Getting Crafty

This past week we've spent a lot of time indoors since it's been chilly outside and we have been passing around a cold.

Anyway, it has given me a lot of time to do some crafting (this heart pillow may have to stay out past Valentines!), but more than that - it's given me time to organize my blog and update the tabs on the top.

I wanted to share the fun projects with people who are interested - but without bombarding those non-crafty people who would rather just come here and read about my crazy grocery store adventures  and four boys that are sometimes sweet and sometimes silly.

Anyway, I've created pages for each category (home decor / parties/ etc.) These won't show up on your blogroll or RSS feed, so you will have to click on the category above.  I'll continue to update these pages as I finish a new projects - which is when  inspiration and nap times line up and no other chores or PTA projects get in the way. :)

Most the projects I do are pretty self- explanatory from the pictures, but shoot me a note if you have a question.

(The newest projects will always be at the top).

Command Center

The next thing on my home decorating to do list was a mud room to store the thousands of shoes, backpacks, school papers, and McDonald's happy meal toys that seem to be overflowing from my car. I have been loving all the pins coming out with Ikea furniture that has been dressed up and adapted to fit a mud room, like this one.

But since a mud room for us would involve knocking down walls, and pulling up tile, I was forced to put it on my long term to-do list - which will probably be when Nathan graduates college, which ironically, will be the exact time I will no longer need a mud room.

So I settled for the next best things I have been drooling over on Pinterest....a command center to keep up with our ever growing calendar.

I really thought of the wall as more of a decoration than a true calendar since my calendar is stored online, until Jeff reminded me to update it the other day. Apparently, this is the only way he knows how many birthday parties, karate belt tests, and baseball playoff games to look forward to during the week.

Photo Collage Wall

I've been knocking out my five year running home to-do list lately.

One of the first things on the list was creating a photo collage wall right when you come into the house. I love the way it turned out but the lighting is terrible, so it's hard to capture the true colors.

I know you can buy these frames at Organic Bloom or you can also buy the unfinished frames at Cut It Out , but since I'm an instant gratification type of girl, I bought all of my wall decor (including the hooks and paisley frame) at Hobby Lobby and then just painted a few of them to go with my color vision (white, blues, and purple).

20 Little Things I Love About Fall

I am joining The Inspired Room’s link party this month and right now it’s all about fall nesting. I love all things fall – here’s 20 little things I love, in no particular order. Check back this month and I will also show you what else I am working on this month. It includes organizing, redecorating, and learning how to decorate for the season (which is somewhat new for me, with the exception of Christmas).

1. I love the annual trip to the Flower Mound Pumpkin Patch to enjoy hayrides, bounce houses, and lots of photo ops. This is a must do in fall t to capture the obligatory pumpkin shots….sometimes with costumes, sometimes without. Sometimes with tears, sometimes without. But never to purchase the pumpkins there because Holy Moly Expensive – especially when compared to the rolled back Walmart pumpkin prices of $2.88.
2. Fall Baseball. I love the cooler weather that fall brings and Jeff and I literally argue over who gets to take Davis to baseball practice because of how relaxing it is (sans little kids) to sit outside in the evening and watch the sunset (and batting practice, of  course).
3. I love that the temperature is finally tolerable enough for a hike around the park to look for creatures. Jeff took the boys out this weekend while I was out of town and found 40+ craw-daddies. The boys were so excited, they filmed themselves doing a "news report" about it.
4. Pumpkin Scented Candles
5. The first pot of chili of the season. This also always causes a little bit of argument in our house, because my idea of the first pot of chili is when the first “cold front” hits, regardless of how cold it actually is. In Texas, a “cold front” could be 89 degrees.
6. Fall football. So far, we have only made it to college football games to see the Aggies play – but since tickets are ridiculously expensive this year, watching the Lewisville Fighting Farmers (a local high school team) will have to do on a go forward basis.
   
7. Starbucks pumpkin spice latte are out. However, truth be told - Jeff makes fun of me because I always ask for the “seasonal” latte, regardless of what season it is.
8. Seeing the State Fair of Texas (from afar)! We have a strict rule on our house - one fair visit every five years and we aren't due to go again until 2015, but it is still fun to hear about all the crazy fried food concoctions every year.
9. The elementary school vocabulary parade. So far, I have yet to convince the kids to recycle a prior year costume so we have been "Partly Cloudy", a "cube", a "laptop", and a "pattern". Hopefully, one day it will be cool to recycle some of these vocabulary costumes. Isn't that one of the benefits of having older siblings.  
   
   
   
10. Fall is Birthday Season in our family. There are lots of cousins, and with that comes lots of birthdays. Three out of four of my boys were born in a 25 day window. Double birthdays….costume birthdays….forgotten birthdays…it all comes with the territory.
    
    
    
11. The Plano Balloon Festival. I already mentioned this is one of my favorite traditions of all time. This year didn't disappoint.
12. Bike rides around the park
13. Annual Pumpkin Carving Party
14. Prestonwood’s fall festival
15. Trick or Treating with cousins. Last year we joined Matt and Melissa and had so much fun that I think we declared ita tradition.
    
    
16. Canton Trade Days Hint, hint…Mom…Tiffany…anyone? Technically these run all year long, but Fall is the best time to go.
17. Picking out Halloween costumes… especially costumes for the two boys I still have a say in the choices. Have you seen the little lobster baby costume in the big silver pot in the Pottery Barn catalogue? With the Dad dress up as a chef? So Cute! Nathan needs it!
18. Thanksgiving Dinner! Thanksgiving leftovers. Thanksgiving leftover-leftovers. I bet I just gained 5 pounds typing that sentence.
19. Black Friday Shopping. Its mandatory to go shopping on the day after Thanksgiving regardless of whether my Christmas list is firmed up.  Mimi and I will start around 7am (although we always plan to start earlier) and GrandDad drives us around and drops us off at the doors. So spoiled.
20. Family Photo Shoot for Christmas cards -  and the joy that whole experience brings. And by joy, I am referring to the final, printed pictures....not the actual process. Anyone that has tried to coordinate family pictures and family outfits and force their kids to stand still, smile, open their eyes, not smile like that, and not look posed knows what I am talking about.

Pinterest {Addiction}

I've talked about my addiction to pinterest (or "Pin-Interest" as my mom says) a time or two before.

I don't know why I like it so much. It's the number one website to visit if you want to feel completely inept at whatever you are trying to do.

Recently I even had to take a break from logging in because:

1) Jeff banned it after one too many "$50 dollars and less than thirty minutes" projects that ended up costing "$300 and a long weekend"

2) When I started to realize that I was starting every third sentence with "I have this friend on pinterest that..."

But no temporary hiatus will stop this addiction. Even Hayden has joined in on the pinterest craziness. There are many 'a mornings that I am woken up at 5:30 am with a tap tap tap on the shoulder and whispered request of the boy craft du jour - "can we have a pinterest day and look up how to make ninja outfits."

So in honor of my "addiction" here is my latest craft project that I completed without stealing the idea from pinterest.

Box from target dollar spot + silhouette machine + vinyl + free 'monogram' font = great gift idea for weddings, babies, birthdays, or Christmas.