Sunny Side Up

Cords and Cards

2012-02-15T23:21:00.000-08:00

Sharing how I organize cords and cards today! I've shared these pictures before, but several people have asked how I organize these items so here they are again. You can never have enough cords and cards. That's my motto. Actually, that's not my motto, but it sounded cool so I went with it.

This kitchen drawer is kind of our catch all for random things. Cords/chargers that we use every day are in a simple organizer from Target. Then I found this little black beauty...

(also from Target)

It sits in my "catch all" drawer too. It doesn't hold our every day cords because I didn't want to have to zip and unzip it every day, but it's a great solution for those cords you just need once in a while.

My yellow living room hutch is another place I store cords. One drawer is our battery/flashlight drawer and where I also store certain cords Kenny wants separated from the others - for what I don't know - if it were up to me half of these cords would be in the trash.

I also have a bin full of larger cords in the bottom of my hutch. Right next to the remotes we never use since we have everything programed into one remote. Again, we are hanging on to these cords and remotes why Kenny? :)

At least they're all in one place. If you can't beat em' organize em'.
Now that's my real motto!

The other side of my hutch is where I store my cards.

I don't keep all of the cards I get (I would need another hutch!) but the cards that are really special I keep tucked away in a red box labeled "Erin's cards." I know. My creativity with that title is killing you right now. Kenny also has one and it's labeled...wait...you'll never guess..."Kenny's cards." (How do I do it, right!?) His is full of cards that I think should be special to him. Like all of his cards from me. ;)

We aslo each have our own box to fill with keepsakes from the kids.

All of our keepsake cards have a happy home.

Christmas cards are a different story. I select a small handful of cards (I try to choose different families each year) and then cut the pictures out of the cards and complete a layout for our Christmas album. Every layout looks the same. Nothing fancy, just the pictures in a collage on red paper.

Here are the full posts if you want more info. on my hutch organization or how I save our Christmas cards:

Hutch Organization part 1

Hutch Organization part 2

Christmas card organization

Hope that helps those of you who are looking to tackle cords and cards soon!

Week is winding down! I'm so excited for tomorrow morning because I have no where I have to be until noon. First time that has happened for a couple of weeks and Kole and I are going to take full advantage. I'm thinking pajamas until 11. A little cleaning, laundry, organizing, and Yo Gabba Gabba. DJ Lance and I love a good cleaning party. Exciting stuff in our neck of the woods. :)

Enjoy your day!

To my babe on V Day

2012-02-13T22:25:00.000-08:00

Hi babe. Lately we have been all about the kids. Because well. The kids are kinda time consuming. So I wanted to shout it to the world! Ok not maybe not to the world - but at least to the people reading this blog how much I REALLY like you.

Ok. I REALLY love you too.

In fact, I love you more than...

So now you know just how LOVED you truly are. :)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the mood for more LOVE-Y posts?

Kenny & Erin - 13 years (our story)

Marriage (advice/tips from married women and our first fight)

Thick Love (last year's Valentines post and one of my favorites)

Happy Valentines Day to everyone reading!

I hope you have a great day surrounded by those you love.

Fashion Friday... on a Monday

2012-02-12T23:39:00.000-08:00

{ODE TO FOREVER 21}

Ok. You all know that I buy a lot of my tops from Forever 21. I get a lot of questions about how the clothes hold up because...well...they're cheap AND how I wash them so they don't fall apart because...well...they're cheap. So here's my experience with Forever 21 clothes (which I've been buying forever...since I was 21. No. Not tired of that one yet.) I don't do anything too special with my clothes. I toss them in the washer with the kids' stuff on a regular cycle with regular old Tide. I don't dry them in the dryer. I have a small clothes rack in my laundry room that I hang my tops on to dry. That's it. That's all I do. And yes. Sometimes I find a small hole in my shirt or a button missing, but they are always easy, minor things to fix/disguise. There has been a time or two that I have taken a Forever 21 shirt into the Tailors to mend and I've paid more for the mending than I did for the shirt! And I'm ok with that. I shop at Forever 21 for a reason.

Over the years I've developed a bit of a "clothes philosophy". I believe in spending good money on my jeans and my shoes. Jeans because there is nothing like a good pair of jeans that really fit the way they are supposed to. They make me feel better about myself (by tightening things that should be tighter!) and because I stay home with my kids, I'm in jeans 90% of the time. I keep a good pair of jeans for years so they are absolutely worth spending a some money on. I also spend good money on my shoes because like jeans, I'll keep a good pair of shoes/boots for years and I want them to be comfortable (especially since I prefer a bit of a heel). Jeans and shoes are neutral staples. Now tops are a totally different story. Shirts, sweaters, blouses - I get tired of them quickly. Styles change and each season it's fun to buy new things to wear. Some of my Forever 21 tops have held up ok and I've had them for years, but most of them I buy and wear for a season or two and then send them to Goodwill - with no regrets since I didn't spend much on them. I've found that shirts I've spent more on from stores like Nordstroms, Banana Republic, and Anthropology still end up not looking as good after multiple washes and have faded or torn or lost a button. I get rid of a lot of those after a season or two also. It happens to all clothes. Once in a while if I see a top I just can't live without, I'll splurge on it. But most of the time, I head to Forever 21. Spend 50 bucks and come home with four cute new tops to wear! Love it.

And speaking of cute new Forever 21 tops, how adorable is my sister-in-law in this orange blouse?

(Please ignore the poor lighting and the dirty dishes! Of course now you won't ignore them because I pointed them out to you. But I still feel the need to point them out to you. Why is that?)

When my family came to visit for Ellie's baptism we hit the mall. I sent Dayna straight to Forever 21 because they have fun stuff right now for Spring. She bought this blouse and wore it that night to Ellie's baptism. I was so in love with this top on her! And those shoes!! How perfect are they with that orange blouse!? Shoes are from Target. (Target - allow me to express my love for you once again.) Of course they aren't "wear all day chasing kids shoes." They're "wear to a one hour baptism where you will be sitting most of the time" shoes. But man they sure look good. Of course it also helps when you are tall and tan and drop dead gorgeous like my sister in law is. She would look good in a tent. I tell her all the time it's a good thing she's so nice because she would be very easy to hate. ;)

A better look at the blouse and it's true color.

Here's another one of my new finds from Forever 21 that I am LOVING lately. I can't pull off orange with my hair and coloring like Dayna can, but I love to wear yellow. This shirt screams SPRING! HAPPINESS! SUNSHINE! I walked in the store a couple of weeks ago and Kole was DONE being at the mall. I knew I only had minutes left so I thought I'd just do a quick loop through the store and see if anything stood out to me. And there it was. This top hanging on a rack. I moved to it quickly thinking "please have my size...please have my size...please have my size." They did. Then I tried it on quickly thinking "please fit the way I want...please fit the way I want...please fit the way I want." It did. And so I bought it. And the two of us have been living happily ever after ever since.

It's casual and comfy and looks great just plain.

I also like it with this fun new Forever 21 belt. (Six bucks for the belt!).

My cute dad approves. He thinks Forever 21 is all the rage. And you can tell by his NCIS shirt that he is a fashion maniac. ;) Love you dad.

Happy Monday everyone!

**Linking up @ The Pleated Poppy

Jewelry Organization (fun ideas!)

2012-02-08T23:56:00.000-08:00

Answering a reader's question today. Some of you asked me questions back in NOVEMBER that I STILL haven't answered yet. I am so LAME. Is writing in all caps making that clear? How LAME I am!! Anyway - so sorry. I try to answer most questions in the comments, but if it is a question that requires a little more writing/pictures I save it for a blog post. I have a handy little e-mail folder marked "blog questions to post" where I save all of your questions. The problem is that they get filed away in my handy little e-mail folder all nice and organized and then I NEVER ANSWER THEM! I'm going to try to answer a few of them here and there. If you still even care to know the answer to your question! (SO LAME!) **Side note - lame is kind of a weird word, isn't it?

Moving on.

Jennie said: "I love all your organization and I was wondering how you organize jewelry? I have lots of long necklaces and jewelry - any ideas?"

I've shared the way I organize my jewelry before although it's not a great solution if you have a lot of jewelry to organize.

To be honest I'm not much of a jewelry person. I wear my wedding ring and usually earrings and once in a while I'll toss on a necklace, but that's it. This little jewelry box from Target has worked well for me so far. I don't keep anything I don't wear so it stays nice and tidy.

I hang my necklaces on some little butterfly hooks in my room (bought this at Marshall's about five years ago for 6 bucks - don't ask me how I still remember the price but I do!).

I have more necklaces than I did when this picture was taken (these pictures are over a year old) but they all still fit on the butterfly hooks! This works for now, but I'm planning to re-do my jewelry organization (and my whole bedroom for that matter!) in our next house. So of course I've been looking for some other fun jewelry solutions. Here are a few ideas I've saved on Pinterest. (Hand over your heart for the mention of that beloved site).

Source: norskeinteriorblogger.blogspot.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

This is so pretty and simple. All you need is an old frame, some spray paint, and fabric/cork. A fun DIY project!

Source: iheartorganizing.blogspot.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

So creative! Love this! And you can buy unique 3-tiered stands like this all over the place.

Source: etsy.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

I love this idea too! Buy some fun knobs from Anthro (or anywhere else) and create a beautiful necklace display. I love to use necklaces to double as decor for your room.

Source: maillardvillemanor.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

Or you could just add hooks to cutlery trays for necklaces! So clever!

Source: high-heelfootinthedoor.blogspot.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

Source: marthastewart.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

I don't think using small bowls for jewelry is the best solution as far as making the most of your space, but if you have the room I love the look! Such a pretty way to display your jewelry.

Source: household6diva.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

Add hooks to a wooden hanger to hold earrings.

Source: etceteraecasa.blogspot.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

And one of my favorites. Bracelets on glass bottles. The box is fun, but this would be so pretty just sitting on a dresser too. So many clever ways to organize and display jewelry! Nothing lame about them. ;)

(Hope that helps Jennie!)

Happy Thursday everyone!

A special weekend

2012-02-07T23:01:00.000-08:00

Hi friends! Took a little va-cay from the computer while we had family in town. This past weekend was a really special one for our family. Saturday Ellie was baptized and became a member of our church.

My mom bought her this beautiful white dress to wear for the occasion.

Ellie felt like quite the little princess in her new dress with everyone doting on her all weekend long (as you can see from the posing in the pictures!). It was such a treat to have both grandmas and grandpas here AND my brother Austin and his cute wife Dayna. We had a full house and I loved it!

Of course, if Ellie was getting a picture taken with grandma and grandpa then so was Addison. :)

The whole crew on our way to the church. It was such a special program - just Ellie and one other boy got baptized so it felt very cozy and personal. When I got up to do a little spotlight on Ellie I was incredibly touched to see how many of our friends showed up to support us. It was a special night for my sweet eight year old and one we will never forget.

The rest of the weekend was THE BEST. Lots of hanging out and relaxing at the house. Happy to all be together.

Other events included:

A little ball in the backyard. With quite the audience. :)

A superbowl party.

A little shopping.

Late night chatting.

A little cooking.

A lot of eating. (Too much eating!)

And a whole lot of help with the kids.

One afternoon my dad was outside playing with Kole, my mom was making dinner, and Kenny's mom was reading stories to my girls. Now THAT is what I'm talking about! I just wandered around not really knowing what to do with myself! It was wonderful. I loved having my house full of family and I was so grateful for the help. And now they are all gone. My parents stayed through today and it was hard to say goodbye. Reality set in all too quickly! And tonight around 6:00 when everyone was hungry and tired and I was juggling the usual homework/dinner/baths/cleaning ritual on my own I closed my eyes and remembered my happy afternoon. When there were more adults than children and everything ran so smoothly. :) (I miss you all! Come back!!)

It was such a treat to have everyone here.

A perfect weekend and I am so proud of this sweet girl.

Fashion Friday...kinda..sorta..ok not really

2012-02-02T23:40:00.000-08:00

Happy Friday everyone! Had some fun in Forever 21 the other day. Oh my goodness. They have SO many cute things in right now! Spring colors are showing up. This is my favorite time of year to shop for clothes! Well. Other than in the Fall. And summer stuff is pretty fun too. And I am loving winter boots and scarves this year. Guess every time of year is my favorite time of year to shop for clothes. Go figure. :)

I bought this simple, classic V-neck sweater. Love the little buttons on the sleeves. It came in lots of colors - I was loving this soft blue. I can't remember exactly what I paid but I know it was under 15 bucks. Forever 21 baby! Love it. I found some other cute stuff that I'm excited to share but I don't have time to go through pics tonight. We have a lot of family coming into town this weekend (I'm so excited!) and to say I have a lot to get done before they get here would be an understatement. Here's a peek at the current state of my bedroom:

and my bathroom...

Ha! Am I ready for company or what!? :) I tore into my closet last week and haven't had two seconds to finish my little project. Because my little project turned into a not-so-little project. But have no fear!

I am armed and ready to tackle my messy situation! I just need to find some time to do it. Hopefully before noon tomorrow. It's all good. I work best under pressure. :)

And just in case I need a little inspiration, I picked up this beauty at the grocery store the other day...

