our fifth house

No Matter How Old

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 12:26:00 +0000

Babe,

The best thing about your birthday is that no matter how old you get I'll always be seven years younger. ;)

I love you like a love song.

Thanks for always making people believe that I'm the better half when we both know you are.

Can't wait to celebrate 41 with you on Saturday! You're like a fine wine babe. You just keep getting better with age. ;)

I'm sarcastic a lot, and I'm rarely serious. I almost never talk about my feelings, but the truth is, I just don't know how to say how I feel. I'm infinitely blessed to be your wife. I don't know what I did to deserve this life, but I'm forever grateful to be by your side. You make ordinary days extraordinary. You make me laugh every day. I love you, but what's even better - I like you! You're a great husband and a wonderful dad. I watch you with our children and my heart is full. Being with you is the best adventure ever!

Happy Birthday! We won't bother with candles this year. I don't want to have to call the fire department.

Love,

Building a Home for TinkerBell

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Thu, 31 May 2012 15:31:00 +0000

We have a house guest this summer.

Well, really she's a garden guest that was invited to live in our back yard by my almost 6 year old daughter.

She needed a home.

At first I thought I could transform a craft store bird house.

But TinkerBell was too big. You can't live in a house that is shorter than you are.

So, I pulled out my hot glue gun and used some wood shims to build her a fairy shack.

Then I covered the roof with flat moss and painted it hot pink with some outdoor craft paint.

And now she lives at 123 Pixie Lane. She climbs the rope ladder to get to work even though she could probably just fly up there.

She works at the Fairy Power Plant............

........where they grow cabbage.

My favorite part is the potting bench.

My daughter's favorite part is the rope swing.

TinkerBell is getting settled in her new home.

There's something magical about this place.

I hope my daughter has lots of fun hanging out 123 Pixie Lane this summer.

I put up a sign to warn the "big people" to be careful in this area of the garden.

That's one check on our summer list!

Here are the deets in case you're wondering and want to invite a fairy to live in your garden:

- house was made from wood shims (we already had)

- flat moss can be found at the Hob Lob ( we already had that too)

- manilla rope was used to make the swing and the ladder (Lowe's) - hot glue works well to hold it together

- the windmill was bought at Michaels, it's actually a bird house but I covered the hole with a broken wood shim - I used a plastic plant container that I spray painted white to make the windmill taller

- the potting bench was also built by hot gluing broken pieces of wood shims

- wood shims were used to make the raised garden bed

- miniature pine cones were painted green to look like cabbages

- small garden marker is a tiny broken piece of a wood shim hot glued to a nail

- the lantern and small plant hook came from a local garden shop

- the table, chairs, terra cotta pots, wheelbarrow, and tools all came from the Hob Lob

- I planted spanish moss, thyme and one little succulent

If you have any questions let me know in the comments!

Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust - you had to know that was coming. ;)

What the What?!

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Wed, 30 May 2012 11:53:00 +0000

With the kids out of school, I have less computer time. Yesterday I checked a few blogs in the morning and then I was off to run errands with the kids. When we got home we spent the rest of the day outside in the backyard. I sent the kids to bed at around 9:00 p.m., and I didn't come back in until after 10 p.m. I left my phone in the car when we got back home, so I hadn't checked my e-mail since around 5:00 p.m. Why am I telling you the boring basics of my day? Because at 11:00 p.m. when I sat down in front of the computer to check my e-mail and write my blog post for today, I opened an e-mail from one of my Haven Conference roomies, Sarah aka The Thriftress. Here's what it said:

Girl I saw you on Apartment Therapy! You rock! That headboard is amazing. Congrats!

I think my head might have popped off at that very moment! I've been reading Apartment Therapy for what feels like a lifetime so when I clicked over to see the featured post I was beyond thrilled!

Honestly, I still can't believe my eyes. This little blog brings so much joy to my life. I've made so many wonderful friends - many of whom I'll be meeting in real life in just a few weeks at Haven - and I feel so blessed to be a small part of such a wonderfully creative and supportive community!

Thanks Apartment Therapy for featuring my son's pegboard headboard! And thanks Sarah for delivering the best news ever yesterday!

Thanks to all of you who read, visit, lurk, comment, e-mail.......you already know I think you're awesome!

Dealing with a Hot Mess

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Tue, 29 May 2012 07:36:00 +0000

I hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! It was HOT here, so I didn't feel too bad about staying inside on Sunday in order to deal with the hot mess in my bathroom.

This is so embarrassing, but ever since we had the bathroom painted and then had new carpet put in the master bedroom our bathroom has looked this way. Basically it became a dumping ground, and it was starting to give me hives.

The cabinets and drawers needed to be cleaned and reorganized. I found this pretty drawer liner.......

and lined the drawers and cabinets.

I left about half an inch in the back so it would be easy to remove later on if I get tired of this liner. I've been known to change my mind.

My cabinet went from this......

to this with the help of a few accessories from Target and Lowe's.

The wire shelves from Lowe's really help to maximize the space and that wire bracket thing (no idea what you call it) is pure genius for holding my flat iron, curling iron, and hair spray! Big thanks to my hub for putting it in for me.

This utensil caddy from Target works great for holding my makeup.

The hubs cabinet went from this......

to this.

I reused the baskets that were in my cabinet in the hubs cabinet to hold toiletries and travel supplies. I raided the kitchen and found these melamine bowls/ramekins for the smaller stuff.

I found that ramekins and bowls worked well to organize the drawers as well.

This.......

is so much better than this.

The secret to a happy marriage - his and hers bathroom drawers/cabinets. ;)

I really love this drawer liner. It makes theses drawers and cabinets look so clean.

Now that the inside of this cabinet is clean and organized I can finish putting our master bathroom together!

I found the rug at TJ Maxx and the knobs are from Hobby Lobby.

So what did you do over the long weekend? Anyone else have any hot messes to deal with?

Celebrating Lasts

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Fri, 25 May 2012 15:21:00 +0000

Years ago I bought a book that has become one of my favorite children's books of all time - Let Me Hold On Longer by Karen Kingsbury.

