Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Holiday House Tour

The house tour has come and gone and what a great day it was! The weather was perfect, the visitors were happy and we had a wonderful time! On Friday night we got to go around and do the tour with the other homeowners and also the artists that were featured. We had such a nice time and the homes were all beautiful.


My only wish is that I had a better camera or knew a photographer that worked for cookies and hugs because the pictures didn't come out as I had hoped. The morning of the tour went very fast and I was so nervous that I had trouble keeping the camera steady to take pictures. I managed to take quite a few though and I hope that you enjoy them! We are very blessed to have family and friends that helped out for the tour....watched the kids and dogs, baked for us and came from far away to go on the tour. Their support means everything to us and we couldn't have asked for a better day!


As you look through the pictures you can see the collages on our dining table. All the homes had art and/or music on display for the tour.








I also wanted to share with you a picture from last night. My daughter had her very first band concert, she plays the french horn and we are so, so proud of her. She looked beautiful last night and I'm amazed at how quickly she is learning to play.




And with that I am going to take a break until the new year. Being on the home tour was a blast but I am seriously behind on Christmas! I want to wish you and your families a beautiful holiday filled with laughter and warmth.

It means so much to me that you read my little blog and I'm excited to see what the new year brings!!



I'm linking up to Hooked on Houses! Head over for more holiday fun!!



Thursday, December 9, 2010

Holiday House Tour Ready





Or ready as I'll ever be. **Phew** It's been a lot of prepwork but I think I am officially DONE. Done decorating, done cleaning, done washing and done stressing. It is what it is at this point and I hope the people who paid to come through like it......or at least half of them.




Some key points to remember if you will be touring my home on Saturday:



1. I realize my style isn't for everyone but if you don't like it, please lie to my face. If you don't, I might cry.



2. I'm really exhausted so ignore the dark circles under my eyes.



3. I'll make every attempt to have a coherent conversation with you but if I sound like a bumbling idiot, refer to number 2 above.



4. We have 3 kids and 2 dogs. One of them sheds like crazy and I doubt I could possibly get all the hair up. If you see some, kindly ignore it. You know how you had a real Christmas tree last year and then you moved furniture and found needles on the floor in June? Yeah, it's kind of like that. Same goes for Silly Bandz, Legos and assorted tiny superhero figures.



5. Yes my house is always this clean.



6. Do not, I repeat, do not open my closets. You may get injured from things falling on you and I'd be super embarrassed and really, who needs that?



7. Ditto for the basement.



8. I may have lied about number 5.



9. This is how we really live. I didn't really change much except do a whole lot of cleaning and put some excess toys away. I started ironing pillowcases and such and then thought, nah...that's not really us. We are casual, no iron, toss shoes in a basket, it doesn't have to be perfect kind of folks and I wanted to show you the real us.

10. MOST importantly, I am so happy that you are taking time out of your weekend this busy holiday season to tour my home. I'm thrilled to be on the tour this year, so excited to meet everyone and no matter how much work it was getting ready....I would do it again in a heartbeat. I love decorating my home for the season and the fact that I get to show it to you is just icing.



I'll be back soon with lots and lots of pictures! Have a beautiful weekend everyone!



Wish me luck!!

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Oh Christmas Tree



On Sunday we went for our Christmas tree, something we look forward to all year long. It was freezing so we didn't get many pictures and the ones we got came out a bit like this.....



I sometimes wonder if we'll ever get a family photo where all five of us look normal. I may need to do like that commercial where the mom switches heads on their holiday photo. Do you know what I'm talking about? It's a computer commercial. Anywho.....


My son was "helping" Daddy cut down the tree. Don't worry, we moved him out of the way before the saw was really in there. A tree falling on one of the kids would have put a bit of a damper on the day.







We finished the day off with dinner and then hot chocolate. Mmmmmm....


So what is it in your house, real or fake?

Saturday, December 4, 2010

Saturday

Source



We are fully in the holiday spirit over here. I'm even wishing for snow, how crazy is that?? There is something amazing about a White Christmas.....we'll just have to wait and see.


I wanted to show you what my talented friend Renee did in her kitchen. She found this old colander at a flea market.....



And turned it into a pendant for above her kitchen sink! Doesn't it look adorable? I love using found objects in a creative way and this is a win!




Have a wonderful weekend fellow bloggers! We'll be getting our tree tomorrow, the kids are SO excited. I'm not sure if they are more excited about the tree or the hot chocolate and donuts we always have after we get it. Hmmmm.....

