How to fix a hole in the wall

Screw a board with hooks on it right over the hole.

Boom.

I'm a home improvement DIY genius.

(And then tell your kids to stop pushing the door open so hard that the doorknob smashes through the drywall.)

not a museum

I read something on twitter many moons ago that has stuck with me. (I don't know why I have a twitter account. Don't bother following me.) 

A mom of little kidlets was complaining (the twitter people do that sometimes) about how her house was never clean (not for lack of trying, of course). Another mom replied to her and said something like my house isn't a museum. it's a workshop. I get it. As a mom of little kids that enjoy playing and actually living in a house, I get it. We're building things here, people. Futures! Lives! Productive members of society! Mess makers! You get the idea.

My house isn't a place where lovely, matchy, themed items of home decor are on display. It isn't a place where the couch cushions are placed neatly in the corners with that karate chop down the middle. It isn't even a place where you can eat at the kitchen table (because it's pretty much always covered with paper, markers, crayons, scissors, stickers and glue sticks).

I like the workshop idea but as a former faculty meeting goer, I like to think of my house as a classroom. Sure, we're making stuff over here but we're also learning stuff. I'm a teacher and these little kidlets of mine are the only students in my class.

For only the cost of a can of spray paint (because I already had all the other paint colors) I made this wall in my kitchen. I don't really care if it's stylish to have bulletin boards of sight words on your kitchen wall. I like it. Danny likes it. When he comes to the fridge to get a snack I have him look up there and read three blue words to me. Or four red ones. Or two orange. Quick and easy.

The old blue window holds his reading chart, his ABC chart and usually the chore charts. They were being updated when I took this picture. The frame by the phone is just for me to write things I need to remember. And that chalkboard is my favorite thing up there. That was in the back garage. You can see the before picture in this post of before pictures that I wrote over two years ago. It took me two years to get around to spiffing it up and taking an after picture. Two years! That's a little depressing but I'll try to just be happy it's finally done and move on.

If Dan would let me I'd turn one of my completely empty dining room walls into a giant whiteboard. I think that would be incredible. Can you even imagine what genius children I'd have if I could have a giant whiteboard in our dining room? I'm talking floor to ceiling. A girl can dream.

My house might not be big and fancy but I don't care. It used to be a museum. Never messy. Dishes washed every day. Beds made. No sticky floors. Heck, the windows even used to be clean. But it was a house without kids.

I'm doing my best to accept the messes because we've got learnin' to do. Plus, I wouldn't trade my kids for karate chopped couch cushions and clean windows are highly overrated.

mama bird

I made this necklace today.

It's my nest.

All the lovely little birdies I get to take care of every day.

The big green egg is Dan. The emerald signifies wisdom, growth and patience. I'd say that's him.

The little orange one is Danny. Topaz symbolizes love and affection. Danny was happy to know the orange one is him since that's his current favorite color. Did you know that topaz is the state gem of Utah? Pretty cool.

And the little white egg is my Catie Bug. The pearl is a symbol of purity. I like that since my birthstone is a pearl too.

The young women in my ward will be making a mama bird nest necklace this week for their moms for Mother's Day. I think it's pretty safe to say none of their moms read this blog so I haven't ruined any surprises. At least that's what I'm hoping.

I followed this tutorial to make my mama bird nest. It was super easy. I think there might be some other ladies in my life who will be receiving one of these sometime in the nearish future.

I really like my little nest.


Speaking of Mother's Day...

Look what my mom sent to me this week.

It's my early Mother's Day gift from her and my dad.

I love it.

Thanks to my own mama bird.

just another chalkboard project

Here's the thing.

I feel like I spend most of my days cleaning things and folding things and washing things and wiping things and disciplining things and cooking things and picking up things and brushing things and flushing things. All day long.

And then once in a while I have a little idea about something I'd like to do around the house that could possibly make my kids happy and me happy and so I do it. But because I take the time to make that little idea come true, all that cleaning and folding and washing and wiping and cooking and picking up and brushing and flushing gets put on the back burner and then I feel like I should be doing all that instead of this one little thing that I actually want to do. It's a vicious cycle.

