Inspired to Share...

February 2012

Girl Time

Dawn: Posted on Friday, February 24, 2012 11:11 PM

It was in the 6th grade that I met my childhood bestie... almost 30 years ago! Typing that number is bittersweet...so long ago, yet just yesterday, all in the same breath.

The Bestie recently moved to Atlanta where her hubby was promoted within his company. This was the first time that we have ever had to share life at a distance. I have to say that while I miss our lunch dates terribly, I am beyond thrilled that she was able to relocate and settle into life as a stay-at-home mom. It was a good move for their family and just means that we have to spend more quality time together, instead of quantity.

She had only been gone about 3 weeks before I booked my flight to "Hotlanta" to see her and her 2 girls...whom affectionately call me "Auntie!" =) I don't know who was more excited, her oldest daughter or ME!!!

Four weeks later, I was packing my suitcase to head to the land of peach trees to see my girls. I was thrilled that I was able to fly in the "business class" where they served Milano cookies instead of pretzels...what a lovely treat =)

Upon arrival last weekend...the dresser in the guest room greeted me warmly with a slew of handmade cards created by a smart little Kindergartner...

just made my day to see her handiwork!

Soon, we got busy decorating her 5 year olds bedroom...ok, she's really almost 6, but going on 16! Her 5 year old got her own bedroom in the move...no longer sharing a room with her 2 year old sister. It was time for her to have a space of her own where she could crawl into the closet and write in her journal during "meltdown" moments and enjoy organizing her jewelry without "Sister" interrupting.

My Bestie had long been admiring all of the tree art that covers the walls of little girls' bedrooms these days. As soon as my plane hit the runway, plans were being made for Auntie's work to begin...I was volunteered to paint the whimsical art on her dreamy eyed, sweet girl's wall. We stayed up until the wee hours of the morning catching up and Pinteresting ideas for her daughters room. Here is some of her inspiration...

Saturday was paint day!

With a piece of sidewalk chalk, a quart of white eggshell paint and her hubby entertaining her girls...work began.

Using the chalk, we...she and I, both... took turns drawing out the tree on the wall. We each had a "eye" for what the branches should look like =) The beautiful thing about using chalk is that you just wipe it right off the wall if the outline doesn't work for you! Ingenious idea!!!

(Look closely to see the chalk lines...)

Then, it was time to fill in the chalk lines with paint. It immediately transformed the room into a "Once Upon a Time" space...oh, so dreamy!

The Bestie was in love with the whimsical masterpiece...whew, thankfully because that was some kind of pressure! Eternally grateful that she approved...

While the wall dried, I spent an evening with the little girls while Bestie and her hubby went to dinner. The girls and I enjoyed "Game Night"...complete with pizza, a Greek salad and POPCORN...Mmmmm!

After tucking the two little princesses into bed, I was off to reorganize a closet. After all, I packed my labeler...so I HAD to use it! Bestie and I spent some time at the Dollar Store earlier in the day, collecting colorful bins to house clothes and toys.

I must say, sorting girlie stuff is certainly not what I am used to, so I admit that I utterly enjoyed playing with fluffy tutus and princess dresses. (My expertise has been in organizing sports equipment with 2 boys and 1 grandson in the fam.)

This is how the closet looked BEFORE...

And then, the big reveal...

Bestie came to give her input on the closet. She was thrilled with the new look, just moving a few things around to better suit her 5 year old.

This is how it wound up looking

AFTER...

The next morning, I awoke to a little sweetheart at my bedside sharing the kindest thought..."I love what you did to my closet!" Awwww...that was worth it all

(even if her momma did tell her to come in and say that! LOL )

All too soon, my visit was over and I was over skies, in route to "Home Sweet Home." The trip was WONDERFUL, but it didn't beat seeing my boys' faces at the airport when picking me up! My son greeted me with, "I love you!" and said it 5 more times before we even got home. I think he missed me!!!

Here is the way this trip panned out:

Dollar Store bins to organize closet...$15

Pizza and Salad for Game Night...$30

Airline Ticket...$133

The look of satisfaction on the

Bestie's face...PRICELESS!

Truly...such a joyous trip! Miss my girls already, but Bestie and I are already scheming on the next trip out. =)

Inspired,

Dawn

***Update***

Check out this newly painted sewing table that was passed down from Bestie's hubby's family.

It got a few coats of paint and is now totally "pinkalicious!"

Looks adorable in the bedroom. =)

The big girl room is coming together...

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Greenery is Good =)

Dawn: Posted on Tuesday, February 21, 2012 8:05 PM

Oh, how I have spring fever...truly bad (and it's only the middle of February!) I don't know what's gotten into me lately, but the great outdoors is whistling my name these days =) My back porch is especially calling out for me to come and "sit a spell"...such delightful times in our backyard watching the boys play ball(all of them...hubby, 2 sons and grandson.) The grill is usually cooking up our dinner when we are on the patio...hmmmm...I can smell the chicken grilling now!

Although the sun's rays are cheery and warm here in the south, the air still has a bit of a chill to it somedays. But that didn't stop me recently from heading to the store in search of potting soil and greenery...MORE of it, actually! Several of my indoor pots were bare and in need of company, so off I went in search of a few new houseplants.

First on my list was potting soil...

... and bins to store it in. (An opened bag of anything is just messy to me, so this is another attempt to contain things and create a tad more order in my life.) I chose a couple of bins to divide the soil so that the storage container wouldn't be so heavy. Handles on top made carrying them to my project area much easier too.