Now I'm off to get dressed and drag all 3 kids to Target. Can you guess why?


"If I had found you, there isn’t a doubt in my mind how I would have proceeded. I was that boy, who would have — as soon as I discovered that you were what I was looking for — gotten down on one knee and endeavored to secure your hand. I would have wanted you for eternity, even when the word didn’t have quite the same connotations."
~Edward Cullen


Yup, I'm one of those crazy Twilight fans, don't judge, it's one of my only guilty pleasures.....this and Jersey Shore. Okay, that sounds nutty just typing it out so judge away!



Wednesday, December 1, 2010

If I only had 10 houses....

I find that I love so many different styles, it's hard to stick to just one. If I had a bunch of homes, I would decorate them each in a special way. Tell me I'm not the only one with this problem of style commitment....

pic source



pic source







Oh and the holiday music has arrived on my blog. I had a couple readers ask about my playlist and it's up! Love this time of year.





P.S. ~ I have linked all the websites on which I found these pictures. If one of these belongs to you and you would prefer it removed, please email me.



Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Doily Wreath



Martha Stewart (of course, who else?) has a beautiful doily wreath on her site using lights and paper bouquet holders. Of course the papers are a specialty, hard to find item that you have to order online because you can't just walk into Hobby Lobby and buy them. Darn that Martha and all her resources. They are called Biedermeiermanschetten and you can buy them on this site if you are set on the original version.


If you are cheap and impatient like me, you can run to your nearest craft store and pick these up:




I used a Styrofoam wreath form that I had cut in half for another project. It would be a ton easier if you just used a flat form.




All you need to do is take your doily and fold it in half......




Then keep folding until it's about this size (excuse my lighting issues, I was doing this at night).....




Glue them all to your wreath form with hot glue, start with the larger doilies and then use the smaller ones to layer and give it some "poof."
Glue a loop of ribbon to the back for hanging and bam, you are done! A super easy project and best of all, you don't have to worry about it catching on fire. That seemed to be a common concern about Martha's wreath.




I've been busy, busy here getting ready for the house tour. I'm excited about it but starting to freak out a bit as it gets closer. Part of that is probably because we started some painting projects that have to get done. Yikes! It's all coming together though. We have Ella's room all painted and put back in order. More on that another day......

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Thanksgiving




This Thanksgiving I'm thankful for.....




My family,
Our health,
Friends,
Our home,
My husband's job,
Blogs,
White paint,
Etsy,
Sweet potatoes with marshmallows,
Pumpkin pie,
Coffee,
and Black Friday shopping.




What are you thankful for?




Wishing you and your family a beautiful holiday filled with yummy treats. I'll be back next week.




Happy Thanksgiving!!

Saturday, November 13, 2010

It's been a while....
















Photos: Country Living





I can't believe how long it has been since my last post. Life has been busy since school started and I've cut my computer time way down. I think we all know how it feels to want to unplug a bit and take a step back from blogging.




I intended to do a post with pictures of our fall decorations BUT then I found out our home will be featured on the Holiday House Tour this year and, well...fall is over inside these walls. I have about 3/4 of our Christmas decorations out and orange and browns have become a fading memory already. I'm so honored that we will be on the tour but nervous too! Just hoping our cozy, little home can hold its own on the tour. If you are a local reader, the date is December 11th and the proceeds benefit our Center for the Arts.


Are you in the Christmas spirit yet?


What is your favorite way to make your home feel festive for the season?




P.S. ~ That sheet music bookshelf ended up finding a home right here, I just couldn't part with it. :)


Thursday, September 9, 2010

More fun with sheet music




I've had so many positive comments on my sheet music cabinet that I decided to try the same technique with this bookshelf. I love how it turned out, old pages give everything such a warm feeling.


I'm selling this piece....as much as I enjoy making over furniture, my house is full! If you are a local reader and interested, email me at brosequilts(at)yahoo.com


Do you have a favorite piece that you've done? I love before and afters, leave a link in the comments so I can see your fave redos!

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Pups and Parties


We got to spend an afternoon with this sweet girl over the weekend. As we were leaving the campground, we spotted her wandering along the street with a collar but no tags. After a half hour of knocking on doors and stopping people to find her owners, we took her back to our camper and made some calls.