You can buy it on Amazon here. The very first time I read it - I cried, and I've never been able to read it all the way through without tearing up a bit. It's a good reminder for all parents no matter what age your children are to slow down and cherish your days - the good ones and the bad. It reminds me to not just celebrate the firsts - first steps, first words, first time riding a bike without training wheels - but to celebrate lasts as well - last time they needed a pacifier, last bottle, last sippy cup, last night they needed a night light.

Beginnings are great but so are endings. Yesterday was my last day of being a mom to a kindergartner and a second grader. This was their first day of school.

This was their last.

I'm amazed at how much they've grown in a year (and how much of a difference having a good camera and learning how to use it makes!). I just now realized that my son is wearing the exact same shorts and now (while you can't see this) they come to above the knee!

Ice cream is always a great way to celebrate, so we dove right in.

Here's a little mom advice for any of you that haven't reached the last day yet - feel free to take it or leave it:

- Have your kids give their teacher gifts the day before the last day. It makes the morning of the last day a lot less hectic.

- If your daughter wants a crazy looking side pony tail just go with it.

- Be prepared for crazy town. I think the teachers gave them crazy juice because they were bouncing off the walls before we inhaled our sugary ice creams!

- Don't forget your camera. You will want a picture of them on their last day.

- Don't cry. Growing up is a good thing. Cherish the time God gives you so that you don't regret anything when they're too big to think that getting ice cream with their mom is a cool thing to do.

Celebrating lasts has become a tradition in our house and it's one of my personal favorites. Do you celebrate lasts too? Can I get an amen to celebrating the last day of diapers?! Oh my - now that was a celebration!

I hope you all have a wonderful long weekend! I'll see you on Tuesday!

***Don't forget today is the last day to enter the Homes.com Spring Into The Dream contest. There's $500 on the line so be sure to get in on that Pinterest action!

Last Minute Teacher Gift Idea

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Thu, 24 May 2012 13:59:00 +0000

Today is my kids last day of school! It crept up on me this year. It's the first year since my son started school that we don't have any snow days to make up for, so they're getting out in May instead of June. With all of the activities we've had going on around here (my boy's birthday, soccer games, and a graduation party to attend) I sort of dropped the ball on the teacher gifts this year. I had a couple of diy, crafty ideas floating around in my head, but I ran out of time.

So instead of making something special, I put together these sweet little summer gift bags with the help of Bath & Body Works.

I put together a collection of orange summer items and tied them up with a hand written gift tag.

Yes, it's a tad "cheesy". How many cheesy jokes do you think a kindergarten and second grade teacher hear in a school year? I think the gift tag makes these bags look more like they were well-planned rather than they were picked up at the very last minute, so we're going with cheese via oranges.

As for the specific contents, I grabbed these crabs because they were too cute and summery not to buy - and they were orange. These scentportables are on sale right now- buy 6 for $24, so I got one for all 4 teachers and one for me and the hubs. Mine isn't a crab, it's a leopard peace sign -the girl picked it out for me. They come in tons of different scents, and they really are great for the car. Now my car smells like vanilla rather than a locker room (soccer playing boys are stinky). Also included in these bags is a purse sized antibacterial hand gel in the Fresh Picked Tangerines fragrance - which I LOVE. These were 5 for $5, so I got one for me too! Last but not least I included a travel size lotion, Boost - Tangelo Woods, which is currently my favorite body lotion. I just love the smell of citrus in the summer! These were 3 for $10 so I bought 6. Now I have some yummy scented travel stuff too!

This means each bag cost around $8.50; my goal was to keep them under $10. Not a bad price for a sweet, easy, and totally last minute way to say thanks for a great year! The girl at Bath and Body Works also gave me the bags and ribbon, so all I had to do when I got home was put them together and add the gift tags!

I wish I had more time, but sometimes your best ideas come to you when you're scrambling. ;)

We've been blessed with some of the most caring teachers. Our teachers deserve a million dollars for all they do. But since I don't have 4 million just lying around, these little bags will hopefully let them know we care and we're very thankful for all they've done this year!

Orange you glad summer is here?!

You knew that was coming right?

Do have any great last minute gift ideas? It's good to have some go-to ideas when you're in a pinch!

***This was not a sponsored post. However, if someone at Bath & Body Works wants to send me a collection of Boost Tangelo Woods body products I'd be more than happy to write another glowing review! ;)

Put A Label On It

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Wed, 23 May 2012 12:00:00 +0000

What can I say really, I like labels..... a lot. If loving labels is wrong..........I don't want to be right.

So I decided that these canvas storage bins (Target) needed a label.

I've had these in the boy's room for over a year now, and I'm quite impressed with their durability.

To label them I raided my craft closet and found these unfinished wood frames that I purchased at Ikea years ago.

I busted out some red paint and mixed it with water to give these frames a wash of color.

Iced coffee makes any project better.

While the frames were drying, I went inside and cut out some card stock.

Then I borrowed a blue crayon from the art center.

Then I hot glued some velcro I already had on hand to attach the frames to the front of each bin.

The velcro holds them in place really well and makes it easy for me to change the labels down the road if needed. Oh and I forgot to mention I wrapped the handle of each bin with some twine.

And now they look like this.

Yeah that's right, I liked it so I put a label on it. ;)

I love the look of the hand writing in crayon; it's so fun for a kids room. And thanks to the velcro, it's an easy change to make. The fronts of the Ikea frames are plastic not glass which protects the card stock but is still safe for a kids space.

It's always crazy to me how the smallest detail can make such a big impact.

The best part is now he has no excuse to stuff these bins full of random stuff. Do you see a label that says "Stinky Shinguards"? Yeah, me either.

Are you a label lover?

Amazing

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Tue, 22 May 2012 12:00:00 +0000

Well, not to freak anyone out, but it's almost JUNE! As in half of the year has already passed! Crazy right?!

