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A Birthday, Wedding and a surprise-

A couple of my friends surprised me with a fun little day together. Visiting, lunch and way cute gifts, a fabulous Temple bag from Sandi, and a marvelous bowl from Ruth, just doesn't get any better. Thanks girls.

 

Just thought I would share a few pictures from a wedding I attended last weekend. {I know how we all love to see weddings =)

I loved the theme- Around nature and birds-

How cool is that bird cage....It said "Nest egg" it is where all the cards were placed.

They held the reception at the Bride's home.....In a word it was "Enchanting."

Okay, now for the surprise..... Danny surprised me with this.

 
Back when we were looking for a home to buy, we wanted something old, perhaps from the 1920-40's. but nothing ever came available, so we bought the Hamlet. Through a interesting turn of events. We...I mean, Danny put an offer on this house without even asking me.{does he know me or what!}  Holy cow, I love this place.   Happy Day we are now in escrow and baring any problems this home will soon be ours.  Oh, and other crazy thing....we sold the Hamlet in one day! {that was also crazy, a little biding war started over it, so we got more than we were asking.} 

A little about this home...which I will now call the "Cottage."  was built in 1921....it still have the original floors, windows, cabinets, and fixtures....the tile is in fabulous shape. {the bathroom tiles are light blues and white, and green &white with a black tile border} The original kitchen cabinets are still there...but someone down the road did a very wild weird tile job in there...which will be coming out soon.

The outside is in need of lots of help....But I see lots of potential in it!  The inside needs paint, cleaning and just a little love.

This is the dinning room looking into the living area. All the doors have their original handles and knobs and all the light fixtures in the hall, dinning room and bathrooms are original.

Living-room looking into dinning room.  {I plan to keep the blue color just want to go a shade or two lighter....if you know of a color that would work let me know}

I'm just so excited....this place is so right for us.  Lots of little projects to keep us busy.  Some couples golf together, some love sports, we, well we love a good makeover challenge, taking something old and rebuilding, remodeling, creating.

Happy Day

 

 

 

 
 

A Year ago today-

It's been a year since we took a builder grade home and turned it into a place we love....see it's beginnings here. Check out the "posts" about it...here.  For a list of paint colors go here.

It honor of our one year anniversary, here's a look at it today.

Entry-

Living Room-

Kitchen-

 

Guest Bath

 Master-bath and Bed-

Laundry-

Guest Room-

 
 I don't know why, but it always amazes me what paint can do to transform a space.....
 now just adding decorative touches. It's been a full and fun year of working on this little place.

Happy Day-

I'm linking this post to The Inspired Room.....check it out here.

 
 
 
 
  

Garden in May-

"The world's favorite season is the spring. 
All things seem possible in May."
-   Edwin Way Teale

 

 

 
Mary, Mary, quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
With silver bells, and cockle shells,
And pretty maids all in a row. 

The little things, the little moments, They aren't little.

 Birds nest in the most interesting places....this one greets us each morning.

 
 
 
I marveled at the sight, two small children, one small bird and four blue eggs.

Spring isn't spring until you have stood on your tip toes to see the surprise inside.  

A centerpiece from the May Garden-
 

  

Little me-

Featured on "Remodelaholic" She asked if she could use this on her blog..... that was sweet of her.

Happy Day

My Dads house-

When I think of Home-

I think of.....

• Standing at the sink washing dishes with Dad
• my Dads hands
• cowboys hats
• signs of spring
• evening talks
• humming birds
• baking
• Big blue skys
• old time movies
• Dad's smile through the pain
• lunch in town.  Ice cream shakes and french fries

When I think of home, I think of my Dads grandchildren stopping by on the way to school to say, goodmorning.

 

When I think of home-

I think of.....

• Martel & Hollie's beautiful garden & Home
• hugs all around
• scrapbooks
• Late night visits with my brother
• Sharing with my Sister

But most of all I think of the loved expressed to me from my Dad.

