Sunday, March 29, 2015

A Paint Tip

 

I’m the world’s worst painter. That’s not really good for someone who LOVES painting furniture and changing wall colors every other week.

When my husband painted the big boy bedroom for me, he left me to do the trim. It was looking dingy and gross, so I knew I had to do something about it. Free handing it was not an option.

That’s where the packing tape, Frog painting tape, an angled brush, white paint, and a paint scraper came in.

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Here’s what to do…

  1. Trim the top part of the trim with the green Frog painting tape. You can use the blue, but after lots of experiences I have found that the Frog tape is THE BEST!
  2. Then, use the cheap packing tape {like the $1 kind} to put as close as possible to the edge of the wall on the carpet.
  3. Use the paint scraper to tuck in the tape tightly to the edge of the wall.
  4. Then, paint without having to worry about getting paint on the carpet or on the fresh paint job.

When the paint is dry, just remove the tape, and you have nicely, trimmed out baseboards and door frames.

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Thursday, March 19, 2015

Coming Out of Hibernation

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When Spring starts to appear, I start thinking of all the things I want to do. You see….I like to say that I hibernate in the winter. You know the kind. As soon as it is dark, I am done for the day. The pajamas are on. The blankets are out, and I basically shut down the house and think about all the things I can’t wait to do when it is warmer.

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But then Spring arrives! And it is finally warmer! And I can’t seem to decide what I want to do first.

I have a to-do list a mile long, but then I can’t wait to be able to finally go outside my house and soak up the sunshine and play in the yard with my sweet boy. He would rather be outside than anywhere, and I can’t half blame him.

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The weather has been gorgeous for nearly two weeks. In those two weeks, we have been to the farm to relax and ride the mule {not the animal} and just enjoy the little moments in life that God blesses us with and we often take for granted.

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I am thankful for these little moments because I know one day {that will come too soon} those moments will disappear, and I will be wishing I had them back.

So, I take too many pictures and videos. I put projects on the back burner, and I spend time with my little family.

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It’s the simple life, folks. Take a step back and take a deep breath.

Enjoy every moment.

Monday, March 9, 2015

A Love-Hate Relationship

Day Light Savings Time arrived once again.

Knowing that I’m losing an hour of sleep makes me loathe the time change this time of year. I hate losing that one hour, and I especially hate when my already struggling sleep schedule gets all out of whack. I have trouble sleeping as it is. I certainly don’t need to be staying up any later because my brain and body thinks it’s an hour earlier.

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But….then there is the love part of my relationship with time change…..particularly the daylight part. Can you say more daylight?!?!? One little boy in this house is going to be very happy with all of this daylight left to play outside in when we get home in the afternoons.

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So, after I recovered from the hour of sleep I lost….plus some, we took advantage of the beautiful day and ventured out for the first time in a while. Temps in the 70s and sunshine. There’s not much more I could ask for  in a day!

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We enjoyed some time at the farm. Landry is so much fun at this age now because he recognizes and talks about nearly everything he sees. We saw cows and fed the fish.

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He’s definitely going to be a Daddy’s boy when he gets old enough to hit the farm with his dad to explore, work, and just have fun out there.

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Anyone else looking forward to the first signs of spring?

Sunday, March 8, 2015

A Dash of Schoolhouse for the Teacher

Each month I decide ahead of time what purchases I want to make towards the home. It’s a tight budget as we try to pay as much as we can on our house, so we can get rid of this mortgage hanging over our heads. So far, we’re making great progress, but that’s another topic for another day.

The point is. We are debt free except for our house, and we plan to stay that way. We pay cash for everything, which is why I plan out any expenses for the month of things I want for the house, Landry, or myself.

This month is a month of birthdays, so the expenses were more directed towards accessories here and there instead of big item purchases. Keep in mind when I say big item purchases….I mean over $100.

This was one of those smaller purchases. A $36.41 purchase to be exact. A heck of a deal on a light fixture if you ask me.

You see…..we started off with this.

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It must have been here since the house was built….maybe not….but it’s definitely been there for 20+ years. It’s the only light fixture in our house that hasn’t been updated in a while. I’m not saying all of our light fixtures are great because they definitely are not, but they were upgraded at some point…even if it’s not my taste.

Even though it’s just a hall light in a hall we don’t use that often, it was driving me crazy.

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I found this beauty at Home Depot for less than $40. The reviews online were awesome, and everyone raved about how nice it looked and surprised them for the great price it was.

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It is the World Imports Luray 1-Light Oil-Rubbed Bronze Semi-Flush Mount if you’re looking for it.

And now for the side by side…

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Small and simple fix, but it makes me happy. Big thanks to the husband for putting it up for me. None of my ideas would be possible without him helping me put them into action.