Creative Bloggers' Party

Today I'm very pleased to be co-hosting the Creative Bloggers' Party with SJ from Homemaker On A Dime! Even though I'm fairly new to blogging, I have bopped around a bit and have to say SJ is a force to be reckoned with!

Craigslist Considerations

I've noticed several of my designing blogger buddies frequent their local thrift
stores, antique stores and flea markets. With my kiddos, I just don't have the
freedom to wander aimlessly as much as I'd like to. So, I admit, I'm a craigslist
junkie. My hub is too!  I look at home things and he looks at tractors.

Tonight, I'm thinking about casual seating for the family room and anything for
my new workspace.

I found this!

It would be great in my office or even the living room. New fabric would be fairly easy with the almost straight lines.

And then I saw this - could go in my office -

Tile Flooring: Yay or Nay?

You're confused, right? How could I even fathom questioning the preference of tile? Well, I can. I'm very practical and realistic when purchasing products and occassionally, like now, tend to buck the popular trend. Hear me out...

 by Maureen Fiori, AKBD, Allied Member ASID, CAPS

Nurseries!

Baby on the way?

 Here is a mix of traditional and contemporary nurseries

that you're sure to get some great ideas from.

 by Amy Lambert Lee

Did you notice the mirrored dresser?

Batter Up!

Notice anything different about this table?

Tonya at Love of Family & Home is so creative, she was able to take
two entirely different objects and put them together for a
one of a kind masterpiece!

Once upon a time she picked up an old baseball bat....

Flower Bed Re-do!

There is nothing more pleasing to the eye than new flowers!

About a month ago we removed old, overgrown and half dead Arborvitae bushes as seen in the post,

Pretty in Pink Bathroom

Isn't this bathroom darling?

Once again, Judy from DIY by Design shows her attention to detail: notice
the ribbon on the mirror, flowers on the window and what appears to be
a wallpaper border is hand painted!

Healthy Blueberry Waffle Recipe!

I don't normally post recipes and told myself I would not stray too far from children's decor ideas; however, I HAD to share this recipe with you! In our quest for a healthier lifestyle, including organics, I've stopped buying pre-made waffle and pancake mixes. The natural and organic ones are expensive and it's something we can certainly make from scratch at home.

(sorry there's only one, but we had devoured them all before I got the camera!)

Healthy, Fluffy & Crispy!

Precious Pink Bedroom

Perfectly Precious Pink!

If you haven't visited DIY by Design, you're really missing out. Judy's makeover
projects are stunning! I think she should re-name her blog DDD - for DIY by
Design Details - as she takes extra care in her attention to detail!

Removing Wallpaper

For anyone who just moved into a previously owned older house, they are probably faced with at least one room of wallpaper needing to be removed.  In the late 90's wallpaper was 'in' and recently it has been booted out the door. There are rumblings of wallpaper making a comeback - not the typical leaves & flowers, but more contemporary and dramatic styles - even putting it on ceilings!

 by Simply Grove

In the right space, it can work, as above.

So if you are faced with unsightly walls - or ceilings - I'm sure you've heard the heavy sighs when you tell your friends and family that you will be removing it. Yes, it is a tedious job, but it's really not too bad and it can even be therapeutic! There is nothing more satisfying - and even rebellious! - than grabbing a corner a pulling!

Nautical Boys Rooms

If you're considering a nautical styled room for your little boy,
here is some inspiration! I'll be doing a nautical bathroom so I'm going to
steal some of these great ideas!

 by Jennifer Reynolds Interiors

Just look at the fabulous artistry on these next two....

DIY Play Mat

Make your own felt play mat!

This is a great idea and the possibilities are endless. Krista at

While He Was Napping created a fun, cheap and easy play mat with little

 more than felt and a glue gun.

Organic Bedrooms

In my latest obsession of converting my family to organics, I found information on organic bedding, paints and furniture so I thought I'd share it with you. And I promise to get back to sharing regular kids decor!

Organic pillows from Lifekind

Amity Home Kids Bedding Sale

I just received this notification!

Amity Home children's bedding is on sale through One King's Lane.

Homemade Baby Wipes

Well, I jumped on the bandwagon of making disposable baby wipes. In this house we all use them so the amount of chemicals and the waste has bothered me for a long time. I'm trying to move away from as many chemicals as possible and make our house more green.

Driving Towards A Green Light

I've always subscribed to the recycle-reuse philosophy, even before recycle was a household word. My mother always reused things until there were holes in them. Back then she darned holey socks until she truly got tired of re-darning 2 or 3 times!



Recycling has gone far beyond darning socks to catching rain water, installing low-use toilets and faucets. Our goal is to install many of these, as well as buy organic foods and start a garden. Switching to organic foods is something I've dabbled in, a box of crackers here, cereal there. But recently, I made a bigger jump to purposely buy as much organic as possible. Our fabulous FDA is still dragging their feet on artificial colors & flavors while European countries have banned those chemicals for decades.

How to go organic

Recently, hubs & I made the decision to switch to mostly organic foods & personal items. While I've thought about it for years and dabbled with various products, reading one more article on all the chemicals our bodies ingest - and watching the efforts of Jamie Oliver's food makeovers - tipped the scale and the decision was made swiftly.

So how do you all of a sudden buy organic? Seems almost like learning another language. Or that's what it used to  feel like. For us, it was easy. We made the decision to get greener and on my next shopping trip I skipped all the other foods and looked for organics.