Let's get this party started....

So before the holidays attacks me and the new year begins i need to update with some fairly old things we have done to our abode! I have mentioned before that i was adding a new mirror to our master bath and that we were also installing hardwood in our living room. With 2 kids and 2 dogs, hardwood is a must. Our carpet shampooer actually broke right after we installed the wood lol. So that should tell you how much we used it. Here are some pictures from our projects. If i'm not mistaken both of these projects were done at the end of summer in August.

Bathroom paint drying :)

Belle finding it amusing as i struggle to get the new mirrors hung.

I got these mirrors at Ikea. They came as a pack  of 4 and i thought they would look fabulous in our Master bath as one big mirror. I think one pack cost $19.99 so i bought 2 to cover where our old mirror use to be.

I had to tape them as i fastened the hardware to the wall. Each mirror required 4 pieces of hardware on each corner so it took some time. Especially because i was planning on putting all 8 mirrors up but then realized only 6 would fit. So i had to start over. 

Here they are all put up before i removed the tape. Will take a better finished pic soon, but i love how unique and different they are. They definitely add a more modern feel to the bathroom. 

Now onto our next project which was installing hardwood floor. George started at night after the kids went to bed, and basically just prepped by pulling out all the carpet. 

By morning this is what it looked like. He started a small section that night as well, to get a feel for how it would be. 

Besides our patio this was George's 2nd big project in our house! He has been learning so much just by looking around online and i couldn't be happier and prouder of the outcome!

The first things we bought was a new vacuum and a shark. Both work GREAT on keeping the floors extra clean from the kids and dogs!

I.Am.Alive

Yes i am still alive. Barely. The last few months have been a whirlwind. School was my number one priority, i feel awful saying that, but when you're this CLOSE to graduating you gotta start taking things off the plate to make sure you finish! BUT fall semester is NOW over!!!!! Student teaching starts Jan 2 so you will have me for one WHOLE month! :) A lot has happened around here. George put in wood flooring downstairs, like 10 years ago it feels like. And other than decorating for the holidays NOTHING else has happened house wise. BUT, of course i have a few things up my sleeve! So i will take you all along with me in the next few weeks while i get my house, crafting, holiday on!!!

The kids are getting SO SO big. I look at Belle and can literally see her maturing EVERY day. She acts like such a little girl now and runs and plays. It's so sweet to see her and Noah play together and hug. They are VERY wild and rambunctious, but make life SO happy here. I cant believe Christmas is already here. Why does time have to fly by when kids are so little. Makes me sad. Winter time is such a special time to me here in Georgia. It holds so many good memories. Memories of when i first moved here after a long and hard year stationed apart from George. Then the winter that he was in Iraq and i was pregnant with Noah. Then we moved into our first home the winter of 09. And of course my favorite, Belle was born just last winter. As soon as the leaves change colors and the cold crisp airs arrives, the nostalgia hits me and i cant help but walk around in a haze remembering such good memories. With that said, i will update and post some new pics tomorrow!! Eeeeek SO excited to have a month off!

Guestroom/Craftroom!

Since our entire family has been hit like a plague with stomach bugs, colds, and bronchitis i feel like it has been FOREVER since i've blogged, and even longer since i decorated my guestroom/craftroom. It is still in the works, i need to find some lamps for the nightstands, a work table to replace that black bookshelf, and i think i am going to get the bigger expdit shelf and put this smaller one in the playroom for toy storage. BUT here is is THUS far! In case you didn't know what it looked like before..........let me remind you.

And here is the room now!!!!

I have to say that the curtains are my all time favorite thing about the room. I scored them at Joann's in the clearance section for $3 a yard! I'm kicking myself for not getting more yardage!

Here are 2 mirrors that were left over from my Master bath project that is next on my blogging list :) And this SUPPEERR cute shelf i scored at the Goodwill for $10. Haven't fully decided what i want to do with it yet. I've just been placing jars and other random containers in it to hold craft supplies. 

So there you have it, my little cozy sewing haven. I dont know if we will get to the small changes i mentioned i wanted to make, by the end of the year. I have the holidays, my crazy kids, and of course school to focus on till then. But i will be blogging my master bath project, master bedroom alteration, and a big project we did in the living room!

