Welcome Spring

 

Last Friday in the midst of all the painting and re-painting happening around here, I decided we all needed a break from inhaling paint fumes. The day couldn’t have been more beautiful, so Tyson packed us a picnic lunch and we set off to enjoy a morning in the warm sun and fresh air.

 

As winter turns to spring, it seems somewhat symbolic or our family life right now as we are also moving into a new season of life…a season without babies. This is the first time in almost six years that we have not had either an infant or a one year old in the family.  And as joyful as that season of newborns and babies and growing our family was, it was also very hard and draining at times. And just like welcoming the first buds of spring after a long cold winter, I am so excited about this new season of life for us.  Over the last few weeks, Hudson has grown leaps and bounds in independence and for the first time in years, I no longer have someone permanently attached to my hip.  So now when I take the kids to the park, I can unload everyone out of the van and they all just run off and play.  My arms pick up my camera instead of a child.  Instead of grabbing a diaper bag, I just grab my phone and my keys.  Life seems simpler, a little less hard.  The sun shines warm, life blooms, and I welcome the spring. 

 

 

We had one of the most enjoyable park days we have ever had.

 

We rode the merry go round.

 

We smelled flowers.

 

And blew dandelions.

 

We leisurely followed the walking trail and I unknowingly stepped in an ant bed to take this picture.

 

Tyson ran ahead and picked a bouquet of flowers for me.

 

We spread out a blanket and the kids enjoyed their picnic lunch.  Tyson packed chips, applesauce, fruit roll ups, and bananas.  I added in grapes and cheese sticks.

 

Instagram pic:

 

After lunch, we crossed over the bridge and these two waded in the cool creek.

And after we had our fill of the day, we loaded up our happy selves and went home.

Changes

I’ve had a few anonymous commenters ask me where we got our sofa.  I always go back and answer in my comments because I don’t know how else to contact them, but I thought I would just take a moment to just answer that question in my blog.

We got our sofa from Macys.  It is by Martha Stewart.  You can find it here.  It’s actually still on sale (thru 3/11), so if you love it and you hurry, you can get it on sale!  We special ordered ours in a gray color because the one online and kept in stock in the stores has a green tint to it that wouldn’t work in our living room.  Hope that helps!

Okay, moving on…

We’ve had some big changes around here in the last week.  Last weekend, we got a wild hair and decided to move Hudson into the room with Tyson, and move Peyton into Hudson’s room, giving her a room all her own.  It was something we had been talking a little bit about, but initially we weren’t planning to do right away.  We were a little bit concerned that Peyton would miss sharing a room with Tyson.  And we weren’t at all sure how Hudson would do sleeping in a regular bed.

But over the last few weeks, I had been growing in frustration with the lack of space in the kid’s bedrooms, the overgrowth and disorganization of toys, as well as the lack of drawer space for kids’ clothes.  And moving kids around would solve a lot of these issues in our home.  So I was quickly feeling more and more ready to make the switch and get things better organized. 

So last Saturday morning, I  randomly mentioned switching rooms around and it actually took me by surprise a little bit when everyone (even Tim) jumped right on board with the plan.  So we did it.  By lunchtime, the majority of things were switched and we were moving baby furniture down to the garage.  That night, I found a good deal on Craigslist for some Pottery Barn bunk beds to put in the boy’s room (which I had been looking for for several weeks). So on Sunday, we picked them up and even got them set up for them to sleep in that night.  This helped a great deal in opening up more space for toy storage.  On Monday, I listed our glider/rocking chair on Craigslist, and on Tuesday, a couple came to look at the rocking chair and ended up taking home all our nursery furniture! It was a little bit bittersweet, but mostly just sweet.  I  am so looking forward to this next stage of life with no more babies.  (I don’t think I’ve even mentioned yet that we have also been potty training Hudson, so we are also well on our way to saying goodbye to diapers! Yay!)

So over this past week, I’ve been busy decorating, painting, and getting things organized in the kids’ rooms.

I painted Peyton’s room a very light gray that has purple undertones to it.  I wanted the color to feel light, calm and soothing, with a hint of girly, but not overly so.  The color is “Heaven” by Benjamin Moore.

Here is a sneak peek of her room…

 

About a month ago, when we were just beginning to talk about the room switch, I found some antique furniture on Craigslist that I wanted for Peyton’s future girl room.  It’s been sitting in the garage waiting for me to give it a new look.  I’m going for the Shabby Chic distressed look with it.

Before:

 

And after:

Since this pic is an Instagram, the colors aren’t exact.  But it is painted in Benjamin Moore’s “Whispering Spring”, a very light tealish color.   I keep looking at the drawer pulls and wondering if I should paint them or change them out or keep them… I can’t decide.  Does anyone have any suggestions for me?

My next piece to re-do:

Well, kids are getting up from rest time and I have furniture to go paint this afternoon.  I’ll be back later I’m sure with more pictures of both rooms when I’m finished.

Have a great weekend!

Tennessee Treasures

Last week, Tim and I had a chance to get away to our favorite little B&B in Tennessee.  His parents graciously came up to watch the kids for us.

