.

And yet? I don't think I have ever felt more "at home" than I do right now. I won't pretend that seeing unfinished projects everywhere I look doesn't grate on my nerves - IT DOES, but I also have the privilege to get to DO those projects in the first place.

When we first moved in, we were given a piece of advice from someone who had renovated their home while they lived in it (with little boys to boot!), and that was to have at least ONE mostly finished room that you can retreat to when you are overwhelmed. For us - that meant doing our bedroom first.

(Okay, technically we did the boys room first, but you know what I mean right?). Sure, it isn't perfect, we would like to replace the acoustic tiles on the ceiling one day, but for now a fresh coat of paint will do the trick. It is great to be able to go in there at the end of the day, lay down, and feel comfortable in a room that we love.

I have also found that it helps me to sprinkle high impact projects in there with the less glamorous but totally necessary stuff. For example, the skim coat - it doesn't look impressive, but it HAS to be done. On the other hand, the mudroom?

Painting the floor did not HAVE to be done, but it made SUCH a huge difference and made us really feel like we were making progress. Plus it gives us a boost every time we come through the door.

I've found that it is really just about my attitude. If I remember how far we have come (there used to be carpet in the bathroom!), I find myself feeling grateful for this chance to make our house into our home. On the other hand - if I start grousing about the time it takes to get anything "done" I find myself getting very snippy with both Matt and the boys, and yeah...that's not fun for anyone.

Have you ever lived in a house while renovating it? Do you have any sage advice to share? I love to hear it!

Shabby Apple Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Thu, 30 May 2013 17:53:00 +0000

Oh hello! It's just me, your friendly neighborhood slacker. I've been meaning to write - I have so much to update, but no time to actually do it! I'll make it up to you though! How does a giveaway sound? I'm actually pretty jealous that I can't win my own giveaway here, because I love Shabby Apple dresses. They have such a great selection of stuff, from vintage dresses to cute shoes.

So here is how this will work...I will pick a random winner, email you the list of dresses you can pick from, and then your beautiful new garb will be heading your way! There are a few ways you can enter, the only mandatory entry is a blog comment (please, please, please remember to use a valid e-mail address!).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This giveaway is for US residents only. Sorry! Their rules, not mine! You have until June 4th to get your entry in!

The House on Thistle Hill

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Tue, 28 May 2013 17:01:00 +0000

Doesn't that sound like a great novel? Something along the lines of Wuthering Heights? Yeah, well...it's not. It's actually MY house. When we first saw it...it looked like this...

And aw...isn't that little juniper covered hill just precious? Do you see all that dead stuff on the hill? Yeah...keep that in mind.

About three weeks into spring I noticed some little weeds coming up through, and thought "Hmmm I should go pull those". But I didn't, and they apparently got busy and multiplied like Duggars. Don't believe me?
Yep. ALL thistles. They are as high as the windows in some places! I don't like to weed, and I am not particularly good with plants anyway, but I knew that something had to be done! So I pulled on my gloves, and started pulling up thistles. I was relieved to find that the roots did actually pull out pretty easily, so it was just a matter of finding the time. Matt and I worked in shifts yesterday, and after a whole lot of this...

...we now have the front hill looking like this...

I would say we are about three quarters of the way there. Pulling thistles is no joke! Unfortunately it looks like some of the Juniper got a bit choked out and is dying away, but hopefully we can get it to grow back.

I know someone will ask why we didn't just use a weed-killer, and the honest truth is that I am just uncomfortable pulling that into the ground, especially this close to our well, and we would have had to use a LOT, and it might have killed the juniper as well. So...yeah, that's why!

Anyone else out there battling the weedy forces of nature? Or are you happily letting your yard turn into Jumanji?

Working With the Little Windows

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Tue, 21 May 2013 13:29:00 +0000

In both of the bedrooms in our house, we have one standard size window, and two half size windows. The standard windows are pretty simple to treat, but I have kind of stalled out on the little ones -particularly in the boys room due to the fact that I didn't want them to be able to reach the curtains to pull on them.

We use black-out blinds while the boys sleep, and as funtional as those are - they aren't super pretty, ya know?

While I was taking some momma time a few weeks ago and browsing Homegoods alone, I found a cute little blue and white rug on clearance that worked well in their room.

