• decorating,  holidays

    Cinnamon Broomsticks

    I don’t know how I’ve lived my entire life without knowing about cinnamon broomsticks. Am I late to the game or do they not have them in the Pacific Northwest? Or the Midwest? Or anywhere else that I’ve lived? Are these a Southern thing? So many questions, so few answers. To make up for lost time, I bought 4 broomsticks. I thought that showed restraint. Then my local Kroger sold out of them and I regretted not buying more. But, last weekend I saw two new boxes arrive! I may or may not have called dibs. A friend told me about these seasonal creations. I didn’t quite understand what a cinnamon…

  • Animals,  decorating,  DIY

    Camouflaging the Dog Door

    I’ve been waiting for months for the outside temperature to drop below 90 degrees so that I could paint our exterior doors. I could have painted them during the hottest temperatures of the summer, but that would require keeping the door open for awhile and that defeats the purpose of getting our AC fixed. I’m pretty sure I would have melted too. It’s okay if you want to feel sorry for me. Last week our daytime temperatures held in the low 70s, so I knew it was time to paint! We have a beautiful back door. Except someone ruined it by installing a dog door. This is nothing against dogs, it’s…

  • Crafts,  decorating,  holidays

    Cardboard Pumpkin Art

    Our AC was replaced this summer. This happened in August in Georgia and I may or may not have professed my undying love for the AC installer man. Despite that awkward exchange, he was super nice and made the GIGANTIC box that the AC unit came in into a fort for my kids. Of course, they loved it and played with it for a few days before they moved on to other things. Here’s the embarrassing part. It’s October and that box is still sitting in the basement. Every time I get on the bike or treadmill (which is 5 days a week), I spend 30 minutes thinking that I need…

  • Crafts,  decorating

    Paper Pumpkin Centerpiece

    I don’t have the time or the energy to make stuff for this blog that I don’t use. That would cut into all of my bon-bon eating and soap opera watching time. 😉 Recently I shared a how-to for making paper pumpkins. Well, this is where those paper pumpkins are hanging out this October – on my dining room table. It’s a little nod to the season. They might even hang around until Thanksgiving…we’ll see. Taking pictures of your home allows you to really study what’s going on. I’m still over-the-moon about a fireplace in my dining room. I’m just not over-the-moon enough to light a fire in it. Maybe…

  • Family

    Columbus Day

    Happy Columbus Day! The kids have the day off from school, so I’m taking the day off to spend it with their sweet little faces. Like this one… And this little guy who lost his first tooth in this picture and then lost his second tooth just a few days ago. Handy Husband has been traveling a bunch lately and we’re happy to be spending the day with him too. On his travels he’s brought back some interesting things. Like ketchup-flavored chips from Canada. Oh, and roasted chicken-flavored chips too. Canadians get all of the interesting flavors… I’m so happy we get an extra family fun day! Maybe we’ll find…

  • Crafts,  decorating,  holidays

    Halloween Built-Ins

    I have been waiting for days for the light to be bright enough to take pictures of the little makeover our built-ins received for Halloween. Have I mentioned patience is not one of my virtues? At the rate I was going it was going to be Easter before I showed you the Halloween shelves. And, well, that wouldn’t be quite right would it? So instead of grainy and dim, let’s call these photos moody and Halloween-esque. 🙂 Decorating mainly with stuff I already had forced me to get creative – especially since I don’t own an abundance of seasonal decorating items. Me and clutter are not friends. If you’ve known me for…

  • decorating,  holidays

    Halloween Ceramic Crocks

    I had an epiphany tonight while sitting on the floor with a skein of yarn in one hand and a hot glue gun in the other. It struck me that I do indeed have an approach or methodology to decorating my home. I call it Hail Mary Decorating. That’s right, folks. Hail Mary Decorating. It is the not-at-all scientific way of throwing something together, setting it up on a wish and a prayer and hoping that it works. Sometimes it does. Other times? Not so much. I’m sure someone at HGTV just dropped everything to call me about this decorating methodology. While I sit here waiting for the call to go through, let’s…

  • decorating,  holidays

    Halloween Book Covers

    Fair warning! If you say BOO to Halloween or cute black kittens, just step away from the computer now. The following images may be disturbing. See? I told you. The horror! A cute black kitten with a bright pink stuffed animal collar. It’s the least offensive thing she’s been dressed up in. So far. The cat’s name? Salsa. That’s definitely an omen. An omen that mommy is a pushover. Anyway, let’s get back to the point of this post! It’s now October and I’m doing a little bit of Halloween decorating. I didn’t do this sort of thing before I had kids, but they LOVE this holiday. What’s not to love…

  • Crafts,  holidays

    Paper Pumpkins

    Human beings are full of contradictions. Okay, me. I’m full of contradictions. For instance, decorating with pumpkins makes me immensely happy. Smelling pumpkin-y things? Can’t get enough. Eat pumpkin-flavored food? Gag me now. I’m super mature for my age too. These paper pumpkins fall into the “can’t get enough” category. I made this orange pumpkin a couple of years ago. He’s a little banged up and misshapen, but we all get that way from time to time. This paper pumpkin craft is easy and cheap – my two requirements for crafting. Here’s what you need: paper, scissors and a glue gun. I’ve done this craft with tape, but the glue…

  • Crafts

    Useful Perler Bead Craft

    True story. Last year my daughter participated in an economics project at school involving making a product out of perler beads and then “selling” that product. I had managed to avoid the perler bead craze thus far, but she was over-the-moon about those little plastic cylinders. I got those warm fuzzy feelings seeing her totally jazzed about what she had created. So, for her birthday which was a few days away, I ordered her a big tub of perler beads. 22,000 perler beads to be exact. In my defense, perler beads are really cheap – especially on Amazon. You probably know how this story is going to go. My daughter opened the…