Turtle Eggs and Dirty Diamonds

This is it. My first "life in between post". I'll get back to the sign making or crafty stuff with the next post, pinky promise.

My husband and I have been on an over-haul, we're finally getting healthy plan since the beginning of the year. One of the super foods I have been pondering is quinoa.

So what does quinoa have to do with the title of this post? If you live in my home...everything.

My 9 year old likes to take new things that she doesn't understand and turn it in to a perfectly understandable idea that works for her and may just leave you in stitches.

Like the quinoa.

While holding a bag of it in the grocery store, and debating if this was the week we were going to try it, my daughter turns her attention from poking every single bag of rice to excitedly exclaim,

"Oh! Look at all those tiny little turtle eggs! We're not going to eat those are we? I don't think I could."

Which was followed by laughter from my fellow shoppers as I turned to see exactly what she was talking about. She was looking at me wide eyed and pointing at the bag of quinoa I was holding.

Sorry quinoa...maybe we'll see what you're all about another week.

Later in the week, my mother in law wanted to take the girls, while they were on Spring break, to the Waco Mammoth Site and I tagged along for the ride.

We were there early and the girls took advantage of browsing the gift shop while I stood outside and took a phone call.

"Mom...MOM!! They are selling diamonds in there for $5!! I mean they're really dirty but I know we can clean them!"

Luckily the phone call was my mom. And the dirty diamonds were crystal quartz from Brazil. And I didn't buy a single mammoth item from the gift shop but made sure I went back to get us one of the dirty diamonds.

Glad & Sincere Hearts

I often have people ask if my home is filled with beautiful signs. Simple answer, no. Detailed answer, I have a few that are my favorites and I have plans for so many I would like to make for our home. But honestly, sometimes at the end of the day it's hard to sit down and make something for your home when you just spent the day making signs for other people's homes.

One of my favorite things to do while paint is drying is to waste hours browse Pinterest for some inspiration. A while back I found this pin from Hymns and Verses.

I wish I could find the actual blog post in her blog about it, the link takes me back to her blog in general, not the post. I do know it is a tea towel sold from Mary & Martha that she framed to display in her home.

Besides the beautiful hand lettering, I also love the message.

In our home, we always eat dinner together. It's nice at the end of the day to sit together and talk about our day. We may not eat the same thing, but we are sitting at the table together. And even if the kids don't like what's for dinner {which rarely happens} we always remind them to be thankful for the food we do have instead of wishing it was something else. Some days it's easy to forget just how blessed you are.

One of my bad habits is finding a quote that I love and then stressing on making a design for my Etsy shop. Once I finally have a design I like, I'm over having it in my house. When I was working on this design, my husband saw it and asked for it to be in our home, only on a bigger scale than what I had in mind.

We had a top from a console table sitting around that I thought would look great as a sign and fit my husband's request for a big sign {it measures 10" x 48"}. We have high ceilings in our living and dining rooms so this sign looks great hanging on our dining room wall above the doorway that leads to the kitchen.

We have history with this table. It was one of the first pieces of furniture we bought after getting married. At that time we had a very country theme going on and it was stained the color shown and hunter green. Soon the green was gone, replaced with black. And it had been repaired...several times.

A little someone also practiced her writing skills on this table top...

Since I don't have an endless supply of table tops sitting around I also made a smaller version on a 1x8.

Even though it's a smaller version, the message is still as powerful. This size is listed here in my Etsy shop.

So, what statement is speaking to you right now?

Sharing and Linking up here!!
http://www.chaosandlove.com/link-party-21/

The Day I Lost My Measuring Tape

If you are a creative type, there is a chance that you have a special item you use daily that you have a special bond with. For some it may be a pair of scissors, others it may be a special pen. This is mine.

It's not much. A cheap measuring tape that I bought because I thought the bright green would make it easier to find {which it doesn't}. It was one of the very first tools I bought myself when I started making signs. We've been through a lot together.

Like this weekend...