Have you all seen this issue!? Looks so good. I picked it up and thought 10 bucks!? I'm not paying 10 bucks for a magazine. Then I flipped through the pages. And music started playing and the heavens opened. And I found myself thinking 10 bucks! Really!? That's it!? For this work of art!? Sold.

What will my kids do while I bustle around getting the house ready for our guests?

They always seem to come up with something. :)

Happy weekend everyone!

A Valentines Box

2012-02-01T23:06:00.000-08:00

Last weekend Ellie had a friend's birthday party to attend. That's always hard around our house. My girls are glued at the hip so when one of them is invited to a party and the other one isn't, I usually have one pretty bummed out daughter. So to cheer Miss Addison up, I told her that we would have a special party. Just the two of us. A party to make her Valentine box for school. Addison decided we would wear our house shoes and call it our "Valentine box house shoe decorating party." So last Saturday afternoon Kenny took El to the birthday party. Kole took a nap. And Addie and I took up some serious Valentine box decorating. In our house shoes of course.

This child of mine is so different from her sister. I remember helping Ellie with her Valentine box for Kindergarten. Ellie was so happy to have my help. She would have let me do the whole thing if I would have wanted to. Not Addison. This girl wants NO help. She wants to do everything herself. She always has. She has a pretty hard working, determined, stubborn little spirit. That sometimes drives me straight up a wall. And other times I love and admire like crazy.

Ta da! Her Valentine box in all its glory. And don't forget to notice the house shoes. You can't have a "Valentine box house shoe decorating party" without the house shoes.

I was allowed to help cover the box in paper and to make the little hearts on the side, but that was it! Bummer for me. I love this kind of thing. I should have made my own box just for fun.

Aren't these little elephants on the side adorable!? Target! A pack of them for $5.00! And easy for Addison to put together. Love it!

I love them a ton. :)

Elephants on two sides and stickers on the other two sides, exactly the way my girl wanted it.

I also picked up these adorable matching sacks for my girls to carry their Valentines in. Target! $2.00 each! Love them. And I love Target. A fact that's worth repeating.

Here is the fun little friend I made for Ellie's box two years ago. SO easy to make.

And so fun that Ellie let her mom participate! Although I have to say that when it comes to regular homework - math, reading, spelling - I'm starting to appreciate Addie's "do it myself" personality more and more.

I know it's a bit early to be turning in Valentine boxes at school, but in Kindergarten at our school they do the cutest mail unit. They turn in their boxes and cards early and learn all about sorting and delivering the mail. Addison has the same teacher Ellie did and it has been so fun re-living everything again this year.

When Ellie was in Kindergarten my dad made this fun mail truck for the class to deliver their mail in and Addison can't wait to use it! I know. Coolest grandpa ever, right? We think so. :)

Happy Valentine box making everyone! Wear your house shoes if you work on one with your kids this year. It just seemed to make something good even better.

Valentine mantel and a rough day

2012-01-31T23:03:00.000-08:00

Oh my goodness. It's only Wednesday. My week started off a bit crazy. Kole is sick. :( Hate that. I hate it for him and I hate it for me. Monday was L-O-N-G. He was so fussy and just wanted to be held and of course I had so much going on. By 5:30 I was completely exhausted. I'm helping Ellie with her report on Benjamin Franklin due the next day, dealing with Addie in one of her moods, entertaining and holding a very fussy Kole. I called Kenny at work and our conversation went something like this:

K - Hi babe. How is your day going?

E - I don't care what call you think you need to be on or what client you think you need to deal with, I need you home. By 6:00. I'm hanging on by a very thin thread right now.

K - Oh no. I'm so sorry. Should I pick up dinner?

E - No. I made dinner. In the middle of this chaos. Probably a big part of why I'm hanging on by a very thin thread right now. (Kole crying in the background)

K - I'll be home soon.

7:30 rolls around and Kenny walks in from work. Kole is in bed. Girls are on their way to bed. Kitchen is clean. I'm a zombie.

K - So sorry babe. I tried to get away...

E - You're dead to me.

Every have those day? Every day after I get the kids in bed and the house picked-up I feel tired. Monday night I felt like I was seriously going to die. It is very rare that I make a call like that to Kenny. I seem to be dealing with a string of tired/long/hard days with my kids right now. I know it's not a three kid thing or a boy thing or even a Kole thing. It's a one year old thing. I struggle with this age. Newborn stage and age 1 to about 2 1/2 are so hard for me. I love my babies and I know I will miss a lot of things when they are all in school. But some things I won't miss. Days like my Monday I won't miss.

The upside to my tough day is that since Kenny felt so bad he couldn't come home early he has been extra sweet and helpful. I'm happy to report he is no longer dead to me. :)

I switched a few things up around the house again. You know. In an attempt to deal with my life right now. Organizing and decorating are all about control for me. I can't control the craziness that explodes around me with my kids every day. But I can control some things in my environment. Like my Valentine mantel. Which I changed -- AGAIN.

Not a big switch. Just back to the winter mantel with the heart in the wreath. And the heart garland. I like it. And I promise that I'll leave it alone. At least for a week or two.

Oh. And I moved the birds together. Because they are in love. At least for this month. :)

I knew my girls would be upset that once again I didn't have the candy and the heart wreath out, so I put the candy in this dish (a keepsake from my grandma).

Then I moved a few things around and added the heart wreath to my hutch.

Now when people walk in the front door they immediately feel the love and can grab some candy on the way in! The girls are happy and so am I! Kole's happiness is a work in progress...

A quick Valentine mantel recap:

And all is right in the world again.

p.s. MUCH better day today. :)

Hair Accessories (and a winner!)

2012-01-29T23:47:00.000-08:00

Happy Monday everyone! First item of business - winner of the Scentsy Giveaway! I sure wish I could say "Who wants a Scentsy? You all get one!!" Kinda like Oprah with her cars. "YOU get a Scentsy and YOU get a Scentsy and YOU get a Scentsy! But since I'm not Oprah, and since Megan probably wouldn't love me giving out over 300 of her candles, I guess I can't say that. What I can say is that I just had Kenny punch the numbers in a random number generator on his computer (that's right - I'm staying out of it) and the winner is... Jennifer who said:

"I have seen these but don't have one yet. I would LOVE one. I love for my house to smell good when someone walks in. btw Erin I love your blog and your ideas. Thanks for sharing!"

Thanks and Congratulations Jennifer! Send me an e-mail (link is on the side of my blog) with your information and I'll make sure Megan gets in touch with you. If you didn't win and are interested in buying your own Scentsy, you can click on the links to Megan's site in the giveaway post.

Ok! That was fun. Second item of business: Hair accessories. How I organize them that is. (This is my blog after all. Items of business aren't going to be all that business like around here.) A few of you have asked recently how I organize my girls hair accessories so here is my system...

Several years ago I bought these two long ribbons to hang all of the girls' little bows and clips. I wish I could remember where I ordered the ribbons from, but I can't. They would be simple to make though - just long ribbon attached to rings with a bow at the top. You can't see in this picture but the bows at the top each have my girls' initials on them. Anyway - this is what the bows looked like three years ago when it was just me and the girls. Nice and organized and color coordinated. I like to call this time the "pre-Kole era". Back when things made sense and my whole life was color coordinated.

Here's what they currently look like. Post Kole. Still organized on the ribbons...just not nearly so neat and tidy. A bit like my life now. See - I needed a third. He has mellowed me. :)

For now I just loop their headbands through the bows on the top, but this is only a fraction of the girls' headbands so I'm trying to figure out a better place to keep all of them together. Since my "post Kole" life is a bit hmmm...what's the word....insane! I haven't had time to deal with them yet.

I organize their clips, small elastics and bobby pins in little plastic containers.

And use some longer containers for their bigger elastics.

I also use a longer one for their toothpaste and toothbrushes.

It all fits nicely in a little cupboard inside of their bathroom mirror.

Accessories are easy to reach when it's time to do hair. Regardless of who is getting their hair done!

And since we're talking hair accessories, I can't resist posting my all time favorite picture of my girls in their bathroom...

{2008 - ages 2 and 4}

I remember Addison hugging Ellie waiting for her to be done brushing her teeth (she used to do this all the time). I walked by the bathroom one night and just happened to have my camera in my hand. Nothing like catching a precious, fleeting moment between your kids. I've always loved this picture.

Hope your week is off to a great start! Color coordinated or not. :)

p.s. You can see a mini tour of this little bathroom my girls share here.

Fashion Friday

2012-01-26T23:31:00.000-08:00

Weekend's here! And I am SO happy about that little fact. Yea for Saturday morning waffles! Yea for

lounging in pjs! Yea for no schedules! Well. Aside from a Saturday morning meeting, an afternoon birthday party, and church stuff Sunday...yea for not as crazy of a schedule! :)

Bought this a couple of weeks ago at The Limited and I've worn it twice. SO SO comfortable. I'm realizing that I'm kind of obsessed with grey this season. I'm probably buying/wearing way too much of it. But this top just spoke to me. It said - "roll out of bed and put me on. I'll feel like your pajamas all day."

Very hard to not buy something when it says that to you.

Grey Uggs for the morning running errands. Grey boots to look a little more cleaned up for an appointment in the afternoon.

This top (comfortable as it is) is a little...blah? So the next time I wore it I added my cream scarf.

But just like San Diego temps always do, the cool morning turned into a warmer afternoon so half way through the day I switched to this scarf which isn't quite so hot.

(Bought this scarf at Gap a couple of years ago.)

I liked that scarf so much (I'd kind of forgotten I had it) that I took this top I usually wear with my anthro belt...

and wore it with the scarf a few days later.

Mix and match. Match and mix.

By the end of the week our mild temps turned into hot summer temps so the kids and I (and the rest of this city) pulled out our summer clothes. I bought this top and necklace last summer at Forever 21. I think I paid a whopping eight bucks for the two of them together. Ellie said to me today "mom! That shirt is see through!" I said - "I know! That's why I have a white tee under it!" Then she nodded her approval - "good thing mom." Thanks for watching out for me El. What would I do without all of the endless help and advice I receive daily from my three little ones. :)

I forgot to get a picture of my outfit with the wedges I wore, but here is a pic of them. How fun are those bedazzled stones! Fancy Nancy all the way. Addison loves them of course.

I bought them to go with this dress, but they have been fun to wear with lots of things.

I also wear my cheap-o Forever 21 top with my yellow shoes and these earrings.

Nothing like a little summer wardrobe to end the month of January!

Can you believe January is almost over!? Is it just me or wasn't Christmas like two minutes ago?

Time is flying by so quickly.

Probably because I'm in a stage of life right now where I don't have time to catch my breath.

Only enough time to take pictures of what I'm wearing and then blog about it.

You know. Life is all about priorities.

Have a great weekend everyone!

**Linking up at The Pleated Poppy

Winter and Valentines Mantel

2012-01-25T23:39:00.000-08:00

This post may be a bit picture heavy. There's been a whole lot of mantel switch ups going on around here!

Remember how my mantel look in December? And remember how I mentioned that one of my favorite things about it was that it would be so easy to transition into January?

Well it was! All I did was take off the Christmas garland and replace the silver Christmas tree with this pretty vase and winter-y pine cone twig from Z Gallerie. (On a side note, Z Gallerie is so hit and miss for me. Some things in that store I love and a lot of other things I can definitely do without.) Funny because I bought the pine cones during December knowing I would use them somewhere in my house in January. Then I hunted so many stores looking for the perfect vase to hold them. Couldn't find anything I liked anywhere and then I finally went back to Z Gallerie looking for something else. And there she was. My perfect aqua vase. She had been waiting for me there all along. :)

I love this vase. And the silver pine cone twig.

Which has some shimmery glitter on it that sparkles in the light.

And ties in so perfectly with my shimmery silver wreath.

And with my shimmery basilica pillar Pottery Barn candles.

A whole lot of shimmery is going on.

Kept the birds up. They've become fast friends. :)

So three cheers for an easy January mantel! I love this mantel decor because it is simple and clean. And I'm all about simple and clean. In case any of you didn't already know that about me. :) I think I also love it because we don't have winter here. This mantel decor brings a little winter inside. Even if it's 77 degrees and sunny outside like it was today.

In fact, I liked my quick and easy January mantel so much that I really wasn't ready to take it down yet. So I hung a heart from the wreath and called it my Valentines mantel.

My Valentines mantel and I were getting along just swimmingly. In fact, we were kind of in love. Until my girls came home and saw it. And they said - "Mom. That is NOT a Valentines mantel."

Remember my Valentines mantel last year? Well they wanted to know where the heart wreath was. And the tissue heart garland. And the candy. Of course. The candy!

We can't have a Valentines mantel without the candy.

(Sorry birds. You weren't cutting it with the kids.)

So I combined a few things from my favorite Valentine mantel and the kids' favorite Valentine mantel and came up with this.

Less black. More white. And aqua.

The aqua looks a bit like a loner color on the mantel but ties in nicely with the rest of my house.

I tossed my tulips in a white pitcher. And gave my girls their candy.

Then I put up the heart garland that we made last year,

hung the wreath and switched my winter candles for some red ones.

And now my girls are happy.

Me? I'm kind of missing my vase and birds. I'm sure they'll find their way back soon.

Like after we've eaten all the candy.

Which won't take long. :)

Which one is your favorite?