The red blur is Jack practicing his leaping skills. He's getting pretty good :)

My idea came from the pattern on the rug, and a little faux roman shade I had made for the kitchen at our old house. I never posted about it because I wasn't sure it would work, but it did so I repeated the process with a drop cloth for the boys room.

Why a drop cloth? It's what I had on hand, and the canvas look worked for their room.

I cut two 3x2 pieces of fabric, then used Frogtape to create the stripes. I painted them navy blue, then pulled off the tape. The lines aren't perfect, but since Roman Shades are gathered at the bottom it really didn't matter.

I then hemmed the sides (drop cloth sheds like CRAZY, so you need to hem it). The top I folded over and hemmed, leaving about a two inch pocket for a curtain rod.

Then I just folded up the bottom twice (I used the middle of each stripe as a reference point) and sewed them together.

I then slid a thin piece of wood through the top pocket and actually attached that directly to the wall.

The little shades cover the blackout blinds, and tie in to not only the rug but also the baskets that they have books in, which I didn't realize until after the fact.

Plus they cost me absolutely NOTHING since I had all of the supplies on hand, and they really help make the room look a little more put together. They are a little but nautical and since no one but the grown-ups can reach them they should last us!

So now I have a question for you...what would you do with the big window?

Keep the green curtains up? Make some sort of high/low navy and drop cloth curtains? I think any sort of striped curtain would start to make it feel like Willy Wonka's childhood room. As much as I love stripes, there has to be a limit right?

Playroom Planning

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Mon, 20 May 2013 13:07:00 +0000

Contrary to blog updates, we have actually gotten a lot done around the house lately, but they are things that don't make a huge impact in a blog post. Things like - finally hooking up the washer and dryer, slowly patching holes in the plaster, patching holes in the window trim, etc. All of those things add up to a whole lot of work, but not a lot of impact (yet).

So today, let's talk about the playroom. This room is basically the mirror image of the mudroom, and it found at the very front of the house. When we first saw it, it looked like this...

Which really isn't SO bad. I mean..no, I wouldn't pick that carpet, but still, I've seen worse. The carpet was pretty old and starting to fall apart, so instead of trying to vaccuum it, I simply rolled it up and pulled it right out of there. We also pulled down the dusty old rolled blinds, cleaned the windows and window sills, and then we pretty much just moved the toys in and stalled out. Here is it looking toward the left...

...and toward the right...

As you can see, it is a very functional space, but not a very pretty one. And since this room is the room that is right off of the main living space, I would like it to look a bit nicer, ya know?! For reference, the brown door that you have seen in a few of the earlier living room posts is the door that leads to this room. You can see it here in this picture of Matt and his friend Nelson removing that awful glue (it's gone now by the way....YAAAAY!).

SO yeah...you can see it from the door, or any of the four windows that look out into the room - so it's important that is at least have a nice start, even if the toys will inevitably be all over the floor! So here is what I am thinking...


Sources: Top left - me, bottom left - Mini Meez, right - IHeart Organizing

I think I am going to continue the diamond floor that I painted in the mudroom. The mudroom and the playroom are exactly opposite each other, and our house is pretty small, so as much as I would like to do something else entirely on the floor - I want the house to flow as much as possible, and the floors should give that continuity.

Any sort of seating out here is tough, because it is a long narrow room (6.5 feet x24 feet), so the Ikea shelves turned cubbies and benches should be a good fit out here. Plus low storage is good for the boys, who tend to ignore anything more than three feet off the ground. I love the idea of the alphabet on the storage boxes, but I highly doubt we will have 26 boxes out there! Maybe numbers? Animals?

On the other side of the room I would like to make it more of an adult space, maybe some patio type furniture for us to hang out on, because this room is a nice place to be during both the day and night due to all of those wonderful windows!

Now I just have to make the time to set these plans in action! What would you do with this space?

Sittin' at the Kids Table

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Tue, 14 May 2013 19:25:00 +0000

Sorry I have been MIA for a week - it wasn't really an intended absence, but between colds, secret projects :), and life in general, I just didn't have time!

I joined Hometalk today, and I have no idea what I am doing there. Find me and hold my hand, okay?