Have an idea. Really want to turn that idea into reality. Think about that idea while doing all that cleaning, folding, washing (you remember the rest) and then feel like there's no time. NO way I could do that one little thing I just really want to do. Feel guilty. Do that little thing I want to do anyway. Feel guilty some more. Then feel a little bit happy that I did it. Feel proud of myself for accomplishing something that day besides all the boring stuff I have to do. Take pictures. Blog to show off that little thing that I did because what else am I going to show you? Pictures of the laundry I folded? The dishes I washed? The bums I wiped? I didn't think so.

So here's what I did.





I painted the closet door. It's in the dining room because that room used to be a bedroom.

I like it and it makes me happy.

I know that chalkboard paint is all the craze now a days. I get it. But I don't care. I really like it. Maybe because it reminds me of school and I like school. I always have. I used to hate summer break because I just wanted to be in school. I absolutely hate the feel and sound of writing on chalkboards but I sure do think they look nice.

The best part about this chalkboard project is that it was free (besides all the guilty feelings it cost me from not doing my housewifery duties). Aunt Judy let me use her chalkboard paint. That cute little roller and tray were free too. There was some kind of facebook thing a while ago from Sherwin Williams for a free paint sample. I signed up. When it came, that cute little tray and roller were included. I love free.



Cate likes the new chalkboard too.

I love watching her draw. Danny never cared about drawing. He'll color in a coloring book but rarely ever just draws something. Is that a boy thing? I don't know. Cate just loves to draw though and her creations are adorable.



I found this little box of chalk in the cleaning/purging/organizing spree I went on a while ago. Dustless white chalk. Can't ask for more than that right?





Know what I love about this picture?





Her belly.

The look of concentration on her face. That tongue that just wants to poke through her lips to show she's really thinking. Dan does that too. Must be hereditary.

Her candy pants.

Her feet. She's got some cute ones.

Danny got in on the action too. He drew a road.

Yes. He holds his chalk/crayon/pencil/pen/marker the wrong way. I've tried to help him. I even bought one of those do-hickeys that you stick on the pencil to help him hold it correctly. He just gets frustrated and quits. Ah, the joy of preschoolers.



So there's my chalkboard project. I like it. I did something semi-crafty and DIY and home improvement. Yay for me!

car t-shirt for daddy

Dan had a lovely Valentine's Day. Can you tell?

The kiddies and I gave him a new shirt to show him how much we love him.

Except it was just one of his old t-shirts that I drew on but still...we love him!




And now he can have free back tickles any time he puts on that shirt and lays on his belly on the {hopefully} freshly vacuumed floor.

When I saw this tutorial for a car shirt a while back I knew I had to make one for Dan.

I thought it was cute and probably pretty easy (my kind of crafty).

I just downloaded the template and traced it with a black permanent marker. Then I kept on going because I don't know how to leave well enough alone.




I added some stuff to make his car t-shirt town more personal. I do my best to make him feel special.



The library with pink doors. Even though I haven't brought my kids to the library since I don't even know when. And from what I can remember it doesn't have pink doors.



A nice big welcome sign (that was on the original design, not my own creativity). I think it's a nice touch though.



The grocery store. I added the big flag in front because this particular grocery store is Macey's and that's where we shop. Cate calls it the God Bless America flag and insists on singing God Bless America in its general direction whenever she sees it. Adorable. I know.



McDonald's, because I'm just keeping it real here. We go to McDonald's sometimes. My kids eat fries. It's true. Please excuse the wonky yellow M. I did my best. Don't you love the pink slide in the window? And the big parking lot out front? The beauty is in the details, right?

I bought a Diet Coke at McDonald's last week. I took a sip when we got home. Danny looked at the cup. He said, "Hey, it's MICK-Donald's, not NICK-Donald's!" I asked him how he knew that (he pretty much always says NICK-Donald's). "The M on your cup!" He's a bright one right? All the times we've driven past or gone inside McDonald's and he never noticed the Golden Arches? They're huge! He noticed the little M on my cup though.



And of course, if we're going to have McDonald's on the car t-shirt we certainly better have a school on there too. Of course, Danny's school isn't red with a cute little bell on top but who cares? A school's a school.




I also added another house to the shirt. One is for the cousins (Jarrett and Kris) because Danny tells me several times a week that he thinks he should just live there. The other house is ours. Danny's pretty sure the blue house is big enough for Grama Bama to live in too. I added a few trees and bushes. I like the greenery.

