Yes, que the Tony Toni Tone, because “It’s our Anniversary”!
Thank you, Antonio for yet another wonderful year together. Hope this makes you smile.
(I made this Stop Motion film to tell our story) Enjoy.
143 ADL
Category Archives: DIY
Outdoor plans
Spring is in the air. And doesn’t it just make you want to get outside and do something?! Well in my usual restless manner, I’ve been staring out at our backyard, then searching the web for ideas. Here’s what the backyard looks like now.
our blank canvas
And because I’m a very visual person I had to sketch it out for myself to see.
*Because I am as open as a book (no, not really) I will share these for your entertainment purposes*
My first rough (very rough) drawing of the yard. 
I did this second using Paint on the PC, ummm….. you get the point, right?
I did this version using a free online gardening program. Unfortunately you can’t save what you’ve worked on, so I just took a picture of the computer screen. 
Here’s a look of what we’re going for. Hey! Nothing wrong with having high hopes and big dreams right?!
Here’s some our ideas so far. Granted, all of these are definitely not going to get done this year.
- enclose patio pad to make a sunroom
- put up privacy fence
- lay pine stray in strip of yard where cypress and magnolia trees are
- plant ground cover
- clear large level area where massive weeds/vegetation grows
- have pavers, or stamped concrete installed in that area for foundation of a patio/outdoor kitchen
- have steps build leading to patio area
- spread mulch in bare areas
- create a water feature next to the patio area
- buy a grill
- learn to grill something besides burnt hotdogs on the grill (but aren’t burnt hotdogs the best?!)
- build/buy/have installed outdoor kitchen-grill area, countertops, bar area
- build/buy/have installed a pergola
- plant a couple of fruit trees
As we tackle each project I’ll be sure to post about it. And will eventually cross it off of our growing list.
As it gets nicer outside are there any plans that you plan to take on?
P.S. It’s killing me to watch the DIY Channel. I want to be on Yard Crashers. I keep strolling around in Home Depot and Lowes trying to practice my surprised face!
Easter Baskets for older kids
Teenagers (and tweens) are tricky. They’re in that no mans land of weirdness, between childhood and (OMG) adulthood. You know, they want their cake and eat it too. Want a car, with no job. Want freedom, with no responsibilities. I could go on, but I know I’m preaching to the choir.
So now with Easter it leaves me a little confused. A while ago we changed up our Easter egg hunt to include money and cute treats and prizes, which still works pretty good for them. But what about Easter baskets? They don’t sell baskets for older kids, plus they’re usually pretty pricey. So I just headed out to the store for cute things that they like. Here’s a few of the things I included:
- nail polish
- bath loaf
- socks
- chocolate bunny
- Starbucks gift card
- sunglasses
- hand lotion
Nothing cost more than $5 and were all similar to stocking stuffer type gifts. I’m figuring that making a basket for older girls would be much easier than for boys, but I’m sure it can be done.
Here’s the finished baskets for Monkey and Turtle D.
As well as the Little One’s basket, which was pretty easy to put together. As long as it’s either pink or has Dora on it she’ll love it!
And after shopping for little trinkets for nearly a week, I realized that I hadn’t gotten Baby J anything! So here’s her pitiful little basket.
Hey! She’s too young to be offended!
Pinterest challenge
It’s that time again! I think I’ve mentioned before how much I love Pinterest. And I think I’ve also mention just how much I LOVE doing STUFF. It doesn’t matter, big or small, there’s always some type of project going on around here. Hey! I can’t help it.
Anyways, last fall I participated in the Pinterest Challenge (fall edition), hosted by a few of my favorite blogs YoungHouseLove and Bower Power. Well, they’re back again! This time they brought along The Great Indoors and Hi Sugarplum! Stop by and give them a visit and check out the cool things others have done!
In short the point is to get moving and actually create some of the amazing ideas that you’ve pinned on Pinterest. So I did. But uhhhhhhhhhhhh. Well it’s still in progress But I can tell you it involved a sheet of house insulation and 30 poster boards! Yeah. Hold your horses people it’s coming.
But if you’re new here check out my other projects. And thanks for dropping by!!!
Money's DIY paint chip artwork
Easy DIY bookshelf
Marquee Letter (Pinterest challenge Fall edition)
Play kitchen (Pinterest challenge Fall edition)
Oh, and because I’m cool like that, you can follow me on Pinterest here. You’re welcome.
Paint Chip Art
UPDATED:
Last fall I participated in the Pinterest Challenge (fall edition), hosted by a few of my favorite blogs YoungHouseLove and Bower Power. Well, they’re back again! This time they brought along The Great Indoors and Hi Sugarplum! Stop by and give them a visit and check out the cool things others have done!
Here’s what I’ve been up to.
Decorating a new home can be challenging. Decorating a teenager’s room can be even more challenging! When we moved into our new home about two years ago, getting the kids settled into their new rooms was a high priority. However everything many of the suggestions that they had were way too expensive for decor that they could soon grow tired of.