Luckily for us, she was a racing greyhound and they are all tattooed inside their ears. A phone call to the local greyhound rescue with those numbers was all it took for them to identify her. Just a friendly reminder to make sure you tag your pets! Our dogs have two tags on their collars, one with our address and cell phone numbers and one from the vet.


We sure didn't mind spending some time with her, she was such a sweetie!



Emidio's birthday was a lot of fun! I managed to take some pictures before the kids all arrived. He said it was the most fun party ever. That just made my day!



Friday, September 3, 2010

Five










The past five years sure have flown by. It's hard to believe the baby of our family is no baby anymore. Emidio Nicholas was born five years ago today and it feels like just yesterday we were putting that tiny baby in the car and driving home from the hospital. You can tell just how thrilled he was with that whole process.


We named him after my grandfather (Papa) Emidio and they share a birthday. We're all positive that is no coincidence. My Papa passed away when I was 4 but I'm sure he's looking out for me and my family.


As is his grandfather, who his middle name is after. I'm sure those two are up there talking and trying not to laugh, watching us stumble over the difficulties of parenthood down here.





I miss those chubby cheeks.....






But then again, 5 year old freckled cheeks are still super kissable.....






A lot of people ask me about his name so here's a little bit of info:


syll. e-mi-dio, em-id-io ] The boy name Emidio has its origins in the Germanic language and it is used largely in Italian. Emidio's meaning is 'great, strong'.

Emidio is not widely used as a baby name for boys. It is not in the top 1000 names.


My family is Italian and I'm sure the name would sound neat spoken with a true Italian accent.


As my mom has always told me, it was also a ship, the S.S. Emidio.


Source



According to this site:


On 20 December 1941, 25 miles west of Cape Mendocino, the Imperial Japanese Navy's I-17 shells and then fires two torpedoes at the 6, 912-ton Socony-Vacuum oil company tanker EMIDIO returning empty from Seattle to San Francisco. A patrolling PBY "Catalina" flying boat of Patrol Squadron (VP) 44 spots the EMIDIO dead in the water with people going over the sides and getting into lifeboats.


Despite the torpedo hit, Emidio did not sink. Several days later, in fact, she ran aground on a pile of rocks off Crescent City, Calif., an amazing 85 miles north of where she had been torpedoed. The 31 survivors of the stricken ship rowed their lifeboats for 16 hours and 20 miles through a driving rainstorm until they were picked up by a Coast Guard lightship a few miles off Humbolt Bay.


I think it's neat that his name has not only a strong family connection but a history to it as well.




Today we're having some of his little friends over for a birthday party. He's requested Spiderman and Wolverine for his party. Whatever the birthday boy wants, the birthday boy gets.....





Forever Young

May the good Lord be with you

Down every road you roam

And may sunshine and happiness surround you when you're far from home

And may you grow to be proud

Dignified and true

And do unto others

As you'd have done to you

Be courageous and be brave

And in my heart you'll always stay

Forever Young, Forever Young Forever Young, Forever Young

May good fortune be with you

May your guiding light be strong

Build a stairway to heaven with a prince or a vagabond

And may you never love in vain and in my heart you will remain

Forever Young, Forever Young Forever Young, Forever Young Forever Young Forever Young

And when you finally fly away I'll be hoping that I served you well

For all the wisdom of a lifetime

No one can ever tell

But whatever road you choose I'm right behind you, win or lose

Forever Young, Forever Young Forever Young ,Forever Young Forever Young, Forever Young For, Forever Young, Forever Young

~Rod Stewart

Thursday, September 2, 2010

The Non-Reveal Reveal


I'm calling this the non reveal because it's not "done" but I wanted to show you the paint color! Although, with the amount things move around in this house, "done" is never really the case.


Ignore the air conditioner, I know it's ugly but you do not want to be around me when the temperature is 90 something degrees and there is no air. Just trust me on that one.





I ended up going with two colors. In the future we'll put a chair rail up but for now a roll of painters tape was a whole lot cheaper. The top is a light gray that I mixed and the bottom is my old favorite, Clear Moon by Behr.



It was a subtle change but the lighter color really made a difference in the room. Before the paint was very blue and I'm loving it toned down a bit.






I'm thinking of putting some sort of wall lamp on either side of the hutch. I had a candle sconce up but I think a soft light would be nice in here. Hopefully I can find something vintage that we can rewire.





And we finally got those lights switched around. I'm thrilled with how the schoolhouse light looks in the kitchen.












There's a special message on that chalkboard. More about that tomorrow.....