I did manage to complete a little makeover that I have been wanting to do for about a year now. I picked up a little table for the boys from Craiglist about a year ago (pretty sure it is by Ikea), and I had grand intentions of painting it to freshen it up a little. But then all of that fun stuff with Matt losing his job and us moving and yada yada yada happened, and the little table slipped my mind. It was fine as it was...

...but I wanted to give it a little personality. I had a coupon for a free sample jar of paint from Valspar, so I picked up a fresh color and gave that bad boy a little love...

I did keep the seats and the table top white because it is a great surface to clean easily.

Now...go find me on Hometalk and tell me what the heck I am supposed to do there!

Suitcase Storage

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Tue, 07 May 2013 12:49:00 +0000

First - thanks for all of your love for yesterday's post about the floor. It was nice to have people as excited about it as I was! :)

As anyone who has ever seen a kids room can tell you, toy storage is ALWAYS a necessity.

We are blessed enough to have a space dedicated to toys and play (that is a whole other post), but even so - we still need toy storage for the little toys that the boys seem to prefer to keep in their room.

This was taken before I hung their pennants. And before I got them a new rug - which I haven't blogged about but you will see it in the pics below.

I had been on the lookout for cheap toy storage, but even cheap toyboxes really aren't all that cheap - and we already have one toy box in there (that I found on the curb and repainted). Also, because they share a room, there isn't a whole lot of unused wall space to put any kind of storage.

BUT. About a week ago the boys and I were shopping a nearby Salvation Army, and I found these two matching suitcases. Suitcases at a thrift store are a dime a dozen - there are always a TON, but I was happy to find two that matched.

Weirdly, they were priced differently, one at $4 and one at $5, but still, I can't complain about those prices! I lugged them home, gave them a quick clean-up with some orange-oil cleaner, cut out the middle divider and any straps, and told the boys to fill 'em up.

I've found that they both love to lug them around, and I am sure it won't be long until they start to 'pack' their suitcases. Jack can open them on his own, although Luke cannot (but that also goes for things like the toy box - you just gotta help him a little!).

The suitcases also fit really well with the whole "Adventure is out there" thing going on in their room! For the safety conscious - I was a little put off by the metal edges - but it is rolled on the edges, so it is pretty dull. I ran my fingers along all of the edges to check it out - and it isn't any sharper than most of the playground equipment we have come across.

So tell me - what have you found to help you store all the odds and ends that collect around your place? Any other suitcase users out there?

Wit Wisdom & Food | The HumberHome Project | Corner of Main | Mailbox Journey

A Painted Floor

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Mon, 06 May 2013 11:17:00 +0000

I am going to go ahead and just get it over with. You guys? I painted the floor. From the first time I saw this room, I had a picture in my head. Granted - it didn't look ANYTHING like what I was imagining...

It took a lot of work, and a lot of time, but finally...

Like I said - I KNEW it could happen! Removing the wheelchair ramp and cleaning the space made a huge difference, but I was hoping for just a little bit more. I cleaned and etched the concrete floors to prep them for paint, and then impatiently waited for them to dry. Once they were FINALLY dry, I got started with a basecoat of white porch paint from Valspar.

We then let that cure for a few days. The boys absolutely loved this for some reason, it was SO bright and white in there that we started to refer to it as the swimming pool.

After letting that dry, I got started on drawing in my lines. I would love to write a detailed how-to for this, but the truth is I totally messed it up, got angry, erased everything to start over and eventually it all worked out. And then I taped them.

I used a wood chisel to make sure that my corners were nice and straight. If you are doing this, remember, you can't just tape the diamond shape, you have to tape inside the line so that your blocks are all the same size. It is considerably tougher than painting stripes, but if I can do it anyone can! I painted my diamonds ('New Concrete' by Valspar), eagerly pulled off the tape, and...

UGH. Even the Frogtape for delicate surfaces was a little too harsh for this project. I spent a good portion of that night crawling around touching up the lines, but in the end - it was all worth it.

That door is no longer with us - stay tuned for that update later this week!

Eventually we will fill in the room a little more, and we will probably bring that cool green locker back in for outside toy storage, but for now - I am just loving the transformation of our mudroom!

