Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Happy Halloween!

Halloween got a lot sweeter this year, and not because I am eating more candy. It's because of this guy:


Hope everyone has a happy and safe Halloween! And that you all eat more candy than I do. You know, so I don't feel as guilty.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Truth telling: A confession post

When I was younger, I wanted to be a lot of things: A veterinarian, a movie star, a housewife (score!), Dolly Parton, and at one point I wanted to be Martha Stewart.

Then she went off the deep end with all the insider trading stuff and I decided I'll just stick to crafts.

So I do crafts a lot now, or crafty things, and I love it. But for the purpose of keeping it real, I think it's time to tell some truths about me. Because I am NOT Martha Stewart, and even Martha Stewart isn't Martha Stewart. And also because I have done nothing crafty in the past couple of days and so this is what you get.

My list of confessions:

1. My car is full of trash. I literally throw all my trash onto the passenger's side floor board.
2. I drink Dr Pepper every day and I do not exercise.
3. We have toilet paper on our kitchen counter and it will probably stay there for at least 1 week (or until Kennedy gets fed up with it.)
4. Sometimes I say mean things to my dogs.
5. I intended to buy that slice and bake Halloween cookie dough at the grocery store yesterday, but they didn't have any, so I bought a Happy Birthday theme.
6. I will probably eat the cookie dough raw before it makes it to the oven. Fact: I am half-way through it already.
7. We also have cheesecake in our fridge. It will probably be gone tonight.

I don't write this list to be self-deprecating. I just want to be honest. Now here are some good things about me:
1. I recycle.
2. I NEVER skip brushing my teeth before bed.
3. I put away all our laundry last week.
4. I give my dogs loving attention at bedtime.

Yay for me! I love me and my life. I'm very lucky :-)

Sunday, October 28, 2012

Free Art!

Nothing is better than getting something new for your house...for FREE! I made some art for our basement today using stuff we already had around the house: Old canvases (actually the first canvases/DIY project Kennedy and I ever did together), wall paint we already had, poster board we already had, and acrylic paint I already had.

I saw this at a local furniture store and took a picture of it because I knew I wanted to copy it:

I didn't have one giant canvas, so I used 2 large canvases, and this is the final product:


The paneling kind of gets in the way of how I want to hang it, so I think I'm going to attach them together so I can hang them as one large piece...I'll keep you posted on that.

Here are some pictures to show my process! It was super simple once I figured out the pattern. This would work great with any kind of geometric pattern you can think of. And if you don't have old canvases lying around like we did, you could buy one at a thrift store and paint over it with white for a fresh start. 

Another option is to buy that pink insulation foam from Home Depot or Lowe's and use that as your canvas (remember to peel the plastic off first!)

Use a bowl to trace the main circle

Find the center point of the main circle and trace a smaller circle (I used a cup for this part). Use the bowl again to trace out the sides until it looks like the picture below...

At this point, cut out your stencil, including the center circle.

Here are our old canvases...I painted over them with white wall paint, then did a second layer with some blue paint from the dining room.


Tracing the stencil onto the canvases. I found the center point of the height of the canvases and centered the entire pattern on the seam of the two canvases.

Painting in the pattern with some metallic acrylic paint

Best husband ever! Hanging the free art for me.

Here it is again, completed!

The best part about painting canvas is that if you don't like it, you can always paint over it and have something completely new!

Saturday, October 27, 2012

IKEA day trip -or- Sensory overload!

Fam-date to Cincinnati, y'all! (I'm not just saying a subtle y'all there, I'm saying it like, 'YAHWWWWUL'. Just so you know.)

2 hours there and 2 hours back, we spent some time reveling in the crazy IKEA maze, and came away with some much needed items for the house! C also had a lot of fun riding in the cart, looking at all the colors (and crazy people...what is it about IKEA that is such a magnet for crazies? Also, does that make me crazy?) <---- ALSO, yes, I meant for you to read that and then start singing the Gnarls Barkley song. I am on my 4th sugary drink of the day and it's starting to get to me.

We like to party in the cart-y

We started up in the cafeteria eating IKEA food. It's like real food, but you have to make it yourself. HAhaha, kidding, it's made already. The garlic toast is to die for! The chicken nuggets were decent and the mac and cheese was a little sub par. What? I like kids food. Sue me.

