Jewelry Armoire Revamp

A good year ago, my sister in law had an old jewelry armoire that she no longer wanted. I told her I would take it. It was a good quality, sturdy, mostly hard wood piece of furniture. The only problem was that it was a bit blah for me. Here is my Little Dude modelling the armoire for you (in his PJs of course):

Planning Planning Planning

I have slowed down on the household projects lately, but that definitely doesn't mean that they aren't on my mind. I recently got some free (or almost free) subscriptions to a few different decorating and design magazines, and my mind is racing with ideas. Add a serious Pinterest addiction to the mix, and I officially have way too many projects for any 1 person to ever finish in their lifetime.

I am still stuck on the kitchen. I made some decent improvements over the last year, but there is still so much to be done.

The main kitchen projects I hope to finish this year are:

1.   New light fixtures
2.   Backsplash
3.   Window treatments
4.   Shoe/Garbage storage

For today, I'm focusing on the light fixtures!

Out With the Old & DIY the New

No I haven't given up on the blog, there has just been a whole lot of busy busy days that I find myself having less and less time to write.

I did something yesterday that I had been meaning to do for several months now; I finally ditched Little Dude's crib!

Little Dude 1 year ago

He will turn 3 in less than 2 months so I really have pushed the crib thing as far as I feel I could. We stuck with it for so long because he has always been an awesome sleeper, so why rock the boat?

Pretty Princesses & Polka Dot Dresses!

Little Dude is well on his way to being a 3 year old, and I am definitely noticing some changes in him recently. I love noticing all the little differences, and I especially like to record them because these are the details that I really don't remember well when I look back on the blurr that is my kids' babyhood. These are all pretty typical developmentally speaking, but through this momma's eyes, they are amazing and awe inspiring.

First there are the stories. The imaginations on these little guys are mind blowing, and the connections they make can be hilarious. Toddlers are busy putting 2 and 2 together, though the answer isn't always the 4 you're expecting. I think this is the reason we get some of the really funny "from the mouths of babes" comments that are so common for this age. I have posted several of my own under Little Dude's Special Gems. As 3 approaches, the stories become more elaborate as the imagination kicks in. All the sudden I find myself being informed that puppy dogs like to ride in space ships because there are big bones in outer space.

My Kid Said What?

It is a fact that when learning this whole talking business, most little people are going to be less than perfect at first. Mild speech impediments are very common in toddlers such as lisps and mispronunciation of Rs. Little Dude is no exception here and it has had some hilarious (and somewhat embarrassing) results at times.

Monday Quicky!

Imagine my surprise when I went to use the restroom and I found the toilet lid smiling at me:

Courtesy of Little Dude of course.

More Special Gems - With Pictures!

AKA - Not So Wordless Wednesday

Monday I shared some kids say the darnedest things moments, courtesy of Little Dude.

Today I have some funny (to me at least) photos to share.

This one isn't so much HAHA! funny, so much as it is HUH! funny. . . I'm not sure if that even makes sense.

Anyway, since Little Dude developed his love for all things vehicle, he has enjoyed lining them up in a row. I don't remember when I first noticed it. Maybe when he was around 18 months.

An example of a lineup around the dishwasher door.

More recently, he started sometimes organizing the lineups by color. I don't have a picture of this, but he is pretty good at it. Then yesterday, I was watching him play. He decided to organize the vehicles by size: 

Little Dude's Special Gems

I really want to name these types of posts: The Sh!t My Kid Says, but in an effort to remain family friendly I will resist. Not sure I achieved that with this title either though. . . but I digress.

It has been over a week since my last post and I blame all the Christmas festivities and general business of life lately. Lets just pretend last week didn't exist - That way, I am still posting rather actively actually! The lack of posting certainly hasn't been for the lack of inspiration. A day without any special gems are rare with Little Dude around.

I am unfortunately not feeling so well today (and neither is he), so I'll keep things short so that I can return to moping around on the couch ASAP.

*Just the other day, I was baking sugar cookies; I had the dough rolled out on the counter and Little Dude came up to me and said, "Oh mommy mommy I wanna watch! You making cookies? Can I watch with my mouth?"

How to Give Yourself a Heart Attack

Step 1:   Buy a giant Elmo balloon for your child's birthday:

Step 2:   Leave it sitting in front of your entry way door once it is done being played with. You get extra points if its also next to an air vent or fan so that it floats around randomly.

Murphy's Law: The Toddler Version

A funny little example of how "what can go wrong, will go wrong" can often does apply when you have a toddler around.

Once you become a parent, there is no allowance for turning off your brain. Even on the weekend. . .



A while back, I had a couple of sponge brushes laying out on the dining room table. I had just finished stencilling the dining area wall. I had packed away the paint and other stencilling equipment immediately, because I knew that leaving them out was just asking for trouble. I figured the brushes alone would be fine though. Besides, they needed to dry after being washed anyway.

Can't make a mess with these if there is no paint right?