A Room for Two Boys: Some Updated Pictures

We've made a few small changes in Henry and Ollie's "big boy room."  We've also got a few more changes in the works, including finding a new rug, new light fixtures, new hardware on the dresser and desk, and perhaps a new paint color on the walls.  Here's what the room currently looks like when it is somewhat clean and organized.

The blue bookshelf is a garage sale find from Pottery Barn Kids a couple years ago.  The table and chairs were made by my dad and mom.

Our little Cape Cod has quite a few built in features, including these drawers, which come in handy in our small square footage home.

My dad made this tool box years ago and decided it was too nice for tools.  He gave it to me and it now houses the boys' favorite books.  It is one of my favorite parts of the whole room.

This light fixture has been here since we moved in and needs to be replaced.  I'm thinking a nice, bright pendant fixture will fit in quite nicely.

We are currently working on painting the downstairs woodwork and trim in our house to a nice, crisp white.  Someday, the woodwork and trim upstairs will be done as well.

I'm excited to make these last few changes to give my boys a happy room to play and rest in.  You can be sure I'll share the changes made along the way!

I'm linking up to:

Thrifty Decor Chick

Mother's Day in a Nutshell

 

1:  Traditional Mother's Day pictures after church.

2:  Progress on making bigger, better, and stronger raised garden beds.  Here's to more vegetables!

3:  S'more face.

4:  The umbrella and chimney fire pit made an appearance on the patio!

5 and 6:  Little boy antics.

7:  I made some new herb markers.  I used this method found via Lemonade Makin' Mama.

8:  Henry found work as a tow truck driver.

9.  Mother's Day steak on the grill.  Divine.

My boys gave me their gifts, all wrapped up in their little blankies.  I got my most favorite Sharpie pens, a new pizza wheel for family pizza night, and guys, TOMORROW I'M GETTING AN iPHONE!!!

It was a good day and I'm very thankful.

Happy Mother's Day!

God has richly blessed me beyond measure.  I'm so thankful to be "Momma" to my Henry and Oliver.

"The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy."  Psalm 126:3

Thank you Mom, for being such a wonderful example of how a wonderful, God-fearing mom should love and teach her children.  I couldn't have asked for a better example than you.  I'm thankful for you.  Simply put, you're the best!

Thank you, Carol, my wonderful mother-in-law, for raising a wonderful son who loves his Savior, first and foremost.  I will forever be grateful to you for teaching my husband to be humble, understanding, and loving.  He's a wonderful example for our boys!

I hope you had a wonderful Mother's Day!

Paper Party Lantern

In our family, we have quite a few birthdays in the spring and early summer.  That means a couple of things.  There is a lot of shopping that needs to be done.  Presents need to be wrapped and, oh, how I love wrapping presents!  Then, there's the decorating!  Decorating for a birthday is fun!  However, decorating for a party doesn't mean you have to go out and buy balloons, streamers, and other fancy things.  You can make your own fancy things!  You can make paper party lanterns!  

Let me show you how.

You will need to gather your supplies:

12 inch x 12 inch paper (having print on both sides makes the lanterns extra special)

Ribbon

A hole punch

A pencil

A stapler

A ruler

Scissors

See?  This paper is double-sided.  Fancy, indeed.

Fold the paper in half.

On the fold, make a mark every 1/2 inch.

Using the ruler and your pencil, extend the mark, stopping at about a half inch before the edge of the paper.  You don't want to your line to go all the way to the edge.

Cut along the line.

Open up the paper.

Beginning at the bottom, start rolling up the paper.

Staple the edges together at the top and bottom.

Punch two holes on the opposite top sides of the paper lantern and thread the ribbon through the holes.  Hang your lantern and pat yourself on the back for a job well done!

I can imagine many uses for these lanterns.  For example, making them out of vellum and hanging a bunch of them in a lit tree would make for a magical evening, outdoor party.  Or, making some in various sizes and in soft pastels would be pretty for a baby shower.

Thank you for reading!

I'm linking to:

Tatertots and Jello

Window Box Lettuce

I planted lettuce in my kitchen window box again this year.  However, this year I actually get to enjoy it right out of my kitchen window.  You see, last year my husband made me some window boxes.  He made three:  two for the front windows on our house and then one for the back window by the kitchen.  The third window box was never completed last year.  I don't even remember why!  It sat unfinished and unpainted in the garage all year long.  I planted lettuce in the liner in spring and eventually planted some flowers later in the summer, but the liner just sat on the ground underneath the window.  It was so sad!  This spring, I filled nail holes, caulked, sanded, and painted it.  Then, Jason set to work hanging it up.

Here is the kitchen window before the installation of the window box.

I'll save you the details of how the window boxes were made and installed since I already posted about them last year.  If you are interested in how they were made and installed, I invite you to check it out here.

Finally getting that window box hung up under the kitchen window was so exciting!  It looks so clean and bright and detracts from the window and trim, which obviously need some work.  All in due time, right?

To give the planter a little bit of color, I did add an Aloha Tiki Soft Pink Calibrachoa.

Along with the Calibrachoa, I planted two Arugula plants, four Raisa plants, and four Buttercrunch plants.  After the lettuce dies out in a couple of weeks, I plan on planting some herbs in their place.

Have you done any planting outdoors yet?  Have you ever planted lettuce or herbs right out of your kitchen window?  I'd love to see your work or get any tips!

I'm linking up to:

Centsational Girl

Two Weekends In One Post

I always seem to forget how busy the last few weeks of school get.  These past two weekends have been no exception.  Science fairs, art fairs, awards nights, and track meets get added to an already busy schedule for our family.  We are also adding outdoor projects to our long list of indoor projects.  There is a lot to be done around here it seems.

On Friday, we had some friends and their little boys over for dinner.  On Saturday, we helped my sister and her husband pick up a dresser and transport it back to their apartment in our van.  We then had them over for dinner and a Kentucky Derby party.  On Sunday, we had church and then headed over to Jason's Principal's house for a faculty party.  All three days were busy but fun!

In other news, the fireplace is done.  Pictures have been taken, edited, and loaded.  I just need to write the post, which requires help from the builder because I'll need to know exactly what he did.  I'm not sure how he'll feel about sitting down to help me blog...  I'm not above bribing him with a pan of brownies.

Since I barely took any pictures this weekend, I'll share with you some pictures of the previous weekend.  Because really, what is a post without pictures?  Nothing, I tell you.

Tyler Florence's Pot Roast Risotto is good.  You can find the recipe here.  Also, there is nothing better than an herb garden full of herbs, just waiting to be made into something tasty.

The boys love driving over the overpasses in our city, so we decided to make one ourselves.  There are two levels of train tracks there, folks.  We're all pretty proud around here.

 

Finally, guess what?  Making homemade donuts is pretty easy and quite delicious.

Despite their sleepy faces, they really did enjoy them!

I hope your weekend was great!  Happy Tuesday to you!