Cozy.Cottage.Cute.

The Coopster - One Month

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Fri, 25 May 2012 14:22:00 +0000

Technically I'm allowed to do a whole post on The Coopster. You see, the title of this blog is Cozy.Cottage.Cute. and he definitely falls under the "cute" category. If-you-know-what-I'm-sayin'.

I just can't believe that he is one month old already. In one month he has totally mastered the arts of:

a) snuggling

b) guzzling milk

c) mesmerizing everyone (especially his mama) with his cuteness

My last post mentioned that we were in no way settling into a routine. It's amazing what a week can do! The little hungry hippo can now make it a few hours between milkshakes. He's sleeping for longer stretches at night, and everything just seems to be getting a bit easier. You'd be so proud of me - I actually got some ribs in the slowcooker yesterday morning. This is an incredible feat since I've been living on Corn Pops for the last month. (What can I say? I had a craving for sugary cereal.)

Right now Cooper's list of favourite things to do include:

- taking snoozes on mom's belly (it's very cushy still) in the early mornings and late afternoons

- gazing out the living room window at the crabapple tree / sky / sun / birds

- dancing around the house to Bob Marley, John Mayer, and Joshua Radin

- watching late-night basketball with his dad

- zooming around the neighbourhood in his stroller

- hanging with mom in the moby wrap and hanging with dad in the baby bjorn

- drinking milk, drinking milk, drinking milk, drinking more milk (man, that stuff must taste good or something)

His current dislikes include:

- any form of getting clean which includes getting baby wiped during diaper changes, getting his face washed with a washcloth, and bathtime (such a boy!)

- mad kisses from Lexie on his face (we try to avoid those, but that dog is sneaky)

His current talents include:

- charming everyone he meets

- making ten thousand different facial expressions (our favourites are the stink eye, the one-eyed pirate, curious joe, and the goofy grin)

- lifting his head up during tummy time

Well, that's about it from my end. Our goal for today is to take a little road trip to the greenhouse to choose some flowers for the windowbox. Hopefully I can get it all planted up by the end of the weekend.

P.S. I love being a stay-at-home mom. It's the greatest. :)

P.S.S. I got the idea to write this post from Kelly over at Tearing Up Houses who also has an adorable newborn baby boy. Maybe they can be blog friends one day. ;)

Front Yard Planters

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Thu, 24 May 2012 19:43:00 +0000

We have a pair of large planters in our front yard that sit at the bottom of the stairs leading up to our front door. It's tricky to find flowers to plant in them since our humongous silver maple creates tonnes of shade at the front of the house.

Alex took me to the greenhouse last weekend (on my very first Mother's Day.... ♥♥♥) to choose some flowers to plant in them. While I browsed, he stood at the end of each tent-thing holding the baby / car seat looking bored out of his mind. He suffered through it just for me. What a guy. ;)

I filled the planters with a mixture of potting soil and black earth. I try not to use solely potting mix as I find it dries out too quickly.

I planted some ornamental grass in the middle of each to create some height.

To add some volume, I planted two Rio Pink Dipladenias at the back of each planter. They are really pretty and bloom all summer long.

Toward the front of each planter I planted two Light Yellow Begonias. They do really well in the shade so I tend to buy them every year.

And at the very front of each planter I planted a German Ivy. Last year I planted three in each planter and they kind of overtook everything else.

Here's how the two matching planters are looking right now. They look kind of small and pitiful but hopefully in a few weeks, with a little sun/water/miracle grow, everything will fill out.

So now that the planters are done, I can start planning what will go in my giant, twelve-foot windowbox. I'm so looking forward to choosing all of the flowers, not looking forward to the hefty price tag. Is it just me or are flowers ridiculously expensive?!?

Better Homes and Gardens has a slideshow with 25 different container gardens that are all gorgeous. You can check it out here if you want some inspiration.

How are your gardens coming along? Are you as behind as me? ;)

The Five Ugliest Spots In Our Backyard

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Mon, 21 May 2012 14:05:00 +0000

I recently stumbled upon a picture of our backyard from a few years ago. I almost cried when I saw it.

The grass was so long and green and luscious. So, so, so very long and green and luscious.

I'm sure you can guess from my tears that it doesn't look like that anymore.

Here is the old photo:

I have no idea how our backyard went on such a downward spiral to ugly. I think I'll blame the two dogs. They pee on the grass, trample the grass, and one of 'em likes to dig holes. Sigh.

I figured that if I show you the five ugliest spots in our yard, it will motivate me to fix 'em up and create some good before and after photos.

Don't forget that up North where we're at, we only really have three months to work on the lawn and garden. I had to wait until this weekend to plant flowers because until now, there was still a chance of frost at night.

So anyway, here are the five ugliest spots in our backyard at the moment. Ick, yuck, boooooooo.

This is a spot along the edge of the yard next to our neighbour's fence. This is the one spot in the yard where the dogs LOVE to stand, lie, and playfight. It's full of dirt and dandelions because grass refuses to grow there. My plan of attack is to remove the dandelions, add some topsoil, add some of the new Scott's Coated Grass Seed for Dense Shade, as well as some starter fertilizer. Any tips on how I can get the dogs off of this area while those tiny blades of grass are popping up???

We have quite a few areas with burnt grass from the dogs, you know, peeing. When we just had Roary I was able to keep up with digging out the grass and planting new grass seed. With two dogs though, the burnt spots have taken over! My first step will be to dig out the dead grass. Then, I'll add some of that insta-grass stuff that I bought last year. It has seed and mulch and fertilizer all in one that you just plop on and water. It works great for little tiny areas.

We had brilliant plans to skirt the deck with vertical planks to make the deck look all finished off and pretty. We haven't gotten around to it yet. That means we have this ugly view. Under the tarp is the wood for the deck stairs that we also haven't gotten around to building yet. Add it to the list. ;) My job will be to do up a little sketch for Alex. Then he'll have to take over this project with his mad work-working skillz.

Before we fenced in the backyard for the pups there was a row of bricks in the grass separating the lawn from the gravel driveway. The bricks are still there along this section of fence. It looks so ugly. We are leaving it for now because if we take them all out the grass will just spread into the driveway. We need a prettier solution that's for sure. Ideas anyone?

This little section along the house is in between the lower deck and the front fence. There was hardly any grass so I decided that I would dig up what grass was there and plant a little perennial garden. I started off by planting a climbing hydrangea last summer. I'll need to add a trellis for it to climb, rich soil, more flowers, some type of edging, and Alex will eventually replace that crusty basement window.

I used to be all competitive and pretend I was in a contest to have the nicest lawn on the street. I am currently losing that contest. Please tell me I'm not the only one with super ugly spots in their yard. It will make me feel better, mmmkay?

