The Facts of Lauren

A Baby Story

2011-10-24T13:44:00.000-07:00

Hello, hello! For those of you interested in hearing how sweet little Adelaide Helene came into this world, I will tell you. This is a good baby story for anyone squeamish about childbirth. I feel kind of bad saying this but labor was one of the easiest parts of my very easy pregnancy! Please do not send me hate mail for that comment it is just the truth. Get ready for the details, none of them are gruesome.

My due date was Wednesday, October 5 and I just happened to have my final doctors appointment that very day. Full disclosure, my mucus plug (such a horrible name) came out on Tuesday night which had me convinced that I would be so dilated by my appointment that they would immediately check me into the hospital. Not the case. I was neither dilated or effaced. Bumsies. We trotted back home and prayed that this baby would come on her own before my induction date, October 12.

Around 2:30 AM on Thursday I started having tiny contractions. They didn't hurt but did wake me up and continued to wake me up erratically throughout the night. By 6:00 AM I started to time them and they were pretty well between 9 and 12 minutes apart, but still not very painful and pretty short in duration. We felt pretty certain that we would be heading to the hospital that morning so Hubs and I both showered (I shaved, washed my hair and put on makeup) and got ready in case we needed to go in a hurry. Of course, after we did all of that they contractions started spacing way out to 20 minutes and sometimes more. We called the soon-to-be grandparents in San Antonio and Dallas and told them to hold their horses as there might not be a new baby today.

To entertain ourselves Hubs and I went to IHOP for a late breakfast, made a stop at Big Lots for some more frozen food storage and then hustled to the grocery store so my fabulous husband could make us some of his famous chicken soup. By the time we were checking out at the grocery store around 3:00 my contractions were coming a bit more regularly and slightly more intensely. I camped out on the couch for the remainder of the day while Hubs cooked and timed my contractions. After coming around 9 minutes apart they jumped back to 14 minutes and I called the doctor to see if they could at least check and see if I was dilated. They said not to even bother coming their way until my contractions were 5 minutes apart for an hour.

That never happened! Around 10 PM the contractions became super painful but weren't regular; they would be 6 minutes and then 8 then 10, always annoying. They became so painful that we decided to go ahead and take our chances at the hospital. While walking back to the bedroom to get our bags I had three contractions. Then another one that knocked me to my knees - they were now coming every two minutes and we picked up the pace to make the 5 minute drive to the hospital.

We arrived at 11:45 PM and the nurses were none too impressed with how far along I might be (we didn't even bother to bring the bags in because we figured it was false labor and that we would soon be sent back home). So they weighed me in (yikes) and had me change into a gown while I gave them a urine sample. The nurse took a while to check me which made me flash back to the previous day when the doc delivered the news that nothing was happening anytime soon. When she was finished she said that we would not believe how dilated I was...8 cm! She left the room and Hubs heard her give the "Code Blue" call.

The nurse said she hoped there was time for me to get the epidural that I desparately wanted and time to get the doctor on call to the hospital. She assured me that she had delivered babies before and could do so for me if necessary. At this point I lost my composure for a couple of minutes. I had expected to be in labor for hours and get to wear my cute little labor/delivery gown that I bought to stylishly wander the halls while trying to dilate. Having the baby so soon was not what I had anticipated in the made for TV movie playing in my head.

Get ready for a barrage of photos...

Lucky for me and for Hubs the anesthesiologist made it in time to give me a full dose in my epidural and I was feeling fabulous by 12:30 AM. Note that even at this point, 9.5 cm dilated my water had not broken. The doctor made it, broke my water and told me to sit tight while I finished dilating to 10 cm (too much info?).

A few minutes later my nurse was back and said I was ready to push if I wanted to try. I like new things, so why not? One thing that they don't tell you in birth class is that when you have an epidural you can not feel yourself pushing. The only thing that I felt like I was doing was scrunching up my face and pulling on my legs. I didn't break a sweat and had to ask after every push if I had actually done anything. It is a very odd feeling, not feeling anything.

Six pushes and 15 minutes later, Adelaide arrived! I could not believe that it was over. It was the strangest sensation because it seemed all too easy. Nothing hurt, no stitches, no sweat, no toots (most of the time I was trying not to laugh because Hubs was using his "A" material) and she came out perfectly.

Adelaide arrived at 2:50 AM weighing in at 6 lbs 11 oz and measuring 19.5" long. She was wide-eyed and beautiful. No jaundice, no scratches or marks just gorgeous baby girl. After that we spent some time getting to know one another and then she went off to the nursery for washing, poking and prodding. I headed to postpartum and continued to feel great. Since giving birth I have taken one pain pill that they gave me and am totally healed after two weeks. Only problem now is that I'm cleared to workout, no excuses. Except trying to leave these two...

2011-10-11T22:02:00.000-07:00

Please pardon my lapse in posting. I have been a little preoccupied...

I promise to share the story and fun happenings soon!

Jason Wu for Target

2011-10-03T15:13:00.001-07:00

Mark your calendars, kids. Jason Wu is the latest designer to announce a collaboration with Target. Announced on the heels of a possible publicity stunt visit to a Virginia Target last week by First Lady Michelle Obama, the thought is Target is hoping to recreate the quick sell-out of last month's Missoni collection. February 5, 2012 is the date set to introduce the selective line by Wu in stores.

'It was very interesting for me to translate my signature touches into a more affordable collection without compromising quality, design and sophistication,' said Wu to U.K.'s Mail Online.

The Taiwanese-American designer was made a household name after dressing the First Lady for the Inaugural Ball. Let's see what he comes up with for the favorite all-encompassing home store!

-- Post From My iPhone

Missoni Maddness

2011-10-03T12:26:00.000-07:00

Target and Missoni did a great job promoting their pairing that launched in-store and online on September 13th. They did such a great job that most Target stores were completely cleared of all of their Missoni for Target merchandise within a few hours.

While I have had the Missoni for Target launch in my calendar for almost two months I had to work Tuesday morning and didn't make it to the store until a little after 12:00 pm. By that time all of the clothing was out of there with the exception of two styles of less than stellar blouses. I quickly skipped over those and headed to the cosmetic bags that I had gone intentionally to purchase. After snagging a couple I toured the store to see what else was left to pillage.

Here is what I scored:

There was one pair of chevron flats left in what was close-enough to my size, an adorable knit baby romper, some file folders and a few cute bins. They still had the candles but while the designs were cute they didn't smell all that great and for $12.99 each I figured they were worth passing up.

I was so flabbergasted (but not shocked) with the apparent Missoni collectors turnout that I had to call my mom in Dallas to find out what the response was there. Same. She was able to squeak out of there with a couple of cute melamine bowls, seen below.

What tickles me so much about this phenomenon is that while each item has a "Missoni" label, albeit a "Missoni for Target" label, it is still Target quality merchandise. Don't misunderstand me, I have quite a few Target labels in my closet and home, but the fact remains that the cute little flats I picked up do not feel like any better quality than the Merona or Mossimo brands that you can purchase any day of the week (without fighting another chick for). They are kind of flimsy and feel a bit like felt, however they are cute. When I checked out the cashier told me that a woman had even had her cart of Missoni goods stolen in the store by a Missoni-crazed broad and that there was a line of women waiting for the doors to open at 8:00 am. Bizarre!

With all of this publicity and success of another major designer pairing with Target (my favorite up until now was Calypso) I'm hoping that you will see more designers create affordable lines for the classic go-to store. I'm thinking that Kate Spade would be the next perfect candidate. What do y'all think? Did you haul your cookies to Target to find a designer deal? What designer would you like to see make the reasonably priced jump next?

Caught on Film

2011-09-30T12:59:00.000-07:00

After years (literally) of complaining I finally bit the bullet and bought a new camera. Poor Hubs, complaining is such an unattractive habit of mine. At least the camera-related whining can no cease and desist! After quite a bit of research I settled on the Canon PowerShot Elph 300HS and am very pleased with it thus far.

It is super light weight, 12.1 megapixels, 2.7" LCD screen and HD video. All in all it is all you could ever want in a point-and-shoot. One day I would like to also have a nice Nikon SLR but I figure starting small is a good way to go. Not to mention the fact that a SLR is a bit pricey for this little pony. Check out how well it took photos in the hospital two weeks ago when my two sweet friends had their babies less than 48 hours apart! Hospital light can be tricky.

Pretty new mama, Lisa! Sweet baby Vivianne (Alison's bean)

Mr. Noah, Lisa's pride and joy.

Okay, so this post might have been just an excuse to share adorable baby photos. Stay tuned for pics of my little bundle...whenever she decides to make her grand entrance that is.

Fall in Line Part 1

2011-09-29T15:24:00.000-07:00

Alright kiddos, it is officially fall! It doesn't feel like it in West Texas today - this 95 degree temp isn't exactly agreeing with my 39 week pregnant self. Once you are this pregnant the weather should never be over double the weeks you are along. Agreed? Agreed- I have to agree with myself on this one.

Photo courtesy of http://www.crystalkiss.com/fall-into-the-autumn-journey-with-mother-nature-with-these-beautiful-photography/

Back to fall. I know that some of you have been dreading it but it is time to edit and purge again! Those strapless summer dresses and linen pants will need to be packed away soon or moved to the less accessible areas of the closet to make room for all of those fabulous skinny cords, sweaters and boots. I heart fall fashion to the point of silliness, as I know many of you do too. Here are some tips for those feeling a bit overwhelmed as where to start...

1. To thine own self be true- go through those summer duds and pull out anything and everything that you did not wear this summer. If you didn't wear it this season chances are that you won't wear it next summer either. I know what happens (everyone does this!) you hold stuff over from the previous year(s) because you used to love it, paid a fortune for it, got it for a steal or it is that size that you know you will one day wear again. Don't let that tube top take up anymore space in your life or your house! Donate it and be done with it. You will want to shop at the beginning of the season next year anyway so make room for the future pieces that you will actually wear.