We went to Home Depot to get some trim for the projects we're doing on the outside of the house. My youngest was in charge of keeping up with it. That didn't last long as she forgot it in the car {luckily her sister remembered it}. Trim was picked and as we were walking to the register, my husband asked for it one more time to measure an different trim. Purchase was made and we went home.

A little bit after being home my husband sent my daughter {the one that was supposed to be in charge of it} to ask me for the tape measure. I sent her back to him to remind him that he was the last person to have. A search of the car, purse, house, pockets and any other spot we could think of ensued. Finally, we had to face the fact that it was gone.

A trip to Wal-Mart later in the evening included a new measuring tape purchase. It was a long process. Is this cheaper brand I've never heard of a good one? Why are they all self locking? {Part of my thinking process on a project is me absent mindedly clicking the locking tab up and down.} Do I need a longer one? Why are there so many special features for a measuring tape? I decided to go with a basic 16 foot measuring tape, but still I was questioning the self locking feature.

My wonderful husband suggested we go back to Home Depot to look at a few items we forgot to look at earlier in the day. As we walked in, I crossed my fingers in my mind that as we walked past the customer service desk it would be sitting there. Nope. I even thought about asking them.

 "Umm...excuse me. Did anyone happen to bring in a black and green measuring tape? One that looks like it has been loved and appreciated by a woman for years and means the world to her?"

 I'm pretty sure they would have pointed me in the direction of the aisle of measuring tapes they would gladly sell me.

Walking through the store we made our way to the lumber department again. Walking past the register, I saw it...my measuring tape sitting there next to the register. I immediately began laughing and when my husband looked at me, all I could do was point. The cashier probably thought we were crazy as we walked over laughing. After telling her that I had lost my measuring tape after an earlier visit in the day, I was pretty sure that it was mine. She happily handed it over saying that it had been sitting there since we accidentally left it there earlier in the day.

My husband has now inherited a 16 foot self locking measuring tape. So far he loves that special feature.

It All Started With A Pillow...

One store I will never pass up a trip to is Pottery Barn, even if their prices are a little out of my comfort zone. Actually, there are quite a few on that list, but Pottery Barn is the one that I can leave feeling inspired and not silently crying on the inside {I'm looking at you Restoration Hardware!}.

A few weeks ago, we took an after Christmas shopping excursion to Austin and my mom swung by Pottery Barn. Browsing through the store I found this pillow on a bed display.

We re-did our bedroom this last year in black and white and I have been adding some red for a pop of color. This pillow would be perfect, but at almost $40 for just the pillow cover, I put it back. I knew I would immediately feel buyer's remorse spending that much on a pillow and...I'm guilty of not making the bed unless we're expecting company. I know, I know. I really should, I always admire the bed when it's made, makes me feel like I'm a grown up or something. Plus, I would freak out every time I saw someone using the $40 pillow.

So this pillow has been sitting in the back of my mind for the last few weeks.

And then it hit me. We have this gigantic wall in our bedroom that I have been wondering what to do with. 

I also have a husband that wishes that I would make more cool signs that actually stay in our home instead of being taken to the shop. So why not take the concept of the pillow and make it in to a sign?! Duh!!

I think my husband was a little stunned that he went to bed last night to me watching tv and woke up to his wife with red paint splattered on the side of her arm and a brand new sign waiting for it's final sanding. I think he was even more shocked when I told him the paint was from a sign I had made for our bedroom.

I love the pop of red. The font makes me smile.

The distressing reminds me of how true love stands up to the test of time.

But best of all...it has given me that vision of what I want to do with the wall. My plan is to take all these quotes and song lyrics about love that have been locked in my head and get them down on wood and up on the wall.

Ramblings For 2013 and 2014

I've been struggling with getting this blog up and going the way I would like. That seems to be a theme in my life, hard to get something new started but once it becomes part of my usual routine my true inner self shines through. So I'm going to experiment with this for a while. I have so many blog post started but they feel so forced. I apologize in advance for the randomness and ramblings that may occur for a while. {p.s. This post will be one of those rambling post.}

December went by in a blur. Thanks to Thanksgiving being later than we are used to meant that people began shopping online later and there was a sense of urgency all around.