Giveaway Winner + A Few Pics + House Stuff

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:11:00 +0000

Oh, hello there. :)

First, I'd like to announce the winner of my Cooper-Likes-You-Giveaway for a paper decoration from Maisy and Alice on Etsy. I just knew that some of you would love their decorations as much as I do. Don't forget that you still have a few days to receive a 15% discount if you didn't win the giveaway and would like to order something from their shop. Just enter the code cozycottage15 at checkout.

Without further ado, the winner was entry #38, Louise from NE, Oklahoma.

Congratulations, Louise! I'll email you soon with the details. :)

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To switch topics completely, things around here are getting into somewhat of a routine. Okay, that was a big fat lie. No routine over here. Just snuggles and feedings and more snuggles and more and more and more and more and more and more feedings. I had NO IDEA what breastfeeding was going to be like. At first I felt utterly useless because I couldn't get a single thing done around the house in an entire day. But then I read alot of info on the internet (most likely at 4:00 in the morning, heh heh) and I have come to realize that that's completely normal for newborns and newborn mamas. I just have to embrace my new job (best job in the world, right?) and enjoy our little snugglefests while I can. I've got myself all set up with a cozy spot in the living room, a good book, tonnes of chick flicks, awesome blogs to read on my blogroll (I'm still reading, I swear!), my two furry friends nearby, and of course a pile of snacks and drinks. Who ever knew a person could be so hungry and thirsty?

Sorry if that last bit was too-much-information. You have my permission to forget that you ever read a paragraph on my blog that had the word breast in it.

{Squirming in my chair all awkward-like.}

I thought I'd share a few more pictures because apparently I am an over-sharer now when it comes to my personal life. Hope y'all don't mind.

This was us on our first big walk a few weeks ago. Cooper loved it so much that he slept through the entire thing. How about we pretend that I'm not wearing XL forest green jogging pants from Wal-Mart with a hot pink hoodie and that I gained 40-some pounds during this pregnancy.

Here is a more recent photo of Mini-Coop watching basketball and snuggling with his dad. We love those monkey pajamas. Soooooo cute!

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In house-related news we finally, after over six years in this house, chose and purchased a patio table set for outside. I feel like doing the Carlton dance just thinking about it. It was SUCH a good purchase. The price was pretty darn cheap as far as patio sets go, it fits perfectly on our top deck, and it goes nicely with the conversation set that we bought recently for our lower deck. I feel like such a grown-up now with real outdoor furniture. (Hmmmm, the new baby kinda makes me a grown-up too, I suppose.) I'll make sure to share details about and pictures of the new set as soon as I can.

Hope you all are doing great and I am so sorry if I haven't responded to your questions, comments, or emails yet. Thank you so much for sending them my way and I'll try to do better at responding right away.

P.S. The temperature is finally in the twenties today up here in Northern Ontario and it really truly feels like heaven. Now if only I could fit into my shorts............ ;)

Nursery Source List - Part Two

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:58:00 +0000

A week or so ago I was able to share some of the sources for items in the nursery. I'm going to try and do another section of the room while I have two hands to type. Code for baby is finally sleeping.

I purchased the dresser for about $90 at the Christie Lake Antique Show two years ago. It's old. It sat in our basement for the longest time. I refinished it using two different paint colours (grey and white), distressed it, and added some brushed nickel drawer pulls from Home Depot and some brushed nickel house numbers from Canadian Tire. I wrote a whole post about the process which you can read here. Oh yeah, here is the before and after picture:

The numbers on the front have actually been really handy. Occasionally I'll ask Alex to get an outfit for me and he'll ask where. All I have to say is, "Drawer #2"!!!!!

Since I made so many 3-D butterfly art pictures for friends' baby showers, I thought it was only fitting that I had my own version for my little baby's room. I really loved the blues and greens that were in the star map garlands that I mentioned in my last source list post. I went to a local used book store and found an atlas for $4. Most of the stars were punched from random places but I made sure to include one star with our hometown and one star with Ethiopia. I already had the large white picture frame from Homesense but I picked up the double matte from Michaels (with a 40% off coupon of course).

Of course I had to have a few decorative items on top of the dresser. I bought a tiny plant from Lowes and planted it in a tiny square, ceramic flower pot from Chapters. It's hard to tell in the photo but the pot is white with tiny greyish blue crackle lines all the way through it. It's really neat. I bought about 6 packages of marbles from our local dollar store and dropped all of the soft, pretty coloured ones into an old milk bottle that I already had. The little wooden turtle is a toy that I found at Homesense.

On the other side of the dresser is an adorable set of books from Chapters: Little Hoot, Little Oink, and Little Pea by Amy Krouse Rosenthal. The whale is a piggy bank (or would I call it a whale-y bank?) also from Chapters.

Sitting beside the dresser is a tiny antique child's chair that I found at the Christie Lake Antique Show the same year that I found the above dresser.

I refinished the chair quite a while ago and you can read that post here. The little stuffed zebra sitting on the chair is one of my favourite things in the room. It's called a Kenana Knitter Critter and I found it at a local home decor shop.

Hanging from the closet doorknob is a tiny woven basket which I purchased on a road trip to Muskoka a few years ago. I bought three of them and use them all the over the house for little odds and ends. In this case it's holding a little owl rattle from Chapters.

There is a tiny wall beside the closet so I hung a simple little white frame from Wal-Mart over top of the lightswitch. Inside the frame is one of my favourite pictures from Charlotte's Web. I used the copy of the book that I had already cut up for this project.

I'll be back later this week to share the info about the rest of the room. Sorry I have to break this up into so many posts. I've been finding it hard to find time to brush my teeth before noon these days. Gross, yes I know. ;)

Here are links to the other related posts:

Little Ninja's Nursery

Nursery Source List - Part One

This 'N That + A Giveaway Reminder

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Fri, 11 May 2012 15:17:00 +0000

I wish you could see my living room / dining room / sunroom situation right now. Every corner, every surface, every square inch is filled up with baby gear. I'm working on trying to find "places" for everything but it's a slooooow process.

Even though the pops of neon kind of drive my white-neutral-loving brain a little crazy, I don't really mind. After all, what's more important is this little chunk of love.

Can you believe that he is two weeks old already?!? I'm trying to memorize every little adorable detail since he's changing so fast already. See, his eyes are open!

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So remember yesterday (or was it the day before?) I was talking about choosing a runner for our staircase? Well, I came across my inspiration picture from Pottery Barn on Pinterest this morning.

That's why I chose the following wool rug samples. They were the closest I could find to the above picture.

Still not sure if this is what we're going to go with. Did I mention the insane cost? The rug plus install will be almost $2000. Ca-razy town. Yes, I know. But that's just an estimate and it's including the stair landing, and the tiny hallway upstairs. Still, I think we might need to shop around a bit.

