Labor of Love- Baby Nursery

When I found out that I was having a girl, my first thought was- What am I going to do with her room? After 12 years of having boys, I was now given permission to incorporate pink into my world. What a wonderful feeling! So I went to the mecca for all ideas and inspiration...Pinterest. Here is the finished project. 

It was challenging because everything I wanted either unavailable in a store or was very expensive. As a result, I took on a lot of diy projects to cut the cost, but not the cuteness.  

We are currently renting our house, so I was hesitant about painting the walls. My solution was an accent wall of polka dot decals from Land of Nod.

This quilt was a made by my dear friend, Anita. I gave her this tutorial and she nailed it. 

Money saving tip- for my gallery wall, I bought a couple frames at Goodwill and spray painted them white. I would much rather spend $3 on a frame and do a little work than $20. The artwork was a combination of Ikea, the YSL coloring book, Oh Joy!, and my work.

The Eames rocking chair was a screaming deal from overstock.com. I pulled out my sewing machine to make the garland. 

I had a hard time finding a mobile that I liked, so I ended up making one based on this tutorial. The materials were less than $7 as opposed to buying one for about $40.

The lovely and talented Aubrey Stewart made the lil' buns banner. Isn't it adorable? 

Money saving tip- Instead of buying books, I simply watercolored some paper in the colors of the room and used them to cover some old books.

The blocks and giraffe were another diy project. The key when painting blocks is a lot of painters tape for straight lines and a little patience. I found a giraffe like this for $15 on etsy. My cost was $3.

The entire process of planning Lilly's nursery was a fun challenge. As much as I loved all the details, I kept thinking that something was missing but I couldn't put my finger on what it was. When I came home from the hospital, I immediately brought Lilly to her room and showed her around. I laid her in her crib, took a step back and realized that she was the missing piece. Lilly was the little crown jewel of this labor of love. 

I hope you enjoyed viewing Lilly's room as much as I enjoyed making it.

NYE on a budget

For many, NYE includes a fantastic bash complete with special occasion dresses and confetti falling from the ceiling. To the rest of us who have kids, no sitters, and a small budget, listen up.

Our family has decided to stay in for dinner. This is a night that we want to feel fancy without a lot of spending. For just under $10, my table is sparkly and festive without breaking the bank. Here's the breakdown:

Dollar Tree:
3 Hats
2 sets of horns
1 set of crowns
2 sunglasses
1 white plastic table cloth
Total- $9

Michaels:
1 sheet of sparkly black construction paper
Total- $0.25

All for a grand total of $9.25

I decided to make the color scheme gold, silver, black, and white. It's very classic NYE.

Using my paper cutter, I made a lot of triangles to add a cool, graphic pattern to the table.

I'm extremely excited to wear these sunglasses. How cute are these?

Happy New Years! 

The Comparison Trap

It's been a while since I've blogged. I've been busy, pregnant, and uninspired. 

Warning: You might be offended by what I have to say. I would just like to preface it by stating that I'm exhausted, and totally hormonal. I think that covers it...

After endless hours on FB, Pinterest, Instagram, and various blogs, I've come to the realization that I've become very dissatisfied with myself. I tend to get down on myself when I see people posting pictures of their perfect lives. IS THAT STUFF EVEN REAL? Who can keep their house THAT clean? Do they really eat out at fancy restaurants everyday? Is it just me or is that person ALWAYS on vacation? While I want to be happy for others and their wonderful lives, I end up feeling discouraged and as if I don't measure up. Forget about keeping up with the Jones. I'm trying to keep up with the Jones, the Smiths, and the Johnsons!

We get so busy building these so called perfect avatars of ourselves on the internet. It's easy to model ourselves into rockstars while giving people a very limited view into our world. I'm disgusted with myself for participating in it. It feels so contrived and fake. We style and re-style pictures of our lives with hopes that people will think that we live in a permanent Pinterest party. I'm tired of it.

Maybe I should start instagramming pictures of my sink filled with dirty dishes or of my kids fighting with each other. Confession- I have accomplished only a fraction of the diy projects that I pinned on Pinterest. Does that make me less of a person? Am I a terrible mom because I don't make all my meals a month in advanced and freeze them or because we don't eat organic? Should I feel bad because I don't do crafts with my kids? Just me, huh?