Overall, I give their cafeteria 2 out of 5 stars. 3 if you're hungry.

The problem with going to IKEA on Saturday is that it's crowded (by crazies, remember?), so it is difficult to just go spend time in a fake room on the showroom floor. It's like, you want to relax on your bed, but there are 10 other strangers touching the cardboard TV or lounging in your armchair at the foot of the bed. It just gets awkward.

Here are some things that I wanted realllllly bad, but Kennedy was strongly against them:

Aztec inspired rug

Black and white striped throw blanket

He told me "NO, we don't need more blankets. We have a million blankets." But I told him to tell me that because we really do have too many blankets. Still, it goes under the "Kennedy said no" category.

Hot dog

Kennedy didn't say no to this, but I did NOT see them in the cafeteria. If I had, they probably would've gotten 4 stars. Also, I love how IKEA covered themselves by putting "*Not actual size" in the bottom right corner of the banner.

But we DID get some good stuff while we were there.

Campbell's first high chair! (IKEA Antilop, click the picture to go to their site). Now we can take the safety seat off the kitchen table.

IKEA Vittsjo shelf for the office

Does it bug anyone else when they don't have any idea how to pronounce the product names at IKEA? I seriously cannot stop saying Vittsjo in different ways to see if it clicks. Vitts-jo? Vis-yo? Vitt-O? Frustrating!


Hem-Ness? Hemms? Ahhms? IKEA, please provide pronunciation keys for us.

Not pictured are all the stuffed rats we bought for C, along with a couple of other toys. I love IKEA toys! So cheap but for the most part, pretty good quality! We got a nice colorful wooden ring set and a circus-themed quiet book. OH, and how could I forget??

A popsicle mold!!!!!!!!

Dear IKEA, I think you're supposed to be pronounced "IDEA" because you're a good one. (crickets. crickets.)

Friday, October 26, 2012

Itsy Bitsy Spider

A lot of people were upset that I didn't blog yesterday.

No wait, NO ONE NOTICED. Thanks a lot guys. Even I didn't even notice 'til this morning. But in my defense and yours, I had nothing to blog about yesterday, so I saved us all a bit of time.

I talked earlier in the month about making C a spider costume. Then the month rolled on and I thought, "I have too much else to do, I'll just buy him one."

I didn't actively start looking for a costume though, and so he had none. Then the other day we found this adorable Panda costume that we forgot we had (thanks to the move), that my mother-in-law had brought back from China for him. It was too big at the time but NOW it is the perfect size. Love how that works out. Now I don't have to buy a costume!

Then yesterday, I got a wild hair and decided what the heck? I'll make the spider costume IF I can easily find the stuff I need at Target. And I did. Then it took 10 minutes during a tear-jerking episode of the Jeff Probst show to put together.

Side-note: Campbell will still wear the panda costume. I mean, it has panda ears and panda paws! Can't wait to put him in that and snuggle a panda.

Anyway, I thought it only appropriate to incorporate his costume into the weekly photo, so here it is in raw form (meaning, I still haven't photoshopped this week's number on it. It's 41 in case you're wondering!)

I never thought I'd love a spider so much

Out of respect for his Aunt Emily (and science!), this itsy bitsy spider has the anatomically correct 8 legs, instead of 10 like the baby in the Martha Stewart tutorial. You're welcome, Aunt Emily.

Although, maybe it's only 8 legs and the kid's arms are supposed to represent some sort of pincers? 


Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Buffalo Turkey Burgers and Sweet Potato Fries

Here's a meal that pairs really well with Dr Pepper! Who am I kidding? EVERYTHING pairs well with Dr Pepper. When you have a Dr Pepper addiction.

This meal started when I began to crave Twisted Root Burger. And let's just get this out there - I am not one to make up a recipe and use exact measurements. I tried to use mostly stuff I already had, so make it your own, if Buffalo sauce is your thing.

Buffalo Turkey Burgers and Sweet Potato Fries
I'm not a food photographer and I never claimed to be. Trust me, this tasted delicious.

