Inspiration Board for Lily's Big Girl Room

When I found out that we were going to have a daughter, I immediately began planning the pinkest nursery on the planet and gained lots of inspiration from the classic, preppy, and traditional girls' rooms and nurseries on Pinterest (See my nursery board here). Things like pink florals, ginghams, large monograms, and gold frames really caught my eye back then and are definitely still my main inspiration as I tweak and update the original design to accommodate Lily's big girl bed. 

I had a ton of fun creating this style board to reference as I put the finishing touches on her new big girl room and SHOULD have it all done here in the next month or so. (I feel bad that it's taken me so long to get this far but life is expensive and I'm also super wishy washy. Not a great combo!)

Here's what I've come up with:

So sweet, right?

The fabrics, rug, and frames are all items that are actually in her room as of right now. The other pieces on the board are either similar to what I've found and purchased or are things I plan to buy but haven't yet (that headboard and nightstand being number one and two on the list!) As usual, I've really paid attention to a (very small) budget and have bought most things on clearance or have had to get creative to keep things "chic but cheap". I'll be sure to share specific details when I post her final room reveal!

Here are the sources if you want to take a look. (None of these links are affiliated!) 

1. Floral fabric: The fabric that started it all! I love to use a big pattern and then plan a room around it.

2. Gingham fabric: This is a Lewis and Sheron fabric that is no longer available (I could cry over this. I would buy more if I could!) I purchased this 4 years ago and it still makes me suuuuper happy when I see it in her room. 

3. Monogrammed pillow sham: We have another style of monogram pillow but isn't this scalloped version so stinking sweet?

4. Dresser: This is another similar style to a dresser that I purchased at HomeGoods.

5. Headboard: I'm 99% sure that this is THE headboard after lots of searching.

6. Nightstand: Gah, I love those spindles. So classic.

7. Mirror: Similar to one I purchased at Steinmart for her original nursery.

8. Lamp: I actually like this one more than the one we already have in her room! The pink chinoiserie is to die for.

9. Bud vase: Cute!

10. Rug: This was in her original nursery and is still hanging out and anchors the whole space.

11. Frames: Hobby Lobby's prices really can't be beat for frames this size. I have them all over my house. 

12. Prints: I ordered some pretty blue botanicals from this Etsy shop for our guest room and they are SO nice. She has some great pink/blush prints as well!

There you have it! Fingers crossed that this quarantine will allow me the time I need to get this all done.

In other news, I did something last night that I was just SURE I wasn't going to do. I watched the first episode of "Listen To Your Heart" from The Bachelor franchise. Y'all. When they first started airing the previews for this during Peter's season I was like "Boo, no" but now quarantine's got me good and bored and fresh out of shows to watch so here we are. And I have to admit....I kind of liked it. Anyone else on the #LTYH train? 

Have a great weekend!

Easter Baskets 2020

Hello to my fellow quarantine-ers! Hope you all are hanging in there. We are most days!

As you may remember, Easter was this past Sunday which meant that for the last few weeks I've gotten to do one of my absolute favorite things: plan and assemble Easter baskets. Seriously, this is one of my most-loved tasks to do as a mom (least loved: going through outgrown clothes and toys) and I always have so much fun thinking about each child and what little treats will make them smile (or in some cases, are things they need!)

I definitely lean more classic in my style in general and Easter baskets are no exception. I purchased some timeless looking woven baskets that are pretty large at Michaels (they still have them in the normal basket section) a few years ago. I bought four when I only had three kids with the hope that one day I would get to assemble all four and here we are!

Y'all. It is past bedtime and I can hear my boys fighting in their bedroom. So fun. Just thought you should know.

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A few "rules" I follow each year for our baskets:

1. I always tie the basket handles with pretty silk ribbon. Each child has their own color so it's easy to tell whose is whose (did I type that correctly? probably not...) on Easter morning. I also really like the way the ribbon tails flutter in the wind when they are hunting eggs. Is that weird? It makes me happy.

