Kinfolk

Recently a newbie has come to the magazine scene that has my heart skipping an extra beat. It is quite honestly THE best published thing I've seen in a long, long, time. Kinfolk. Check it. Seriously. xo

His & Hers

One look is all it takes to see who the photographer is in this house. Last weekend we went to a wedding in Austin (Congrats Gabby and Corbin!) and both of us took "portraits".

HIS

HERS

Some how, some way, my sweet husband is able to create magic in hotel rooms. I love it. Happy Monday! xo

His & Hers series is a weekly little diddy that Alli, of Hooray, and I started for fun to give you guys a glimpse into our worlds - two images at a time. Two pics, two perspectives, no rules. Play along with us! xo

Weekly Challenge: The Power of "P"

As a mother of two and the youngest of two I have the following beliefs... 1. The youngest gets away with murder. 2. The youngest usually gets the shaft, hence the getting away with murder.  My parenting is mostly geared toward my oldest. I can count the number of Sesame Street shows my youngest has watched on two hands. He was typically woken up from naps to pick his older brother up from school - I would have never woken my oldest up from a nap. NEVER! And at a tender three years old, my youngest knows about Star Wars, Power Rangers and potty centered humor. And my oldest knew his colors, numbers and alphabet by age three...easy. My youngest doesn't know his alphabet and mixes up yellow and pink quite often.  This week, I vowed to change all of that with a focus on letters. Starting with "P".

We did our P drawings on paper plates. Using paste to adhere paper and pompoms.

We painted with food colored ice cubes outside.

We went to the pool.

We had a fabulous playdate.

We ate pizza, popcorn and popsicles.

And just me and my little went to the movie theater to see Kung Fu Panda. (One of his faves. He calls it Kung Tu Panda.)

This weekend we will have a Pajama Jammy Jam, make paper plate pirates, read The Night Pirates and look for treasure in our backyard using a pirate map I made from their painting.

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(map of backyard with silly names)

(I cut a branch in half and hot glued the fabric ends to the sticks to make the scroll.)

Their treasure will contain ring pops and coins. And never one to miss the opportunity for teachable moments, after they've found their treasure and are sucking their delish ring-pops, they will learn the parable of The Lost Coin (Luke 15:8-10). I want my youngest to have learned the letter "P" and the sound it makes. I want both of my boys to have learned that God's treasure is their hearts and just as fervently as they looked for their pirate treasure, God pursues their hearts and He will never give up!

How's that for a nice reminder of the letter "P" and God's love for you as we roll into the weekend? Enjoy! xo

Inspired to Create.

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A little random and a tad bit scattered, this is what's inspiring my Fall collection for Pure and Noble. Ohhh...I'm getting excited.

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Can't wait to give you guys a sneak peak. xo

Kitchen Help

It should be said, again, that I don't like to cook. In my eyes it's a necessary evil. But if I could cook in a kitchen with these pretties, and a glass of red wine in hand, I think I'd love it. And, I might even be good at it. Ha!

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I'm pretty sure the scenery would make the food taste better too. Hmm... maybe I should start telling myself that I love cooking and try to change my perspective a bit. If any of you have a favorite recipe containing 6 ingredients or less, email me!  I know - 6 or less is asking for a lot but I'm a low maintenance kid of a girl and I need to start slow and easy. xo

His & Hers: Slurpees

Did you know that today is 7-Eleven's birthday?  Well it is...7/11/2011. Every year 7-Eleven celebrates this special day by giving free slurpees to all their customers!

Our picks... Coke mixed with Cherry. Yup... both of us.  Sometimes when you're married long enough you become one in a lot of areas!

His & Hers

Now go get yourself a free slurpee! xo

His & Hers series is a weekly little diddy that Alli, of Hooray, and I started for fun to give you guys a glimpse into our worlds - two images at a time. Two pics, two perspectives, no rules. Play along with us! xo

Around the House: Vintage Bits and Bobs

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When taking a peek at some of my favorite, most inspirational interiors on pinterest (yes, I pin and yes, it's addictive) I've noticed that there is one thing that ties them all together, no matter the overall style - a love of vintage. I love pieces that have a history to them. Much like us, with our wrinkles and gray hair, I believe that all vintage pieces have earned their scratches, dents and rust spots. And while I may not know the story behind them, I treasure their history and their worn surfaces. 

Here's a look at just some of the treasures I've scored for our home at a couple of estate sales recently.

And here's why I brought them home....

Playroom: I want to liven up the boys playroom with vintage games and toys that can be used as decoration and can actually be played with.

Boys' room and My craft room: The colored rulers below were added to the side of the doorjam in the boys' bedroom. We'll use them to mark their growth and if we move...we can take 'em with us. The vintage carpenter rulers will be used as frames. The pencil sharpener? What better way to mark kindergarten than with a pencil sharpener mounted on the wall. I predict this baby will get a lot of use over the years.