It's usually at this time of year that I like to look back to January and see what kind of progress I've made in regards to any resolutions. This way if I've failed to keep up, I can re-focus and try to get back on track. I'm happy to say I've totally kept up with my New Years resolution this year which is a total first for me. It's not as hard when you only make one. I think I'll try to remember that for next year - one well kept resolution is better than five that you don't keep right?

You may remember that I gifted myself a new "big girl" camera for Christmas, and my one resolution was to use it every day. I'm planning to make a 365 book at the end of the year. You might think this photo challenge is probably not too hard for a blogger. However, my challenge to myself was to take more pictures of our life as a family, which is something very different than what I typically blog about. It really has been a challenge, but I've enjoyed capturing life's special moments. In the process I've fallen in love with my camera. While I have a lot to learn, I'm enjoying the journey of learning by trial and error. I've found some great photog help/tutorials over at Bower Power. Katie (of Bower Power) is self-taught and that really gives me hope. Maybe someday when I get a little better with my camera, I'll invest the money and time in Photoshop, but for now I use Picasa and PicMonkey (recently) to edit my photos.

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Her eyes, her eyes make the stars look like they're not shinin'........

his hair, his hair, falls perfectly without him tryin'........

they're so beautiful, and I tell them everyday!

When I see your face......

there's not a thing that I would change, 'cause you're amazing just the way you are.

And when you smile.....

the whole world stops and stares for awhile 'cause girl you're amazing just the way you are.

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This is what my boy thinks of my New Year's resolution.

And my rendition of Just The Way You Are by Bruno Mars doesn't help. Who wouldn't want to have their picture taken while being serenaded?! Ummmm..... I think someone's gonna need therapy. ;)

How are you doing with your resolutions?

DIY - Union Jack Pegboard Headboard

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:26:00 +0000

Try saying that 3 times fast. ;)

Happy Monday! Today is my son's 8th birthday, so it seems totally appropriate to share this particular project today. I worked really hard to get it finished last week just in time for him to finally have his bed back before his birthday.

I had three problems to solve where the bed was concerned in my son's room.
1. How could I make the queen size bed (we already had) fit in his somewhat small room and still have room for some kind of bookcase/storage for all of his ~~junk~~ stuff?

This problem was solved by creating/building a queen sized storage day bed and pushing his bed up against the wall. This was a great solution as far as space and storage was concerned, but this led to issue number 2.

(This is a before headboard, before curtains, before paint, and before new carpet , but after building the storage platform for the bed picture. )

2. What in the world could I use for a headboard?

3. Since we have no space for nightstands, how can I bring in some reading lamps?

Well, it took me a while to get this all figured out, and then it took me even longer to put my nefarious plan into action. However, I'm so excited (but not in a Jessie Spano Saved By The Bell kinda way) to call this project done-zo! * Please tell me you remember that episode?!

The room has a Star Wars thing going on (as requested by my son), but I thought it needed a little union jack action.

I decided to use pegboard (Lowe's) to create a headboard, so that I could use these baskets (Home Depot) to hold books as well as these nifty clip-on lamps (Lowe's).

The baskets were black, but I painted them with stainless steel spray paint. I roughed them up a little with some sandpaper to make them look like old metal baskets. They work as a great alternative to night stands holding just what you need to have bedside - like a storm trooper alarm clock, obviously that's a must!

Besides loving the functionality the pegboard provides, I also chose to use it because it's pretty darn ~~cheap~~ inexpensive, it comes in so many different sizes, and it can be painted. I bought three boards for about $35 and some pre-primed wood trim to frame it out for around $15. The paint I already had which means this headboard cost me around $50. Apart from being nice and easy on the pocketbook, it totally answered number 2 and 3 above, and it only took about 10 relatively simple steps to get from point A to point Z!

Here's a recap/tutorial for anyone that's interested in creating your own:

If you've ever used pegboard for it's intended purpose then you already know that you'll want to leave a little space between the screw and the anchor. Basically you don't want them totally flush with the wall because you want to have space to use the peg hooks/ baskets.

For all of you girls like me that don't use power saws (yet) I'm here to tell you that you can do a lot with a hand saw! A straight cut is very easy to make. Trust me. If I can do it - anyone can!

I'm a big fan of pre-primed wood, especially for smaller projects. It costs a little more but it's worth the time savings - to me anyway.

I used this Grandin Road catalog as a guide for painting the union jack. You don't want to overload your paint brush when you're painting pegboard. The brush needs to stay pretty dry, so you don't get globs of paint in the tiny holes.

Do not stress or be overly concerned with perfection. Use the holes in the pegboard as a guide for taping your lines.

The painting took the longest, but it was worthwhile. The end result is so fun, and to quote my son, "It looks really cool!"

He loves to read. I really wanted to give him a great space to curl up and get lost in a book either during the day..........

or at night.

Happy Birthday to my sweet, Star Wars lovin', lego buildin', soccer playin' boy! Now, it's time to - party like it's your birthday!

Are you union jack obsessed? Did anyone google - Jessie Spano I'm so excited? ;) You know you loved that episode! Have you used anything that normally goes in a garage as decor in your home?

* Linking up at The DIY Showoff, Primitive and Proper, Home Stories A to Z, Savvy Southern Style, At The Picket Fence, Thrifty Decor Chick, Tatertots and Jello, Miss Mustard Seed, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, House of Hepworths, Serenity Now, Embracing Change

Flashback Friday.......the Birthday Boy

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Fri, 18 May 2012 16:31:00 +0000

Hey friends,

I've been a little emotional this week. Every year around this time of year my heart just feels so full. I'm reminded in the month of May just how wonderfully faithful God is. I've never shared this before, but it took me almost two years to get pregnant with my son, my first born, Collin. I can't tell you how many at-home pregnancy tests I took with a negative result. I can't even remember how many nights I cried myself to sleep.

The long and short of it is basically, I have an under active thyroid, and it took a while for my doctors to get it under control. While most women have a monthly opportunity to get pregnant I have just a few times year.

