Thanks EcoStore :)

A couple of weeks ago I got a tip from a friend that I should check out this store called The EcoStore for some cheap furniture or cheap hardware. As it turns out they didn't have furniture and there selection of hardware wasn't what I was looking for, however, on my way out of the warehouse there was a section roped of that said, "Free Zone" and there was this old school end table just sitting there waiting to come home with me.  I went back into the building to ask someone if I was really reading the sign right and the nice lady behind the desk gave me the green light to load it in the back of my swagger wagon  mini van. SA-WEET!!!! Even though the table was straight out of the seventies it was FREE!!! I don't ever pass anything up that is free.  Here is what the side table looked like.

 This table sat in my garage for a couple of weeks before I started because I went back and forth with what I was going to do with it.  I didn't want to spend a lot of money so I used paint that I already had. The paint color is called Swiss Mocha by Behr and it is my absolute favorite.  The color isn't stark white and it is not cream.  I call it a "warm white." Her is how it turned out....



The hardest part of this whole project was making the template for the 4 little decorative cut outs on the front of the table.  I wanted to give it a little bit of detail so I thought I would try my hand at mod podge and scrapbook paper again.  I had tried to use mod podge and scrapbook paper once before and it turned out to be a total disaster, so I was a little hesitant this time.  I said a few prayers before I started and it turned out flawless!!! Yay me!!!  I got the scrapbook paper and the pulls at Hobby Lobby for 50% off.  This table cost me a total of $5 to makeover.  WoO HoO.  I just wish my camera took better pictures because this table is really a beauty, but with the bad lighting and so so camera, you lose some of the fine detail of the pattern on the scrapbook paper and the distressing.  A big THANK YOU goes out to The EcoStore for this great table. P.S. I grabbed a really cool cream can too (Hey! it was F-R-E-E)







A-hunting we will go.......

Yep, it is that time of year again! The time of year that Aaron lives for.  DEER SEASON! This was the first year that he was able to take the boys out hunting with him.  Josh was the first one to go out with him on Saturday afternoon. Aaron said he did really well. He asked typical Josh questions like, "Dad, are all tree stands made out of metal?" and was able to sit still for longer than 5 minutes.  They did see some deer but none of them were "shootable". Whatever that means??? 

Joshy in the tree stand

Joshy WAAAAAAAY up in the tree stand

Jake went out with Aaron on Sunday morning. Let's just say that Jake is not cut out for deer hunting.  We all know that Jake has the attention span of a gnat and his mouth never stops moving.  Jake was not born with a "quiet" button.  He is either LOUD or well.....LOUD.  He really likes hunting but hasn't quite figured out that he has to sit still and be quiet. They had a deer come right next to their tree stand and Aaron tapped him on the shoulder to let him know that there was a deer down there and Jake turned his head as fast as he could and yelled.......WHERE!! Needless to say they didn't come home with a deer on Saturday morning.  LOL!

Jake getting ready to walk out to the tree stand

Here is a picture of Aaron hunting on Thursday

Aaron propped up on the tree waiting for the deer to come and feed in this field

Wondering who took this pic??? IT WAS ME!!! I actually went out with him on Sunday AND Thursday afternoon and we had the best time.  When I had mentioned to him that I wanted to go he said, "Sure, I can actually spend some time with you and I don't have to talk to you"  Nice, real NICE! (He was joking of course)  I never thought I would enjoy hunting, but I can see why men (and some women) find this appealing.  The coolest part was that he actually shot a deer but we couldn't find her. We followed her blood trail forever and Aaron and 2 others actually went back out with flashlights and looked everywhere, but she was no where to be found.  Thursday we actually had 4 deer come right in front of us but Aaron said they were to close to shoot.  They were so close that Aaron couldn't get into position without spooking the deer. Oh well, I guess that is why they call it hunting and not shooting. Sometimes you get the deer and sometimes the deer gets you. In all of these cases, the deer got us!    LOL  The best part about being out there are the beautiful sunsets. Here is a pic of the sun just before it falls below the horizon.  What a great way to end the day.  :)

Happy Hunting!!!  :)

It's finally done!