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Don't forget that today is the last day to enter my thanks-for-loving-on-Cooper-giveaway. Just leave a comment to win a super-cute paper decoration from Maisy and Alice on Etsy. Here is the link to the giveaway post.

Good luck and I like your hair today. Mine is wrapped up in a towel turban-style and has been for the last two hours. Bet you five bucks my hair has dried all wonky and ridiculous-like. Awesome. ;)

We Need a Stair Runner

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Wed, 09 May 2012 15:41:00 +0000

Hey there stranger.

Today I'd like to talk about how much we need a stair runner. We need one bad. We needed one, like, yesterday.

When we got the floors refinished on the 2nd floor of our home back in December, a huge chunk of the cost was getting the stair treads refinished as well. They sent two workers out to our house and one of them worked on the stairs alone for the whole week as they had to be done by hand.

I don't think I showed any pictures of the stairs so I'll show you a quick photo right now. The treads look awesome when you're looking at the stairs from the top.

However, the worker-dude kinda made a mess of the risers. I was actually pretty fuming mad but I've since come to terms with it. He chipped the heck out of the paint on the risers and slopped polyurethane all over them too.

So not impressed. I wish they would have told us so that we could have taped them. Alas they did not and now I have to go back and prime and paint all the stair treads. Booooo.

So, the reason we need a stair runner is because of this bad dog. Lexie.

Whenever she's upstairs and hears the littlest noise downstairs, she scrambles down the stairs as fast as she can (to investigate) and leaves a million and one scratches in her wake.

{Insert tears here.}

A stair runner will help protect the wood from scratches. It will also help with the noise factor. See, when Lexie hears a noise and scrambles down the stairs, Roary always follows. It creates quite a bit of chaos.

Note: Yes, our dogs are very well-trained and well-behaved. :S

So, we went to a local carpet store a few weeks ago to check out some rug samples. I had this picture of a Pottery Barn rug that I was using for inspiration. I would show you but they've since discontinued that rug and I can't find a picture anywhere! It had kind of a two-tone look to it.

These are the samples that I'm currently looking at that remind me of the dreamy Pottery Barn picture. You'll just have to trust me that it was dreamy.

The one I like the best is in the second row, far left. However, I'm afraid that it's too light in colour and will get dirty too fast with the dogs and their muddy paw prints.

Question: WHY do the dogs insist on playing in the one spot of the yard where grass won't grow and it's just a pile of dirt?!? WHY!?!?!?!

So, we need to make a decision asap and we also need to paint those risers asap. Hmmmm, what to do, what to do.

Let's look at some inspiration pictures instead of making a decision. That sounds fun. I really love the stripes but we don't have anything like that locally. So, something natural fibre and neutral is what we're looking for.

Source: Pinterest
Original Source: Iroka

Source: Pinterest
Original Source: Houzz

Source: Pinterest
Original Source: Little House Blog

Source: Pinterest
Original Source: Country Living

Source: Pinterest
Original Source: Unknown

Source: Pinterest
Original Source: An Inspired Life

We've had that carpet sample for a few weeks now and the man from the carpet store has left two messages on our answering machine asking us to return it. He sounds kinda mad. Whoopsie!

Thank You, a Giveaway, and More Mini-Coop Pics

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Fri, 04 May 2012 14:22:00 +0000

One week + one day old.

Mini-Cooper asked me to write this post to say thank you so, so, so, so, so, so much for all of your well wishes and congratulations that you left on this post. I never would have imagined that so many of you would take the time to leave such lovely comments. Our little family appreciates them very, very much. We are so lucky that he is healthy, happy, and very, very hungry (holy feedings, batman).

It was Cooper's idea to have a little giveaway to say thank you from the bottom of his little heart.

Remember those star map garlands hanging in little man's room?

They are from an adorable little Etsy shop called Maisy and Alice.

The shop is filled with adorable handmade paper decorations. The lovely shop owner has generously offered to give away any item from her shop (value up to $20) to one of you.

Not only that, she is offering a 15% discount to my readers for the next two weeks (just in case you don't win the giveaway but still would like an item from her shop).

So, here are the deets:

Giveaway Guidelines:

This giveaway is now closed.

{Open worldwide.}

{One chance to win.}

{Giveaway will close Friday, May 11th, 2012 at 5:00 p.m.}

{Open to readers/subscribers of www.cozycottagecute.com}

How to enter:

Head on over to the Maisy and Alice Etsy shop and then come back here and leave a comment telling me which item you would choose if you won the giveaway. Easy peasy!

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P.S. Don't forget to leave your first name and email address in your comment if you don't have a link back to your own site.

P.S.S. For a 15% discount at Maisy and Alice, add the discount code cozycottage15 in the coupon code box at checkout. Again, this discount will be available until Friday, May 18th, 2012. Score!

P.S.S.S. If you like what you see at the shop, you can also check out Maisy and Alice on Facebook or on Pinterest.

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I think we might be friends or something. Why else would I share pics of myself with wacky hair and no make-up???

Nursery Source List - Part One

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Tue, 01 May 2012 16:31:00 +0000

Oooooh weeeee I was able to get a few hours of sleep last night (in a row!) so I think I'll be able to put together a coherent post today. :)

First I want to thank each and every one of you who took the time to leave a comment about Little Ninja's nursery. I even had some long time readers leave their very first comment! Let me tell you it sure made this girl feel good. Even though you're going to think I'm a super-dork I'll let you in on a little secret. While I've sat and fed Little Man I've gone back a bunch of times to reread all of the super sweet comments. Dorky part coming up: the crazy hormones got me all teary every time I went back and read them.

{Those of you who said I should do the decorating thing for a living - I copied your comments and put them on the fridge for Alex so he'll think it's a good idea if I never go back to work. Muhahaha!}{Just kidding I didn't do that.}{But I want to.}

Annnnnnd, moving on..... ;)

I thought I would do a few posts sharing where I found all of the elements in the nursery. If you have any questions or I missed something please ask in the comments, k?

So, we'll start with the cozy corner.

The rug is probably one of my favourite things in the room. It fits perfectly in the centre of the room and adds so much texture and warmth. I ordered it from Pottery Barn. It's the 6' Round Jute Rug in Natural.

The chair is from Ikea. It's small enough to fit in the tiny room but not too small to fit me and the little guy for a late night feeding. It's the Extorp Jennylund armchair in white.

The floor lamp was one of those awesome Homesense finds. I found that the shape of the shade was kind of industrial looking and would fit well in a boy's room.

The two pillows I made. The pillow forms were from Fabricland. I cut up a Debbie Travis shower curtain from Canadian Tire for the striped fabric and the white linen fabric was from a Pier One curtain panel that I shrunk by accident. I wrote a post about how I made the small car cushion here.

