Out with the old...in the with new.

So, what DO you guys do when your house is about to or already has been over-run with all the new items, toys, clothes and who knows what all else you receive for Christmas?

I'm STILL working on the rest of the house (Not such a great idea to NOT have it finished BEFORE Christmas. Oh well, maybe next year.) but the week before Christmas I went through the kids room THREE times and eliminated excess toys.

Why THREE times? The first time I go through I get rid of surface things that I see that they NEVER touch. The second time through I do a little deeper cleaning and get things that they only give attention to RARELY. And last but not least the third time I score through each little nook and cranny and toy bin in their room carefully inspecting every toy with the thought, "Do they need it? Do they really play with that enough for it to stay? Will they miss it when it's gone?"

If there are toys that they do play with sometimes and seem to really enjoy when they do, I suggest bagging those up and taking them to a grandparents or great-grandparents house and switching out the toys so they'll have fresh things for their next visit.

We have a granddad and great-granddad out here that didn't have any toys for them, so every once in a while I'll bag up the toys that they play with from time to time and take them up to their house. However, so as not to PILE up a bunch at the grandparents, you'll have to take the old toys and get rid of them via yard-sale, charity, or the like.

Happy Holiday Cleaning!

Closet Renovations

I have been doing some MAJOR closet rehaul! Every house has a room or two that becomes a catch all for all the junk that you don't know what to do with or have no where else to store it.

Hopefully I will post pictures soon with some tips on how to de-clutter your living spaces on a low budget.

Music Room/Hallway/We Don't Really Know What to Call it Room...

So, I finally made some spare time to post about my spare time. Pitiful huh?
My next project was our music room. I keep the piano in it, so it's been officially dubbed the "music room."

I've only really got one before picture. I know I have some pictures of the kids playing on the piano so I may post one of those later, but for now this is it. The next few are of the final result.

My friend had the idea of hanging pictures from ribbons. I bought the frames and ribbon from Walmart and think they turned our really cute. The "Family" sign came from Kirklands. The photoboxes actually have our photos in them. They were purchased at Michaels.

I LOVE this side of the room. The nightlight, vases, lamp and wall art are all from Kirklands. The picture frames are ones that we got as a wedding gift from Linen's N Things. The books are just some old books that I had.

The mirror came from Kirklands as well. I started out by washing down the walls and painting them the color "pea soup."

It is now a functional yet enjoyable room to be in. I love the end results!

The Problem is...

So...what is the problem?

hmm...good question. OH YEAH! I remember!

I have no spare time to actually post what it is that I do in my spare time.

well...this certainly causes a dilemma doesn't it. I would say so! what to do what to do???

Try again tomorrow. :)

good idea...I'll do that!

So...What DO I Do in All My Spare Time???

Well, for starters, I do major projects such as: paint the bathroom, go shopping for bathroom "stuff," install faucets and other such nonsense that I'll go on to explain in just a minute.

This particular project is our bathroom. Photo #1 is right when we moved into the house, thus the bucket on the floor with the empty papertowel ring. We'd just finished cleaning it. I am thinking that it might have been the nastiest bathroom I'd ever seen. *not so sure the previous renters were the best housekeepers*

So, in all my spare time I underwent the task of revamping the bathroom.

I know...it's a bathroom, so why should it matter so much? Well, we do spend quite a bit of time in there in the morning, evening, and periodically throughout the day. When you think about it, you really spend ALOT of time in the bathroom, depending on if that's the primary room you get ready in. Which in our case, it is.

First, I picked out my paintcolor which I wanted to be cheerful yet not overbearingly dark so I went with a pretty aqua blue that was called 'teardrop.'

Once the paint was chosen I set off to purchase some much needed items for change.

• New faucet
• Knobs for the cabinets
• Storage unit
• Trinkets
• Towel holder
• Shower curtain
• TP holder
• Rug

I accomplished these by visiting our local Lowes, Linen's N' Things, Bed, Bath & Beyond, and Pier 1 Imports. Check your Sunday papers, sign up for snailmail ads. You can find great coupons for purchasing your remodel needs which will help lessen the overall cost.

These were my results after my overhaul:

I installed the faucet MySeLf *woohoo for me* with a little help from a phone call to dad. lol The old one was just outdated and not very attractive. The new one only cost $30.

Then I replaced all the previous 'gold' cabinet knobs with new shiney silver ones.

The wall leaf, plant/vase, fish, and storage unit all came from Pier One.

Typically I never shop there considering they are ridiculously high on most of their prices. However, if you catch them at the right time, you can get pretty decent sales.

The storage unit had a couple of marks on the top so I asked if I could have a discount and they immediately offered 25% off. Not bad. I brought it home and used my majic eraser which took the marks completely off. PERFECT!

All the other goodies I bought from Bed, Bath & Beyond with the exception of the shower curtain, which came from Linen's N Things.

Our end result is an attractive, modern/updated bathroom that is enjoyable to walk into rather than our previous plain old white and gold space.

Much better. I feel like I used my spare time wisely on this project.

I've heard more than once, "A coat of paint is the cheapest facelift for a room that you can buy." I agree.

Daddy's Little Girl

So...I know this blog is for posting things that I do in all my spare time, but daddy wanted to borrow it for just ONE post to be able to enter his (and my)sweet little girl into this really awesome contest.

Daddy said he would pick the Summer Breeze for his angel if he could win one for her.

Testing...

Wow, my very first post on this beeeuuutiful blog. Checking to see if it works. :)