5 year old photographer

blog post brought to you today by five year old cooper!

a lovely little photo session with my son this morning {says he wants his own blog someday)

i told him he could share mine, until he was older.

 

his assignment today was to take 5 photographs.

it was fun to see what he took photos of.

a few photos of his artwork.

no surprise that a photo of kamari showed up.

when i asked him "why did you pick these subjects to photograph?"

he said "because they make me happy".

i gave him an A+ for his lesson today.

small dresser redo

oh how i just love a good redo.

i have had this little dresser for awhile. 

painted black she lived in my mudroom and most recently my living room

and just this past weekend, i noticed that i am tiring of my black furniture.

not a problem...bring out the white paint!

i didn't want the entire piece painted white so i left her drawers neutral.

stripped, primed, painted, waxed and adorned with new hardware she's had quite the make over.

use what you've got girls, make it new.

just might be my new favorite {old} piece.

here is her before.

linking up to white wednesday at faded charm!

she's a beauty

large and drippy aren't great descriptors of something really so beautiful.

unless

of course

you are this:

a large, drippy chandelier.

my grandma passed away last month, just before christmas.  this is the one thing that i really wanted of hers.

i remember always sitting at the kids table at her house when i was young.  i will never forget the first time i sat at the big table (i was 23 years old).  it felt special, sitting at the adult table under this beautiful chandelier.

i felt so grown up.

i feel so lucky to have this piece from her.

my plan was to put her in my living room, but she is too large. (really meaning that mr. traybella at 6'4" hits his head on it)  and since i don't have a designated dining space (because i move my dining room table around all the time) i have decided that she will hang proudly in my bedroom.  i can't wait to get her hung there and see her sparkle.

RIP grandma.

~ linking up to white wednesday over at faded charm ~

old buffet : breakfast bar

the only thing i really liked about my old buffet was the amount of storage it had.
so i really didn't want to get rid of it, but i needed it to function in a different way.

 so i swung it out from the wall and repositioned it to act like a peninsula in my kitchen. 
and then i thought, if it had an overhang, it could double as a breakfast bar.

 i had my home depot cut down a 4x8 sheet of oak plywood to the size i needed 3x5. purchased some trim to go around the edge, some stain and headed home.  i had the brackets in my stash, they were purchased at a garage sale this past summer for a buck each. 

i also wrapped the back with bead board so that it looks pretty from all sides. 

then i painted it white and just spray painted the existing handles.  

 but my favorite part of the entire project has got to be the top.  you've seen this french chocolate label all over blog land.  so i found an online source to make me a stencil.  personalized it with our last name and the year we were married 1995.
melissa & bill at http://www.mulberrycreakonline.com/ were awesome to work with.  a few email conversations and my stencil was off in the mail to me. 

 the stencil was so easy to place and i love the result.

use what you've got!  simple enhancements to make it new and unique and now we've got a great family piece that also doubles as a conversation starter.  i love multi functional furniture.  sooo cool!

linking up to faded charm for white wednesday. check out all the other fabulous whites!

happy new year

i do not like to make new year resolutions.

probably because i do not like to set myself up to fail.

but

i do like to make a new list of things that might challenge me.

call it what you want, i guess.

it is nice to have all the christmas decorations down and put away.

the house is clean, all the sweets are gone and we have had some great relaxing days.

because i can not plan for an entire year,

for the month of january...

i plan to do weekly meal planning,.

grocery shop only once per week. 

seldom swipe my credit card.

organize the boys closets.

continue the Insanity workout program{this time with everything i've got!}

eat healthy.

cut back, if not out, sugar.  {this will be so difficult for me}

me more by doing less.

love more, take risks and continue to live a simple life.

i hope, that by going month by month, i am able to stick with these lifestyle changes.

Cheers!  to the new year!

christmas cookies

i have made approximately 10 dozen of these cookies

this past week for several occasions.

hopefully there will be a few left for santa saturday night.

forever ribbon

i have absolutely no excuse to not have pretty packages.

this year, or next year, the year after....

found {last year} at a flea market for 5 bucks. 

the never ending roll of ribbon.

{love!}

a favorite place

eight years ago when we bought our home i liked it. 
i could see past the orange shag carpet, the kitchen that needed updating and so many other updates.

and the front, i didn't love, but worked with what i had.

and what i also had, was a dream.

a dream to change the flat front to something with more curb appeal.

and so we did.

we added this beautiful porch this fall.

i love it and it is now my new favorite place.

first time ever that packages delivered don't sit out in the rain.

or when guests come they are protected from the weather.

removing all the landscape prior to the project was a huge workout.

putting it all back in, including the rock path, was another huge workout.

but the satisfaction of doing things on your own...priceless.

i can hardly wait for spring!

christmas decorations

i pretty  much use the same christmas decorations every year. 
some years not everything gets used.
some, i add in something else that i love that was maybe in another room of the house.

keep it simple, use what you've got and maybe think outside the box.

i added some bibles and a cross this year.  getting back to the real reason for the season.

our entry table.  religious decor on the top shelf, presents on the bottom.  small indication to what is a top priority and what comes secondary.  so happy that when my oldest son saw this display, he understood it!

love my rosary hanging on this old garden statue.

pretty packages are always my all time favorite!

in the still of the night

i think i must admit.

that, the still of the night,

is the most favorite part of my day.

i try to stay simple.

but sometimes the days get too busy.

it is at the night, when the boys are tucked in,
and my small lights cast a warm glow,
that i relish the calmness.

i make the coffee for morning {knowing i am unapproachable without it},
ensure school papers are looked over and signed.
lunches made and a things are picked up.

i often sit, for a minute, and realize how lucky i am.
to have a beautiful home filled with warmth, soft glowing lights,
and an abundance of love.

take a minute, and count your blessings.
and then breathe....deeply.

small room decorating

so excited yesterday when i received the current issue of Small Room Decorating and to see my home featured on page 44.
such a lovely article, so well written by gloria gale.
on newsstands now.

happy halloween

just a few shots of some halloween decor we've had up this season.
i try to keep it pretty simple, and not too spooky.
happy halloween!  enjoy the day.

garden clean up

the temperatures are dropping and on my list of things to do is clean up the vegetable garden.

today our visit to the garden resulted in what i think is sure to be...the last of the garden for this year.

my dreams of spring begin.