This craftroom is now, by far, one of my favorite places in the house. Since it is upstairs with the kids, it feels so nice to be near them while they play during the day. They lay on the floor and make messes while i sew, and last week i even napped in our guest bed while the kids napped. I've even been known to hide out in that bed with snacks and gossip magazines as well. It's starting to feel more and more like my mom "escape" cave :) Nothing wrong with that.

Recap!

So i know i have been gone for about 2 weeks now but a lot has been going on over here. For one my computer crashed and shut down completely. so i had to turn it into apple to get fixed. Then i had some medical issues i had to take care of, and then my dad came to visit for a week! So with that said, i will be playing catch up the next few weeks and sharing what little i've done around the house and project wise.

The kids are literally growing like weeds, doing SO much it's amazing. School is going good, it is a pretty easy semester compared to the last 2, and senioritis has set in full force. I need to snap out of it though before my student teaching starts January 3rd, because the Spring is going to be the busiest time of my life. Here are 2 pictures of 2 main projects i was working on before my computer crashed. I will do full posts on these as well as a post on one BIG project George did to the house while i was away as well :)

My new sewing space :)

Our new bathroom mirrors :) Excuse the tape, that's what i used to get them up there perfect. Full post will have the final picture.

ATL!

Last weekend two of my best friends and I traveled to Atlanta to throw one of our dear friends a baby shower. This is the same friend that i took maternity pictures for just a few months ago. Bobbi wanted her baby shower at a tea room and we all thought that would be a great idea since we all LOVE a good excuse to get dolled up! Bobbi chose Dr. Bombay's Underwater Tea Room in Atlanta, GA and let me tell you, it was one of the best experiences we have all had together. And we have had many!

The place was in the cutest little neighborhood with the Flying Biscuit practically next door. In case you dont know what the Flying Biscuit is (because i didnt either until my girls took me) it is a fab restaurant that has many locations all over Atlanta. The tea room was small, but perfect for what we wanted. I organized a party of 10 to receive high tea with danishes and sandwiches, and then we also had a dozen strawberry cupcakes ordered from the bakery. The food was to die for. Here are a few pictures from our time there, and i can tell you that we will definietely be going back.

And since we're on the topic of Atlanta, let me tell you this........ i had to stop by Ikea on the way home. I have some AMAAZZZIINNNGG posts coming soon of my master bathroom and craftroom/guestroom makeover. Both rooms are coming along SO well :)

Happy dance!!

I said before that i had been working on the guestroom/craftroom and that i was re-doing my desk. This desk to be exact. I had plans of lightening it up a bit and painting it a pretty pastel yellow with little glass knobs for the hardware. Well my pretty ideas of a more feminine desk vanished when i started sanding all that awful green off and let me tell you this, i NEVER want to see that color green again. At least not in a paint can. It took me FOREVER to get that paint off! I took an hour almost EVERY evening for a month to work on it, since it was cooler in the evenings and when i started school i was also off in the evenings.

BEFORE:

Well yesterday after priming it upside down, i flipped the bad boy over and suddenly had a great idea! I had bought a can of beautiful wood stain to sand and stain the chair that went with the desk (already changed my mind on that one), and instead thought it would be SO pretty to stain the top of the desk and paint the rest.

So that is what i did. I was SO excited once it was done that i rushed to get it in the house, damp and all. I know that was a HUGE risk, especially moving it upstairs on my own. What can i say, i'm super woman. But here it is! These cell phone pics don't do it justice. I need a new memory card for my good camera so tomorrow after i get one i will take some new pics. And i will be working on the curtains i have for the room too! I am SO excited to get them up and then i will only need a few more things that i might be picking up at Ikea this weekend to complete the room!

I don't know why the yellow looks so much brighter in the first pic. It is a VERRRYY light yellow. It was actually called Creme Yellow by Vaspar.

Can't wait to get my sewing machine back up there and start on many awaiting projects!

I'm still alive......barely.

Well last week was my first week back to school. Literally back to school. I have to complete a 10 day "August Experience" in order to graduate next year. This is so i can experience "pre-planning" and setting up a classroom in the room where i am going to do my student teaching. I am working with a GREAT special education teacher that i really admire and think i will learn a lot from student teaching with her. So last week was filled with 8 hour days and then i would come home to my 2 adorable kiddos in enough time to cuddle and then dive straight into dinner, bathtime, and then betime. Last week was busy to say the least. And this upcoming week will be a repeat except that friday i will be heading to Atlanta with my girlfriends to throw one of our good friends a baby shower!

