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As you may have gathered in my last blog and previous blogs, I am continuously being pushed, I mean, strongly challenged, by my husband. He is the master of setting extremely high goals and doing whatever it takes to finish them. We’ve been working on our place for over two years now, so he’s really dead set of finishing this project.
The problem is that my personality has always been a little more chilled out. My attitude has always been “whatever gets done is good enough for me.” This attitude, my friend, can really put my man in a tailspin. So after seven and a half years of trial and error, he is constantly trying to figure out what best motivates me. Sometimes it’s a little too much to take. Let’s see, we had “Work November” right before Christmas, not to mention all of the “What are your goals for today?” conversations. And here’s the clincher: last week he asked me to clear my social schedule from then until the middle of March to chip away at “Project List of Twenty-ten.” Seriously?
Okay, I admit, the worst part is that some of his tactics really do motivate me. I said some. And for whatever reason, this honkin’ list really has gotten my propellor spinning.
It took us the entire day to go around the house making the stupid thing. But, man. I’ve been knocking the projects out like bowling pins. I gave every piece of furniture that was ugly or dirty a fresh coat (or several coats) of white paint.
Like this little guy. This was given to us by my mother-in-law the year we got married. And by the way, MIL, this was in the dirty category…not ugly. I promise.
And this big ol’ sucker. Actually, there are two of these. They came from a school auction and I think we paid $7 a piece for them. I know it doesn’t look like it, but a lot of work went into these puppies. Four coats of paint each, not including primer. They were black to begin with. Oh, and very ugly.
Another chest of drawers got in the way of the white paint brush as well, but it’s not pictured. It’s still too embarrassed about it’s ugly hardware that still needs to be replaced. But, these lamps were rescued by a can of pistachio spray paint from Big K.
They felt a little naked until I found these sweet dandies.
Then, there was some sewing to do. Two cushions for my fireplace. The fabric came from IKEA—made the flight with me from Houston and everything.
Score! I ran across these “DIY Tapestries” at Walls Bargain Center (along with the lamp shades above). What a find! Right here in western Oklahoma. I think they came from Urban Outfitters. My heart was really racing when I spotted these bad boys. Definite fabric freak-out in the aisle. As you can see, I only have concrete plans for one of these pieces.
Shower curtains for my bathroom. Still not sure that I love these. They will do for now, but I feel a replacement coming on soon.
Recover my ironing board? Why not? This fabric came from Hobby Lobby.
Window treatment for my craft room. I wanted to keep the natural light peeking in, so I didn’t line them or anything.
Curtains are hung in my room. I love them! It’s very hard to find window panels that long. Thanks, IKEA. You’ve done it again.
A headboard for our bedroom. It’s not quite finished yet, but you get the idea.
And last, but not least. This guy got a definite makeover. In fact, it might’ve actually been more like a gender reassignment surgery than a makeover.
Booyah!
And I’m spent.
Don’t get me wrong. Do I know think setting goals and finishing them is beneficial? Yes. Do I make a habit of writing a daily/weekly/monthly/yearly list of goals in order to check them off with gratification? No. Do lists motivate me? Yes. Do I want to string my sweet husband up by his ***** when he presents/bullies me with his motivational tactics? Definitely. Am I grateful to have a husband that sets high goals and achieves them consistently? Yes. Do I love him dearly despite of it all? Of course. Have I managed to get this stuff done and still managed to hang out with friends and family? You bet your bippy.
***** = teeth. Geesh, people.
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Meet Molly. She thinks outside the box. She says that the SB v-neck tees look amazing on little girls, too.
I completely agree. What do you think?
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When I was hanging out with my BFF in Houston last week, I had plenty of time to sit around and do nothing. No one to cook for, no one to tell me they ran out of clean underwear, no one to deem the week as “Paint Week” or the day as “Clean Wednesday” or whatever. (I’ll get into that a little more later. It’s a whole other blog. Sorry, Jbird.) So, that 6-year-old curly-noggined chickadee in my last blog and I decided that doing a craft was a must.
My sister, Jodi, and I had just talked about wanting to have a go at felt food construction. So, when my friend, Amy, posted about making a felt sandwich and chips on her blog, it really sucked me in. Tractor beams. I found a free pattern at Snazzlecraft. I didn’t have access to a printer, but it was pretty simple to look at the pattern and copy the best I could. It was really fun and I was so happy with the end results!
I had to do all of the stitching, but my little helper got to do a lot of the cutting (the lettuce, the american cheese, and the pb and jelly—not shown). I also didn’t have access to a sewing machine, so I couldn’t make ridges on the chips. No Ruffles. Had to stick with Lays.
I ended up leaving our felt fabrication for her to enjoy with her play kitchen. Be assured, however, that this will not be the end of my felt food extravaganza. There will be more, folks. I’m thinking cake, ice cream, steak, and maybe even sushi. I’m not above any of it. Bring it on.
In fact, my sisters and I have already gotten together and made another sandwich, chips, and pickle spear. Yep, I said pickle spear.
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My favorite Christmas gift this year was from good ol’ Jbird. It was a plane ticket to visit my old college roomie/BFF and her growing little family. So, last week, Wildman and I packed our bags and headed to Houston. I have to say, he was a star pupil on both the trip over and back. It could’ve been because he was born such a sweet-natured child, or my splendiferous parenting skills,...or possibly the fact that I was incessantly cramming apples, crackers, pretzels, raisins, and juice down him as we were reading his Charlie and Lola book for the gazillionth time. Whatever the reason, I was proud of my boy.
