what things may come {a project list}

One of my many goals for 2012 is to better document all the projects I do through the year…big and small. I took the first half of this January to recuperate from the holidays and reflect on the last year. But now that were just a few days from February, it is time to get back on gear.

I have been keeping a list of project that need to be done over the next few weeks. Many of them have a Valentines Day focus, which may seem odd for someone with no love life. Well be doing cute and fun…not romantic. Bear with me. Please! With enough chocolate, we’ll get through the lovey-dovey holiday without shedding any tears and then move in to bigger projects.

Pinky swear.

In the meantime, here’s a quick list of some of the things I plan to tackle soon:

• tiny mailboxes
• “sour cream tube” valentines
• cookies, gum paste, and food-safe markers
• love is in the air {a v-day blog hop}
• kitchen re-organization
• crochet dish scrubbies
• Cricut circle valentine swap
• what to do with a stuffed fireplace

Whew! I’m tired just reading that list, and I’m sure I will think of other things to add to it.

I know blogs without photos are boring, and I’m sorry that I don’t have anything new to share today. How about a little eye candy?

What? I like cowboys!

 

magnetic chalkboard menu

As anyone who has ever bought a house knows, the place comes with a list of “to dos” longer than your arm.  In my case, the list is abso-freaking-lutely humongous.  We’re now 8 1/2 months into this gig, and I’m marking them off…slowly. Very very painfully slowly, but they’re coming off.

My latest completion is this beauty.

And some details of the days…

I actually started this project a few months ago.  I started with 4 (yes four) coats of magnetic paint.  That dried for about a week before I added 2 coats of chalkboard paint.  I waited that long because I started on Sunday and didn’t have enough time to finish before having to go back to work.  This was also during soccer season, so…well, I think you can guess how much “free time” I had at that point.

The plain chalkboard was great, and the girls were getting a lot of use out of it.  However, it didn’t fit the vision I had for the wall.

Then I got my Cricut (insert evil laugh here) and everything changed.  I added the vinyl lettering a little over a week ago, and love the way it turned out.  The red and white letters really pop on the black background, and the girls are staying on top of me to stay on top of the menu planning.

Win. Win.

Products used:

• Rust-oleum Magnetic Primer (4 coats)
• Rust-oleum Black flat chalkboard paint (2-3 coats)
• Oracle 631 vinyl in Cloud White and Ruby Glitter
• Cricut Light Chore Chart cartridge
• Cricut Lyrical Letters font cartridge

the neglected garden

One of the selling points when I bought my house was the ready-made garden spot in the back yard.  I had big plans for planting a lush vegetable garden, but we had not yet moved in during prime planting season.  And by the time I had unpacked and was ready?  Well, it was too dang hot.  This has been a summer complete with a local record-breaking 48 days of temperatures that reached above 100º.  They say we’re not done with them yet, and it’s nearly September.

Needless to say, the garden did not get planted.  On the days that I did get outside to do yard work, I focused on the front of the house and mowed the back only when it got so tall the dog got lost.

Going to have to start by chopping the weeds.  They were about 18″ high when I started.

Still have a lot of work to do even after using the weed eater.  I ran out of string before I finished, so I guess we’ll be making a trip to Home Depot or Menard’s this afternoon so I can finish once it cools down this evening.

I’d like to plant a fall garden, but I’m afraid I’m too late to prep and till the ground.  At this point, I think I’d be better off spending the time to prepare the spot for spring planting so I can get an early start next year.

What I can get going before winter hits is the compost pile.  That’s a project in and of itself! I have a feeling that was the purpose of this little fenced off area, but I can’t be sure.  The previous owners weren’t exactly forthcoming with information, and I didn’t ask about this.  I’ll need to figure out how best to protect the garage.  It may be as simple as piling a row or two of cinder blocks along the edge and keeping the pile from resting against the building.

Oh, the joys of home  ownership!

I do love having these spaces available, but I need to work on taking care of them better.

when the kids are away…

…the air conditioner will go out. No kidding!

Sunday afternoon, I took the girls to my sister’s to hang out with all of their cousins. From there, my sister-in-law transported them to Grandma & Papa’s for the rest of the week.

Now, the a/c hadn’t been keeping up, but it has also been fighting against temperatures upwards of 108 degrees on multiple days recently. Plus it’s 11 years old. And so it died. Actually, the condenser unit (the big cube out back) is fine. It’s the parts in the furnace that gave out.

I called it in to the home warranty company first thing Monday morning and the repairman came out today before noon. Apparently, the blower and the motor are bad. He disassembled the thing and took it with him to rebuild in the shop. Said he’d be back to reinstall everything…tomorrow.

So this is day #3 with no air. Egads, it’s toasty in there!! 85 when I went home to meet the repairman and leave another bowl of ice for the pupster.

Wonder how much it’s going to cost me? This is why I have the warranty coverage, right?

Stay tuned…

from pinterest to my life

You may be familiar with Pinterest, a relatively new destination on the web.  If I’m not careful, I can spend countless hours checking out other people’s tastes in fashion, home decor, food, crafts, ad nauseum.  There are people who use the site to “pin” ideas for their upcoming nuptuals.  Fashionable singles looking for the latest trends.  Mommies-to-be working on that dream nursery.  First-time homeowners wanting to feather their nests.  Overzealous DIYers searching for more ideas to take up their already over-scheduled lives.

Yeah.  I fall into that last category. The one before, too, I suppose, but mostly the last one.  Honestly, I feel that I might be a rarity among those who frequent the site, because I do actually do some of the projects I’ve pinned

Examples?  Of course I’ve got ‘em!  Okay, just a couple.  I’ve been “pinning” for a mere 3 weeks. Give me a break!

to this

And then there’s this project idea:

from which I created this today…

Total cost of this makeover was $12 (for the trashcans) and a couple of bruises.  The milk crate that’s holding the cleaning supplies is one I’ve had for 20 years or so.  Yes, 20 years.  The dog food is hiding behind the trash can on the left.  And the recycling goes on the right.  Eventually, I will make appropriate signage so the girls don’t mix up the cans.  For now, I’m okay with answering, “Mommy, where’s the trash can?” approximately 10.3 billion times.

Oh…I would be lost (and my photos would continue to completely suck) if it wasn’t for my discovery of a little iPhone app called Instagram.  I love the filters oh so very much.

And sorry about the ant trap. Totally forgot to move it before I took the picture and I’m too lazy to take another.  I’ve been dealing with the little buggers since the first of June, but until I can figure out where they’re coming into the house, I can’t eliminate them completely.  At least they’re dying off or at least going deeper underground during this horrid heat.

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