2. Get it out - I'm a firm believer in editing ones wardrobe at the beginning AND the end of every season. If that is too much for you stick with one or the other but don't cheat yourself by not editing at all. *Tip* If you are going to consign your rejects you will want to edit at the beginning of the season. Most consignment shops only take the current season's clothes.*

Now take out everything that is out of season and if you can, try it on! Wash or dry clean what needs it and fold it up for storage. If you have the luxury of having another closet where you store "out of season" clothes than make sure that clothes are on proper hangers and are in appropriate garment bags. I personally keep my out of season clothes in Space Bags nestled inside of under bed containers.

Fold those sweaters! You don't want the Lady Ga Ga look of pointy shoulders from your hangers. Natural cotton garment bags like the ones above are great for storing leather, wool and other natural fibers as they allow the fabrics to breathe. You can even find under the bed storage options in cotton, like the one below from Rubbermaid.

Rubbermaid Under-the-Bed Storage

Cedar planks are another great thing to put in under bed boxes and garment bags. I love these from The Container Store.

3. Welcome the new season - as you are pulling out this season's wears edit as you go. Try on those clothes before you put them back in your closet. If they don't fit or need to be tailored get on it! Don't waste time hanging it up and risk not wearing it again. Put those items in a bin to be taken to the dry cleaner or tailor and if it doesn't happen in 2-4 weeks donate it. If you aren't willing to take the time to get it fixed you probably weren't all that excited about wearing it in the first place. Also, items can get musty and wrinkled after months of storage - wash, steam or iron it now so it is ready to wear.

4. Get your kicks - on Route 66...or not. Fall isn't just about denim and sweaters it's about boots and cute flats! Time to retire the flip-flops and sandals for a while and fish out that fall footwear. Boots do take up considerable room in a closet; far more than flip flops. In order to prevent what I call the "ankle break" in your tall boots and to keep them in order I like to use a couple of different boot shapers. These are all great for keeping your boots looking their best and to save you time by not having to search for mates.

Our Boot Box from The Container Store

Boot Stand from The Container Store

Boot Holder from The Container Store

That should be enough to get you started for now, I will be giving you some more tips in the week to come. You can de-clutter and give yourself the closet you have always wanted. If you need a hand to hold or a trained eye, just contact me and I can help. Happy fall!

This blog is in no way sponsored or endorsed by The Container Store

Cake for Dinner

2011-09-23T07:52:00.000-07:00

No, this is not a post about sugar bomb meals but it is a review of Scythian's children's album entitled "Cake for Dinner". Just about the only thing that I dreaded about having kids was the music that you associate with minivans and peanut butter and jelly devouring wee ones. Even as a kid I was not a fan of Raffie (Hubs' favorite musician from his childhood) or other kid-focused music. Flash forward to 2011 and there is great music out there for babies and kids that keeps the parents that also have to listen to it in mind, like the Rockabye Baby series.

If you don't know Scythian, you should. Scythian is an eclectic and uber-talented, Celtic/gypsy/Americana/punk band based out of DC. They are all super cute and the two founders and brothers are classically trained musicians from the Ukraine (but raised in Dallas!).

If you are sick of the Disney Music Channel you have to pick up "Cake for Dinner", you won't go crazy. "Tumba" and "Cleaning Hullabaloo" are two of my favorites. You can also get a free listen at iTunes.

They Were Framed!

2011-09-21T16:40:00.000-07:00

If you missed it, earlier today I posted a little DIY project that I completed yesterday. I was curious to see if any of you out there in the blog-o-sphere have been up to any crafty business yourselves and I received a response! It is from my very own mama and she did a bang up job of expanding the visual space above her wine cabinet.

Before

She started with the adorable canvas of my brother and nephew. It has hung in this spot for a while now but just wasn't quite big enough in relation to its surroundings. To solve this problem Mama hit up her local thrift store and found this solid oak frame for $3.50 and bought a can of black spray paint for $3. She then hung it around the existing canvas and voila!

After

You might remember the post from a couple of years ago that Mama is quite crafty spray paint and thrifted picture frames.

Reading Rainbow

2011-09-21T11:11:00.000-07:00

The Hubs has the neatest collection books from the series "Redwall" by Brian Jacques. There are 34 books in the series and we have 14 of them. We want Baby A to have them to grow up with so we bequeathed them to her and her nursery. You can see them here:

Being the neurotic mama-to-be/design obsessed woman that I am the book jackets just weren't doing it for me in the context of the nursery. My first attempt and making them over was to simply take the jackets off. Alas, all of the book spines are red and I was not feeling 14 spines of red. Luckily, a solution was found and executed yesterday.

After a quick field trip to Michaels for paper and wrapping I was ready to start the process. It was all pretty easy. The largest scrapbook paper that I could find was 12"x12" and didn't quite cover the book so I purchased some white matte wrapping paper to cover the books.

After cutting out 14 white book covers I trimmed the scrapbook paper to size and secured them to the white book covers with double-sided tape. A silver paint Sharpie was used to write the title on the cover. I'm still debating about adding the title to the spine as well but I kind of like the simplicity of the monochrome rainbow right now.

Have any of you been crafty lately?

One Room. Six Months.

2011-09-14T12:07:00.000-07:00

After seeing Young House Love's eight month update post I was inspired to share the transformation that our living room has made over the past six months. We made some major changes to this space in our house since we moved in. We started by ripping out the carpet and painting the walls and trim.

February 2011

September 2011

Our living room was a roller skating rink for two months before we could get the installers out to put in our new laminate floors.

Matching the existing floors in our dining room/library was easy due to the fact that they were recently installed and the previous homeowners still live in our town. It's amazing how helpful people can be! We ended up matching the dining room floors with Armstrong's laminate flooring in Fireside Oak. Our installers from Lowe's were fantastic and got all 442 sq. ft. of living room AND our hallway finished in one day. Thank you, Lowe's!

The new floors made a huge difference but without furniture we went from roller rink to bowling alley. This is cool with me because I am an excellent bowler. Excellent. At least on Wii.

We worked from the floor up; naturally, furniture came next. Thanks to our family we miraculously received some major furniture that fit perfectly in our large living room. The couch is our haven. For two people who were never big fans of sectionals we are all about this one. Our room is so big that unless we bought multiple sofas, chairs, ottomans and tables the room would just swallow furniture whole. Multiple new pieces were not in our budget so this gift of furniture could not have come at a better time.

March 2011

April 2011

Living Room after introduction of giant Heritage sectional. So much seating!

When you have a large room create "areas." We actually have four areas in our space: an area for writing, the lounging area, the reading corner and the game space. These spaces have changed as we have settled into the house. The addition of lamps, accent pillows made a large impact and really helped to start tying the room together. Now for the barrage of photos!

September 2011

This is where I write my blog everyday. This area also doubles as our game table area.

This room was not an exception for organization - all the little boxes around the room have a purpose, they are not just to fill the space. The green box under the TV holds stationary, the white croc-embossed box on the coffee table holds all our remotes and Wii accessories, the pink box on the side table contains playing cards and dominoes for the game area. The secretary acts as our "Bill Pay Center" and keeps us both on the same page.

There are still a few projects that we have in mind for our space that include:

moving the two chairs on either side of the secretary over to the game table and relocate the secretary and replace with a statement like this-
we have all the hardware and now we just need to hang our amazing piece of beach wood that my dad brought us from the lake
before Baby A starts crawling we need to replace our concrete and glass coffee table with something a little more kid friendly, it also matches the style that we are going for in our living room a bit better than the pseudo-traditional one we have now
Ballard Design will be getting a call from me soon to place an order for a 108" tablecloth

I saw this photo on YoungHouseLove and nearly fell out of my chair, think of all the great storage for hiding toys...

I heart the Essex Printed Ottoman from West Elm that is the same shape and size of our existing table but it is upholstered to keep little heads from hitting sharp corners

I'm thinking using two or three of these Ikea STRIND tables would be fun and break up all of the the angles in the room...at $99 you can't beat that.

So that is where we are right now. For now; we did just come to the realization today that Baby A could still be four weeks away which leaves this little mama-to-be with some time on her hands to get crafty. Oh, so crafty...

Tales from the Garage

2011-09-13T06:55:00.000-07:00

I love me a good garage transformation, as you may know. It is that area of your house that is usually a pit for most American families. You are either in the situation of not being able to fit both or even one vehicle in at all, it has sports gear, tools, and/or misc. crap strewn about or your are one of the very few that keeps a tidy and sparse garage for your cars. Our garage fell somewhere in between. First off, it looked like a murder room. Our walls were riddled with holes, spray paint spurts and random shelving.

Here is our pitiful before: Don't you love the gaping spaces around our pipes? We had our entire house re-piped (all new plumbing!) and not all of the evidence of the repairs have been remedied as of yet.

Notice our old toilet...

I made a small effort to start the process last week and made my way through all of the piles to at least get it to the place you see below. This included a coat of primer (leftover paint from the previous owners that I used to cover up the hideous stains on the walls behind those shelves on the right).

Hubs was up next and he had the hardest job of all; patching about 1,000 holes. Like his shirt? *Side Note Alert* We visited the first ever legal Texas bourbon distillery last summer in the Hill Country. It is awesome and if you are lucky enough to get your hands on some Garrison Brothers Bourbon count yourself blessed. *Side Note Complete* He also had to sweep a graveyard of Daddy Long Legs off the walls. Gross.

Had to give you a close-up of our laughable attic access. It is as shoty as it looks and yes, that is a jump rope that you see attached intended to act as a way to pull down the ladder. Yikes.

Up-close and personal with random wall graffiti.

Look at all of those glorious patches! And the glorious hole we found behind the peg board. This is why you always take everything down...to make sure there are not huge gaping holes in your walls.

We got a steal of a deal on paint at Lowe's by purchasing a 5 gallon bucket of mis-tinted Valspar. It just so happened to be in a color similar to what we were wanting and in the right finish. For 1/2 price you can't beat that!

We are still in the process of painting the ceiling and we will eventually get to painting the floor as well. But for now, this is where we stand. I'm hoping to get it wrapped up by the weekend so that both of our cars can move back into their shady home. Who else was a weekend warrior?

We Be Strollin'

2011-09-09T17:43:00.000-07:00

After running errands Friday evening I came home to find a ginormous box from Amazon. Lo and behold the contents were none other than our jogger stroller! This excites me to no end. It is down right silly how much I love this stroller. Ever since I found out I was pregnant I thought that I wanted a BOB but after some registry issues I decided that the $400+ stroller was not the way to go and started looking for an alternative to the famed, high-priced jogger.