2. "Pinterest-worthy" Easter baskets alway look so pretty with their wooden toys and handmade stuffed animals and all, but I really tend to only focus on what my kids really want and not so much on how cool or pretty the items are. (Although that's a definite plus and I'll happily get the cool/pretty things if we need them!)

3. I'm all about stuffing and layering the baskets to make them look as full as possible. My mom (I mean the Easter Bunny) was always really good at this when I was growing up and it made me SO excited to run into the living room every year and just take in the visual goodness.

4. I generally try to include items that can be consumed or used up in some way along with one or two small toys. It's nice because this time of year we always need fresh sets of chalk and bubbles so I always included some of those as well as new play doh or markers or paints or whatever we are running low on in the art drawer. I also love to use Easter to give the kids books that I want them to read. Sometimes I'll include clothes or swimsuits that they need but this year I focused more on fun trinkets and crafts since we are ALWAYS home and are running into a lot of "Mom, I BOOOORED" comments.

Alright now for the actual baskets. I'm included links to some of the items if you are in the throes of surviving your children's boredom like I am and need Amazon to help rescue you.

For Parker's basket I included:

-"The Action Bible" (Parker is so into the Dogman comic and I thought this would be a great step up from his preschool Bible!
-A new Dogman book
-Two small LEGO sets (I got these are Target when LEGO was 20% off--I love when they do that!)
-A Hot Wheels car
-Markers
-Play Doh
-Bubbles
-Chalk (I found the egg-shaped chalk at Target in the dollar spot section.)
-Candy (I always get Peeps, cotton candy, and egg gum. )

Hayes's basket:

-"Paint by Sticker" book (I am so excited about this! Hayes is our puzzle boy and this has the same kind of concept but with stickers. It's also one of a whole series and they all are super cute! I also loved the artwork on the front.)

-"How To Catch A Dinosaur" book

-Glo Pals (These are super fun bath toys that glow in the bath and turn off when they come out of the water. We've already used them and were very impressed! Plus, the company is based where I was born--Starkville, MS.)

-Two small LEGO sets

-Hot Wheels car

-Play Doh

-Chalk

-Bubbles

-Candy

Lily's basket:

-"How to Catch a Mermaid" book

-Melissa and Doug beading/jewelry kit (She has been begging to do this! We need to open it.)

-Melissa and Doug stamp set (Girlfriend loves her stamps and lost her mind when she saw this.)

-Washable paint (Another "running low" addition to the art drawer)

-Sunglasses (She kept stealing her brothers sunglasses. These were only $1 in the Target dollar spot!)

-Glo Pals

-Bubbles

-Play Doh

-Chalk

-Candy

Graham's basket:

Baby baskets are so hard when you already have every baby toy and board book imaginable. I pretty much filled Graham's baskets with things I wanted the older kids to share because, hey, he's a baby so he doesn't know and doesn't care. ;)

-"After The Fall" book

-Musical instrument set (Our old set was falling apart so this was a strategic buy for the older kids. Plus it's SUPER cute! They've already been driving me crazy with it! Ha.)

-Play Doh

-Bubbles

-Chalk

-Candy (You know, for us tired Easter Bunnies.)

So there's that! What are key ingredients for your Easter baskets? Do you enjoy putting them together   as much as I do? 

Here is a link to all of my Amazon sources in case you want to see everything at once. (Also, this is not an ad and I am not an affiliate blogger for Amazon.) 

Talk soon!

Kid-Friendly Lunch Charcuterie Boards

I'm pretty sure charcuterie boards are still a trendy thing, and I for one am still very much all about it. I can get lost in the "charcuterie board" Pinterest rabbit hole, and there are so many pretty and creative-themed versions for holidays, birthdays, brunches, you name it.

