Restless Leg Syndrome

It's 10:08 on a Saturday night and here I find myself blogging and watching Tombstone with Kennedy (which at first glance, looked like Clue -- What? I've never seen either all the way through, but handle-bar mustaches + billiards rooms = Clue in my mind.)

Val Kilmer has really let himself go.

While we're on the topic of things that could really use a makeover, Kennedy and I have decided to finally take the plunge and renovate our master bathroom.

Here are are a couple of pictures on move-in day:

From the outside looking in....The only difference between this photo and now is we have since thrown out that bath mat and the white shelf on the back wall.

Here's another, just because it's so visually appealing...

From the inside looking out...

I cannot WAIT to have this project finished. And we haven't even started yet. This is definitely going to be one of those "marriage counseling" projects where Kennedy & I both come away better people. But in the end, I will not have to open a door, step in and press my body against the wall, then shut the door just to be able to get into our shower. 

Other non-negotiables we have for this bathroom project:

-No peeling wallpaper

-A bathtub that drains properly

-an absence of mold and mildew

-getting rid of anything brass

We are still in the preliminary stages of planning, but here are a few pictures of inspiration to help you envision with us. 

White Subway Tile (with white grout) in the shower....

Claw foot tub

Perhaps some grey slate tile for the floors....

(From Restoration Hardware....I wish!)

The jury's still out on what type of countertops we're gonna get -- I wouldn't mind going with a dark or black granite....Kennedy wants not black. We may compromise with a white-ish grey color. Who knows! We still need to decide on a layout!

Coming up next....A blueprint of our current bathroom and some possible new arrangements! Stay tuned!

Resolution Revolution

Screw New Year's Resolutions!

Yeah, I made some. But here I am about 1 week in and I've kept NONE of them. I really haven't even started any of them.

I do believe, however, that a new year is a great excuse to get organized and start over. Which is basically what I need to do in a lot of areas of my life. I'm thinking this blog can be one of those areas. I want to blog! I want to make time for it! I want to share/record my crafts and home DIY projects. And I want my blog to be cute and organized.

Are all those things going to happen overnight? I guess not. So I'll start by cleaning my house, then sharing where we're at with all of this home renovation stuff.

We really have made some great strides in making this house ours (despite the fact that we have yet to hang stuff on the walls....) I guess it's high time I blogged about it.

So this is my "resolution"....to try and keep up with the fast-paced world o' blogging.

Until then, I'll leave you with a beautiful photo I took in Hawaii this Christmas holiday.

WICKED

If I could listen to only two albums for the rest of my life, I may be tempted to choose any Glee Soundtrack and the Original Broadway Production of Wicked starring Kristin Chenowith and Idina Menzel.

While YouTubing videos of seeds sprouting this evening, I stumbled across a video about gravitropism with "Defying Gravity" playing in the background.

This reminded me how much I love Wicked. Then it reminded me how I got to see it on Broadway in NYC last Christmas with these two ladies. (I think....not be racist, but all Elphabas look the same to me.)

Then it reminded me how GREAT my husband is for getting me those tickets for Christmas. Thinking about it makes me feel all sentimental.

It's funny how one song can conjure up so much emotion. Also funny how PMS can do the same thing. Or maybe a combination of the two? TMI?

Oh, by the way, I'M AN AUNT NOW.

Meet Hunter. Apologies for the poor quality of photo, but isn't he beautiful???? We haven't met yet, but I'm certain to be his favorite aunt (sorry, Emily!)

Coming soon (possibly): Pictures of TONS of around the house projects. Many of them done by my wonderful aforementioned husband. I did a spell on him while he was sleeping to make him obsessed with home renovation. (I'm a witch.)

Blog dump

Frankly, I'm surprised I even remembered my login information to this blog. Poor thing, so neglected.

As of 15 minutes ago, I am having serious home decor motivation/lack of inspiration. First, let me dump some projects on you that I've actually done since I started teaching (surprising that I would even find time, but when I get the urge to craft, everything takes a back seat.)

I found this little beaut while stopping by the parents house one evening. My mom had it in a pile meant for trash, so I took it! I'd been wanting to recover a lamp shade for a while now (lamp shades are so expensive...Even the ones at Wal-Mart are over $15.00...)

So as soon as I got home, I ripped that old crumbly fabric off and made it into this:

Presto Bingo - perfect addition to our superiorly boring entry-way. It's still a work in progress.

Kennedy & I also spent some time one weekend re-painting a guest bedroom in anticipation for company this Thanksgiving. 

Here's a before:

It had become a catch-all for junk. My sewing machine was in there, along with a twin bed and a pile of unfolded (clean) laundry. Shame on us. It was so easy to shut the door and never look at it.

I have an in-progress photo, but it isn't entirely complete yet...Maybe I can talk myself into continuing blogging if I have something I need to update soon...

This is post-paint, but pre-re-install the baseboards. We also inherited a nice queen-sized bed from Emily & Patrick that will come in handy with the aforementioned company. Can't wait to share the final after photos!

Finally, I'll share some things from my Science Lab!

Here's a picture frame I painted so I could "frame" out my objective for the day...

You can see the finished product hanging over my board in this picture, if you look very closely....

And I might as well share the other view of my room, pre-first day of school. Now the tables are all crooked from kids pushing them around. And my table labels are all ripped off and in a landfill by now. Middle schoolers are messy.

The new dilemma is what the heck to do with our dining room. We bought a craigslist dining table that is now just not working for me. Still no dining room chairs. Plus there are many limitations to the room. HELP ME!

Bad Blogger

So I'm teaching now, which can explain my absence. Kennedy & I have been getting some things done around the house but it's in between my lesson planning & napping, so I usually forget to take photos. Or forget to upload photos. I'm hoping after this week (and I've said this every week so far) to get a handle on my "school business" so I will have a little more free time on the weekends.

For now, I'll just daydream about the photos on this blog:

http://themeadowbrookblog.blogspot.com