From my family to yours! Hope you enjoy this special day with the people you love.

Today I made a very solid and resolute decision for the health and well-being of my family. I have been tousling back and forth with the idea of "going green" ever since my first son was born. I wanted to do what I could to keep him away from harmful chemicals. But being a young military wife I knew our budget at the time couldn't handle the price of organic and all-natural products. Now that we are more "adult" with our finances, we have a little bit more wiggle room in our budget; and we are more willing to sacrifice for the things we need/want.

I want to ease into this lifestyle change by continually making small changes here and there trying different products out to see how they work in our home. I have an order from The Honest Co., which was founded by actress Jessica Alba, coming soon. If you haven't heard about this company they make various household and personal care products that are natural and toxic-free. They are a subscription-based company which means you will get a shipment each month unless you cancel or pause it. If you're in the market they are offering free shipping on orders over $50.  I love that they have baby care products and can't wait to try them out. A few other companies I'd like to try are Method and Seventh Generation; but I'm open to others.

We also decided to purchase our produce only from the local farmer's market or Whole Foods store.

What are you doing different for your family this year? What natural products do you use in your home?


This post was not sponsored by any of the aforementioned companies. The thoughts and views are my own; And I was not compensated in anyway for this post. 

Hello all and Happy Monday!

This weekend was sort-of bust for us as far as the cherry blossoms go. Due to the cold weather last week, the blossoms were delayed and with the snow that fell this weekend, I don't anticipate it happening before this weekend. Anywho, we took the little ones to an Easter egg hunt instead. It was a really nice event put on by one of the local churches. They had cotton candy and bounce houses so our oldest was satisfied.

Today I was doing a little bit of daydreaming and was looking at different homes and discovered that I really DO like the farmhouse style home. I've always been partial to the rancher and so has my husband. But I recently find myself digging the look of some farmhouse styles I see on Pinterest and realizing I wouldn't mind calling one home.

My husband and I have been doing a lot of goal setting lately and buying our first home is high on the short list. We'd like to try our hand at a renovation. But we can't decide what type, hubby wants a complete (top to bottom) reno and I'd just like to get our feet wet with maybe just the kitchen or first level needing to be done. I guess we will have to see what we can afford and that depends on where we will be living. And as we all know, in the military nobody knows!!!

How was your weekend?


Wanna find out what architectural style of home you are?

Scoot on over to one of my fav sites HGTV's FrontDoor and take this personality quiz http://www.frontdoor.com/buy/architecture-quiz-landing/1133

It's the first day of spring! 

Happy New Week!

This past Saturday was the greatest Saturday in the succession of "Great Saturdays" that have been rolling through here lately. I've been getting everything from a free quart of paint to dinner a my fav restaurant. But today topped them all. It started that morning with the arrival of my beautiful Paula Deen cookware. Which I have to mention that I got on sale by the way. I've been wanting (and needing) these beauties for a while now. But I just kept putting off getting them for things deemed more important. I had long been fed up with our current pots and pans that were scratched and scraped with broken handles; but the final straw came when I began seeing the inside non-stick material in the food I was cooking. That was NOT acceptable!

So then I began my search for cookware that was durable, safe, and beautiful enough to be in my kitchen. Through my search I considered a number of choices from All-Clad to Emeril to Rachel Ray and some in-between. I finally settled on Paula Deen porcelain cookware in Blueberry. I found it on sale for $109 on Amazon; and with my Prime membership, I got free two day shipping. Needless to say me and my pockets were both happy.

Then later that afternoon out of nowhere my hubby takes us to the mall and purchases an iPad just for me. Talk about a great day! It felt like Christmas. I can't wait to start cooking with my pretty new pots and blogging on my iPad.

I hope you have been keeping up with the challenge these past few weeks. I know I haven't mentioned it in a while and I promise to correct that soon. I also can't wait to share the results of my DIY curtains and painted dresser.

Have you added any new items to your kitchen lately?

Hey all! I just stopped by to share with you my two great finds this week:
 DIY Chevron Curtain Tutorial
  Chevron Pillow Covers from CottageRuffles

Aren't they awesome?!