So I scanned the internet looking for cool and colorful ideas and found this. (here)
DIY paint chip artwork inspiration
It was all pretty easy to put together. The hardest part was actually collecting all of the paint swatches. But since we were already in the home improvement stores almost daily (for real) it wasn’t that bad.
DIY Paint Chip Artwork
Supplies:
- Paint chips in assorted colors
- Glue (we used rubber cement)
- mat or board of some type
- scissors
- rope light (optional)
- Determine your color palate and type of paint chips you prefer.
- Estimate the amount of each color needed, and add extra for mistakes.
- Collect chips. (Don’t feel guilty for taking so many. If you’re like me, the money I’ve spent in these stores has more than paid for them!) Plus, they’re FREE!!! And if it makes you feel better, collect them over a period of time instead of all at once.
- Determine your desired pattern and glue paint chips into place on board. Some chips may need to be cut to accommodate the entire board.
- Affix rope lighting to the back of the board.
- You’re done! Hang artwork then kick back and enjoy your masterpiece!
Monkey’s favorite color is purple. So we incorporated it, along with other bright and lively hues.
Monkey's DIY paint chip artwork
Here it is back-lit with the rope lights. It looks pretty cool.
artwork back-lit
artwork back-lit with lights off
We accessorized by purchasing a thrift store chandelier and spray painting it a bright color. Then added colorful tissue paper as flames.
thrift chandelier
Painted chandelier with flames
Monkey's room before
Monkey's room after
Easy DIY bookshelf
UPDATED:
Last fall I participated in the Pinterest Challenge (fall edition), hosted by a few of my favorite blogs YoungHouseLove and Bower Power. Well, they’re back again! This time they brought along The Great Indoors and Hi Sugarplum! Stop by and give them a visit and check out the cool things others have done!
Here’s what I’ve been up to.
I try to cut back on the clutter around the house. So occasionally we purge items that we no longer need or use. However, with Baby J’s arrival that means holding on to many things a bit longer.
Crib, swing, stroller, baby bounce this, baby bounce that, you know, all of the things that I couldn’t wait to get rid of and that includes the many, many baby books. Don’t get me wrong. I love reading to Baby J and the Little One, but there comes a point where things start to get out of hand.
So the Little One helped me tackle the task of creating a separate space for her books.
First we cleared out the shelf. Then we sorted the books. She liked this step because she got to point out all of the “baby books”. From there……well the books stayed stacked up for a few days as I tried to figure out how I was going to make the Little One a book shelf. And she reminded me several times that she NEEDED a book shelf so that she could put her books away.
So this is the basic look I was going for. Not so much the style, but I like the slim profile of it and how it’s not free-standing, but is attached to the wall. I wanted to take advantage of the space behind their bedroom door, so this wall mounted style was ideal. You can check how it was created here.
This can be done a number of ways. This is what I did.
A while ago when the Borders in town was closing and selling everything in the building I picked up these two shelves (of some sort) for $1 a piece. So here’s what I started with.
Other supplies/tools I used were scrap wood, wood glue, circular saw and paint. 
I used a leftover piece of pegboard and placed my “shelf” over it to trace the bottom board of the shelf. Next, using the circular saw I cut it out, then glued the two pieces together. After it dried I primed and painted the two shelves.
I attached two keyhole fasteners to each shelf, and drilled two keyhole screws into the wall.
And the finished product.
The Little One and I are pretty proud. She now has her own bookshelves just for all of her “big girl” books.
Do it yourself people!!!!
The weather here in GA can be so if-y. Last weekend it looked so sunny and bright outside. So I promised the Little One we’d go to the park. We all get dressed and are ready to enjoy a nice stroll down to the park until we open the door to feel bone chilling winds. Ok, that may be a bit dramatic, but it was cold, ok kind of cool. You get the point. But that wasn’t the only surprise. Our front yard was scattered with tree branches, as the top of one of our trees was now on our lawn. That sucked! Here’s a look.
Since it was the weekend I decided to wait until Monday to call someone about the clean-up. And seeing that I am a law-abiding tax payer, I thought that this may be a service that the county provides (free of charge).
Negative! But the nice lady I spoke to pointed me in the right direction. I called a tree removal company and set up an appointment for a free estimate. When the guy came he asked if we wanted to take down the whole tree. When I told him no, he quickly told me that they have a flat rate of ……….$300
So here were our options:
- have the company that picks up our trash haul it away. Pros: we’ve had the same trash service since we’ve moved here and have never had a problem with the company Cons: time-consuming to bag it up ourselves, costs to buy tons of specific bags for lawn waste plus additional charge to haul it away
- have a tree removal company handle it. Pros: they’re professionals Cons: $300
- do it ourselves by renting a truck and hauling it off to a dump. Pros: works with our own schedule, would be a good workout, wouldn’t be $300 Cons: time-consuming and labor intensive
- let it stay and pray for a lost wandering clan of beavers to pass thru or tell the Little Ones it’s building material for their new fort
We went with option…….4 3!
