Fresh Start Sunday

Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve,
as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD."
~
Joshua 24:15 (NIV)

Brown & Gold Throw Pillows

I helped my brother repaint his office/den this past weekend. He wanted the walls to look like chocolate, and with the help of Ralph Lauren Starry Night paint, the walls are about as chocolate is you can get! He loves it, which I'm so happy about!
(No before or after pictures, only one during picture,
I can't believe I was that forgetful!)
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He has a vintage gold armchair in his office that needed some new eye candy, so I made him a few slip covered throw pillows.Each pillow not only contains shades of browns and golds, but the fabrics also have a great vintage feel to them. I think they're going to be perfect!

Ceramic Egg Crate

I listed this ceramic egg crate from Anthropologie as one of my Favorite Things (minus how extremely fragile it is) and now I have good news for anyone not living within close proximity of an Anthropologie...
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you can find almost identical egg crates at JoAnn's in the Easter decor section!
I picked one up for less than $5 by using a JoAnn's coupon.
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Now when if my Anthropologie one breaks, I'll have a back up!

Cruisin'

Summer
+
Grand Haven
+
Me
+
Eric
+
His & Hers Scooters
+
Date Nights
+
Cruisin'
+
Awesome
=
I CAN'T WAIT!

You Know You're a Crafter...

...when your two year old refers to her play tent as "Hobby Lobby"
oh, if only I was joking!

Monday's 10 Things

Here's what I'm most thankful for, right now!
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1. A nice date night out on Friday, celebrating Eric's birthday.
(And a nice 8 ounce filet with Gorgonzola cream sauce, oh yeah!)
2. A very productive Saturday on both errands and projects.
3. Claire's quilt top is almost done!
4. Great songs in church this Sunday.
5. A two year old who loves to sing hymns.
6. Eric getting me all set up for an evening relaxing in bed when I wasn't feeling so great.
7. A relatively easy time with potty training so far.
8. Sunshine and 38 degrees felt so good.
9. A successful afternoon of painting with my brother.
10. He did all the cutting in, so I didn't have to.
(it's not my favorite part of painting!)
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What are you most thankful for today?

Fresh Start Sunday

He has showed you, O man, what is good.
And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.
~
Micah 6:8 (NIV)

Favorite Picture of the Week

If you're wondering where to find me,
I'm probably sitting somewhere near here...Any tips or advice, send them my way!

Pretty Packages

I've been eyeing these awesome decorative tapes from TapeSwell for some time now but haven't bought any.
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A few of my favorites include...
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So you can only imagine my excitement when walking through the aisles at Michael's, I spotted these!
Yes, I did a little happy dance, right then and there.
Yes, I bought one in each pattern they offer.
Yes, they were only $1.00 each.
And yes, I will check back for new patterns.
Thank you very much.

Surviving Winter

I happen to like winter. Fresh snow falling is kind of nice.
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But I have my limits. Snow in December and January is nice. Snow in February is not. This is the point of the year that I go into survival-mode. Just make it through until the sun returns to Michigan and green begins to reappear.
~
Lucky for me, we have a gardens and sculpture park about 4 minutes from our house. Claire and I have been heading over there on a fairly regular basis the last few weeks. Something about spending time in the tropical conservatory gives me hope that Spring and warm weather will return to Michigan. Here's a little sample of some of the flowers we see in the conservatory.
Now can you blame me for being such a regular there???

Monday's 10 Things

Tuesday Edition thanks to a fun family weekend getaway!
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Here's what I'm most thankful for, right now!
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1. A great family mid-winter getaway.
2. Watching my little girl loving the water.
3. Spending time in an 84 degree room,
pretending it wasn't a snowy blizzard outside.
4. Seeing the crazy things Eric will do, all to make his little girl laugh. (Think standing under 1000 gallons of water falling down at once, I was so glad he did it so I didn't have to!)
5. Spending time with great neighbors who happened to be vacationing at the same place we were, what a fun surprise!
6. Claire's reaction to her Valentine's "party" I had prepared for her after we got home.
7. A healthy delivery for my friend who just gave birth to twin girls. (And now I get to shop for pink for two little 5-pounders, eek!)
8. My brother who has been handed a few lemons lately, but is definitely handling it well.
9. My husband, who is celebrating a birthday this week!
10. A date night this upcoming Friday night, woo hoo!
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What are you most thankful for today?