So as you all may know, I've been working on a bedroom/playroom makeover for my boys. Well, for the past two weeks it has kind of been in the planning (what the heck do I do) phase. I've spent significant time on Pinterest, Craigslist, But this week I've been making some headway and "finite" decisions about what my "vision" for the space is. And to say the least, I'm definitely excited.

Adding to this excitement is the fact that I came across these great $10 chevron pillow covers in various colors from CottageRuffles on Etsy; and this totally awesome DIY chevron curtain tutorial from Sarah over at While They Snooze. These two items are definitely making the short list of things that are for sure going in the design. As a matter of fact, I may be doing the curtains this weekend when I tackle their dresser with the free Clark+Kensington paint I got from ACE Hardware last weekend. Which by the way, they are repeating the offer this weekend (March 16th, click the link for more info). I will most definitely be going back to try out another color, maybe even the color for the curtains. Who knows....?

Check back for my post on the outcome of these two projects.

What DIY projects or sales will you be doing/partaking in this weekend?

...And I just can't hide it!!!

Happy Monday folks! Hope you had a great weekend. What's that you say? How was my weekend?! Well, I'm soo glad you asked... My weekend was simply marvelous. It started with my hubby, T, getting off work early and being able to spend a few extra hours with us. We made it a movie night and watched a kid movie with our oldest and then when it was time for bed we watched a movie for us. Saturday we woke up early and headed out to do some things that were on our list.

We officially started looking for a bunk bed to go in the boy's room. The only requirement was that we wanted a twin over full or a twin over twin with trundle; but when we started looking I added another requirement, and that was for it to have stairs instead of the ladder. I feel much safer having the staircase as opposed to the ladder especially since both of my children are under the age of 6. I feel the staircase is more kid-friendly. Our oldest was so excited to be in the furniture store looking for his big boy bed.

And now for the reason I'm so excited...

I got paint for the kid's dresser! I know, I know super exciting huh? Well here's the best part... it was free. Ah, so you've decided to join in on my excitement, huh? Yes it's true, ACE hardware was giving away free quart samples of Clark+Kensington paint and primer in one. All you had to do was pick your poison, I mean color choice, and then fill out a simple form. That's it!

I chose a pretty blue color called Sapphire. It's like a midnight blue shade. I'm kinda crushing on that color pretty hard. It's been a long time favorite of mine. It was a pretty decent collection of choices so it was hard picking the color I wanted; but once I saw Sapphire, it just spoke to me. But just to be sure that we really do like it I will be re-painting a stool/chair that goes to his desk. This way if we aren't as crazy for it once it's lived on the furniture, we haven't committed a whole dresser to the color.

This is my first major DIY project in the room and I can't wait to get it started. I will definitely be posting up pictures.

What projects do you have going on around the house?

I struggled with my thoughts of blogging about this topic because it's such a new and private part of my life. However, I have found that there is not enough talk about this cruel disease. So it is here that I will lend my voice....

My story with Lupus began this past summer ('12) about 3 weeks after I had our second son, Chipmunk. During my pregnancy, I had symptoms of what my doctors thought was Pre-eclampisa; and I was hospitalized on bed rest from 26 weeks until I had my son at 34 weeks. After giving birth my symptoms seemed to go away until about 3 weeks later when I developed a rash on my arm. I thought nothing of it because my skin is sensitive and I thought that I had touched something I was allergic to. After it became itchy and other symptoms began to occur like swollen joints, my husband and I decided to go back to the Dr's office.

 At first the only thing they were concerned about was my BP which was still higher than normal they attributed my symptoms to my bout with pre-eclampsia. They gave me some Benadryl and Tylenol and assured me my symptoms would soon go away. However, they had only just begun. Eventually, my symptoms were so painfully unbearable that I could barely hold my son to nurse him. It was then that I had my husband bring me back to the doctor, this time we went to the ER.

 My visit to the ER got me a room up on the 3rd floor as a resident patient. What followed were tests of all kind from blood draws and X-rays, to a bronchoscopy and kidney biopsy. My relief came when they started treating me for the preliminary diagnosis that reduced the painful swelling and rash on my arms and legs; and my sorrow came when I was positively diagnosed with stage 4 Lupus Nephritis and kidney failure. Which, because of the meds I have to take, basically ended my ability to nurse my son; something that after not being with him for 3 weeks, I was heartbroken to hear.