We love to compare the worst of ourselves with the best in others. When we play those games, we always lose.

Rachel Bohlman said it best in her MOPS article, "The Grass is Greener":

"As women, we often get caught up in looking at the mess of our own lives and comparing it to what appears to be the beauty and perfection of someone else’s life. We think their life looks better than ours. But we are looking from a distance at someone else’s life, not up close. The view of another woman’s life might not look so “green” if we get up close. Our viewpoint is so limited."

Whether we think so or not, all of us have our own special niche. God has given each of us giftings and talents. So what if my gift isn't the same as _______ who is constantly put on a pedestal? I don't have to be the best at everything. I just need to be the best version of myself and be content with that.

So it's time to be honest with myself. 
Yes, I can't do simple math in my head or play sports like ______. However, I can paint and draw. 
Yes, I don't look like Olivia Wilde or Eva Mendes. However, my husband thinks I'm beautiful. 
Yes, I don't have a job where I make six figures. However, I have more than enough.

I'm ready to start looking at myself through God's lenses, not this world's. 

Christmas Revelations

This year, I'm really struggling with what to give my kids for Christmas. In prior years, I had no problem with getting them gifts. However, I've come to the realization that we don't need anything. My kids do not need the hottest toy that will eventually gather dust in their closets or the latest video game that will soon be sold back to GameStop. They are always appreciative of what they receive. But over time, the item that they just had to have will sooner than later find a home in the Goodwill pile. Do we really need more stuff?

Now before you write me off as being a Scrooge, hear me out. Because my primary love language is gift giving, I stress out over if they are getting enough presents. I try to stretch my dollars so that they feel like they had a full Christmas. Yet after much evaluation, the boys have Christmas at our house, then onto my side of the family, then round 3 at my in-law's house. That is 3 Christmas celebrations in one day! Do I need to wear the weight of providing a Christmas palooza when they are getting that at 2 other houses and then some?

Maybe instead of filling our tree with gifts, we should use that money toward taking them somewhere. I would rather give the kids a memorable experience than more stuff. Are the kids mature enough to process that as a gift or will they feel slighted? I'm not sure how to proceed. Someone please chime in.

On a side note, I'm learning to loosen the reins when it comes to Christmas decor. After 11 years of being a control freak and putting up the decor by myself, this is the first year that the whole family decorated the tree. This is also the first year that I've allowed the train set to be set up under the tree even if it doesn't go with the look of my tree. It still looks amazing. WHAT IS HAPPENING TO ME?

Snapshots

I can honestly say it has been a full week. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then I'll let the images below do the talking:

Last weekend, Ryan, Bryce, and I took a road trip to Las Vegas for a friend's surprise birthday party. We had a blast showing Bryce our old house and the park he used to play at, visiting with old friends, and gaining 10 pounds from all the food we ate. 

Food, marvelous food.

We took a tour of the Neon Museum. The history behind the neon signs was fascinating. I can now cross it off my bucket list. It was my Disneyland.

On Tuesday, I started classes at the bible college in my church. 

My family will be celebrating Thanksgiving tonight, so I need to bust out my pie skills one more time. Last week, I made a Dutch apple pie and a pumpkin pie that were to die for. Let's hope lightning strikes twice.

Long Time No See

Wow! It's been a while since I last posted. I guess I can blame it on being busy (because I am). But really, I haven't been blogging because I'm just tired. I haven't had any fresh inspiration or reason to blog. When I think to write, I talk myself out of it because I think that it's not very good or worth reading. I'm hoping the light will come on and I will write up a storm. But the reality is that it's nice to not look for things to write about. When inspiration hits me, you'll be the first to know :)

Style Mommy: Sweet but Tough

Looking sweet is great. However, I don't want to get a cavity from an outfit that looks too sweet. This strikes the perfect note between girly and don't mess with me. If this outfit were a baked good, it would be a cupcake topped with a metal spike.

Sweet but Tough by linaya featuring rebecca minkoff clutch

Vivienne Westwood nude pumps, $260
Rebecca minkoff clutch, $495
House of Harlow 1960 punk earrings, $30
Sequin necklace, $20
Stila glitter eyeshadow, $20