Shadowboxing

I am constantly tearing pages out of all kinds of magazines, then stashing them in books for inspiration. You just never know where the next idea will come from! Here's one that popped up in a recent Pottery Barn Kids catalog. It's a shadowbox with a little baby onesie perched inside.

With that as inspiration, I remembered a baseball jersey we had tucked away with Nina's name embroidered on it. Sadly, it's too small now, but I can remember receiving it when she was a baby and thinking "There's no way that will ever fit her!"

So I bought a shadowbox at Hobby Lobby. I added some hooks on the back so I could affix a grosgrain ribbon. I had a piece of scrapbook paper that made a perfect backdrop. And then it was just a matter of folding and pinning the jersey in place.

How cute is that?

I was always afraid of shadowboxes for some reason, but they're quite forgiving and easy to work with. I encourage you to give them a try if you've got an odd-shaped something-or-other that you'd like to save. It's a great way to get things out of the boxes in the basement and up on your walls!

Procrastination Via Topiary

Why is it that, faced with the overwhelming task of moving my family to San Francisco, I start doing little projects around the house? For a couple of weeks over the summer, I was fanatical about getting piddley stuff done instead of the obvious jobs of packing, organizing and moving. Oh, well.

Here's an example of what I am talking about. I love the little greenery ball in this inspiration photo. Can't remember where I saw it, though.

I got some fake greenery from Hobby Lobby, as well as a foam ball. I already had the base, also originally from Hobby Lobby a few years ago.

I cut the greenery into manageable pieces, and then spent some time sticking each piece into the foam. No glue gun, just lots of poking.

Eventually I ended up with a slightly fuller topiary than my inspiration photo, but still...not bad!

So, next time you should be packing for a cross-country move, try this instead.

Maybe it'll look really cute in your new house!

From the Road

Hi all!

Well, we are officially on our way to California. Thank you all SO much for your kind wishes, prayers and comments! I won't lie: it's been a rough couple of weeks. I know you all know what I am talking about. Lots of sleepless nights, bickering, and crankiness. And I am not even talking about the kids.

We have had many "picnics" in our empty family room, with boxes as picnic blankets.

And I don't think that you've lived until you've seen the entire contents of your life, in boxes, on your driveway.

But luckily all that is behind us. We have been on the road for two days now, and we have another full day of driving before we pull into the San Francisco Bay area on Wednesday.

Before I bore you with more photos of us in sub-par hotels and McDonald's play areas, I thought I might show you a few projects that I worked on before we packed up and moved out of Colorado. So, stay tuned over the next few weeks for those posts! And I can't wait to show you our new house in California!

Once I actually locate the camera, that is.

Still Alive

Do you ever have days when it's just a relief to get up in the morning?

What I mean is this: Do you have those times when you've been tossing and turning in bed, half-dreaming of all you have to do the next day? Panicking that you won't get it all done? So, by the time your clock reaches a semi-normal time, you pop out of bed and you're just so glad to be doing, instead of worrying?

Not that I know anything about that.

We are living amidst boxes right now, and just hoping that somehow all our stuff makes it to California! The moving truck comes on Friday, and we officially start our drive west on Sunday. I can't decide if I feel sad, excited, scared, hopeful or just tired. I could practically create a whole new set of Seven Dwarfs over here.

Just thought I would check in to say that I am still alive. I do have some posts that I had planned before all this moving took over my life, so maybe I will entertain you with those sometime soon. But mostly I'll just be packing and trying to keep my kids away from the masking tape.

Hope you all are doing well! :)

Sold!

Here's a hint about what we will soon be doing...

See all those boxes on that truck? That will be my life, all packed up, although loaded onto a slightly bigger rig.

We sold our house!

We've actually been in negotiations with the buyers for almost two weeks, and I haven't wanted to say anything until the deal was more finalized. But it looks like it's going to happen! I am so relieved, and so freaked out.

We don't have a house in California yet, because we wanted to make sure the sale of our house was certain before we committed to anything. Oh, and did I mention that we have to be out by August 28th?

God help me! (And if I'm not around too much over the next few weeks, you'll know why.)

My Own Personal Bistro

Weird weather in Colorado lately. It's either been beastly hot, or raining. My back deck has not been a place of refuge, as it's alternately soaking wet or a blazing inferno!

However, when I have a precious few minutes and the kids are napping, I've been trying to get outside just to get a change of perspective. So much more refreshing than running around folding laundry or cleaning the house!

My front porch has a cute little bistro table that's in the perfect shady spot. Even just five minutes out here can change my day!

Most of the time this spot in my house sits forgotten. I'm so glad I've rediscovered it!

Loose Ends on a Lamp

Hey girls! How was your weekend? My husband and I celebrated our sixth wedding anniversary with a night out on the town...gotta say, it was pretty great! How about you?

Just had a bit more to share about this old lamp of mine. Are you sick of hearing about it yet? See, I keep walking by it when I go down to the basement, and something's been bothering me.

I love the G, but it seemed a little pale, as if the black paint wasn't dark enough. So I went out and grabbed some fabric painting medium. Just add some of this stuff to regular acrylic paint, and it turns it into fabric paint!

I just went over my G with a fine paintbrush and some of this concoction. Don't know how well the photos show the difference, but I am so much happier with how dark the black is now. It makes it look more professional, rather than something I drew on with a paint marker. (Which is exactly what I did, but whatever. I don't want it to look that way!)

In other news, my dad sent me a few photos from his cabin in the Ohio woods! Turns out he converted an old milk jug, too. This one used to belong to my grandparents, and he painted it and added the star. My dad's an Army veteran and a huge Civil War buff. (And yes, he made that soldier, too. How cool is that?) Oh, and doesn't that photo make you want a cabin in the woods too?

Years ago, my dad also converted this old fire extinguisher into a lamp. I can totally remember sitting on the porch as a kid, reading next to this cool relic. It now sits on my dad's covered front porch and makes a great place to curl up with a book or listen to an Indians game.

It's just a reminder to me to think outside the box with some of these cool pieces that you can find at thrift stores, antique shops, and garage sales. I mean, all this stuff would look right at home in a Pottery Barn or Restoration Hardware catalog if you ask me! But it's got a history much more interesting than being ordered online and shipped to our doorstep. And isn't that what we love?