This disease, like many, is a very difficult thing to live with. I typically have more good days than bad; but I have to remember that even though I may be having a good day, this disease is constantly ravaging my body. I feel so blessed to have the great team of doctors that I do. From my nephrologist to my dermatologist and everyone in between. So while I know this is a lifetime disease that keps me at the doctor's office every 2-3 weeks, and could possibly kill me; I am optimistic that my doctors will work hard to ensure my quality of life stays as close to normal as possible

I am also immensely grateful that we had Chipmunk when we did. Who knows what status my health would have been in before it was caught. He saved my life. Literally.

Do you know anyone with Lupus? Do you have Lupus?

For more information on Lupus and how you can help find a cure click here

Today everyone here in Northern VA got the day off due to severe inclimate weather. My husband and I had big plans for today. He was going to study for his promotion and help me move around and arrange the big furniture, and I was gonna continue on my quest to decrapify my home with White House Black Shutters' declutter challenge (more on that here). But out of the ten things we wanted to do today we only got through three of them before a bad case of the lazys came upon us and we were out for the count. We did manage to take our son, outside to play in the snow; but the rest will just have to be done on another day.

What did you do on this snow day?

If you're interested in doing the White House Black Shutters' declutter challenge click here

Happy Monday Peeps!!!!!!

After much meditation and conversation, I have narrowed down the projects I'd like to take on in our home this year. The first one you already know about and that's decorating the boy's room. This is a pretty big project as this room will serve multiple purposes: sleeping, playing, and learning; so it has to be multi-functional and easy to keep organized. I don't want to overthink or overbuy on this project. Or any other project for that matter....

We want to take time and figure out our style; because that is something we have never been able to do in our whole 6 almost 7 years of marriage. Being a young couple having family and friends wanting to help, our home is full of items from other people's homes and styles. While we purchased a few decorative or small items here or there, we have yet to buy a significant piece of furniture ourselves. Which was a great blessing that saved us a ton of money; and I'm grateful. But I'm ready to look at OUR home and see OUR taste.

So we are taking our time doing research and getting advise from where ever we can.

In the meantime... here is my list:

House Projects:

Kitchen:

• organize and declutter pantry
• organize and declutter cabinets
• organize and declutter fridge and freezer
• purchase bar stools for breakfast counter
• purchase deep freezer
• install shelf under cabinets for microwave
• add decorative accents

Dining Room:

• get chairs reupholstered and fixed
• add decorative accents/wall art
• purchase table linens (protective/decorative)
• purchase storage furniture piece (buffet)
• create office nook

Living Room:

• get couch slip covered/reupholstered (Mom sponsored)
• purchase a large rug
• purchase ottoman (replace coffee table)
• mount our 60" TV
• purchase new lighting
• update decorative accents
• purchase small chair for secretary desk

Boy's Room:

• purchase bunk bed
• make cushions for storage bench
• paint/varnish furniture
• purchase bedding and decorative accents
• organize closet
• create play space
• make/buy window treatments
• create reading corner (get or make small bookcase)

Kid's/Guest Bedroom:

• find shower curtain or towel pattern I like
• purchase guest towels
• organize storage
• add decorative accents

Master Bedroom:

• paint/purchase new furniture
• storage for vanity
• seating for vanity
• add casual seating
• organize closet

Laundry Room:

• purchase iron and ironing board
• install drying rack
• organize storage

 I crossed out the decluttering tasks on my list because it is my intention that after the 40 bags challenge I will not need to declutter anything else in my home. This list is by no means all inclusive or written in stone. It is just a spring board to get me started and who knows what may be added to it.

What projects will you be tackling this year?

Yesterday turned out to be a great family day. We got up early and headed over to Falls Church, Va for the NVPOM Spring Consignment Sale. It was our first time going to this event and I must say that I was very impressed. The event was organized from event security all the way down to checkout. It was clear that they had been doing this for quite some time. Most of the items were in good condition and priced fairly reasonably.

We didn't find a bed or a baby walker which were the two big things we wanted to get from this sale. There were several vendors who were selling jewelry, cupcakes and cookies, etc; and there were other vendors providing valuable information and free samples. We got 2 containers of Chipmunk's soy formula, thanks Gerber :).

