How do I spell my name?

I love having my kids' names spelled out in their bedrooms, as I know it helps them to spell their name by seeing it everyday.  Khloe didn't have her name in her room yet, so when I saw these letters at Hobby Lobby for $3.99 each and 50% off, I purchased them.

 Her room is accented in silver, so I simply spray painted them with a metallic silver spray paint from Lowes.

 I mounted them on the wall above her toy chest.  It seemed too plain, so I added the ribbon dragonflies for extra flair.  I used my Bowdabra to make them.  If you have a girl and don't have one of these, buy one today from Walmart or Target.  It makes it so easy to craft bows.



I am pleased with how it turned out.  Now she'll be ready to go to preschool in the Fall.

A Ray of Sunshine

I have to start by saying that Sarah Richardson is my FAVORITE designer.  Her shows: Design Inc, and Sarah's House are on HGTV and give me such great inspiration.  She always finds the most incredible mirrors, in fun shapes and finishes.  Well, the other day Khloe and I meandered through the new Hobby Lobby in American Fork, and what did I find:

The most incredible sunburst mirror.  It was love at first sight.  Although I couldn't immediately think of where I could put it in my house, I knew I had to have it.  What made the purchase even more decided was the fact that all of the wall decor was 50% off.  So I paid $25 for this incredible decorative find! 

When I got home, I knew just where to put it: off centered above the piano.  I love how the gold ties in with the picture frames.  It fits just perfectly!  Love my Hobby Lobby find, my Sarah Richardson inspiration, and the incorporation of it in my space!

And the Lighting Winner is:

Option 3 was the clear winner for our voters and for me!

Here's before:

 And here's after!

I love, love, love this light and the ambience it now creates in my dining room!  I got it from Overstock.com and paid $180.  That is a great price.  Davy and I hung it on Saturday (For a lighting tutorial, click here)  I encourage you to look around, find what you want and then buy it online.  You will save a ton of money!

Fun Find: Jars of Eggs

I saw these jars at TaiPan and had to have them.  The jars were $17, and $15 but I can use them year round for anything, so I justified the expense. The bigger eggs were $2.97 for 6 and the little eggs were $2.97 for about 15.  I love how they look filled to the brim with eggs.  I bought bolts of ribbon in pastel colors for $3.97 each and tied coordinating bows.

 With the extra eggs, I filled glasses for a place setting.  The placemats came from TaiPan last year.

I bought this bird and wreath from TaiPan  and needed some extra height, so I put him on a cake plate.  I made this cake plate from a plate and bowl from TaiPan for $6.  Just glue the upside down bowl to the bottom of the plate with epoxy glue.

Loved this bunny from TaiPan.  He was $19.99, but I used the 25% off coupon that comes in the Sunday paper.  Happy hunting for these Easter treasures!

Creme Brulee French Toast

This french toast would not be found on the low calorie menu but it is so yummy!  Great for special occassion breakfasts! 

Creme Brulee French Toast

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons corn syrup

5 large eggs

1 1/2 cups half and half

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon salt

Bread, sliced, to cover butter mixture (about six slices)

In a saucepan, melt butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup.  Pour into 9x13 dish.  Place bread pieces over the top.  Beat eggs and add half and half, vanilla and salt.  Pour egg mixture over the bread.  Cover and chill overnight in the refrigerator.  The next morning bake uncovered at 350 for 35-40 minutes.  



Home Tour...Stunning Stephanie Style

Stephanie is a friend of both Lisa and I.  She is such a talented woman with one of them being her amazing taste for interior design.  Thanks for letting us peek into your home Steph!

The entry table...LOVE the feel of spring in her home.  She created her own mini atriums with glass jars, small topiaries, eggs and moss.  They are so great!

Steph was the lucky winner of the Gatehouse gift certificate drawing and bought this darling bird cage there

Love the eggs!  Also from Gatehouse...and she found this awesome moss product that comes in a sheet for about $3.  She cut them in half and used them throughout her decor on the entry table...great idea!

Love the clock wall in the entry...