Our total cost for this project was right around $70, which isn't super cheap - but it is not all that much for such a great change!

What do you think? Would you ever paint a pattern on the floor?

Linking up: Mad Skills Monday, Metamorphosis Monday, Craft-o-Maniac, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday, Tuesdays Treasures, Thrifty Decor Chick Before and After Party, Southern Lovely Show and Share, House of Hepworths,

Night Tide

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Thu, 02 May 2013 15:48:00 +0000

So we have these Adirondack chairs, they are just great chairs. One was a gift from my Aunt, one was a gift I got for Matt, one we literally found at an abandoned lot, and one is a tiny plastic one that we got for Jack two years ago. The only problem? None of them match. I don't really care that they are all different styles, but two of them are red (different reds though), one of them is untreated wood, and one is tan plastic.

And they are ALL looking a little worse for wear. I knew I wanted to update these guys, but they were WAY down on the ol' to-do list, so I didn't make any immediate plans to freshen them up.

UNTIL....

We stopped in at Wal-mart to pick up a replacement bulb for my tail light. Matt says I can find a clearance department anywhere I go - and it is absolutely true. I stumbled upon a cart chock full of spray paint with a big ol' "SPRAY PAINT BLOWOUT" sign. What was I supposed to do? Walk away?! Puh-lease.

I grabbed six cans of Rustoleum Night Tide, in a High Gloss Enamel. A few days later I found myself impatiently waiting for the mudroom floor to dry, and about an hour of daylight left after the boys went to bed, so I got to sprayin! The color turned out to be a little more teal than the lid, but I love it!

I won't say that the back yard has hit 'oasis' status just yet, but for $6 (actually $5 - I didn't use all of the cans) this has made a big impact!

Have you done any makeovers on the cheap lately?

**And yeah - the retaining wall needs some love. We will get there! But since we are on the topic anyway, I am thinking of painting it as a temporary solution. Would gray paint be bonkers? The white in full sunlight can be a little glaring.

Mudroom: Stage 2

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 18:40:00 +0000

Stage 1 can be found here.

I will be honest guys, I am a little bummed by our progress in here. I wanted to have more done today, but the weather is not cooperating. It is just a case of me being impatient, but we have made a LITTLE progress in the mudroom.

Last time you saw it, it looked like this...

...which was a vast improvement, but there was still a lot that we wanted to do to make this into a more welcoming entry as well as a functioning mudroom. Last night after the boys went to bed, Matt had practice (he plays bass) so I got to work in the mudroom.

I swept it all out twice, and then I vacuumed...

...and then I hosed it all down with a garden hose and used this degreaser/etcher by Valspar to prep the concrete.

I would love to have been able to have pictures of this step, but I was working on my own, so...sorry about that! Basically you put the cleaner in a plastic watering can, and sweep it back and forth to cover small sections of the concrete. If the cleaner DOES NOT fizz when it hits the floor - it isn't working. I then scrubbed each section. Next up, you just hose it all down, and let it dry overnight. I also scrubbed down all the cinderblocks and the window sills.

And this is where Mother Nature is not working with me. It rained last night, so the air is super humid here, and it just does not want to dry. I really wanted to get the first coat on the floor while the boys were napping, but if your concrete is not totally dry, you really cannot paint it and expect your paint to last!

Half painted.

I did manage to get a coat on the half-wall though, and man! It is already so much brighter in there! A coat of paint really can make a huge difference!

So there you go. Some underwhelming real time progress!

Signed,
A disappointed DIY-er

Tweaks in the Boys Room

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 14:39:00 +0000

The boys room was the very first room to come together, because it was important to us that they felt like they had their own stuff in their own space. Moving is hard on little ones (and big ones for that matter), so that was our way of making the transition easier on them.

That said, after we plopped down their beds and dressers, we kind of stalled out in there for a little while. I had accumulated a few little treasures that I wanted to hang up in their room, so one sunny afternoon last week I hopped to it. First up was the wall behind their beds.

It's okay, but it's a little bare, and much like our bedroom, it just needed something on the walls behind their beds. When Matt's mom cleaned out their basement (when she gave us that cool trunk) she also found a few boxes of things that had graced Matt's childhood room, including a bunch of really cool baseball pennants. I loved the thought of them being used in our kids rooms too, so I hung them up!