We ended the day a one of my favorite places... Joe's Crab Shack. My son had a blast playing with the other kids in the play area and I had a blast sinking my teeth into one of their delicious steam pot, yummy. One interesting thing I learned is that while my husband and I can share almost any dish, we CANNOT share a steam pot. Or should I say we can't share and my husband live to talk about it. He devoured all of the snow crabs and other goodies. His excuse was that he thought I didn't want any. Here I was thinking he was the sweetest thing for giving me his share of the lobster (the pot came with two); but what he was really doing was keeping me preoccupied from his devouring ways lol.

Going to Joe's really made me wish Spring would hurry and get here. I can't wait for warm weather activities and attire. Cue flip-flops and tank tops.


What did you do this weekend?

Okay so this week I officially started the 40 Bags in 40 Days challenge by White House Black Shutters and so far so good. I got off to a slow start but picked up some momentum on Wednesday in order to finish strong on Saturday.


 Here's a day-by-day recap:

Monday:
I began the challenge in my master bedroom before pic can be found here. I had already purged a lot of MY side of the closet a few months ago as apart of my new baby nesting bug; but I barely touched my husband's side. Primarily, because he always says I have "Waaay More" clothes and shoes than he does; and I contend that while I do have more, it's no where near "waaay more" as he so eloquently put it. And that he has a whole lot more than he thinks; and what's worse, he has a ton of items that he does not and/or will not ever where in this here life. And I proved it! I wish I had taken a picture and sadly we have since moved so the opportunity has passed, sigh.

Bag total: 2

Tuesday: Tuesday I started de-cluttering my emails and since I have 3 this was a daunting task and I soon realized I would need to dedicate more that one day to this task.

Bag total: none, 3,000 emails sorted into folders or deleted

Wednesday: Today was a day where I let myself get overwhelmed. I looked around my home full of boxes (we just moved a week ago) and I saw all that needed to be done and I got discouraged. So instead I avoided the problem and took my children to the park so I wouldn't have to see it.

Thursday: This was the day I woke up and go back on track. I resolved that this problem wasn't created overnight and it definitely wouldn't be fixed overnight. So I rolled up my sleeves and I started in my kitchen pantry/cabinets and in my fridge/freezer getting rid of old or unwanted items. Next will be to organize

Bag total: 2

Friday:  I  took this day to de-clutter and de-crapify my kid's room in preparation for their remodel. Because they don't yet have too much, I was able to tackle toys, clothes, and shoes

Bag total: 3

Saturday: This was a day spent away from home.as we went to a consignment sale hosted by a local parent group here in Northern VA.

Bag total: 0

Have you started the challenge? Tell me about it....

Hello All! I hope you have been making headway in the 40 Bags in 40 Days challenge. I must say I'm quite pleased with myself and can't wait to attack more junk. But in an effort to not have this be 40 Day Central, I decided to share my first big project for this year with you. And it is.... (drumroll please) ..... The Boy's Room!!!!!

I'm so excited to be able to start this project! It's been a long time coming and I can't wait to get started. I have been Pinterest crazy these last few months getting ideas for all sorts of projects for around the house. I've started a mood board with Olioboard using my first inspiration piece, my son's onesie. I love the bright and playful colors and how they can be tailored to each of the boys; light shades for the nursery side and the darker shades for the "big boy" side. Here's how my board looks now. Keep in mind it's a work of progress, the pictures are just up there I'll arrange them later; AND my first mood board:



Tomorrow we will be going out to start looking for furniture for our oldest's big boy side. While surfing the web a week ago I came across a consignment sale hosted by a local mom group Northern Virginia Parents of Multiples they do it each year and are said to have a great turn out each time. I hope will either be able to snag a bunk bed or trundle bed so that when Chipmunk gets older we won't have to purchase anymore furniture. Along with whatever else I can find. I asked my husband to come along with me in an effort to keep myself grounded and on budget.

I will also be taking the bottom storage part of the old bed frame that we are getting rid of and making a storage bench like the one I found here by making a cushion top. My mother gave me the idea of using outdoor fabric to cover the cushion when I was racking my brain trying to figure out what type of durable fabric I could use. So needless to say I will be elbow deep in some colorful types of fabric soon.

Well gotta hit the hay the sale starts at 9am....