I love how it turned out. I only wish I'd left room for the post office, Target and the dinosaur museum. We certainly go to those three way more than we go to the library or the hospital. I thought about making another t-shirt. One for me to wear and then Dan and I can both lay on the floor getting our backs tickled by the hot wheels. And then I remembered, moms don't lay on the floor (at least this mom doesn't).


* * *

Know what else I did on Valentine's Day?



Heehee.

Stole all their chocolate.

I like to call it Cavity Control.

countdown to kisses

I like Valentine's Day.

Any holiday that celebrates and encourages love, chocolate and kisses is a holiday I support 100%.

My kids like countdowns.

I made this paper chain for them today while they were at preschool (their first day back since being off for 3 weeks and let me tell you it was heaven!).

Best part about me pretending to be crafty: it's free. I just used the paper I already had in my stash. Can't beat that.



Pick your paper and cut strips for the links.

Cut out hearts (I just did this freestyle because I'm crazy like that). Make a slit on either side. I used my scissors because I'm not a craft pro. They probably use exacto knives.

Slide the strips through the heart. Repeat until you have as many as you need (or until it's time to pick up the kidlets from preschool).

I used a smallish pink loop in between the big loops so that my hearts wouldn't be all wonky.




After everything was stapled in place, I wrote the names of our loved ones on the hearts. I kept families together. That's how they're supposed to be right? (Plus, if everyone got their own heart we would've had to start this before Christmas.)



The kiddies and Dan each get their own heart.

And I saved the best for last.



I'm quite proud of myself. It turned out exactly how I planned (while I was laying in bed at 3:00 this morning not being able to go back to sleep after being rudely awakened by a certain 3-year-old).




I've got 32 links up there. We won't be starting the countdown just yet but it doesn't hurt to have your family stuck on the wall now does it?

Here's my plan.

When we tear off the second link of each heart, we'll write a little letter (or card or cheesy Valentine) to that person and send it in the mail. So family (if any of you read this blog anymore), when you get some random piece of love mail from us, that's why.

And just so you know, it might be a countdown to kisses but I'm not promising kisses to everyone on the hearts.

That would just be weird.

treasures in the shed

I did a little cleaning in the shed yesterday. Look what I found. A hanging scale. Where does it want to be? What does one do with an old hanging scale these days? For now it'll just hang out right there.



I found this sprinkler contraption. I thought it was some kind of toy tractor at first. I guess you're supposed to hook it onto your hose and the water makes it move along the hose. I don't quite understand the reasoning behind that. Maybe I'll have to hook it up and see what it can do.



I like this old Rain Bird sprinkler head. Cate does too. I hooked it up to the hose and turned on the water and she oooohed and ahhhhhed (and squealed a little too). The middle part shoots the water way up in the air. The spinny things on the side shoot the water sideways. I remember when my grandma used it. I like green. I wonder what the numbers are for. I'll be experimenting with this one.



I found this 8 quart milk can (at least I think it's a milk can...I could be wrong). It's cute. I don't have a clue what to do with it but I like it.



I love this sprinkler head. Looks like my grandma was quite the collector of sprinkler apparatus. This one hooks on and makes a lovely shower to water the flowers. I'll be using this one for sure.



This little cabinet was in the back corner and covered with spider webs and dust and dirt and who knows what else. I dragged it out (it's pretty heavy for being so small...or I'm just a wimp) and sprayed it off. Inside the drawers I found three contraptions that go on your fishing rod (I have no idea what those are called) and a bunch of stuff for painting. Lots of old paint sticks, an old spatula covered in dry paint (I wonder if Grandpa got in trouble with Grandma for using her spatula to stir the paint) and some old rollers. When I touched that one on the end the old foam stuff just crumbled off on my fingers.



So here's the lovely back porch scene I created once all dust and spider webs were removed. I found the flower pot in the shed too and just planted some flowers I picked up at Walmart. The watering can is Grandma's too. The chairs are probably from Walmart too, just a few years ago.

I'm itching to paint that cabinet now. It needs a few new handles too. I don't really know what color it wants to be though. Any ideas?

For now it's sitting happily on the back porch just waiting for me to make a decision.

I hope it's patient.


p.s. Remember the other stuff I found in the garage that's waiting to get spiffed up? It's all still waiting. I've done nothing.

make-up for my little girl

My little girl seems to think it's her duty in life to be all up in my business when I'm putting on my make-up in the morning. Danny too. I know. Easy solution is to lock the door so they can't get near me right? Somehow I think every new day is the day they won't care about my mascara and eye liner. Every day I'm wrong.