Hours of research later I discovered the City Mini Jogger. The price was right and it looked super cool to me. Done and done, consider it registered. My sweet mama-in-law (along with my sweet father-in-law) knew how much this little piece of baby-toting equipment meant to me and ordered it! Don't know what we would do without our precious family.

On to the stroller! There are a ton of great features to this jogger but my favorites are the fact that you can fold it up with one hand and that it only weighs 17 lbs. Most of the other joggers are a bit heftier coming in closer to 25 lbs. Eight pounds doesn't sound like much but I'm sure that when you're hauling that thing in and out of your trunk over and again those pounds add up.

Some of the other fun features include, the extra large sun shade with two sky lights, the seat reclines to a nearly flat position just by pulling a cord, it has front wheel suspension and not only does it fold with one hand but it folds up pretty flat making it easier to fit it in the trunk of sedan.

Can you tell that I like it? Please, don't misunderstand, I still love the BOB and think that it is an amazing stroller but I don't plan on doing a lot of "running" with Baby A, especially not on rough terrain regularly enough to justify the size and price tag. I'm of the belief that one should only run when being chased by wild dogs. Just wanted to let you ladies know that there are other options out there. And they look pretty freaking cool to boot.

If that isn't enough baby stroller talk for one day I will tell you about the umbrella stroller we got. I totally understand if you're baby geared out, if so, see you tomorrow! But if you are still with me we went with the Maclaren Volo Stroller. There are less expensive umbrella strollers out there but I figured we might have two or three more little ones and wanted to get one that would withstand years of use. My folks were kind enough to get this for us and we are ever so grateful. This will be great for traveling.

Maclaren Volo Stroller Siver Green Stripe

Well, there you go! Hope everyone has a great weekend and if the weather is as nice where you are go take a stroll. Thanks, again parents!!!

Game Day Delight

2011-09-09T07:36:00.000-07:00

The recent cool front that snapped through Midland has put an excitement for fall, football and family in my little pregnant heart. I have been anxiously awaiting the restart of school, Halloween decorations in the stores and the reintroduction of the Pumpkin Spice Latte at Starbucks. The reason for this isn't solely my love all things autumnal but the fast-approaching arrival of our baby girl! Back in January, October seemed like a lifetime away and it is FINALLY almost here. I will toast a Pumpkin Spice Latte to that, friends.

Pumpkin Spice Latte Photo provided by www.starbucks.com

We will be making our first road trip with Baby A to Dallas for Thanksgiving. For whatever reason I have been planning this trip in my head. I'm thrilled to introduce A to Dallas and our friends that live there. The trip will mean more than just turkey eating; there will be an anniversary (our second) and I hope an SMU game. The Saturday after Turkey Day SMU will be playing Rice at Gerald Ford Stadium and I want to be there...in this outfit from Madewell:

Ray-Ban Small Metal Aviator

Photo Provided by www.ray-ban.com

Dip-Dyed Hoodie

photo provided by www.madewell.com

Madewell Fielder Jacket

photo provided by www.madewell.com

Madewell Typewriter Pant

photo provided by www.madewell.com

Madewell Prairie Boot

photo provided by www.madewell.com

Tory Burch Amanda Tote

photo provided by www.toryburch.com

Depending on how cold it is in November Baby A will be sporting one of these two looks:

Look #1:

BabyGap Cableknit One-Piece

BabyGap Faux-Fur Cuff Booties

BabyGap Faux Fur Cuff Bootie

Bear w/ Bow Hat

Look #2:

Burberry Sun Hat

Ralph Lauren Lace-Trim Body Suit

Photo provided by www.laylagrace.com

This might seem like over-kill planning but when you're anxiously awaiting the arrival of a baby you start to wander off the edge of sanity. The Hubs can dress himself for the game. He's very stylish on his own.

Behind Closed Doors

2011-09-08T09:35:00.000-07:00

Up until last weekend Baby A's nursery closet did not have doors. This was not a big problem because she has a well-organized and designed closet, however, I wanted it to have doors none-the-less. What turned this easy breezy project into a two-day undertaking were our less than standard dimensions. The design that I came up with for her closet required bi-fold doors. They do come in multiple sizes but none that matched our exact measurements.

Closet Sans-Doors

So how did we fix it? By we, I of course mean Pop and Hubs tore out the existing trim and door frame in order to use the stock doors from Lowe's. This was awesome because it saved us major $$ by not having to special order the doors. Huzzah! The only downer to a project like this is that the nursery turned into a disaster zone during construction. To protect all of Baby A's teeny tiny cute clothes we had to clear them out of the line of destruction. Creating the fabulous mess seen below. Being 8.5 months pregnant at the time made me very nervous to have such chaos in the nursery.

After the tear-out the boys placed in the new frame and shimmed around it. Once they mounted the door tracks they finished off their portion of the project and tacked up new trim.

New frame and door track

Freshly tacked and filled trim

Lauren sanding over filled holes and joints

Next came my job - sanding and painting! The trim and doors were pre-primed (which is rawesome) so all little L has to do is pull out her trusty paint brush and bang it out. Brush it out? Whatever, you know what I mean.

Supplies - most important for this project was the cabinet/door roller

Roll, roll, roll your boat gently down the stream...

There you have it - new doors at last. Now we only have to go through this process two more times on the master bedroom closets. Bring it on bi-folds!
What kind of doors do you have on your closet?

A Queen is Only as Powerful as Her Throne

2011-09-07T11:03:00.000-07:00

That is to say that we needed a new toilet (or two) in our fabulous first house. We are pretty sure that the commodes were original to the home born in 1961. That is one old poo pot. They were very small, short and used three gallons of water to unsuccessfully flush the toilet. It's a win-win, right? Hardly.

Master "Before" Hall Bath "Before"

While Mom and Pop were in town for the baby shower we decided that it would be the perfect time to install the first new toilet. We started in the hall/guest bathroom. "Why not begin by replacing the master toilet?" you might ask. The thought was that with Baby A coming in a few weeks that guests will soon be checking into the Dorffarosa it would be nice if they had use of luxurious new toilet.

The family took a field trip to Lowe's to find us a new (and much improved) bathroom seat. We wanted to make sure that we didn't get a bottom-of-the-barrel toilet but there was no need to spend $600 on one either. We ended up bringing home an American Standard model that features amenities such as:

- Chair height
- Elongated seat
- Water-saving technology (only uses 1.3 gallons of water!)
- EverClean seat and bowl

I might be more excited about this new tinkler than I would be about a new Mercedes. It is sad but true. Above is the original "before" from February and here is the more recent "before" from June.

Drum roll, please...Here is the new and much improved bathroom and toilet! (Insert symbols crashing) In addition to the new throne you might also notice the new runner. Thank you, Ikea!

One last time, Before and After!

What have you been waiting to replace in your home? Would a new kitchen faucet send you into a pleasure frenzy? Or maybe new windows would blow your skirt up? Please share what home project you have anxiously awaiting to complete. Come on, you're among friends.

It Never Hurts to Shower Twice

2011-09-02T07:25:00.000-07:00

Even though the Hubs and I have only lived in Middle Earth for six months some very lovely ladies hosted a baby shower for us. It was beautiful and humbling and there were cake balls. Ohhh the cake balls... Is there anything better than cake shaped into ball-form and then dipped into white chocolate? I submit that there is not- hence, I ate many of them.

The best part of having a little girl is all of the adorable clothes that people can't help but give to her. It is a slippery and dangerously cute slope that my mom, mother-in-law and I have been going down head first. All the better for baby A to poop and vomit on, right? It will be precious, I'm sure.

Besides wee little onesies and cake balls there were fun friends and Oreo pops. They were such a fun idea and were paired perfectly with an over-sized MacKenzie-Childs charger. Thank you, Alison!

You might notice that there are quite a few pregos in this picture. That is because there are a TON of girls pregnant in Midland right now. My hostesses were so generous with their time and talents that it was a pleasure to give them their hostess gifts. I fell in love with these cool little finger bowls from Anthropologie (where else?). My favorite part was how they looked like little nests when they were all wrapped up. Thank you, ladies!

After the shower mom and I headed back to the house to organize all of the baby swag in the nursery. My talented auntie gave me Baby A's bedding - what do y'all think? Some of you have requested nursery updates so here you go!

There have actually been some improvements made since these photos were taken that I will share next week once they are complete. Let's just say that she now has functioning closet doors! I will include a tutorial on how to install said doors and expand a doorway.

A Message from Baby A

2011-08-23T08:12:00.000-07:00

Here is an update on the baby front for those interested. We had our last sonogram yesterday and all is well in Babyville! Baby A currently weighs 4lbs 11oz and is on schedule for an October 5th delivery. She has been head down for a while and has been feeling quite punchy lately. I'm pretty sure she is doing some intense calisthenics or possibly Zumba, either way she is getting her cardio in each day.

She was not extremely cooperative for her last photo session but she gave us these couple of glimpses into her world.

The ladies in McKinney also threw me a lovely baby shower a couple of weekends ago. For those interested here you go!

Oh you know there was pie...

Sweet hostesses
Forgive me for how insanely excited I was about getting a Baby Bullet. I hope that it will bring baby A many delicious meals.

Beautiful sister-in-laws!

Adorable mini-Mexi dress from my precious mother-in-law

Thanks to everyone who came to the shower you made baby A feel loved and ready to make her grand appearance soon!

Planter Should be Spelled with an F

2011-08-04T16:07:00.000-07:00

"F" for fun, that is. After much debate about what to do with our not too big but big enough to look empty porch, we bit the bullet and purchased some planters and plants. This sort of planting arrangement has always appealed to me but has intimidated me as well. Insert my dear friend, Alison. I copied her planter; with her permission of course.

Here is what we got: For those of you counting at home, the large planter contains a hanging basket of some sort of bloom (The Show-er), a Sweet Potato Vine (The Spiller), a tall spiky thing (The Grow-er) and a tiger-looking thing (The Filler). Do you like how I'm all technical like with my plant genes? I don't know plants so good.