This was on the downward slide of Christmas orders to be done and shipped. My husband started a new position in the company he works for and had to travel off and on so I would take advantage of having the garage to my self and cut and sand as much as I could before I felt that the neighbors would call the cops for the excessive buzzing sander noises.

December 1st brought back Elvis, our Elf on the Shelf and boy did he make an entrance!

Luckily he wasn't as mischievous as he has been in the last few years.

I also took advantage of some tutorials on Pinterest and had some fun with my camera.

And I just realized that this is pretty much the only photo I took during the holidays that has any type of holiday feel to it! I don't think I touched my camera at all after taking this. If I couldn't snap a quick photo with my iPhone, I didn't get a photo of it.

Major news that I shared quietly on my personal Facebook page, but left me feeling like I had hit the big time also happened in December...

Sale #1,000! It has always been on my list of goals to accomplish, I just never thought it would happen as soon as it did. I did a quick little happy dance in my head, shared it on Facebook and then got back to work.

I also turned 34 in December. Growing up my Nana would call every year and ask if I felt like I was however many years old I turned that year. This year she was here {along with my Grampie} and I was ready for her to ask because my answer was yes...yes, I feel every single day of my 34 years. Luckily I didn't have any big plans in place. My day was spent with this sleeping beauty.

She had finally succumbed to the stomach bug that was being passed around at school. 

Christmas was the usual chaotic day for us, but the girls enjoyed it and that's all that matters.

New Year's Eve came and went quietly. Kind of. We managed to stay up past midnight {Yay!} to ring in the new year, but I spent most of the evening in bed with severe back pain that went down my leg {Boo!}. Turns out sitting on a hard floor for hours putting together desks from Ikea doesn't agree with my sciatic nerve. Add my already bad posture to that and it didn't help at all. For days ibuprofen, a heating pad and YouTube videos on how to massage areas that were sore were my best friends!

Now we're in to 2014 and I've been thinking about my list of resolutions things I would like to continue working on. The word resolution seems so overwhelming to me so I'm going to focus on areas that need improvement and work on them gradually. Like I mentioned before, one of them being this blog.

I have so many things I want to share and Facebook used to do it for me, but as we all know, Facebook has been frustrating the past year for businesses. I want to share news about my business and tutorials for DIY projects but I also want to give you all a glimpse in to my day to day life. I follow so many other blogs that share all of the above and I truly feel that if I was to meet one of these lovely ladies, I would immediately feel like I was reuniting with an old friend {once I got over the school girl giddiness of actually meeting them!} and I know there may be some awkward phases as I figure all of this out and find my happy medium.

But most of all, I am so happy that you are here to watch me go through it. I'm hoping that 2014 will be my year to inspire you in to trying something new!

p.s. I would really love to be able to add the thingy in the side bar that allows for you to sign up for email alerts of new posts {and so many other things} so if you have any experience with blogging, any help is greatly appreciated!!

Make Your Own Snow Globe

I know, we haven't even celebrated Halloween yet and here I am with a Christmas tutorial! If you need to get in the Christmas mood, try Coffee-Mate Peppermint Mocha in your coffee. I've been struggling to get myself going on getting Christmas products made and a little of this in my coffee and I was annoying my husband with Christmas carols.

Now on to what you're here for...

Last year I was playing around and made this. It's a water-less snow globe that is so simple yet beautiful. Plus you don't have to worry about the water leaking or turning that weird cloudy mess that they sometimes do.

I wanted to make more, but my holiday orders started way quicker than I expected. Plus I'm super afraid to make these to ship since they are glass. The good news? They are super easy and inexpensive to make!

Here is a photo of the must have supplies:

A variety of Christmas trees (or whatever you want to use), artificial snow flakes (if you are close to a Hobby Lobby these are 40% off!), some type of glue and glass jars. I use the E6000 since mine are for sale and I would like whatever I put in there to stick. And for the glass jars, you can use whatever you have on hand, just make sure that they are cleaned out very well. All you moms with little ones still eating baby food, instant Christmas gifts from the little one!

