Forget Christmas, this is the best time of year!

If you know me at all, and by at all I mean might have stood next to me in the grocery line once three years ago, you probably know I'm in love with garage sales.  The thought of planning, coordinating and executing one (in addition to attending) will always be on my top 10 list of loves.

Every April, I like to get together friends and let them know when they can bring their stuff over for the sale of the century.  I might be exaggerating a little, but not much.  I usually can barely close my garage door the night before the sale starts!

This year, it comes down to this weekend!!!  I'm pretty sure 10 families are participating - wow.  We have two babysitters lined up for Friday (because last year I almost lost my mind), borrowed tables and gazebos (for the rain that will.not.stop.us), lists that have items waiting to be crossed off and piles of junk waiting to be sold.

I'm in heaven.

So, if you want to find...anything, come by.  We'll have a little bit of everything.

Hilarity

Perusing Facebook tonight, I found this photo that I absolutely love and forgot to post on here for memories sake.  

Give this kid a Sonic cup full of ice and lemon/lime wedges.

Get your camera ready for when he samples the lemons.

And then laugh hysterically every time you see this photo. 

Friday Night at the Ball

Friday night brings a night home with my boy.  Big sister has a date with daddy tonight so I get to enjoy some one on one time with my Jacers.  I've also realized today that he has some pretty crazy hair going on.

Alfalfa wanna-be.

 Waving bye to Haylie.

And he's off with his best bud.

So about this date with daddy - his work is throwing a Daddy/Daughter Ball.  She gets to dress up like a princess again and even got a corsage this time!  Of course we had to get accents in purple.  She was so excited!  And so beautiful.

 But even princesses pick their noses.

Painted furniture and pinterest crap

Lately, I've been hit with the "my house is too bland" bug.  We tend to be really conservative when it comes to colors and such in our house...and I apparently like to buy black, tan and brown colors only.  Anyway, I finally got the itch to try something with color.  Great thing about it, if I don't like it next week, I can go buy more paint!!  

I started with Pinterest to get ideas.  Of course.

I have no idea where I saved my before picture from but just imagine this table was all cream.  It blended into the carpet.  I'm testing out the teal and chevron.  I'm afraid of color and different textures, and I don't want it to look like an Easter egg.

I painted with teal, added some swipes of stain and finished up with a coat of polyurethane.  My thoughts?  I like it.  Your thoughts?

Next up, I was hankering for something to put here in front of this room divider.  I'm not a huge fan of the divider, so I thought I would try to do something to distract myself from hating it.  We had a dresser that we used in Haylie's nursery for awhile (before pic), then it got stuffed into our playroom because we didn't know where else to put it.  Moved it to the hallway and painted it...

Before and after.

I like the color in the daylight, but when we use the hall lighting at night, it looks like blue instead of the gray/green that I thought it was on the paint sample...so I might have to re-paint with a more solid gray.  I just bought a tester at Home Depot and that did the whole dresser!  I also probably need a bigger picture above.  And maybe that basket needs to go. I'm just trying to use what I have though!

Your thoughts?

And then this is a Pinterest inspired project that just ended up looking like crap.  I used what I had and instead of beautiful name framed pictures, it's just this.

 Oh well.  Maybe another day I'll try something else. 

I would ask for your thoughts...but I know what they probably are!

To KS and Back.

A few weeks ago, I just got a random idea to go visit my friend Katie in Wichita.  She is one of my oldest longest friends I really have.  We met when we were 5, living in Delaware and attending Newark CofC.  Our whole families really enjoyed being together and we were really sad when they moved to GA a few years later.  

So I got the idea that since we are both SAHM's, why not go hang out?  The drive isn't that long and is do-able in a day.  So we figured out a day and off we went.  Nevermind that the one (spring) day we chose, we have winter weather complete with ice.  Didn't stop us though!

We attempted to take pictures of all our kids - poor Jace was the only boy there.  He held his own, though.

I think this one is my favorite.  Why is Haylie strangling Jace with a DVD?!

And just to prove how long we've been friends, here is a THEN and NOW.

I have no words for those glasses. And it appears I forgot my makeup in my haste of leaving the house. Anyway, we had fun!! I don't think Katie and I stopped talking the entire time.  With us, we just pick up right where we left off last time.  It's so fun to have a friend for 25+ years.  To 25+ more!!

New Set of (Training) Wheels

Haylie loves riding her bike.  We went to Hafer park the other night and she rode all around the trail - and that is no small feat.  She was using her smaller trike and Justin and I both thought it was time for an upgrade.  So where do I turn? Craigslist of course.  Found one that was purple and just her size.  Got it within the hour and we had one happy girl on our hands...complete with a new helmet!

Everyday since she has asked to ride her bike - even in the ice storm or whatever we had just yesterday.  We are excited for warmer weather so we can have long mornings of bike rides!

Just for fun.  Because I love him too. :)

Haylie's Garden

This year, we decided to let Haylie have her own plot of garden space.  She was so helpful and intrigued with the growing of vegetables last year...so we decided to let her have her own!  Justin built her a little box out of wood.  She, of course, wanted to paint it purple.

She was a good supervisor.  Definitely pointing out all the places he missed (or hadn't had the chance to get to yet!)

We let her have free reign with the green paint once I put her name on it.  She was about to paint over all the purple if we didn't stop her!  She was having a blast.  We (and I mean Justin) have since tilled up the garden plot and are waiting for prime time to plant.  Haylie says she wants to have broccoli, tomatoes and cucumbers in her garden.  I told her whatever she grew, she had to eat...so we'll see if that changes her mind any!

Easter Trifecta

Easter 2013.  Almost as many activities and candy as Halloween.  Again, I don't remember doing this much as a kid.  I think Haylie did 4 Easter egg hunts!  

So the trifecta begins.

One.

Easter Bunny at Northpark Mall. We ran into some friends there and Haylie got to have two photo opps!

Two.

Dying Easter Eggs.  Haylie has never done this before...and she loved it!  We started small with just dunking in dye buckets and 6 eggs.  She was sad when it was over but it was plenty for me.  I just had visions of watery dye flying all over the kitchen.

 My handsome baby.

Three.

Easter Sunday.

Candid of siblings trying to get a cute pose.

 Trying our luck outside with better light.  I literally was about to fall over with both kids on my lap!

I didn't get any pictures of hunting eggs, (crazy, since I had ample opportunity) but just imagine Haylie walking around shouting "egg!!" every time she found one.

It was a great Easter.  We got to enjoy lunch with my family and my bro-in-law's parents. 

But better yet, we got to witness an excellent church service complete with a baptism...which reminded us of the real reason for the celebration of Easter.