The planters look like plaster but are actually its red-neck cousin, plastic. I enjoy this because they are much lighter and easier to move around for this eight month pregger. They were all purchased at Wal-Mart at a very reasonable price. Next I drilled holes in the bottom of each planter and added a bunch of wadded up window screen for drainage purposes. This also prevents root rot. All I had to do after that was stick the plants in the dirt and water liberally.

Voila! We look like grown-ups. We got planters.

Baby Bucket List

2011-07-23T07:08:00.001-07:00

The little sparrow's (we've taken to referring to her as a bird since she flutters around most of the day in my ever-growing belly) nursery is coming along. We've tackled most of the major components but like most things around the house there is always more to do.

Here is the list of remaining tasks to accomplish in the nursery/house prior to her arrival in *gulp* 10 weeks:

- paint and hang her closet doors
- buy and hang a wide shelf over the changing table
- replace the windows ($$$)
- replace the broken mirrored drawer on the night stand
- mattress for the crib
- bedding for said crib (sweet Aunt J is making our custom bedding!)
- baby-proof

That's about it. Not too bad, there is a laundry list of other misc. projects to accomplish around the house but none of them have to necessarily be accomplished prior to the Bird's landing in our nest. See what I did there? Bird...nest...landing...dorky mom?

Again, sorry for the photo quality (taken with my phone, dar). Lauren needs a new camera...

I Love Lamp(s)

2011-07-23T06:52:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine gave me the scoop on some killer lamps on sale at Target. Good call, sweet friend. I hurried myself to Tarjay and found that they were lovely and bought both of them for a steal at $29 each, including the lamp shade! They normally sold for $60, which is deal in and of itself, but $29? Super deal. This one finished off my little "read the paper" corner. Dads love this spot for some reason.

Pardon the horrendous photo. LoDo needs a new camera, STAT.

While we are on the subject of cameras, do any of you have suggestions on a good point-&-shoot? So far all I can settle on is Nikon and Canon. That's all I got.

House Crush...

2011-07-21T19:51:00.000-07:00

spaces design by birmingham Dana Wolter

Saw this on Houzz today, do you think the family that lives here would be terribly offended if I showed up and moved in?

Bathroom Clutter Buster

2011-07-21T09:25:00.000-07:00

If you're like 95% of people in the world your bathroom cabinets are probably a little disorderly. Don't feel bad or guilty, it happens. You use your bathroom multiple times a day, every day. Things are bound to get a bit out of control. Fear not, you can conquer the bathroom clutter and in-turn get out the door faster with a more peaceful attitude.

Here is where you start. Open one cabinet or drawer, hear that? One. There is no need to overwhelm yourself and your space by emptying everything onto the floor of your bathroom only to shock yourself into fleeing. Pull out every single thing in that drawer and begin sorting.

Sorting: It's just like kindergarten; likes with likes, trash in the trash. Make yourself a mess of piles: hair stuff, face stuff, makeup, nail care, teeth care, first-aid, travel-sized goodies, back stock and extras (for those of you who shop Sam's and Costco you will have a large back stock pile).

Now that we have sorted, it is time to purge. Out goes the two-year old, half empty tube of toothpaste and the makeup foundation from three years ago. It doesn't matter how much it cost, expired is expired and old make up especially can carry all kinds of nasty germs and bacteria.

Here is the basic breakdown for when to kick things to the curb:
Foundation & Concealer - if it's a moisturizing or stick formula you're good for 18 months; oil-free and liquid varieties need to be pitched after 12 months due to bacteria from your face to the bottle. change/wash your applicator regularly to keep bacteria at bay

Eye Shadow - liquid 12 months, powder lasts for 2 years

Mascara - 3 months but if it starts to get dry and clumpy or smell weird pitch it before 90 days

Lipstick - 2 years

Blush & Powder - creams toss after 12 months but powders can last for 2 years

Nail Polish - it is still up in the air, some say 2 years or earlier if it gets thick and discolored; best way to make it last is to keep it upright, in your fridge and never to shake it. instead roll the bottle between your hands before use, it creates fewer air bubbles that will ruin your manicure

Lotion - typically lasts 1-2 years but if like everything else, if it starts to smell or turn color get rid of it

Sunscreen - there should be an expiration date on the bottle, if not stick with the one year rule if it has already been opened

Medications - always stick to the expiration date on the bottle; active ingredients can expire leaving the pill ineffective or possibly harmful

It can be hard to see expensive products going into the trash but it will help you in the future from over-buying and making better use of what you have. For example, there is a tendency to only use the same eye shadows or lipsticks when you have so much that it overloads your brain. You inevitably use the same thing you did the day before because it requires less thought than going through every color in the drawer and then having to choose from multiple options. Same goes for the clothes in your closet, unless you have well-planned organization to start.

There is no need to live in clutter and slow yourself down in the morning. Get it out, sort it, purge it and organize it. One drawer, one cabinet, or if you're feeling ambitious and have a buddy, one room at a time.

Go from this:

To this:

Label makers are fabulous too. If it seems like more than you can bear to handle solo, give me a shout! It is what I do and coincidentally, what I love.

You Can Pick Your Friends, But You Can't Pick Their Noses

2011-07-12T09:48:00.000-07:00

Possibly the cutest pic ever of my nephew and my cousin's baby girl.

Why do boys always get the super long eyelashes? It's like a Latisse ad.

Saturday Morning...

2011-07-09T10:32:00.001-07:00

What Saturday morning would be complete without the lappy, magazines, nail filing, coffee and fresh flowers?

Happy Weekend!

-- Post From My iPhone

It's Hip to Be Square

2011-07-09T08:50:00.001-07:00

On our most recent jaunt to Dallas Hubs and I stayed with my folks for a few nights in McKinney. We both grew up in McKinney and were excited to see how much it has grown and how much cooler it has become since we were kids. In sixth grade we were stoked just to get a Chili's, now there are a ton of restaurants and entertaining things to do.

What is most impressive about McKinney's regentrification (not that it was ever bad) is the historic square. I worked on the square in high school at a fabulous boutique called Cotton Hearts. It is the quaintest, most relaxed and stylish women's clothing store you could ever hope to stumble upon. Cotton Hearts has lived on the square in the same spot for almost twenty years.

Images courtesy of katherinerobertsonphotography.com

Gorgeous new over-sized flower pots spill colorful prettiness on every corner of the square.

But Cotton Hearts is no longer surrounded by small country-styled stores and antique malls. Today you can find chic restaurants (open later than 5:00 pm, might I add), art galleries, wine tastings, home interior stores, live music, pubs and even a hotel!

Hubs and I enjoyed Square Burger. We enjoyed it so much that we almost ate it all before we could even get a photo.

Sauce, is a rustic yet modern Italian restaurant that reminds us of DC restaurants. Cool and skinny.

One can not go to the square in McKinney without having a slice of pie from the Pantry. It just wouldn't be Christian, or human for that matter. "How good is their pie?" you ask. So good that I served it at my wedding instead of cake. That's damn good.

Super cute idea for displaying photos from Smitten. The pictures are standing up in red beans. Much better use for beans than eating them.

There is a really well organized and curated furniture consignment shop where we found this corner pew on sale for $225. Still wish that we would have adopted it and brought it home to live around the game table in our family room. It would be all to appropriate considering the Hubs is the son of a preacher man.

My new favorite interior decor store has to be Gray Living. Look how yummy. Plus, I'm a total sucker for all things gray.

An old and extremely out-dated store was turned into what is now, Sharla's. The fun part is that we actually know Sharla as she is the mom of one of our high school friends. She opened this ahh-mazing cosmetic store a while back but recently moved into what can only be described as an utterly drool-worthy space. The details are beyond fabulous.

If you are ever in Dallas and want to see a cool place with even cooler people, head on up 75 to McKinney. The Square is something that you don't want to miss. Unless you're not into interesting places and great food, but that's your deal.

In Living Color

2011-07-07T15:41:00.001-07:00

You can do what you want to do. In living color. Anyone else miss the SNL Fox-produced step-child that was In Living Color? I so wanted to be a Fly Girl like J.Lo. Alas, that ship has sailed and so has the show. Let us all reminisce for a moment...

"Girl that nothin' I'm about two months over due. I just cross my legs and hold it in, cause I want me a Capricorn." - Don't we all. What I'm really getting at is my formal living room and all of its color. Not quite as hilarious but feel free to watch the clip again. This past weekend I finally purchased the light fixture that will replace the randomly placed chandelier that Hubs always whacks his beautiful head on. We have yet to install it but it is on the list of things to dominate this weekend.

Do you ever sit in your formal living room or is it for looks only? Or is it in "just in case the President ever comes over" status?

6.5 Month Bump-a-Dump

2011-07-06T20:33:00.001-07:00

-- Post From My iPhone

Meet G.U.S.

2011-06-30T06:07:00.000-07:00

While surfing the blog-o-sphere recently (hate calling it that) I found a link to a site, called "G.U.S." What is G.U.S. you ask? G.U.S. stands for Great Useful Stuff. Basically an organizers dream. Here are some of my favorites from their online catalog of goodies.

Purse Essentials:
Two-Sided Cord Organizer: I'm a sucker for labels
Kids Pet Care Kit- Dog:

Collapsible Linen Closet from Kangaroom:

Have any of you stumbled onto any good sites lately? Please share with the class.

Sconce Anyone?

2011-06-28T16:39:00.000-07:00

How many of you have seen cute sconces in a store and thought, "I love those but I am not an electrician nor would I like to hire one to install them."? Or have you found sconces that plug into an outlet but then had the issue of them looking amateur and unpolished? I have been both of these people. Who doesn't like a good sconce? Crazy people who don't appreciate interior illumination, that's who! Enjoy the wonderful world of sconces for a moment.

Pottery Barn's Petit Industrial Sconce - $99

Pottery Barn's Madison Glass Pendant Sconce - $129

contemporary bedroom design by toronto media and blogs Jennifer

eclectic living room design by raleigh interior designer Heather Garrett Design

living room design by photographer Elad Gonen & Zeev Beech

contemporary dining room design by san francisco interior designer tineke triggs

After purchasing a pair of cute sconces from Ikea a couple of years back I had the issue of them looking less than stellar due to the wonky-dangling cord. See exhibit A:

Notice the cords? You're being too kind, of course you see them. The outlet is way closer to the sconce on the left leaving the right sconce cord stretched to within an inch of its electrical life. Tragic.