On the windows are some bamboo roller shades from Linens N' Things that we installed a few years ago. I added only one curtain panel per window. I found the sheerest white linen panels that I could find from Crate and Barrel. I'll admit that they were way expensive to buy and ship here but I knew they would be a good investment as I can use them in any other room if I want to switch them out down the road. The pewter curtain rod is from Lowe's and made by Allen and Roth. I actually only used one big rod since I only needed the two finials showing. (The plain rod goes right up to each wall and is covered by each curtain.) Alex did need to cut the metal rods to the length we needed though.

Don't you just love these star map garlands from Maisy and Alice on Etsy? At first I ordered one to string horizontally on the wall over the crib but it looked so cute hanging vertically from one of the curtain rods that I went back and ordered a second one so I could hang a garland in front of each window.

I'll have to leave the rest of the room details to a few separate future posts since I typed this whole thing with only one hand (baby in the other arm). (I'm trying to multi-task.)

Check on back over the next few days if you'd like read more about the nursery.

P.S. I like you.

P.S.S. I slept on my stomach last night (even despite the creepy, jiggly Buddha belly that I've got goin' on) and it was AWESOME!

I'm a Mommy

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 02:49:00 +0000

Last time I posted I was just a girl.

Now, I'm a mommy. I feel important. :)

Little Ninja was born at 9:21 p.m. on Wednesday night weighing in at 8 lb 7 oz (Woah!)(Oh wait, remember that huge belly picture?)

He is officially the cutest baby ever and I have the certificate to prove it.

He gets this title even when he scrunches up his face and looks like a grumpy old man.

I heart him.

He's the cutest.

Okay, I'll stop now.

I don't have a million pictures (yet) because apparently newborns eat for 22 hours of the day/night.

I will share my two favourite photos so far. The first one is a silly Instragram photo that I snapped in the hospital and the second is a picture that I tried to make look fancy by using some filters in Lightroom.

Okay, here he is.

P.S. Feel free to ooooh and aaaaaah as much as you like. I won't mind.

P.S.S. His name is Cooper. But he likes to be called Mini-Coop. I know, I know, what's with me and the nicknames?

Okay, here he is for real.

Loungin' at the hospital. Two days old.

Chillin' at home. Four days old.

Tomorrow we have a "photoshoot" booked. Me and him. I'm the photographer, he's the model. I may or may not bore you with ten thousand photos of him after that.

P.S.S.S. Do you see that chin? Ca-ute-ness!

Little Ninja's Nursery

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 19:29:00 +0000

This is going to be a pictures only post today, k?

Lots and lots and lots of pictures.

My plan is to do a separate post tomorrow with links, info, and sources on where I purchased everything in the room and/or how I made stuff.

I'll also make sure to include the room dimensions, paint colours, as well as before pictures from when we moved in and the room had blue walls and pink carpeting.

Update:

Nursery Source List - Part One
Nursery Source List - Part Two

Well, here goes. My interpretation of a neutral little boy's nursery that isn't theme-y, blends in with the house, and has a little bit of a modern / cottage vibe.

Well...... (biting fingernails)...... do you like it?

Sharing Here:

Show Me What Ya Got @ Not Just a Housewife, The Creative Spark @ Clean & Scentsible, Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest, Feathered Nest Friday @ French Country Cottage, Frugalicious Friday @ Finding Fabulous, Simply Klassic Sunday @ Simply Klassic Home, Picture Perfect Rooms @ Funky Junk Interiors, Room Evolution Party @ Evolution of Style, Kids Rooms @ Thrifty Decor Chick

A Not-So-Productive Day

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 22:55:00 +0000

Well, I think my productivity is officially slowing down. I had so much that I wanted/needed to get done today.

I heart Instagram.

My list included:

- ~~going to the post office to send off some adoption documents~~

- laundry

- vacuuming

- ~~walking the dogs~~

- ~~driving to Lowes and Homesense for some small errands~~

- ~~tweaking the last little details in Ninja's room~~

- taking millions of pictures of Ninja's room

- writing super detailed nursery blog post

- making supper

Less than half. Humph.

Alex just got home from work and I've already instructed him on how to make pogos and then deliver them to me in bed so that I can continue to lie here and finish watching:

How 'bout you? Were you productive today?

DIY Growth Chart Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 17:08:00 +0000

I am so, so excited that I finally tackled and finished this project. It's been on my to-do list since I first saw my original inspiration pictures on Pinterest. Here are the dreamy photos that inspired this project to begin with. Totally not my idea. This is me being a big ol' copycat.

Image: Pinterest
Original Source: Silhouette America Blog

Image: Pinterest
Original Source: Dear Lillie

I knew I wanted some chocolate-y brown wood in Little Ninja's nursery since everything else is so light and white. I love the faded stripes in the first photo and love the scale and wood-tone of the second photo.

So, here's a step-by-step tutorial on how I made my own version of the two.

DIY Growth Chart Tutorial

First, I purchased a large pine board from Lowe's. I chose the nicer looking wood that has less knot-holes. I didn't want them bleeding through under my purty white stripes. I also dug out some wood stain that I already had from a previous project. I used Varathane Gel Stain in Special Walnut:

Supplies: Pine board, foam roller, gel stain.

Using a foam brush, I applied two coats of stain on all sides of the pine board. I waited a few hours in between coats and made sure to apply the stain outside where there was lots of ventilation. Stain = stinky:

After two coats of Special Walnut stain.

I found some large number stickers at Michael's that I thought would be super easy to use rather than making my own number stencils (like I've done in the past). I also don't have a Silhouette machine or anything fancy. Stickers it would be:

Large number stickers from Michael's.

I tinkered around with the measuring tape for a while trying to figure out the measurements. It helped to lay the stickers out on the wood to visualize how it might look:

Figuring out the measurements.

Once I decided where everything would go, I used a square thingy from the basement to make sure the lines for my stripes were nice and straight:

Marking the lines for my stripes.

Next I taped off where my stripes would go, and also taped off a section at top and bottom where I wanted Alex to trim the board with his table saw:

Taping the stripes.

Once my board was trimmed I painted some 6-inch stripes using a small paintbrush and some flat white paint that I had leftover from a previous project. I applied two coats of paint for the stripes:

Painting the stripes.

Next I removed all of the tape:

After removing the tape.

I wanted my numbers to be white, so I made sure to apply the background of each sticker to the unpainted wood sections:

Adding the stickers.

After making sure the stickers were adhered really well, I painted the inside of each number with a small craft brush. I ended up needing three coats of paint for inside each number:

Painting the numbers.

Once the paint was dry to the touch, I peeled off each sticker, and was left with crisp white numbers:

After removing the stickers.