Sorry for the crappy picture - it's a rainy Monday here in PA!

I was worried that they might be able to grab them, so instead of tacks or nails I just used double-sided tape to hang them. So far that is working okay, but I have had to rehang the Boston one twice now, so I will need to figure out a better solution!

Next up, I turned my attention to this big ol' blank wall.

I had a bunch of framed things that I wanted to hang up, and because my frames are all different sizes, I just did it gallery style. I laid them out of the floor in a few different arrangements, and then I just went for it.

A better blogger would probably show you how they made paper templates or something, but really? I just held them up and then pounded in a few nails. I'm so not a perfectionist - I just know what I like. I think people get intimidated by gallery walls because other people make them in to such a production. I'm not saying it's wrong to measure it all out, but if that isn't your style, don't worry about it. Here is my take - if you like it, hang it up. It will make you smile.

The 'art' in the gallery wall is numbered so I can blabber about it a little...

1. A print that used to hang in my Nanny's farmhouse kitchen. It was there for as long as I can remember and it shows two little boys saying "you been farming long?"
2. A print that my mom found at a thrift store of pioneers crossing the Rocky Mountains.
3. Luke's first haircut certificate. As soon as I find a frame I am going to add Jack's as well.
4. A schooner sketch that I found at Goodwill for $3.
5. My miniature collection from when I was little. I love that thing.
6. The boys framed bow-ties.

I left some room to the right for the gallery wall to expand as I find more treasures for their room. I did try to take a picture so you could see it in context a little but better, but this was the best I got...

Hooligans.

The Things You Do

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 12:48:00 +0000

I totally failed on this last month, so this is sort of March and April rolled into one.

Jack: You started telling jokes. Some of them don't make sense, and some of them are so ridiculous that I wonder where you learned them! For example : I was laying on the floor and you ran over and said "Mommy, do you like showers?" I had no idea what was going on so I said "Umm..yeah?" and you proceeded to spit ALL OVER ME. It was gross, and naughty, and seriously SO funny. I still want to know where you picked that up!

Luke: Dude. You have got MOVES. All of the sudden you love to dance, and any time a tune of any sort comes on, you break it down!

Jack: You still love to watch Jeopardy, and you now have a favorite commercial. It is this one...

...and I do not know why you love it, but you laugh SO hard when that kid says "I'll never forget that Accord".

Luke: You, my friend, have a temper. You are at a stage where you REALLY want to be independent, but you are a little to small to do everything that you want to do. So if I hold your hand when you don't want me to? WATCH OUT MOMMA. Also - you bite.

Jack: You are very protective of your little brother. A few days ago you thought you found a snake (it was a worm) but I was so impressed that you called for me and you held Luke away from touching it until I could come. Luke was pretty angry - but you held on to him for all you were worth to keep him safe from the 'snake'.

Luke: You had your 18 month check up, and you are looking good! You are 26.4 pounds, 2ft. 7inches tall.

Boys: You really love to 'help' Daddy and I when we are doing work around the house, and you were especially obsessed with our hammers, so we picked up two very small 4oz. hammers and safety goggles for you guys. You both LOVE them, and because they are your first 'real' tools you are not allowed to play with them any old time you want, so when you get to build something you get SO excited.

Boys: You guys LOVE anytime we do anything 'special' for dinner. Like in the above pic, it was Taco night, so I made a goofy sombrero centerpiece. It is funny how even the littlest things like that can just make dinner into an event for you guys.

I know there are just a ton of things that I am missing, you guys seem to change every day!

Ghosts of Colors Past

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 11:53:00 +0000

I recently started pulling down some of the paneling in the hallway, and even though I know I will find the old paint colors - it still surprises me every time. I wanted to make sure I threw up a quick post with a few details of some of the colors that we have uncovered, because I think this is one of those things that I will definitely forget!

At current count, we are up to eight colors of paint....

The traces of fuschia and blue were hidden under all the green paint and glue that we had to scrape off. Oh yeah - remember that? That was so much fun. We still need to skim coat all of those walls, but we want to do it all in one big day - so that we can just get it over with.