Since so much has been going on i haven't had time to work on all the projects i would love to, or to blog, or to even run. Bah humbug! No wonder i've been so cranky! So yesterday my neighbor and i decided to have a yard sale and clean out both our houses and post up out front and see what we could get for random stuff we no longer use. I only made $40 but spent a lot more lol. My neighbor was selling some great stuff, and stuff that we actually need! I scored this BEAUTIFUL solid wood buffet that she doesn't have room for, but looks like it was MADE for my dining room. We also got a Kirby and since her son is a few years older than mine, i got Noah's fall and winter wardrobe taken care of. I was SO excited!

*And how amazing does my old window look on the buffet??? I was working on it and planning on painting it blue and hanging it in our downstairs bathroom, but i set it on here to get a visual and George LOVED it. We are planning on leaving it there and adding a big long shelf higher up across the top of the wall.

Pumped from my goodies yesterday i took today to start organizing a bit since i got rid of some crap and have some space in our home. I cleaned out and swept the garage. *Side note, i have taken about an hour every night this past week to sand my desk and i JUST finished today. So priming and painting is on the agenda and i'm hoping i will have some pics of our guestroom/craftroom this weekend.* I moved a bookshelf from Ikea that we had in the garage into our closet which gave us so much more space and helped me organize our closet a little better. Here are a few pics from my closet work earlier this afternoon.

I know it doesn't look like much, but the shelf adds space for belts, bags, and shoes that otherwise get thrown every where else. There is also space for folded sweaters or winter things that George and I might not use during the spring and summer. 

I'm excited to get my desk done this week, FINALLY, and start working on more sewing projects as the fall holidays approach :)

Too good to last

Although we have had a "jumpin" summer, it is time that all the late nights come to an end. My last and FINAL year of school kicks off tomorrow. I want to give my school work all of my attention and really finish off my senior year with a bang. I'm shooting for straight A's, so we'll see how i do! I hope to keep up my blog, there may be weeks when i keep it up and weeks when i'm nowhere to be found. A lot of that has to do with my projects, crafts, and time with the kids as well.

I'm still patiently working on my desk, i was hoping to have it done by the time i went back to school but it looks like it was a bigger project than i was ready for. I will keep you all updated as i finish it and the craft/guestbedroom throughout the next few weeks.

I also have been wanting to do a running post. A post where i can write about all the things i love and cant live without in my 3 years of running. I cant believe this October 1st will only be 3 years since i took up the sport. It was the best thing i ever did. I hope everyone had a great summer and are ready and re-charged for fall and all the festivites that come during this time of year!

Bobbi Jo and baby Stella Rose

As if i don't take on enough extracurricular activities, here is my FIRST shot at taking some pictures of my beautiful friend Bobbi Jo who is 8 months pregnant. I've ALWAYS loved pretty pictures, and most my time out is spent looking at different and unique places where a picture could be captured. Don't get me wrong, i am in no shape or form a photographer, i am simply a girl who is having fun with her camera and capturing shots of someone i love and hoping she will look at these pictures and see herself the way i see her, simply beautiful, inside and out.

I've wanted to try something like this for awhile now, i just never had the guts, and someone close enough to me, to actually let me try what i wanted to, in regards to pictures. I have to say i was pretty impressed with myself. I was SO nervous that they would turn out horrible and i would hang my head and walk away with the satisfaction that i at least tried. But instead i was EXCITED, and found myself starring at some of the pictures i took hours after i took them. I am sticking with my major of teaching special ed, but i would love to learn more about photography and hopefully take more pictures of people i love, especially my own 2 kids. So here are some of my favorite pictures i took of my dear friend Bobbi Jo, her husband Gary, and their soon to be baby girl Stella Rose :)

Operation........Guestroom/Craftroom!