They were never hung in the loft but found a home in our new master bedroom. We have been living with their shabbiness until just recently when I found the most wonderful product at Lowe's. It is a plastic cover that snaps over the cord and has sticky tape on the back. Here is all you need to get the job done: a level and a cord cover. They run about $5 each and are the best thing since Father of the Bride.

Look how much better! Eventually (maybe never) I will paint the cord covers to match the walls. Seamless.

Have any of you ever tried your hand at pseudo-electrical work? It doesn't sound safe at all. The word "sconce" sounds like "scones" to me. I could really go for a orange cranberry scone from Caribou Coffee now.

Dine In

2011-06-23T14:11:00.000-07:00

A couple of months ago I shared some pics of my dining room in progress. We are still lacking side chairs and need to reupholster the vintage chairs that sit at either end. I like to pretend that they are snooty and insult each others shabbiness in British accents.

Chair #1: "Why, dear fellow, if I looked as ragged as you I would bury myself in the yard."

Chair #2: "Oh, be a good chap and move thyself to the garage to save all of our eyes from your hideousness."

While the chairs have not been a priority I have been keeping a watchful eye out for replacements for the cafe chairs that live their now. These little chairs will later live around the game table in the family room.

Cafe Chair: "I'm just glad to be here. Please, pass the scones. I don't have arms."

Overstock revealed these to me today: Forza Twill Mid-Century Style Accent Chair (set of 2!) for $339.99

Ronnie Wire Base White Chair (set of 2!) $146.99

While I heart Eames I doubt I will ever be able to afford or have the guts to spend the dough on originals. Lucky ducky, like most designer items there are knock-offs out in the world that are just as lovely with an even lovelier price tag. With the exception knock-off designer handbags. Just don't do it.

Something Mid-Century is definitely in order to match the time period of both our house and our dining table. Remind me to share the story of how this one-of-a-kind table and dresser came to live with us last year.

What is your favorite seat in the house?

Pillow Talk

2011-06-23T13:00:00.000-07:00

Don't fret, kids we aren't getting HBO-rated around here. My adorable mama worked her little hands to the bone and finished the floor pillows for the nursery! I never knew I could be this excited about pillows. Actually, that is not true. All lies, design and bedding are some of my favorite things so there have been many occasions for me to be overly stimulated by mere throw pillows. Please, don't judge me too harshly.

Dorffette's floor pillows match her super bold Suzani curtains. The fabric choice may not scream, "BABY!!!" but I think it is perfect for our eggplant. She kicked me as I typed that vegetable reference- probably offended her, she can be touchy.

That crosses one more item off of the nursery to-do list (even though I didn't do it). Hope that you all have a great Thursday. Keep it real but keep it clean. Thanks for the pillows, Mom!

It's Curtains for You

2011-06-23T12:25:00.000-07:00

And it's curtains for my living/dining and family rooms. Our formal living/dining room has a large picture window that faces out of the front of the house, putting us on display for the neighborhoods distress or disturbing pleasure.

We didn't want to fork over the cash for Levolor blinds to match the rest of the house so we went with funky Ikea polk-a-dot panels and sheers. Sorry sweet neighbors no more free shows, but please enjoy the view of our funky drapes.

I did a happy dance when I found these Umbra double-hang rods at Bed Bath & Beyond for a super steal at $24.99. That is a pretty stunning price for rods that are over 120". "Huzzah," I said to myself (out loud)! The rods were easy to install, you can see me demonstrate here, from when I installed the same curtain rod in the nursery. The curtains and sheers all came from our Swedish friends at Ikea and where purchased by my God Mama and actual Mama. Thank you!

Next, I moved about 30 feet across the house to the family room where we had an even larger window that was creepy at night. The TV would reflect in the glass after dark making it look as though there were strangers bouncing around the backyard. I'm not totally happy with the way that it turned out but it is a vast improvement. We'll fix it later (much later).

The challenge came when I realized that the family room window was not the same size as the living/dining room window, which I thought they were. Thank goodness I had made a trip to Tuesday Morning and found a longer single rod. It was great because it was long enough but it was not a double-hang rod, nerds. This was problematic due to the fact that this window needed sheers to close for privacy in the evenings, going back to the disturbing reflections we talked about earlier. I didn't have an extra rod for the sheers so I went ahead and hung the curtains and sheers together on the same rod. The brackets block the sheers from closing; this is what needs to be fixed. Long, long story short, here they are for now!

Let There Be Light and Other Updates

2011-06-22T11:47:00.001-07:00

The Dorffette's nursery is slowly making its way to being a complete nursery. Last week the Hubs took down the ceiling fan that had been hanging in nursery and moved it to our bedroom, as our fan decided to break during the week of 112 degree temps. In its place he masterfully hung this glorious Maskros light fixture from Ikea, seen here in the box...in the closet...where it has lived for nearly a month.

Before:

The assembly required looked daunting at first sight but it was really easy. For only $49 it could have been even harder to assemble and would have been worth it.

I love this light installation so much that it makes me wiggle inside. There were doubts about taking away the ceiling fan which is commonly a baby mesmerizer but the cool flower shadows that this light casts on the ceiling and walls at night is sure to please the little one. It pleases this not so little one to no end!

After:

We also got the new Levolor blinds installed on the windows as well. Hooray for productivity and power drills! Thanks to JcPenney "Power Hours" we got over $1,200 worth of custom blinds for only $350. It sounds cheesy but check their circulars in the Sunday paper, it can save you oodles. If you haven't shopped JcP in a while you need to check it out.

Another tedious task that I had been putting off was to line the drawers of our super fun and super refurbished furniture. It took a bit of time but it adds a pop of color that makes me smile when I open the drawers. It's like finding a surprise. Sort of like that last piece of gum in the packet that you thought was empty hidden in the bottom of your purse.

Supplies:

Before:

After:

Those are all of the updates for now. Here is what we lack:

Bedding - being made by sweet Auntie
Chair and ottoman - ordered and waiting delivery
Side table - still shopping for a deal
Floor lamp - sitting at parents' house in Dallas
Changing pad - sitting at parents' house in Dallas

Keep checking in for more updates, we are having a blast!

Spotted

2011-06-20T20:04:00.000-07:00

It's funny how one click on one blog can lead you down a rabbit-hole of fun. While perusing the blog, Lay Baby Lay this evening I saw an awesome pouf that was featured in today's mood board and clicked on a link to the Etsy seller. As I browsed the vast selection of eclectic patterned poufs I saw that one was constructed with none other than two of the very same fabrics from my nursery. Huzzah!

How cute, right? Now I wouldn't buy a matching pouf as I have already had large floor pillows made out of the large suzani pattern, but the Waverly Cross Section or a complimentary pouf might be just the trick. Loving the yellow Chevron and Ikat. Although, either of these would also look comfy-chic in my living room...

Keep up the great work AletaFae! Kids, keep following those links (if appropriate) you never know where they will lead you. I heart sounding like a closing line from Jerry Springer.

Happy Dad's Day

2011-06-19T11:19:00.000-07:00

Do you think that either of these fine-looking young men had any idea that they would one day celebrate Father's Day and have grand babies on the way? Here are our papas from their hay days. So handsome...

Happy Father's Day! Did everyone do something fun? Did anyone get a very "special" necktie? This is a day for the dads in our lives and these are the dads in mine.

Mi Papa:

Hub's Papa: (Love this pic of Papa Bishop in the Democratic Republic of Congo!!!)

Bub and O:

And in three short months, thanks to this little one, Hubs will be one too!

Little House, Big Love

2011-06-17T07:40:00.000-07:00

With a little girl on the way (we're at six months, kids!) one can't help but think about little girl toys, clothes, activities, accessories, etc. One thing that I was into as a child were Barbies and doll houses. You can see me here with the Barbie that my sweet mama-in-law gave me at Christmas because she thought it resembled me. I only wish that my legs were that long in proportion to my torso.

Sis-n-law got one too.

I was not the kind of little girl that was obsessed with dolls by any means. In all actuality they scared the bejeezus out of me after dark. My mom would have to hide them from me after play time so that I wouldn't know where they would be coming from to attack after they came to life. Stupid Chucky ruined them for me in that way. But I vow not to be the kind of mom that passes on her fears to her child and thanks to the stupendous modern doll houses that I saw on Houzz today it should not be problem.

contemporary kids toys design by ivgstores.com

kids toys design by brincadada.com

kids toys design by dollshouse.com

modern kids toys design by brincadada.com

modern kids toys design by smallable.com

These architectural gems would make Frank Lloyd Wright and I.M. Pei proud. These could definitely live in my house without any terror-filled dreams from me. They even added a few mini, mid-century modern furniture pieces. The Eames La Chaise was by far my favorite. At $9,500 for an original full-size, the miniature version might be my only hope at owning a La Chaise myself.

modern accessories and decor design by design-museum.com

What was your favorite toy as a kid? Did you have a doll house?

The Fix

2011-06-16T10:43:00.000-07:00

Allow me to give a virtual "shout out" to my curly-haired sisters out on the interwebs. It can be tough this time of year to be of the unruly haired variety, but fear not for there are follicle saviors out there. I was tickled to find out that my two must-have products are now available at none other than Ulta.

I'm usually a big Sephora girl myself (literally getting bigger by the day) but alas, there is not one within any traverse-able distance of Midland, TX. Before you get on to me about the joys of free shipping with purchases of $50+, I'm aware and enjoy it. However, sometimes I don't need $50 worth of merchandise and I want to play with it/test it out first-hand. Lucky for me there is an Ulta in Midland, USA.

Ulta went up a few notches in my book this week when I received an email that they will now carry the Living Proof product line as well as the Croc brand of straighteners. These are my without fail hair straightening products.

=

Love

Living Proof's Straight Styling Treatment comes in a selection of versions based on hair thickness. I use the No Frizz Straight Styling Treatment for Thick/Course Hair and it is fabulous. This product blocks out humidity, allows me to get straight results with just the blow dryer and leaves hair feeling smooth and healthy. They also make a line for those seeking volume and for wearing hair curly. I have not tried their curl enhancing products yet but am looking forward to experimenting with them soon.

