Playground & Mini-Project

Like I've been saying, work (especially my online courses) has been stressing me out! I have spent 15+ hours grading stuff. Students are calling me. Students are emailing me...Blah, blah.

Ron was off work yesterday, and when I came home the house was clean! And he was taking the food off of the grill--perfect timing. It was just so nice. He has praise team practice on Thursday nights, so Ava & I rode with him. I got a bit of exercise from strolling her in the parking lot, and then we played on the church playground. Her favorite is the slides, so we did that over and over. It was so much fun. The weather was perfect. When we got back home, the three of us played ball in the backyard until the sun went down. After she was in bed asleep, Ron & I watched one of "our shows" Private Practice. I'm learning more and more how important days like today are. Work may have been majorly annoying, but family is priceless!

And in the midst of all that fun, I did a little decor project. These are the flowers I found at Goodwill this week. The container was a yard sale find that I painted black (it was an ugly gold color). I've been trying to improve my plain hallway....

The weekend is almost here! I'm praying for a great day at work!!!

Paint Party 3

Last Saturday the weather was bad here--tornadoes, high winds, thunderstorms--so I allowed that factor along with Britt having to work, to stay home from yard sales...Oh yeah, we were kind of broke too (that's bad, huh?). Anyway, Ron and Ava slept until 10:30. Since I'm so accustomed to waking up early, I got up at 7:30.

I had a cup of coffee and went out into the garage for a morning of quiet, peaceful painting (except thunder:). It was incredible! I felt that it was my therapy for the rushy week before!

I rummaged around in my scrap pile to find something that needed painting. How about this?? This hung above my twin bed when I was a child (oh, and Brittany had one too, of course). My master bathroom needs lots of decor-- it always get the leftovers. I made this little sign for it.

Next, I painted these little tin containers. These were yard sale finds from last year, and they were gold. I painted them white and added a number. I like all the number decor I've been seeing on blogs and Pottery Barn's website. Now I just have to figure out what to do with them:)

Remember this yard sale find from a few weeks ago? I didn't do anything to it except write on it with chalk. For now, it's in my dining room. I like the casual mixed in with some of the formal pieces. I don't want my dining room to be 'stuffy.'

I painted this dresser blue during spring break. My very honest sister said it was too 'fresh' looking, so I brought the paints back out and tried 'antiquing' it more. Did I go too far? I have the tendency to do that....

Lastly, I went through my high school art portfolio. I've always like this because of the colors. I decided to prop it against the wall in the great room for now.

We're having friends over for movie night this Saturday. Ron is even more helpful if we're having company. Yay! I have several things I need him to help me hang on the walls. I'll post picks soon. I'm pretty excited about these things! :) Happy Thursday!!

Brooke's Bargains 20

I didn't get to go to any yard sales this past Saturday, but I did run in to the Goodwill store that is like a mile from my house yesterday...

I bought my sister a maternity dress & shirt for around $8.

I've been wanting an apothecary jar for a while. I see these all over blogs. I bought it for $1. I got the hydrangeas for $3. Also, I found the cute red bangle bracelet for $1. :)

Brittany and I hope to find lots of great yard sales this Saturday!

Book Review 3

Our church is doing the One Month to Live Challenge! It has been thought-provoking!
Check it out!

My Little Artist

What a week (and it's only Tuesday)! Yesterday, I came home after work and tutoring to clean our house! Our weekend was insanely busy but FUN! Birthday party, yard sales, church activities, Sunday lunch & dinner with friends,...

Today, I didn't feel like doing much around the house. Ron was off work today and grilled for us. Then he had to go to a meeting. Brittany bought Ava finger paint for Christmas, and I haven't braved it until today. I decided we would just have fun this afternoon and evening! I had to snap some pictures of Ava hard at "work."

Home Goals for Summer

My summer to-do list:

For teachers summer is when we "get it all done"! I have quite the list, and as most people can relate to a shortage on the funds to finish the list...Oh well, it makes me feel better to type it- ha! If I have a specific goal to work toward it keeps me going. I hope to have lots of this list completed by July 10 (Ava's 3rd Birthday Party:).

• Lots of landscaping- We want some trees, hydrangea plants, edgers for our flowerbeds, ect

• I want my covered patio to be more homey. Right now I have a nice black iron table/4 chair set. I want colorful cushions and potted plants.