**Linking up at Home Stories A to Z

Scentsy Giveaway!

2012-01-24T22:56:00.000-08:00

***This giveaway is now closed.

Ok. If you've read my blog for a while now you know that I'm a candle girl. (Hello Fresh Balsam candle from Bath and Body Works - I am still obsessed.) So when Megan (a sweet blog reader) contacted me about doing a giveaway for her Scentsy Wickless Candles I was excited! I had never tried Scentsy products before and was curious about how they work. For those of you who haven't heard of them, Scentsy Wickless Candles are ceramic warmers that are a safe alternative to a candle. With the warmers there is no flame, no smoke and no lead. The ceramic warmers use a low watt light bulb that melts specially formulated scenty wax that creates a long lasting aroma that fills the room. They are safe to use around kids, pets, and in your home, classroom, office, or anywhere.

There are so many cute warmers to choose from and they come in a variety of sizes, ranging from plug-ins that are perfect for bathrooms and laundry rooms all the way to full size warmers that are perfect for any size of room.

I chose the "Hampton" warmer since I'm kind of obsessed with all things Hampton and white these days. (Is anyone watching the show Revenge? Dream home!!) Since I don't live in the Hamptons, I figure the next best thing is my Hampton warmer. :) I love the way it looks on my counter! Megan sent me several scents to try and I have enjoyed them all but my favorite so far has been the "Christmas Cottage" scent. I know. I'm wearing yellow and smelling Christmas scents in January. I'm breaking all the rules and Ioving it! :) They have over 80 scents to chose from so you are sure to find something you love.

I just placed a couple of little wickless bars in my warmer and within minutes they had melted and my house smelled so good! One thing I noticed that was different with these compared to my regular candles is how the smell filled my whole house. Usually when I light a candle I can only smell it in the kitchen where it is located. I can seriously smell my Scentsy candle all over my whole house, including the upstairs. I love that! The smell is so strong that I only need to have it turned on for a little while. Then I turn it off and enjoy!

One of my favorite things is to be in a clean house listening to the hum of my dishwasher with a candle burning (or in this case, not burning). :)

Want one of these for yourself? One of you will win a full size warmer of your choice and a scent bar of your choice. And you will love them! If you are anything like me and love to make your house (or office) smell fabulous. Leave a comment on this post if you are interested!

Happy Wednesday!!

Organized Bath Toys

2012-01-23T22:57:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! Several of you have e-mailed me and asked questions about how I organize certain things (and about other topics) and I just wanted to let you know that I WILL get around to answering your questions on my blog at some point. Thank you for being patient! A few of you asked recently how I organize my kids' bath toys. Great timing because sorting through them was on my trusty "to organize" list. BTW-it was pouring rain today. I was planning on exercising with friends and running errands, but because of the weather Kole and I opted to spend the morning at home in our pjs. I got so many spaces checked off my list! I always organize best when it rains. :) Now I just need the sun to peek out so I can take pictures of everything!

I've had my kids' bath toys organized the same way for years. About every 6 months (usually while my girls are in the tub) I dump all of their toys on a towel and go through them. I get rid of stuff they aren't playing with anymore and put away toys that aren't for the tub that always somehow make their way into my "tub toy" bins. Because I sort through these toys so often it's a quick ten minute job.

I just use simple plastic bins that I've had for years and divide the toys by categories...sorta. They get messed up and that's ok. I'm fine as long as they aren't spilling all over the place.

I keep all of the bath toys under one of the bathroom sinks. I keep the lids off so that they are easy for the girls to grab and put away.

After bath time we always toss the toys in the sink. Then after the toys have dried off (for the most part) one of us tosses them in the bins. Letting the toys dry out a little keeps them from getting mildew-y. Is mildew-y a word? I guess it is on this blog.

Kole was so content playing with all of these toys while I was going through them! It was seriously the longest he has sat still in weeks. I think we may need to re-organize the tub toys more often.

Like every afternoon. :)

Happy Tuesday everyone!

A party and a spotlight

2012-01-22T23:26:00.000-08:00

Quick birthday re-cap for my 8 year old! Last year for El's birthday we kept things low key, so this year she wanted a big party with all of her friends. She wanted to include everyone of course which meant there would be over 20 kids (which ruled out a party at our house) and there would be boys and girls (which ruled out the "snowflake pajama princess party" she originally came up with). We decided to just take the easy way out and have her party at Pump It Up - the inflatable party zone. Or as my sister likes to say - "McDonalds play land on crack." Whatever you call it, this place never disappoints.

Ellie was so excited to see her name on the board when we arrived. I was so excited to know that everything would be taken care of and I could just relax and enjoy my girl. She greeted each guest with a huge hug and a smile and wouldn't go into the bounce zone until everyone got there.

The kids had endless fun on all of the inflatables and before we knew it, it was time for pizza and cake!

El has the sweetest group of friends. She really does. Darling kids - we just love each one of them.

The party was a huge success and Ellie definitely felt special which is always the goal. :)

In fact, the whole family had a great time.

(Well - the four of us did. Kole was home with a sitter. Didn't I mention wanting to just relax at the party and enjoy my girl? Don't feel too sorry for him. He had a nice long, uninterrupted nap. I wasn't the only one who needed to re-charge from last week!)

And here's another simple thing I did to spotlight Ellie...

Remember the frame I painted to hold a few of my Christmas cards?

I thought it would be fun to use it to spotlight each of my kids (and Kenny too!) during their birthday months.

I just developed some fun 5x7 pictures of Ellie through the years to hang up and display. I can't get enough of the baby pictures. My baby is 8! Unbelievable.

Another quick, easy way to make my birthday girl feel special. She has loved her little spotlight!

And as for me, I am feeling much better! (Thanks for your sweet, encouraging words!) I know most moms can relate to the way I felt on Friday. Motherhood is not for the weak! Last week was the perfect storm but after a fun and restful weekend, I'm happy to say that we are back on track.

My little boyfriend even decided to chill out a bit. I think he knew his mommy needed a break!

I'm off to go over my schedule and to-do's for tomorrow! Which will include a little organizing and a little scrapbooking. And definitely a goal to exercise and eat better. Well. After I finish off Ellie's cake of course. I do teach my girls to never waste food...

p.s. This was Ellie's second party at Pump It Up. She had her 4th birthday party there too. I was just looking through these pictures this afternoon...

(Ellie - turning 4 at her Pump it Up party)

(Addison - almost 2)

{THEN}

{NOW}

My baby is growing up. And now I need a tissue.

Hope your week is off to a great start!

Friday Night Confessions

2012-01-20T23:01:00.000-08:00

It's Friday night and I'm exhausted. I'll spare you the details of my week since I'm not in the mood to re-live them, but let me just say that this week was way too busy for my taste. And I'm so glad it's behind me.

A few Friday night confessions:

This week:

My house wasn't clean.
I didn't feel organized.
My time management binder was tossed aside because there was no time to manage my time.
I didn't look fashionable. I spent most of the week running around in whatever was on my closet floor.
There is no "fashion friday" because there was no time to take pictures, not that I wore anything picture worthy anyway.
Kole was a pill. It's his new norm.
I cried twice. For no specific reason other than that I was just BURNED OUT.
One night my kids ate bagels for dinner.
I didn't get enough sleep. (staying up way too late to get stuff done and up in the night with sick kids)
Kenny and I were snappy because we were both running on empty.
I ate a lot of chocolate.
And only exercised once.

The kids and I re-grouped this afternoon by staying home and getting the house back in order. Well. The kids played while I re-grouped and got the house back in order. Then I started tearing into my closet. And now I feel better.

Birthday party for El tomorrow. It will be fun. And next week will be better.

So glad I got that all off my chest. :)

p.s. Thanks for all of the sweet comments and e-mails. They were a bright spot in my week!

Dear Ellie,

2012-01-19T14:21:00.000-08:00

Today is your eighth birthday. You are eight years old today. I have to repeat it to myself to believe it. Then I have to quickly stop repeating it because if I let myself digest that little fact my eyes start to burn. I remember typing your birthday letter last year. I was sitting on the same couch I'm sitting on now thinking that I just couldn't believe you were turning seven. And just like that - a whole year has flown by. And now you are eight. And you are amazing. You really are Ellie. There are so many thing I love about you. I could write a book.

You and Addison are still as thick as thieves. The two of you race home from school every day so that you can play play play. Addison loves you so much and wants to do everything exactly the same as her big sister Ellie. You set a great example for her to follow. The sound of you two laughing is my favorite thing to hear. Which is a good thing because I hear it a lot! You take such good care of Addison - always watching out for her. This morning you woke up to eight birthday balloons in your bed with a dollar in each one. The first thing you said was "Ad! Look! The balloons have dollars in them! I'll have four and you can have four!" It made me smile. That is so like you. Always thinking of Addison.

Kole completely adores you as well and you are crazy about him. You are always so excited to get him up in the morning. It's like you've missed him all night and just can't wait to see him. Lately you have even been getting him out of his crib yourself. Often before I'm really ready for him to be out of his crib. :) You two have such a special relationship. When you are around his little eyes just light up.

I love that you are so happy Ellie. I say this about you all the time but it's true. Whenever I hear the song "you are my sunshine" I instantly think of you. You bring so much sunshine into my life. And into your dad's and your sister's and your brother's. Your excitement for every little thing is contagious and it spreads to everyone around you. We smile a lot because of you Ellie.

Your sense of humor is maturing. And you are funny. I mean really funny. Your dad and I are always laughing about things you say and do. You crack. us. up. On a daily basis. My favorite thing you said this year was "who says Kole has to be a boy just because some silly doctor says so?" Your dad and I had a good laugh over that one.

You have developed such a love for reading this year. It has been really enjoyable to see. You stay up so late reading and often try to carry your book around with you everywhere we go during the day so that you can sneak in a page or two. In the car, walking through the grocery store... I hope your love for reading never ends.

You are such a huge help to me Ellie. You are always completely aware of my mood/feelings. Kole is a lot of work right now and you can always tell when I'm starting to feel tired or frustrated. You quickly smile at me and say "I love you mom." And as soon as you do I instantly feel less tired and less frustrated. Then you start to head up the stairs singing a little song you made up for Kole. His little clue that it's time to follow you upstairs to play. I am always so grateful for your help with him and wonder every day how I would survive without it!

You are doing a great job in second grade this year. Your teacher adores you and always tells me about the sweet things you do and say to your classmates. How kind you are to everyone. How you go out of your way to make people feel special. How you are such a social, friendly, well-liked student. She also tells me that you sometimes have a hard time focusing on your school work because you are so busy being kind and social. Doesn't surprise me one bit. :)

One of the things I adore the most about you Ellie is your endless creativity. I am always blown away by the things you come up with. With just a laundry basket and some yarn you are able to create all sorts of magical contraptions for you and Addison to play with. You are a master story teller and entertainer and your siblings are never at a loss for what to do when you are around.

I could go on and on about you Ellie but I'll save my book for when you turn nine. :) Which will sneak up on me altogether too quickly just like age eight did. But I'm so incredibly grateful. Grateful for your smile and your laughter and your love. Grateful that such an amazing little person is my daughter. Grateful for one more year I got to spend with you - my sunshine.

Happy 8th Birthday Ellie!

I love you so much.

xoxo, mom

Sunny Side Up Organization Links

2012-01-16T22:37:00.000-08:00

In an attempt to better organize this blog and to make it easier for all of you to find posts on specific organized spaces, I thought it would be fun to have a post that included links to all of the spaces I've organized and shared on my blog. That way if you've been reading for a while now (thank you loyal readers!) you can re-visit a past post when you are ready to organize a certain space in your home and need some ideas. If you are popping in for the first time (hello and welcome!) this will hopefully make it easier to find specific organizing posts that will be helpful to you. I'll also keep this post on my sidebar and continue to update it with new spaces/items as I organize them. So if you love to organize as much as I do, just click on a link and I will take you to a happy place! :)

Tips for Getting and Staying Organized

Stuffed Animals

Kitchen Pantry (mine)

Kitchen Pantry (my mom's)

Coupons/Receipts/Gift Cards

Christmas Decor

Christmas Wrap Station

Scrapbook Room

Baby's Room

Kids' Closet (clothes and toys)

Kids' Closet Drawers (clothes)

Kids' School Work

Project Life (paper scrapbooking)

Digital Scrapbooking Elements (on computer)

Pictures (on computer)

Medicine/Spice Cupboard

Linen Closet

Garage

Get out the door summer list

Summer Organizing (random spots)

Hutch - batteries, office supplies, keepsakes (post 1)

Hutch - holiday decor (post 2)

Kitchen Cabinets - homework/craft drawers (post 1)

Kitchen Cabinets - drawers (post 2)

Kitchen Cabinets - pots, pans, dishes (post 3)

Home Decor Binder

Time Management Tips

Time Management Binder

A Word on Cleaning

Living Room Baskets

Shoes and Coats
Bath Toys
Hair accessories

Time management binder

2012-01-15T21:42:00.000-08:00

Time management. It's so important, isn't it? How we manage our time and what we do with it says a lot about who we are and what we prioritize. Right now I'm in a stage of life where spare time is very limited. I'm sure many of you can relate. Since baby #3 came into my life (and completely rocked my world both for good and bad!) I have been on a quest to figure out a system that will help me organize my time and make the most out of every minute.

