A November Saturday

My 3 early risers.  Parker Bear was still hibernating.

The Bear has emerged from his cave

 Football with Daddy

 

Absolute perfection

Anna's New Room

Project number 4 is complete!  Anna's room probably cost a little more than the boys' rooms but I still managed to makeover her room for around $350.  I didn't need to replace any of her furniture and some odds 'n' ends like the butterflies hanging from her canopy were things I already had on hand and my mom had the pink desk chair at her office.   Anna and I both love how it turned out and I think the purple and bright pink matches her personality so much better.  The room reflects her more now than it before when I made all the decisions about how it would look.  She will enjoy this much more and that makes me very happy!

Before

After

$60 - paint

$25 - butterfly chalkboard

$30 - quilt and sham

$40 - two throw pillows

$18 - sheet set

$60 - new ceiling fan and light

 

 $52 - cubeical

$21 - fabric bins

$15 - canvases and 2 bags of buttons for wall art

$16 - tulle fabric for canopy & fabric to recover hope chest

$18 - curtain rod

$8 - sheer curtains

$22 - rug

  

Cameron's new green and grey bedroom

I finished up my third bedroom project a few weeks ago and I think it's my favorite so far.  The emerald green Cameron chose for his room is his favorite color and it was a fun departure from the blues that the other boys chose.  

 BEFORE

Boring tan walls 

(this picture was taken after I bought his new bedding but he had a lime green comforter and gosh! it sure did clash with that khaki color)

AFTER

I love the grey and green!

The dinosaur wall decal is from Blik and the shelves and the super soft grey blanket and flannel sheets are from Target.

The white stripes on the grey walls are Duct Tape in white and the afghan was handmade by Brian's granny many, many years ago.

Boys' bedrooms - Spiderman room and Baseball room

A couple of months ago Landon and Parker agreed that they wanted to switch rooms.  Parker wanted the larger room and Landon likes the window, of all things, in Parker's old room.  I told them that as long as they were in agreement about the switch that it was fine with me but that they had to get their rooms clean enough to actually do it.  

Well, they got them clean and I got bitten by a crazy redecorating bug.  I figured as long as furniture was being moved that now was as good a time as any to do some painting.  I promised each child, even the ones not switching rooms, that they would all get "new" rooms but that they would have to be patient and give me a whole month per room to get things finished.

I got Landon's finished so quickly that I moved right on to Parker's room and both rooms were moved and redecorated within 3 weeks!  Phew!  Now I need a little breather...

Here are the Before and After pictures-

Oops!  I only had a 35mm lens available for the Before pics so you can barely see any of the room.

Landon's new room before:

 

Landon's new room after:

He went back and forth about between wanting racecars and Spiderman.  I got him to settle on Spiderman since we already had the large sticker.  None of the Spiderman elements in the room are permanent so in a year or two if he gets bored with it then it's easy to switch.  Even the cityscape is just a couple of foam boards I had cut with an exacto knife and stuck on with double sided tape.  My total money spent on this project was less than $100 = $24 (sheets) + $30 (1 gal of paint) + $18 (letters for his name) + $15 (painting supplies).

Parker's new room before:

 

Parker's new room after:

Parker wanted a "baseball room with just a touch of football".  $60 (paint) + $24 (curtains) + $22 (rug) + $7 (red dry-erase board) + $9 (hooks) + $17 (sports pillows) + $18 (red spray paint for bookcase) = $157 total.  Everything else I already had on hand like the shelves, curtain rod and all of his furniture.  Not too shabby.  Two rooms redecorated for $250!

I'm really proud of how they both turned out and it makes me immensely happy that both boys are in love with their new rooms!

July 8, 2012

sleeping together underneath a sheet tent in the living room

Listening

Was reading a post today by fat mum slim.  In the post she wonders why her mother doesn't read her blog.  At the end of the post, she asked if your parents read your blog or are on facebook.  The responses were sadly revealing. 

Most people responded that if they do have a blog that their parents, friends and/or spouses don't read it.  Most expressed that they wished these important people did read what they write.  And a few told how much it meant to them when their loved ones let them know they were reading.

How sad that most of us who are writing in blogs or jotting in journals are doing so and not being heard by the people that matter most to us.  If you write, you write to be heard, yes?  You have something to say... don't we all?  Who is listening?  Who is paying attention?  And, even if you have a blog, are you able to openly express your feelings or do you feel prohibited from approaching certain topics, expressing your emotions, giving your opinion?  And how sad is it that we feel a need to send our thoughts out into the World Wide Web because we can't do so at home?  Looking for feedback, encouragement, like-minded individuals, acceptance, recognition, someone who is really listening without interrupting, ...._____________.  Fill in your blank.

We're all so terribly, terribly busy.  We don't stop to pay attention...to hear.  

Stop. 

Listen. 

Who is talking to you today?

My beginning... or what I know of it.

I was born in the fall of 1975 in Ann Arbor, Michigan.  My mother, a student of UofM, her higher education postponed.  She was but 19, my father merely 20.  My features are nearly a 50/50 mix of each of them.  God's handiwork.  I've been told we lived in a small apartment and briefly a farmhouse. 

We moved to Virginia when my dad joined the Army.  He was a cook.  He's always been a very good cook.  Something he got honestly from both of his parents.  We lived on base for awhile and my first memory is of us moving into The Blue House.  An empty living room and I remarked, "It smells like popcorn."  My brothers were born in Virginia.  My own hillbillies.  I don't remember life without them and glad that I don't.  Paul is only 14 months younger than I and Stephen only 16 months younger than Paul.  My mom was 22 and our family was complete.

The Blue House.  Fetch it Freddy.  The little girl neighbor next door not letting me leave once - blocking each door as I tried to get out.  An enormous tomato bug on my shirt - scared me nearly to death!  Miss Fisher, my preschool teacher.  Getting to play the triangle in class.  Taking cupcakes on my birthday.  These are my early memories.

We returned to Michigan - Detroit to be exact - maybe when I was four.  We lived with my dad's parents for just a little while (though I may have the timing messed up here).  I remember looking at a second floor apartment - above a store? I remember a bright light (neon?) - outside the window.  Then there was The Brown House and Danny and Dana (twin boys) and their boa constrictor across the street.  Pinocchio at the movies and an enormous rainbow lollipop.  The tire swing park and the ice skating rink.  The next-door neighbors had a great big fish tank.

Then The Pink House - pale pink brick - the only house I remember living in in Michigan that had carpet.  Shouldn't all houses in northern states have carpet?  It's so cold!  Mom making homemade pizzas with Chef Boyardee sauce and we got to spread it with a spoon and sprinkle on the cheese and place each pepperoni.  Fourth of July and those little white popping firecrackers you throw on the ground and the black snake things that left a burn mark on the sidewalk.  Eating cold Kentucky Fried Chicken and watching the fireworks light up the black sky over the Detroit River - hating the noise.  

And then I was five.