PFEW!!! The chest of drawers is finally DUNZO!  I can't tell you how many countless hours I have spent on this thing.  It gave me fits from the get go and at one point I was ready to haul it out to the curb. I am glad I didn't because I LOVE the way it turned out!  Here is a before picture.....

Totally 70's. Look at that GAWDY hardware! Yuck  : P

I loved the chunckiness of this piece and I loved how the drawers had some detailing in them.  Here is how it turned out. 

I primed and painted and originally didn't plan on distressing this piece but it kind of happened by mistake, so I just went with it.  I would have liked to bring this inside to take a really good picture of it but I don't even have 1 inch of free space in my house, so for now, it is staying in the garage.  I have looked everywhere for hardware for this thing and I just couldn't find what I was looking for.  I knew what I wanted but it was no where to be found until.............TARGET!! Everyone knows I LURV me some Target!!! It is my favorite place in the whole wide world.  I get everything at Target.  Why not furniture hardware, right??? It is my new favorite go-to place for hardware.  It is nice and affordable and I think they even have a better selection than our Home Depot. Huh......Who woulda thought??? 

Aaron actually liked this soooo much that he is trying to convince me to sell our chest of drawers and keep this one.  Hmmmmm!!!  I bought the matching dresser also and I really wanted to sell them as a set but now I am thinking that maybe they both can find a new home in our bedroom. If I do end up keeping these I would like to put decorative legs on them to give them a little more UMPF!!! We'll just have to see!   : O

 I have 2 pieces of furniture that I am currently working on right now that I am totally excited about. Wish me luck! One of them could be tricky!!

My new blog spot :)

My new blog spot is finally complete. Desk painted--check, chair painted and reupholstered--check!  Ever since I found my desk I was on the hunt for the perfect chair.  I knew that I wanted a chair that I could reupholster with a really cute fabric so I knew that this chair from the Goodwill would be perfect. 

I wish I would have taken a before picture of the chair because it was UG-LY.  I originally had a different fabric picked out for this chair but in true Kelly fashion, I changed my mind at the last minute. 

I did have a really cool mirror that I bought at a garage sale to put above the desk but Aaron broke the mirror when he was trying to adjust the hanger on the back of it.  Oh well, I guess it is better that he has 7 years of bad luck instead of me.  He He He!!  All I need now is a cute little lamp and I won't have to blog in the dark. 

P.S. I will reveal the contents of the desk in a later post.  That needs a post all its own.  Stay tuned!

Invasion of the FURNITURE SNACHER!

I first have to say a huge THANK YOU and I'M SORRY to my husband Aaron.  In the last month I have completely taken over his garage. Did I say garage? I meant garage, tools and "man space." It is beginning to look like an episode of Hoarders over at my house.  It has gone from neat and tidy, I would even go so far as to say over-organized, to cluttered, dirty and disorganized.  Aaron loves his garage more than life itself. He would spend every waking moment in there if he could. It has a stereo, T.V and beer fridge (what more could a man ask for?)  On any given day you can find him vacuuming out the cracks in the concrete floor. No joke, he really does. This is what my garage looks like now.....

1 coffee table, 2 end tables,  3 dressers, a sick old refridgerator and Jenny (Aaron's boat).

Is there a 12 step program for craigslist?? I tell myself that I am going to stop but what girl can pass up a great deal or steal!!! Gone are the days that Aaron comes home and I ask him how his day was. Now he walks in the door and I say, "Ok don't be mad but I bought more furniture today.....but I got a great deal."  Not once has he complained (at least not to me) that it is no longer his garage but MY GARAGE!!! He even converted the bedroom in the basement to my "studio" hoping that would free up some space in the garage.  I told myself that I won't go craigslist shopping until I can get a couple more pieces painted and sold.  We will see how long that lasts.  ;) 

Buffet Makeover

It's funny how life works sometimes. It must have been meant to be for me to end up with this buffet from Aaron's Great-Grandmother. A couple of weeks ago when I was just starting my furniture rehab projects my mother-in-law said that she had this buffet that no one wanted.  It even sat a whole weekend at the garage sale in Ord. I don't know how many people probably walked by it that weekend, but I guess no one saw what I saw.  She was beautiful! Straight out of the 50's. I felt a vision coming on.  Not only was I looking for a buffet/server for my dining room but how cool is it that this piece of furniture has been in the family for close to 60 years.  And now she was mine, all mine!!! I kind of felt bad that I was going to change the entire look of the piece but I was assured that NO ONE else in the family wanted it.  So here is a before picture...