First I'll state the obvious. I use a planner. I actually bought two this year. Not because I need them both, but because I bought the aqua one on the left and then the cover was bothering me so I went back to Target and bought the green one which is identical to the planner I had last year except it's smaller. I needed something that would fit in my purse. I'm only using this planner for two things: to keep track of appointments and random activities, and to write specific to-do's for each day. Things that I have to do that day that are time sensitive (make a certain phone call, take Ellie to a birthday party, doctor appointments, etc). Everything else in my brain gets dumped here:

I shared this binder with you in my post on paper organization, but I've changed things up a bit since then.

This was how it used to be organized...

This is my binder now. I've tweaked this binder so many times over the past year and finally feel like I have something that works well for me. That's the great thing about a binder like this. You can customize it to meet your needs. The important thing is having a place to "dump your brain" so that you don't have to think about things anymore. It's all right in front of you.

First you need a cute cover page. Ellie drew this picture of us under a rainbow. She gave it to me in October, hence the ghost. I think the two of us look simply stunning so I wanted it in a place I would see often. :) Once you have a cover page that makes you smile, you can focus on organizing the categories in your binder to make it work well for you. Here is how I organized mine:

Week at a Glance - On the first page in my binder (you can kind of see through the red folder above) I have the days of the week listed and set activities/things I need to remember. These are things that always happen on that day each week. Examples: the days my girls have library and need to take their books to school, the days they have activities like dance and gymnastics, the days it's my turn to do pick-up because I carpool with neighbors. I glance at this page each night before I go to bed to remember the set in stone things for the following day. Then I look in my planner to see if there are any additional appointments or activities (there always are!) that fill up the rest of my day. Now I know what the next day looks like for me. This "week at a glance" page helps me a lot. Now there will never be a time that I space a weekly activity or forget that I have after school pick-up. My brain isn't cluttered trying to remember the details of each day. It's written right in front of me!

Shopping for - My next tab is titled "shopping for" and this might seem a little crazy to some of you but here's my deal. I'm not good at meal planning. I'm not one of those people who can plan out a weeks' worth of meals and only go to the grocery store once. I go to the grocery store about every three days which works fine for me because it's close by and easy to pop in while the girls have dance class or after I take them to a friends' house. My other issue is that I buy my groceries/household items at three different stores - grocery store, Target, and Costco. I also always have items I always need/want at the mall and other random places so here's what works for me:

Sticky notes! I always have four on a page. These are my "running lists" of things I need to buy. The great thing about using sticky notes is that when it's time to make a Target run I can just pull off my Target sticky note and toss it in my purse so I don't forget anything. I know this wouldn't work for someone who has a long list of groceries, but like I said, I go often so this works for me.

Current Projects - A list of the current projects I'm working on. These are things that I'm focusing on right now so currently I have my "to organize" list on the top page and a few other projects that are in the works on the following pages.

When Kole is napping and I find myself with a little free time, I glance at my planner to see if there is something that HAS to get done. If not (or once those to-do's are checked off) I turn to this "current projects" section of my binder and work on something here.

Future Projects - Any time I have an idea for a project - a gallery wall somewhere in the house, a lemonade stand for the girls, what ever it is - this is where I write it down. Just ideas for now. But someday they will be moved to "current projects."

Post Ideas - This is where I tend to "dump my brain" the most. Ideas for blog posts are always popping into my head. When I'm exercising, when I'm driving, when I'm typing another blog post! The ideas are never ending. Finding the time to implement all of my ideas is another story. But at least I have a set place to write them all down!

Post Schedule - This is a category I'm trying for the first time this year. The two areas of my life I'm NOT organized in - meal planning (cause I hate cooking so planning to cook just isn't appealing) and my blog! I am so fly by the seat of my pants where this blog is concerned. I never know what I'm going to post until I sit down the night before. I look at my recent pictures and somehow always manage to come up with something. I know bloggers who are so organized! Have their posts planned and typed out a week or two in advance. Wow. That would be nice. While I don't think that will realistically happen for me (and in some ways I enjoy blogging present time anyway) I would like to be a little more organized in this area. I just have a blank calendar page for each month in this section of my binder where I can jot down an idea of what to post each day.

Birthdays - I like to keep a list of each month and any birthdays I need to remember. I know this information pops up on facebook and your cell phone and all over the place, but I like a written list in my binder so that I can plan ahead. I glance at it at the beginning of each month so that I know who I need to get gifts for and when I need to deliver or mail them.

Miscellaneous Information - I always have a "random" spot in my binder for those extra items that always pop up. I love my current tab dividers (from Target) that have a folder included on each one so that I have a place to store any papers/forms I need to keep close by. This is where I also have a list of my goals for the year.

That's it for my time management binder! I know this is custom to me and my needs, but hopefully it still gave a few of you some ideas for how you could make something like this work for you. I'm a firm believer in dumping your brain out on paper! Life is busy and I've learned I just can't rely on my memory for everything. If something doesn't get written down, it doesn't get done.

And since we're talking binders, here are a couple more I also keep close by:

I have a spot in my binder that reminds me of birthdays and other days I want to remember, but last year when I saw this book in Hallmark I just couldn't resist buying it.

It has tabs for each month of the year.

Then when you open each tab it not only has a place to write down birthdays, but it also has a pocket to hold cards. I love this because I always buy multiple cards at a time. (I do this because picking out cards is SO hard to do with little ones! If I am ever in a Hallmark by myself I stock up!) If I see a card I love for my dad, I buy it, even if his birthday is months away. I save it in his birthday month pocket and then when his birthday comes rolling around I'm prepared! I still like having my binder list for a quick glance because my binder is always with me and I keep this card book upstairs. A book like this would be SO easy to make on your own. Just buy a binder and tabs and use it the same way!

And of course there is my home decor binder that I LOVE looking through and adding to.

(Full post on my Home Decor binder here.)

It's kind of like Pinterest - only old school. :)

What can I say? I'm a binder girl. They really do help me manage my time. For more tips on time management, you can check out this previous post I wrote. It includes some other tips that have really helped me make the most of my time. And on that note, time to wrap this up! I have a "current projects" list that needs my attention while a certain someone is sleeping!

Have a great week everyone!

**Linking up at Home Stories A to Z

Fashion Friday

2012-01-13T00:16:00.000-08:00

Weekend is here! And it's about time! Kenny was in San Francisco this week for work so I was flying solo. Not for too long, but it felt LONG. Kenny works an insane amount of hours so even when he's here I'm flying solo most of the time BUT he is usually home in time to put the kids to bed (even if he starts working again soon after) AND he always takes the girls to school in the morning. Man. We were thrown for a loop without that little bit of assistance in the morning. Kids didn't want to wake up, I'm running in circles trying to fix breakfast, pack lunches, sign homework, feed-change-entertain Kole, do hair...and wait...now I have to be ready? And by ready I mean out of my pajamas because that's about as far as I went. Finally got the kids loaded in the car - we've got 10 minutes till the bell rings - the girls are yelling "we didn't brush teeth!" I'm chucking breath mints at them and yelling "eat this and call it good!"

But we made it. Kids were a little late, teeth weren't quite as clean, and mom was a little frazzled, but we made it. Addison was frustrated with me. Not only did I not take the "super secret passageway" to the school (I guess Kenny goes down a different road with them?) but after I dropped her off I didn't say "meet you at the window" and then blow kisses at her through her classroom window like daddy does. Come to think of it, I got a lot of "that's not how daddy does it!" while he was away. We clearly have our routines and roles. And daddy is irreplaceable. And mommy is tired. :)

So yes! I'm ready for the weekend! Even though it's a busy one, Kenny will be around for it.

Just a couple things I wore this week:

Top is from The Limited, belt is from Forever 21. We have been having the best non-humidity filled days and my hair and I are loving it!

Sometimes when I wear this top I switch out the belt for this necklace. I was looking at this picture thinking that looks so familiar. Have I already posted me in that shirt and necklace? So I looked a few months back and found these Fashion Friday pictures:

HA! Different top and necklace but they might as well be the exact same! I'm nothing if not predictable.

This happens all the time. I have so many similar things in my closet! I seriously think I have over ten tops in this exact color of teal. The funny thing is that I'll try to break out of my shell and buy something I normally wouldn't wear but it always backfires. Because then I just don't wear it. Anyone else that way?

We had one cold day this week and I wore this sweater from Express (bought it two years ago and I've only worn it a few times - I'm usually sweating in it by noon). Cream, big neck, belt -- also matching 10 other things in my closet. :)

Here's a new sweater I bought on my New York trip last October. I've had fun trying this on over different shirts. One of my favorite looks is this one (two shades of brown).

And remember this top from The Limited last spring? Also worn here with the Forever 21 belt.

I love the sweater over it too. Who says you can't wear yellow in January? Speaking of yellow, I went shopping last week (mall gift certificate from Santa is burning a hole in my purse) and there were so many FUN yellow things I wanted to buy! I came awfully close to buying this skirt and this jacket. But then I remembered that I already have this yellow jacket:

Does a person need more than one yellow jacket?

I'm beginning to think this person does. :) Look how happy I am in that picture!? Clearly the yellow jacket is the reason for my smile. Maybe the fact that my kids were with Kenny and I was having girl time with my friends is another reason for my smile, but you better believe the jacket played a part. And who says you can't wear yellow in January? (I already asked that question, didn't I?)
Well, it's an important one.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Kiss your husband and wear something yellow.

That's what I plan to do. :)

**Linking up @ The Pleated Poppy

Stop! I'm blushing!

2012-01-10T22:43:00.000-08:00

Just popping in quick today to share some fun news! Better Homes and Gardens featured my Valentines mantel on their website! So exciting! When I got the e-mail a few months ago asking if they could feature my mantel I think my jaw hit the table. I clicked the Better Homes and Gardens link about five times to make sure it was really them! (Move over Martha!)

You can check out the feature and see other fun Valentine mantels here.

The link to my full post on my Valentine mantel from last year is here.

Although I'm working on mixing it up a bit this year. :)

I've also been noticing a lot of traffic coming to my little blog from Pinterest. Yes. Pinterest. That beloved site that has changed all of our lives. Mostly by zapping away all of our time. ;) Yesterday I landed on the link to all of the pictures people have recently pinned from my site. Now THAT was fun. I'm thrilled and flattered that so many of you are pinning my ideas. It truly makes me so happy! In fact I was so excited about it that last night I did a little celebration dance in the living room. (I know - you're all so sad you missed that one.) I said to Kenny "I'm getting pinned!!" He gave me that look. The one I so often get that says I have no idea what you're talking about but I'm not about to ask because I don't think I really want to know. I know his looks well.

If you're a Pinterest fan like myself, you can see what has recently been pinned from

Sunny Side Up here.

Ok. All of this excitement has worn me out. I'm off to bed.

Thanks for the happy dance.

Organization: Current List/Stuffed Animals

2012-01-09T23:56:00.000-08:00

First step to getting organized: make a list. Here is my current "spaces/items to organize" list:

-scrap space (clear room for project life!)

-kole's drawers/closet (go through clothes)

-girls' book shelf

-addie's closet/drawers

-ellie's drawers (go through clothes)

-laundry room cupboards

-kids' bath toys

-girls' toy kitchen (scary stuff hiding in that microwave!)

-my bedroom hutch

-my dresser

-my closet (go through clothes)

-my bathroom drawers/cupboards

-nightstand drawers

-closet under stairs

-stuffed animals

I just walked through my house and wrote down every space that could use a little "sprucing up." Some of these areas have already been organized and just need a touch up. Some of them (hello my mess of a closet) need a major overhaul. Having a list makes it feel manageable. Now I can just work on spaces whenever I have a minute and happily check off my list.

A few posts back one of my cute Virginia friends (hi Lucy!) asked me what I do with my stuffed animals. She was wondering how to organize them since her daughter loves them all. Well - it was perfect timing because that very day I had come up with what to do with our crazy amount of stuffed animals. And I have the SAME problem Lucy. After years of birthday parties and holidays and trips and surprises for good behavior and grandparent visits and weak moments in Target - we now have a crazy amount of stuffed animals and dolls. My girls truly CHERISH each and every one of them. They also truly play with and take care of each and every one of them.

I used to keep stuffed animals in these baskets in the playroom.

But lately they have been filled with my little man's treasures. And truth be told, our crazy amount of stuffed animals/dolls weren't fitting well in this spot anyway.

So one afternoon the girls and I went in every room and rounded them all up. I boxed up and stored all of the Christmas stuffed animals with our Christmas decor in the garage because it's more fun if those toys are only pulled out in December. The girls were so stressed about the rest of their "friends." (They know all too well what happens when mom starts making piles.) I promised that I wasn't getting rid of anything and explained to them that we just don't have the space to have all of these "friends"out right now. I had them choose a handful to keep out to play and sleep with and I assured them that the rest of them would be close by.

A while ago I got the comforter on my bed dry cleaned and when I picked it up it was in this fabulous heavy duty clear sack. I knew I could find a way to use that sack so I hung onto it. As soon as I saw the crazy amount of stuffed animals/dolls I needed to store, I knew just what would hold them! Problem was that I only had one and that baby filled up fast! So I went back to the dry cleaners.