The day I found out I was pregnant I was sitting in my doctor's office getting ready to start fertility drugs. She always made me take a test to "see" if I was already pregnant. I remember thinking to myself, "This is so pointless we all know this is going to be negative!" In fact, I didn't even look at the stick. My doctor came in and thought I had already seen the results. She started congratulating me, and I sat there just staring in disbelief. Big tears started rolling down my face as they are now I as I remember that very moment. I will never forget how I felt that day.

For this child I prayed, I cried, I wished, I dreamed, I hoped.

It's amazing how one test, one day, one moment can forever impact your life! Your song by Elton John came on the radio as I was driving home from my appointment that day, and I always think of that song on Collin's birthday......how wonderful life is while you're in the world!

I can't even believe it's been 8 years since he was born?!

The days, weeks, months, years go by so very fast. What I'll remember about him at this age is.......

he has the sweetest little freckles, and he hates to have his picture taken.

His closet floor usually looks like this.

His shoelaces are never tied.

I love this kid with my whole heart. He was definitely worth the wait. I treasure him and the journey it took to bring him into this world.

His actual birthday is on Monday but we're getting our party on all weekend long!

I hope you all have a great weekend too!

xoxo,

The Funk of Forty Thousand Years (& Girl's Room Progress)

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Thu, 17 May 2012 16:24:00 +0000

It's a weird blog post title, I know. You'll understand very soon.

Many of you already know that when we moved in to this house there was WHITE CARPET in the dining room, the formal living room (that we use as an office), the family room, and all four bedrooms. Last spring we had the carpet in all of our living spaces replaced with bamboo flooring and oh. my. word. what a difference that made! I mean, really, why on Earth anyone would think WHITE carpet is a good idea in a dining room is beyond me. Maybe it was an 80's thing? Two things that should never come back in style - white, plush wall to wall carpet and parachute pants - the end.

We chose to leave the carpet in the bedrooms until we could decide whether or not to replace it with more bamboo or new carpet. After lots of thought, we decided we like having carpet in our bedrooms, and new carpet would be easier on the wallet. We gathered lots of samples and estimates.

We checked them in the rooms the same way we check paint samples - in the morning, the afternoon and at night. I'm really happy with what we ended up going with, but to be totally honest, I'm mainly just glad to get rid of that old nasty 20 plus year old carpet with the funk of forty thousand years. It. was. gross!

Believe me when I say it looked nastier in person than it looks in pictures. The carpet we ended up going with isn't either of the above samples that we had originally narrowed it down to; we went with (in all 4 bedrooms) nylon berber made by Mohawk (Jamboree II in exotic gold). We used a local carpet installer (Rodgers Decor & More in Versailles) rather than a big box store because they had the best price for what we wanted, and a friend we trust recommended them. This was not a job I would ever want to DIY. Mainly because what took them 7 hours would have taken me and my hub probably 7 months! The cost of labor was worth it to have it over and done so quickly.

I wanted something that looked like a natural fiber (which was also something we looked into) but was also very soft underfoot. In addition I also wanted something with color variation to help hide any dirt. Personally I prefer a low pile so that helped to narrow down the selection.

We chose nylon over wool for price reasons. Wool is the best, but it can be very expensive. Our bedrooms are pretty low traffic areas. We've had berber before (in our 3rd house) and been very happy. My best advice for choosing new carpet is to do your homework and get lots of estimates. There are pros and cons to all carpet materials and styles, so you really just have to decide what will work for your family and your budget. The one major con most people have against berber is that is can snag. For us, this wasn't a huge concern because our dogs stay out of the bedrooms and again these are low traffic areas.

Having new carpet installed made such a huge difference in all of the bedrooms. It just looks so CLEAN! Here's a picture of my girl's room (looking like a hot mess) with the old carpet. I realize it's not the carpets fault that it looks like her bedroom imploded but for before and after purposes let's just roll with this.

Here's how it looks now.

Her walls finally got painted too! (Olympic - Moonstone) Our painter friend did it when he painted our master bathroom and bedroom. It was just a little extra, and I'm so glad to finally have that done. Now I can get on to the fun parts of this room design, like giving this thrifted chair a makeover.

Can't wait to get started on that this summer. In case you haven't noticed, my horse obsession is starting to rub off on my girl. I picked up this watercolor at a local thrift shop (Street Scene), and had a matte cut for it at Hobby Lobby.

I'm not going to lie, I kind of wish it was hanging over my bed! The colors in this painting are just so perfect for her room.

It's fun and whimsical, perfect for a little horse-loving girl's room, and yet would be perfect in a teenager's room as well.

When I say horse-loving, I'm not kidding around. She BEGGED me to get her these sheets at Target. Okay maybe she just asked and I immediately caved- whatever - it sounds better to say she begged me. ;)

Cutest sheets ever! Even my friend Cassie's daughter has these - all the cool kids have them!

And the little black-and-white-cherry-on-top-of-her-cupcake-of-a-bed is this Kate Spade pillow from BB&B - snagged with a 20% off coup. Never buy anything from that store without one of those. They don't expire - you know that right?!

I want to eat that pillow it's so dang cute! I'm weird - I already know this.

So to wrap up a post that is all over the place - we got new carpet - it rocks because it doesn't have the funk of forty thousand years, and my girl's room is slowly but surely in a very I think I can kind of way chugging right along. Who knows it could be completely decorated by the time she heads off to college!

What's going on in your world? Anyone else getting some nasty, funky stuff out of their house? You should be thankful I didn't show you a picture of the disgusting stuff that was underneath the old carpet pad. Oh my - I'm scarred for life.

If you're still reading this - God bless you - you are awesome!

Notice Anything New?

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Wed, 16 May 2012 04:07:00 +0000

I got a bloglift! ;) The fabulous Lauren at Designer Blogs helped me make some changes that I've been thinking about for while now. She is so great to work with, and I so appreciate her patience! I have a tendency to change my mind a lot!

I'm loving the color change most of all! I'm still working out a few kinks but soon enough everything will be up and running.

The blog isn't the only place where changes are being made in my life. This happened at our house on Monday.

