Clearance Aisle Love

I have been looking for a framed mirror to go over my little table in the hallway, but the other day I was looking over the clearance aisle at Bed Bath and Beyond, and I spied this baby. On sale for $9.99 because it was returned without the hardware and has a scratch (where??). I think it will do!

I think it looks a bit like this ($200) mirror from Ballard Designs, don't you? I was going to hang it in the other direction, but it looked to low if I put it close to the table and too high if I hung it so you could see your face. What do you think about the placement ... should I flip it around and hang it horizontally or leave as is?
Tomorrow I hope to be posting some furniture makeover pix. I think they are going to turn out really great, and hopefully I can finish them up today. I will leave you with some family pix:

Here is Tweeny fishing at Grandma's. I just love lake pictures. They are so much easier to take than beach pictures.

Here is a closeup of Middle Child fishing.

Here is the Happy Little Man getting a ride on Daddy's shoulders. This kid just loves life.

And a new pet picture. This is one of the guinea pigs drying off after a bath (thaaaat was an interesting experience!). Yes, we have 2 guinea pigs, 2 dogs, 3 fire belly toads, and a gazillion fish. I didn't think I would like the toads, but I was forced to pick one up one day and it wasn't that bad. I even feed them the crickets now (swore I would not do that when we were at the pet store).

I think the pet love goes back to first grade for me. I had the coolest teacher *ever*. I wish I could find that woman, because I would love to send her a letter. She must be really old by now though.

She had a tarantula, snakes and rats in her classroom, and yes I have held them all! Sounds really gross, but to a 6 year old that is *way* cool. We would sit in a big circle and watch the snake eat it's lunch. She had a claw foot bathtub that we could read in. A really old-style typewriter we could "write" with. She had this loft area we could climb up and hide in to do our work. The much anticipated Grand Finale of the year was a sleepover in the classroom, and a tour of the boys' bathroom (if you were a boy, you got to see the girls' bathroom). We finally got to see that secret, unknown, disgusting room the boys went in every day. Wow! A bit anti-climactic actually, but the anticipation was great It was a magical classroom. I wonder how many places don't even let teachers teach like that anymore.

I had a couple GREAT teachers at that school. Anyone know how to track down former teachers? Thank you Ms. McCarthy!

And to everyone ...

~"May the Lord continually bless you with heaven's blessings as well as with human joys." - Psalms 128:5

I Think I Need This . . .

I think these are just what I need for my garage sale. Aren't they cute?! They are from Sassy Signs, and you can get signs for parties, babies, whatever you need. Now who wouldn't stop for that!

I Think I'm Insane (in other words, I'm Having a Garage Sale)

I have *SWORN* off having garage sales, but with the Tween room makeover (remember my little Peter Walsh was ruthlessly tossing things out) we have enough stuff to have a garage sale, and she wants to use the money to buy new bedding. I know all of my friends who know me well, and have heard "I'm never having another garage sale" ad nauseum, are all rolling their eyes.

Question ... and please pipe in with any opinions you may have, Tween wants to get rid of all American Girl dolls and accessories. I will let her sell almost anything, but this collection I cannot part with. I must save it. Am I being a clutter rat or is it ok to save something really special for our family (grandchildren, nieces) and future guests? Am I saving Tween from selling something that she may want to keep in the future, or should I let her get rid of her possessions the way she sees fit?

Ok, so my honey is also cleaning the garage, which is a source of much, much, much more junk to sell. I think there is more eye-rolling going on from the friends, because you all know what our garage has looked like for ages. He has already installed shelving and cabinets, so the real test is next week when he is going to de-clutter. I think Tween may have inspired him though. Keep your fingers crossed for me ladies.