• I really want a screen door for our patio. We spend a lot of time outside grilling and playing. I would paint it a fun color.
  

• I want a swing on the patio too. One of my grandmothers had a swing on her porch that we all spent lots of summer days on fighting off mosquitoes in the Delta!

• Dining room curtains and fabric to recover dining room chairs...since my rug is traditional and the table/chairs are antique, I want a little more contemporary fabric to keep it young and fresh.
  

• I have all scored, stained concrete floors which I LOVE, but they aren't too cozy. I need two large rugs--one for the hearth room, the other for the great room.
  

• Curtains for the hearth room
  

• I have so many great pictures that aren't on display. I want to have my favorites printed on canvas.
  

• I have nothing on the wall in the only long hallway in the house.
  

• My front door is French Country style- wood with glass panes- no privacy. When I was out at yard sales last month, a lady had the same door. She had created an awesome Roman shade for it! Same thing with our back door- no privacy. After living here for 2 years, I think it's about time to fix that!

• Our master bedroom needs more furniture. I'd like an armoire, upholstered chair, and maybe a bench or trunk at the foot of the bed. I also need more wall art. I think it would be neat to do canvases of Ron and me from different seasons of our lives together--dating, engaged, wedding, first home, first baby,...
  

• I need a narrow piece of furniture for the entryway.
  

• I am going to paint my breakfast table and chairs black (already dreading that, but at least it'll be a cheap project).
  

• Recover my bar stools; I've never liked the khaki microfiber fabric that's on them now.
  

• I want to take down the wall mirrors in both bathrooms and replace them with nice framed mirrors.
  

Brooke's Bargains 19

Today our town had two neighborhood sales. Britt and I did pretty good. The trick to thrifting is you just have to go a lot, be patient, and enjoy it...

Land's End rain boots for Ava $1
Brittany found Ava a pair of rain boots last year for $0.50; I got her another pair at Goodwill for $2, and now these (of course all different sizes). One pair of boots at Target is more than $15!

This Halloween Ava will be a candy corn ($1)! Britt, Mom, & I LOVE candy corn! :)

I bought this for a friend who has a baby on the way. This little Polo shirt is in perfect condition for $0.50.

I needed some khakis for casual days at work. I really like New York & Co. clothes...$2.

This floral arrangement was $3. The retail sticker on the bottom of the pottery was $18. 50, so with the floral stuff added it was probably $30 in store.

Someone gave Ron these 3 pairs of dress shoes this week! One pair is Steve Madden.

I'm linked to Thrifty Treasures.
Have a great weekend!

A Bird Nest, A Blessing, & A Birthday Party

I meant to put this bird nest on my Pier 1 post...I got this on sale to use for an Easter decoration. I don't have many Easter things yet. I love this!

On Tuesday, I kinda 'vented' about work and being too busy; I got the sweetest text from my friend Haven to cheer me up a bit. Then a few hours later, my friend Niki texted me to say that she was bringing dinner over to our house that evening. How WONDERFUL! I never understood how great it was to have someone bring a hot dinner to your family when work has piled up (and money happened to be on the tight side this week)!!! It's one of the most thoughtful things you can do! I snapped a quick pic of our delicious dinner:

Tonight, I took Ava to Hudson's 4th birthday party. His mom, Jamie, does such a great job of planning and organizing events! The theme was SUPERHEROES!
Party favors (ours got a little squished before I could get a pic)
www.paintedcookie.blogspot.com

This was one of the cutest cakes I've seen at a party:

Here's Ava with "Super-Harrison"-

Ava LOVED going down this giant slide...I was nervous about it, but she was fine.

There was a little tattoo station set up at the party too, so Ava got a pink Superman tat:)

What a fun party! Well, we have a busy day of yard sales, baseball game ticket duty, and church workshop tomorrow! Whew!

on the downhill coast...

This time of the school year is tough! My 11th grade U.S. History students have to pass the state-mandated test in order to graduate from high school, so I am their 'ticket' out. It is just very stressful! I have 110 students and probably 75% of them listen to me; it's just the other 25% that I feel like I'm cramming history facts down their throats...exhausting!

Also, this is the time of year when my online college students are taking their final exams, and I have to have like a zillion things graded and posted before the end of the month. I get stressed and so overwhelmed!

Our pastor said it best Sunday, "You can do so many good things that you can't do anything great." That's me right this moment.

