North Carolina Home Tour - Part 1

Hi! It's been a while. I have this super awesome blog post for y'all but I can't publish it because my dear sweet bestie has demanded asked that I post some photos of the home we're renting here in NC. I've been putting it off because I haven't been able to stage it like all of the other blogs that do home tours (i.e. throw everything that proves people actually live there into a closet) but then I realized that unless my schedule drastically slows down and my children go off to camp for a week or two, that's never going to happen. Oh well, this is reality people. Also, just to keep it extra real, [E] decided she needed to be in *almost* every photo :)

This is (obviously) the outside. I took this photo in January so unfortunately the grass was still brown and patchy and the trees weren't in full bloom yet. But hey, who am I kidding? This was taken in JANUARY! And there isn't snow. Ahhh ;) 

Here we've walked through the front door and in front to your left is a small entry way. Since we aren't that far from the beach and I love seaside decor, you'll notice this theme throughout many rooms of our house. (Crazy girl had to jump in front of my camera every chance she could.)

Continuing to your left (through that doorway to the left in the photo above) is the living room which is approximately one quarter taken up by our fluffy bunny and his enclosure. In this photo I'm looking back at where you just walked in.

So looking at it the living room from the other direction (as if you had just walked in that doorway) you can see the playroom through the double wide entry. It's actually the formal dining room but it's way cuter as a playroom. Plus, the kids can paint and use Play-Doh in there without me worrying about carpeting. And I can keep an eye on them while their playing and I'm doing dishes or ordering take-out making dinner.

Moving on into the playroom, you'll note that it's a cacophony of colors. Our girls love them some rainbow colors so between the decorations and the toys, it's a feast for the senses. You may notice there are some of the same toys as we had in [K]'s playroom at our apartment in OH (take a peek at this old blog post for a refresher) but we've actually gained some new ones. Shocking, I know. The toys would take over the house if I let them, not that I don't contribute some myself, much to the chagrin of my husband.

Looking back the other direction toward the living room. The pennant flags above the Muppets and their artwork spell out their names but they're pretty washed out in this photo. Also, there used to be a mini trampoline in the corner over there but literally a day or two before I took these photos it broke. Eventually I'd like to make the girls a play store for that area.

Moving on through the rainbow streamers is the kitchen. It's always kind of a jumbled mess so this was the best I could do. The kitchen really is the heart of the home, isn't it? Plus, why is it that no matter how big your kitchen is, it never seems big enough?

Looking the other direction is a disembodied baby head, the door to our deck (on your left) and the door to the garage (on the right.) The windows look out to the backyard. And if you turn around and head out the doorway in the photo above you walk past the laundry room on your left, the powder room on your right, and end up back at the front door.

So that's essentially the first floor of our house. I'll try and post photos of the upper floor soon but we have some work to do in the office and [K]'s room so it might be after the weekend.

Also, if you have any questions about anything you see in the photos, let me know. For the most part I can remember where I bought stuff, or if there's something weird looking that requires clarification.

Take care,
 ~ [J]

E's 4th Birthday Party

I can't believe I somehow missed covering the incredibly fun party we had for the December Birthdays on my Mom's side of our family (minus one cousin who had moved a few weeks before) and for little E so she could still have a fun party before we moved.

I had wanted to do a fun circus themed party for awhile but I thought that probably it would have been for K's birthday since it's in the summer and then I could have had carnival type games outside. However, since she's older, she has her own ideas about what she wants for her parties.

Usually our parties are around the lunch hour but for this party we had a brunch with amazing homemade crepes made from an old family recipe. Such a good idea!!! I found this great idea from Kid's Birthday Parties on using cut marshmallows to look like popcorn on top of cupcakes.

I found most of the decorations at Target and they were even on clearance too! I had the girls color a few pages out of a Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Baily coloring book I had been holding onto.

I even learned how to make balloon animals for the party. I can only make a dog though. The lips and mustaches on the straws came from Catch My Party and they added a very fun touch. The kids loved playing with them, and by kids, I mean my Grandpa.

I had hot air balloons hanging over the dessert table. The mobile was one I found at Ikea quite awhile back and the paper ones I found on the Sparkle Power blog site.

The treat bags and circus animal headbands were also from Target. Unfortunately we never ended up using the face paint stencils. Bummer!

E loved her cupcakes (what's not to love - marshmallows AND Nana's famous buttercream frosting).

The birthday girl got some help opening her gifts from her lovely big sister, K.

