Ideas on Decorating

Something that is so nice about summertime, and about working part-time, is that it gives me time to think. During the school year, I am lucky if I have the energy some days to think about what to make for dinner, much less bigger things such as how to decorate my house. So, I am using these last few weeks of summer to really think about how I want to eventually decorate the rooms in my house. Of course, as all homeowners know, my ideas will probably change before I have time to act on them, or will change after I put them into place. But, in order to get the ball rolling and to make use of my extra time, I am going through each room in my house and just thinking...

And for the record, I am not going to include outside in this brainstorming session. Its too hard to walk outside, much less stand outside and think, so I am just going to save that for another post...

Living Room
Our living room is our favorite room in the house and the house where we spend most of our time. I love our neutral colors, and I like keeping things simple, yet decorative. I already love how we have set up our bookshelves and the layout of our furniture, but there are a few things I want to update:

A new TV stand??? (after a several hour long debate with my husband, I really think I would like a new, wood TV stand) I don't know though...

A mirror that goes above the couch

A new lamp (this one I have is on its last dying breath)

A new decoration for our foyer table. Heavy flower arrangement + cat who jumps on everything = knocking over of vase onto wood floor, cracking nice hardwood floor. Soooo, this new decoration has to have some thought and catproofing.

A way to hide outlets and cords-I hate it when outlets and cords so..so I am working on cute ways to hang them all up

A scent system for my living room. I LOVE scent and I like it strong (several times I go overboard and force Shawn into a coughing spell) So, I would like to get some kind of decorative scent system that will make my living room smell yummy:)

Dining Room
Like the living room, I already love my dining room as if,but have a few ideas...

A corner table? I am sure sure what it will hold, but a nice wood one could be cute.

A buffet up against the wall (I love buffets and china cabinets) I would like to get one with storage to hold placements, chargers etc)

A continuous update of a cute floral centerpiece- I love the idea of having fresh flowers on the table!

And all of these items will need to be catproofed, meaning no breakable items places on top that could damage my wood floor

You darn cat:)


Kitchen
I love my kitchen:) I spend a lot of time, there, and wouldn't change a thing.

Garage
My lovely husband took care of that. That is his domain.

Our Bedroom
So, this is the largest bedroom I have ever had. I love it already, but here are some thoughts:

Seating in the vast empty corner. Maybe adding a lounge chair in the corner?

Decorating in the window area. At first I was thinking about a window seat, but I don't think I would really use it. Now I am thinking maybe an old trunk, a way to stack old books...just some decoration stuff...it's my most puzzling area thus far.

A photo collage to the left of the TV-some photos of me and the hub:)

Upstairs Hallway

I want to add some friends and family pics. and perhaps a nice painting (to make us look worldly)

Guest bedroom


I am not sure yet...I want it to be cozy and inviting...we will just have to see.

So, over the months we will just have to see how far I get and how it all changes. I am not sure if I should go room by room or do a little in each..we will just have to see. I will be showing makeover pics soon!! Consider these some before pics:)

Another picture collage by Smilebox

A game unlike any other

 

Last night Shawn and I invited Deven and Jennica over to our home. We wanted to show off our new home, and eat some good food, which we most certainly did.

We also ended up doing something that often happens whenever we get together with Deven and Jennica- we played a game. In fact, when talking recently, Jennica and I realized that every time they come over, we open a game that we haven't opened yet. That's because they are our go-to game people.

We always end up sharing some laughs when we play games- mostly coming from me and Jennica in regards to the artistic skills of our husbands, buy this time the laughs came from both sides. We decided to play the game Quelf, which was a Christmas gift from my grandma. We had no idea how to play the game or what it was about, but we were with our game friends, so all was well.

Well, let me tell you, this game is quite a game. If you have never played it, and you enjoy making a fool of yourself, or are with company who enjoy the same and aren't modest, this game is for you. Here are just some shots:

Here is Jennica: she is only allowed to pick up things with her pinkies:

Paper airplane contest:

Deven had to wear a sign over his head:

Shawn taking it all in:

In this awesome pic, I have my finger up my nose and am yodeling. Yup.

So, it was a fun night had by all, and if you want a fun time I would highly recommend playing the game Quelf. But more so, I would recommend continuing to get together with people such as our dear friends the Hammerschmidts, who, every once in a while, will just sit down and be ridiculous for a night:)

In closing, here is my husband and his adorable beard: :))



Easy Spaghetti

Yes, I know spaghetti is already easy. But this spaghetti dish is easy, and DELICIOUS. This is not the spaghetti you make everyday in college because it's all you can make and it's all you can afford-this is much more.