And I asked them for two more sacks. Kenny should be thrilled. I didn't spend a dime. (Did you read that babe!? I didn't spend a dime!!) That's a first for me. :) I'll tell you why this was the perfect solution (aside from the fact that it was a free solution). I needed something that wouldn't break/tear easily. I also needed something see through because now when my girls want to locate a certain "friend" it will be easy to find instead of using black garbage bags that we would be dumping out all over the floor every other week.

They also have this really great handle so they are easy to move around.

Another spot that has been organized before and just needed some "sprucing up" was the closet under my stairs. This spot always becomes my catch all for any and everything when I get busy. And December was insanely busy. Just 20 minutes and this closet went from the picture above...

to this. I cleaned out all of the files so our paper organization hub is ready for 2012!

Then I cleaned out space in the back of our closet to make room for the stuffed animals.

Now they are still with us, but not all over my house. When the girls want to get out some new "friends," they are easy to pull out and find. The rule is that if they are taking some out, they are putting some back in. Of course, if there are a few toys that never get pulled back out... well... let's just say I don't have the same problem my girls do "letting go." I know this isn't a perfect solution, but I think it will work great for us. (Hope that helps Lucy!)

So I'm feeling good! Two items checked off my list! That's a good thing. Lots still left to organize.

But that's a good thing too. :)

Getting and Staying Organized

2012-01-08T20:43:00.000-08:00

So it's January. When I was younger I didn't love January. January meant that the holidays were over - and I do love the holidays. But as soon as I became a wife and a mom and started creating a home for my family, I grew to love January. January represents a fresh start. It's a time for new goals. It's a time to get your life in order. A time to organize. :) It's the one month of the year that people everywhere get the itch to do what I have the itch to do year round! So in honor of my new favorite month, I'm re-posting my tips for getting and staying organized. I'll also be sharing lots of organizing inspiration throughout this beloved month. And of course - throughout the rest of the year as well. :) So read this post and then get off your computer and tackle an un-organized spot in your home. I just know you'll be glad you did!

{Getting organized}
1) Don't let organizing your home overwhelm you. The thought of organizing your whole house can be so overwhelming. Don't let it be. Start small. Pick one drawer or area that's really bothering you and start there. One way of tackling your house is to walk around and make a list. (I just love lists, don't you?) Write down the spaces in each room that need to be organized and then pick one space/cupboard/drawer to work on whenever you have a minute. (I often organize while making phone calls.) Don't start a new project until that space is finished. Just having a list will take some of the overwhelmed feeling away. Now your goals are written down and you have a place to start.

2) Use your space wisely. I store a lot of my holiday decor in high spots above closets because I only get them out once a year. On the other hand, my children's most often used toys and games are stored low where it's easy to get to them.

3) Give everything in your house a home. If you have created a specific place for everything in your home it's much easier to put things away where they belong.

Once you've made a home for everything, labels are a great way to help you remember where things belong.

4) Organize things in a way that makes sense for your family and the way you live. For example, for a long time I had all of our baking supplies (flour, sugar, etc.) on the main shelf in my pantry. I also had a whole shelf dedicated to cook books. Cook books that had a layer of dust on them. I'll be honest, I don't love to cook and with my kids around, we are reaching for the crackers and pasta more than anything else in our pantry. It makes sense for us to have those items on the easy to reach middle shelf in the pantry and the baking goods up higher for the rare occasion that I actually use them. (I tossed out all my cook books except one or two that are stored in a drawer.) Someone who cooks and bakes a lot would organize their pantry another way. Websites and magazine articles are great places to get organization ideas, but don't just copy what someone else is doing. Organize your home in a way that is functional for the way you live and it will be much easier to keep things organized.

5) The most important thing to remember when organizing: If you want to be organized, you have to be able to let things go. Get rid of it! Seriously. You've maybe heard "when in doubt, don't." Well my motto with organizing is "when in doubt...DO!" If you're not sure about whether or not you can part with something, trust me, you can. You might think "what if I need this someday?" Chances are you won't, but what if you did? Would it be so awful if you got some flowers and needed that vase you'd been storing for three years and then trashed? Could you put the flowers in something else you had on hand? What about your closet? Are you saving clothes for when you lose weight? If you lose weight you're going to buy new jeans, not wear the ones you've been saving for four years since you had a baby. Get rid of it! When keeping things for "sentimental value," be smart. Do you really need to save every drawing your kindergartner comes home with? Would one or two be enough to remind you of her year in school...or even better, a picture of several of her drawings for her scrapbook? Being able to let things go is so invigorating! It's just stuff. And we're always buying new stuff. Less really is more. Use the space in your house to keep only the things that you use or love.

{Staying organized}
1) Teach your family the importance of having a clean, organized home. If your family isn't on board, forget about it! There is only one you and you will never be able to keep things organized on your own. Teach your kids how to put things away in the place you've created for them. My girls know that when it's clean up time there is a select place for their barbies, books, dress-ups, etc. Time and time again I have gone over where we keep their things so that now it is second nature for them to put things where they belong. {Getting them to do this without being asked? Don't have the answer for that one. :)} Assign clear responsibilities for keeping the house clean and give consequences when they're not accomplished. (My girls' toys get taken away if they aren't put back where they belong.)

2) Take the initiative to put things away where they go and teach your family to do the same. Keeping something organized takes constant work and upkeep. Once you've organized and made a place for something, put things away in that place! How many time do we set something down and think, "I'll just put this here for now." Resist the urge! It usually takes only a few seconds longer to put something away it its place vs. just setting it somewhere it doesn't belong. Not procrastinating and consistently putting things away where they belong will lead to a clean, organized home.

3) Take a minute to straighten up your organized space the second it starts looking messy. If you do this, you will avoid having to completely re-organize your home time and time again. My fridge, for the most part, stays clean and organized. That is because every time I buy groceries, I do a "mini cleaning". I pull out things that are getting old, wipe off a shelf or two, put new groceries in their designated spot, etc. When Kenny comes in with the mail I immediately go through it, toss out the junk mail and file everything else - or I bug Kenny until he does it. (Being a great organizer sometimes means being a great nagger ;)

4) Think before you buy new things. When I'm about to make a new purchase, I always ask myself two questions: Do I have space for this? Is it something that I will really use or will it just be more clutter in a few weeks? Many times I have put something back after asking myself these two questions (especially when I'm about to buy the girls a new toy!). Thinking ahead about how you'll organize new things you buy will not only help you keep your house clutter free, it will also help you make smart purchases.

5) Choose every day to stay organized. Keeping things organized is a daily choice we make. It's just like choosing what to eat. If you want to be healthy, you have to change the way you eat. You have to consistently make healthy food choices. Just like you can't participate in a one time diet and expect to always stay thin, you can't organize a closet and then pat yourself on the back and expect it to magically stay that way. (I know this because I've tried!) You have to consistently put things away where they go and take that extra minute to keep everything organized.

When your house is full of clutter so is your brain. Simplifying your home will bring so much peace. Life will run more smoothly and you’ll have more time and energy to focus on what’s really important - your family - the very ones who make it so incredibly difficult to keep things organized! :)

Happy Organizing Everyone!

Fashion Friday

2012-01-06T00:26:00.000-08:00

Thanks so much for all of the Project Life feedback! I loved reading all of your comments and hearing the different ways you are making Project Life (or any other scrapbooking system) work for you. As soon as I figure out the direction I'm taking with Project Life you'll all be the first to know! ;)

I'm so ready for the weekend. Was it just me or was it hard getting back into the swing of things after Christmas break?

(horrible lighting - on our way to a Christmas party last month)

I have to admit, I got pretty comfortable with lazy days in pajamas and no schedule. Plus I was kind of missing my girls this week. Usually we are all ready for school to start after a vacation but we had such a fun break together. I missed cuddling in bed with them in the morning. I missed hearing them playing with their dolls. I missed turning on Rudolph during lunch. And I really missed having them around to entertain Kole! In some ways it's easier to have them all three home vs. just being home with my little boyfriend. Have I mentioned before that he keeps me hopping? Because I don't think I've made that very clear. And I would hate for that little tidbit to be missing from our family history. KOLE IS CRAZY BUSY. There. Now it's clear. :)

Couple things I've been wearing lately -

My favorite scarf! I know I've shown it before, but I'm showing it again. We are tight. Thick as thieves. I wore this and the grey scarf a lot in December. They just seem to go well with everything. Probably because I buy so many boring solid color tops, but now I know why I do. All of my life I've been preparing my wardrobe for these scarves!

Our climate hasn't been as humid lately so I've been doing my hair straight for a change. Always nice to mix things up.

I think I've shared this top before too, but not with these fun earrings. Love these double oval hoops! They seem to add just a bit of sass to any outfit. And I like a little sass in my life.

I've also been wearing new shoes thanks to Santa! Actually these Ugg boots weren't from Santa, they were from Kenny. Actually they weren't from Kenny. Well, they were "technically" from Kenny but since I'm the one who bought them and wrapped them and put them under the tree I could probably say that they were a little Christmas gift to me from me. Kenny came home one night in December and I said "You bought me Uggs for Christmas and they're already wrapped and under the tree. Thanks babe! They are just what I wanted and I love them SO much!!" I've said it before and I'll say it again. He's lucky to have me.

Now I can wear my heeled boots on date nights or to special events...

and my grey Uggs during cold days when I'm running around with the kids.

The only problem? We haven't been having cold days. In fact, this week has been downright hot! Our temperatures usually stay around the low 70's all year long along the coast, but this week we have almost hit 80 degrees every day! I know - I can't complain, especially since most of you are freezing right now, but sometimes it just feels so weird! Beach weather in January!? We all love the sunny, warm weather here, but in January you kind of want it to be cold. At least a little. At least cool enough that you can wear the new Uggs you got for Christmas. Or sip some hot chocolate. Or curl up under a blanket by the fire. Or stay in doors organizing everything. But nope. Everyone is outside! Getting sunburned while they take down their Christmas lights.

I tried at the beginning of the week to still wear clothes that look a little wintery-ish.

Dark colors, short sleeves with turtle necks.

This top is fun. I bought it at Banana Republic a couple of years ago and I love the buttons on the neck. Most of the time I wear it buttoned up, but you can also undo some of the buttons and wear it down. Optionality. One of my favorite words.

By the end of this week I had completely given up on trying to look wintery-ish. I pulled out my summer stuff and joined the warm weather party. And while I'm not wearing my new Uggs I got for Christmas, or sipping hot chocolate, or curling up under a blanket by the fire, I am still staying indoors organizing everything. Some things never change. Regardless of the weather.

Happy January everyone! See you at the beach!

(Or maybe at The Container Store!)

**Linking up at The Pleated Poppy

Project Life 2012

2012-01-04T23:23:00.000-08:00

A lot of buzz is going on in blog land about Project Life - as it always is this time of year. Those of you who have followed my blog for a while now know that I am a huge fan and have been using Becky's Project Life kits to create albums for my kids for the past couple of years. I never followed the "picture a day" concept, although I think it's brilliant. For me, I just wanted a simple way to create something special for each of my kids.

Albums that would document our family traditions,

the funny things my kids do and say,

close family relationships,

and all of the fun we are having together.

Albums that would include special artwork,

special vacations and memories,

and special family moments.

I wanted albums that could be low maintenance, just slip in a picture and some journaling, but something that would also allow me to be more creative when I found the time. The Project Life system has worked beautifully for me and I cherish the albums I've created so far. So does the rest of my family.

BUT. At this very moment I find myself a bit unsure. Unsure about my Project Life scrapbooking plan for 2012.

Last February I asked Kenny for three new Project Life kits for Valentines Day (two Amber Editions for each of my girls and the Turquoise Edition for Kole). Aside from looking through them last February, they have sat untouched. The problem? I now have THREE children to scrapbook for and even LESS time to scrapbook. I finished up some school pages for my girls last summer and haven't had two seconds to even think about scrapbooking since. Well. I'm ready to think about it again and here are some of the questions and answers going through my mind:

- Three albums is A LOT to take on right now. I'll never be able to keep up. Should I just do ONE family album? But I love that my kids have their own albums with their own stories being told. THEY love that they have their own albums. It's my gift to them. I could do just one digital Project Life album that I could make copies of for each child? But creating a digital album wouldn't be an enjoyable process for me. I don't want to spend more time on the computer. I LOVE the creative process of putting together an album with real pictures and real handwriting and real memorabilia that you can see and touch and remove. Their albums are also where I keep their special school and art work. How would that work in a family album? Or a digital album?

- Ok. So I clearly need to keep doing one album per child. But I need to find a way to simplify. Less pictures for sure. Maybe a layout for each month?

- And since I'm a year behind should I start where I left off? Or just start with current pictures and hope to someday go back and finish up the lost year? I'll most likely never get to it. But if I start where I left off will I ever get on top of things?

I don't know the answers to these questions. What I do know is that I need to come up with a system that is enjoyable, simple, and DOABLE for me or it just isn't going to happen at the stage of life I'm in right now.

Why didn't any of you warn me that keeping up with three kids would be so much work!!?? ;)

Are YOU doing Project Life this year? I'd love to hear any thoughts, suggestions, or how you are making it work for your family.

p.s. You can see all of my past Project Life layouts here.