  Notice the checker board on the top three drawers. I initially loved it because it was so different but then I had an idea.  What if I sanded them flat?? Aaron didn't think I had it in me but I was out to prove him wrong. So I got out my 60 grit sand paper and went to town.  (I will admit, I was A LOT apprehensive. I mean, what if it didn't work and the drawers are ruined?) Where there's a will, there's a way. It took some tenacity and some muscles but the end result turned out awesome.   Here is the after....

I stripped the top and re-stained it a dark walnut color and painted the rest a color called Swiss Mocha.  I lightly sanded all the edges just to make them pop a little bit and glazed it with a light tea stain glaze.  After a couple of trips to every single Menards, Home Depot, Lowes, etc. store in town to find harware I finally decided on these, and I LOVE THEM!!! It doesn't even look like the same piece of furniture.  On Wednesday night Ken, Audrey and Kim came over to see it and LOVED it!!! If they are happy them I am happy!!  :)

My new desk

For months now Aaron has been begging me to get the laptop off of the kitchen counter so I thought that was a perfectly good reason to go to Target and buy the desk I wanted for $130. NOT!!! He was no-way no-how going to go for that so I started stalking craigslist (I hold this desk fully responsible for my now craigslist addiction) and found this little guy for only $10.

It has some great bones but needed a little facelift. I sanded it really well and covered all the scratches and dents with wood putty.

I decided to paint it black and I used Behr paint and primer in one in Forever Black. I told the salesperson at Home Depot that it goes against all of my being to not prime first but let me tell you, this paint is the Bomb-diggity!!! My desk has found a home in my dining room. Here is the after......

Isn't it Purdy?!?!?!

Desk-$10

1 quart of paint-$14

Knob-88 cents a piece

Grand total= $30.16

I heart AQUA!!

Who would have thought that me of all people would actually paint something blue/aqua. I am more of an earthy tone kind of gal but there was something about this color. I have been dying to paint something this aqua color by Rustoleum so when I found this table at the Goodwill for $5.99, I knew this was going to be my 1st aqua piece. My plan for this table was to just paint and glaze but when she was all painted up, she was screaming......"Distress me, big time"! So that is what I did. I love love love the way it turned out!!!! Now my next mission is to find 2 little chairs to go with it.

I really wish I would have taken a before picture. The table top was yellow and the legs were pink, yellow and blue. YUCK!!! So here she is....(of course my camera really doesn't do it any justice)

Folly Beach or Bust!!!!!

It is 11:15pm the bags are packed, Aaron and the kids are sleeping and I am exhausted. I can't go to bed for another 23 minutes because I got a wild hair up my butt and had to bake a loaf of banana bread for our trip. Why? Why?? Why??? Do I do this to myself.

We are hoping to leave anywhere between 2 and 4 am. It all depends on how much sleep Aaron gets. He has locked himself down in Jake's room and that is probably why he didn't hear the phone ring when I tried to call him at 10:00pm to have him come rescue me at the baseball diamonds. Get this......stupid me, I left the keys in the car all night. Not only did I leave the keys in the car, but I left the car on. Not running, but ON. DUH!!!!!!! I was in such a fluster when I pulled into the parking stall. All 3 kids were going in all different directions and I was trying to get out of the car to stop them from running in the street. Luckily there were still a few people left at the fields and I got some nice man to jump my car for me. Sometimes I wonder about myself!! LOL

12 minutes until my bread is done and I can hit the sack. Hopefully I will get a change to blog on vacation. :)

6 Days....

12 days.......