That's why I wasn't around on Tuesday. I had to put my house back together. More on all of this tomorrow.

xoxo,

P.S. Have you created your Homes.com Spring into the Dream pin board yet? Don't forget to link it up!

Spring into the Dream

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Mon, 14 May 2012 15:16:00 +0000

Homes.com invited me (and a few other fabulous bloggers) to participate in a Pinterest contest! Pinterest + A Homes.com Contest + The chance to win a $500 gift card + The chance that one of you could win a $500 gift card = AWESOME!

The theme of the contest is "Spring into the Dream". What does that mean to you? For me it means it's time to stop running around like a dog chasing a squirrel when it comes to decorating and renovating my home. It means it's time to get serious about the countless numbers of unfinished projects around here!

Source: list25.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Interest

It also means it's time to get outside, get my hands dirty,

Source: notimeforflashcards.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Pinterest

plant some flowers,

Source: homestoriesatoz.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Pinterest

and vegetables,

Source: popularmechanics.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Pinterest

and watch things grow.

Source: thekidsgarden.co.uk via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Pinterest

It means organizing the areas of my home that are pretty much a hot mess right now.

Source: bhg.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Pinterest

Source: blog.homes.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Pinterest

That's what "Spring in to the Dream" means to me, take a look at my pin board. This contest couldn't have come along at a better time. When Homes.com asked me if I'd like to participate in this Pinterest contest I literally leaped at the chance. There's no better way to get motivated to get stuff done in your home than with a contest involving Pinterest and uh, um......did I mention a $500 gift card already?!

So here are the contest deets 'cause I'd LOVE to win this contest, but honest to goodness I'd also really, really LOVE to be able to offer one of you awesome people that come here to read my little ol' blog a chance to win your own $500 gift card!

How you can enter the Homes.com Spring into the Dream Contest:

Create a “Homes.com Spring into the Dream” pin board on Pinterest. Every pin will need to have this hashtag #springintothedream so others can be inspired as well!!
Follow Homes.com on Pinterest.
Add at least two repins from Homes.com’s “Spring into the Dream” board to your board.
Add at least two pins from articles on Homes.com blog to your board.
AND add ANY additional pins related to the “Spring into the Dream” theme - whatever spring into the dream means to you!
Provide a link to your pin board in the comments section on THIS blog post.

The blog that is chosen as the winner of the Homes.com "Spring into the Dream" blog contest will be rewarded with a $500 gift card AND will be able to host a giveaway for a $500 gift card to one of their readers who has linked a pin board to the comments section of their blog post.

So, basically, ask yourself, what does "Spring in to the Dream" mean to me? Then create a pin board to inspire and motivate yourself. (Here's a look at my Homes.com Spring into the Dream pin board). Link your board up right here in the comments section. Then cross your fingers, toes, and whatever else you can cross that we (meaning me and one of you lucky ducks) win! 'Cause let's face it winning is awesome, especially when there's a $500 prize involved. You have until May 25th - so get your Homes.com Spring into the Dream pinning on people!

Ready, Set, GO.......I mean, PIN!

My Mother's Day Gift

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Fri, 11 May 2012 11:30:00 +0000

Some women like gifts that in come in little blue boxes, but my idea of the perfect gift is having someone else (a professional painter friend) paint my bathroom and bedroom.

Before

After - and still a work in progress but the walls are freshly painted!

I LOVE the new color. It's so bright and light and spa-like. It's amazing to me how a wall color can make a room actually look bigger. This color is sandpiper by Martha Stewart, and our painter friend had it color matched at a local paint shop - Perspectives. He swears by them and many professional painters here in the Lexington area use them exclusively. I think in a bathroom it's especially important to use a good quality paint.

There's still a long way to go before we call it a wrap on this little bathroom update, but I am one happy momma! I don't mind painting, but my hub literally hates to paint. It's nice every now and again to be treated on things I usually do myself.

But, I just can't help it, if there are paint fumes in the air I have to get my hand on a brush.

I'm freshening up the cabinets that the previous owners painted white. They really need a fresh coat of paint, and it became even more obvious against the freshly painted walls.

Some time next week I'll show what color our master bedroom got painted. It's all kinds of drama for this mama. ;) Right now, it's a hot mess with an un-made bed and furniture strewn about, but the walls are so gorgeous I could care less about the mess!

Hope you have a beautiful weekend! See you on Monday friends!

Solving Backyard Pet Problems

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Thu, 10 May 2012 13:27:00 +0000

While my dad was visiting we did a lot of work in the yard. He's a retired landscape contractor. His work was mainly commercial, but he started his business in residential. Anyhow, every time he comes to visit he likes to help me with yard projects; and I'm not crazy so I never refuse his help.

This visit I had some issues that I wanted his help solving. You see we have these two dogs.....

Prince and........

Jake.

We love them, but they can cause trouble in the backyard. You see that gravel bed right next to the patio in the above picture? (The patio is one of the very first projects we tackled in this home, and you can find out more about it in this old post here.) Well, I'm not naming any names, cough.....Prince.....cough, but one of these cute fur people likes to dig and kick this gravel all over the patio. Basically, it looked like this and many times worse than this on a daily basis.

Sorry for the bad iPhone pics, but you get the picture right? So the mission was to find a way to keep the dogs out of this gravel bed in a budget friendly way. My original thought was to build a retaining wall using the same stones we used to make the fire pit.

My dad pointed out that we would need quite a few stones to do this and while a retaining wall would look great on the patio it would probably look bad on my wallet. So he came up with the genius idea to build a little fence using treated wood to match the existing deck. I already had some leftover stain so all we needed was some wood. I picked up four 12 ft 1 x 4's and stained them.

Then my dad cut them down to size and screwed them to the deck posts. This is what we ended up with and it is totally working! No more digging and gravel kicking!

The upside down v helps to keep it very strong and secure in the middle. I like the way it all blends in with the deck as if it had always been that way. This was so much more economical too. I spent around $20 (bought the wood at Home Depot) which is far less than what a retaining wall would have cost.

