new house tour {the playroom}

this big girl wants to be your tour guide through the playroom.  it was naptime, but she wasn't interested, so she helped me take some photos instead ;)

i think i may have already give you a bit of a sneak peek at our toy room, but for those of you who are interested in a closer look, i thought i would give you the full tour.

that is the front door to our house there on the left, and this room is technically the "front parlor", but its placement at the bottom of the stairs, and directly off of the family room made it a perfect spot for me to tuck all the kids' toys.  sure, i wish it was down in the basement so i can close the door and ignore the mess (like it was at our other house), but it is really nice to let the kids play while i am working in my office, or in the kitchen, and have them on the same floor as me. 

the toy storage unit was from target, and i was thrilled to find both woven baskets and wire baskets to store toys in.  i like the look that ties into other spaces in my room, and sort of jazzes up all the primary colored plastic crap toys.  ;)

look closely....see those two bottom teeth poking up?!?!  oh, and can you catch the bruise on her forehead?!?  now that she is mobile, she tries to crawl into spaces she can't quite fit into anymore.....

she is a pro at pulling out and emptying these boxes of toys.

this is a table that my hubby made out of a door he found in the basement.  it is perfect for crafting with little fingers, and as you can see, markers are a fan favorite in this house right now!

yeap, this little monkey wants to be a part of all the action.....she pulls herself up to the table and colors too ;)

or hides underneath it.  lol

we used one large wall as a gallery space to hang all my favorite photos of the kids.  i love this.  i think it totally personalizes the room. 

this sweet face leaves a trail of toys behind her......

thanks for stopping by!  

gotta get back to eating my toys playing! 

sun, sand & chalk

so i have to admit, it was a good idea to move our sandbox to our new house.  i thought that it was probably more of a hassle than it was worth, but hendrix loves it. and it is special as it was something that my hubby made for him for his birthday last year.  it is parked right outside our back door, and hendrix loves to sit out there.  he will even just go out and play on his own while i am making supper (our yard is fenced in), and i love the independance he is developing. 

of course, he loves it when i am sitting right next to him as well, as then he can show me all the cool things he digs up.....

his serious faces while he plays just crack me up.  he is so full of laughter and lightheartedness, but when he starts concentrating, that face sure resembles more of a frown than a smile.....i am certain that he gets that from his daddy ;)

and while one thing can hold his attention for so much longer than it used to, he likes to know he can move on to the next thing at his own pace, not when mommy directs.

i love watching him play with blaire outside.  their little feet get filthy and they soak up that vitamin d.  so glad that my kids love to be outdoors as i love it too.  i could just sit and watch them play for hours!

i feel really badly that i haven't used my 'good' camera on my own kids nearly as much this summer as i have in the past.  i think the ease and access of my iphone has made me feel it less necessary, but i really want to make an effort to focus on it more.  i don't want to just catch the big moments - like the first day of preschool (which is coming up next week!) and birthday parties (hendrix's third is this weekend!); but i also want to catch those lazy weekday mornings playing out in the yard.  

  

i want to see all her expressions as she takes in the world that is rapidly opening up around her.

i want to remember those pudgy, chalk-covered toesies before fall hits and we have to start wearing shoes......

this face?!?  yeap, i love it.  every single bit of it.

happy sunny day, all.  hope you are enjoying it!

new house tour {blaire's room}

Are you ready for a little peak inside my new house??  Come check out the nursery! 

I am really happy with the way my little Blaire's room turned out!  I was wanting something sweet and girly as I had a shared, gender neutral nursery before; but I didn't want to get too crazy with the budget since she is growing like a weed and won't most likely be in her crib all that much longer.  Something that would easily grow into her big girl bedroom was a must!

My mom crafted these adorable wooden letters to help her old nursery seem a bit more girly, and I love how well they work in her new room as well!

Fortunately, the previous owners of our home had really good taste, along with both a daughter and a son like us, so the paint colors in the entire upstairs have stayed the way they left them! Blaire's walls are mostly an aqua blue color with one accent wall a lime green.  This worked perfectly as my previous color scheme was green and I had all white furniture.  I brought that along and found ways to add pink for a girly pop!

Do you remember that pinterest project I made to hold Blaire's bows?  I think it makes a fantastic fashion statement as a piece of wall art in her room.....if only it came close to holding half her bows..... ;)

This aqua mirror is something I picked up at a thrift shop long ago (before I even had Blaire) to use in a photoshoot and I thought it worked perfectly with her color scheme.  My hubby convinced me to hang it low, at a toddler level so she can actually use it.  Someday I think it would work well above a little dresser to be an eclectic vanity.

To give myself a ton of flexibility, I ordered simple pink sheer curtains, and bought paper lanterns from hobby lobby to hang above her crib for three dimensional interest. Yes, I did want a sweet crystal chandelier (the $200 one from pottery barn), but that isn't in my current budget. I think the lanterns will do for now ;)

Some simple bedding accessories may have been my biggest splurge for the room, but this sweet personalized pillowcase from pottery barn kids will be a great accent piece for whatever bed she grows into, and since she is past the need for bumpers, I thought a really trendy patterned fitted sheet was a great way to spruce up the corner of the room her crib is in ;). Not sure how much longer chevron will be all the rage, but I think it is stinkin adorable!!

This whole carpet thing is pretty new to me as our old house was exclusively wood floors.  I try to protect patches with area rugs, but it seems impossible to keep such light colored carpet clean with a messy eating, crawling babe. Solutions??!

Lastly, my good friend, sarah dorn of mama peacock, created this awesome decorative piece that goes just perfectly in her room.  It is made from an old window and I adore the rustic, shabby chic feel it adds to her room!  There is something very feminine about it to me ;)

That's all for now!  Very girly and very pink.  I'm kind of jealous of her room, folks! Lol

shutterfly photobook

 i just ordered blaire's nine month photobook tonight.  in today's digital age, this is how i like to save, cherish and display milestone photos of my babes. 

what do you do with your kids' photos?

Click here to view this photo book larger

Shutterfly photo books offer a wide range of artful designs and embellishments to choose from.

beach waves

last week i went and got a perm.  

yeap, it has definitely been at least 15 years since my last one (maybe even longer). 

i forgot how much they smell.

and how long they take.

though i have to admit; at this stage in my life, 2 hours of alone time to read at the hair salon, without my children.....might not be a bad thing. ;)  

i think turning 29 hit me hard.  i feel old.  keeping my hair long makes me feel less old.  and since i did need a change, and wacking it all off wasn't going to be it, i decided to get a beach wave perm.  nevermind that the summer is almost over, and it might have been more appropriate during the summer time (you know, the beach thing?!?). 

i like it.

alot.

a little before and after. 

whatdayathink?!?