My husband's desk: He is always in need of something to keep him better organized and store his stuff. At $5.00, I couldn't really pass up this beautiful wood inbox. Could I?

The London piggy bank and vintage curling iron (up top) will make great gifts down the road. And the hole punch? I needed one. I should point out a few rules I have for estate sale shopping...

1. If it's less than $1.00 and I love it... it's coming home with me.

2. Carry $20.00 cash or less. No check writing. Stay on budget.

3. If it's more than $3.00, I have to ask myself, "do I really need this or do I just want it?" If it's just a want, it stays behind - unless it's an amazing vintage piece at a great price.

4. If it's furniture, I call the hubs and ask if it's okay.

5. I ask myself, "Would it make a great gift?" I'd much rather give a gift with a little history or make it myself.

PS - The most expensive item above was the vintage inbox at $5.00. Everything else was a $1.00 or less. Now that's just good shopping. Happy Monday. xo

Weekly Challenge: Beat the Heat

Yeah...those numbers are right. And possibly higher earlier in the week, the heat has drained my memory. Summer in Dallas, Texas can suck the life right out of you. This week's challenge? Beat the heat - Ninja style.

DMA - free crafts, art and A/C. Whaaaah!

Watercolor painting - we're making summer journals via this tutorial.  Whack!

Swimming with the Grandparents and some Chick-fil-a with a side of free ice cream cones to go. Hiee-Yaaaah!

Zero heat "cooking" - hello Taco Salad with left over browned meat from the previous night's spaghetti dinner. This will be going into our summer dinner rotation. It was refreshing and delish. Even the kids ate it. Ninja-like ingredient - Green Goddess Dressing. Yuuuum!

Surf & Swim - a little lazy river. a little ocean. a whole lotta fun. Yaaaah!

Afternoon Ninjago battles followed by some ninja lessons taught by my oldest. Haaaa!

Bookmarks at Northpark - free books, free A/C and lots of entertainment.  Huuuh-ya!

We've got serious stealth ninja moves! Happy weekend. xo

DMA-mazing!

Every first tuesday (summer months), the Dallas Museum of Art opens its doors to kiddos - for FREE! And while I am ashamed to admit it, this week was our first time. Eeek!  I know!  I love all things creative; how could I not expose them to this? Easy answer - they show zero interest in art or anything crafty. In fact, I got two turned up noses when I told them we were going to the museum. Here's where the mommy gets the last laugh... they LOVED it. We are now getting memberships. Watch out DMA - here we come - sketch books in hand!

I have got to figure out how I can make some of these foamy magnetic shapes. The boys played here the longest. So many possibilities for them to explore.

Not only did we leave with smiling faces and free loot (2 bookmarks and random art pieces), I have ideas galore as to how we can incorporate some of these amazing activities at home. We heart the DMA. xo

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Vintage Tablecloths

Whoever invented the fancy picnic blankets that have the vinyl backside to prevent damp blankets and bums is a genius! Unfortunately, those blankets usually come with a pretty high price tag. And because I'm always looking for ways to save a buck here and there, I thought I'd make one using a vintage tablecloth from the thrift store. (I find them all the time for about $2.00.)

Here's a look at how I made the one above...

Lay vintage tablecloth flat and trim to size desired. (I had already used some of this one to make makeup bags and snack baggies. So it had to be trimmed up a bit.)

This tablecloth was made with a hole in the center for an umbrella. I just cut a circle out from the trimmed up portion and zigzag stitched a patch.

Using an old blanket we had lying around, I spread out the blanket first and then laid the trimmed tablecloth on top.

Next, I pinned my edges and then cut the blanket to match the size of the vintage tablecloth.

I then sewed the blanket and vintage tablecloth together using my serger. (You could easily stitch this on your machine as well, but I love the fact that the serger trims as it sews.)

Once my edges were sewn together, I pinned a ribbon close onto the side. And then added my double fold bias tape all the way around the blanket. I used two packages, 3 yards each.

In my first attempt, I put the ribbon closure in the middle and onto the soft blanket side. Fail. This didn't allow for easy folding and it puckered at the edge when all wrapped up. Yuck.

So after some seam-ripping, I tried this again. This time I moved the ribbon close to a corner and to the vinyl side. Much better.

Here's the pretty little picnic blanket all folded, rolled up and tied.

Now she's all ready for summer fruit, family and friends.

This was a super easy project that took all of an hour or two. Okay, it took me a lot longer than that, but I had a ton of distractions. I also ran out of bias tape so I  had to make it in two days rather than one. But, if I took out all those little hiccups, it was easily completed in a couple of hours or less. Can't wait for the temps to go way down and put this baby to use. xo