Burgers:
1. 1 lb ground turkey
2. 1/2 celery stalk - diced
3. 1/2 small onion - diced
4. 1 tbsp minced garlic
5. Bread crumbs (I don't know how much...1/4 cup? 1/2?)
6. 1 egg, beaten
7. Frank's Red Hot Buffalo Sauce (2 Tbsp)
8. Roka Bleu Cheese Salad Dressing
9. Cream cheese
10. Burger Buns

-Mix Ingredients 1-7 in a bowl. 
-Form mixture into burger patties
-Grill burger patties
**NOTE** This is where I got mad, because I remembered how awful ground turkey is to grill. I mean, it falls apart all over the place - it's not pretty. I don't know what the secret is to keeping it firmly together - maybe another egg and more bread crumbs? Next time, I won't try to be so healthy and I'll use beef.

-In a separate bowl, mix equal parts Bleu Cheese dressing and cream cheese. Maybe like 2 Tbsp each? 

-When the patties were done, I layered the burger from bottom to top: Bottom bun, spinach or lettuce, Buffalo sauce, burger patty, Buffalo sauce again, a glob of the Bleu cheese mixture, top bun.

Was it as good as Twisted Root? Probably not, but it satisfied my Buffalo craving. Seriously, whenever we go to a new restaurant, I always always scan for anything with Buffalo sauce on it.

Sweet Potato Fries:
1. 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into fries
2. Olive oil
3. Salt (I used Kosher Salt)
4. Onion powder
5. Garlic powder
6. Paprika

-Preheat oven to 400.
-In a large ziploc bag, put the cut sweet potatoes in and pour olive oil over (a couple of Tbsp.) Sprinkle about a Tablespoon of salt in the bag. Close bag and shake it up so all the potatoes are coated with olive oil. Add more if you think you need it.
-Spread the potatoes out on a baking sheet covered with foil.
-Sprinkle some seasonings over the top if desired. You can skip this all together and it still tastes great. I added #4-6 because I was feeling fancy. Turned out AMAZING. So use whatever you have.
-Cook for 30-45 minutes on 400 or until slightly crispy on the outside. Pay attention, they tend to burn/caramelize if left for too long!

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Dining room sneak peek

Tonight ends Kennedy's extended weekend, and he has to go back to work tomorrow. We are rounding out a long weekend of terrible movies by finishing up Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

(We also watched The Roommate and Straw Dogs. It is Halloween season, and we are suckers for really bad horror movies.)

We're also juuuuust about done with the dining room (just need to paint the ceiling and clean/decorate it.) But I'll leave you with a sneak peek!

Monday, October 22, 2012

Some Feminine Balance from Dr. Banks

That title is HILARIOUS to me because Dr. Banks is not only one of my best friends (fun fact: we lived in the same room for 2 years during college! And this does not include all the time we hung out together when we didn't live together), but she is also an OB/GYN. So yes, that title is funny.

I have great friends that are talented and helpful! So while I finish up our dining room/watch reality TV, Lauren is going to do my blog post for the night so I don't fail at my Blogtober commitment.

Hello Blog world!  


I sent Sara a picture of something I semi-DIY'd tonight and she asked me to share via this guest blog entry, so here I am!  

My topic is much more girly than Sara's typical post, because my baby is a girl, and we do pink and ribbons and bows.  I will start by saying I am not a good blogger, and didn't take pictures as I went along, but I will show you the finished product and tell you what I did. 

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Angry Birds and a Redemption Lamp

Sometimes my crafts don't turn out the way I've planned. Sometimes, I spend all this time on something and then it just looks like it's home-made. Not in a good way.

I have seen these little stuffed birds all over the internet for a while now, and I decided I wanted to make a cute mobile for Campbell's room.


My birds didn't turn out quite as neat, although I was making 10 of them instead of just 1. So I cut some corners (literally and figuratively.)

Saturday, October 20, 2012

Nursery Remix

Alternate titles for this post:
-So Nice, I Did It Twice
-Oops, I Did It Again

We have another grey room in the house. Kennedy saw the paint chips I chose for the dining room today (which are greyish blue) and this was the conversation that took place:

K: NO! We are NOT painting another room grey. I don't want the whole house to be grey.
S: Well, our last house was pretty much all the same color, it helps everything feel more cohesive. Plus, it's not all the SAME grey, there are different shades.
K: (Smiling creepily now) How many shades?
S: (Eye roll....eye roll....eye roll).

Yes! THREE eye rolls! He deserves a trophy for that one.

Now on to the nursery! We decided a couple of weeks ago that we would just go ahead and do the same thing in this nursery again. Because we loved it the first time, and already had everything for it (except paint, of course.)