I came across this tutorial for make-up for little ladies and I knew that could be the answer to all my make up pesteroni problems. (Know what a pesteroni is? I believe it's Italian for pest. It's a nice way of saying that your kid is driving you bonkers.)

Off I went to the dollar store to buy stuff. I picked up a pill organizer and some nail polish. Pretty sure we also bought stickers, dinosaur trading cards and a cheap plastic toy or two while we were at it.


Then I got out Grandma's bottle of spot remover to take the letters off the pill organizer. All it took was a few drops and the letters were gone. A gas mask would have been nice too because that stuff is pungent. I'm thinking VAPORS HARMFUL is very much the truth.



See? Nice and clean and ready for little girl make up and an end to my pesteroni problems.



I got busy pouring the nail polish into the little sections. Isn't this a lovely shade for fake eyeshadow?



After a few minutes I was done. I think it turned out quite pretty. Not sure why I chose white though. Pickin's must have been slim at the dollar store that day. All there was left to do was let it sit and dry.

What I didn't realize is the amount of shrinkage involved with nail polish drying. After a few days I filled the sections up again and let them dry. Then I had enough nail polish left to fill them up again. That stuff shrinks down to almost nothing. Next time I'll use something not so deep, maybe spare contact lens containers. I think we've got a few dozen of those in the bathroom drawer.



I presented the fake make-up to Cate one morning last week. I told her it was her very own make-up, just like Mommy has. She saw it and said, "Make-up!" in a tone of reverence and awe. It was adorable.

I let her use a spare mirror and some cotton swabs. She parked it at the table and went to work getting herself all dolled up.



She knew exactly what to do, thanks to all the mommy watching she's been doing.

Check out her serious tongue of concentration in this next picture. She totally gets that from her daddy.



She got Big Baby all prettied up too.



I'd have to say this was a huge success. I don't think she's been a pesteroni at my make-up time at all since she has her own. Thank goodness too because I was this close to giving up on make-up all together. Yikes.

This last picture is a doozy but it's my favorite and it makes me laugh. Don't look if you're squeamish about people sticking things in their eyes.



She hasn't hurt herself so far. It's only a matter of time I'm sure.

presents, bows and paper chains

In case you're wondering, this is what it looks like to have your act together.
Sadly, it's only in one teeny tiny area of my life.
But it still counts.
I take the small victories wherever I can.

Those are birthday presents for family members.
A few cousins, an aunt and I can't really remember who else.
The birthday is months away for some of them.
But their present is ready.
I even added Grandma's to the stack on Saturday.
And her birthday's not until July.



Do you just love the wrapping paper?
I do.
It's from a big roll (I'm talkin' big) that was in my grandma's shed for many years.
Looks like some little critters feasted on it while it was out there.
I brought it in the house a few years ago and started using it for wrapping presents and packages.
Sometimes I'm tempted to not cut off that fancy edge the bugs made.
I think it would make the package pretty but maybe the recipients wouldn't agree.

Lookee what I made to put on top of all those presents:


Paper bows

Do you love them as much as I do?
No?
That's ok.
I got carried away late one night and made seven of them.
I think I've found my therapy.
Cutting, taping, folding.

I don't have any fancy scrapbook paper so I just used some lightweight construction paper I already had.
The only brads I could find were these star ones. I already had them too.
I used double sided tape to hold each piece together.
It worked beautifully.


Makes me happy to see my homemade bows on top of those presents.

I cut a few more strips of paper and made this:


I remembered how much Danny enjoyed the countdown to Christmas.
I made this chain to count the days until Grama Bama gets here.

Danny's not as excited as I thought he'd be.
I think he enjoyed erasing the little number on the chalkboard and figuring out which came next.
Oh, well. I tried.

One morning after tearing off the link I said,

"Oh, it's getting closer!"

To which Danny replied,

"Not very. The nights need to go faster!"

I disagree, my friend. I totally disagree.
I'd be fine with the days going faster though.


In other news:

I took a picture of Dan for his work the other day.
Danny and Cate wanted to be in it.
They're just so stinkin' cute.

And my mom sent an envelope full of my stuff last week.
Included were old immunization records, a fingerprinting card, some letters and a few pictures.

Behold, seventh grade.

Even my earlobes were chubby.