Valentine's Day Decor

I have to admit, I have a difficult time with Valentine's Day decorating. I don't use much red or pink in my home and, although I make an exception for this particular holiday, it doesn't mesh well with the rest of my decor. I also find that so many commercial decorations for the holiday of love are on the silly side. And not the good kind of silly. I keep a little bit of silly around here for our wee ones but try to keep it to a minimum. Putting out their special school projects is a must but balance is key here.



Here are some Valentine inspirations that would make Cupid proud. I'll show you my own festive touches in another post. All photos courtesy of the wonderful Better Homes and Gardens website.

Paint Colors

I often receive comments and emails asking about paint colors. Welp, I'm not shy about sharing them so I thought I would put them all in a single post.

Shall we start downstairs?

Living Room:

Walls ~ Coventry Gray by Benjamin Moore

Ceiling ~ Wickham Gray by Benjamin Moore (we had this one color matched at Home Depot though (big mistake in my humble opinion) and I believe they mixed it slightly bluer than the actual BM chip)

Dining Room:

Walls ~ Coventry Gray by Benjamin Moore

Ceiling ~ Clear Moon, Semi-gloss finish, by Behr

Hutch ~ Cottage White by Behr

Kitchen:

Walls and cabinets ~ Clear Moon by Behr

Ceiling ~ Same Wickham Gray as mixed above

Everything Room:

Upper 2 Walls ~ Brown TeePee by Behr

Other 2 Walls ~ Wallpaper by Target

Lower Walls ~ Clear Moon by Behr

Ceiling ~ we left alone so I'm unsure of the color

Door ~ Sunwashed Blue by Ralph Lauren

Okay, heading up the stairs is the same Coventry Gray/Wickham Blue combo through the hallway.

Master Bathroom:

Walls ~ Antique White by Behr

Ceiling ~ we left it alone so I'm unsure of the color

Master Bedroom:

Walls ~ Georgian Green by Benjamin Moore

Ceiling ~ Clear Moon by Behr

Hailey's Room:

Walls ~ Hazel Woods by Ralph Lauren

Ceiling ~ Clear Moon by Behr

Emidio's Room:

Walls ~ Mineral by Behr


Ceiling and trim ~ Clear Moon by Behr






Ella's Room was color matched paint as well and I'm not sure of the original color. I'm trying to get her to agree to a room redo but so far she isn't going for it. Who will win that one, hmmmmm......

A Rough Weekend

We lost a very special four legged family member on Friday, our sweet Yorkie Casey was called to the rainbow bridge. It's been difficult. Casey was my parent's dog but he was mine too. He lived to be almost 15, just about half my life. When I was in high school, I really wanted a dog. My mom and I drove out to a breeder that had a litter of both Yorkies and Maltese. I fell in love with tiny Casey and the breeder said she would hold him so that my mom could bring my dad back to meet him. I had to work that night and my parents took the drive back out.

When I came home from work there stood my mom in the kitchen holding my little baby puppy. I didn't think I could be more thrilled....until my dad walked into the room with a Maltese puppy. You see, my dad fell in love with another dog....but my mom had promised me the Yorkie. So they came home with two. We named them Josh and Casey and they were like brothers, they were buddies.

They ran around the house like crazy as puppies, playing and wrestling. Casey could fit behind the couch but Josh couldn't so there would be a lot of teasing as Casey stuck his head out just a bit from the couch and Josh would go nuts of course. They were fun and we loved them. Like any dog lover knows, they were part of the family.

Josh passed on a year and a half ago and now Casey has gone to join him. The kids are heartbroken. I know going to my parent's house for the first time will be difficult on them. Like my mom said, even at just 3 pounds, that pup had such a presence in the house. He will be terribly missed.

We've gone through periods of sadness this weekend, along with pangs of guilt as well. There are people suffering in Haiti and here we are crying over a dog. But I'm going to not let the guilt take over. He was special to us, to our family, he was our "Casey Doodle," our "Noodle" and our family.

Rainbow bridge picture source: http://ottawadogblog.ca/tag/remembering/

Guest Posting Today For Rue...

I'm hanging out at Rue's place today. Come stop by and say hello! And for those coming here for the first time, welcome! I'm so glad you stopped in.

You can read my post Here .

Sometimes....

Sometimes it's the smallest things that bring a smile to my face....

Like a sweet tin in a perfect shade of blue....

Purchased from: Taras Vintage Kitchen

Or a mirror that is so worn you can barely see your reflection

(some mornings this is a very good thing)....

Purchased from: Ebay

Or sometimes it's a chippy old number that represents our family of five....

Purchased from: Gracies Cottage

Sometimes it isn't the expensive or showy things that speak to us.....it's the simplest of things that become treasures.

The one that got away

Picture source: Ebay

Did you ever pass something up at the flea market, antique store or at a garage sale....and then had regrets?

For me it was a scale like the one above only older and chippier *sigh*. It was love at first sight and $40. I lingered at it for a while and eventually walked away due to cranky kids and a hungry hubby. I've been kicking myself ever since! The hunt is on to find another like it, one of these days I'll come across the perfect one and it will be mine.

Tell me about your one that got away.

Happy Thoughts

I have a friend, her name is Sarah. We "met" on a pregnancy forum in 2004 and have been friends ever since. I love her and her adorable family to pieces. Not sure how you can love someone you've never met in person (she's in Texas and I'm in Pa....it's a problem) but I do.

How cute are they??







Sarah is pregnant with her third precious baby and recently found out about a complication. This complication means she has to sit her tush on the couch and rest. Not much fun for this normally active chick. AND her hubby has to work from home to help take care of her and the kiddos. Need I say more?



I'm not one to ask for prayers but if you could send some of those (if that's your thing....if not, happy thoughts are acceptable too) her way, I would so appreciate it.



This is her blog:


http://mamacanon.blogspot.com/




She's bored and her rear end is numb but I know your comments will put a smile on her face.