We also replaced the edging (the old edging was moved to another section of the yard) with these pieces that look like individual stones but are really one piece about 12 inches long (they're about $2 a piece at Lowes).

My dad also used them to create these planters for some gardenias.

We only needed 6 pieces to make each planter which means each one only cost about $12. You can't even buy a large terra cotta pot for that price! Plus I think these will do better over the winter being in the ground rather than a pot. I've always loved the fragrance of gardenias and being that they're heat-loving evergreens they are perfect for the Southeast.

All that being said, I'm not going to lie, what I love most about these is that they take up so much room in this gravel bed it's almost impossible for the dogs to have any room to move around in here which was the main goal.

I love working on projects with my dad. It's not just because he does all the heavy lifting either. ;) It's because we work so well as a team. Being that we live so far away from each other it's nice to come outside, see his handiwork, and feel close to him. I appreciate him so much!

While he was cutting the wood and screwing in the pieces, I worked even harder to screw in these plant hooks and hang some lanterns (Pier 1). I used some manila rope to make them appear longer, and I love the added texture.

It's a rough diy life I tell ya. My daddy .......my hero........the good ones never stop helping you solve life's problems. ;)

So, have you had to solve any pet related house problems? I think I jump through more hoops because of my fur babies than I do for my human babies! Am I the only one that makes my relatives earn their keep when they come to visit?

Summer Movie Nights

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Wed, 09 May 2012 11:07:00 +0000

I don't know about you, but I love me a good old fashioned family movie night.

Source: ohhellofriendblog.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Interest

(Original source- Pottery Barn)

Everyone has a giant projector in their backyard right?

Summer movie nights are. the. best. I love curling up on the couch with a bucket of popcorn, junior mints, and a coke zero - kiddos cuddled up - staying up late because there's no school in the morning. Yes, summer movie nights make me ridiculously happy. Being a movie lover, I've seen millions (probably), and I'm always surprised that some of my favorite family movies many have never seen before. So today I'm sharing the movie love. Maybe you've already seen these or maybe you haven't. Either way they're worth watching, in my opinion anyway.

First up, the kid friendly ones:

Source: amazon.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Interest

Meet the Robinsons isn't the most popular Disney movie, but it's one of my personal favorites. It has such a great message.

Source: imdb.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Interest

I am always completely shocked when friends of mine with children say that they've never seen this movie! I, myself, love Surf's Up so much that I can literally quote half the movie - for realz. Maybe it's because I'm from Southern California but for my money this is the quintessential family summer movie. The soundtrack is pretty kickin' too - just sayin'.

Source: imdb.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Pinterest

In my house, with a young boy (7) and girl (5), it's not always easy to find movies that they'll both want to watch. Arthur and The Invisibles fits the bill and it's pretty entertaining for parents too.

Source: amazon.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Pinterest

They tried to do a sequel to this movie and it failed miserably. It wasn't good, but the first movie is AWESOME! I've always loved a well known story being told from a different point of view so maybe I'm a little biased. This is one kids movie that I don't get tired of watching and the soundtrack is super fun too!

Source: listal.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Pinterest

It makes me sad that so many people have forgotten about Ferngully. I guess that's why Disney does that whole vault thing. I remember watching this movie as a kid over and over again back when it was on VHS tape, and I was a cool kid with a rewinder. ;) I love watching this movie with my kids and the message is still so very relevant today.

Okay so once the kids are off to bed, here are few grown-up movies that you may have overlooked.

Source: amazon.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Pinterest

I know what you're thinking, but I promise this is a good one. If you like to laugh you will like this movie. It totally flopped at the box office but it really is hilarious. Mike Myers is in it for crying out loud. There may or may not be a few lines from this movie that I say all the time. All I'm saying is give it a shot, but make sure the kiddos are in bed because it's not a kids movie by any means.

Source: imdb.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Interest

Ladies if you bust out this recommendation on movie-date-night-in, your man will LOVE you. The cast is amazing. It's a little twist-y and turn-y and such a guys movie; but you girls will like it too. Win- win!

Last but not least, it's not summer without a little romance right?

Source: imdb.com via Carmel (@ Our Fifth House) on Pinterest

I love watching old movies. Be quiet mom - I do. I know I used to hate it when you made me watch them as a kid, but it worked because I love them now! This is one of my favorite love stories. It hits close to home for me as it's a love story between an American serviceman and a Japanese woman. In fact, I first saw this movie as a teenager at my Japanese grandmother's house. I remember when the movie ended feeling so proud of my grandparents for being so brave and loving each other in the face of such ignorant opposition. If you like a little history mixed in with your love story and you love old movies, you will love Sayonara. It's Marlon Brando people!

So there you- that's my go-to summer movie list. What's on your list? Has anyone else seen View From The Top? .............crickets............

Color My World Challenge - Features

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Tue, 08 May 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Thanks to everyone who linked up to the Color My World Challenge! I thoroughly enjoyed visiting all of your wonderful blogs and seeing your colorful projects! Here are few that really caught my eye and have me wondering how I can work some of these colors in to my own home!

First up, Tanya from Dans Le Townhouse painted an old mirror.

Isn't it just gorgeous? She also added that little phrase and you must check out how she did!

Next up, Little Black Door had some fun with the color pink.

I just love this bright, cheery frame. The wonders of spray paint never cease to amaze me.

And last but not least, Jenn from My Fabuless Life painted this piece

a beautiful bright shade of pink.

I don't think I ever would have seen the potential looking at the before, but oh. my. wow. paint is seriously magical isn't it?!

Right now, I'm totally crushing on these colors in interior design and fashion - mint green and hot pink. What color/colors are you tempted to try in your home or wardrobe?

Creating An Art Center

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Mon, 07 May 2012 11:00:00 +0000

There was a weird wall in our basement that had been somewhat of a design dilemma. So for the past two years that we've lived here I've just left it blank.