Happy Valentine's Day!

We love because he first loved us.
~
1 John 4:19 (NIV)

Fresh Start Sunday

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love.
But the greatest of these is love.
~
1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIV)

Love Languages

Have you read this yet?

I love this book! My husband and I have both read it, and it has made such a difference in our marriage. We learned that we're polar opposites when it comes to our love languages, but that's just fine. It has totally changed how we relate to each other, and how we try to meet each other's needs in their own love language.We recently just gave it as an engagement gift to a couple and we hope they get as much out of it as we have. So if you're still looking for a Valentine's gift, here's my recommendation!

Ready for Valentine's Day

Not that I was a Grinch before, but I have found that I LOVE holidays so much more now that Claire is in the picture. She gets so excited about little things which makes everything so much fun!
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Here's my stash of Valentine's goodness to surprise her with...
Still working on a Valentine's Day menu...thinking everything needs to be red, pink or heart-shaped. And yes, that's a special Valentine's tablecloth with pom-poms I made for her little table.
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And Valentine's Day activities...wondering if I'm nuts for doing home manicures/pedicures with a two year old??? She's never had her nails painted and would probably think that's really something special!

Valentine's Gift Tags

Our MOPS leader asked each of us discussion group leaders to make up small Valentine cards for the girls in our group. MOPS is planning to give each mom a flower, and wanted us to include a little something with it.
~
For my cards, I turned to one of my favorite card-making supplies, paint samples!
Seriously, how can you go wrong with names like these...
Fusion
Sizzle
Fusion
Pink Singe
Hot To Trot
Radiant Rose
Fire & Ice
Burning Love Cute!

Monday's 10 Things

Here's what I'm most thankful for, right now!
~
1. Two weeks spent with my brother and new sister-in-law.
2. A successful wedding and bridesmaid dress shopping trip.
3. A really fun play date with my MOPS group.
4. During the play date, when my little girl gave me a big hug and said "I love you!" (That's how I knew she was having a good time!)
5. Connecting with other moms.
6. A family getaway this upcoming weekend!
7. Major progress on projects at home. Nothing officially checked off my list, but huge progress still feels good.
8. A husband who brings me home a chai when he knows I'm having a rough day.
9. After a few days of two year old temper tantrums, an entire day where Claire has been nothing short of an angel!
10. Watching the Super Bowl with neighbors and watching our daughter and their kids play together so well.
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What are you most thankful for?

Fresh Start Sunday

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.
~
Proverbs 31:30 (NIV)

Blissdom

Oh, if only I was heading here this weekend......maybe someday.

Score!

If you follow Mia Joie, you know that each time she lists her products, they sell out within minutes. I have never been fast enough to snag up some of her beautiful hair clips or shoes, until tonight!
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Yes, at the time she promised she would list some products tonight, I sat at my computer and hit the "refresh" button until I saw the products pop up!
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It was worth it, because heading my are these...
Lyla HeadbandSet of 4 Small Belle Clips
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This is too perfect as Claire's hair is right in that awkward, in-between length right now, and I've been seriously considering just cutting it all off. These clips will help this growing-her-hair-out process look much better!

Loving this Quilt!

I've found a few quick moments here or there to start on
Claire's second quilt.
So far, I'm loving the look, it's exactly what I was going for! I wanted a quilt that looked a little vintage, but not too Great Grandma-like. I also wanted something that could sit on the end of her bed for many years to come and I think the combination of more vintage-looking floral fabrics along with some more modern Amy Butler fabrics works really well.
Of course, this is all the easy part.
The true test will come when I start sewing these squares together!

Monday's 10 Things

Here's what I'm most thankful for, right now!
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1. A really enjoyable dinner out Friday night.
2. Meeting Sarah.
3. A blast bowling with family on Saturday.
4. Wedding dress shopping this week with my new sister in law!
5. We're almost done with our taxes, bring on the refund!
6. A week planned full of fun activities.
7. There's still daylight at dinnertime.
Now to get the temperatures to rise a little too!
8. My major project to do list for this week, keeping me on track.
9. Our neighbor's house is for sale.
Here's hoping a really nice family buys it and moves in.
10. A roast and veggies in our crock pot, our house smells so good.
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What are you most thankful for today?