My stripes and numbers didn't stay crisp-looking for long. I let everything dry overnight and then used an electric sander and 100-grit sandpaper to sand the living daylights out of 'em:

After sanding with 100-grit sandpaper and electric sander.

I wanted the board to look really worn and faded and old since I have some really crisp and new elements in the nursery. I wanted quite a bit of contrast.

So...... here are some photos of the finished project, although again I'm trying not to show you too much of the room just yet. :)

Pinterest challenge - done!

I think I might be smitten.

We installed the growth chart behind the door to the room since that section of wall was kind of bare-looking when the door was closed.

{Note: I decided not to add any ruler lines because I like how simple it looks and didn't want to make it too busy looking.}

Now I only have two more little things to tweak this weekend before I show you the whole room on Monday.

Weeeeeeeeeee!

P.S. If I missed any steps or if you have a question about this project please feel free to leave me a note in the comments section. :)

P.S.S. To see the growth chart in the finished room, click here.

Sharing Here:

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Eating Brownies and Working on a Project

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 16:23:00 +0000

It's been pretty quiet over here for the last few days as I was frantically trying to unpack and organize five thousand baby bouncers, play mats, and whale-shaped baby bathtubs. Where oh where do I put all of this stuff? And why oh why did I think that choosing the tiniest room in the house would be a perfect nursery for Little Ninja?

The good news is that the hospital bag is packed, all of the tiny clothes are washed and folded, and the car-seat is finally installed in our Pathfinder. We're going on a shopping date tonight to pick up the few remaining essentials that we are still missing: a baby monitor and some glass bottles. I have an itch to find a cute new hoodie and a cute pair of joggers, too. All of my current ones are kind of, well, s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d.

In other news - I ate a brownie for breakfast. Then I felt gross. The craziest part is that I walked past the plate of brownies a few minutes ago and actually thought about having another one. I refrained. For now. Seriously, what is wrong with me.

In other, other news - even though it is supposed to be spring we are getting 15-20 cm of snow today. SNOW. Yucky, soggy snow. Just in case you don't believe me, here's the picture I took of Lexie on the deck a few minutes ago:

I think I might have just changed my mind about leaving the house today.

In other, other, other news - now that I'm feeling semi-baby-organized I've got a bit of time to finish up one of the projects that I've been meaning to work on for the last while.

The project includes:

A piece of wood
Stain
Paint
Painter's tape
Number stickers
Sandpaper

Can you guess what it might be??? I'm about to break out the hair dryer to make the paint dry faster. That's how bad I wanna show you what it is.

Oh yeah, and in other, other, other, other news - I thought it would be fun to go for a bike ride with Alex and the dogs yesterday. Let's just say I got a few unusual stares from the neighbours as I biked with my knees out to the sides like I was riding a tiny tricycle. Good times over here, good times.

A Baby Shower and A Stencil Giveaway Winner

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 20:19:00 +0000

Yesterday was such a busy day! I slept in an extra two hours today to recover from all of the excitement. My family and friends threw me the world's best baby shower, no word of a lie. There was an amazing homemade meal, a super-cutely decorated venue, the gifts were out-of-control, and of course all of my favourite ladies were there to celebrate Little Ninja. It was the best!

I only have a few pictures to share because I was so busy schmoozing but here are a few details.

I couldn't resist making some cute homemade cupcakes for the occasion. I used my little alphabet stamper, some scrapbook paper, one of my paper punches, and some sprinkles to decorate them. I use this recipe whenever I make vanilla cupcakes. Sooooo yummy. Let's forget how much butter there is in the recipe, k?

Baby Shower Cupcakes

My mom got all crafty and whipped up an adorable little diaper cake. I think it's the cutest one I've ever seen. I might be biased, though. :)

Baby Shower Diaper Cake

Everyone told us to wait until after the baby shower before buying any clothes for the little guy. I was panicking a bit because our dresser drawers were practically empty and his due date was getting closer and closer. I'm glad I waited because dude cleaned up. I decided to use my new wire basket as a little laundry hamper and it is now FULL of little sleepers and outfits. And these are only the clothes that are 0-3 months! We have a huge pile of 6-9 month outfits and 9-12 month outfits. I think I might need a bigger dresser now. Aren't they adorable? That froggy hat? Seriously?!?

Baby Shower Loot

We are so grateful for the love and generosity. Alex was a bit sad that he missed all the fun but he felt better once he got to put his boy skills to use by assembling the highchair and stroller.

I think we're feeling a bit more prepared. Sort of.

AHHHH!

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$50 Royal Design Studio Stencil Giveaway Winner

I want to thank everyone who entered the Royal Design Studio stencil giveaway that I held last week. It was really fun to read all of your comments and to hear which stencils you would choose and where you'd use them. I'm excited to announce that the winner of the $50 stencil is commenter #84:

Janice from Life Begins at Thirty, Right?

I stumbled upon her blog a month or so ago and have been following along ever since. She's preggers with a little boy too...... AND she's a fellow Canadian. Cool, eh? {Haha, that was a joke.}

Congratulations Janice and I'll get you in touch with the peeps at Royal Design Studio a.s.a.p.!!!

Little Car Throw Pillow

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 14:48:00 +0000

First of all, can I just say thank you soooooo much for your kind comments and well wishes on my last post. They were just what I needed because I sure haven't been feeling that cute lately. A new pink, stripey shirt and your ultra-sweet messages made me feel like a million bucks. Thank you again. :)

I know I said I wouldn't be showing any more pictures of nursery stuff until all of the finishing details were done, but I whipped up a little cushion yesterday and it turned out so cute that I just had to share.

I knew I wanted a little throw pillow for the Ikea chair that's in the corner:

I wanted something cute but not too babyish. Fabric is next to impossible to find in this town (and I don't have time to order anything online) so I ended up using some leftovers from what I already had:

- 1 white cotton/linen curtain panel from Pier One (I also used this to sew up a plain jane crib skirt)

- 1 striped cotton shower curtain from Canadian Tire (I used this fabric to cover the chairs in the sunroom)

Here's how I did it:

First, I sketched a little car outline on blank paper and cut it out.

Next, I placed the outline onto my decorative fabric until my stripes were lined up how I wanted them:

I traced my outline onto the fabric, cut it out, centred it on my plain background fabric, and adhered it with a bit of fabric glue:

Once the fabric glue was dry, I sewed the car to my pillow fabric with a basic straight stitch. Then I ruffled up the edges to make them look kinda worn:

Next, I placed my two pieces of rectangular fabric together (good sides facing in) and pinned them in place. I sewed them together using a straight stitch and a half-inch seam allowance. I left a small opening on one side to stuff the pillow in:

Using the opening in the side, I turned the pillow cover right-side-out and used the opening to hand-sew on two buttons for wheels:

Once both buttons were on, I stuffed the pillow form into the opening and sewed the opening shut with a basic slipstitch:

The pillow size is 13x20 and should look pretty cute stuffed into that Ikea chair in the nursery. The best part about it was that it was free since I just used what I already had. I'll make sure to show you how it looks when I'm alllllllll done the room.

