Magic.

Paper Lanterns + summer evening + a glass of Shiraz = Magic

Spray me a river.

Decorating a new house is fun. Decorating a house that is yours is really, really fun. And decorating on a budget is the best part because I love hunting for a bargain. Needless to say, I'm as happy as a pig in poop right now. (Or as happy as Jack eating a poopy diaper, which he did today. He's in solitary confinement in the cellar crying at this very moment. And incidentally we don't have basements here, we have cellars...they are so much more northern you know.)

So in between other tedious projects, I've been enjoying some spray painting. It's fast, easy and instantly gratifying.

We have a big mantle and we bought a huge mirror in South Carolina thinking it would fit over it. It doesn't--not even close. So now I'm trying to decorate with things I already have. I also decided I was over my metallic phase. Everything bronze, copper, silver must go. Well, almost everything. My weapons of choice: Kilz paint in Georgia Clay and Ivory and a blue shade whose name I can't remember because I threw all the cans away. I'd recognize it at wal-mart though.

When I unpacked I realized I have a lot of candlesticks. I had no idea. Where did they all come from? Since none of them were valuable or sentimental, under the sprayer they went.

Before:

After:

I painted my metal "R" ivory then blue and roughed it up a bit. The price tag that's still on the back says it was $2.90 from Hobby Lobby.Hydrangeas from the garden--absolutely free.

No doubt I'll keep tweaking it, but for now the mantle is done.

This lamp was $5 from a thrift store in Colorado Springs. It started out black and I've painted it twice now.

Next up: wicker rockers purchased at a consignment store in Columbia for $32 a piece and a table I bought at Value City furniture my sophomore year of college and used as a night stand. Considering it isn't well made, I think I've gotten my money's worth out of it in the last 12 years. It's seen better days though. Time for a facelift.

After:

The pattern on the table is from paper doilies. You just use a spray adhesive to stick them on the surface and then spray on top of them and peel them off. (For specific instructions go here). They turn out kind of messy and imperfect, which I liked so I didn't touch them up.

I've seen a lot of cute chunky rockers in stores, but they can't compete with these curvy legs (not to mention they cost three times more).

So that's some of what I've been up to, but there's a whole lot more. I think I'm addicted to the fumes.

Lake Ontario

We've been doing too much work and not enough play around here. Micah is back in the real Army now, getting home close to 8 pm every night. Meanwhile I've been painting and sewing for hours every day. If it stands still I spray paint it. But that's a whole other post. Then there's Skylar who talks from the second she wakes up until the second she goes to bed. Nonstop. All day. Chatter, chatter, chatter. Whew.

So this weekend we decided to get out and have a little fun in our new neighborhood and we headed to a nearby harbor village. We are only 10 miles from Lake Ontario so we figured it was about time we go check it out.

I am really loving upstate New York now that it's above 55 degrees! (We still top out at 70 most days).
We ate lunch at this cute little restaurant.
That night Skylar helped me make pizza for dinner. Bless her heart, she loves to help me cook but it's a mess every time. It's a good thing she's so cute because she wears me out!

We've made a lot of progress on the home front, so next up will be some pictures of the house.

Crockpot Yogurt

So I haven't posted a recipe in a long time because I'm not in "cooking mode" yet. We are surviving on things like quesadillas, salads and turkey sandwiches, or whatever Micah feels like grilling around here.

But here's a new one I'm excited to pass along!

Last month I got an e-mail from Micah's sweet Aunt Raina sharing this recipe for homemade yogurt. I'll admit I haven't had a chance to try it yet with all the moving, but I really want to! In the meantime maybe some of you can try it and let me know what you think.

Raina said she used 2% milk instead of whole, mixed it with some agave nectar (available in wal-mart now by the way) and serves it over fruit and pecans. Yum!

Here's the link for crockpot yogurt .

While you're there you can find a whole slew of other great crockpot recipes too. Thanks for sharing Raina!

The best.

Skylar went to the local farmer's market today with Noni and Papa and came back with a gift for me. She ran into the house saying "Flowers for you mama!" She was so proud of them.The bouquet was almost as big as her......