I have plans to make some serious changes in the next couple of months. Changes are scary, but I keep telling myself that I'm doing them for the right reasons- my husband & daughter!

I know I can do this...I guess right now I'm venting when I should be in the shower getting ready...Oh, and I have to stop for gas because my light came on yesterday! Thanks for listening to my ramblings. I may be needing some advice and a push in the right direction soon.

Happy Tuesday.

Brooke's Bargains 18

Once again, the weather was PERFECT! I love sunny spring days more than anything! :)
My mom went with Britt and me again today. I so enjoy time with them. We had Sonic corn dogs for breakfast- ha!

Ron's trimmer quit working a few months ago, and I found this one in the box for $2. I also got him this aquarium DVD that is like a screen saver for the TV. I think Ava will like it too. She's really into animals right now.

I found this small chalkboard (had $16 sticker on back), very heavy mirror, and wall shelf (had $40 sticker on back) all for $12.

I love finding Ava movies- I send the tapes to my parents' house since they still have a VCR hooked up to their TV. I also found her a Mickey Mouse Christmas CD. We love Christmas music in this family! Total: $2.50

I bought this sweet little outfit for $1; it still had the tag on it- Gap $25! I have several friends who are having girls...

Hope you have a good weekend. We plan on enjoying the outdoors some more, renting a movie tonight, and going to church in the morning.

I'm linked to Thrifty Treasures.

Pier 1

I love Pier 1 Imports, and luckily there's a store about 15 minutes from home. I've been looking for a table runner for my dining room for about a month before finding this one at Pier 1. It has the wall color and buffet color plus just a neat vintage-y look. I was hoping for a little bit better deal, but for $30 I can't complain- it helped complete the room.

And these are the Pier 1 curtains that I found on Ebay for $32 including shipping! They retailed for $100! I bought the curtain rod at Target.

This is my $0.50 plate rack that I found at a yard sale last year. I found these three plates at Pier 1. I have been a polka dot freak for years, and now I love birds too:)

Well, I better finish cleaning house & resting up because Brittany will be here bright & early to pick me up for yard sales! The weather is supposed to be gorgeous!

Friends & Easter

Ava is at the age where she loves to have other children to play with; she cracks me up because she is so motherly! One of the families from our church came over last Saturday night for pizza & a movie. Jeff & Emily (who also does my hair: she's awesome!) have these two cute kiddos: Tuesday & Levi. Here they are watching The Incredibles.

I've been trying to remember to snap a pic before church each week too...
Ava LOVES "church nursery" so much (I wonder if it's because of the sucker they give out at the end:).

It's so hard to comprehend that one of my best friends since middle school & I have daughters exactly one month apart. Ava had a great time playing with Mary Abbott.

Ava looks so much like me, and Mary Abbott looks so much like Niki!

Our church had a huge Easter egg hunt Saturday...

Family pic at the hunt...It was fun! We enjoyed hanging around for a little while and visiting with friends.

Well, I let Ava have an Easter cupcake for breakfast Sunday morning. Gotta live a little sometimes!

I love this outfit! Niki's sister Mandy has the cutest children's clothing store ever! I help Mandy do some decorating at her new home, and instead of paying me cash--I get to pick out outfits like this for Ava:)

My parents came after to church to have an Easter cookout with us. It was so much fun. Ron is such a good griller! Our menu was barbecued chicken, garlic & cheese mashed potatoes, green beans, garden salad with balsamic vinaigrette, homemade yeast rolls, sweet tea, & "bunny" cake for dessert. Yum!

This is one of my favorite pictures! Ava was telling Mimi all about her fingernail polish (she was upset that one of her nails chipped-ha!).

Mimi & Papa brought her a basket full of goodies; her favorite was the playdough.

One of my mom's friends helped her make this cute cake!

After a leisurely lunch, we all went outside to enjoy the gorgeous weather. Then, the four of us played a Wii bowling game. It was so funny because my parents are not the video game types but they were really good at this game. I was terrible:(

Ava cheered each time we bowled, which was a lot, considering four people had ten rounds. She was exhausted and went to sleep when her head hit the pillow. I am thankful for my family and friends and such a good Easter weekend.

Our pastor's sermon on Sunday was "What if you knew you only had one month to live? What would you do differently? Live a life with no regrets." I'm certainly going to try!