The Croc straightener was introduced to me four years ago by my hair stylist in Dallas. At that time you could only order them at a salon and they were EXPENSIVE. Since then it has been consistently on the "Top Straight Maker" lists and could be found online to the general public. But how exciting to now be able to get one at Ulta (where you can also use a coupon on occasion!). This straightener heats up very quickly, can be adjusted by each degree up to 450 degrees and the infrared action leaves hair super straight and shiny. What could be better? Plus, I have the pink one.

Don't fear the humidity! Or in the case of Midland, the blinding heat. High tomorrow is 112 degrees. Think I will try saving energy and cook using only the heat of the sidewalk.

Blogger Feature

2011-06-13T13:25:00.000-07:00

It is with great pride that I say that I'm related (although loosely) to Linde Giddens of Linde Browning Designs. Have you been to her blog? Or maybe you read the article about her on Daily Candy?

If you haven't seen her adorable work, you are missing out. But don't worry! Lauren is here to introduce you.

Linde is married to my sister-in-law's brother, which in my mind makes her family. She posted an envy inducing pillow that she made for her sister and it reminded me that she should be featured on FOL.

Miss Linde is based out of Dallas so if you are in that area count yourself blessed. She is also the mastermind behind my sweet nephew's nursery. Too cute.

Little O. As in, "O my, he is so cute!"

And just so you don't think that I'm turning all baby, all the time, Linde does some amazing non-nursery rooms too.

Hand-Painted Heirloom Farm Table

Hand-Painted and Copper Leafed Master Bathroom Ceiling

Hand-Painted Pattern with Synthetic Glitter, "Paxton's Bathroom"

She's phenomenal, give her a shout.

One Sweet Crib

2011-06-07T14:04:00.000-07:00

As I told you in my last post, I'm in love with our baby's new crib. If I were a shorter, much shorter, woman I would sleep in it. Or at least hang out in it and pretend that I was in jail. The Hubs and I put it together a couple of weekends ago and were thrilled with how easy it was to assemble and how rad it looked.

The crib that we originally liked, Oeuf's Eco-Friendly Sparrow Crib, was far too expensive to be conceivable so we looked around for alternatives online. With a savings of over $500 the Baby Mod Modena Crib was a perfect swap for us, even though my folks sweetly gifted it to us.
We were so blown away with how easy the crib was to assemble that we had to share our experience with you. Our only basis for comparison is what we have seen on sitcoms and in movies. We took photos of each step in an attempt to have photographic evidence when things got hilarious, alas things went smoothly.

Hubs thought there was a strong chance for giggle inducing shenanigans but I think he was just trying to get a boob shot.

Ta Da! You might have seen it already but I'm going to pretend that it is the first time for all of us. Check out this glorious crib!

Land of Nod

2011-06-06T16:45:00.000-07:00

We are happy to announce that the Dorffette's nursery is continuing to progress. In case you would like to catch up you can see where we started here. Hooray! There are a couple of missing components but it is progressing none-the-less. Take a peek at where we are right now and let me know how you think we are doing thus far.

Ta-Da!

Here is a refresher of what the room looked like before...insert shudder.

You can see we got the crib assembled. LOVE this crib. I lurv it so much that it requires further praise in its own post.

Above the crib we hung our DIY project that I showed you last week. I love that poodle; I call her "Francis."

We finished painting the armoire and washstand (aka changing table). I think that they turned out great. Although, has anyone else ever had a near impossible time finding a real true-black paint? The washstand was supposed to be high-gloss black. Like black, black. However, it didn't matter that I tried really hard to get a super black paint because when the washstand dried it was sure as silk, charcoal grey. C'est la vie. I kind of like it.

Until we discovered the date of the washstand I had thought about replacing the hardware, but they are unique and from 1850 so they stay.

Here is what we have left to do prior to baby girl's grand entrance into the world:

Swivel/rocker chair and ottoman (already ordered and anxiously awaiting there arrival!)
Cool side table, something along these lines...
Paint the closet doors - yes, we do have closet doors we aren't weirdos that like to stare at all of our clothes when bored. Or are we?
Baby bedding - sweet Auntie J is in the process of sewing all of our custom bedding, thank you!!!
Changing pad for washstand
Replace ceiling fan with wicked cool light fixture
Hang shelf and install new wood blinds
Pick-up floor lamp from my folks' house

All in all, I think that we are doing really well. I'm now 23 weeks along and am getting more tired by the day. This is pretty much the last room in our house that needs finishing (with the exception of the garage) which makes me smile grandly.

How are your projects going? Anyone else out there working on a nursery? Let me hear from you!

Former Favorite Day

2011-06-03T08:17:00.001-07:00

It's that time of year again, kids...National Doughnut Day! Hubs and I are doing a 30-day, 100% Paleo lifestyle so there will be no doughnut for me today. As a preggo not having one is hard.

That is where you all come in! Go get a doughnut and enjoy it thoroughly. If you feel so inclined send me a picture of your doughnut.

Closet Clutter

2011-06-02T20:55:00.000-07:00

Don't we all have a closet (or two, or ten) in our house that piles up with misc. junk? You know, the closet that you walk by and just the close proximity makes you shudder. It happens to the best of us. You start by shoving something random in there and then another and before you know it there is an unwanted sink and a year's supply of Modge Podge. Just in case.

Here is a before and after to get you going.

Don't let excess clutter happen to you. Hire me to tackle it for you or just burn it all. Happy organizing!

Free Art

2011-06-02T08:58:00.001-07:00

Free! Could there ever be a better word? I submit that there could not. When working on the Dorfflette's nursery it occurred to me that she needs some fanciful art on the walls to launch her imagination. Lucky for us I had torn apart a fabulous Anthropologie catalog this past Christmas, well before I knew that I was pregnant.

All that was left to do was get some uniform and inexpensive frames and creative matting. Off to Ikea and Hobby Lobby! To the EnDorff-Mobile.

Here are our supplies.

- Ikea Frames: $1.99 ea x 6
- Scrapbook Paper: $.44 ea x 6
- Art: FREE!

I envision our little papaya creating story lines and personalities for each of these adorably accessorized animals. Nothing like an inexpensive original to inspire your nursery decor and your baby.

Summer Project-ions

2011-06-01T00:25:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my hard-working and amazing parents Hubs and I have finally got the baby's nursery under control. This is great news for me as business has picked up and I am now left with little time to spend working on my own house. This is a good problem to have, indeed. Allow me to show you what we have been up to over the past couple of weeks.

This is what the room looked like when we started. After we cleared out all the crap-ola, that is. Yeah, I just said "crap-ola". Bringing it back! The original paint color had too much of a yellow base to keep me smiling.

First, Mom and Dad painted the nursery a lovely color called, Ivory Lace from Behr. Just the right amount of beige and brightness. We have an abundance of pattern in the bedding and curtains that a subdued hue seemed like just the ticket to ride this train.

After they so sweetly painted the room and closet (they painted the ceiling back in February) it was time to install the closet. You might know from previous posts that this is one of my favorite parts. Lucky for us, Dad and Hubs tore out the previous closet elements and patched the walls months ago so all we had to do was install the Elfa. Love me some Elfa. Look Ma, no rods!

Totally did the install in my pj's. Please, don't judge me too harshly. Lucky for me, I have a curtain of hair to hide the shame on my face. Not really. I thoroughly enjoy pajamas, or "loungerie".

The closet only took about an hour to install start to finish. Easy peasy. With so much time to spare we started to work on sanding/priming/painting the furniture for the nursery. The crib was lovely as is but the antique armoire and washstand needed some love. This is where it gets interesting...

Washstand Before:

Armoire Before:

That would be me. After it got a very thorough scrub down it was time for taping. Big, pregnant, taping.

This one was too lovely not to share. So glamorous. Eat your heart out, Fergie.

My sweet Aunt J gave us the antique armoire and I am sorry to say that I can't recall the story behind it (Aunt J please fill us all in!) but will do some sleuthing to find out its history. The washstand on the other hand belonged to my great great great uncle. Mom and Dad have had it since they were young newly weds and had lovingly stripped infinite layers of paint to then give it a white wash finish. We wanted it black so Dad got after it with a sanding block.

Sorry that I didn't get you a hand sander, Dad! He diligently got that thing back to neutral so we could prime it up real nice like. While cleaning it up he made an astonishing discovery...a date. Written upside down on the inside of the washstand was "November 16 1850."

Yeah, 1850! Are you kidding me? Too cool.

Alas, its age alone could not save it from a face-lift. Being sure to leave all writing and stamps visible we primed that sucker and then I got to painting. It has a new life and will happily serve as the Dorffette's changing table. Kind of sad to think that she might poo on this Pre-Civil War era piece of furniture. I'm sure that it will be precious.

On top of all of that Mom spent the better part of the week sewing fabulous curtains for the two windows of the nursery. To save some change and to keep the fabric from overwhelming the room we didn't make the curtains wide enough to close entirely over the larger window, but have sheers that do the job.

She took this staged picture so it would look like I sewed something. I didn't, but it was my sewing machine. That's something, right?

Mom was amazing and her handy work has been appreciated by everyone who has seen it in the nursery. All that I had to do was install the curtain rods. Pretty easy compared to sewing 90" long panels. That is a whole lotta fabric for one tiny baby (she is the size of a papaya this week).

That is all I can share of the nursery right now but I will have all the "after" photos and fun projects over the next week. It is just too fun to share all at once.

Mavs Country

2011-05-23T21:10:00.000-07:00

We don't talk sports much around Facts of Lauren but sports are a huge part of our lives. Tonight was a very exciting and important night for the Dallas Mavericks - our team. It was game 4 in the Western Conference Playoffs and the OKC Thunder were up on us the ENTIRE game and we didn't even tie it up until the last few seconds, taking us into overtime. And would you believe that we dominated OT and won?

Believe. Go Mavs!!! Let's take them in Dallas on Wednesday.

The Great Outdoors

2011-05-18T07:09:00.000-07:00

One thing that our sweet little house is lacking is a patio. We have two Mulberry trees that offer a ton of shade (which can be rare in Midland) and would be perfect paired with a lovely new patio.