One night I snapped the above photo and decided I could no longer handle the ugliness of this unused space. I'm a big believer in using every inch of your home. Well, it only took me two years, but I finally figured out how to use this weird wall space. The overall goal for our basement is to create a family space where we can all hang out together - watch movies and play games - basically we want it to be a family cave. What the kids could really use down there right now is an art center. They both love to draw and color, so I gave them their own creative space.

I picked up two inexpensive coffee tables (Target) to use as desks since this wall has an odd shape because of the staircase. Standard desks would have made the wonky wall look, well, even more wonky. Instead there's lots of wall space above the coffee tables and it feels a lot more fun too! Who wouldn't want to sit on one of those poufs (also Target) while they're coloring?!

I framed a bunch of their artwork. Most of these frames I already had.

The hand print canvases they made for me last Mother's Day.

I had some stencil fun with this lamp shade that I already had (the base of the lamp is another Target find.).

I'm not going to lie, crayons make me ridiculously happy. When I was kid, the best thing in the world to me was getting a new box of crayons. I'm not kidding. Seriously, ask my mom! Anyhow, I'm a big fan of the new style - the twistables which I put in an old Ikea planter (pictured above); but nothing beats the original.

Those are just glass votives I already had. They're the perfect size for old school crayolas.

I wanted the kids to have a place to hang their newest creations, so I used some scrap pieces of wood to make a couple of art hangers. It was an easy 3 step diy project - 1. sand scrap wood pieces, 2. paint them white, 3. gorilla glue clothespins on them, and voila - art hangers. I attached them to the wall with command strips.

Yep, it's all Star Wars and ponies up in here. Man, I love my kids!

And they love this new space!

Never mind the step ladder in the background, I'm working on the windows next. ;)

Yoda was right - truly wonderful the mind of a child is. These little hands create such beautiful things. I want to encourage their creativity, and this art center is so much nicer to look at than that blank, boring wall.

Have you put any unused spaces to work in your home lately? Was anyone else obsessed with crayons when they were a kid?

*Linking up at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, At The Picket Fence, Savvy Southern Style, Home Stories A to Z, Tip Junkie, Thrifty Decor Chick

My Week in Photos

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Fri, 04 May 2012 11:30:00 +0000

They really are worth a thousand words aren't they?

It's the last day of Derby Week.

Meet the girls over At The Picket Fence for the low-down on mint juleps and Derby pie! Hope your horse wins!

Have a great weekend. I'll be back next week with an art center for my kids, and maybe just maybe the boy's headboard situation will finally get figured out. We'll see!

How to Cover a Photo Mat with Fabric

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Thu, 03 May 2012 13:15:00 +0000

I wanted to give a quick little 4 step tutorial on how to cover a photo mat with fabric. I'm sure many of you already know how to do this, but I figure someone somewhere will probably appreciate a little how-to. It's the easiest little project in the world and gives you so many great design options. You can find the directions on how to add the gold corners here.

1. Choose any fabric you like and use your very best fabric cutting scissors. I promise you the scissors matter. Leave about an inch to an inch and a half all the way around the mat.

2. Cut a small hole in the center. From that hole cut towards the four inner corners. Don't cut all the way into the corner - stop at about 1/8 of inch from the corner. When you're done you'll have 4 little triangles in the middle.

3. Use masking tape to tape the triangles down. (Masking tape works really well and allows you to make a fabric change or just uncover your mat later. Hot glue would work also, but I prefer to use tape.)

4. Tape the sides all the way around pulling just a little to make the fabric smooth on the front.

That's it folks! Easy! Your inner corners will be somewhat rounded. This depends a lot on the thickness of the fabric you use. Typically the thicker the fabric the more rounded the inner corners look.

I added some gold thumb tacks to mine but you could also use some grosgrain ribbon to embellish. Covering a photo mat with fabric gives you a nice custom framed look and with so many fabrics to choose from the styling options are endless. It's also a great way to give new life to an old thrifted goodwill frame. Any project that delivers instant gratification is a good one in my book!

I wish I could say the making of the horse cookies that I told you I was going to bake yesterday was an instant gratification project. I was reminded mid-project why I don't bake very often. IT TOOK FOREVER! But, it did keep me distracted which was the goal right? Thanks for all of your sweet words yesterday. I very much appreciated them! I wish I had some horse cookies to give you. ;)

I used the derby printables I told you about here to add a little pretty to the packaging. They're far from perfect but my daughter's kindergarten class isn't on Pinterest so it won't matter. ;)

I'm off to the horse park today for a fun-filled field trip or rather a horse-filled one! Hop on over to Thistlewood Farm for a little mint iced tea action in celebration of Derby Week!

*Linking up at At the Picket Fence

Drying My Tears with Sugar

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Wed, 02 May 2012 11:32:00 +0000

My dad leaves today. :( He flew in from California over a week ago, and I've thoroughly enjoyed having him here with me. The absolute hardest thing about living away from my home town is being so far away from my parents. I only get to see them a couple times a year, and well, it's never enough time. My heart is heavy. It was so fun having him here!

My boy had fun playing wii with grandpa. And he helped us build a raised box for our vegetable garden in addition to lots of other things I'll be showing you very soon!

It's always so hard to say goodbye even after almost 12 years of living apart. It never gets easier.

So, to help distract myself and hopefully lift my spirits I've devised a plan. I'm going to attempt to bake some horse cookies in honor of Derby Week for my daughter's class. They are learning a lot about the Derby this week. She even has Derby related homework! She has to write 3 sentences about the Derby. Is there something sweeter than kindergarten? Anyhow, hopefully the baking and decorating of some horse cookies will help to cheer me up. If nothing else I'll be on one heck of sugar high right?! Here's my inspiration.

Source: bellagracepartydesigns.blogspot.com via Kathryn on Pinterest

Source: bakeat350.blogspot.com via Susan on Pinterest

I'm sure my cookies will not come out looking as nice, but I don't think her kindergarten class will care. And just looking at these puts a giant smile on my face.

If you want the 411 on gorgeous Derby hats be sure to head over to The 2 Seasons .

