Dining room craft

While shopping at Target a few weeks ago I fell in love with some of their new home decor. I don't consider myself a blue person especially when decorating but this just jumped out and me.

I fell in love with the picture. The $50 price tag made me wonder if I could recreate it for a fraction of the cost. Plus I wanted something larger in our dining room.

At first I was thinking stencils but to get a nice stencil with the designs I was thinking of the price was too high for such a small craft. So I went to Joann Fabrics. Derek and I picked a couple out we liked but weren't really sure. About a week later I went back found exactly what I was looking for and it was 40% off. I think buying the fabric made me that much more excited to get the dining room painted which we did this weekend.

We already had 3 frames not being used and knew they would be perfect for this project.

We had a set of 4 but we already reused one of the frames for Chase's room. While these are nice they just aren't our style any more. We purchased them about 5 or 6 years ago at Kohl's.

 First we taped off the black wood trim in the inside and gave the mats a few coats of Heirloom white spray paint. We had leftovers from building our benches. We also gave the frames a new coat of black paint because they were more worn looking. Then we simply taped the fabric to the mat. 

 This is what we ended up with.

We absolutely love it! It's so perfect for the dining room. This project cost less then $13 for the fabric. Plus we have enough leftover fabric to make a couple pillows for the family room.

I'll post a picture of the complete dining room once its finished. I have a couple other projects I have in mind. I love our house. I think Derek is getting tired of me saying it. The more projects that get done the more I love our home.

Only our kids

Yesterday I over heard Maeley and Chase while they were playing. I just love listening in on their conversations. Now most kids when playing pretend typically play house maybe the grocery store. Well not Maeley and Chase they were playing Lowe's. More specifically the employees at the paint counter. They crake me up. I think we might go to Lowe's too often.

They got the apron from their cousin Devan when he was here in September.

Loft complete

Derek and I finally picked out the paint colors for the loft and family room areas. We decided it would be best to start with the loft.

 As you can tell this room is the playroom. The kids love and use everything in here.

By the way the blinds have got to go. The were ugly before but now they are hideous.

 The cabinets hold more toys and lots and lots of books.

 This was our old desk. It's an Ikea desk and I love that we were able to adjust the legs so its the perfect height for the kids. This table gets the most use from Maeley. She is always coloring, drawing, or doing her schoolwork here.

 This wall is painted a shade lighter than the other walls in the loft and is the color that will be downstairs.

 This is the view when walking up the stairs.

 Hallway to the bathroom and kids bedrooms.

 Here you can see the color difference.

Here is a before picture. This was taken the day we were moving in. The accent wall was not painted very well and really needed another coat. That same color is also on one wall downstairs and also done poorly. The rest is all the boring builder beige that is on the ceiling, trim and walls everywhere. Slowly but surely this entire house will be painted.

Rooms that still need to be painted.

-kids bathroom

-dining room

-kitchen

-family room

The kitchen and family room have high vaulted ceilings so we are still figuring out how we are going to do that. I'm thinking rent scaffolding from Home Depot. That means we would have to rent a truck as well to get it to and from which just adds to the cost. Needless to say those rooms will be done last.

Sugar cookies

Derek's work had a surprise baby shower for one of the employees. His wife is due in a few weeks and having a boy. Derek let me know that they were having a potluck lunch. I immediately asked if I could bake cookies. I love to bake but would rather give the cookies away then eat more than my share.

I stumbled upon a great blog. This girl is very talented when it comes to sugar cookies. She had a chocolate chip sugar cookie recipe and I had to try it out. They were good. If you decide to try this recipe I used way less chocolate chips then the recipe calls for. I doubled and recipe and only used 1 cup instead of 1 1/2 cups per batch. I really like chocolate and I didn't think it was missing any.

I completely forgot to take a picture before loading up into the car.

Now I am a complete amateur at this but its a lot of fun. I just need to get the right consistency on the icing.

The girls room

This weekend Derek and I finished the girls room. It's so cute I love it. More importantly Maeley and Zoe love it.

Before

After

 Maeley found her letters for her name and wanted them on the wall again. (They were hung in her nursery) We found Zoe's letters at Hobby Lobby for $2.99 each plus 50% off. We had the flower night light from when Maeley was a toddler, purchased at Ikea. The bedding we already had and wanted to work with it. I absolutely adore this tree. Its so fun and whimsical. Here's the link to the blog that I was inspired by.  All I saw was the little picture on the left side. I saw that several months ago but the image stuck with me. Then I had to find it again, it took awhile because blog hopping can lead you to so many places. Derek just printed out the picture and free handed it on the wall. He did a great job.


 The day bed we found on Craigslist for $60 with the mattress. We painted it white, it was a honey color wood. We already had a twin mattress so we put that in the trundle where it was before. This room can easily sleep 4, and 5 if two share the full size bed on bottom. It works out great when Derek's brother Phil and his family come to visit. Chase sleeps on the daybed when we have company. He likes it. We found the white picture frames at Michael's during the after Thanksgiving sales. They were 60% off with an additional 20% off coupon. Such a great deal. The night stand we already had but repainted. It used to have a bear painted on it. The lamp we had and also repainted it white and purchased the lamp shade. By the way, we want to put some kind of saying under the middle picture of the girls but not sure what yet.

 I still love that dresser. We purchased it at Potato Barn in Gilbert when I was pregnant with Maeley. The pink chair Maeley got for Christmas in 2006. It's really popular with the kids. The bow holders I made over a year ago. So easy and they hold a ton. The door leads to their closet. I love their closet its huge. The closet is where their play kitchen is. They enjoy playing in there.