With temps close to 100 degrees and a heat index of 105 the only way to stay cool is to be in the water. So today we checked out the new Cooper YMCA outdoor pool. We were there for almost 3 hours and none of us got fried!!! Well....I got a little sun on my back but that is only because I had Jake applying the sunblock.

I was actually surprised at how much better Jake can swim this year than last year. He passed the swim test and was able to go down the waterslide. Go Jake!!! And Josh's swimming skills have improved also thanks to the YMCA swim lessons he recieved while in preschool. Maddy just hung around in the REALLY shallow water and wouldn't let me leave her sight. All in all, it was a great day at the pool.

Jake had a 6 o'clock baseball game which, in my opinion, should have been cancelled. There is no way that these little guys should have to play ball in such heat. OR maybe I just didn't wan't to sit out in the such heat and watch baseball. LOL Anyone who know me knows that I HATE the heat so I found a shady spot to sit with my KC Style BBQ sunflower seeds and sweat my bunzies off. :)

This is what summer is all about. Swimming, baseball and more...................

13 days......

Ahhhhhh....I can hear the sound of the ocean already. 13 days from today this is where I will be, Folly Beach, South Carolina in this exact beach house. I CAN'T WAIT!! The Masons are officially going this year. Can you believe it? I can't!! Well........don't count us in until you actually see us pull into the driveway at Eddie's Jeddy. (A lot can happen between now and then, ya know.) lol lol. Hey, I figured if we didn't go this year (after skipping the past, oh...... 5 or 6 years) our names would be mud and we would never get an invite back.

We will start out by driving up? over? to my sister's house in Cleveland, Ohio, stay for a day and a half, wake up early Saturday morning and leave with Kim and Cory to hopefully be at the beach house by mid afternoon on Saturday for a total of 24 hours in the car. With 3 kids??? How am I ever going to do this. I have one word for ya..................BENEDRYL!!!! NO. Just kidding. But I CAN say that the thought has crossed my mind a time or two. Wait, I have a better idea. I can drive the whole way so AARON has to deal with the kids. That sounds like a plan to me. And anyways.....if I let Aaron drive the whole time, it would seriously take FOR-EV-ER because he WILL NOT go over the speed limit. Puhleez!!!!

Boo Boo #1

Why is Josh the only one who ever gets hurt around here? I mean, seriously! Is it the fact that he has a much "bigger" older brother that doesn't know his own strength or the fact that he is just FEARLESS? If we can make it through this summer without going to the E.R.....it will be a miracle. Josh just learned how to ride his bike without training wheels so he is still a little unsteady at times, so what does Jake do?........He chases Josh down the sidewalk while trying to throw a ball at him. Somehow Josh flipped over the handle bars of his bike and landed face first on the concrete. I know it could have been a lot worse, but when Josh comes running up the driveway with a face full of blood, I have learned (from experience) to expect the worst. I got him in the house, cleaned up his bloody face and lip and the only thing he has to show for it is a really bad case of "road rash" LOL

That Josh, he can take a lickin' and he just keeps on tickin'.

There you go Kim, I know you were anxiously awaiting post #2

Peace and Quiet!!

Ah.....FINALLY.....peace and quiet. It's 9:30 the kids are asleep, the hubby is gone and I just enjoyed my coctail. The only thing I can hear is the fan from my computer and the ticking of my kitchen clock. My laundry is piled sky high, my bathrooms need to be cleaned and all of my floors need to be mopped, but instead of doing all of that, I am choosing to blog for my very 1st time. Yeah me!!!! When Kim set up my blog about 2 weeks ago I never in a million years thought that I would actually be "blogging", but here I am.

Over these last 2 weeks I have been trying to come up with a bunch of reasons why I should blog, but I could only come up with 2.
#1---It is a great way to document my life
#2..............I need something else to occupy my time so I don't spend sooooo much time on facebook. :) (Now Aaron will not only have to compete with facebook for my attention, he will have to compete with "my blog".) LOL

Whew.........I am done with my 1st post. (That wasn't so bad). Short and sweet!! :)
I only hope that this summer is filled with lots of fun, great experiences and possibly a beach vacation to blog about!!!!