How Ever Did Ten Years Go By So Very Fast??

 

 

Happy Birthday, David! Your charm, wit, intelligence, humor, and fun-loving ways have been winning my heart for ten years now. Such a delight to watch you grow up and mature! I can’t wait to see what amazing things you will say and do in the years to come! Love, Mom.

Whimsical Tweaking [of my Living Room Walls...]

I have long sat in My Chair across from the living room couch and stared rather despairingly at the opposite wall. I dearly love the pictures of my children hanging there in collage frames…but there’s just been something missing…something awry. For quite awhile I had a small wreath hovering above the wood frames, but from the moment I mounted it I knew it was temporary…not quite what I had in mind. Over the course of the last couple weeks, inspiration seems to have struck. Bored with the picture over the fireplace as well, I pulled down wall decor and moved this here and brought that in from another room. A trip to a local discount store yielded fun and frugal treasures that helped me with my tweaking.

When I was finished, the result was cleaner lines and more fun with a twist of whimsy. And, as my mother said to me, it’s so…well…ME!

Here is the fireplace mantle before (bedecked for Christmas):

 

 

 

And here is the after:

 

 

I love the pictures that I took during our stay in the Lake District on our trip to England, but I so rarely got to enjoy them as they were hung over our bed and I didn’t really pause to appreciate them as I stumbled in exhausted each night or extracted my bleary-eyed self out of bed in the morning. Now my eyes alight upon them often throughout the day! The apothecary jars were a thrilling find at a modest cost (I have long been desiring apothecary jars and these were the perfect size and price!). One holds pink and green polka dot cupcake liners and the other vintage buttons. Both say something about me and my tastes and pastimes. The lovely teapot was picked up at the same discount store years ago and though I was disappointed to discover it didn’t pour tea without serious dribbling and mess, I held on to it for the sake of beauty alone. It’s graceful spout appears ready at any moment to pour a steaming cuppa into the delicate neighboring teacup with it’s masses of vintage roses. And just for kicks there’s a trendy little metal frame holding a scrapbook flower against a fun paper background, given dimension with the aid of foam squares.

 

And as for over the couch…here’s the (blurry) uninspiring before:

 

 

 

And the playful, more colorful after photos:

 

 

 

 

The awesome galvanized letter is a surprisingly affordable Pottery Barn Kids item. The @ symbol (how fun is that?) is from the housewares section of the discount store and the arrow is made from adhering scrapbook paper to thin cardboard (mat board style, not from a shipping box) and cut out, then simply mounting to the wall with foam squares. I plan to brush on some satin Modge Podge to preserve the color and add some shine, but it’s fine as it is for the present.

So now I sit in My Chair of a morning, sipping my coffee and gazing admiringly (rather than glaring) at the opposite wall. And my soul is stirred to creative thought and bold action. I walk through my living room and see my mantle treasures that remind me of my rambles in England or my love of vintage finds and paper crafting. And frosting. I might not eat it very often anymore, but yes…frosting!

FREE “Education Is…” Chalkboard Printable

Another printable, just for giggles…8×10 again. Print on white card stock and frame for a fun schoolroom decoration! A couple of the fonts look blurry in this image, but they print out just fine…lots of fun, and so inspiring!

PDF file: Education1 , use highest quality print setting.

FREE! Boys Chalkboard Printable

Between my penchant for digital scrapbooking (and accompanying fonts!!) and getting sucked in to Pinterest, I gathered chalkboard backgrounds, weathered fonts and cute signage ideas and pulled it all together to make this fun sign for my boys’ room. David was thrilled! He had me add the “tell stories” part but the rest is pilfered shamelessly straight from something I saw on Pinterest. The girls are anxious for me to start on theirs, and my sister-in-law has a request, too, so I may just have a slew of these posts over the next few weeks!

I would post links to each of these fonts, etc., but honestly I gathered them all and the backgrounds to boot during a 40 minute TV episode and even managed to follow the plot line (mostly)…so just google chalkboard printables and fonts, etc. and you will be on your way to making your own! After all, your favorites might be quite different from mine! Don’t believe the hype about needing Photoshop…you don’t! I did this in minutes on Keynote, and Power Point works just as well.

So, here it is! Sized for an 8×10 print. Choose “high quality” on your printer options. Trim off margins. Continue trimming a little at a time to fit your 8×10 frame.

Chalkboard Printables

I updated this post and included these images as well (because that’s how my computer assembled the PDF, and I’m not going to fight with it!):

When A Daughter Becomes A Friend

Every year you grow in loveliness and grace. Every year you surprise me with new growth, maturity, strength of character, humor and wit.

You are good company…

I am so very thankful for the gift you are to me and to our family. Thank you for your helpful ways, your nurture and care of others, for being such an awesome big sister, for watching my movies with me and shopping with me and for whipping up deliciousness in the kitchen.

You are amazing! Happy birthday, Sweet Elisabeth!

Looking Back to Forge Ahead

We really don’t need to reinvent the wheel. Our culture is always on the lookout for new and better, but contentment can almost always be found in what we already have…who we are already blessed to know and love…in the rich experiences we have already enjoyed. And inspiration might already have been written down before!

Although I’m not the most consistent when it comes to keeping a journal, I do find that revisiting old entries is a delight, and often a surprise. As I have continued to seek vision and focus for the new year at hand, I came across this page from my journal and thought it would be fun to share my random, pell-mell thoughts on the atmosphere of home:

December 3, 2011

A lovely and nurturing home environment. A home that is neat and orderly, clean and organized. Filled with beauty, books, comfort and familiarity. Not overwhelmed with clutter, chintzy items of any sort, dirt or cobwebs. Smells fresh and sweet. Nutritious, home-cooked meals on the table. Schedule and routine yet with room for creativity, spontaneity and fun. Beautiful, soul-stirring music played throughout the day. Sink-in seating and cozy corners. Comfortable beds with clean, fresh-smelling linens. Most of our time spent “unplugged”. A vibrant learning environment. Color. Texture. Inspiration and encouragement. Words of love and instruction on our lips. Clean, neat, modest clothing. A healthy, green lawn to run around in. Flowers and plants well-kept and thriving. Outdoor seating with flexibility for meals out in the fresh air. Talents and gifts flourishing. Conversation abundant, interesting, intelligent and life-giving. An open air of hospitality, eager to bless others and offer refreshment and fellowship.
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Does any of this characterize my home right now? Some of it. Some days. But for me this run-on list of disjointed thoughts, dreams and hopes is more of a North Star of ideal home life. A battle plan. A call to action.

What does your ideal home environment look like?

Hope For Desperate Moms

I have loved every one of Sally’s books, they have been a guide and encouragement for me for over a decade of mothering in the trenches. Reading Desperate was a balm to my mommy-soul and I just know that you will love it too! Curling up with this book is the next best thing to pouring my heart out to Sally over a cup of tea and having her counsel and encourage me with words of wisdom and hope and inspiration. I cannot recommend it highly enough!

There are a few giveaways connected with the book’s release, here’s a link to an entry form to win a spa weekend with Sally and Sarah Mae…hey, a mommy can dream, right?

The book can be found just about everywhere, but check to see if Dayspring is still offering it with a free, super-cute journal!

Now…off to enter that giveaway for myself!