 

While we were in TN, we did lots of antique shopping. Actually, I shopped and Tim pretty much just patiently followed me around.  I’m so thankful he puts up with me.  I always get excited when I walk into these kinds of places cause you just never know what treasures you might find.

 

We also happened upon these stack of pallets and wooden spools just sitting on the side of the road. After making sure it was okay, we helped ourselves to a spool.  If we had more room in the car, we probably would have grabbed a few pallets too.  You just never know when you’re going to need pallets.

 

Have you seen this spool on pinterest yet?  I love what they did.

 

I’m not sure that our spool will work for making this book holder, since ours is a bit taller, but that one does inspire me.

This next picture is from the Found blog.

 

 

I love the painted spools, so now I’m in the process of painting ours.

We’ll see what I decide to do with it. It might end up in the future boys’ room one day as a nightstand or maybe it will be a side table in the house somewhere.  Who knows?

 

Last year,when we visited TN, we saw tons of tobacco baskets for sale.  I almost got one then, but wasn’t so sure about them or what I would do with one, so we came home without one.  At times over the last year, I’ve regretted that decision.

Especially after seeing pictures like these:

 

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But I really love what Megan over at Contented Sparrow did with her tobacco basket in her dining room.  She has such a bright, fun, cheery home. It makes me smile.  If you have some time, you can see a full home tour here. 

 

Since we recently bought an old farmhouse table for the eat-in area of our kitchen, I wanted to put something on the wall above it.  And after seeing Megan’s pictures of her dining room, I thought that over the table would be the perfect spot to hang up a tobacco basket. So this year, while we were in TN (the land of cheap tobacco baskets) I told Tim that I wanted to get one and hang it on the wall. I admitted that it was a risk and I wasn’t sure how it would turn out, but that I had an idea and wanted to try it.  And although Tim never really catches my vision for these types of things, thankfully, he’s usually willing to go along with it and just let me do my thing.  

So here it is…

I love how it turned out. 

Living Room Updates

I’ve been meaning to blog about our recent living room update.  A few months ago, we bought a new couch.  Because I wanted a color that wasn’t in stock, we had to special order it.  We were told it would take several weeks for it to be made and shipped.  So while we waited, I went ahead and painted our living room because I didn’t think the current paint color would go with the new couch.  Plus, I’ve really been wanting to lighten and brighten things up around here for a while, I just needed a good excuse to do it.

 

Before pictures:

 

After:

 

The quilt laying on the back of the couch is one of our recent Tennessee trip antique finds. It’s old and worn, but I love all the colors and patterns in it. The Nester always says, “It doesn’t have to be perfect to be beautiful.” and I have been taking that to heart lately when decorating our home. I think that’s also part of my draw to antiques. They have been used and loved and they have a story to tell. The tears in the fabric or nicks in the furniture add character and interest.  They make an item unique.  I like bringing in things that are a little bit funky or different, a little bit unexpected, and mixing the new with the old. 

 

 

I’ve also slowly been adding in more colors around the room. I still love my bright pops of turquoise and yellow, but I am ready to branch out a little more.  I think it all started with this etsy print by Katie Daisy. (I love her stuff.  You should check it out!)  Looking at this picture just makes me happy and I want to spread that happiness all over my home.  Lately, some of my favorite new color choices have been pink and orange.

 

Several weeks ago, I saws this sign on Etsy. I loved the words as well as the rainbow of colors in it.  I thought it would go perfect in our living room.

 

The only problem was that Tim didn’t want to pay the price that was being asked for it.  So he convinced me that I could just make one for us. I wasn’t at all sure that it would turn out well, but I thought I could at least give it a try. I actually kind of surprised myself with this one. I love how it turned out. And it’s now hanging proudly in our living room, bringing in some more happy.

 

We still need to find a chair or two to go in our living room, just to have some more seating for guests.  I have been having the hardest time finding what I want at a price both Tim and I want to pay.  So for now, we have brought in the chair from our bedroom to use.

It’s not exactly what I have pictured in my head, but it works for now. 

 

Some chairs that I am absolutely loving right now…

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Did you notice a theme?  ….white tufted chairs.  I love.  Yea, I know that’s not exactly feasible or wise with three young children running around the house right now.  But the heart wants what the heart wants and I can dream, can’t I?

 

Something similar to this color might be a better option for us.

via pinterest

 

So now I just have to find it. 

Boys

When they’re awake, there’s rarely a dull (or quiet) moment in our home. They put scuff marks on the floors and dings in my freshly painted walls. They’re energetic, loud, rambunctious, and crazy.  Sometimes their wildness makes me want to pull my hair out.  I don’t always “get” them or understand why they do what they do.  But I think I have figured out a few things about the world of boys: 

 

-Limits are to be tested. Fears are to be conquered.

 

-The world is a battlefield, every boy is a warrior, and every object is a potential weapon.

 

-Flying is not just for super heros.

 

 

-Life is a competition. Everything’s a race.

 

-The louder, the faster, the better.

 

-Bodies are for making weird noises.

 

-Fashion has no rules.  Cool is what you make it.

 

 

-Furniture is just another word for “indoor playground equipment”.

 

I love my boys. They bring me joy and laughter, silliness and fun.  They make life full and adventuresome.