But before we could even get to the paint, we had to go through the paneling. At one point in the hallway there were eight layers of paneling. Yes, EIGHT.

How do you like them ~~apples~~ ...er...patterns?

Although it is a lot of work, and it can kind of feel endless, I really really do think it is fun to uncover the phases this house has gone through. Someday when I am long gone I wonder if someone will uncover some of my choice and think "what. the. heck?"

*Not pictured - five different kinds of carpet!

Vintage Steamer Trunk

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 15:11:00 +0000

A few weeks ago my mother-in-law texted me a picture of some things that she had been storing in her basement and asked if I wanted any of them. Well... you know me, OF COURSE!

There was this funky cool bench/trunk thing that caught my eye right away...

I loved the detail on the front, and even though the top needed some love, I thought it would be a great piece to have in our mudroom (you know...if I ever get around to finishing the floor).

I started taking the seat cover off when I noticed something...

There were little bolts holding the seat on, which told me that the seat itself was an add-on at some point. I got a bit excited at that point, because that meant this might actually be a real steamer trunk! I started pulling more of the padding off to find that this add-on must have been done a while ago...because this?

This is real horsehair padding! This is when I learned that horsehair smells like...well...horses. And it is super messy.

I decided to just go for it and see what was under that seat, and wouldn't you know? The top is beautiful!

The trunk isn't in pristine condition, and it definitely could tell some stories. In fact, I later found this Morocco label inside, and MAN! I wish I could know where this trunk has been.

From what I can tell from online research, this style of steamer trunk was made around 1880-1920, and the patterned paper is probably an original feature. I never knew that steamer trunks had such pretty decorative features.

Most of the original hardware and leather handles are long gone, but I am so excited to add this piece to our collection. I love things like this that clearly have their own story to tell. If I wasn't worried that the boys would destroy it I would say it would be an awesome coffee table!

*For the safety conscious - yes, this is what I would call a 'finger chopper' so we will definitely be securing the lid so the boys can't open and close it. I don't plan to put it in an area that they have free reign (they don't go in the mudroom alone) so it should be ok!

Have you ever inherited a cool piece like this from your family members? I'd love to hear about it!

It Gives You Wings

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 15:46:00 +0000

That title is awful - but it was all I could come up with. SO ANYWAY - when we last saw our bedroom I hadn't yet hung up anything in the realm of decorations or window treatments, because I still needed to paint a second coat on the walls. I got the painting done on Friday, and fell in love with the color all over again. That second coat made a big difference.

This morning I suddenly got a wild hair to do some work in our bedroom, but I just don't have the money to buy little stuff when we still have so many big things to do. I decided to root around through the things we already have to try to fill out our bedroom a little bit.

First I hung up a woven blind that we have had for over a year. I then popped up some sheer off-white curtains that used to be in our old living room.

I felt like the room looked very off balance this way - do you see what I mean? Everything is kind of right in the middle with nothing to balance the sides out a little bit? And yes - my kids are usually right where I am, no matter what. In the pic above they are checking out my alarm clock:)

But back to the off balance bedroom. I rummaged around through our picture frames and various wall crap, until I happened across the metal wings that we have had since our very first little apartment. So up they went!

The boys were under the bed for this one!

I am sure there are many, many tweaks to come, but I gotta say - this room has come a long way - don't you think? From dark and cave-like...

to light and bright! If you missed any of the steps to this point...here is one, and two.

I still want to figure out the right window treatment for the little windows (there are two) on the left wall of the room. I am not sure if I should treat them like regular sized windows and hang long curtains? Or something else? Any suggestions??

I'm linking up with House of Hepworths!

Earth Day 2013

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 14:56:00 +0000

In keeping with past tradition, I wanted to make sure that the boys got to do a little something for Earth Day this year (I was clearly confused...it was actually three days later on the 22nd!). Traditionally we have planted something, but since we just planted a little vegetable garden last weekend, I decided to keep this Earth Day project more in the arts and crafts realm. (Also I forgot to get anything for it until we were grocery shopping and I suddenly remembered - oops). I grabbed this little birdhouse for $4 and squeezed out some craft paints for the little dudes.

I spread some craft paper out for them to paint on, just to try to keep the paint off of the mudroom floor. You can get a roll of this stuff at the Dollar store - and you can use it for everything from wrapping gifts to well...painting.