Color My World Challenge - Party Time!

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Tue, 01 May 2012 16:00:00 +0000

This challenge has been so great for me and my entry foyer. I have to give a big, huge thank you to Suzy from Saved By Suzy and Jessamie from Bird and Branch Redesign for putting this challenge together and including me. I actually got some stuff done, and my entry foyer looks closer to being finished than it ever has before.

I really enjoyed using my challenge color - grey. It's a nice compliment to the red walls.

It started with some inspiration.

Then I brought in a little grey via some new art.

Next, I mixed up some homemade chalk paint and got my grey paint party on.

Last, but not least, I scored some grey fabric and covered a few photo mats to give my son's artwork center stage.

All in all, I love me some grey. For a color I've rarely used before, it feels right at home. I can definitely see myself adding in some more pops of grey here and there.

Be sure to check out the other bloggers included this challenge and see how they felt about their challenge color.

Ange - The Blooming Hydrangea

Anna - A Newfound Treasure

Carmel - Our 5th House

Cassie - Primitive and Proper

Jadyn - Dutch.British.Love

Jessamie - Bird and Branch Redesign

Julia - Black Tag Diaries

Julia - Pawley's Island Posh

Kristy - Hyphen Interiors

Lisa - Shine Your Light

Lisa - Trapped in North Jersey

Maury- Life on Mars

Shaunna - Perfectly Imperfect

Shelley - Crazy Wonderful

Suzy - Saved by Suzy

Tiffany - Living Savvy

Tiffany - Worthwhile Domicile

Vashti & Jamie - Like me Some...

So now it's your turn to show us what color you've challenged yourself to use in your home. Have you recently added any new colors in your home? I can't wait to see! I'll be featuring a few next Tuesday!

Derby Week - The Horse in Home Decor

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Tue, 01 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

I'm so excited to be participating in Derby Week! Thanks so much to Janette and Jordan over at The 2 Seasons for putting this little shindig together!

I may be a Californian living in Kentucky; but I've been married to a Kentucky boy for almost 12 years now and I think that counts for something right?! ;) Anyhow, if you've been around my blog for any amount of time then you already know I'm a big fan of horses in home decor.

This was taken back in February.

Many of you already knew that I have a giant white horse head hanging over my mantle. We call her White Beauty, and she's part of the family now. (I purchased her from ZGallerie about 2 years ago.)

It seems the equestrian style is becoming more and more popular, and I for one am quite happy to see horses popping up everywhere. In my opinion, whether on trend or not, an equestrian style is classic and timeless. In addition, bringing in a little horse decor works in almost every design style from traditional to modern; and more often than not one key piece is all you really need.

Here are a few of my favorites!

ZGallerie

This driftwood horse from ZGallerie would be great on bookshelf, mantle, or coffee table.

I may just need to purchase this next piece for my front door!

Pottery Barn

Ummmmm, can you say Mother's Day gift? One horse door knocker - yes please!

And how great is this lamp from West Elm?

West Elm

It could work with any style.

And if you still need a little horse convincing.........

Lonny

HGTV

Houzz

Country Living

Pottery Barn Teen

Are you ready to add a little horse decor to your home?

If you're still not ready to commit, you can always try these fun, free Derby party printables. Have yourself a festive Derby party! A very sweet reader e-mailed this link to me, and I just had to share it with all of you.

I'll be back later today with the last post of the Color My World challenge and a link party you won't want to miss! Two posts in one day - can you handle it?!

Playing a Little Game at Hi Sugarplum!

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 11:30:00 +0000

I am sure you already know and love Cassie from Hi Sugarplum! She has amazing style (design and fashion), perfect hair, throws the best parties, and diy's the most amazing projects. If that wasn't enough to make you kind of hate her; she's also one of the sweetest and funniest bloggers in all of blogland. Yep, if we were seniors in high school I'd totally nominate her for the "best all around" category.

So obviously when she asked me to guest post while she's on vacay with her hubs I leaped at the chance. It's like being asked to sit at the cool kids lunch table! I'm over there playing a fun little game that includes a little of this.......

via

and this.

via

It's no surprise all of my answers to this fun little game she asked me to play are all television related. I'm just slightly obsessed. ;) Head on over to Hi Sugarplum! to see who I would (hypothetically-in-a-dream-world, if the television characters they play were who they are in real life) marry, make-out and muzzle. I wonder if you can guess my answers?

And don't forget the start of Derby Week over at The 2 Seasons!

The 2012 Summer List

noreply@blogger.com (Carmel @ Our Fifth House) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 11:30:00 +0000

Ummm.....summer starts in 4 weeks over here! Ca-ray-zay! While I was sprucing up the deck, I cleaned up the potting bench too. When the kids got home from school I had them help me make our 2012 summer list. Last year was the first year we made a summer list, and the kids loved it so much I thought it would be a fun tradition to continue. Plus, it gives me some direction and ideas of what I can do to keep them busy, entertained, and not driving me crazy for the next 3 months. ;) Yes, it's a win - win!

Any guesses who added "sit and relax" to the list? Ha! I seriously doubt that will get checked off; what do you think? I also added "build a fairy garden", and the kids were on board. I think it will be a really fun project for us to do together. I've started pinning some ideas and can't wait to get started.

I found these little metal pots at Marshalls for $2.99 each.

I'm just slightly obsessed with them.

I am so glad I pulled this old work bench out of the garage last summer. It works so well as a potting bench and really brightens up our patio area. It also doubles as a buffet for entertaining outdoors.

For all the deets on how I repurposed some old cabinet doors to create these chalkboard shutters check here.

They really are the perfect spot for our summer list, and I'm looking forward to crossing things off one by one.

Have you made a summer list?

Have a great weekend! Next week I'll be participating in Derby Week over at The 2 Seasons. It's going to be all kinds of horse-lovin'-Kentucky-goodness, and I'm thrilled they asked me to participate!

*Linking up At The Picket Fence, The DIY Showoff, Home Stories A to Z, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Amanda Carol at Home