Organizing Christmas Decor

2012-01-03T23:07:00.000-08:00

Sharing how I organize all of our Christmas stuff today. It's never as fun to put away as it is to set up, is it? But even so, it always feels good to have Christmas put away and a nice clean house to start the New Year.

I store most of my indoor decorations in trunks. The trunks I own are family heirlooms. They are antiques that were re-stored by my great Aunt and Uncle and they are priceless to me. My mom has quite a collection of them herself and I've been working on getting my hands on a few of those as well. C'mon mom. It's time to cave and hand over the coffee table trunk. We both know I'm your favorite. (Now let's hope my siblings aren't reading this. Pretty sure they're not since it's an organizing post and they aren't interested in organizing. I know. How is that possible, right!!?) Back to the trunks - I have one in my living room and one in my family room and they are perfect for storing all of my indoor Christmas decor. I have a goal to fit most of my decor in these two trunks so every year I buy a few new things and then send a few older items to Goodwill to make room for the new. I store most of my decor for my living room in the trunk in the living room and most of my decor for my family room in the trunk in my family room. Naturally. :)

I bought this red ornament box from The Container Store years ago and it has been perfect to house all of my Christmas tree decorations. I couldn't find this exact one on-line, but here is something similar. It came with card board dividers so I place all of my round ornaments on the bottom...

and then place this red fabric board in between...

and then I have a new level to work with! One of the best organizers ever.

Some years I've divided the top up using all of the slots to store ornaments,

but this year I took some of the cardboard dividers out to make bigger slots for certain things. I love an organizer that you can adjust to fit your needs.

The rest of our Christmas tree decor! Along with a few Christmas cookie cutters.

That haven't been used. And most likely never will be.

Then I put on the lid to the box and pile things next to it...

and on top of it.

A simple plastic zip pouch holds our Christmas cards for my photo garland.

I use the trunk in our family room to store all of our Christmas books...

along with other odds and ends that I display in this room.

I use a couple of Christmas boxes to house smaller items...

and then I pile on things like our Christmas tree skirt and stockings.

Something I've done for years is to place the fragile items inside of the Christmas tree skirt and stockings. Each of our stockings hold small, breakable items.

I have a red CD case that holds all of our Christmas CD's that also goes in this trunk so that our tunes are easily accessible when December rolls around... or November... ok October. I'll admit, I usually break out the Christmas music sometime in October. I can't help it. Those Chipmunks call my name every year. :)

I usually store our Christmas movies in this trunk also, but I set them aside with our other DVD's in the garage until I can get to them. The DVD's are on my "to organize this year" list and I think it's time for the cases to finally go. There are just too many movies in this house. I could solve that problem by not buying anymore, but where's the fun in that? Sounds much more appealing to just come up with a cool way to organize them all. :)

Feels good to have all of the outside lights taken down too. We put up A LOT of outside lights each year because I love them. One of Kenny's most favorite things to do. ;)

I wish I had something amazing to show you for how we store our outside lights, but my system (if you can call it that) is pretty basic. I know there are so many ways to keep lights from tangling, but I've found that if I wrap them up carefully (loop them in a circle) as I take them off of the bushes and just place them on top of each other they're fine. I've been doing it like this for years and my lights are always tangle free!

Step two in my ever so intricate system is to then place the lights in garbage bags with labels. Tape and a black marker work fine for this job. I mark the bags according to where we place the lights (top of house, front bushes, bottom of Bougainvillea vine, etc. Makes it really easy for set-up when Christmas rolls around again. Then all of the bags go in a huge box in our garage marked "outdoor lights." Like I said, it's a pretty intricate system so I hope I haven't lost you all on that one. I also hope you know I'm being sarcastic.

Good-bye Frosty! Already looking forward to pulling you out again next year!!

Kicking it in gear

2012-01-02T23:53:00.000-08:00

Went on a walk today. We've been going on a lot of walks lately.

We take both of the strollers. I push Kole in the single jogger and Kenny pushes the double jogger with the girls. They're getting too big for it. Makes me sad.

Wasn't it just yesterday that they looked like this

and then this

and now this. With their legs hanging off the sides. They don't stay in it for long. They ride for a minute or two and then hop out and run ahead of us. Then they hop back in and beg for Kenny to run really fast and give them a ride.

Our walks always end up at the park.

About to give daddy a kiss. He never quite followed through with it despite Kenny's best attempts.

The goal of the park is to get the girls to exercise and burn off all of that endless energy so Kenny always plays a game of chase with them.

If I'm at the park without Kenny (my life most days) I make the girls run laps. Ha! Instead of chasing them like Kenny does, I stand at the top of the slide and yell at them. "You can do it! Keep running!! WOW you girls are FAST! Here they come through the finish line...and the crowd goes wild!!" They love it. And I get to be lazy.

I'm not always lazy though. I can kick it in gear when I need to. Like right now - since I successfully gained three pounds in the last two weeks. Jeans are feeling tight. It's time to get serious again. Anyone else setting the age old New Years goal to lose the holiday weight? Here are a few posts that may help:

My #1 priority (my workout routine and prioritizing exercise)

Healthy Eating (my go to snacks when I'm trying to drop a pound or two)

Workout Music (some tunes that get me moving...although I need to do some updating!)

Not that I'm an expert on the subject - because I'm not. In fact lately the only thing I've been an expert on is mindless eating. And I'm not a fast runner (as my girls so politely pointed out to me today when I took Kenny's place and tried to run pushing them in the stroller). Seems dad is a lot more "fast and fun." They still love me though, Addison assured me.

That's ok. Slow and steady wins the race.

Besides, with the training I'm getting lately chasing this little guy, I'll be running circles around Kenny in no time.

And hopefully the jeans will start feeling a bit looser too.

New

2012-01-01T14:48:00.000-08:00

New to-do lists
New Christmas calories that need to be burned off
New toys to entertain the kids
New toothbrushes - buying them weekly because of you know who
New date nights with my man

New kisses from my mini man - he just started kissing me - I melt! - makes up for the toothbrushes

New list of spaces to organize

New Container Store wish list
New trips to look forward to
New luggage to take on those trips
New friends to make
New make-up I'm experimenting with
New goals to achieve
New church time - hallelujah! morning time slot for us - home by noon and naps for all!
New pictures to take and to blog and to develop
New planner - I just love a new planner
New projects in the works
New memories to make

It's a New Year!!

Pajama Friday

2011-12-30T10:55:00.000-08:00

Happy Friday everyone! I hope you've all had a nice holiday week.

We have so enjoyed our time off! I don't want it to end!

Last night Kenny and I went to dinner with friends and when I was driving the babysitter home she told me that the girls got to bed a little later than usual. I asked her what they did to stall their bedtime this time and she said "well - first they decided to set up the princess tent to sleep in. Then it took them a while to make their beds and set up all of their stuffed animals and dolls. Then Ellie had to read Addison a story. Then when I told them they needed to get to sleep they said they just had to tell some ghost stories really quick. I walked away and could hear Addison saying - Ellie! It has to be a lot spookier than that!" Oh those girls of mine. They make me laugh every day. :)

So things have been pretty laid back around here this week! Aside from a few outings and date nights I have lived in my pajamas...

I've just rotated from one pair of Christmas p.j.s

to another pair. Aren't these house shoes fun? I got them last year at Gap Body and they are SO comfy.

Here's a close up of my favorite Ho Ho Ho pajama pants. I bought them years ago from Old Navy and bust them out every December. Last year they were starting to tear in a few places so I took them to the tailor because I don't sew. At all. Not even a little. And I paid more to have them mended than I did to buy the pants in the first place. Which reminds me. One Christmas after Kenny and I were first married I had a nightmare that he gave me a sewing machine for Christmas. I woke up in a cold sweat and was so glad it was just a dream! I told him about it and now he knows to NEVER buy me a sewing machine. Or a Kitchen Aid. Or a Bosch mixer.

The girls have been living in their Christmas p.j's too.

Even Kole has been a little more laid back than usual.

Have a happy and SAFE New Year's Eve! We are going to party HARD! And by party hard I mean a beach get together with kids, home by 8:00, Kenny will be asleep on the couch by 10:00 and I'll be waking him up to watch the ball drop. Then I'll probably try to get him to talk about our ups and downs of the year and set some goals for the new year. He'll roll his eyes at me of course and we'll be in bed by 12:30.

I'm so excited for 2012!! Fun things in store that I can't wait to blog about!!

Christmas card display

2011-12-28T22:32:00.000-08:00

If you know me you know I LOVE getting Christmas cards every year. It's truly one of my favorite things about December. For the past few years I have displayed my Christmas cards on our pantry door. Nothing fancy - I just stuck them on the door with some regular scotch tape. But I knew that wouldn't work this year unless I wanted the cards on the bottom half of the door to be torn into tiny little pieces. Or chewed up and spit out. Or hid in a secret hiding place with all of our missing toothbrushes. Or tossed in the toilet. You never know with that boy of mine.

So I took an old picture I bought when we first moved into this house. I never really liked this picture, but the yellow and red matched my furniture and the vines are the same ones I have on my house so I bought it anyway. And it has sat in a closet for years. So here's some advice for you - don't buy a picture that you don't really like even if it matches your furniture and includes vines that are also on your house. (I know - what would you all do without my sage wisdom?)

I took out the picture (did I mention I never really liked it?) and got to work.

I primed it and painted it.

And then I had a new and improved aqua frame to place next to my Christmas hutch! I hammered a few nails on the back of the frame and then wrapped some twine around them. Actually Kenny hammered a few nails on the back of the frame and then wrapped some twine around them. (He just loves helping me with my projects - got on his hands and knees and begged to be a part of this one.)

Then I found this little "Can o' Clips" my mom bought me a few years ago. Isn't it just the cutest little "Can o' Clips"!? My mom gave them to me and said they just looked like something I would love. She was right. :)

I took my mini clips and hung up my Christmas cards!

Well. Not all of my Christmas cards. But a handful of them!

And I was so excited! Because I loved my new aqua frame! And I loved the way my cards looked in it! The only problem?

It hardly holds any of my cards! And I was totally laughing at myself for thinking that it would.

So I started taping the rest of my cards on the wall next to my new aqua frame.

And I liked the way it tied my two rooms together. The reds and blues in the cards went great with my Christmas decor and made everything look merry and bright.

Then I ran into problem #2. I took these pictures I'm posting about a week and a half ago and since then we have received many more cards. There was nowhere on the wall to go but up so things started looking a little off balanced. Then some of my cards started falling off. My good old scotch tape didn't work as well on the wall as it did on my pantry door. So yesterday I had to take my wall of cards down. And I was bummed because I like to leave them up through January. But the few cards on my frame are still in tact and looking great! I need to figure out a better way to hold the cards on my wall for next year. Painters tape? Putty? Any suggestions? Hopefully Kole will be a bit more chill by then so I can place more cards on the bottom of the wall. But I'm not holding my breath on that one.

Back to my fun little frame that got a face lift. I love the way it matches the wall in my dining room and sort of ties the two spaces together. Plus I have some fun ideas for my frame when I take the Christmas cards down.

And a few more pictures. Not because they add any value to this post, but just because I took them. :)

The brown trunk will be back in its original location as soon as we take our tree down. Has everyone taken their trees down already? I'm not a fan of taking the Christmas tree down. It makes me sad every year. There is nothing like the cozy lights of a Christmas tree. At least I'll have my new aqua frame to cheer me up.

So there you go. A post on how I displayed my Christmas cards this year. Even though Christmas was three days ago and my cards didn't last all month. :)

Update **You can read this post to see what I used the Christmas card frame for in Januray! :)

Linking up at I heart organizing!

Our Christmas

2011-12-27T10:40:00.000-08:00

On Christmas Eve we made a tray of Pretzel Hugs to munch on.

It just doesn't feel like Christmas around here without them!

The girls decorated for Santa.

They decorated their walls...

and their doors...

and hung ornaments in every room.

They even spent a great deal of time sprucing up the stairs. :)

This was our first Christmas without traveling to Utah to be with family or having family come to us so I was on my own for Christmas Eve dinner. I made turkey and my favorite potatoes and felt like quite a chef. Right up until Addison asked where the real Christmas feast was. Later she explained that a "real Christmas feast" includes chicken nuggets, pizza, and marshmellows. I didn't feel quite so bad about my meal after that little conversation.

Instead of the traditional cookies and milk, my girls decided to mix things up and left Santa Pretzel Hugs and leftover Halloween candy. They also added cheese for Santa Mouse and some Christmas tree pictures they made earlier in the day.

After our traditional trip to drive through Christmas Card Lane, (a fun neighborhood with amazing lights) Kenny read the girls a special Christmas story and they were off to bed. The one night of the year they can't wait to go to sleep!

And then the real fun began. :)

Kenny and I woke up Christmas morning to squeals of excitement from two little girls! We couldn't get out of bed fast enough for them. I told them I heard some jingle bells and a thump on the roof late last night. Just like my mom used to hear when I was a little girl.

After taking in everything in the living room, they ran to see if Santa ate their treats. He did! He also left some other surprises they wanted and a note. Santa's note thanked them for the delicious candy, told them they had been SO good this year, and also reassured them he had taken off the tape on the fireplace to get in and had then put it back on when he left so that Kole wouldn't get into it. The girls were a bit stressed about that one.

