Friday, November 11, 2011

Kitchen Under-cabinet $10 Redo!!!

I have always been somewhat messy, disorganized, cluttered organizationally challenged. I love the idea of order, it's the execution that is a challenge for me. Mentally, I am very organized. I can keep tons of appointments and ideas juggling around quite nicely. It's just the physical manifestation of order that baffles me. Even more frustrating- when I DO have things well organized, they never look cute like in the magazine.


Enter my new cute (cheap, instant) under closet faux-appliance garage :)



Look at the difference! I have a number of friends who keep all their goods neatly stowed in cupboards and off the counter. Doesn't work as well in our house. Partly due to lack of cupboard space. Exacerbated by my knack for needing something WAY in the back of a cabinet and pulling everything else out onto the floor to get that thing out. Leaving it on the seems to work better for me than a layer of cabinet spewed all across my kitchen.



I was inspired by a Pinterest pin. (See- I do sometimes actually DO the cute things I pin!) It came from a Martha Stewart page. I think the intent was to highlight the beauty and order of laundry supplies. But my eyes went instantly to that curtain lurking in the upper left, thinking... ooh- what a great way to hide my laundry room shelves that are not and will never be that orderly and lovely.

This whole project was over within an our. I found a cute clearance shower curtain. I have an eggplant wall in the adjoining living room, so this tied things together nicely. I may have mentioned this before, but I don't sew. Don't. Yes, I know, this would be an easy straight stitch, but I went with an iron and some Stitch Witchery instead, Just cut the shower curtain in thirds, hemmed it up, and slid it through several $1.99 tension curtain rods, which nestle nicely in the under-cabinet area. Done. I recommend the small clip on curtain rings- they slide better. Also cheap.





Here is the teapot/fizzy storage area. I also have one over the coffee pot etc. corner.


What do you think- compare the before and after shots!


Love! LOVE! (Though now I have a hankering for darker cabinets- drat!... not this season :)

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Make-ahead Lunch Fun!

I have the greatest husband ever, who sent me on a girlfriend trip ALL WEEK. While he watches the kids. All 3. 1 still in diapers (sometimes). The best daddy I could ever fathom for my babies. (Jealous, aren't you!)... Been enjoying reading, shopping, staying out late, and sleeping in!


So.... before I left town I tried to set things up so he would have an easier week. In addition to hair brushing practice with the girls and finishing my daughter's homework ahead for all week, I thought I'd address the issue of....Lunches.


My oldest daughter loves Lunchables (tm). Well... she loves the idea of lunchables. Unfortunately, she doesn't like the american cheese or the round butter crackers... so she begs and pleads at the store for one, and then eats about 4 bites.



Last week, grandma and grandpa bought lunchables for the kids for a picnic. This time, I saved the plastic shells. We opted for sharp cheddar (her favorite), ham, and woven crackers. And of course halloween candy. Some mini cookie cutters makes it even more fun than the original store-bought version.


A little Glad Press&Seal, a sweet note from momma, and we were in business! The best part- I was able to do several of them all at once and leave them in the fridge- so all Chris has to do is grab a juicebox and some fresh fruit and school lunch is done! My little 2 are impressed as well- so much more fun for a picnic or lunch than a boring plate of cheese, meat, and crackers. I think I will keep this trick in my bag for future reference :)

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Harvest Goodness at the Park!


The kids and I had a wonderful suprise at Micah's soccer practice this week. Her team meets at a local park close to our house. As we wandered around, we found that it was ACORN TIME!!! Tons of them, just dropping/about to fall from the trees!


So what did we do? Tacky mom that I am, I grabbed my daughters hoodie off the grass, politely excused myself from the huddle of soccer dads/moms, and began gleaning them up like crazy! Probably got about 4 cups of acorns, and a bunch of these:




They looked like giant, hairy acorns! My daughter found them and was thrilled. When the nut is out, the caps look like little nests! (And yes, these will surely reappear for some spring birdnest crafting!) With a little research (and the blessing of a friend who is a mad fountain of botany knowledge), we found that these were "Burr Oak" trees. Very cool. Local folk- go glean some up before they are gone!







What to do with these pretties? Started with the acorns as they fit into my containers better. Scored this hurricane for $0.50 at a yard sale. (You know how I love yard sales. To my joy, my sweet husband loves them also. Our perfect family Saturday date is grabbing some green chile breakfast burritos to eat while we visit and yard sale through the neighborhood!). Yeah, the silver is bright, at some point perhaps I will spray it antique rubbed bronze or something.





With the addition of these free acorns, what a fun addition to the fall pianoscape! I put the cool burr oak acorns into another glass vase. Thinking about moving them into a cool basket...we'll see!




Fall is the best! Take a walk around your local neighborhood (be sure to ask before you sneak into your neighbors manicured yard) and parks and see what goodness you can find!