I called a local landfill that only accepts yard and construction waste and was told that it would cost $10-$15 per load. And because we don’t know anyone with a big pickup truck we headed to Home Depot to rent one. Did you know you can rent a truck from Home Depot? And it’s only $19 for the first 75 minutes!!! I know!
The day before we stacked the branches in a more organized fashion into numerous piles to make the loading process faster. The kids even came out to help. Without being told to! Sidenote: Do most people pose while doing yard work? Just asking.
This tree was like “The Giving Tree”, like the gift that just kept giving. The tree top didn’t look that big until you kept moving branch after heavy branch!
Finally off to Home Depot to retrieve the truck. Only when I got there I was told that someone else had just rented it. So after several attempts over the next two days we finally got the truck. Here’s my Dad helping out and the truck all loaded up.
It took a bit longer than expected to load up the truck and dump it at the landfill (I got a little lost ) But it was totally worth our while.
Here’s the cost breakdown:
$15 landfill drop off fee
$30 truck rental fee (first 75 minutes $19 additional hr $10)
$15 gas refill
TOTAL= $60 compared to $300 for professional removal. No brainer…..Do It Yourself People!
Sure it took twice three times as long, but for a saving of +$200 I’d do it again any day.
I can’t stop!
A few months ago I found one of the most amazing things on the internet Pinterest! I’m sure most of you already know what it is, but if not, it’s basically a virtual
bulletin board that helps you to keep track and organize all the neat things you find on the web. It’s really cool because you can add anything you see online to your “boards” and can even browse thru other people’s.
You can check it out by clicking the link above. And I’ve also added a “follow me on Pinterest” button in the sidebar on the left of the screen. (down…down….there it is)
So now that I’ve found my new best friend, I use it for meal ideas, recipe finder, craft inspiration, decor themes, fitness motivation, new blog finder, well you get the point. There’s a lot to see and do.
So check it out, but beware, it’s kind of like watching the Lifetime movie channel on a cold and dark Saturday. Hours later you’ll wonder where the time went!
Rolling in the dough
It can be hard at times to keep a toddler entertained. Sure, they love Nick Jr and Sprout, but what about options that don’t include the tv? And now that it’ getting cooler outside, the options are even more limited.
The Little One is now in the “I want to help” stage. Which can be cute for about as long as it takes for her to make a mess, which isn’t too long. That means that any activity that allows her to “help” is a plus. So I decided that we’d make homemade play-dough. I used a simple recipe that was pretty easy to do and fun for the Little One.
I premeasured all the ingredients so that all the Little One had to do was pour everything into the pot and mix. Here’s the recipe.
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup warm water
- 1/2 cup salt
- 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup salt
- 1/2 Tablespoon cream of tartar
- food coloring
- rubber gloves
Mix all ingredients (except for the food coloring) in a pot on low heat. Eventually it will begin to
look like mashed potatoes.
Let cool.
Knead dough until it is smooth.
Separate dough into four sections and roll into balls.
Use your thumb to press a well into the center of it. 
Place several drops of food coloring into the dough balls.
Knead coloring into the dough. Use rubber glove so that your hands don’t get stained.
Add more food coloring to achieve the desired color.
The Little One loved making the play dough. We did it right before I started cooking dinner and while I cooked she entertained herself. But just when I thought to remind her not to mix up our pretty colors that we just made, I went over to see this.
Oh well!
Halloween costume
Who doesn’t love Halloween. Is it the candy, the dressing up, staying up late, or watching scary movies? Either way kids love Halloween. Our two oldest can’t decide if they want to dress up for Halloween yet. The last time I asked there was an argument over who came up with the idea of being Nicki Minaj…………….Ok, that’s not happening!
Anyways. Last year I made the Little One’s costume due to my over confidence in my diy-ing skills and my unwillingness to spend a ridiculous amount of money on a baby costume. Plus if it looked a mess she still couldn’t talk much yet to complain about it! She was Minnie Mouse, naturally because she already had the major prop needed. Huge fro puffs= Minnie Mouse ears.
Here she is as Minnie Mouse
Halloween is now less than a week away, and I still have no clue what the Little One will be this year. Here are a few of the Little One’s favorites that are possibilities:
Minnie Mouse (again)- I could re-use last years costume, but she’s a lot more active this year than last year. And I’m afraid that because my sewing skills aren’t the best, her costume may have a chance of falling apart in the middle of one of her “I got candy!” celebration dances. So in the next few days I could make another one.
OR
Peppa Pig – She loves the cartoon and has even been calling herself Peppa Pig lately. But no one would know who she was.
OR
Homemade animal costume, like this giraffe (it’s the Little One’s fav animal). I found this one online with easy instructions.
Either I have to get busy. Wish me luck.
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