Happy October 1st Day!

I decided to start a new tradition of sorts.  It has been a long time since we have had a "FUN CRAFT DAY", and I feel badly about that. Sometimes, believe it or not, I get so focused on academic side of our homeschool, that we don't do enough of the fun stuff.  So, I decided this morning that today would be "Happy October 1st Day".

We put on our Halloween earrings, and put our Halloween bows in our hair. We put our Halloween socks on and started to craft.  Addie is painting her bat made out of egg cartons.  We are going to suspend them from light fixtures as soon as they dry....

We went to our neighbor's house for a housewarming party this weekend and she had done some crazy-cute crafts with her daughter.  She found the ideas on pinterest, which I hardly ever get on.  The one we tried involved mixing Elmer's glue and shaving cream and finger painting them on a paper bag.  Once dried, it is similar to puff paint.  Homemade!  Even better!  We colored ours black, purple, green, to see if it would work.  Our neighbor kept hers white and made dang cute ghosties with googly eyes.

Audrey had fun with her paper bag and painted for quite awhile.

Yes, even my Sethy came and joined in.  He made the cutest pumpkin!

Sasha making a witch.

This is Addie's creation.  We can't wait for them to dry all the way so we can put them up.

I decided to decorate my house a little more for Halloween, so I did this.  I made the banner out of scrapbook paper and strung it on black tulle.  I put scrapbook paper in some frames and put ribbons of ripped up fabric I had around to make it look spooky but not TOO spooky.  (Poor Addie is afraid to go downstairs alone, AGAIN.  Dang  that Spirit Halloween store and their freaky, gross decorations).

I have decided I won't be buying any more of that fake spiderweb stuff!  Soooo messy to clean up!  I found these spooky mesh, net things at the dollar store a few years back and picked up a few more this year.  They are super cute, and way easier to work with!  I put the ripped up ribbon do-dads on the banister and called it Spookified!  I love Halloween.  It is a fun holiday that kinda helps us get over the fact that summer is over.  We love summer, have I ever mentioned that??

I am glad we took the day "off" from school and crafted.

I needed to.

Sometimes as mom's we tend to loose ourselves and it's ok

to take the time to do what WE love.

I LOVE to craft and decorate, and if I didn't

homeschool, that is what I would be doing all the day long.

I don't have time to be on pinterest much.  Even if I did find something I wanted to do or try, I am sure it would take me FOREVER to actually do it.  Unless it takes 15 minutes and then I might get it done.  UGH!!

I have felt kinda run down lately and like my work is

never done.  Always something I should be doing.

My dad asked me the other day if I EVER just stop.

Well, today I did and it felt wonderful.

Kitchen: Part 2

Instead of getting new stuff, I remade my old stuff.  I did not take before pictures!  UGH!  I thought about that a little too late!  My papertowel holder was a garage sale find and it was navy blue and forest green.  Sasha spray painted it for me last night and I glued a bit of ribbon on the bottom for extra beauty!  ;)

I just added ribbon on this cause you can never have too many polka dots in your life.

The recipe holder was a cute gift years ago.  The magnet star was yellow, so it needed to change!  I used ribbon yet again. CHEAP!

I got this recipe holder at Dilly Dally's in Roy like 12 years ago......when my kitchen decor was APPLES.  Stop laughing.  It was painted with apples all over it and was just.....lovely.  It must have been cheap.  Anyways, I ditched the apple theme a long time ago but never did change this thing.  UNTIL today!  I made a fabric flower, glued it on top and yes, added ribbon.

So, I am done for now.....I think.  I am redoing the area over my fireplace but it is not quite right.  I need to go to the DI.  Or another garage sale.  If you are wanting to change things up all you need is a bit of paint, ribbon and you'll also need to ignore your kids all day so your creative juices will flow properly.  (Ha, they loved today!  Wii.  Computer games.  All day.)  When shopping for decor, think outside the box.  Put something unexpected on your wall.  You can always paint something you find.   My favorite things to look for garage sales are picture frames and decor of any kind.  You can aways change what you find so you like it.

Here is one more I forgot to add originally.  I already had all of this; just painted them a bit.  I used more fabric in the picture frame.

I love seeing what others are doing!  So, post on your blogs what you are making!! Happy decorating, my friends!

Now that I am done decorating my kitchen I REALLY need to work out my game plan for the upcoming school year.  Lots of ideas.  I need to write it out.  Get organized.  But, I must say, it feels soooooo good to create again.  I put off things like this during the school year, for the most part because school must take top priority.  Having a summer break is proving to be a good thing for me to rejuvinate, to create and craft, and to sit and watch the grass grow with my kids.  Yes, we do this often.  We just sit outside with nothing to do but enjoy the day.  LOVE IT!  We also take a couple of bike rides a day.  The little ones LOVE riding in the "wagon" (as I call it) that is hooked on my bike.  HOORAY for summer!

Kitchen Makeover.....on a dime!!

Here are some "before" pictures! I had become tired of the decor in my kitchen and I suddenly found myself obessed with tourquise and black.....

 Most of my decor comes from garage sales and the DI.  So, when I am ready to change it, I don't feel guilty about it!  Plus if I end up deciding it doesn't work, I give it back to the DI, or hang on to it until I figure something else out.

 This is where the plates used to be.  I found the frames at a garage sale.  I put scrapbook paper in two of them and the black and white print is actually fabric from a skirt I got at a garage sale. 

 This is above my pantry.  All done with garage sale items, but I did add a bow here and there to jazz it up.  Total cost for all this was under $5.  YAY!!

All this stuff was already there, but I just painted the birdhouse to tie in the new color.  All from the DI...except the tile.  I made that years ago.

Here are the new curtains.  I found the fabric at Hobby Lobby, so this was the most expensive item in my "makeover"!  I am used to "bunched up" curtains, but I do like the way this looks.  I didn't follow a pattern; I just got the fabric and sat down one night and whipped them out.  That is so my style: JUST get it DONE!  LOL!

I also updated the decor I already had in my kitchen....pictures soon.  (I know, I know, you are holding your breath....ha ha)