The kids over at Young House Love have given us inspiration this week. We don't need anything fancy. A simple outdoor tile or pavers are all we need. The tiles below are made of recycled tires and come in 18" squares.

What is really lovely though is the mix of concrete, stone and space between. A little outdoor inspiration for your Wednesday morning.

modern patio design

modern landscape design by San Francisco landscape architect Huettl Landscape Architecture

contemporary porch design by seattle landscape architect ModernBackyard

Plus some killer patio furniture would be awesome too.

The Alfresco Grey Collection from Crate and Barrel is a perfect blend of mid-century, clean lines and modern comfort. Plus, all of their outdoor furniture is 15% off right now. Good thing that we don't have a patio yet!

When we get our patio underway I will let you know. For now, enjoy your own outdoor space while we enjoy our lawn-under-bum picnic style.

New Knobs

2011-05-17T09:20:00.000-07:00

It is sort of silly how big a difference new hardware makes on a piece of furniture or cabinetry. New hinges, knobs and drawer pulls gave new life to our kitchen cabinets. Our secretary got a much needed face-lift from some fab knobs that I found at Target for $2.50 each. I had been hunting around the Anthropologie site for a while but just couldn't make myself spend $8 per knob. They are amazing but don't fit into my current budget for silly things like hardware.

Sad- one of the original knobs had broken off making it impossible to open the drawer without some sort of gadget or tool. I usually went with tweezers or needle-nose pliers. You do not want to mix those two utensils up come time to groom your brows.

All better.

His Closet

2011-05-11T14:57:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't love a good before-and-after on a closet? I, for one, love them. When we moved into our 1960s era house our closets were more than lacking they were suffering. They were suffering from an ailment that I like to call, Underutilized Space Syndrome (USS). All of our bedroom closets are standard six foot reach-ins. They all looked very similar to this on move-in day:

For a girl who spends the better part of her days organizing other people's closets and homes this would just not do. Off to The Container Store (aka. Heaven on Earth) to get custom Elfa closet designs! We started by reconfiguring the two master closets and the nursery closet. Sorry guests, your closet will have to wait.

Here is what my Elfa designer and I came up with for the Hubs closet:

First things first, we had to tear out the existing closet components and make-ready the walls for our brand new Elfa closet. Such an improvement already!

From there it was just a half-dozen screws, placement and hanging of shelves and we were finished. Just to demonstrate how easy it can be, especially after a little practice, I hung the entire closet by myself. Nothing beats surprising your hub with some finely tuned organization. Buh-bye USS!

If you need some help with your closet, pantry, laundry room, garage, etc. just give me a shout! I can happily help from anywhere thanks to the interwebs and Skype.

Happy organizing!

A Ride with Style

2011-05-11T08:41:00.000-07:00

I found the epitome of swank strollers. Don't worry, even if you're not baby-minded right now you might appreciate this amazing designer pairing. The Bump gave a sneak peek at Bugaboo's Missoni special collection yesterday.

Only to be carried at Neiman Marcus and only to be wanted by all stylish tot-toters, the Dallas-based luxe retailer will begin carrying the stroller in July. As if the Bugaboo brand wasn't chic enough from association with celebrities and social elite alike, they had to cover it in the coveted and colorful Missoni styling. Yes, please!

You can find the Italian fashion house coverings on both the Cameleon and Bee models. Each special edition carriage will benefit (Product) RED and comes with a coordinating Missoni stroller blanket.

If anyone would be so kind as to send me one I wouldn't send it back. There's a chance I would attempt to frame it. Or put it in a large shadow box.

Images provided by The Bump and Bugaboo.

Happy Mother's Day

2011-05-08T14:34:00.000-07:00

"I love you forever. I love you for always. As long as I'm living, my baby you'll be." - Love You Forever by Robert Munsch

This is my mom's favorite children's book. I love you mom, happy Mother's Day.

And a very happy Mother's Day to all the mama's out there. Us moms-to-be look up to all of you.

Please, Enter

2011-05-06T17:13:00.000-07:00

My entryway is naked. It's like encountering a streaker when you enter my house. There is just not much going on and that makes me sad. There is so much potential for this space. For example, I would like to do one of the following things on a possibly smaller scale.

modern entry design by los angeles photographer David Lauer Photography

eclectic entry design

entry design by birmingham architect Studio C Architecture & Interiors

A wonderful drum light would also change up the look of our current drab entryway.

Or maybe something a little different.

Either way we will eventually get around to doing something. Maybe after the nursery is finished. By then I won't care.

Hide-A-Pup

2011-05-05T14:36:00.000-07:00

Dogs are the best, are they not? We all love them but don't always like to see (or smell) traces of them. This includes dog beds, toys, crates and their special "surprises." I know quite a few people who crate their dogs when they leave the house to prevent the latter. Crates are great (I appreciate unintentional rhyming), they keep pups safe and you have peace of mind.
But I doubt any of us love the look of the crate. It can really throw off the look you created in a beautiful room. Until now...

Thank you, Denhaus! The furniture designer has created dog crates that look and serve as end tables. They are beautiful and there is a design for every style. Here are just a couple of my favorites. But to add even more joy to this solution is the fact that for the next nine hours Denhaus is being featured on the fabulous sale site, Ideeli. We are talking major discounts, kiddos.

The ZenHaus

The Townhaus

Every dog needs a place of their very own.

Cinco De Mayo

2011-05-05T08:58:00.000-07:00

Happy Cinco de Mayo, kids! This is one of my favorite holidays because it makes me think of the rich tapestry that is Mexican culture. I love the colorful joie de vivre of it all. And it is, colorful.

The color saturates everything from clothing, to jewelry, to art and pottery. You can see evidence of the influence in design stores everywhere. Both pottery pieces below can be found on Etsy.

The artist Frida Kahlo will always amaze me.

Fashion and home decor are easy venues that you can help you to incorporate a little Cinco de Mayo celebration into your life today. I'm in love with these appropriately named "Frida" earrings from Etsy seller, Tamar.

Gorgeous top from Anthropologie, a steal at $168. Sure.

If the top from Antrho is not in your budget, fret not. You can head down to your local mercado (if you live in Texas) or surf the net for handmade hacienda dresses. They will usually run you around $25. My sister-in-law and I love them and always pick one up whenever we are visiting our mother-in-law in San Antonio. Mine looked similar to the one below but I shortened the hem line for a little more modern fit. A cute belt around the waist makes it feel more like a flirty dress and less like a Mexican mumu.

The arcs on this Anthropologie quilt reminds me of flamenco dancers skirts in full-twirl. Who doesn't like a good twirl?

This chair would be my best friend. A cocoon of color.

Have a very happy Cinco de Mayo and please enjoy a margarita for me.

Cabinet How-To

2011-05-05T06:58:00.001-07:00

Do you have out dated cabinets but don't want to fork over a ton of money to replace? Repaint them! You might have seen in our previous kitchen post that we repainted every cabinet, inside and out, in our kitchen recently. I highly recommend it for a less expensive update that will give you a major aesthetic impact.

Here's how we did it. We started by removing all of the cabinet doors and then pulled on our big girl pants (mom and I) and scrubbed the insides of the cabinets. Our cabinet interiors was unexpectedly scary.

Just kidding. It's like I say in my blog title, "Mostly facts, some fiction." Factually, most of them looked as though they had not been scrubbed since the house was originally built in 1961.

Now you see a door.

Now you don't. It's magic; I can tell that you're mystified right now. Don't be scared.

You can see that even without the doors there is a ton of cabinet surface to paint.

After the scrubbing came a little light sanding. We were lucky that our cabinets were solid wood throughout and did not have a heavy varnish on them. We tried a couple of different methods for painting the interiors of the cabinets, including spray paint, which we do not recommend. In the end it was easiest to use a small cabinet and doors roller (you can purchase these at any paint/home improvement store). They work great and give you even coverage.

After many, many coats of Valspar's Du Jour in semi-gloss finish we had all of the interiors and bases painted. We did this over the course of a few days to allow them to fully dry.

Look how happy we are! We started with this set of cabinets and were still very optimistic that it wouldn't take long at all. We were so wrong, but we did have fun.

This is clearly not a fashionable post. When working on one's house it is very important to look as unfortunate as possible. I did a pretty good job of that, if I do say so myself. (Pregger belly hanging over the jeans is clutch)

The cabinet doors were an entirely different beast that I wrestled with for weeks. The cabinet interiors taught me a valuable lesson: primer will save you time and paint. You will also need a good pair of work gloves, unless you don't mind having nails and skin on your hands. I used a medium-heavy gauge sandpaper block. It worked well to remove what looked like maple syrup drips that would magically show up when painted.

Our doors had mitered borders that liked to catch dust. I used a blow dryer to make sure that they were free and clear before brushing on the primer. Using a micro-fiber rag, I wiped down the doors to remove all excess dust.

Zinsser is always my first choice for primer. It gives you really nice coverage and dries fairly quickly.

One important thing to remember when painting the doors is to paint the backside first. This will insure that the front dries perfectly. After I applied the primer it took about two coats of paint to cover all of the wood grain. Then we just added new knobs and hinges that we bought in bulk from Home Depot. They made all of the difference in the world compared to the white and gold ceramic ones that were on the doors/drawers previously.

Cabinet doors before:

Cabinet doors after:

It is as easy as that. We have a ton of cabinets which is why our paint project took so long. Smaller areas go much faster, of course. Our hall bath cabinets only took me a single day to paint. Just take it one room at a time and from there, a single cabinet at a time. You can do it! When you do, please share your photos with the class.

Do I Sense a Pattern Here

2011-05-04T08:06:00.000-07:00

Have you kids ventured over to Houzz yet? If not, finish reading this post and head then head over there! This morning I made my daily jaunt to Houzz and found the most genius idea for a DIY wall stencil.

eclectic home office design by philadelphia interior designer Shoshana Gosselin

An I.D. out of PA, Shoshana, created this simple yet statement-making wall stencil out of, get this, a PIZZA BOX. This girl should go on Jeopardy and school Alex Trebek.

eclectic home office design by philadelphia interior designer Shoshana Gosselin

I would love to recreate a pattern like one of these from Cicada Studio in our living room on the north wall.