In fact, as I was taking this picture, I could not help but to take my spoon and eat several huge bites-after I had two big helpings for dinner:)

And I am for sure not a food photographer-who takes a picture of a half eaten dish in a pan? Haha-I never claimed to be professional.

Shawn introduced me to this dish- and everytime we make it, I have a hard time staying out of it!

Ingredients:

1 16oz package of spaghetti

1 bag of shredded cheddar cheese

1 can of tomato soup

1 can of cream of mushroom soup

1 pound of ground beef

Preheat the oven to 375. Brown the beef and cook the noodles. Then in a large mixing bowl, combine the noodles, beef, both soups and half the bag of cheese. Add a can of water (just use one of the cans from the soups). Mix together and pour into a pan (I use a 13X9 glass baking pan). Sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top. Put into the over for 30 minutes. ENJOY!

FYI- Shawn thinks this tastes even better a day after it's made. 

Ol' Summer Days

Well, the Fourth of July has come and gone, which means summer is already halfway over!

Here are some pics from our Fourth of July. The day mostly revolved around food, which any good day does really:

The day began with some waffle-makin:

Its too early for fireworks Lydia

 Grilling hot dogs later on- a hot dog goes from a cheap, subpar meal to a juicy, delicious delicacy when you grill it versus nuke-it-YUM

 The man behind the grill isnt too bad either:)

 Hot dogs and homemade mac n cheese

 I just took this picture because I wanted to show off this baking dish that I have that I have been waiting to use forever-its just so fancy!

And then there was flag cake!!

Aside from Fourth of July food, we have been busy decorating our house- including putting pictures up, enjoying our new washer and dryer (our laundry is soft and smells soooo good) and organizing, organizing, organizing.

Is there seriously anything more precious than a kitty enjoying herself?:)

I think she did this after she got in trouble for being in the way while I was cleaning or bolting from the house once someone opened the door. This is how she gets her way...every time:)

My wonderful husband, organizing our garage...

Oh Lydia. She tries to be helpful...

As summer reaches the halfway point, I began to think about those goals that I set out when I started this blog, and when summer was just getting underway. Summer has a way of doing that to you- in early June, you begin to think that you have all this time to do all these things, then by July you begin to think, where did the time really go?

So lets see- last June, I said I was going to:

•  Become the next Martha Stewart (or at least start homemaking)
• Get healthier
• Plan for next school year
• Read like a champ

And....thus far...

•  I have GREATLY enjoyed cooking and decorating my new home-and we are just gettin   started- yard projects are soon to come

• I have improved upon some health habits, and succumb to others:) But this is kind of how it is huh? I have gotten back into exercising, which is AWESOME (sometime I want to blog about exercise and how I am convinced it truly makes or breaks my day). I have started to eat more fruits and veggies (having a grill really helps) and I would say that I am eating better overall. However, I am still drinking soda (I can't help it!!!) so not all is perfect. I haven't really totally revamped the way I have been eating, but I have done a few little things that have made such a difference:

  1) I chop up fruits and veggies the second I get them home from the store- half the  reason I didn't eat fruits and veggies in the past is because the require prep (yes I am that lazy). And FYI, there are YouTube videos on how to cut every kind of fruit out there (and yes I have looked all of them up-watched one on how to cut cantaloupe today)
2) Almonds. They are my savior food! And for those who like them bold, the Wasabi and Soy Sauce flavor is amazing!
3) Have a good breakfast and lunch- when I eat a healthy breakfast and lunch, then having McDonalds for dinner is not such a travesty- this helps me out especially during the week
4) Tuna-another amazing food-love having it for lunch
5) Plan ahead. When I think about what we are going to have for dinner each night of the week, I am so much less likely or go pick-up fast food.

I want to continue to look for ways to be healthier-so that I can keep up with Lydia and her antics, and the little squirts I work with:)

• I have been very busy this summer with summer school-next week is my last week! Phew! Its been a good experience overall, but fairly tiring. Each day has been different and crazy, but I am glad I did it and the kids I have worked with have been pretty sweet. However, it makes me thankful that I don't have them all in one room at one time during the school year. My secret though? Food. Kids will do anything if they are promised treats-hehe

• I think I have officially read three whole books this summer- not really that whoopie:) I haven't really read anything earth shattering-but I do love having my Nook:))

So I haven't done too bad with my summer goals, although I already feel like the summer is almost gone- I will be spending the next few weeks working on the house, going into my real classroom to prepare for next year, and hopefully getting to see some friends before work starts:)

I hope everyone has a great weekend! Talk to ya soon!