Now that it's done, I HATE IT.


Friday, October 19, 2012

Big Tex and our dining room

RIP Big Tex



If you've been to the State Fair of Texas, (or as Kennedy likes to call it, 'The Outdoor Wal-mart'), then you've met Big Tex.

Well, he burned down today. While it's sad to see a 60 year old statue that changes clothes every year, I have been enjoying all the distasteful jokes rolling through on my Facebook news feed. Keep 'em coming, my inappropriate friends!

In honor of Big Tex, here is a link to a "vintage" blog post from the last time I went to the fair. It was in 2009?!?! This is shameful. I blame Kennedy. He literally said "I am never coming back here again," after only visiting the fair ONCE. Lame.

Thursday, October 18, 2012

I'm sorry that you have to read this

When I have nothing to blog about, then you get to read whatever random things pop in to my head.


  • I have bad eating habits. We just ate dinner, and it was fairly healthy. But I'm still hungry and we don't have any good snacks in the house. I just looked in the pantry and this is what I found: Bread crumbs, sunflower seeds, 2 different types of pasta, dog food. None of those work to satisfy my constant chocolate craving. I purposely don't buy junk food so I won't eat it. I'm starting to rethink this idea.
  • I've been thinking that I need to have a signature BBQ recipe. I can imagine what it tastes like, and now I just need to get to work on it. If I figure it out, I won't be sharing the recipe. It'll be one of those legendary secrets that I only pass down to my grandchildren and my golden retriever. Like Bush's Baked Beans.


  • The nursery. Is almost. Done!!! I will have an official reveal tomorrow. Or the next day. I don't know, but soon.
  • It's cold and there's no blanket near me. Boo!
  • I'm sorry again.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

DIY Bangs

First, we must examine what makes a person think they can cut their own bangs.

No, I take that back. First, we must say a quick 'thank goodness' that things like hats and bobby pins exist.

THEN, we will talk about what made me think I could cut my own bangs.

Kennedy's out of town, so I had to have an inner dialogue about this. It happened in the form of a checklist for me.

Do you have a big chunk of hair hanging in front of your face that wants to be bangs? Yes.

Are you busy right now? Not really.

Do you have scissors anywhere? Yes! I bought some hair scissors last night!

How hard could it be? It can't be that hard. I've trimmed my own bangs plenty of times. And Brittany, my old hair-cutting girl said she does it all the time and it's SO EASY! And I permed all my friends' hair  freshman year of college, so bangs are going to be super easy.

Should you look up a tutorial online first? Pssshhh, no. I got this.

So I set to work parting my hair carefully, and making that first cut. And I quickly reached the point of no return. Soon after, I reached the point in which you should just. stop. cutting.

But, cutting bangs is a slippery slope, my friends. There's always 'just one more hair', or 'let me just thin this out'.

If you're going to do this, you need to have a talk with yourself before-hand about what your hair cutting limit is. Then stick to it! It's really easy to get lost in the details of the fringe, and forget about the BIG PICTURE.

(The big picture being your head, and what it looks like now that you just gave yourself bangs.)

I also recommend having another person around (Someone who can speak, and understand the concept of bangs. Babies don't count). That person should stand next to you and look at you in the mirror so that you can simultaneously watch yourself cutting your own bangs and see their facial expression in reaction to the bang-stravaganza.

Do not let a friend cut your bangs for you, because you will hate them forever if they screw it up. Friends, do not cut your friends bangs, even if she begs you, because she will hate you forever.

Alas, none of that was relevant to me. I wandered into the Valley of Bangs alone. Scared and alone.

Apparently not scared enough though.

I finally gathered enough will power to stop cutting my bangs, and turned to styling them. This was a good move. I took some time to wear them. See how they fell after a while of wearing them. I took them to Hobby Lobby and no one gave me weird looks. At that point, I concluded that I probably looked like Natalie Morales from the Today Show.

Natalie is on the right.

Then, I get in the car and glance at my new bangs, and now I'm thinking that I look more like that girl from the Sour Patch Kids commercial.

But at least I still have my other hair.

I literally have no point of reference right now. I am in a Bermuda Triangle of bangs and I don't know which way is up and which way is down. I am going to have to ride out the bang train for a couple of days and see if they grow in correctly.

