Perpetual State of Un-Done

  My children have been out on "winter break" all week. We had nowhere to go, so it has been a long week, at home. Lol...I adore my kids, but you know,  they can wear me out...It is a season... quickly they are all growing up. I swing back and forth, I want them to be more independent, then I am like, NO! Stop growing so fast...I am schizo...Then,I look at all these amazing houses in blog world, and I am  stunned sometimes..."you have kids and look at all you accomplish"...I, on the other hand, can barely get the laundry done. Does anyone else feel that way? As I wander thru blog world, it can be, so inspiring and so cursing at the same time....I see all these parties, that are like "Hey, show us a finished room". Well, I wouldn't know what that looks like cause, here, it is a constant state of "not quite done".  That is OK, it is just how it is for me now, so in the midst of my mess, I am just trying to go, where the Lord would lead me. Whether it be blogging, or furniture flipping, or just raising great people, He is in control. Even in the middle of my mess.

 I am not complaining, just observing others, and trying to figure out, what is it, that would draw someone to read what I have to say....because, I have been getting traffic thru here...not bragging..I am actually shocked.  There are people, way more talented, more organized, more creative........maybe, my strength will be authenticity and sincerity...I can hope. In the line of importance, I am first- a daughter of the King, second- a wife, third-a mother ,4th a friend and everything else must fall below those things. I am not sure, how appealing those things are to someone else. OK, I will stop my rambling....I started out today to just show you my unfinished dining room....Let's do a link of unfinished projects!!


  I used to home school. I know  I told ya that. Our dining room, was the school room. I have been slowly turning it back to dining room. I just thought it would be nice, to have extra eating space at the holidays, to have a room for grown-ups to eat in,  maybe have my girlfriends over for bible-study and have a clean room to be in...It just takes me longer than average, to pull it together. It is also, my fantasy to have every room freshly painted after 13 years. I am almost there...just takes me a long time....Here are some pics of me playing around with the furniture arrangement in the dining room. I still have my own chairs to paint and recover. The ones you see are a client's, who is patiently waiting on me, to finish her table....( I will show that soon, it is really pretty) Just trying to get a visual.  I am also looking for a rug to place in there, (cheapy), and curtains.  Here is what we are working with so far..... You know, I love yall, right?? Well, I do....

I am not keeping the china cabinet, It is still for sale, but I have it for now, so I can enjoy right???
although, I do love it....but no...NOT keeping...unless, it never sells, then I keep....

Notice the junk and the yellow walls, ....and the cute kids....

tv cabinet with more kid junk stashed inside...
the chair is going to be re-done, they go with my table

my table, from my mom, before I painted the top Country Gray...

more crazeee

 Wall color is Sherwin Williams- custom mix paint, my sister made up, it is called Beth...
she named it, not me.....

customer chairs, they will be gone soon....
The chairs going in their place, I am painting them old white, distressed, and they will have
 gray, khaki, blue  ticking on the seat

horsey cabinet and grandma's dresser...

still deciding on window dressing, I think I want some kind of ticking????

rug....maybe a sisal or ????? you can make a suggestion..

More Baby!

OK, I am done with my little niece's star and shelf for her nursery. I will be painting on some furniture for her later, but I got excited and did some decorative pieces for her. You saw the metal star I decoupaged and now here is the shelf. This is going on a long dresser we found, that will also be the changing table. This shelf can hold diapers, towels, and other baby items. We are going for a vintage, boho, shabby look.
I think this thing was in a store for commercial display, or even looks like shelves, you see at the public library in the kid's section..... Anyhoo, it was 11.00!!! That's right, 11.00! WHY 11.00? Weird. random price..but Hey, We will take it!! Here it is! Enjoy! Love! Happy Sunday!

I am bad about taking the before pic, I had already started spraying this thing
when I pulled the camera out! It was a bad, very yellow, shiny wood....

You can see a little yellow back here. I sprayed it an aqua blue, then dry brushed it with home-made
chalk paint in a cream color, then distressed a little...

Now, this is left over paper from the star, so I just laid it out
in a random way, Not perfect, just how I thought ts should lay

another view, then I took it off, painted on the modge podge
and laid it back down...

keeping it similar to the star....

let it dry between coats of modge podge, I use matte finish...

some lil mason jars for baby products!

It is a duck puppet wash cloth....stuff like that cracks me up....

Here ya go, little baby girl!!!

I am headed out this evening, for a night off from the kids! I am going with my girlfriends, to celebrate my b-day! For, tomorrow, I shall be 43....which according to Oprah, is really 33!!! ;)

For the Kiddies....

