DIY Wreath

One of my  favorite characters of our new home is the fireplace with a great big mantle. I have always wanted a mantle to decorate. I pretty much already have it decorated up in my head for Christmas next year but struggled with what to do with it now. I knew I wanted to hang something above it to occupy the empty wall space but didn’t know what. We talked about mounting our tv there but decided against it since I wanted it to be more of a decorative center piece than eaten up by the tv. I thought about a mirror or a big portrait but ended up deciding on a wreath for the time being. I love the look of wreaths and how warm and inviting they make a house feel. I will pretty much hang one up anywhere there is enough room. However, pre made ones tend to be pretty darn pricey.

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Custom Curtains on a Budget in 5

In our new house there was lots and lots of floral wallpaper throughout the house. And with that floral wallpaper came matching floral curtains. Can you tell where the wall ends and the window treatment begins?

I know that it’s going to take some time to complete each room and get window treatments up since I am trying to decorate the new house on a smaller budget. It can be frustrating sometimes, but for the most part, I enjoy the challenge and feel a sense of accomplishment when I make it happen. Window treatments can rack up quickly in price so therefore, I usually hit up my go to stores like Wal-Mart, Meijer, Target and Big Lots. I loved the Better Homes and Gardens line at Wal-Mart but they have since reduced their selection (and its a terrible one if you ask me). Since I just wasn’t finding anything that  struck my fancsy, I decided to take on the task of  making my own curtains for the dining room.

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Life

The past four months have flown by and been slightly crazy. Here is a picture update of our family’s life as of late:

After almost 15 months on the market, lots of prayer, and God’s perfect timing we accepted an offer on our house the week before Thanksgiving and had the joy of seeing this in our front yard just after the New Year.

Which led to lots and lots and lots of this:

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Barney Birthday Bash

Last Saturday we celebrated Caroline’s birthday with our family and I’ve been meaning to share a few pictures but this week has been a bit crazy and time just got away from me. Oh well.

When choosing the theme for her party, I knew hands down that it was going to be Barney. Caroline LOVES, LOVES, LOVES Barney! I had predetermined that I wanted to go with the color scheme of lime and lavender with small touches of Barney and not go obnoxiously overboard. Good thing I had decided not to go all out, because it was next to impossible to find anything that had Barney on it and anyone who carried it locally. They had some stuff online but it was ugly and expensive. I found one party shop that carried one choice of a Barney balloon. Instead of cake, I wanted to make cupcakes and create little picks to put in them with some Barney stickers on a couple. I searched high and low for Barney stickers that could not be found. On a total fluke, my sister called me one morning two weeks before the party and said that she had found Barney stickers at her dollar store in Florida. (Thanks for saving the day Aunt Lindsay!) So here is what came of it all: (more…)

Happy 2nd Birthday

Happy 2nd Birthday to my sweet baby girl!

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