Mantel Re-vamp

I love to spy in on other people's homes to see how they have decorated.  With the blogging world it makes it a lot easier to get a sneak peak into how people decorate.  That is why I am joining the mantel linky party over at the Nester. 

After taking down the Easter decor my mantel was seriously lacking.  I wanted to change things up a bit so I shopped the house {and Ross}.

I took the picture from my living room. I originally purchased it at an antique store.  I love the monochromatic feel.  The glassware is from Ross.  Candlesticks, vase, & frame are from the thrift store.  I spray painted the candlesticks gold and rubbed them with raw umber.  I sponge painted the plaque thing with cream paint and then sanded it down to see the gold.

It's still a work in progress.  I don't know that I'm loving the hydrangeas.  {Probably because they are not real.}  And Clint asked if I wanted him to put a picture in the frame.  Very funny. 

 I'm sure I will rearrange and rearrange some more but that's the fun of mantel decorating. 

Glimpse of Our Easter

There were Techno Dance Parties in the kitchen, Egg Dyeing, Egg Hunts- 4 to be exact{including an egg hunt with my sisters and myself- it was a blast!  Lots of pushing and shoving.}  The Easter Bunny came and left lots of goodies.  We ate lots & lots of food including coconut cream pie- yum! 

Spending the Easter weekend with family and watching General Conference together made for the perfect weekend.   I love the spirit that was felt in my home and the beautiful messsages shared.  I came away inspired to be a better mother & wife. 

My heart melted when I asked Easton who that kind man on the screen with gentle eyes was and he replied, "Thomas Monson."   What a blessing to have a living prophet on our earth at this time.

I Did Not Forget

I wanted to ensure Easton knew I wouldn't miss Easter so we went to two egg hunts over the weekend.

My sister Danielle accompanied us to the first egg hunt.  It was held in the Lehi pool and it was a blast.  Easton loved jumping in the wading pool and searching for eggs.  He even won a big Easter basket filled with toys and candy.  After the hunt we all swam in the pool, much to Marielle's delight.

Danielle gave him this kite and a glow stick while she was here.  This kid loves glow sticks.  I mean LOVES glow sticks.  He constantly carries them around with him, sleeps with them and even hands them out at preschool for show and tell even though they no longer glow and are months old. 

On Saturday we went to This Is The Place monument for another egg hunt and it really was the 'place.'  About half of the state of Utah attended making it crowded and not so fun.  However, Easton did manage to find a golden egg worth 4 tickets to the aquarium.  Lucky kid.

I'm not sure what is going on in this picture.

And Little Miss is starting to walk at 10 months of age.  She will take a couple of steps and then slink to the floor where she prefers to crawl. 

Here she is doing the 'slink.'

Is it Easter Time Yet?

I hear this refrain daily.

Easton: "Mom, is it Easter time yet."

Mom: "Not yet.  Not for a week or so."

Easton: "I really like Easter time."

Mom: "I know you do bud."

Easton: "I don't want to miss it."

And so it goes, each day we have this same conversation. 

The boy also enjoys watching himself open all of his Christmas presents again and again on the flip camera.   It's sixteen minutes of boredom to everyone else but to Easton it's non-stop entertainment. 

                            Oh the joy and excitement found in holidays when you are a child.
                                                 

Enjoying the weather

The last few days have been so springy {is that a word} and warm.  We've been enjoying going to the park and playing outside with friends. A big difference from the snow we had a week and a half ago.

Easton and Clint enjoyed the snowfall.  They built a snowman, who disappered by days end, and had a snowball fight.  I stayed in the warm house and worked on a few projects.

I was tired of looking at the ugly yellow cord on Marielle's chandelier so I decided to make a cord cover.  I had been looking to purchase one but they were about $30. 

I measured the length of the cord {7"} and cut my fabric double that {14"}.  I cut the width to 7".  I then ironed down all four edges with fabric glue.  You could sew all four edges if you wanted but I didn't want to.  Have I mentioned I hate sewing.  I then did a running stitch down each 14" length by hand.  Slap a piece of velcro on and your done.  Now the unsightly cord is hidden.

Fancy Photos

While at Bassett Furniture to pick up our new couches I spied these photos hung up in one of their faux display rooms.  I am always drawn towards the monochromatic look.   Plus with the gold frames these were right up my alley.