I handed them their brushes and away they went!

I didn't intentionally give them only shades of blue, but they mixed the colors together and we ended with a pretty little blue birdhouse.

Happy Earth Day little birdies! We hope you love your little blue house!

Earth Days past: 2010, 2012

Are you doing any Earth Day projects?

Restoring Character

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 17:05:00 +0000

This is one of those posts that really only applies to very few people, but I am going to ask you to do me a BIG favor and pin the heck out of it. I googled and pinterested and searched high and low and really couldn't find much on restoring antique brass door hardware, so maybe this will help someone else. You probably already have all of the things you will need on hand, with the exception of a Magic Eraser.

So on to the actual post...We have this great door in the living/dining room. It is SO pretty, but like a lot of older features it needed a little love. One big area that I hoped to restore was these really great doorplates and knobs (complete with skeleton key!) that had been painted over at some point. Here is one...

And here is the other...

It's such a little detail, but all those 'little' details are what really give a place some character, at least in my opinion.

Like I said - I really couldn't find much on how to get the paint off of the brass without damaging the metal itself, and then my sister off-handedly mentioned that she thought she had read somewhere that you can boil them.

I figured 'what the heck' - so into the pot they went.

I used an old pot, I would not recommend using your everyday cooking ware to do this, and one thing I did NOT anticipate was the SMELL. Urgh. It really stunk up the house. Afterwards I learned from Old Town Home that adding a few drops of dish soap can help with the smell.

After about 15 minutes of boiling, I used a pair of tongs to check on my knobs - and wouldn't you know? It worked!

I also learned that at some point in this little house's history these knobs were also red. I used the tongs to hold the fixtures and just used an old rag to wipe off the paint.

A word of caution:these suckers will be hot, don't use your fingers!

Once all of the paint was off I saw that they really needed to be shined up, so I turned to a trusty old Magic Eraser. Seriously..those things really CAN do it all.

A few minutes later I had them back on the door in all their antique glory!

So there you go - how to restore antique doorknobs and plates in less than an hour - without spending a dime.

Can you help me out and pin this if you happen to have a DIY board? Thanks!

That Wall

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 12:53:00 +0000

You know the wall that you guys have seen like...I don't know...three or four times now? This one?

Here is what it looks like head-on...

No seriously. Our house really does look like this right now. It's a slow process - but I know how great it will be in the end.

BUT ANYWAY. On Sunday afternoon I was sitting at our table, staring at the wall (I do that) and Matt looked at me and asked what I was thinking. 'I'm thinking I want to see what is under that paneling'. He shrugged - because he knows that when I get an itch to do something I just need to do it, and said 'go for it!'.

So I did. And what do you think I found??

For the record - we shut off our electric for this one, since I had to pull out that light switch.

A solid sheet of plywood. I was totally bummed when I first saw this, BUT WAIT! Do you see what I see? Aqua plaster walls peeking through? Original baseboards? It took me a good bit of work to get that wood off of the wall, but once I did I was pretty excited to find just a little bit more of the original details to love!

The color isn't really my jam, and we will need to patch and skimcoat this wall when we do the living room too, but I am just happy to know that this wall WILL be beautiful. Someday in the distant future! Ha! Also...I found a ghost of paneling past...

How about that pattern! I love that at some point - this was awesome to someone. I think it's so fun to see the history of the house this way.

And now for the before and progress (eh...it's a LITTLE bit of progress anyway)...

I do realize that that comparison is less than amazing - but I can see it in my head! Also - clearly - I do not bother picking up background toys for these comparison pics.

Also also - finishing out the doorway that we enlarged is on our to-do list for THIS weekend. I'm so excited to see that come to life!

So what do you say? Can I call that progress?

The Tiniest Garden You Ever Did See

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 12:13:00 +0000

Jack begged to have a garden this year, specifically he wanted to plant carrots. Now, I love the IDEA of a garden, but in execution we have never had a lot of success with vegetable gardens of any sort, aside from our little container garden last year.