It was a fantastic and memorable day for everyone there. We combined several traditions, had a ton of laughs, and enjoyed the company of some wonderful family before we moved. All in all, I'd say it was a success!

Take care,
~ J

Birthday Portraits

Every year since the girls turned one I've been taking them to get photos done. It's not like I don't have hundreds of photos of them that we've taken over the course of the years but there's something about having a professional take them that makes it extra special for the girls.

Unfortunately, I was very behind in getting their appointments made so it's really [K]'s 7 1/2 year portrait. I was late on [E]'s too but at least it's closer to her January birthday. The only downside to being late is that there won't be such a big difference in her physical appearance between these photos and her 8 year ones.

Here is [K]'s yearly photo for the gallery wall:

This is the one I selected for a smaller 5x7 frame:

Lastly, I let the girls select one that they liked best and this is the one [K] picked. She told me she liked this one best because she looks so happy. I love that :)

Here's a link to recap how [K] has changed over the years.


This is [E]'s yearly photo for the gallery wall:

Here is the one I selected for the 5x7 frame:

And this is the one that [E] selected for herself:

As a recap of how she's changed over the years, here's the link to her previous photos.

Lordy, Lordy, Look Who's 40!

I remember when I turned 30. It was a big deal for me. I had an idea when I was in my 20's about where I would be in life when I turned 30, and my actual life was nothing like what I pictured. By the time I was thirty I had been married and divorced, twice (yeah, I wish I had waited until I was a little more emotionally mature), I lost the house in the divorce so I had to move back in with my parents, and I didn't have kids yet. Definitely NOT what I had in mind for myself at 30. It was a very hard year.

But now that's 10 years behind me. Sure 40 sounds old (to me it does) but I don't feel old. Most of the time I still feel like a teenager and wonder when I'll feel like a "grown up." That's not to say I haven't had to deal with many grown up issues (being <thisclose> to buying a house but then backing out at the last minute, losing close relatives, the loss of our second child at 30+ weeks) but through it all I've never become bitter or cynical. Sure, I may not be in the shape I was when I was 30, but I'm *happy*. I have an amazing partner and best friend in my loving husband, together we have two beautiful, polite, kind daughters, we recently made a huge life change by moving from the Midwest to the South East, and I have the incredible love and support from our wonderful families and friends. And when it all comes down to it, I think that's all you can ask for, no matter how old you are.

Take care,

{J}

St. Valentine's Day Crafts + Free Printable Cards

Hi! Long time no see. Thanks for sticking with me through this long absence.

In case you haven't heard, our family moved from the Midwest to the Southeast two days after Christmas and it's been very difficult to get back on any kind of schedule. I'm v.e.r.y. slowly unpacking boxes and getting things put away. The clutter drives me crazy but it's not enough motivation to really get it done. I think I got burned out from the stress of Christmas, trying to squeeze in as much time with family and friends before moving, two birthdays, packing, and the actual move that I have no real desire to unpack. I'll get there though. Soon, I hope :)

Valentine's Day will be here in a few days and if you haven't already decorated, here are a few quick and easy ideas we used last year.

I made the XO banner by printing out the X's and O's in a large, simple font right onto pink and red paper and then cutting them out. I used a hole punch and wove red bakers twine and then taped them to the window.

For the hanging hearts, I cut 1" x 11" strips from the same pink and red sheets of paper and then folded them in half. I curled the ends around a pencil to form the curled middles. I used a sewing needle and fishing line to string several together and then used glue dots to secure the two ends together into the heart shape.

(The other decorations were purchased at The Dollar Tree.)

The other craft I made is this LOVE painting, using the girls feet as the V. I struggled a bit making the letters free-hand, but all in all I think it turned out nicely.

We also had a St. Valentine's Day themed Muffin Tin Lunch. Everything was either pink or red. They had cherry tomatoes, strawberries, cherry yogurt, red M&M's, watermelon, and raspberries. I even gave them pink spoons!

Finally, I crafted up these free St. Valentine's Day printables. I started with a heart maze from Mr. Printables. (His site is awesome. You should definitely check it out.) I changed it a bit to work for a Valentine card and made the maze just a bit harder since [K] is in second grade after all ;) She'll sign her name to the front and we'll tape a pencil to the back. Easy peasy!

To download, click on the image above.

I hope everything is going well with you all (or should I say y'all now that I'm from the South?) We've taken a ton of awesome vacations lately and I haven't made a "Vacation Slideshow" post in a really long time. Be on the lookout for that soon.

Take care,

J