Next...my fave...the bins get a LABEL :)

Before housing the new potting soil bins on a shelf in the shop, my new pots got a few handfuls of the rich dirt and some lovely greenery...

(This pot was a gift given to me one Christmas...MANY years ago by my mother. It's lived in 4 different kitchens and has heard lots of interesting family stories. At one time it housed my kitchen utensils, but more recently it's used for a lively household plant. It's one of the few things that I haven't gotten rid of despite it's dated decor...it was in it's prime during the "mauve and blue" era!)

A sweet little tea cup invited some greenery as well...

And then, it was back to the shop to store my containers of soil until the next inspired moment...

I am thinking the next project will be outdoors! =)

Inspired,

Dawn

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A bit more thoughtful...

Dawn: Posted on Wednesday, February 15, 2012 12:11 AM

Being a stay-at-home here at No. 9257 has it's challenges, especially during the holidays. My job these days is to SAVE money, NOT SPEND it. Needless to say, that poses a problem of sorts on special days...like Valentine's Day. So, this year I was determined to be more creative.

My hubby is def waaaay more thoughtful and romantic than me, so it's hard for me to out-do his antics. For example...I awoke and walked into our bathroom to discover that he had left me a "check yes or no" Valentine's Day message on my mirror. That certainly didn't cost a thing, but was a fun way to show that he was thinking of me. =)

"Will U B my Valentine? Check Yes or No"

Hmmm...how would I top this?

The challenge was on!!!

I decided that I would list 10 things that I loved most about my hubby and frame it. Admittedly, it was sweet to brainstorm all of the things that I love about him...

*** OOPS! I found a typo...did you find it too? ***

Using different fonts was a fun way to make this project a bit more whimsical. :) Then, I printed my list out on scrapbook paper and rummaged through a cabinet that I knew housed an unused picture frame.

The frame needed a little TLC, so I added a bit of paint to cover up the old nicks and left it on the bathroom counter for the hubby to stumble upon.

Now, I am off to eat a bite of cheesecake that was a splurge item to celebrate the day. Death by chocolate...Mmmm! (Photo is borrowed...my cheesecake is half eaten and not nearly as photogenic! LOL)

XOXOXOXO!

Dawn

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$3.88 is Great!

Dawn: Posted on Thursday, February 09, 2012 10:04 PM

Some days are just a little more gloomy feeling than others. Clouds and rain are rolling in...predicting for us that tomorrow will be another of those gloomy kinds of days here at No. 9257. Tomorrow's forecast is calling for temps that should be somewhat colder than the days before, cloudy outdoors with no sunshine peeking thorugh...all along with the possibility of RAIN. Now, why couldn't they just call for SNOW??? Oh, wait, I remember why...because I bought the boys sleds for Christmas! Of course we would only get rain this winter and no fluffy flurries to play in! Boo! My mood today sort of resembled the day...just a bit blah.

In addition to the not so cheery weather, I have been experiencing the aches and pains of recovering from a recent surgery and was advised to grab some cold packs to rest on my back. Needless to say, I entered the local store in a hurry, certain of what I was after and with the agenda swirling in my head...to get what I need quickly, and with no extras in my hand to buy!

However, as soon as I entered the store my eyes were brightened by a large sign sharing the price of some little beauties in the plants and garden area ~$3.88 each...hmmm, $3.88 is great! I could use a bit of bright green in my house to liven up the atmosphere, and I had just the space in mind that I knew was crying out for company. So, the little greenery found it way into my SUV... =)

I immediately found a little corner for it. The corner was lonely and needed a fresh new look. All too soon, the darling little corner met my (newly purchased) $3.88 green visitor!

BEFORE AFTER

Thankfully, I already had the cute little tea cup potted planter. So I simply added some potting soil and placed my new greenery in the middle and sat it in the corner. It filled the corner nicely and even put a smile on my face when I round the corner in the kitchen.

Just above the bright new plant is a picture frame that was passed down from my Hubby's grandpa. After his Grandpa passed away, this aged frame was in a dump pile until I rescued it. I loved the layers of paint and felt it had such stories to tell as it hung on the wall so many years. Immediately, I put a handmade cross-stitch design in it to merge together the new with the old. It's one of the few things that we have from past family members that I cherish so.

You know...really...it's the simple things in life that makes my heart joyous...an old family heirloom picture frame and a $3.88 plant for me to love and water.

Truly...does life get any better than this??? =)

Inspired,

Dawn

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Organizing...through tear filled eyes!

Dawn: Posted on Thursday, February 02, 2012 11:38 AM

Once upon a time, in a memory long ago, there were 2 sweet boys age 5 and 14...

One precious daughter in love and 2 grandkids later, those boys have grown up and left stacks of created artwork, stories, projects and love notes for their Momma to sift through, organize and store for them to look through on a rainy day!

What a task!

Just looking at the spilling over box makes me want to cry, but I am putting on my big girl panties and attacking the task with confidence that I won't bawl...well, maybe just a tear or two, but no heaving/shoulders shaking episode!

Because I like to incorporate my kids' artwork with pictures when scrapbooking, I needed something that would allow me to organize the memories together.

It was driving me a bit nutty to dig around in their school papers that I had saved to try to match it with pictures that I wanted displayed on the same layout.

So...I was inspired to house the artwork and pictures together and obviously needed something bigger than a cute little photo box or a tub that everything was just thrown into.

Off to Wal-Mart I went in search of a box to house all of these memories. I found some file boxes that I was sure would work, along with some colorful files.