I immediately knew I needed them.  {Ok maybe not needed but really, really wanted}  The sales lady told me the price at which I was even more excited and I snatched them up as quickly as I could before Clint noticed.  I shoved them into the truck while he wasen't looking, brought them home and hung them up while he was away on a trip.

Now I don't know why I felt I needed to "secretly" buy them or "secretly" hang them up. {Obviously he was going to see them.  They are hanging right above our bed.}  My C-Thomp does not care when I buy things for the house-never has.  In fact he is always so supportive of my decorating.  I guess I felt guilty for already getting couches and adding some pictures to the mix.

I really should have had Clint hang them up though.  He is much better at getting things even and straight.  Plus I hung them a little too high for my liking.  I guess I'll leave the hanging to my husband from now on.

Little Helper

While cleaning up the kitchen I caught this little helper assisting in unloading the dishes.  She still could use a little work learning where the dishes go.  Most items just landed on the floor which landed them back in the dishwasher to be washed again.

  The Easter decor has made it's debut for the season.

I love placing a different seasonal item beneath the glass cloche.   A little bunny from the thrift store and a nest with eggs make the cake stand ensemble complete for Easter.

I figure you can never have too many rosette's {or too much toile but my husband would disagree on that one.}

A simple rosette garland hung on the mantel.

St. George

I could live in St. George.  The weather is beautiful, the landscape is gorgeous and every store you could want is within a short drive around town. 

Easton, Marielle and I enjoyed visiting Clint while he worked the gun show {the reason for the trip}.  Here we are checking out the big army tank.  Actually the tank is not as big inside as it looks on the outside.  I learned this by bonking my head several times on the hard metal interior.

My beautiful best friend Holly drove up from Las Vegas to see me!  I love spending time with this girl. 

Miss Marielle managed to not sleep one wink on the trip down or back.  Most babies are lulled to sleep by the car- not our little Miss.  She prefers to be onery and stay awake the entire time.

Now that she is 9 months old she weighs 17 lbs 7 ounces putting her in the 21%tile for weight and in the 88%tile for her height at 29 inches.

While in St. George I did a little coupon shopping.  Sometimes I get tired of shopping in Utah County because there are SO many coupon shoppers and if you want something on bargain it's usually gone. 

At Target I purchased 5 instant oatmeals, 2 razors and 2 packs of gum paying $11.59 after coupons.  I then received $10 back in gift cards.  So if you consider the gift cards that's only $1.59 for all my items.

At Rite Aid I purchased 3 packages of diapers and 2 packages of truffles for a total of $7.88 after all of my coupons.  I then went online and requested my $5 rebate.   Bringing my cost to only $2.88 once I receive my rebate check.

Coupon shopping is fun when you get good deals like this but sometimes it's very tedious and time consuming.  However, I'm sure I will keep doing it. I've got to stick to my $200 monthly food/diaper budget and using coupons is the only way I think I can do it.

To recap-we had fun in St. George.  We swam, ate lots of food, {I pounded a whole bag of circus peanuts by myself}, shopped, enjoyed the weather and saw lots of guns.  What more could you ask for from a romantic Valentine getaway.

Clapping

With the wonderful warm weather we've been experiencing I can't wait for spring.  These little rosettes I made sing of spring. I thought they would be perfect to decorate for Easter with. 

I placed them in my milk glass vases purchased from the thrift store.

Little Miss started clapping today.  If I say 'yea' she will clap for herself.  She is nine months old now and I just can't get enough of her.   Easton loves to drag her around the house and make her play with certain things.  Little Miss is a scavenger and is constantly on the lookout for little crumbs of food on the floor.  Needless to say she only needs to look under Easton's chair to find a smorgasbord of snacks.

The boy and I made yummy sugar cookies for Valentine's Day.  Actually, I made them while Easton ate the dough and icing.

{Happy Valentine's Day}

New Couches

The new couches have arrived and I am throughly enjoying their presence.

We purchased these from Bassett Furniture.  The store in Orem is remodeling so everthing in the store is currently 35% off, including special order items such as our couches.

I sold our former set on the classified ads and within a day we had a buyer.

                              
                        Thank you for the birthday gift Clint.  You sure know how to spoil a girl.