Our 4th room is a rather large room. When we picked the floor plan we had the option to have an additional (4th) room added above the garage for more money. Of course we agreed. This took our house from almost 2300 (i believe), to exactly 2600 sq. ft. This addition room is HUGE, the same size as our Master (minus the bathroom). So i didnt want it to be one of the kids rooms. It wouldn't be fair to whoever got such a large room. So of course it was easy to put the babies in the 2 equal sized rooms, and do something fun with the big one.

At first, this was before i learned to sew, i already had planned to make it a cozy guestroom/office space. I had lots of different visions and ideas, but then as time wore on and Noah got older and started doing crafts with me i decided i need some space. Creative space :) So that was when i decided it will be our guestroom/craftroom. Then soon after i learned to sew and noticed that not only was my fabric stash growing, but i needed A LOT of space for most my projects. Our master bedroom would look like a tornado hit it, and before bed Goerge and i would be cleaning forever. How nice it would be to close a door with all my parts and pieces of a project left EXACTLY where they were, only for me to return to it in the morning completely refreshed.

I have a vision for this room, as i do for most the rooms i take off decorating. Many of the rooms in our homse have waitied to be completely done because i may have a million ideas for it and i NEVER want to commit to something when i have a million different ideas. I'm patient with my designing and decorating, and even then i still change things around. So with this room i have taken my time and it has evolved quite well.

I am re-doing my desk i bought last fall because as one of my very FIRST furniture projects i used the wrong kind of primer. I used latex instead of oil based which caused the oil based paint i used to peel right off. It was a disaster and i didnt even put new hardware on it. YUCK!

It is almost completely painted and i have the fabric waiting and ready to be made into beautiful curtains. This weekend i will hang them and start slowly putting my desk back together upstairs instead of in our Master bedroom downstaris. Here is what the room looks like now. There is a bookshelf, drresser, nightstands, BEAUTIFUL white small cubicle shelf, queen size bed, and my shutter headboard i created from $5 shutters :)

Stay tuned as this room evolves. I will snap a pic once the curtains and desk are set up but then i also need to make an ikea run for a few items and am searhcing for some fun and funky lamps for the nightstands :) I'm TOO excited about all of this. 

Here it is: the requested Cloth Diaper post

**NOTE** This post is what works for me and my kids, and i am very well informed that what may work for one person will not work for another. I'm not claiming to know everything, or telling anyone to do it my way, i am simply stating what i do and what has worked for me and my family. I cloth diapered my son who is 3 and now fully potty trained, and am currently cloth diapering my daughter who is 8 mos. I have tried just about EVERY diaper, and learned many lessons by taking advice from people and the web. Some good, some bad.

I tend to get alot of emails and messages about ALL kinds of things, but the number one subject i get asked about is.........cloth diapers. I don't mind AT ALL, to be honest, i think moms should stick together and i have messaged and emailed moms that i like and respect to ask questions on certain matters myself! So of course my brilliant husband gave me the idea to go ahead and write a blog post about what works for us when it comes to the topic of cloth diapering. I snapped some pics to show you all what they look like, where we store them and what products we love the most. I hope this will be informative and will answer any questions anyone has.

BRAND:
First off, the diapers i use the most often and love the most are none other than Bumgenuis. These are All In One, which means they DO NOT need a waterproof cover. Just think of them as a NORMAL diaper that you throw on and take off. Nothing special needs to be done. They are the easiest and most daddy friendly. You can find the ones i use HERE.



They are one size which means they can grow with your baby. This saves a TON of money! The pound range is 8-35 pounds and the snaps in the front are so the diaper can be snapped down small and undone to make them larger.



STORAGE:
We store our diapers in a dresser that i use as a changing table. This was during laundry day, so the rest of my diapers were hanging in the laundry room. I have about 17-20, not too sure, haven't counted and i have some Grovia AI2's for backup. (All in 2's just means it has a waterproof cover but the inside snaps in and out. So you use the same cover all day, you just replace the inside during every change.)







Now lets talk about the most asked about topic when it comes to cloth diapers......POOP! Newborns who are breastfed do not need to have anything special done to their diapers. Breastfed poo is watery and goes right through their system so it is almost like pee. Those diapers you can just throw in the wash, and i understand some people may think that is gross, but i can think of a million other GROSSER things that have been thrown in a washing machine. Plus, for first time moms, guess what, your kids are going to have blowouts and you are going to have POOP covered clothes at least once a week, so if you're washing those in your washer, diapers should NOT bother you.