Since my kids (along with the rest of the world) are stuck at home right now, they have an almost endless amount of hours to beg for snacks and lunch and dinner and ALL THE FOOD.  Combine this current predicament with the lack of a reliable grocery run (send me some eggs, please and thank you!) and I now have a really "fun" game to play all day with all of the hungry little people in my home.

Enter: Kid-Friendly Lunch Charcuterie Boards

I like this option for lunch because it allows me to:

1. Create a pretty meal that looks exciting enough to eat with whatever is in my fridge.

2. Save on clean-up and dishwashing as everything is on one platter (or in my case--cutting board)

3. Encourage good peer pressure as they all see each other eating off the same plate and can try new things together--when they see their siblings eating celery, for example, they are much more likely to try it (and like it) as well!

4. Easily take the entire tray outside for a picnic without multiple trips to get multiple plates. (It's the little things.)

5. It's also fun to make! I look forward to seeing what I can come up with each day and my kids are always excited to sit and talk about the foods for the day.

These have been such a huge hit this last week as we've embarked on our "home-all-day-every-day" schedule. My children have all tried new foods and I've had to cover my smirk a few times as they've expressed that they actually LIKE them! Mom for the win.

I make sure to include a meat or protein, cheese, grain, and a whole load of fruits and vegetables on each tray. I'm also not above using dips and have a few on every board I've made so far. I've been using what I had on hand this week but plan on mixing it up with some new ideas after I go to the grocery store this weekend.

Here are some foods that I think are great options for these boards:

Meats/Protein:

-Sliced ham/turkey
-Meatballs
-Little Smokies
-Slicked hot dogs
-Chicken nuggets
-Quesadillas
-Mini grilled cheese sandwiches
-Mini turkey or ham sandwiches
-Mini peanut butter sandwiches or crackers
-Nuts, almonds, cashews, etc.
-Hard boiled eggs

Grains:

-Bowtie pasta with pesto (to dip)
-Pretzels (my kids love Nutella for dipping)
-Ritz
-Triscuits
-Saltines
-Nut Thins
-Gold Fish
-Veggie Straws
-Cheerios
-Mini muffins (bran or banana are my favorites!)
-Popcorn

Cheese:

-Mini-sliced colby jack or cheddar cheese
-String cheese
-Laughing cow cheese wedges
-Cottage cheese (maybe mix in ranch dip mix for crackers!)

Fruits and Veggies:

-Broccoli
-Bell Peppers
-Celery
-Sugar Snap Peas
-Carrots
-Avacado
-Apple slices
-Orange slices
-Strawberries
-Blueberries
-Banana slices
-Grapes
-Dried fruit

For quick prep-- I usually slice all the fruits and veggies in advance (like when I get home from the grocery store) and store them in air tight storage containers in the fridge so that I can just grab them as needed.

I encourage any mom out there to try this idea for lunch (Or dinner! Or breakfast!) It really makes those long days with little ones a bit easier (and more fun for you, too!) What would you add to my list? I would love some more ideas!

New(ish) Beginnings

I've been thinking about and humming and hawing over writing this first post of a brand new blog for months now, and I've decided that enough is enough. I rummaged together this blogspot blog rather quickly in an attempt to "Just Start".  And like my mama always said, there ain't no better time to start something than during a world pandemic! (Kidding!)

This is not my first rodeo in blog world. I started a design/lifestyle blog back in 2010 and posted with relative consistency for several years before becoming overwhelmed and really losing a bit of myself and a bit of direction for a while which ultimately ended with me stalling out on the whole thing.

But here I am! I'm back. I have a desire to share the things that I am still passionate about (that is, anything home design/homemaking/lifestyle related) and have decided to not be wishy-washy about it any longer. So here we go!

I hope this blog serves as a good creative outlet for me and is a bright spot in the day of anyone who decides to read it.

A few things you may see here:

-Home decorating/design
-Holiday planning and ideas
-Gift ideas
-Recipes
-Family activities
-Family traditions
-Mom hacks
-Home management
-Crafts/DIY
-Probably some personal posts, too!

Till next time!