So with Garage Sale plans full steam ahead, I thought I would brush up on my garage sale skills. I found a great little check list on my new favorite organizing website, OnlineOrganizing.Com:

BEGIN BY PREPARING YOUR SALE ITEMS
sort items into categories (kitchen, books, kids, clothes)
clean and repair items as you go
price items and label with a description when applicable

CLARIFY YARD SALE REGULATIONS
call city or county government for local yard sale regulations
find out about "signage" rules (size, shape, placement)
find out if you need a permit to hold a yard sale in your area

DECIDE ON NEWSPAPER ADVERTISING
call for prices and deadlines (don't forget "free" and local papers)
include date, time, address, directions, and items of interest
run your ad at least 1 day before and day of your sale

DETERMINE YOUR YARD SALE POLICIES
determine the length of your sale (number of days and hours)
decide if you will accept checks or hold items for people
decide if you will allow early birds or let people in your home

GATHERING YOUR SUPPLIES
decide if you will allow early birds or let people in your home
"checkout" items (cash box, extra bags, tissue / newspaper)
"try-before-you-buy" items (extension cords, batteries, bulbs)

MULTI-FAMILY SALES
ask friends, neighbors, and family to join in
have each participant mark his / her items differently
keep track of each person's sales in a notebook

PUTTING UP SIGNS
put posters at major intersections and along your road
put up fliers in local stores, laundromats, and churches
include address, hours, arrows, and major items of interest

SETTING UP YOUR CASH BOX
get change ($20 in coins, $50 in ones, $40 in fives)
create a list of "minimum prices" you will accept for each item
make arrangements for a charity to pick up your leftovers

SETTING UP YOUR SALE AREA
make sure nothing is blocking traffic flow
display like items / complementary items together
make sure everything is clearly visible

TIME TO ASK FOR HELP
make arrangements for a charity to pick up your leftovers
recruit helpers (at least 2 people to stay the length of the sale)
educate helpers about your pricing / negotiating

WEEK BEFORE THE SALE
put up fliers in public areas around town
place your newspaper ad
gather supplies, get change, and confirm "helpers"

WEEK OF THE SALE
put up directional signs around your neighborhood
block off any areas you don't want shoppers to enter
get a good night's sleep

WHAT TO DO DAY OF THE SALE
start setting up 1-2 hours before sale scheduled to start
put one person in charge of cash box -- never leave unguarded
have fun -- let your kids sell snacks and play some peppy music!

Anyone else hosting a garage sale this summer?

Worldless Wednesday

I'm going to re-post this picture for my first Wordless Wednesday at 5 Minutes for Mom. It's my favorite picture right now. To see more Wordless Wednesday pix, click here.

Here is the other "half" of the picture:

Check Out This Blog

Yesterday, I stumbled across a blog linked to Tracey's wonderful blog, and I thought I would share it with you. It is called Becoming Home, a tale of first-time homeowners. They are remodeling their first home and blogging about the experience. I really love how the blog is designed, and the house is adorable. I think it is going to look amazing when they are done. Check it out.
I got this great link from Becoming Home, too. It is a website called From Accents that sells magnetic chandelier charms to dress up your lighting. I will be shopping there today. Ambiance Interior Design sells them too.

Budget Tween Room Makeover

The Tween has been wanting a room makeover, and that is what we worked on this weekend. I wasn't sold on the idea completely until the project started and now I'm totally on board.

She had the standard-issue little-girl cottage furniture, which made her room look small because the desk had this bookcase on top of it. I didn't realize how having tall furniture (she had 3 bookcases in her room) makes the room look so small and cluttered.

So we got rid of a bookcase, the bed with posts and the desk with shelves. She also got rid *tons* of junk, which makes it worth it alone. She was impressive, like a little Peter Walsh, ruthlessly tossing things out.

She originally saw this dot bedding from PB Teen, but it was way out of the budget, so I found something very similar at J.C. Penney that was much more budget-friendly.

F.Y.I. We are NOT getting the curtains in the picture. Ouch . . . those are just a bit too loud.

So we went to Ikea in search of cheap furniture, and we were successful. This is the bed she picked out. It's really low to the ground, and looks very cool in her room.

We made a corner desk with 2 of these. We're going to make one of these to go over the desk.

Got this lighting, and

This lighting (this looks incredible when lit!).

I'm going back to get this item. We also got a chair for the desk with circles cut out of the back.

We haven't gotten the bedding yet, and we need to paint, so I will be posting before-after pictures in the near future.

So, because of all this, and she wants to sell her things to pay for the new bedding, I will be having a garage sale in 2 weeks.

A sneak peak . . .