 

What Makes a Dad-

God took the strength of a mountain,
The majesty of a tree,
The warmth of a summer sun,
The calm of a quiet sea,
The generous soul of nature,
The comforting arm of night,
The wisdom of the ages,
The power of the eagle's flight,
The joy of a morning in spring,
The faith of a mustard seed,
The patience of eternity,
The depth of a family need,
Then God combined these qualities,
When there was nothing more to add,
He knew His masterpiece was complete,
And so,

He called it ... Dad

~Author Unknown- 

  
 

 

Life Lessons-

I read these in a magazine and thought it was good advice.  Just sharing.

Back row. Dad holding Martel, Mom

Lewis, Kristeen, Don, Maurice, Teresa {just so you know, two are missing from this picture....they were to come much later....Pam and John}

1. Childhood is like Vegas:Let what happened there stay there.  Don't guilt yourself over the mind games you played on your brother, and stop accusing your sister of stealing the sweater you bought in Florence, cira 1992.  Make a conscious effort to forgive these childhood misdeeds and they'll soon be water under the Ponte Vecchio.
2. Stop being the family mole. Ever- shifting alliances, surreptitious confabs, stealth reconnaissance...you'd think we were talking about The Bourne Identity and not those other people born to your Mother.  Sibling relationships are often defined by behind- the back gossiping, whether that means secretly slamming one sib to the other or listening greedily as your parents decry your brother's latest over-the-top electronics purchase.  As expected, all this duplicitous chatter erodes honesty and makes it nearly impossible for you to be as close-knit with your clan as you would like.  So cut it out.  And if you're finding it difficult to tear yourself aways from, say, Sister's gripe-fest, remember that she most likely lets loose about you, too.
3. B GRS TXT Frnds- People are busy and hour long chats are hard to do. You're actually more likely to supercharge your bond by having frequent casual contact. Text Messaging, {thanks Martel I especially like the pictures of your lunch.=)  commenting on a facebook update, checking in on each others blogs.
4. Quit being jealous of others.  Maybe your best friend and her sisters routinely send each other homemade cookies. When you witness others sharing tight ties with their brethren, it can be easy to devalue your own relationships...if say, exchanging birthday cards constitutes meaningful contact between you and your sister.  Remember, though, that there are different depths to each bond and that somewhere inside that group hug, someone is usually dropping an elbow.  Plus if you are worried about the bond...look at what you do first, are you going out of your way to help it? It's easy to point a finger to let them know what they are not doing....not so easy to look at what we do.
5. Mind your Manners-  You don't have to be formal with siblings, but a petty comment still rattles, no matter how close you are to them.   Digs about weight, grammar usage etc. are never fun to receive.

I thought this was pretty good advice, that we all could probably use from time to time.

Perfect Dinner-

 Ihop like Pancakes, Strawberries and Becca's Buttermilk Syrup

Here's the recipes-

Buttermilk syrup

1 cube butter or margarine
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup buttermilk (can be made by using 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 Tb vinegar or lemon juice-mix together and let sit 2-3 minutes until milk curdles)
1 tsp. vanilla

Heat on stove in a LARGE pot (it will more than double in size as it boils) until bubbly and frothy.  Serve immediately.
It's great on waffles, pancakes, german pancakes, over ice cream or even on popcorn.

Ihop like Pancakes-

1 1/4 cup flour

1 egg

1 1/4 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup sugar

3 Tbsp melted butter

1 tsp vanilla

1 Tbsp Baking Powder

1 tsp Baking soda

pinch of salt

Mix wet ingredients- then add dry. Don't over mix.

Top everything with Strawberries-

Enjoy

Mirror Dresser- for $35

 

 

Remember these guys- They are now very good friends {I received two old dressers from Libby- this is not the one that I used. Couldn't find the before picture {my computer crashed last week, and I'm still trying to find everything...but the dresser looked just like this one in every-way, except the top drawers were different.}

 

What I did-

• Saved the mirror- which was cut into pieces to fit the dresser- $20
• Painted the dresser- Ralph Lauren- Regent Metallics- silver Base
• Purchased simple handles for $15
• Glued the mirror to the dresser using- Liquid Nails- Mirror adhesive ( in the silver and gold tube}
• Dresser- free from Libby

Here is a step by step look:

Applying the glue- mirror next

And here is another one with Emma in it....just because she is so cute.