We have never been ones to learn from past mistakes though, so we jumped in with both feet again this year! On Saturday we headed to the store and picked up a few bags of topsoil and some gardening soil, and then we let the boys pick out a few seed packets. We ended up with carrots, peppers, pole beans, zucchini, and...something else I think? I can't remember? This is probably why our gardens never make it.

BUT ANYWAY...our yard has a slope to it, so Matt built a little raised bed for our veggies and then we set about planting our seeds.

We filled the bed with topsoil first, and then after that we added a layer of gardening soil. We figured it was best to give these doomed little plants the best start they could have. I tried to help the boys plant the seeds, and Jack did great actually putting the seeds in the little holes that I dug. Luke...kind of scattered them around like he was feeding a chicken, so...you know...we'll see how that goes.

Then we gave them a good drink...

Luke looks so impressed doesn't he?

We plan on building another little raised bed next to this one for the rest of the seeds, and we also will need to build something for our pole beans to climb, you know...if they actually sprout.

There is a chance, however, that we will have a bigger harvest than our first garden back in 2009, in which we reaped TWO WHOLE CHERRY TOMATOES.

Not even kidding you guys. Two.

How about you? Are you planning any gardens this year?

Under the Boardwalk

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 14:54:00 +0000

I showed you step one of de-rampify the house in this post, but what I didn't mention is that there was still one more small ramp outside of the house that we lovingly referred to as the boardwalk. We weren't 100% sure what was under this one, and since we knew that we would need a step there if we removed it, we didn't want to get ahead of ourselves with that project.

Little did we know, that project was feeling very left out, so on Thursday night as Matt carried a box out of the house he went crashing through the boardwalk.

That will move a project up the list pretty quickly, so bright and early on Saturday morning I tackled the boardwalk. I wasn't quite sure how to go about it so I started at the bottom and took off a plank or two, and then I found that the wood was so rotted that all I had to do was give it a good heave with my brute strength (I'm kidding on that...I have spaghetti arms).

But look! Do you see what we found?

There was actually a normal step under there to begin with! Phew! We did not want to go about building one on our own at this point. We are planning on repainting all of the exterior concrete at some point, so it still looks a little less than impressive, but at least we don't have to wonder who will go crashing through next.

We ended up needing to use a shovel to clean up all the leaves and dirt that had accumulated there throughout the years, and although the after isn't anything spectacular - it is progress.

Now...for the big question. What color would you paint this door?

Light It Up

noreply@blogger.com (Bekah) — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 17:06:00 +0000

As I hinted at the end of Monday's post, I had big plans for the ceiling fan in our bedroom. You know the one...

Those ceiling tiles are ALSO on our honkin' big to-do list.

Now - I think this is purely a personal preference, but I really do not like having a fan blowing on me when I am asleep. I know some people love it, but it is just not for me. I get this panicky sense of not being able to breathe, which is not all that restful you know?

I have always loved the look of a pendent light over a bed, and waaay back in December I stumbled across a beautiful light on super-clearance at Lowes.

I happened to have a gift card that I had gotten for my birthday, so I snatched it up, even though I didn't know where I could use it (our old bedroom had super low ceilings - it wouldn't work there).

I stored it safely away in our basement, but now little little fella is having his moment to shine!

Note the napping child and dog? It's the only time I can write blog posts these days.

I actually took down the old fan and hung this light on my own, and for anyone feeling intimidated by lighting - don't be! I won't write a how-to for this, because there are SO many good ones out there. (Here is one if you need it). I will say that having two sets of hands makes replacing a ceiling light a lot easier, but it can be done if you just can't wait anymore!

I love the pretty brushed nickel finish of the fixture, and that the glass ball adds a little bit of glamor to it without making it fussy. Pretty sure Matt would NOT dig anything too glitzy in there!

I do think that eventually I will replace the two white lamp shades on the nightstands to something closer to this shade. Plus it picks up the beige in the rug, which I love. I can't even tell you how much this changes the room in person. I love walking in there and flipping the switch.

In fact, for a few days after I hung the light I am pretty sure I jacked our electric bill up from going in and just turning on the light to look at it :)

Our room still has a lot we will eventually do to it, such as window treatments, wall decor, blah blah blah, but I am very please with how far it has come!

Thank goodness for gift cards and clearance deals, otherwise this light would have had to wait for a loooong time for us to work our way down the list.