Kennedy gets home tomorrow. Maybe he'll throw me a lifesaver.

I don't even know what I'm saying anymore! BANGS!!!!!!

****UPDATE****
Here's the bangs.

Maybe it's all in the styling? I didn't know you had to style bangs. Live and learn.

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

[Modified] Ladies Night [For One]

Sometimes you just need to know when it's time to quit working and kick back.

For me, it was when Uncle Harry (the dog) peed on my leg.

I was working on a project for Campbell's nursery (by the way, I'M DONE PAINTING, PTL) and thought my ankle felt warm. I took it as a sign that I needed to stop. But seriously? If Harry wasn't so cute, he would be dead by now.

I'm sure there's an evolutionary theory of cuteness floating around somewhere about rascally dogs and cats. That's how Elvis is still alive, too.

Kennedy's out of town, so now it's time to have some ME time, which may or may not include the following:

-Giving myself a manicure
-Drinking Orange-Mango-Ade
-Giving myself bangs
-Watching the Presidential Debate
-Working on my FREE INSTAGRAM BOOK c/o 7th House on the Left Blog
-Shaving my legs
-Cuddling the dogs

My back hurts. And I think I'll save the bangs for tomorrow, when I'm less tired.

Monday, October 15, 2012

Perfect Monday

Today, I kicked Monday's butt.

This almost never happens. Mondays and I are at odds most weeks. I purposely do not schedule ANYTHING for Mondays, because it always get ruined and I end up in a grouchy mood.

Well, today my friends, was no normal Monday. Thank goodness!

I mean, the level of productivity I achieved was unheard of. And C-baby napped like a champ. And it was beautiful outside.

AND I did something active today AND I stayed away from Dr Pepper (after a mini intervention by my darling dear husband). I was basically like the perfect human being today.

Scary though, Monday's grim reaper might get me tomorrow. We shall see!

The only thorn in my side today was that trim in the nursery. What I thought was going to be a half-hour touch-up job has turned into an hours long project that is still not done. Instead of just painting over the stupid orange spots everywhere, I discovered something heinous.

That trim is NOT WHITE. It's OFF-WHITE. I'm typing in caps because as I think about it, I grow more and more agitated. So now, I am having to paint all the trim in the room. ALL OF IT. And I'm going slow so I don't drip paint on my already painted walls.

Guess what? I'm NOT taping off. And it doesn't matter because it's just white paint. Not orange.

For a while now, the color orange will only infuriate me. Like a bull seeing red. Keep orange away from me.

So who watches The Voice? Tonight, this guy was on:

Nicholas David

And he reminded me of someone when he sang.

This guy:
Jemaine, not Bret


So naturally, I vote for Nicholas David to win the whole thing.

"Carson Daly needs to get tranquilized." -KWD

Sunday, October 14, 2012

Nursery progress and a day of rest

I didn't really rest today. I did this. Still haven't painted that trim yet, but I know when I do, I'm gonna be cursing the whole time.

Saturday, October 13, 2012

Orange things

I'm in bed, my eyes filling with sleepy sand. Eyelids heavy. Then all of a sudden I remember Blogtober. Ugh.

We had a busy day over here! We took C to the pumpkin patch, and picked out a couple of pumpkins.

I took 1 million pictures of him, and then my camera died. I need to charge it so I can upload those, as well as his weekly pictures. Here's a sneak peek for now.

Cute overload

Also, C is 9 months old today! And 39 weeks yesterday. Everyone talks about how quickly they grow up, and it's true. But I wish everyone would quit saying that as if it's an original thought. Let me just pretend that he's going to be little forever.

Then! I have started the nursery make-over. It's out with the orange, in with the new. Almost. Here's a before picture to remind you how awful...I mean bright. To remind you how bright it was.

Egad!

Here's the new paint color...yes, grey. Kennedy is not diggin' all the grey I keep picking, but I like it. Tomorrow, I'll start painting the trees and that cursed trim. Seriously. I aim to erase every trace of orange from this room.

I promise it will look better when it's done. And not night out.

Ugh.

Please. If you plan to use a bright and/or saturated wall color, tape off the dad-gum trim. Do it for our children! Our future!

Friday, October 12, 2012

RANT

You know what I wish people would quit doing? Posting Bible verses on Facebook in order to condemn a person or group of people. Or to support your political views. Have you done this? Then I'm talking to you.