One more piece done.

Tips-  Save all your old mirrors, you never know when, or how you will use them.  I asked my glass guy how much it would have cost me if I didn't have my own mirror.  He said somewhere between  $80 and $150. More if you wanted the ends beveled.

So if you are doing a bathroom redo and it has a big piece of mirror in it...SAVE IT!  if you don't want it, I will take it off your hands.  =)

I have some fun ideas for the top of the dresser....I just put a few items on it for now....so it didn't look so bare.

I'm linking this with The inspired Room, Click on over here  to see so many creative people.

 

 

 
 
 
  
 

  

Pismo- with Friends

We had been trying for a long time to find time to get away with friends....and it finally happened.  We planned a quick trip to Pismo.  We didn't plan to do anything big....just walking around the beach, good food, and just time to do something different than work.

First up was a drive to Hearst Castle-

The outdoor pool was amazing!

Every little detail was planned out in the garden.

The main house and cottages were fascinating but a little dark for my taste, the money spent...a little over the top.

 

Notice the indoor pool....amazing tile work...all the yellow tiles are actually 22 caret gold.

The rest of the day was spent this way.....

• ate at a beach side cafe....where birds kept taking our french fries.
• a squirrel tried to eat Sandi.
• walking on the beach
• watched kiteboarding
• eating
• watching the sun go down and building a fire on the beach.

The fire made things warm and toasty....just a little windy.

 
It was a much needed getaway....just to chill, sit back and do nothing. 

 Note-{the wind played havoc on our hair.}

 

Being with the one you love, good friends, great food and the beach....couldn't ask for a better way to spend the weekend.   

Happy Day-  

 

 

 

 

Master Bedroom Headboard-

This is how our "Hamlet" master bedroom has looked for some time now.

I thought it was time to start making it look like someone lives here.

Plus, for some reason sleeping on a bed without a headboard makes me feel like I'm floating or falling off.

Hence project "Headboard" is under way.

Materials-

• one 4 X 5' piece of plywood
• 2 yards of fabric
• foam and quilt batting
• 8 feet of mirror railing - cut into two four feet pieces.
• spray glue
• screws
• fishing line to attach fabric covered buttons

1. Attached 4 feet of mirror railing up side down to back of plywood. The other piece goes right side up on the wall. To attach headboard to the wall just slide together.
2. Drilled 13 holes through plywood for use in attaching the buttons...and then sprayed the front with spray glue.  Placed the foam on the front {I had several pieces, I just cut them to fit the board} After I laid the foam down I topped that with quilt batting.
3. Cover the foam and quilt batting with my fabric....stapling everything to the back of the plywood.
4. If you enlarge the picture you will see where I circled the holes make for the bottoms.   I fished a needle and fishing line through the holes in the back through all layers of foam, batting and fabric. Tried a knot to the back of the button. I then tighten the line to a small screw placed by each hole.

This gives you an idea what the foam and batting looked like before I covered it with fabric.

This gives you an idea on how I folded the corners.

I like how it fits close to the wall....using the heavy mirror railing....really helped.

And here is the finished Headboard- Total cost of materials- $82.50

Today I added a couple of lamps taken from the CV house... along with some $9.00 pillows found at target.

....I was really pleased how it turned out. Step by step things are coming together. Next month I will be adding some curtains and a few other things.   

Plus the mirror has been cut for the dresser, I will be gluing that on the dresser Monday....then I will share.

Here are a couple of tips-

If you are going to use plywood make sure you find a very straight piece....if it has a blend to it....mounting it with mirror railing can be a pain...plus it helps to have a good and flat wall.

I got the mirror railing at a glass/window store... they cut it by the foot.

Covered buttons are harder than they look to do.

It took me about a half hour to cover the plywood- 2 hours to do the buttons and about 15 min. to install.

 

I'm linking this post with others who are sharing wonderful ideas and home inspiration...  check it out here.