While I work on that, you can enjoy more of Shoshana's work and her step-by-step how-to. Does this make you want to rethink throwing out your old pizza boxes? Because it makes me want a pizza.

Fab Fabric

2011-05-03T14:11:00.001-07:00

In getting ready for the arrival of our baby girl I have been looking for just the right fabrics and finishes for our nursery. Over the weekend BF and i went to Dallas and did a little fabric shopping.

We started at Joann Fabrics because they have a wonderful selection of designer fabrics and they are currently on sale for 50% off! I came up with four different color schemes in the hopes of trying to find a gender neutral one. Even though we are having a sweet little girl I thought it would be nice to be able to reuse the bedding for future babies regardless of the sex.

Here are the four options that I came up with:

Option 1-

Option 2 -

Option 3 -

Option 4 -

Option 5 -

I loved all of the options. No really, I stared unblinking at these options for way too long. Then I picked them all up and carried them around for way too long. After wandering around, we found some incredible steals that all complimented Option 5 perfectly. Isn't it funny that with all of the gender neutral options I picked the one that is not? Bloop bloop.

Here is a larger photo of the bold print. It will be used for floor length curtains and a couple of floor pillows. The gray T fabric will be used on the bumpers and for a lumbar pillow to throw on the chair.

Here are all the fabulous fabrics that we found to coordinate. It looks like a lot of busy patterns but you have to remember that the bumpers and bed skirt are fairly small and don't show all that much, so have fun with pattern. We found the coordinating magenta cotton fabric on clearance for $4.50! We are going to use it for the reverse sides of the bumpers, all of the pillows and piping on the bumpers and pillows.

We can't wait to get this nursery rolling and I will share every step with you.

Stay tuned.

It's a...Cupcake

2011-05-03T13:49:00.001-07:00

Happy Tuesday, kids! How are we all doing this fine day? Sorry for the few days absence but BF and I took a trip to Dallas. More on that later. In a previous post I shared our progressive kitchen redo and promised to share how I painted the cabinets but my camera is holding my pictures hostage. As soon as I pay the ransom I will share. Promise.

At least I can share what we did this weekend! First stop was surprising the family with the sex of our new little one. I made cupcakes and hid them under a cake carrier until it was time for the big reveal.

IT'S A GIRL!!!!

My sweet mama picked up these super pink cupcake kits from World Market. Who knew there were cotton candy flavored cupcake mixes out there?

The kit included cake mix, frosting mix, sprinkles and cupcake sleeves.

Love that I'm wearing the same shirt that I took my bump pic in. Can you tell I was working with a limited maternity wardrobe at this point? Don't worry I have many more options now.

Icing the cupcakes was made super easy thanks to mom's angled frosting spatula. Just plop frosting in the center of the cupcake and then, holding the spatula at an angle spread the frosting from center to edge while turning the cupcake clockwise. You can turn it counter-clockwise, I won't tell Martha.

Here is my bestie KatieK after we told everyone that we are having a girl. She's so cute.

Silly me did not take a picture of the cupcakes all finished and cute. Oh well, use your imaginations.

The other major thing we did this past weekend was shopped for nursery fabric. I have so much to share about picking color palettes so we will give the nursery fabric/ color scheme debacle that the subject definitely needs its own post.

Message from Below

2011-05-01T13:26:00.001-07:00

Our good buddy, Jack, was kind enough to send us a message from our own baby. Partly disturbing; totally hilarious.

https://mail.google.com/mail/s/?view=att&th=12fad32c9f089e62&attid=0.1&disp=attd&zw

-- Post From My iPhone

Paint Can Cover All Sins

2011-04-26T09:29:00.000-07:00

Our kitchen is finally finished. Well, for now. There are still things on the "dream" list but we have finally reached a good stopping point for the time being. Counter tops, a new back splash and a couple of upgraded appliances will come later.

Just a reminder of the "before"

And now, the "after"

We don't have a china cabinet so we turned the massive wall of cabinets into open shelving. I will eventually add cool graphic paper to the back of this cabinet.

What do you think? The back splash will eventually be either white glass subway tile, slate and white marble weave tile, or white bead board. The counter tops will be finished in either a black granite, gray/beige/white/black speckled granite or a lighter Silestone.

We opted to leave the cabinet doors off a few choice cabinets. This was done to open up the space a bit and because we just didn't need that much "behind-closed-doors" storage.

Our shiny new stainless-steel fridge that my folks gave us as a housewarming present. Thanks, guys!! It's amazing how new appliances instantly give your space an updated feeling.

Our coffee station - I usually don't like to leave stuff like this out on the counter but it was just too much of a hassle to drag it out everyday. I miss coffee... I will not miss these counters or this back splash. So brown.

Tomorrow's post will include a breakdown of all that we did in the kitchen along with a cabinet painting how-to guide. Is there anyone else out there who would like to see there cabinets in a new light?

Happy Easter

2011-04-25T14:20:00.000-07:00

Did everyone find lots of eggs?

Had to share this awesome cake that my mother-in-law brought to our house for Easter. She made it herself. Poor thing started to look kind of demonic as we hacked into its sweet face. It had to be done.

Total Basket Case

2011-04-21T10:23:00.001-07:00

In honor of the fast-approaching Easter holiday it seemed appropriate to have a "basket" related post. Here is my question: Do people still picnic? I used to love picnics. There is just something about eating outside; on the ground. (Watch out for bears...in hats and neck ties.)

Unfortunately, BF and I don't have a picnic basket. They don't seem entirely necessary when you can just grab a delicious Whataburger and park your cookies on the ground with a perfect orange and white sack of yumminess. But in the case you want to be a little more proper and eat with silverware and BYOB a picnic basket is in order. Personally, a trough suits me just fine seeing as I'm four months pregnant and can't seem to eat enough. I digress. A picnic basket is not in my budget right now but after perusing Design Sponge this morning a bolt of inspiration slapped me in the face. That genius girl took an old suitcase and transformed it into a real live picnic basket.

Voila!

This struck me because I happen to have an extra vintage suitcase that I found at an antique store in Corpus Christi last summer.

It no longer has a place to live but would be given a second (or third) life as my fancy dancy new picnic carry-all! I only have "before" pics for now but I will post the "after" soon. Ha, now you have to come back and visit me...

The best part about this little gem is the brand; Amelia Earhart. You can see it facing the wrong direction below.

Too Much Tube?

2011-04-19T13:54:00.000-07:00

How many TVs do you have in your house? Do you have one in your kitchen, bathroom, garage, every room in the house?

We upgraded to a larger unit recently and now have a small second TV that needs a home. Right now it sits in the guest bedroom but I've always liked the idea of a set in the kitchen. Oh how nice it would be to watch The Food Network while cooking...not that I cook much. But maybe, just maybe, I would if Giada could walk me through it one ingredient at a time!

Here are a few examples of how you can add a TV to your kitchen without making your kitchen look like a media room. Although, as you will see, some of the options are odd...can we say TV in the fridge? Hmmm...

Putting the TV above the two sleek wall ovens creates a uniform line and camouflages the television. When the TV isn't on you probably don't want to see it.

Sudbury Kitchen traditional kitchen" border="0" height="624" width="500">

traditional kitchen design by boston kitchen and bath Venegas and Company

This kitchen is lovely. I want it. Blue island, check; gorgeous light fixtures, check; fabulous back splash and pot filler, check; boob tube, check. This one is done nicely because it allows for easy upgrades in technology. We all remember the days of analog and the big switch to HD flat screens, what we should have learned from this is that it isn't always best to be "built-in." What I would recommend is what was done in this Olga Adler design - leave a cabinet open and add an outlet into the back of the cabinet. This design allows for you to change out your TV as you upgrade/update.

eclectic kitchen design by new york interior designer Olga Adler

This is another example of leaving a cabinet open for technology. I'm also drooling over the home organization in the cabinet below. Between the charging station, letter organizers and labels, I'm in Heaven. (This is what I would love to do when we eventually take out our teeny tiny wall oven) The only change that I would make would be to add fold-back cabinet doors.

LLC contemporary kitchen" border="0" height="751" width="500">

contemporary kitchen design by boston kitchen and bath Divine Kitchens LLC

If you're of the school of thought that only wants to see the TV when necessary maybe the flip down option is for you. They can be a bit smaller but can be a nice alternative.

contemporary kitchen design by seattle kitchen and bath Christine Suzuki, ASID, LEED AP

Or there is always the option to hide a larger TV in your kitchen island. Weird? I think so, how would you watch a TV that low? Takes me back to the days of the cabinet TV.

traditional kitchen design by san francisco kitchen and bath Julie Williams Design

I guess if you're feeling retro you can just drop one of these bad boys into the middle of your kitchen and use it as an island. What are your thoughts on the matter? Are we over run by television or do we just embrace it?

He's the One

2011-04-19T13:33:00.001-07:00

Over the past year I have shared a little bit about my adorable nephew, Owen. He is sweet, well-mannered, super smart and gorgeous. I'm not biased or anything, it is just the way things are. One can only hope that the little bun baking in my belly will be half as fun. It is crazy to me that he has only been with us a little over a year. He even makes a pin wheel look good.

My incredibly handsome brother and stunning sister-in-law joined forces to create what can only be the most beautiful child that I have yet to see (present company excluded, if you have a child).

I just had to share, we love little O. More on the house later.

One Honey

2011-04-18T13:36:00.000-07:00

Just saw a super cute commercial from Sprint. They have a new campaign, "All. Together. Now." that allows you to wish Veatrice Hanson a happy 100th birthday, for free. Veatrice lives in Grain Valley, Missouri and Sprint is giving people the chance to give a perfect stranger birthday wishes from thousands of strangers.

You can see the commercial here. You can also email her at VeatriceH@gmail.com or text/call her at (816) 892-5407. Wouldn't you want a million wishes for your hundredth birthday?

Wish I Were Here...

2011-04-15T16:59:00.000-07:00

traditional exterior design by bridgeport architect Austin Patterson Disston Architects

This view paired with 85 degree weather and a glass of champagne sound like Heaven right now. At least two out of there of those options aren't totally out of the question. Midland, comfy couch and an adorable husband are even better.

Where would you go this weekend?