Well, that's it for now. I'm off to make some more toast. Mmmmm, toast with butter and honey.

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Giveaway Reminder:

Don't forget to enter my current giveaway for a $50 stencil from Royal Design Studio. Click on this post if you would like to enter. The giveaway closes tonight at 5:00 p.m.

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Belly.Is.Out.Of.Control.

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 19:52:00 +0000

Alex and I were lazing around last night and he mentioned that he was a bit sad that I didn't have any photos of my giant belly to show Lil' Ninja when he grows up. Up until about ten minutes ago I only had one picture - the one I posted here when I first shared our exciting news.

Since I actually got dressed today (in jeans, not joggers) I thought I would surprise Alex with a few pictures.

Then I thought, I should really share 'em with my blog friends too.

Please don't laugh. The belly is officially out of control.

Only two weeks left to go. That means crunch time for getting this nursery finished. I won't be showing you any more pictures until I'm done tweaking all the little details to finish off the room. My list of to-do's is still really long (ahhhh!) so we'll see how I do.

Thank you for all of your encouraging comments and support. You're the coolest.

Hi, It's a New Blog Layout

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 16:24:00 +0000

Hey there girlfriend. Just thought I'd share a little update that I'm working on a new blog layout this week. It's coming together but definitely not finished yet.

I mentioned before that I was thinking about moving this Blogger blog over to Wordpress. Truth is, I installed Wordpress a few weeks ago and tried playing around with it. It was a bit confusing for little old me.

So, I searched the 'net instead until I found a Blogger theme that had a crisp, clean layout AND the reply to comments feature that I was wanting.

For now, please don't mind the spacing and font glitches, etc. I'll try to have it all nice and pretty again by the end of the week.

P.S. If you've got any advice for me as I'm adding new features n' things, please share. I'll be your bestie.

Nursery Progress - Finally a Light Fixture

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 14:56:00 +0000

Another decorating dilemma that was stressing-me-out-biggy-time was finding a light fixture for the baby's room. It turns out that buying 5000 white picture frames eats up your decorating budget so there wasn't much left for a fancy-dancy light fixture from Schoolhouse Electric, Restoration Hardware, or Barnlight Electric. (Eye candy over there, much?)

In my last post about possible light fixtures, I had found four fairly inexpensive, local lighting options that I was debating. You peeps helped me narrow it down to two of them:

Schoolhouse Light - Home Depot

Fabric Pendant Light - Lowes

Except as my luck would have it, the schoolhouse lights from Home Depot online were/are back-ordered and the fabric pendant light from Lowes online was only for Lowes.com and not Lowes.ca.

Waaaaaaaaaaaah. I just knew the world was against me.

Alex and I decided to take a trip to Lowe's a few nights ago to look at their outdoor furniture cushions and I decided to walk the lighting aisles one last time to see if there was anything, anything I could use for Ninja's room.

(P.S. Aren't I dramatic with all the italics?)

That's when I saw a mini-version of the fabric pendant light that was supposedly only available at Lowes in the States. I checked the box and it was the same brand and everything (Good Earth Lighting). We snatched it up and installed it yesterday.

Dude has a light! Now I'll be able to find his teeny tiny bum to change his teeny tiny diapers.

Here is a picture with the old light fixture:

Here is a picture of the new light fixture:

I still have to get Alex to twist the shade around so that you can't see the seams but overall I think it fits in nicely with the room. In my dream of all dreams I would have had some kind of rustic / cottage-y metal light but for $59 and off-the-shelf I'm pretty happy with how this one looks instead.

Now, 'member that tiny diaper that I mentioned?

That is one seriously small bum! ;)

P.S. Leave a comment on this giveaway post if you'd like a chance to win your choice of stencil from Royal Design Studio.

Giveaway - $50 Stencil from Royal Design Studio

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 11:56:00 +0000

{This giveaway is now closed.}

It's giveaway time, baby.

The lovely folks at Royal Design Studio have generously offered to giveaway one of their stencils, worth up to $50, to one of my lovely readers. That's you! Oh yeah, and they are also going to ship it to you for free!

If you liked how my stenciled wall turned out (see picture below), then you can have a chance to try this project somewhere in your own home. I'd love it if you did because then we would be stencil-kindred-spirits. Uhhhh, is that a word? Probably not but you know what I mean. In case you missed my last post (Stenciled Wall - Before and After), I decided to create an accent wall in our little babe-to-be's nursery by using an allover wall stencil. It turned out sooooo cute!

Here are some pictures of my favourite stencils that Royal Design Studio has to offer (although there are way more to choose from):

Endless Circles Lattice Moroccan Stencil

Small Moorish Trellis Stencil

Encantada Damask Medium Stencil

They are all so pretty! If you didn't notice the first picture is the stencil that I chose and used. Hahahaha. Of course I like that one!

So, now to the fun part. Here's how to win. If you're not already a follower of Cozy.Cottage.Cute. then it's time you signed on. There are so many ways to do this! You can sign up with Google Friend Connect (sidebar), you can subscribe by email (sidebar), you can subscribe by RSS feed (sidebar), and now you can "like" Cozy.Cottage.Cute. on Facebook.

Giveaway Guidelines:

{Open to Canadian and U.S. Residents.}

{Giveaway will close Friday, April 13th, 2012 at 5:00 p.m.}

{Several chances to win. Make sure to leave a separate comment for each entry.}

Chance #1

Browse the Royal Design Studio website and select a stencil that you would like to use for a project. Come back here and leave a comment on which stencil you like and how/where you would use it.

Chance #2

"Like" the Royal Design Studio Facebook Fanpage. Come back over here and leave a comment that you did.

Chance #3

Follow Designamour on Twitter. Leave a comment letting me know that you did.

Chance #4

Follow Royal Design Studio's Pinterest page. Leave a comment saying that you did.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

You can leave one entry, or four separate entries for more chances to win - you decide. Just make sure that if you're not a fellow blogger with a link back to your site, leave your first name and email address so that I can find you if you win.

P.S. I hope you win! Good luck!

Sewin' Up a Crib Skirt

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 21:31:00 +0000

Well it's Day #2 of ~~my freedom~~ me being off of work and I think I'll end up dedicating a whole separate post to the sheer loveliness of it all.

