an impulsive coat of paint

a few months back, we found a great kitchen table and chairs at a local garage sale for $35. it wasn't in terrible shape, but i remember selling it to bub-hub as a quick fixer-upper...oops. it only took me five months to get to the fixing part.

on saturday, i was at ace hardware getting a battery and a key chain when i saw the amy howard one step paint display...one step...how do you beat that?  i had been debating the best way to paint the table, and by best, i mean easiest.  after a quick and successful sell from the paint guy at ace hardware, i decided to take the plunge.  i'll work on my impulse shopping in 2016...

what i used:
amy howard at home, one step paint in black
basic paint brushes (available at any hardware store)
an old sheet

what i did:
painted!

it took us about 3 hours....2 1/2 of that was spent on the scrolly details of the chairs. we did one coat on everything except the top of the table, which i went over again just because.  even with the second coat on the table, we only used about 1/4 of the quart.

it dried perfectly in about thirty minutes...not bad at all! she has an optional top coats that you can use for different finishes, but i just love the matte finish.  it's just what i had in mind all along.  simple and sweet.  i usually end every painting project with a very determined declaration of i'm never painting again, but this time, it wasn't so bad! i'm already plotting what else i can paint!

our valentines day decorations

love is in the air! and on the mantle and the entry way table and all over the house. :)

when i set out looking for valentines decorations, i fully intended on just picking up some paper and cutting out hearts on my own.  and then i got to the store, and went a little crazy.

first, i stumbled upon these fun corrugated hearts from hobby lobby!  instead of cutting out all the hearts on my own, i just taped the die cut hearts onto some twine, pinned it to the mantle, and voila! a $5 valentines mantle in ten minutes! :)

i've had my eye on the teeny tiny mail boxes in the target dollar spot for a while, and i finally took the plunge!   initially, i was excited to use them as "love bug special delivery" boxes, but after getting them home, i realized they are too tiny for any of the cards or gifts i (i mean the love bug...) wanted to share, but they are the perfect size for my mantle, so i consider it $3 well spent. :)

i had decided to try something different for the entry way, and then i found these larger paper mache mailboxes. can you say "meant to be"?!  they are the perfect size for cards and little bags of candy....which i may or may not have already sampled. #sorryimnotsorry i even grabbed a few extras to stash in the closet for any future littles! :)

i can't wait for EG to be big enough to be excited about these silly little things.  for now, i'm just going to pretend that's she's into it. :)

paper mache mailbox // hobby lobby
corrugated hearts // hobby lobby (similar here)
scrap book paper // michael's (available at any craft store)
sweetheart printable // studio calico
pink frame // target (similar here)
mini mail boxes, burlap runner // target dollar spot
gold frames // goodwill

happy valentines from emma grace

i think valentines day is such a fun holiday.  hearts, pink, candy, hugs and kisses....what's not to love? 

i hope my family and friends know how much i love them every day of the year, but how great is it that we have a day specifically dedicated to appreciating our loved ones?

at our last mama/baby craft day, our host mama set up the most adorable baby photo booth. if that's not the cutest thing on the planet i'm not sure what is.  she used wrapping paper on the wall, foam board and chalk pens for the signs, and even made baby sized bunting. 

the babies were photobombing, i mean, helping each other out...providing advice on poses and the most effective way to get the best chewing angle on the sign. gotta help a baby friend out. 

we printed off these pictures and are going to incorporate them into a little valentines gift for the grandparents.  babies and grandbabies make gifting so easy. :)

this sweet little love bug of mine is the best valentine i could have ever asked for.

emma grace // seven month update

dear sweet baby girl,

oh how i love you so! your daddy and i are just head over heels for you.  we can't get enough of this little adventure that we are on with you.  you're so interactive and your little, and by little i mean HUGE, personality is shining through.

you're a reaching and chewing machine! your toys, my hair, anything on the table (uhh....the table), and sometimes even sweet potatoes.  oh, and now your stickers! :)  i think you're starting to teethe, so anything that can fit in your mouth is fair game for chewing!

we're finally getting to wear some of your 6m clothes.  it's been so fun to see you grow, and i can't get enough of your arm and thigh rolls!

you've discovered your voice and are giggling and squealing up a storm. you LOVE your walker and are becoming a pro at moving from room to room.  you've started rolling from your back to your tummy, and sometimes even back again.  we haven't quite started crawling, but we are pretty good at wiggling around in a circle! you're also becoming quite the expert at sitting and reaching. you know what you want, and you go for it!

you have the biggest and best smiles. i can't get enough. thank you for bringing the sunshine. :)

love,

your mama

fun with felt // baby girl DIY

i've recently entered the world of baby girl bow mania.

i know...i'm a little late to the game. but i'm making up for lost time.

my new obsession combined with an audit of my craft closet resulted in....valentine felt bows for eg!

i've been getting so many questions about them, i decided to take a stab at a tutorial. #marthawannabe

i'm not a tutorial expert, but here it goes.

what you need:

felt

scissors 

embroidery thread

large-ish needle (that's the technical term)

hot glue gun

pencil

elastic (mine is 1/8 inch wide...ish) and/or alligator clips 

what you do:

first, decide what shape you want to cut out, and trace it with a pencil.  i did a few circles and a few hearts in different sizes, and then i'd decided to get a little crazy and did a little "e". :)

next, carefully glue the pieces together.  i think it's best to have two layers, but it probably just depends on the quality of felt you end up with.  oh, and don't go too crazy with the glue.  if you're going to add stitching, it's harder to stitch through the portions that have been glued, so plan accordingly. 

then, if you want to add a little extra pizzaz, you can stitch around the edges with the embroidery thread.  i chose a lilac purple, because that's what i had left in my craft drawer, and surprisingly, it turned out pretty great! 

lastly, carefully glue the alligator clip to the back of the felt cut out. or, if you're using elastic, space out your pieces and glue them on accordingly.  i added an extra piece of felt on the back to smooth out the portion that would be on baby girl's head. 

oh, the actual last step is really putting the bow on the babe and snapping a bazillion and one photos so you can overshare on instagram :) 

pretty sure this is going to be my new favorite holiday tradition.  

watch out president's day....it's about to get cray. 

a little life update

this week, we enjoyed warm sunny days in our jorts, and cold rainy days in our jammies. i'm really not complaining about this roller coaster though.  i'm getting extra wears out of her baby jorts and her reindeer christmas footie pajamas.   

each day is becoming more fun than the day before.  baby girl's personality is definitely starting to shine and it's quite entertaining.  

this week, eg helped her daddy win a few rounds of bananagrams, entertained us on her piano, and helped her juju sew up some new pillows for our couch.  #busybee

oh, and we're seven months old now. is this real life??