Thanks for Mama

My mama is a woman of dignity. She does right, even when it practically kills her. She puts everyone on this planet above herself. She loves people, especially those hurting or in need…even if she thinks she doesn’t.

She has taught me so many life lessons with words & by her actions. With words (that were stored and later understood) she taught me:

“Life isn’t fair. Don’t expect it to be.”

“No one MAKES you do anything. You make your own choices.”

Along those lines: “You pay the consequences when YOUR choices aren’t good choices. Again, no one made you do anything.”

“You choose your mood.”

By her actions, she has taught me:

“When you’re knocked down, get back up.”

“Life won’t be easy, but smile & keep going.”

“Just because it’s hard doesn’t mean it’s not possible. With hard work, anything’s possible.”

“A mother loves her child, even when they’re unloveable.”

My mom has been there for me my entire life. When I was knocked down (or self sabotaged), I would look up and see her there. Did I deserve it? Absolutely not. That’s just the kind of mom she is. Even when I didn’t believe in myself or self worth, she did.

Today for my 30 Days of Thanks, I’m thankful for my mom. The woman that has taught me what being a wife, mom, & friend is all about. Love you, Mama!

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Trash to Treasure

Ok, so it wasn’t trash. It was $5 at a church yard sale, BUT it is now a nightstand in my daughter’s room. We purchased two of these, a dresser (that we are turning into an entertainment center), and a lamp. Our total at the yard sale was $16. Can’t beat that! This is the finished product of the nightstands & lamp. The dresser/entertainment center is still a work in progress.

The nightstands were quite dirty & needed to be cleaned, sanded, and stripped.

The stripping process was more than I bargained for, but it ended up being worth the pain & suffering.

After stripping the paint off, we primed & painted. That process was more time consuming that frustrating. I will think much harder next time I decide to strip furniture!

The finished product:

The lamp was a much easier project. All it required was some left over white spray paint & $4 lampshade. Total for the lamp was $5!

Before:

After:

I’m pretty happy with the results. All in all, they turned out great & I learned a few things along the way. Up next, the dresser/entertainment center project & artwork for Alana’s room. Stay tuned!

Confession time…

I am an addict. I am completely and totally obsessed with Pinterest. The best way to describe Pinterest, to people that do not know, is to say it is like a giant pin board. You can “pin” your finds on the internet much like you might “pin” clippings of a magazine to a pin board. The part that makes this site so addicting is that you can see your friends’ finds. It has awakened my creative side…that I didn’t even know I had. My ideas of things to do around the house, meals to make, dream places to go would last my whole lifetime if I tried to do everything.

Another thing I love about Pinterest is that it helps me find inexpensive ways to do things that put a personal touch on our home. We are currently working on transforming a white twin bed into a black twin bed for my daughter’s room. I’m working on making some canvases for both girls’ rooms. I’ll post those pictures when the projects are finished. I have one project, though, that is complete! I am totally excited, and probably a bit too proud. I never thought I would be able to be this creative. I just don’t get these ideas on my own. That’s where Pinterest comes in.

The project that I have finished is curtains for my kitchen. The challenge: I have no idea how to sew. How do you make curtains without sewing, you ask? A friend pinned a blog and Welcome to Heardmont showed me that I, the person that doesn’t know the first thing about sewing, could indeed make my own curtains! Me! With hemming tape, I was able to make the curtains look like they had been sewn. You can tell, if you look closely, that there is no seam. If that bothers you, this won’t work. If you have no idea how to sew, this is one way to be creative and get the perfect curtains without spending tons of money!

Her blog talks about turning a sheet into curtains. While I absolutely love that idea, I couldn’t find any cheap sheets. If I spend a ton of money on a flat sheet, it defeats the purpose of trying to do this cheaply. I then decided to hit the fabric stores. After visiting many stores, some multiple times, I found the perfect fabric. They matched the paint color in my kitchen perfectly. I know. Many people pick the fabric and then paint. Not me! I like to do things the hard way! Luckily, I found this fabric for $4 a yard!

Here’s the before picture:

Here’s the after!

Valance above the sink:

Keep an eye on my blog! There will be more creative ventures to come!

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