So I admit I am no professional photographer, but I try :)  Sorry about the lighting, but love her family room space.  It's hard to see here, but I am going to follow up with a post about her amazing banners!  They are darling and I promise you'll want to make one for your house when you see it up close :)

Beautiful cabinet from Osmond Design

Great idea to fill the sconce with Easter decor!

Steph recently redid her room and found this bed set at Bed Bath and Beyond...beautiful choice!

Great find at Finders Keepers in American Fork...if you are ever looking for unique, antiqued, painted furniture, head there!  They have amazing things!

Steph has two beautiful girls Hallie and Maddy.  They recently got a "tween" room makeover and it is darling! 

Hobby Lobby chandelier

She found this dress form in the basement area of Rod Works in a green color.  They spray painted it pink, added glitter and ribbon to make it a darling wall accent.  Sometimes you have to look for an item's potential rather than face value :)

Hobby Lobby has great wall decor!

Cute idea to frame around vinyl wall art! 

 

Mr. Jack lives in this room.  Love the colored chairs on each side of the crib! 

How nice to have a comfy leather chair in the nursery!  She found this Pottery Barn rug on KSL for much less than what it was in the store...but it was being sold in Texas!  She convinced the guy to ship it to her for an extra cost...but still paid much less than retail!  It pays to shop the classifieds!

One of my favorite features in her home is the wood floor in the nursery.  It adds such a richness and warm feel to the room.  Great idea!

I love antiqued doors and love how she's used it in her entryway...so unique!

A few accents in the kitchen...

What a great use for the cake stand :)

And last but not least her little chairs on the front porch are so darling!  Love them!

What a welcoming, beautiful home Steph! 

Birthday videos

I started a tradition with my kids to make a birthday video each year with pictures and video from the year before.  I set it to music themed around the year or songs that remind me of them.  I use this software and it makes it so easy!

It costs around $100 and is sold at most electronic stores (probably even Walmart!)  There are probably programs online that you can do this for free, but I love the editing tools and how easy it is to burn the movie onto DVD.  Sometimes you have so many cool things that just stay tucked away in the computer!  My boys love to watch their birthday videos and it's something I enjoy pulling out and remembering things we've done together.  Start this tradition in your family!  I also am willing to make them for $20. 

I thought I'd also list some of the songs I've used so far...picking songs can be the hard part...so here's a few ideas! (Notice I've mostly done boy videos :)

Baby...
Miracle by Celine Dion
Baby Mine by Allison Kraus
Golden Slumbers by Mindy Gledhill

Boy...
Watching You by Rodney Atkins
Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwoʻole
You've Got a Friend in Me by Randy Newman
Anything Like Me by Brad Paisley
Make You Feel My Love by Adele
Three Little Birds by Elizabeth Mitchell

Girl...
My Little Girl by Tim McGraw
Dream by Priscilla Ahn
A Mother's Prayer by Celine Dion

Happy Birthday to my sweet Peyton next week :)

big.boy.bedroom

I decorated Peyton's room (my four year old) two years ago when he was moved from the nursery to make way for Chayce.  He was really into cars and anything with wheels so that's what we themed the room around.

Osmond Design has great pieces of furniture and are reasonably priced.  We skipped the toddler bed as I didn't want an extra piece of furniture laying around in a few years.  I don't spend very much at Pottery Barn, but did purchase his quilt and sham on clearance.   

We added beadboard and a shelf to one wall and painted the top part navy blue which added alot to the room.  Here shortly I'll add a beadboard tutorial...

These darling prints came from art.com and were around $8 each.  Frames are from Rod Works and were about $12 each. 

Hobby Lobby has a great selection of vintage cars, motorcycles and trains.

I fell in love with this airplane artwork the minute I saw it!  Unfortunately I went on a wild goose chase trying to find one!  I lucked out by posting an ad on KSL looking for one.  A lady let me know she had seen one in a back room at Osmond Design...sure enough it was there! 

Hobby Lobby also has cute metal signs and frequently put them 50 percent off.



IKEA sells end tables for $8 and they make great kids tables as well!  The chair was the pricier item at $20.

Kids bedrooms are the perfect place to let their interests and little personalities shine!