Here are the fun things to add, this is where you can go crazy with ideas.

I had baker's twine, bells, mini tree ornaments and a small wreath on hand to use. I also had some glitter that's not in the picture.

Take the lids off the jars you are using and do a dry run to see how everything fits.

You can group trees together or even try using the jar standing upright. As you can see below, I decided that the tall jar was too big for the trees and swapped it out for the medium size one.

Take your glue and dab a bit to the bottom of your tree. If you are using the E6000 or something that has a bit of time until it sets up, let it sit for a minute or so to let the glue get a little more tacky. You'll see why in the next photo.

See the poor tree on the left leaning? I liked the quirkiness of it so I let him be, but if you prefer yours to stand at attention, let the glue set up a bit and then hold it in place for about 30 seconds.

This is the messy part, adding the snow. One thing I found is that when you are using the jar upside down, it's easier to add a little snow in the lid first and then add more to the jar if you would like more. Fill it up as far as you would like!

At this time is when I added some glitter to this set. I use a product called Glamour Dust, it's a very fine glitter and it will stick to you. I used some to give some of my Halloween decorations a bit of sparkle and I looked like a walking disco ball when the light hit me for a few days!

I give it a little shake so that it will cling to the jar and give it a little sparkle.

I used some of the mini Christmas ornaments in this one for a little color.

Next is to add the lids! Since there is no water involved there is no need to use glue to permanently seal them. Now you can dress them up on the outside if you feel like it. If they are gifts for the grandparents the kids can sign the lid or even use the round labels they make for the canning jars.

I just wrapped some baker's twine around the top of one jar and added a few bells for some jingle.

I used the mini wreath to display the other one if you are looking for a more simple look.

Like I said before, you can use so much more than trees for your snow globes. I found these guys at Hobby Lobby.

They stand about 3 inches tall and are so fun in jars!

I also added some vinyl lettering to dress him up.

The possibilities are endless when it comes to making these and they are so simple that they are great for little ones to help with! If you have any questions or I missed something, leave me a comment. I would love to see some of your creations also! Feel free to share a picture on my Facebook page!

Happy 4th of July!!

Happy Independence Day early!! I hope you all have a wonderful and safe 4th. We are heading out in a bit for some late night catfish fishing with friends. Don't know how long it will last, the girls think they've got what it takes for camping but once the sun goes down they'll probably be ready to come home the first time the bushes rustle.

Anyways, before I go I wanted to give you a link to a wonderful site that I have gotten some great supplies and items from. Pick Your Plum sends you a deal everyday (M-F) and if it's something you like, you better get it then because their items are priced to sell quick. PLUS, them adding a little sweet treat to the bottom of your shipping package is pretty awesome too! They are offering a free 4th of July printable that would add a whole lot of fun to your 4th of July BBQ!! Just click on the link below (this will open in a new window).

Pick Your Plum 4th of July Free Printable!

Therapy

Therapy...the word can scare some people but truth is we all need some type of therapy from time to time. This journey that I'm on with my business can get the best of me some days. Add the stress of kids home for summer break, a messy house, deadlines and an upcoming holiday, I'm pretty sure it would break some people. Don't get me wrong, I love this. I love the deadlines, I love my customers and I love the sometimes chaos that is my life and wouldn't trade any of it for the world. So the other day I found myself staring at this.

My half empty cup of coffee from that morning, used rags, empty paint bottles, a bunch of stuff. A little voice told me that if I sat down here I would go crazy and for once I listened. Cue the therapy...

But it gets better...

Me, my camo chair, the $40 dresser, paint and a bike using the back of the dresser as a parking spot hanging out in the hot garage with Pandora blasting from my iPod. Yes, I do live in Texas and yes it was HOT, but at that time it reminded me that I love what I do. Yes I was surrounded by junk still, but it was new junk. Finally getting that dresser painted in the middle of the chaos of orders was all the therapy I needed. That and knowing that my singing at the top of my lungs was probably causing people walking past to walk a little faster just so they didn't have to witness what was going on behind that door if it opened!

So my question to you is, what's your therapy??