It was so good to see that gal. We only get together about once a year, but it’s always the same. I love that. The main objective to my trip was to be introduced to her sweet, hairy boy that she produced about 7 weeks ago. He was even sweeter than I could’ve ever imagined.
She also has a spunky, curly-haired daughter that Wylder holds in high regard. And, how could you blame the boy? Just look at her.
And the fact that she owns a Barbie Jeep only deepens his love for that girl.
Or the basketball goal.
The doll stroller doesn’t hurt either.
By the way, that was seconds before I was on my hands and knees cleaning up two puddles of pee pee on the newly installed bamboo floors. Yes I said two.And it wasn’t from this gal.
Or this gal.
All I wanted was a nakey pic of my son pushing a doll stroller. Is that too much to ask?
Anyway, lots of laughing, lots of shopping, lots of poopy diapers, and lots of fun was had.
But, in the end, with our Charlie and Lola book and an extra suitcase full of IKEA merchandise in tow, we had to say our goodbyes. Goodbye the Barbie Jeep, goodbye to IKEA, and goodbye to dear friends. Unfortunately, we did not get to say goodbye to poopy diapers. Maybe next time.
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Kate, from Oklahoma, was caught reading our book!
Enjoy the adventures of SB, Kate! You look very cute reading, by the way.
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And the winners are…
First of all, it was COMPLETELY random! Just watch! Secondly, pay no attention to my boy’s open zipper and the overflowing trash in the background. That’s just how we roll, folks. Today, anyway.
Congratulations, winner #1, Karin!
Karin had some good solid names. She said,
Adam or Jake!
Congrats to your sister!And winner #2, Erica, who said,
we love hayes…
And I do love that name! It’s the middle name of one of my dear cousins.Thanks for playing! We’ll do it again soon. And remember, Smitty Baby loves you! Signing off…
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Hear ye! Hear ye! It is now time to awaken from thy post-holiday stupor! It’s time to win stuff, baby! For all my Smitty boys out there…do I have something for you? Why, yes…I do! I am giving away two (yup, you heard me right, TWO) SB Hand-dyed Vneck Tees. One in platinum, one in spruce. You pick the size. Two winners will walk away with a SB Vneck (shooting straight their way via mail) this coming Friday. That’s two winners…one shirt each. Just clarifying.
To enter:
Since this post is all about boys, and my preggo sister is birthing a boy in April, you must let me in on all your great boy names so I can suggest them to her—-like I thought of them first. Just leave your ever-so-clever boy name (or names) in a comment below. Make sure to include your email address so I can email you if you win!
Winners may be randomly chosen. You’ll never know. I’ll never tell. Contest ends Friday at noooooooooon!
Good luck, my friends (and/or family).
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I really don’t know what to do with myself today. Everyone in my house has been going full force since Thanksgiving. Jbird’s been working diligently on writing bail bonds, collecting money, and a bit of bounty hunting on the side. He’s also been trying to squeeze in building our “bookshelf wall” that will separate our living area from the studio. Wylie P. has been consistently wanting to be fed, consistently pooping his pants, and consistently trying to convert our toilet into the world’s tiniest whirlpool. I’ve been chipping away at Smitty Baby orders (thanks to you all!!!), trying to keep my tiniest red-head out of hunger, poopy pants, and the toilet. On top of that, and parties, and cleaning, and family, I’ve been bound and determined to do a fair share of handmade gifts this season. Why, you ask? Because,
1. handmade gifts are always my favorite ones
2. I caught wind that my oldest sister was making us pillows and I wanted to one-up her
3. my husband brought back the world’s largest bag of colored felt when I sent him out for a few pieces. Seriously, I could wallpaper my whole house in felt. Heeeyyy….that might not be a bad idea…So, here’s what my small, oddly flat, and somewhat veiny hands worked on up until exactly midnight December 26th. (Yes, I know. I said December 26th. But, some of my creations were for family we wouldn’t see until after Christmas. Just call me Procrastination Peggy. It won’t hurt my feelings. I am dealing with it.)
I decided on making these for my mom and sisters after finding this on one of my favorite design websites. They are glasses cases. I tried my hand at some stitches I had never learned before. It was fun. I stitched their initials on the back. I didn’t take a photo of the lettering because it looks like I never passed 2nd grade penmanship. But hey, it’s the thought that counts…right?
I made these for my nieces and kept some for myself. They can be worn as corsages or hair clips. I especially liked making the covered buttons. It had been since eighth grade Home Ec. that I had done covered buttons. So fun. So quick. I’m all about immediate gratification.
I also made a plethora of SB felt flowers, hand-dyed tees, and a memory game similar to this one (except for the cat one) for my nieces and nephew on Jbird’s side. I really wish I would’ve gotten a photo of the memory game. Shoot.Is it just me or are there soooooo many awesome ideas for handmade gifts online this year? I really should’ve started earlier. I could’ve made things for each and every one of my friends and family members. Oh, well. There’s still next year and a bazillion birthdays between now and then.
Did you get a handmade gift Christmas?
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Look what I got for Christmas this year. Well, not really for Christmas, but it came today, just in time for Christmas.
And it’s red. Yippeeeeeeeeee!
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