{I heart slippers, I heart having time to respond to comments, I heart taking the dogs for mid-morning walks. Etc., Etc., Etc.}

What I'll say right now is that this time is really helping me cross some projects off of my to-do list for the baby's room.

One project on my list was to sew up a crib skirt since I couldn't find any that I liked (a.k.a. plain). I'm still going for an airy, neutral colour scheme so I'm sure you're not surprised that I went with white.

I had two white linen/cotton curtain panels from Pier One that I accidentally shrunk a few months ago. (I spilled coffee on one of the panels and washed them in cold water - they still shrunk about 4 inches!)

I just wanted a Plain Jane crib skirt so I didn't use any patterns or instructions. I didn't want ruffles or box pleats or anything fancy. Just four panels of fabric hanging down on each side. So I took some measurements and then winged it.

{Let me know if you want a tutorial, but it was pretty easy to do if you're thinking about making your own.}

I chose to make the panels a foot long around the bottom of the crib so that I can still use the skirt if/when I decide to lower the crib mattress. It should still fit then without dragging on the floor.

So, here it is all sewn up. Not very exciting, but a project that's done nonetheless. Woohoo!

I'm not sure what it is but my pictures have been sucking lately! I'll have to re-take that last one tomorrow since it's so out of focus. Whoopsie!

My plan for tomorrow is to install some curtain rods and finally hang some curtains. If I get it done that will make three projects finished in three days. I'm getting there. :)

P.S. THANK YOU SO MUCH for all of your sweet comments on the stenciled wall. Aw, shucks it means a lot.

P.S.S. I'll be hosting a giveaway for a Royal Design Studio stencil very soon so come on back to check that out!

Stenciled Wall - Before and After

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 19:37:00 +0000

A few months back I came across a photo of a nursery on Pinterest that had a diamond pattern stenciled on one wall. It got my mind racing. In an I-want-to-copy-that-look kind of way.

Could I really, truly break out of my comfort zone and stencil a funky pattern on one of the walls in Little Ninja's nursery? I thought about it. I thought about it some more. I thought about it even more than any person should think about stenciled walls.

{Hello again, indecisiveness.}

It must've been fate because shortly after I couldn't make a decision, I received an email from Royal Design Studio asking if I would like to try out one of their stencils. I did a little happy dance, and then I said yes. Yes, yes, yes!!!

Next came the even harder decision of which stencil to choose. What made it even more difficult was finding out that this little bun in the oven is a boy.

I wanted to choose something whimsical and fun but not too girly. I decided to go with their Endless Circles Lattice Moroccan Stencil. Better Homes and Gardens featured this stencil in one of their articles, see picture below:

Cute, right?

The stencil came in the mail a few weeks ago and I was so eager (but anxious) to get started. Anxious because it seemed like a big project and I always find the hardest part of any big project is starting the very first step.

I called my mom over for back-up (i.e., someone to blame if it didn't turn out. Haha.) Just kidding. I really did need the help. Note to self: Don't decide to tackle this project when you are eight months preggo and HUGE.

I'm not going to write a step-by-step tutorial on how to stencil a wall since there are many other really well-written tutorials and videos out there on the web. And to be completely honest, my project ADD and impatience made me not exactly the best stenciler. I rushed a bit at the end to just get'er done. Translation: touch-ups. However, the project was fairly straight-forward once we got started and the guide marks on the stencil made it easy to figure out where to place it next.

Here are a couple of during shots:

What I found worked really well at the end (see above picture) was to actually cut the stencil so that it fit flush against each wall. That way I didn't have to worry about bending it all crazy-like.

My final verdict on this stencil is: LOVE, LOVE, LOVE THE FINAL RESULT. I'm glad I stuck with subtle colours since the stenciled wall adds just the right amount of interest without being too overwhelming or busy. Perfect for a little boy's room if I do say so myself.

{Updated to Add: The colours in the room are Old Prairie by Benjamin Moore and Simply White by Benjamin Moore.}

I'll leave you with two last before and after pictures but don't forget that this room is totally not done yet. If you'd like to see more, you'll have to come back in a few weeks to see the finished room. :)

P.S. Sooooo.... what do you think? Have you tackled a stencil yet? If so, send me a link!

P.S.S. Stay tuned for a Royal Design Studio stencil giveaway coming up later this week. Score.

P.S.S.S. Cozy.Cottage.Cute. is on Facebook now if you'd find it easier to follow along that way. :)

P.S.S.S.S. My dad thinks Little Ninja is going to be a genius after staring at this pattern all the time. Hahaha!

Sharing Here:

April Before and After Party @ Thrifty Decor Chick, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday @ Coastal Charm, Get Your Craft On Tuesday @ Today's Creative Blog, Tutorials and Tips Link Party @ Home Stories A to Z, Show Me What Ya Got @ Not Just a Housewife, Wow Us Wednesdays @ Savvy Southern Style, Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest, Flaunt it Friday @ Chic on a Shoestring Decorating, Saturday Nite Special @ Funky Junk Interiors, Simply Klassic Sunday @ Simply Klassic Home, DIY Project Parade @ The DIY Show-Off

Cinnamon Roll Muffins

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 17:19:00 +0000

I woke up this morning with an urge to bake some sort of yummy treat. I looked at a few cinnamon bun recipes but was too impatient to do the whole dough-rising-all-day thing.

Translation: hungry for sugary breakfast.

I headed over to Foodgawker to see what I could find. What I did find was a delicious looking recipe for Cinnamon Roll Muffins. The instructions were simple and the baking time was only 15 minutes - I was sold.

Cinnamon Roll Muffins
Recipe Source: The Comfort of Cooking
Makes: 12 Muffins

Ingredients:

1 cup buttermilk (I used 1% milk + 1 tbsp vinegar)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
3 to 3-1/2 cups flour (I used 3 cups)

Filling:

2 tbsp butter, room temperature
2/3 cups brown sugar
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Icing:

1 cup powdered sugar
1-2 tbsp milk or cream

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375° F.

2. Measure the brown sugar, baking soda, salt, vanilla and egg into a mixing bowl. Add the buttermilk. Add the flour. Stir until thoroughly combined.

3. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a minute or two. Roll the dough into a 12-inch by 24-inch rectangle. Using a rubber spatula, spread with butter. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon.

4. Roll the dough into a log and stretch slightly. Cut into two-inch pieces and put the pieces into greased muffin tins or muffin tins lined with cupcake papers.

5. Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden brown. (Mine were ready after 13 minutes.) Allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes, and then remove from the muffin tins.

6. Drizzle with icing (if using).

Note: Eating two in a row might cause you a bit of a belly-ache.

That's how rich and gooey they are. :)

25 Things

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 02:14:00 +0000

1. I really want to bake a chocolate cake. Not for guests. Not for a special occasion. Just for me to, like, eat.

2. I really want to bake a chocolate cake alllllllll because of Pinterest. Doesn't this picture look absolutely scrumptious?!?