We all had a great Christmas morning.

Including Kole. BOY TOYS!!?? Really? In this house!?

It's about time. :)

Among other fun things, the girls got new boots. Ellie politely thanked me and tossed them aside. Addison hasn't taken hers off since.

In fact, later that afternoon when Kenny took the girls to church Addison insisted on wearing her pink boots with her red Christmas dress. I told her that didn't exactly work. Ellie begged to not have to wear her "itchy" tights. Kenny and I looked at each other, shrugged and said "it's Christmas, do what you want."

So they did. :)

Kole and I didn't make it to church because he was in desperate need of a nap.

I was in desperate need of a nap too, but instead had plenty to keep me busy...

Wouldn't be Christmas without a Christmas mess!

The last few days have been the best. Kenny has been home with us and we are really enjoying this time together as a family.

(Ready for an afternoon movie. The girls set this up and didn't seem to mind one bit that there wasn't room for the rest of us to sit!)

And as for the girls' new "friends"? They are enjoying time with our family as well.

2011 Christmas Card

2011-12-22T22:41:00.000-08:00

So most of you remember my little photo shoot nightmare. Which by the way was one of my favorite posts this year simply because I loved all of your comments! So glad many of you can relate to the craziness that is life with a one year old. :) 99% of the photos were just awful with Kole screaming and me strained trying to contain him (I'll have to post the out takes at some point!). But we did get ONE. One picture with most of us smiling and looking at the camera. And that one photo was the obvious winner.

So I decided to keep it real, embrace this stage and roll with it!

Our 2011 Christmas Card --

Whatever works, right?

I'm feeling so grateful tonight just sitting here with Kenny, in our comfy home, next to the lights of our Christmas tree, working on my fun little blog that brings me so much happiness. My kids and greatest blessings are all asleep upstairs dreaming about Christmas. Well - two of them are. I'm sure Kole is dreaming about running wild down a Target shopping aisle with no one stopping him. :) I love this time of year. I love that time is set aside to think about our Savior and everything He did for us. I love that time is set aside to spend with the people we love.

As I'm typing this I can hear Kenny singing Aladdin's "A Whole New World". He sings that song to me whenever I start getting even remotely emotional or sappy so hearing his sarcastic singing voice in my head is probably a sign that it's time to wrap things up. But first I want to thank all of you. One of my favorite things about blogging is connecting with and "meeting" so many wonderful people. Thank you so much for your support, for your kind comments, thank you for reading.

I sincerely hope you all have a wonderful Christmas!

xoxo, Erin

Santa Love

2011-12-21T23:07:00.000-08:00

Not much time to post tonight! I spent the last half hour writing down a list of everything I have left to do before the weekend. It always amazes me that no matter how organized I am or how much I try to do ahead of time, there are always so many last minute things to do to get ready for Christmas! The next two days will be busy for sure. Fun busy. I love it when my to-do list includes shopping, shopping, and more shopping! :)

I took the kids to see Santa today. The girls were SO excited.

Addison spent 20 minutes deciding what to wear and finally agreed with me that her glitter tights and ruffle skirt would be appropriate "visit Santa" attire. Ellie refused to wear her glitter tights and ruffle skirt and told me that she was planning on being a fashion designer someday so that she could create clothes that feel and look like pajamas but that you can wear every day. I told her I was sold and would completely pay for and support her new clothes line. (Did you catch that Kenny? You'll need to completely pay for and support Ellie's new clothes line.)

BTW- you are all invited to our party when we celebrate her success. Comfy attire only.

I was so prepared for Kole to scream like crazy when I put him on Santa's lap but he LOVED Santa! Funniest thing. He was so happy - smiling and laughing and "talking" to Santa. Then he pitched the biggest fit and screamed when I took him off Santa's lap. I knew a fit would be pitched at some point. I was just surprised at when it occurred! The girls told Santa everything they want for Christmas which was completely different than what they have been telling me they want all month. Love that.

I told them that Santa's elves have ~~burned him out~~ kept him pretty busy this year (one elf in particular!) so they may not get exactly what they asked for. They said, "Oh don't worry mom! Santa knows and

will get us what we want! He's magic!"

Magic? Maybe. Tired? Definitely. :)

Ellie wrote notes to Santa a few weeks ago. One from each person in our family...

She even scribbled a note from Kole. Amazing really. She has his signature look down perfect.

Then she placed this envelope in the center of my hutch and filled it with leftover Halloween candy and fake money. I laughed so hard when I saw it. Nothing like a stale tootsie roll and some monopoly cash! Santa won't ever want to leave our house.

She put the notes in each of our stockings and they have been there for weeks. I took them down when I took pictures for my Christmas Hutch post and Ellie wasn't impressed. "MOM! How will Santa see how much we love him without my notes!?" So back up they went after my photo shoot was over.

Yes. Santa is a lucky man.

And just like our little elf, I'm sure that when he visits he'll make himself right at home.

Picture frame re-do...again.

2011-12-21T00:17:00.000-08:00

Christmas is almost here and I still haven't shared some of my Christmas decor this year! I need to find time to blog everything I want to share or I'll still be posting Christmas ideas in February. (I always seem to have an overload of pictures and topics and projects I want to blog about and never enough time to sit down at the computer and do the actual posting. It's a problem.) Back to the decor that I don't have time to share. I wanted to bring more of the aqua/blue and white into the rest of my house. Plus I still love red. And it is Christmas. And I still have red couches. So aqua, white, and red have been my 2011 Christmas color theme. I wanted a quick fix for some of my picture frames so I blew the dust off of my scrapbook paper stash and found these beauties...

Perfect! I remember when I bought this paper a couple of years ago thinking that it was so pretty I should frame it.

And frame it I did! So fun that it actually ties in with my decor this year. It was such a quick, easy, CHEAP way to mix things up and tie everything together.

Remember my little picture frame re-do for my Fall decor? I wanted to replace the pictures with the scrapbook paper, but I didn't think that the yellow would work very well. I didn't want to spray paint my yellow frames again though because I know me. And I know that when Spring rolls around I will want to mix things up again and I will want my yellow frames back. Hmmm. What to do...what to do. So I went to Michaels. And at Michaels I bought some wooden frames. They were a whopping two dollars each. And I came home. And I put Kole down for a nap because he was such a PILL in that store. And after I caught my breath and recovered from my shopping trip with Kole, I spray painted the frames white.

Then I popped out the pictures of my little man at the pumpkin patch (back in the day when he was a good shopper...oh how I miss those days!) and I popped in the scrapbook paper. And then I used some of the same aqua ribbon to hang the frames. And the whole thing took me no time and all. And I love the look!

The bird feels quite at home with all of the other birds here and there in my house and ties in nicely with the picture frames.

He also ties in with my red couches in the front living room, and my aqua, silver, and white mantel in the family room. Such a clever bird.

Next I hung some simple aqua and silver ornaments from Target from the light fixture in my dining room.

And that added a nice touch too.

So there you go! It all coordinates so well - especially with my kitchen and some of the changes I've made in there like my aqua wall/shelf. Fun! I've loved having a whole new look this year for Christmas! And like I mentioned before, a lot of this I can keep up through January. Although the ornaments are going to have to go soon. Kole can reach them - bummer! So of course his favorite thing to do is to climb on the table (you'll notice I have NO decor on any of my tables this year) and hit the ornaments into each other causing shrieks of terror from his sisters. They seem to care about the ornaments even more than I do.

Like I just said when I shared my Christmas Hutch, I love to see a good transformation! :) So here you go - a tribute to my picture frames in all their glory...

Wonder what's in store for them next? I know. The suspense is killing you.

;)

Christmas Hutch

2011-12-19T10:02:00.000-08:00

Popping in today to share pictures of my hutch decorated for Christmas! I mentioned when I posted about my Christmas mantel that I had to re-locate our stockings up and out of Kole's reach.

My hutch was the perfect solution! It even has five pegs on it - how lucky was that. :)

I think I spent a whole ten minutes putting this together. I just used things I already had and kept it simple.

The only new addition is the candy dish below Kole's stocking. It was my grandma's and my mom gave it to me at Thanksgiving this year. I love displaying things I love mixed with things that are sentimental and special to me. In my opinion, that's what decorating is all about.

I added a little greenery between the white pitchers and vases to spruce things up a bit.

The stockings are hung and ready for Santa! Bonus: the stockings are hung and out of Kole's reach!

And because I love transformations, here is a quick before and after:

{Fall Hutch}

{Christmas Hutch}

Kids are out of school! We have had such a nice LAZY morning. It felt so good to not have to pack lunches and rush out the door. My candle is burning and Christmas music is playing and we are all still in our pajamas. Breakfast, coloring, and a little dancing have been the agenda so far. We have a neighborhood Christmas party this afternoon and a few more gifts to deliver. Our vacation is off to a good start! I'm really looking forward to spending time with my kids. Their excitement is contagious!

Happy Monday before Christmas everyone!

**Linking up at Between Naps on the Porch

Fashion Friday

2011-12-16T01:14:00.000-08:00

It's Friday! Did we all survive the week? The past few days with Mr. Kole have been an experience to say the least. I'll have to tell you all about it but I need to wait until I've had a chance to recover. So instead I'm going to go to a happier place. A place where my little boy doesn't throw massive temper tantrums in the middle of Target tossing fishy crackers all over isle 11. A place where he doesn't pull my hair and scream when I pick him up inspiring all sorts of fun looks from busy shoppers. A place where toothbrushes go directly into your mouth, instead of dipped in toilet water first (oh yes - let's all just take a minute to gag - I sure did. Then I scooped him up and threw him in the tub. As if bathing him would somehow wash away what I had just witnessed). FOR THE LOVE! I am exhausted.

I drove by Darci's house to take her some cookies last night (Darci is a close friend and her fourth and last child is Kole's age). My kids were in the car so her kids jumped in the car. The older kids were so hyper - laughing and acting crazy. Kole was screaming in his car seat. Her little boy came charging out of the house totally naked (he has learned to take off his diaper) and was running circles around the car. We were laughing so hard! We just have to laugh or we will cry. We decided that as soon as our boys are both potty trained we are going on a trip together. Somewhere far away. With no children in sight. Any other toddler moms out there who want to join us?

That is the happy place I am ready to escape to after this week. But since I have a ways to go before Kole is potty trained, I guess escaping to Fashion Friday will have to do. :)

We had a lot of Christmas parties to attend last week so I wore my black New York dress to one of them.

And I bought this fun dress at The Limited for another event. I needed something dressy/classy for one of Kenny's client parties and this dress was perfect!

I love the ruffles on the top. I love the simplicity of it. I love the high waisted skirt. Stacey and Clinton (TLC's What Not To Wear) are always saying that women are smallest at their rib cage and they should accentuate that area. I thought of them when I bought this dress. :)

They're right. This style is flattering. The dark skirt is slimming and because of the high waist, your waist appears smaller. I'll take two of them! :)

I wore the black sparkly Banana Republic headband to the party...

and my grey rose headband from The Gap with the dress for church last Sunday. I love finding dresses that I can wear to fancy events or parties and that will also work to wear to church on Sunday. More bang for your buck!

Getting ready to head to the party. Someone could tell mom was about to leave.

For holiday parties that aren't quite as formal, I bought this fun sparkly shirt (also from The Limited). Addison was so in love with this. It was funny. She saw me in it and went running into Ellie's room - "ELLIE! You have to see mom's shirt! It's all glittery and so beautiful!! Ellie took one look and said, "bet that's itchy, huh mom." Made me laugh because that is so them. Addie - my little fashionista who will sacrifice all comfort to look stylish...

(one of her favorite Gymboree shirts because it comes complete with accessories!)

and Ellie whose main focus is comfort. She would wear sweats or pajamas every day if I let her.

This shirt is actually not itchy. It's really soft on the inside and I think it looks great with black heels. I wore it with my dark skinny jeans and I liked the outfit, but it looked a little dark. I think I need to buy some cream slacks or something to go with the top. Kole agrees.

I bought this shirt from Banana Republic a couple of years ago. It goes great with my anthro belt.

But lately I've been having fun wearing some of my necklaces. I love both of these with this shirt and go back and forth between the two of them every time I wear it.

Of course I can also wear my yellow scarf I showed off in my last Fashion Friday post which you can purchase here. I love making an old shirt feel new by adding some fun accessories!

Wondering what Kole is usually up to while I take Fashion Friday pictures? He's either sweeping the floor with his broom.

Or tearing apart the toilet paper.

And because it has become a December tradition, I'm going to share our family's favorite Christmas photo in honor of my sister's birthday this week.

(Carly on the left and me on the right)

Happy Birthday Car!!

I guess my mom can relate.

Have a great weekend everyone!

**Linking up at The Pleated Poppy

Applesauce Cookies

2011-12-15T01:11:00.000-08:00

Thank you so much for the sweet comments about my pantry! You are all incredibly kind. That was a fun project and I was so excited to share it with my blog friends. Also a big thanks to Jen from I Heart Organizing for featuring me on her amazing blog! Jen is my organizing partner in crime and when I first discovered her blog I felt like I had struck gold! Isn't it fun meeting people who have the same interests and passions as you do? It's one of my favorite things about blogging. :)

These last few days have been crazy. Life is so busy right now (I'm sure you can all relate!) and December is flying by way too quickly. Kids are out of school after this week and I'm hoping everything slows down so that we can just enjoy the holiday together. I finally got my Christmas cards mailed out and finished up my friend/neighbor/teacher gifts today.