For Christmas Derek's parents gave us the shutter for this room and the dining room. In my opinion there is no better window covering than a shutter. But then again I am biased.

We paid very little to decorate this room. I love working with what you've got. Now on to more projects. I have a great idea for the dining room.

A little update

Chase gave a scripture and talk in primary this past Sunday. He had practiced with Daddy a few times before church and he was just excited. When he gave it he was smiling as he spoke. I was in the back of the room, it was hard to hear him but he was still doing such a great job. After he finished the scripture he said the prayer all by himself. He has grown up so quickly. It just amazes me of the new things he learns. Finally he says he wants to grow up. I think he's figured out that he can do some fun things that he couldn't do before. Also a lot of persuasion came from Maeley. I feel torn apart. Derek and I have always said that we'd hold him back a year in school (his birthday is the middle of July) so he's the oldest verses one of the youngest in school. I'm definitely having doubts. He's the most mature kid in his primary class. He's wants to do good and listen and learn. I spoke with one of his teacher's Sunday because I just wanted them to know that he likes them so much, way more than the other kids. She told me that she specifically asked to have Chase in their class because he sets a good example for the other kids. I would love to get him in the state preschool program that they have here. I hear its great. I guess we have a few months before registration begins.

Speaking of growing up Maeley is such a wonderful little girl. Maeley used to be a very difficult child. Extremely strong willed and just rude at times. I'm so thankful she grew out of that. Now she is so helpful. She loves her brother and sister, its obvious. She does things you ask when you ask and is generally pretty happy to do it. She's a smarty pants that's for sure. She picks up on everything and notices any changes. Her memory is phenomenal. She know exactly what she wants. One thing she wants more than anything is a friend. The other girls in her primary class don't include her. (I think they are all in kindergarden together too.)  I see the way Maeley looks at them. It brakes my heart. She is so nice to them and she tries to make her way in. No such luck though. Maeley is one luckily girl though to have two best friends at home, Chase and Zoe. She treats them so well, helps them and is always looking out of them. They look up to her and love her back.  We had a conversation with her the other day about this. You can tell it hurts her but she doesn't complain. I think it bothers me the most. It just brakes my heart.

Zoe is a very happy kid most of the time. She doesn't take naps very often anymore. I'm lucky if she naps twice a week. I think since then she has began sleeping in longer in the mornings. I enjoy that because Maeley gets more sleep too. She loves being included with what Maeley and Chase are doing.She thinks she's much older than 2.  She loves Lola. Often when we are away she talks about her and is so excited when we get home to see her. She enjoys wearing panties and sitting on the toilet but hasn't quite got the potty training concept down. I can't wait until she's potty trained. I love her little skip that she does around the house. Or the way she laughs at herself because she thinks she's so funny. Or the hugs and kisses she gives. If you turn your face so she can kiss your cheek she will grab your face and turn it so she can kiss your lips. She loves books. I'm always finding her looking through them throughout the day.

Derek just got a calling. He is now assistant ward clerk over membership. I got a calling last month. I'm the personal progress leader in Young Womens. If you haven't heard of that calling I hadn't either. We both will be very busy. Derek and I finished painting the last 6 doors in our house. There are 17 total. Each side needed 3 coats. Such a pain but so glad that part is done. My brother Tyler got engaged last week so we will be coming back for that in March. Derek's brother is unofficially engaged but has a tentative date, so another trip back a few months later. It will be great seeing all the family. Our kids can't wait to see their cousins again. They are also very excited to see my dad's new pet...a sheep.

New Year's and other things

Derek had another 4 day weekend. We really enjoyed two of those in a row. For New Year's Eve during the day Derek and I spent the day painting the laundry room. We didn't even stay up til midnight. We would much rather go to bed and get up and get things done. The next day Derek and I painted the half bath and also the trim in the entryway and family room. We are so close to having all the trim in the house painted. I can't wait. We also did a little shopping in the morning on New Year's Day. I love shopping then because there are very few people out. We took the kids to Toys R Us so they could pick out a game for their LeapFrog Explorers. Chase was sad because they didn't have the game he had been wanting. Instead he got other game which he seems to like.

Sunday was totally boring. Switching times is always hard but when you switch from 9 to 1 it's especially hard.  The kids kept asking when we were going to church. Maeley is now in CTR 5 and Chase is a sunbeam. He couldn't be happier. I was thrilled to find out he has the same teachers as last year. He has told us multiple times that he likes his teachers more than the other kids. Zoe of course is still in nursery. The past few weeks she cries when we drop her off but then is fine shortly after when I check on her.

Monday was pretty lame. We went to go pick up our computer which we had been without since Thursday, only to find out it wasn't completed yet. An employee said it should be done within a couple hours. Instead of driving home just to drive back we thought we'd kill some time and walk around the mall. Then the kids got hungry and we had lunch at McDonald's. Chase loves his toy he got so much he's been begging me to take him back. Unfortunately we got tired of waiting went home and it was ready in the evening. We were pretty annoyed. We could have accomplished so much more had they told us it was going to take so long. Derek was able to take done the Christmas lights outside.

This weekend was freezing. Remember I'm an Arizona girl. The low's were in the single digits. Sunday morning was 3 degrees! The high was only in the 20's.

 After opening pj's on Christmas Eve Maeley put a bow to Lola. She is so great about letting the kids do whatever to her. She is just so mellow.

However we found out that she loves their buckets in the backyard. She will put the handle in her mouth and fling the bucket in the air. She will put her head inside the bucket and run around with it. She absolutely loves this thing. She played with this red bucket so much it was torn into small pieces but we have 3 others so she's happy. The kids have the best time watching her do this too. It's quite entertaining for them.