I originally wrote a lot more on that subject, but I erased it.

Instead, I'll show you the curtains Kennedy hung for me tonight! Also, he just got back from the store with late-night snacks for us. I'm spoiled. And have really bad eating habits.

Oh hey, there's Elvis over there, trying to steal snacks.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Ten Eleven Twelve

Kevin Jonas, you have ruined a very exciting date. It's 10.11.12, and all I can think is, "OH! The Jonas Brothers Tour starts today!" This is what I get for watching every episode of Married to Jonas. Twice. Several of you have already admitted to watching this show as well, so I feel no shame on this one.


I seriously have nothing to blog about today. It was uneventful. Woke up, played with C-baby, went to Lowe's for some paint at some point...

...took the baby crib apart and back together in another room in 20 minutes!!! Super-mom, I say!

Then I went running.

I decided earlier today, as I was driving to get my daily Dr Pepper that today was going to be my last soda until November 5. (Did you know Dr Pepper officially has no period after Dr? Look it up; I'm right.)

Why, you ask? I have booked a photographer to do our family photos on that day, and I thought it couldn't hurt to cut out a little bit of sugar for the next 3 weeks. Maybe it's the last push I need to make sure no surprise turkey gobblers show up in the photos. I have spent enough years of my life having  horrible pictures taken of me (basically from 4th grade - freshman year of college). The time has come to put an end to it! I am taking control of my photogenes.

I also decided that I'll try and do some kind of physical activity every day...at least until after the photos. Then I'll let it all hang out.

So Kennedy is out getting pizza and soda for us. Last hurrah!

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

DIY burlap banner

Guess what! I found a before picture to go with the Little Yellow Rocker


Also, Stephanie was the only one who guessed the title of my list the other day, but unfortunately, she was not correct. The title was "Things I can do while holding a 20+ pound baby." Super-mom over here!

On to other things.

Our mantle was sad and bare. Then I was on Pinterest and saw all these great fall mantles. So today I got the itch to do more fall decorating! I have never had time to do this before, so excuse me if I go overboard.

Let me show you how to make this - It will literally take you 10 minutes! This project was FREE for me, since I already had the burlap and twine. It would also work with a linen colored fabric or paper or really anything. So now, I'm gonna let the pictures do the talkin'.










If I get the energy, I'm gonna go pick up some leaves from outside and stick them to those branches on the mantle.

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Little Yellow Rocker

I have a confession to make. I am a dumpster diver.

And it's not so much of a confession, because I don't try to hide it. I've been doing it since college. I blame HGTV, because I used to watch some decorating show with a middle-aged redhead lady who always did a "Trash to Treasure" segment. There is a bit of a thrill that comes from taking something old and gross and turning it into a one-of-a-kind piece.

Behold! The Little Yellow Rocker.

Little yellow rocker

My iPhone has betrayed me. This isn't the first time, either. It's usually in the form of leading me astray via the Google Maps app. Like the time I was supposed to drive to a hotel in Grapevine to take Kennedy a pair of shoes he forgot to pack, and instead of ending up at the hotel, I ended up at a dead-end in a trailer park. And I think there was a cow in the trailer park. So, BIG FAIL, iPhone.

Sorry for the tangent, but that wound still stings.

This time, it has deleted a bunch of photos, including the before photo of that little yellow rocker. So imagine with me now, what it looked like before. It was wooden, and had an old red print cushion on top. There was also a ruffle around the edge of the seat. When you touched the fabric, it literally fell off the chair. Also, this chair used to have arms, but they were missing when I came upon it in my neighbor's trash. That sounds so bad, but seriously, people used to throw away amazing stuff in our old neighborhood.

Kennedy, remember that meat smoker we got for free but then never used because we didn't know how? It was still cool.

The rocker isn't done. The next step is to paint the rocker rails (what are those things called?) green. Then we will have the perfect little child-sized homage to our alma mater in the form of a chair. Sic 'em bears!

Stay tuned for more dumpster diving adventures, because I have at least 2 more projects waiting for me in the garage.

In other news, look what I got for free! Kinda.


My parents got us a Samsung SEW-3030 baby monitor before Campbell was born. I LOVED it. I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone, but they actually don't make that model anymore.