I didn't make my cards and I just kept things really simple for gifts and made cookies. Nothing too creative this year. I have to save my creativity for entertaining Kole. That boy is sucking the life right out of me these days! But I did manage to bake! Which is a feat for me with or without my 20 month old sidekick.

Because I've made our Christmas Pretzel Hugs for the past few years, I decided to mix it up and make Applesauce cookies. And I have to share my applesauce cookie recipe with all of you because they are SO good. Really. They are. My mom always made these cookies when I was growing up (the recipe is from my grandma) and the smell of them brings back happy childhood memories. Maybe making them will bring back happy childhood memories for you too. Probably not, but it's worth a try, right?

{Applesauce Cookies}

Ingredients:

I cup shortening

2 cups sugar

2 cups applesauce

4 eggs

4 cups flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cloves

1 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1 pkg chocolate chips

Directions:

First mix together the sugar and shortening. Add eggs, then add the applesauce and soda combined. (I just put the 2 tsp of soda right into the applesauce can and stir away. The applesauce kind of rises and sizzles. That's my favorite part. :)

Add the rest of the dry ingredients (I love that most of them are 1 tsp. - makes it harder to mess things up. Although one time I messed up big time. I made these and forgot the flour. How do you forget the flour? I don't know but I did and wouldn't recommend it.)

Bake @ 350 for 15-20 minutes

Five reasons you should make these: 1 - They're delicious. 2 - They're easy - if I can make them correctly (most of the time), anyone can. 3 - The cinnamon and spices will make your house smell so Christmassy! It's the best! 4 - They have applesauce in them so you can pretend they are good for you. They're not. But it's always fun to pretend. 5 - You'll want to see the applesauce sizzle part. It's just cool.

I doubled this recipe and made 95 cookies so it probably makes around 46-48 per batch.

Then I just used some cute Rudolph plates, clear wrap, and red ribbon to make them look pretty.

All wrapped up and ready to deliver!

The only problem is that I need at least 10 more plates of cookies. Plus Kenny came home tonight and was so bummed there weren't any left for him. Looks like another batch of cookies is in my future! I tend to eat my fair share of things that I bake so it's a good thing they have applesauce in them and are so good for me.

I painted that little cake stand to use for decor...

but so far is has been perfect to hold some of the little candles I bought to deliver with the cookies. Remember the Fresh Balsam candle from Bath and Body Works that I mentioned in my favorite things post?

I'm kind of obsessed with it. In fact I bought four of the large candles for teacher gifts...

but this one seemed to be calling "light me!". So I did.

Smells so good. Almost as good as my healthy applesauce cookies.

Ellie made some beautiful artwork that just so happens to match the aqua/silver decor we are going with around here. I was impressed. It's not every second grader who takes her house color palette into consideration before creating. ;)

And while we're on the subject of art, I have to share a close up of another picture Ellie recently drew. That has to be the cutest reindeer and Santa "Claws" I've ever seen. :)

And here's Addison's awesome hundreds chart which has nothing to do with Christmas, our decor, cookies or anything else for that matter. But I can't brag about one daughter and not the other. What kind of mom would I be?

(Dec. 2010)

So proud of both of my girls. So proud of my applesauce cookies.

Enjoy! And if you bake these cookies let me know how they turn out! Don't forget the flour and they'll become a family favorite for sure.

Pantry Organization - the next level!

2011-12-12T10:46:00.000-08:00

So excited about today's post! I re-organized my pantry. Again. I don't have a great "before" picture of everything looking awful like I usually do because my pantry is one area that always stays organized. I'm in and out of it so many times during the day and it drives me crazy when it gets messy. It used to look like this:

{BEFORE}

Like I said, not awful, but I knew it could be better so last summer I decided it was time to take this baby to a whole new level! I started this little project in July, took my time and finished it in October. Then I took pictures of everything in November and finally in December I'm ready to share it! (Good thing I don't roll this way with all of my projects...) Ready for the "new and improved taken to the new level" pantry?

{AFTER}

Ta-da! I'm now pretending I can hear oohs and aahs from all of you. If you aren't oohing and aahing that's ok. I'm going to pretend anyway. That's the fun thing about having your own blog. You get to pretend what you want.

A view from the side. Now I hear applause. And what? A standing ovation?

;)

I'll come back from fantasy land and break this baby down for all of you.

A few reasons I decided to re-do this pantry - first of all, it's so small and was always crowded with food. I knew I wanted to get rid of bulky boxes that were taking up too much room. Second of all, I live in a humid climate and if we don't close the tops of boxes/sacks tightly after use the food doesn't taste as fresh. Nothing like semi-soggy crackers and cereal. And third, well, I just wanted it to look prettier. :)

I spent a long time deciding which containers to use. I knew I didn't want glass. Breakables get broken around here. And I'm not just talking about the kids. I'm incredibly clumsy and break things all the time. I'm sure Kenny would love to elaborate on this little fact. But that's the other nice thing about having my own blog. No elaborating from Kenny.

We all eat the same thing for breakfast - Bran Chex for me, Oatmeal for Kenny, and sometimes the kids eat Cheerios. I bought these Press Containers for our cereal and I LOVE them. You can get them in two different sizes. Mine are the large size and I can fit about three boxes of Bran Chex in one of these babies. Major space saver! I bought them at The Container Store but for some reason I can't find them on-line. I'll keep looking, but here is something similar that would also work.

The handles on the back and the attachable lids that easily pop up and down make them so easy to use. Very kid friendly. Very Erin friendly.

For the rest of our dry goods I decided to use the OXO Good Grips. I can't begin to tell you how much I love these. LOVE THEM. Great variety of sizes, fantastic lids that seal when closed keeping your food oh so fresh, plus they're stackable. The only problem is that they aren't cheap. The rectangle size is the one I needed the most of (second one on the left) and those are around 17 bucks each. That's why I took so long on this project. I just bought one or two at a time. I could have bought them all at once, but then Kenny would have seen hundreds being spent on plastic organizers and he may not have been impressed. And I'm all about impressing my husband when Christmas is in our near future. :) I will say though that these are absolutely worth the investment. Now I'll have these in our pantry forever and they really are a great way to organize and store your food.

For the flour, sugar, Bisquick labels I bought labels and a chalkboard pen on etsy (a fun shop called Bugaboo). Love the look of chalk without the mess! I wrote each one a few times and then realized that my handwriting wasn't magically going to change and they all looked the same so I picked one out and stuck it on!

They turned out great!

I attached the directions for waffles on the back of the Bisquick container just in case I forget. Actually just in case Kenny forgets since he is on waffle duty every Saturday.

Frist I had the Bisquick placed on the left so I could see the all of the fun labels, but I quickly realized that wasn't the most practical way to organize everything.

I moved the cereal to the left because that is the easy to reach spot and we use those every day. The Bisquick can be tucked in the top corner because we only pull it out once a week. My best organizing advice is to set things up in a way that is the most practical for you and your family. Make it function well for you and your needs.

In fact, that's why you don't see labels on everything else. I didn't want to label the other containers because the contents are always changing. One day one is filled with fishy crackers, the next day pasta, and when the pasta is gone it's full of cookies. I didn't want to be tied down and have to put the same thing in each time. Plus every few days when switching out the contents of the containers I like to rinse them off in the sink so they stay clean and I didn't want to have to keep taking off labels and putting them back on. Function is key!

A better look at the lids. Love the way they seal shut!

I mostly bought the square containers but did buy a tall one for pasta. I was able to fill it with several packages of pasta and just left the wrapping on each of them. So nice to have them all together! The smaller container was the perfect size for Kenny's brown sugar he sprinkles on his oatmeal and fruit every morning.

I found this cute little scooper for the brown sugar at The Container Store.

Because life is about the little things. :)

I still organize all of my "sticky" items on a baking sheet. I've been doing this for years. It's a great way to keep your pantry clean and those items all corralled together. There was just enough room for my Prego stash in between the baking sheet and my clear baskets. Love maximizing every ounce of space!

These clear baskets I also found at The Container Store. They hold odds and ends like fruit snacks, packaged goods, and the middle one is for snacks I put in Ziploc bags so they are ready to go when we are heading out the door somewhere. When I unload my groceries I fill my containers and if there is anything left over I put the contents in Ziploc bags. I'm always glad I did when I am rushed making lunches or need to be somewhere quick and I know I'll need a snack for Kole.

I found these baskets at Target and they are a great solution for things I didn't want to dump into clear containers. Chips are on the left and random boxed items are on the right. To the right of the boxes there is just enough room for a loaf of bread or two. A place for everything and everything in its place.

I store all of my cans on the bottom shelf because we aren't reaching for them as often as the other items. I bought the large Expand A Shelf and it was the perfect solution! I love this organizer because you can make it as long as you need it to be. Now that my cans are stacked I can see everything so easily. No more searching for 10 minutes to find that certain can of beans. They make this in a smaller size too. A great organizing tool!

To the right I store paper plates and cups. Easy location for me and the kids to grab at snack time.

Bottom is free for anything else that doesn't fit! For now it's just our Costco popcorn. I blog better when I'm munching on popcorn.

Honestly, this pantry organization has made my life so much easier. Yes, it takes a minute after grocery shopping to empty everything and keep it looking this clean, but in the long run it saves me time and money because I can so easily see what we have and need. I have SO much more room to store food because I toss all of those bulky boxes. The kids know where they can find everything and everyone knows where to put things away.

Plus did I mention that it just makes me happy to look in it!? I debated painting the inside (so many people are painting their pantries these days!) but as you know we are house hunting so I decided it wasn't worth the time it would take me. I'm sure in my next house my pantry will not only be organized, but a fun color as well!

So there you go. My "taken to the next level" pantry. Can I get a Woot Woot!! Nothing puts a smile on my face like a clean pantry and a clean fridge. Life is hectic, but having often used spaces organized somehow makes the hectic much more manageable. And more fun.

Sharing

2011-12-10T13:00:00.000-08:00

Kole's latest obsession is feeding us all.

He takes our family rule about "sharing" to a whole new level.

Sometimes we all get a little tired of eating everything he puts in our mouths.

But it makes him SO happy.

So we all just continue to open wide.

Kole and Kenny are down for their Saturday afternoon naps. I'm off to make the girls grilled cheese sandwiches and hot chocolate (even though it's so warm outside I got sunburned putting up our Christmas lights). Then the three of us are going to curl up under a blanket and watch The Polar Express. I love days like this. Happy Saturday everyone!

2011 Christmas Mantel

2011-12-08T14:27:00.000-08:00

Hi friends! Just popping in quick today to share my Christmas mantel. Here's a picture of last year's mantel...

I knew I wanted something different this year to go with our new color scheme around here. I also knew that having our stockings hung on metal letters like we normally do would be a disaster/death trap for Kole. So I mixed things up a bit and here's what I came up with --

I went with an aqua, silver, and white theme and am loving the new look! Kind of icy, don't you think? In fact one thing I'm excited about is how this mantel will work for the month of January too. I'll just swap out the Christmas tree and the garland and I'm good to go until February!

Another look closer up because I took too many pictures of my icy mantel --

(Please ignore the reflection of my top kitchen shelves in the mantel mirror. Decorating is still a work in progress there. With all of my half done decorating, Christmas decor, and Kole's love for pulling everything out of every cupboard, my house has felt a bit like a construction zone lately.)

A breakdown of the new look:

Yes. I went back and got the larger basilica pillar Pottery Barn candles. You knew I would. :) Those embossed snowflakes are just gorgeous. I decided that I loved them too much to let them go. Plus I know I will decorate with them every year somewhere in my house during December/January for years to come. And I'm not regretting that little purchase one bit. My pictures don't capture how beautiful they are and the way they sparkle in the light. My favorite purchase of the season!

Another fun purchase were these little silver birds I found at Tai Pan when I was visiting my family in Utah for Thanksgiving.

Aren't they fun? I knew they would get along famously with all of the other little feathered friends popping up in my house lately.

I added a couple of my beloved white pitchers because they make me so happy right now. Plus they went so well with the white snowflakes on my new candles.

I had these apocrathy jars up for my Fall mantel so I just replaced the mini pumpkins, acorns and corn with silver and aqua ornaments. These little jars are such a simple way to make a bold statement.

The silver Christmas tree I also found at Tai Pan.

And the wreath I found at Michaels for $15 bucks. I just hung it with some aqua ribbon I had left over from my picture frame re-do.

I love the way my mantel ties in with my aqua wall and kitchen shelf this year. And it's always fun to mix things up! Change is a good thing. The holidays are in full swing around here. You can see to the left of my mantel I'm listening to Pandora Internet radio on my TV. I have it set to play Christmas tunes 24/7. Love it! I've also been doing some more decorating and a little organizing so I will have lots to share soon. (These evening Christmas parties are putting a major kink my blog schedule!) ;)

p.s. Check out Home Stories A to Z for tons of Christmas mantel inspiration!