There is absolutely nothing better than wildflowers in a mason jar, especially when delivered by my sweet little girl. Skylar has been getting lots of grandparent time. She took a trip to Noni and Papa's last week for 3 days without us and had a great time. I don't think she missed us nearly as much as we missed her. Then this week my parents came up for a couple of days so I could tackle a few of my many projects (the rest of our household goods came this past weekend). It was great to get things done and Skylar had fun, fun, fun!

Next week the fun continues with Micah's family! We can't wait!

Pro-gear overload.

The latest batch of gear (in addition to the truckloads he already has)..............
Thank you Army for filling my house, i worried that I might have too much room, but it looks like you're going to take care of that. A closet or three can't contain it all, it might just need its own bedroom.

Men of integrity.

Happy Father's Day to Micah, my dad and Micah's dad! Thank you for your dedication, sacrifice and hard work and the way you love your families. We are thankful for you!

"The man of integrity walks securely...." Proverbs 10:9

Cousins

These delicious, squishy little jelly roll legs belong to my neice Hannah. We finally got to meet her a couple of weeks ago.
At the time she was almost 4 months old, and just as plump and juicy as can be.

Skylar loved "Baby Nana" and really liked being the big kid for a change.

She wasn't as excited about sharing her bubble bath, at first she just wanted Hannah to get out.
We think she looks just like Jenn's baby pictures, except with her daddy's eyes.

Too bad that New York and Hawaii are so far away. We aren't sure when we're going to see Hannah again, but Skylar is still talking about her!

Next chapter.

It's been a jam-packed month since this whole moving process began but we are finally getting settled again.

Well, as settled as we can be without all of our stuff.

When our household goods arrived last week we were so motivated to get moved in before Micah went back to work this week. But as it turned out, only half of our things were on the truck and now 8 days later, nobody can tell us where the other half is. For real. The moving company doesn't know. The transportation office doesn't know. We sure as heck don't know. Micah has spent hours on the phone and in offices trying to sort this stuff out. It hasn't been a great experience.

On the bright side, we love our new house. It ended up being just short of 8 weeks from contract to closing, and those were some very stressful weeks. We are so glad that process is finally over. And now the fun begins!!!

The day we closed I got to work. Skylar was in bed for the night, Micah went for a run around the new neighborhood, and I pulled out my exacto-knife and went into the master bedroom. There are only two rooms in the house with carpet, and this was one of them. I has secretly purchased my exacto for just this moment. I had a plan. I couldn't wait to start. I wanted that carpet out of there pronto. It was a little risky since I had no idea what the floor underneath would look like, but I made a big old slice in the middle of the room and at that point I was committed.

I just knew the floors would be great, and they were. Micah got home from his run and the carpet was all pulled up in a great big wad in the middle of the room. He just shook his head and said "You couldn't wait, could you." Um, nope.

So he sliced it all into neat little piles and carried it out for me.....

All of the pesky tack board had to be pulled up along with hundreds of staples all over the floor. It took a few hours of working by the light of the bathroom that night (no overhead light and no lamps) and during Skylar's nap time the next day, but it was worth it.

Micah used a miter saw to cut new trim, I painted it, and then he installed it and it looks great. We were so proud that we survived our first DIY project together! I'll post a picture when I get the room finished.

Next up was the living room. It was painted a pale grey that felt institutional. It's a big room and the floors are bare, so I wanted to warm it up and make it cozy. I also wanted to play up the room's features, so I decide to paint all of the picture frame trim. It took days. Lots of taping. Lots of painting. You're going to have to wait to see the finished product. I can't reveal a half finished room.

I love having a garden. I can't grow a thing, but someone already did all the hard work! We are so far north that it doesn't get dark until late. These pictures were taken at 9 pm:

I counted over 15 different things blooming today. Other than the hydrangeas, I don't know what they are, but I love having all the flowers.

And of course, you-know-who is enjoying her new house and yard too......

Lots more to come!

Be right back.

I am still here.....we've just been really busy vacationing, seeing extended family and now moving in. We are without internet at home until next week. Lots to talk about and no less than 807 pictures to go with it all. See you next week!