Then, this summer, one of the buttons randomly popped off and went missing. So I started calling around and got connected with Samsung's service department. Long story short, they told me I could send in my old monitor and they'd send me a new one for no charge. Score! BUT, they didn't have anymore of my current model, so they would have to upgrade it for me to the SEW-3035 (pictured above.)

So this model is not exactly the same. One new feature is an alarm that goes off with every.single.movement. Kind of annoying. Even more annoying is that it cannot be turned off. It's either vibrate or beep. Vibrate or beep.

It took a couple of days, but we finally figured out to turn the sensor on the camera all the way down, and now it only goes off with his first movement in the morning, which I do not mind at all because I need a little extra help getting up in the morning.

Moral of the story: It never hurts to ask!

Other moral: Samsung has some of the best customer service I have ever dealt with.

Monday, October 8, 2012

LOUD NOISES!

When I was working at the Children's Home Society, I had the privilege to learn a lot of things. One of the things I learned about were sensory disorders. Basically, some people have issues with different senses....they experience them too much or not enough. 

After learning about this, I decided that probably most people deal with some sort of sensory disorder. Whether it be that they don't like the way certain things feel. Sometimes people can't sit still. Sometimes things are too loud, or certain noises set them off. Think about yourself for a minute. Are there things that just set you on edge? 

I have diagnosed Kennedy (and his brothers) with an auditory sensory disorder, because they literally FLIP THEIR LIDS if they can hear someone eating. I know this is common, but it's not something that bothers me, so I decided they are suffering from a sensory disorder.

HOWEVER, I think I also have an auditory sensory disorder, because I literally cannot stand loud noises. When I look back, I realize that any concerts I've ever been to have been SUPER uncomfortable for me. I also constantly ask Kennedy to turn down the television or music because it's too loud. 

I don't know how I got through last nights Real Housewives of New Jersey Reunion Special. Those ladies constantly yelling...ugh. It was excruciating. But I also have a disorder that I've named Reality Show Addiction Disorder (RSAD). Do you suffer from this? I can't stay away from other people's drama.

Teresa Guidice in her Christmas Pageant dress.


Sunday, October 7, 2012

Name That List!

And now it's time for another installment of Name That List!

1. Put elastic-waist pants on
2. Cook dinner
3. Put on make-up
4. Carry in all the groceries
5. Brush my teeth
6. Push a stroller 1 mile
7. Put on shoes/boots (including socks)
8. Put contacts in
9. Send a text message with correct punctuation and capitalization
10. Move heavy furniture

Let's see if anyone can guess the title!

In other news, today marks one full week of Blogtober. Still going strong! Hey look, I am actually blogging before noon!

5 minutes ago, Kennedy and I made a very important decision. That decision was to nix the nautical theme in the nursery. The reasons are many. So I will now make another list:

Reasons why we are not going to do the nursery in a nautical theme

1. Kennedy doesn't like the idea
2. I realized I don't really like the idea for his room right now
3. I didn't want to make new crib accessories and get new curtains
4. I don't want to bother with adding wainscoting to the room
5. I actually really liked the old nursery

So, with that decision comes freedom! I no longer have to sit in that orange room at night going back and forth about what I was going to do with the nursery. Now we can get to work on it. Time to go get paint!

Saturday, October 6, 2012

Sew What?

I'm obsessed with my sewing machine and the only things keeping me from sewing all the time are 1) Family responsibilities and 2) the fact that you can't really sew while laying on the couch.

But anyway, I've been working on this blanket for a few days for Campbell and I'm finally (sort of) done. I still have to sew the blanket binding on, but have hit a little hiccup.

I didn't get enough binding when I went to JoAnn today, and that store is a BEAST on the weekends. I don't want to go back because everyone there is grumpy. And on the way there, in their cars, people are rude, and it's NOT because I made any driving mistakes.

As you can see in the picture below, I have staged it to look like it's finished. Smoke and mirrors, my friends.

Ok, then also, I found this adorable mustache print fabric and it had my nephew's name written alll over it. So I made a super soft snuggle blanket. I want to keep it but I tricked myself into not keeping it by making it child-sized.


Now my mind is clouded with visions of sewing projects for my sweet niece that is entering the world in a little over 3 months! I may need to make a priority list for her. Girl stuff is fun, and cute, and I'm gonna get myself in trouble!

My name is Sara and I have a blanket addiction.
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