rut.

(fair warning....this was a stream-of-consciousness-get-it-all-journal-entry type thing. that is to say, it's a bit jumpy and might be difficult to follow. so...sorryforya.)

I started this blog on a whim. You've probably never read this, but that's where it all started. Brilliant piece of writing, I know. I wrote sporadically...when an idea hit me...generally on a monthly basis. What I really loved to do was stalk other blogs. I'm in love with YHL, Kendi, and Sydney. I mention them in casual conversation as if they're friends of mine (that's not creepster, right?!). There are a handful of others that I adore, but I keep coming back to those three no matter what. They inspired me to do more. So I did. For a little while. I fancy myself a writer so I thought it'd be easy to keep coming up with wonderful things to write about and I could really let my creative juices flow. You know what? It's not. Life gets in the way. I'm still in a rut if you want to know the truth. I've had writer's block for about nine months. Maybe you just thought I was prego and on a mommy hiatus. I'm not. Nor was I.

What I am is a creator. A crafter, wanna be writer, photographer, designer, jill-of-all-trades. Whether I'm writing, sewing, gluing, cutting, painting–I create. It's what I do. And I've been ignoring that. Don't you do that? You know you're happiest when you eat well, exercise, make time for the things you love...and you just don't do it. I've complied list upon list of thing I want to make, and my lists just keeps getting longer. I've done very little, and I think it's time for that to stop. But here's the thing. My "space" looks like this:

and I'd prefer it look like this:

There are a few things I need to accomplish in this room.

• A general cleaning is in order
• I need space for crafts
• Space for my sewing machine and related projects would be nice
• And of course, space for items from mary&nell

It certainly doesn't sound too hard. Maybe Santa will bring it for Christmas.

a long time comin'

So what if I've been meaning to do this post for a year? I'm doing it now, aren't I?!

I've been waiting for a bag of money to fall from the sky onto my doorstep. Front or back, I'm not picky. But, THAT hasn't happened. I wanted all of the rooms to be perfect, so the magnificence of my work would practically glow on the computer screen (as seen here and here). Then I remembered I'm not Sherry or Kara. So I'm finally giving in. To myself. Me 0 - Myself 1. Fine. Whatever.

Presenting, mi casa. [that's my house in Spanish, for those of you living on another planet.] That sounded mean didn't it? That's myself talking, not me. She's a bit cocky today–getting her way and all. Feel free to ignore her attitude problem and scroll down to the good(ish) stuff.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

So, that's it. Home sweet home. Minus the bedrooms because the camera died. You're not missing much, but I will post those shortly. I, myself, hope to have them up by the weekend. But according to me, anytime within the next year will do.

my rack is better than yours.

Not like that! Come on people, get your mind out of the gutter. I'm talking about my pot rack. My ever-so-simple, easy as pie, built with love pot rack. For anyone who doesn't know, I got one of these babies for Christmas from my Mommies.
Oh boy was I stoked! I went to sleep that night with visions of power tools dancing in my head. Since then I have scoured the Internet, magazines, and blogland searching for inspiration. Something to use my new fancy pants drill for. Then I found it. Right over here at Apartment Therapy. My wheels weren't just turning, they were spinning. At warp speed. It was the perfect solution to my too small galley kitchen that isn't set up for an overhead pot rack.

Boyfriend and I headed to Home Depot, spent about 20 minutes debating which wood to use, and loaded the cart with everything else we thought we'd need.
I sanded all the wood, stained each piece, and let them sit overnight. After hours and hours about 30 minutes of assembly we had this beaut on our hands.Yay! I just love her! She's perfect! Go us! Enough excitement for ya? Oh, you want one more exclamation? Woooopeee!! There. All Done.

p.s. This is what I looked like today. In case you were wondering.

midsummer celebration done right.

I will have you know, I thoroughly enjoyed prepping for Midsummer right up until Ryon called to inform me we had a new party decoration in front of our house:

I was not what you would call excited. In fact, I was quite mortified. (An emotion I would later describe as an overreaction. Imagine that.) Once I got over the slight aversion to having a port-a-potty in my front yard, I resumed happily cleaning and decorating for Midsummer.

Saturday morning I went to the store shortly after waking up to complete last minute shopping. Well, not really last minute since I wasn't expecting anyone to show up till after five...but I think you get the point. After a short jaunt to Super Plaza and The Dollar Tree, I was back at the house chopping, dicing, slicing, frying, and storing for later. I finished prepping, decoration, cleaning and getting myself ready by about 5:30. Ryon and John hung white Christmas lights in the back creating a perfect little border around the patio.

Inside, I had a beverage table with ice tea, wine, cups and ice. A green tub with water bottles. Coolers and fridge space for beer. A 6-foot table in the living room adorned with a global hot dog menu, about 15 hot dog garnishes, several sauce options, chips and guacamole (provided by Melanie). Priest made two amazing chili-cheese-hot dog pizzas. And for dessert...I made banana pudding and Beverly made chocolate covered fruits (they were delish)! Everyone visited, ate and drank the night away. See below for proof =)

thinking on a bedroom

In the chaos of putting together our house–running around to flea markets & thrift stores, cleaning, reorganizing, moving furniture–our bedroom has been basically ignored. I did finally get in there two days ago and create the beginnings of decor, but alas, the sanctuary I seek remains elusive. I hold on to the hope of designing a space that will invite deep, restful sleep as well as boost romance. (What girl couldn't use a little romance?) Ok, so this is similar to the bed frame we have.


and the vanity.


and this is the new quilt I ordered. Ryon loves quilts, and I found this one we both liked.
Our walls are white, which I can do nothing about as we are in a rental. BUT!, I can use color, color, color everywhere else. Hopefully I can keep from going overboard!

After hours of searching for bedroom inspiration, I have compiled several photos to help me on my decorating path. I LOVE the drapes around the headboard in this one. Very romantic.


I have wanted a couple of these for a while. And NOW I have the perfect vanity to put them on. Old Home Supply carries these in the colored glass variety. Lovely!


We don't technically have a bookshelf in our bedroom, BUT if I were to put on in there, this is what I would want it to look like


O-so-darling!

Well, that's about it for now. Off to gather more ideas!