The Old Luckett's Store is in Lucketts, VA. It is the coolest store. I have never been, I go via their blogsite. Y'all have to check them out. They have the most beautiful junk! They also do a link party, on things we find on pinterest. This week's theme is kid's rooms. I have always loved doing a room for a little person! So fun! I am still tweaking  my boy's room. We have finally, got my youngest to co-habitate with his brother. My youngest is in k-5. He just stopped sleeping with us...well, almost....anyway....I'm trying to get their room organized so they can have a lil more space. I will let you know how it goes....I always feel like, I might not make it out alive, when I go in there to clean.
 Here are some really nice kids rooms, where the family has a maid, and 2.5 kids and a 2012 SUV, and 5000 square feet, and a dog that never pees in the floor....lol!! Just kidding...Enjoy!

This is so crisp and light....love bunk beds for a bunch of kids.
I would sleep in this room....I would close that curtain and yall wouldn't see me again....hee hee
from DesiretoInspire.net

well, this is just FUN...and cute!
from chiccheapnursery.com

Lake-House kids room!! Definitely!
from homeideas.com

I need this bathroom, bad....You need a good bathroom set up with many kids...
Haven't figured out how to achieve this for cheapy.....
from designdazzle.blogspot.com

I threw this in, this is actually, my girl's room-
Bed in a closet to get more space

I have a post about this where I explain how we did it!

             Be sure to visit Luckett's!

Baby Boom

 
     I know several people having a baby right now. I know of some, who are adopting! That is good, cause it means I am still young enough to be in the loop...the very outer fringes of the loop, but still there. One of my close friends, who is 42 and preggers, and my  little, sister-in-law (who is still a baby herself!) not really, but seems like it.  I follow a blog of a precious couple who are adopting from Ethiopia. All sweet stories, of babies on the way. I am super- excited because, I am helping my sister-in-law, pull the nursery together! I love a baby room! So many things you can do, and so fun! We went junkin this week and found a shabby, frenchy dresser, that will double as a changing table. We also found a vintage rocking chair, and a great shelf. She is getting a crib and old armoire, that I used for my babies. I am getting ready to go to TOWN, with the paint!! I love that she is gathering furniture from different sources and not going for a Babies R US, mass produced nursery set. I wish everyone would do that. Recycle and re-purpose!! You will love it so much better that way, people! She has a great sense of style and this baby room is gonna be beautiful, I can't wait to show it off, and the beautiful baby that will dwell there! In the mean time, I made the baby a lil present to hang on her wall. I got inspired from Pinterest. A store on Etsy makes these, but I made this one. I found a metal star, it is 24 inches. My sister-in-law and I went to Michael's and picked out scrapbook paper that she liked, I decoupaged it onto the star, that is it..... beautiful star. I have been in a decoupage mood lately..... I also made a treat on Pinterest, but I did a semi-homemade version, it is pretty darn delicious....I had to take a pic of it, too....Enjoy, Love!

5 different patterns, lots of color choice !

close up so you can see how stinkin cute they are....

I love that paisley and the pink flocked damask...

Super Easy, super cute, hey... by the way, my table sold!  Blessing!

I will reward myself with a plate of these....JK, just a few, anyway

chocolate cake-brownie with raspberry buttercream icing....I could eat a whole bowl of the icing, because
the tart raspberry cuts the sweetness, lol!!!

Here are some great parties below, go check them out to see other wonderful things, people have made!








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We Love, Because He First Loved Us....

In Light of Valentines Day, I wanted to post about Love, but not romantic love, or even friend love. I wanted to share with you just a couple of the ways God has shown His love for me and my husband. We have 5 kids, but 2 are adopted from Guatemala. My Sam, and Mary Elle (we call her Mia for short). I was looking at their pics on the mantle, as I was doing my monthly dusting, lol! I am never ceased to be amazed at what a blessing they are, how much we love them, and how God brought them to us. His providence in our lives and the way he constructed of our family, is proof that He exists, but that He is also, a loving God.  I have a personal blog, Party Of 5, where I have shared our adoption stories,   birth story, and guardianship of our nieces. You can read them if you want, but I just wanted to share a couple of sweet picture memories of Sam and Mia here. The first pic is of Mia, when we had just arrived at the airport, finally home from Guatemala. We had Sam home already. He was 11 months old, when we finally got to bring her home, and she is 17 months here. We held them up to meet each other, and she grabbed him and kissed him in the ear. It almost looks as though, she is whispering something in his ear. They have been like peanut butter and jelly since that day!

See, looks like she is telling him something.....

My best friend, took this picture of  my husband with Sam. He is really trying to run,  and be a big boy, although, he is just 15 months here. Then my mom, who is such a great artist, got the picture and painted it on canvas., I love this canvas. It is personal. It isn't some random landscape or bowl of fruit, which are fine, but they never move me like a picture of a loved one.  When I look at this painting, I always remember that day, and how Sam was running with is dad, and how these are the moments that are fleeting. They grow so fast. Not just fast, but lightening speed....All of these things remind me of the Lord and how He loves us, because none of this would be, without Him...

original photo done in sepia

Sam and his daddy.

1 John 4:19
We love because He first loved us!

Happy Valentines Day