As you may recall in this post and this post, I am working on organizing my sewing/craft room. I started this project a while back, and I have been making progress, so I thought I would give you a sneak peak. It will be a while until I post pictures of the final product because I am going to repaint the entire room (including master bedroom and bath). I was walking through Home Depot the other day, and a brand new paint chip caught my eye while I was walking by (is this a sign that I have spent too much time in the paint chip department??)

I digress . . .

The tool peg board is my favorite addition to the room so far. It was so easy to do. The cost was $5 for the board and a pack of all the little doo-dads to hang things was $10. Not bad. I think I need one in my laundry room for all my tools.

My second favorite is the curtain rod-wrapping paper holder. That cost $0 because I shopped in my stash (originally bought them at Wal-Mart so they didn't cost that much anyway).


Here is my new stamp/stamp pad holder.















And here is the inspiration board. I think it needs a little distressing.

The Face of a Naughty Puppy?

Does this look like the face of a naughty dog to you?

The answer is . . .





Yes!

We recently went on vacation for a week, and this is how Corgi #2 entertained himself.

So proud of his work, too.

What possessed me to get another puppy?

By the way, this is my brand-new-great-deal-free-shipping-on-clearance-matches-my-room-perfectly-Pottery-Barn-knockoff-I'll-never-want-another-rug rug.

Oh well . . .

~"And why are you anxious about what to wear? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin. And yet I say to you, that even Solomon in all his glory is not arrayed like one of these." - Matthew 6:28-29

The Perfect Gift

I am always in search of a cute little thing to give to a special friend (at the top of my list of gifts for myself should be a birthdates organizer/calendar because I think I have forgotten *everyone's* birthday this year!) Anyway, thanks to a link on Tracey's blog, I found this cute website called Rosanna which has really great dinner wear. The Fleur French Pitcher or Tea For One would make a lovely gift for a friend. And take a look at the *beautiful* round box for the Pitcher!!! Get out! I really, really, really love a great gift box. The next is a set of 12 Days of Christmas Appetizer Plates. I think I recall seeing these in a magazine before. I will be asking hubby for this set as my Christmas present. That would be a great wedding/shower gift. Rosanna also has a blog, and she is hosting a table decorating contest. I think I know someone who should enter.

When I was blogging around the other day, I also found this website called Wonderful Graffiti. They make vinyl transfers for your walls. You can do monograms, quotes, and other neat things. I couldn't save any of their photos, so I will have to post links. It's worth visiting. Here is a link to their Wall of Fame. They also have a separate website for Wedding Graffiti!

What I'm Reading

I have to share a great new book with you. It is Expressions: Taking Extraordinary Photos for Your Scrapbooks and Memory Art by Donna Smylie and Allison Tyler Jones. This is the photography book I have been wanting for years, but just finally found. It is about taking memorable photos of people. The authors give ideas on how to be more creative, as well as technical lessons on things like composition and lighting that are understandable but not too difficult for the average person. I think anyone could immediately improve their photography skills after reading this book. It is awesome!!!

Ok, I also have to share a link to an adorable new scrapbook store. My scrap style is very basic, and I don't go nuts over all the scrap stuff, but I would *love* to go to this store because it is so adorable. It is called By Design Scrapbook Boutique. It makes me want to redecorate my scrap/craft room. You may recall my recent posting about organizing my scrap room. I did have a deadline of 30 days for the I'm An Organizing Junkie contest, but got a little bogged down with what to do with *years* of photos. I was going to reorganize them all into boxes, but couldn't bring myself to do that. I had an epiphany last night ... instead of organizing the photos, I need to just sit my butt down and *scrap* them. Nothing fancy ... just using classic black or natural background. Journaling Heidi Swapp style. So I started last night, and I actually have almost completed a scrapbook. So, I have not forgotten about this project, but I'm not quite ready to show you the results. Stay tuned.

And since you might have noticed by now that I love photographs, I will end my post with two of my favorites I took this week. The boys and I are on our own because Fifi (that is what I call my daughter because she is a princess) is away at camp. This experience will either change her for life (she doesn't like dirt, bugs or water without chlorine), or it will cause every camper there to suffer for a week.

"...but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:14

"The Lord is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him. So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the Lord. And it is good for people to submit at an early age to the yoke of his discipline." Lamentations 3:25-27

"Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act." Psalms 37:7