So for newborn breastfed poo, you don't have to do anything different. But if your baby drinks formula or eats baby food then that begins the fun stuff lol. You can buy a diaper sprayer which i have NEVER used, but i hear they are EASY to install and work well, OR you can use disposable liners. I use THESE disposable liners. They are very thin and soft and i just lay one in the diaper during EVERY change. If she poos, then i wipe her up, placing the dirty wipes on the liner, and then i grab the edges of the liner and throw everything in the toilet and flush. Then i can throw my diaper in the pail. I NEVER have to deal with poo because i always flush it. For all the liners that she wears that she doesn't poo in i just throw those away. I used these liners with my son and now my daughter, and i just love them. They are SO easy!



I store my diapers in a diaper pail between changes. It is basically a cheapy trashcan from Wal-Mart. The pail liner i use is Wahmies and it is basically a trashbag that has fabric on one side, and lined with waterproof plastic on the inside. I have 2 of these, so that way when one is in the wash, the other i can put in my pail.



These liners come in all different colors and prints. HERE is where i bought mine.



I grab the entire bag by the top, shove the bag inside out into the washing machine, NEVER touching ANY diapers and then throw the bag in there with the diapers. Shut the washer and it's ready to wash!

WASHING:
I have read a million crazy wash routines. You would think you're reading a damn recipe with how many washes and products people use! YES, i bleach my diapers, YES i use dryer balls (similar to dryer sheets), and YES i use fabric softener. In the beginning, i listened to all the crazy things i read and over time i slowly adopted my own method and realized that it DOES not hurt to do things you're own way. So i start off by putting all my diapers in the wash, i wash them every other day. I add a scoop of oxiclean and do a quick cold wash. This just rinses them and helps get any stains out. When i'm done with that i put a small amount of any free and clear detergent. Detergent with scents will build up in your diapers and cause smell issues. I just buy all natural free and clear detergent (any brand) and wash ALL my baby clothes, my clothes, and diapers with it. I don't buy different detergents for different people in this house. We ALL use the sensitive hypoallergenic kind. I cant stand dreft, it's a rip off in my book and any all natural detergent will work just as well if not better.


Here is my detergent i get in bulk at Sam's Club, Ecover (my ALL time favorite all natural fabric softener), oxiclean, and Bac Out which i spray on any stains before throwing the diaper in the pail.

Ok back to washing, so after the first cold wash, i put a little detergent, and a little fabric softener and do a normal hot wash with a extra cold rinse. I do not have any recommendations with fabric softener, i use Ecover which is ALL natural and safe and keeps my diapers VERYYYY soft. Diapers tend to get very hard and almost crunchy if you don't use anything like this, but i'm scared to use other fabric softener because i don't want stink issues. And Ecover just gets all our clothes and diapers SO soft that i LOOVVEE it. About once a month, during the hot wash i will add bleach to it as well and this keeps my diapers SO white and clean and has NEVER hurt or harmed them. If anything, HALF of Belle's diapers were Noah's 3 years ago and they are in PERFECT condition and i've been bleaching them for quite awhile now.

Another topic i wanted to touch on was diaper cream. I also use diaper cream and occasionally baby powder on my kiddos as well. I've NEVER had ANY build up and that might be due to the fact that i bleach them.

I throw my diapers in the dryer for ONE dry cycle, cloth diapers are EXTREMELY absorbent, so they will not get completely dry in one drying cycle. I like to throw them in for one though because again it keeps them soft. I use dryer balls that you can find in the laundry aisle of target and wal mart and i just use these for ALL my clothes. They make our clothes and diapers fluffy and soft and are green since you're not throwing away a million dryer sheets. After the one drying cycle i hang the damp diapers to dry over night and they are ready for Belle in the morning!


I'm sure i left some things out, but i hope that helps anyone considering cloth diapering. Like i said before, not only does it save SO much money, but it is also green and healthy for your kids. I know diapers can take YEARSSS to decompose in dumps and i can also say my kids hardly EVER get diaper rashes because we change them and keep them SO dry. If you have any other questions, please feel free to email me.

And just for you to see how cute, here is my daughter after waking one morning in her yellow Bumgenius. She loves them :)