Image: Pinterest
Original Source: Real Simple

3. I just read a post on someone's blog about pet peeves and it was hilarious. One of mine? People who chew weirdly, loudly, or with their mouths open. Ugh.

4. I think we've settled on a name for Lil' Ninja. We're not officially announcing it or anything yet but we're close to making a final decision. Although we could change our mind once we see his smushed little face and decide that he looks more like a "Fred" or "Harold".... you never know.

5. I have no idea how I lived almost my whole life without ever tasting tzatziki sauce. The name sounded weird so I always assumed it would taste gross. It just might be my favourite thing right now. We're about to eat it some on grilled chicken and cucumber flatbread sandwiches for supper tonight. Yummers.

6. I entered my little numbered dresser in Whisperwood Cottage's contest for a feature in Cottages and Bungalows magazine. It was chosen as a "finalist" out of 200 entries. I was so giddy and wanted to win SO BAD! Alas, it did not win. I was so close to becoming famous. Bahahaha.

7. I have recently discovered that I was not cut out for stenciling entire walls. More details on that to follow next week. :S

8. Alex bought me pink and yellow roses the other day. What a sweetie pie. They were pretty. And they smelled good.

9. One of my friends (xoxo) lent me the Twilight series over a year ago and I haven't read them yet. I saw the first movie and the part where the guy gives the girl a piggy back right up the tree at the speed of light??? Really??? But my friend has really good taste in girly shows, clothes, shoes, and purses so I'm going to take her advice and read the series. Soon.

10. I only have two days of work left. I cannot tell you how excited I am about this. The countdown to my new life of joggers and soap operas is on.

11. I am slightly (okay alot) afraid that I will love my new life of being a stay-at-home wifey and mama so much that I will never ever want to go back to work.

12. I love DIY projects, furniture refinishing, and all the little crafts n' things that I've done on this little blog. I just want to make sure that I don't start doing a zillion "crafts" just for the sake of having posts to publish. I really don't want a basement full of 5000 wreaths for every occasion under the sun. I also don't want to feel like I have to paint a piece of furniture to "reveal" every week. I'll just keep blabbering on about curtain rods and picture frames with an occasional craft here n' there and maybe, just maybe, you'll stick around anyway.

13. The generosity and kindness of people amazes me sometimes. I've had the sweetest emails lately from readers just saying hi, commenting on how they like my site, or offering to mail me white picture frames, pie plates, and vintage tart tins. (Thank you so much btw, you are all the awesomest).

13. Al and I went to see 21 Jump Street on opening weekend and the line was so long to get into the theatre that we had to stand outside and around the corner. I'm not ashamed. It was sooooo funny.

14. Alex and I can't share popcorn at the movies because (he's going to kill me when he reads this) he is a total popcorn hogger. He shovels it in like it's the last food he'll ever eat in this lifetime. We do two bags now: big one for him, mini one for me. It drives me crazy but I kinda love it about him at the same time.

15. We both have a theory that movie theatre popcorn butter is actually melted Crisco. What do you think?

16. Some decorating trends kind of annoy me. And decorating/blogging terms, too. Like "mood board". And "vlogging".

17. I once thought it would be fun to skateboard down one of the steepest hills in the city. I wasn't a good skateboarder. I fell. Someone from school just happened to be driving past when I bailed. It was a great story at school the next day. Not.

18. I am loving the children's author Oliver Jeffers. If you haven't seen or read any of his books you just have to! They are adorable. I'm thinking about framing some of the illustrations for Ninja's nursery. It's on the list.

19. I want to live in this music video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkOKCWDJ4iA

20. I'm writing this post because I made it a goal of mine to post more often but don't really have any projects done at the moment. That's okay because your comments on these posts are always so funny!

21. I bought winter boots for the first time this winter. I hadn't owned a pair since I was a kid! One of the best purchases ever. I didn't have cold feet ONE TIME this whole winter. Whoever invented boots was a real genious.

22. Giant preggo bellies really get in the way of wearing pants. Even the stretchy ones are really uncomfortable. Could I get away with wearing no pants for the next 4 1/2 weeks? Please?

23. I still want to bake a chocolate cake.

24. I still want to eat chocolate cake.

25. Chocolate cake. Chocolate cake. Chocolate cake.

;)

Lounge Chairs for the Deck

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute.) — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 00:46:00 +0000

If you're getting sick of me going on and on about decorating Little Dude's nursery, then you might like me again after this post. :)

We've been in our house for about six years now, and since the day we moved in I wanted a deck in the backyard so very badly. It was a huge project for Alex but he was able to get most of it completed by the end of last summer. (We still have finishing details to add such as stairs and skirting.)

If you're new around here you can check out the two previous posts I wrote about the deck here:

Posts and Yard Destruction

Deck Boards and Railing

We chose a two-level design to create two distinct areas: one for eating and one for lounging.

(This picture was taken last summer.)

(This picture was also taken last summer.)

The tricky part has been finding outdoor furniture to actually use for each space. So far we've been using those plastic muskoka chairs that you can get at the hardware store for about $10 apiece.

My inspiration pictures were these ones from Pottery Barn. Soooo nice but we all know...... soooooo expensive.

Image: Pottery Barn

I knew I wanted a similar look but didn't want giant, deep cushions. I wanted people to be able to sit on the furniture without cushions if they had to. I also didn't want a zillion cushions to worry about storing every time it rains or is windy, etc. We live way up North, remember?

They have lots of mega-expensive sets at a few places around town like Sears and Home Depot. But with everything else going on, we just don't have the money to spend $1000-$2000 on outdoor furniture that we can only use for four or five months out of the year.

Lowes has a new set this year called the Severson collection. It's an outdoor wicker set of two lounge chairs, a loveseat, and a coffee table for $298. And it's CUTE! And it's well-made. And you can sit on the chairs without a cushion! And they're the right colour!

And...... they're in my backyard this very second!!!

We bit the bullet and brought the set home last night. They're still packaged up because I wanted to make sure that I really liked them before we decided to keep them.

Here they are:

We got four of these chairs.

We got one loveseat.

And also the matching coffee table. "ALEX!!!! You have something to put together!!!!!!"

They did have thin little cushions at Lowes that were sold seperately but I want to see if they have any cute ones at Homesense first.

I'm so excited that we'll actually have some "grown-up" furniture outside on our deck this year. Yeah! Now you can come over and read magazines / eat sunflower seeds / sip fruity drinks in the sunshine with me. Ooops, I almost posted my address on the internet. I'd better not though, I don't want anyone sneaking in the backyard to steal my new chairs! Hee hee.