Home Sweet Home!

The Showmans have landed:)
We are now officially in our new home! Here are some pictures of our new home!

We are still working hard on decorating-I will post more complete pictures soon!

It has been wonderful so far and truly already feels like home. We spent our first night in our new house doing what we do best: eating Chipoltle and watching Dateline-our usual Friday night date:)
Lydia is wound up like a clock, like we knew she would be. She spent the first few hours doing what we knew she would do- hopping on the counter, climbing every bookshelf, examining every window. Then, she settled for a few minutes on the guest bed to take a nap.

Then, after several more hours of destruction, she settled in for the night on our bed, and slept there the whole night. Did she notice that I brought over her previous bed? Or is she just declaring her new nightspot, which is snuggled right between mommy and daddy?

Anyways, we are home and are looking forward to spending a long, relaxing Fourth of July in it!
Five things to love about a new home:
1. The feeling of being settled-truly knowing we can make it a home because there isn't a lease that ends soon:)
2. Decorating with your husband-having it be an "our home":)
3. Getting ready to make your first few meals- after a week of McDonalds and Pizza
4. Watching your cat explore and seeing how happy she is to have new spaces and places:)
5. Feeling sentimental about leaving behind your first place together, but feeling even more excited to start anew:)

"Moving" right along

So...

This past week Shawn and I have cleaned carpets, finished baseboards, and moved stuff. ALOT of stuff. And we are STILL moving.

I would provide pictures, but nobody really wants to see me, grumpy, sweaty and disgruntled. However, after we have settled in and have rooms set up, you will for sure see some pics:) Our living room is already starting to look pretty cozy!

So, my week looks like this: sleep, work, move. Sleep, work, move. Sleep, work, move.

But I have to say that although I feel like every time I move it gets harder and harder and I continue to acquire more and more crap, I honestly have found this move to be the most exciting one for me yet:) Even though moving is time-consuming, sweaty and at times scary (I usually have at least one  anxiety attack per hour-it usually occurs while moving large objects such as dressers or TVs, and usually involves me letting go of the object, therefore causing the object to put all of its weight on Shawn. He never says anything, but I know I put him through some major pain during this move-love really is powerful ain't it?)
I also love that even in the middle of the moving madness, I managed to have a romantic-comedy moment where I really realized that I was moving into my first house with my husband. So a moment that I had watched for years, and just realized I was living it!:)

So, our goal is to have everything moved in by this weekend and be able to enjoy the long weekend unpacking our home. So far, we are in good shape (even though its taken some work, and some anxiety attacks from myself).

I should have taken pictures though of Lydia while we were moving. She is such a big help:) She loves to jump inside of things as we move them- desk frames, dressers:) She has already broken two items, and today I had to look at her ever so lovingly as she played with the string on the ironing board I was moving. I am very excited for her to have a new home with windows!

I am slightly sentimental about leaving our first apartment together:) We have many good memories-our "Just Married" sign on the door, the days when I had like 5 snow days in a row and did nothing but watch Lifetime movies and clean my closet, endless movie and 48 hours Mystery nights- but I am sure all good and better thing are to come in our new home, our new life, our next chapter:)

"Everyday is a journey, and the journey itself is home."

A Cheesy Chicken Recipe

So, I got this recipe from my Mom's best friend, Pam. It is fast, easy and delicious!

Its not necessarily healthy, but would be okay with some green beans/salad. Shawn and I enjoyed it!

Chicken Divane

Get:
4 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
1 pkg chopped broccoli
1 cup cheese (I added much more than this, being a cheese lover)
1/2 cup mayo (I did Light Mayo and it was fine)
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1/2 tsp lemon juice
A little bit of milk (for a creamier casserole)

Mix together the cheese, mayo, soup, milk and lemon juice. Then, in a pan sprayed with cooking spray, layer the broccoli, chicken, sauce and cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Painting, along with some hair pulling (literally)

So, I am still experiencing technical difficulties with uploading vacation pictures (just because I have an online blog doesn't mean I claim to know anything about technology:), so maybe by the time we go on our next vacation, they will be up:)


Anyways, Friday the 10th was Shawn's Birthday! We celebrated in a way that Shawn has been sooo ready for-eating Chicken Nuggets from McDonalds, then going to work right away on the house:)

He got a tool set for his birthday-the perfect gift for a man ready to flip a house!

 The Big 28!!! Wait until he is 30-then he is reeeallly in trouble!

So, we started this painting adventure with our dining room. This room before was crimson red, which is an awesome color to have to paint over.

 Here we go....

To all you painters out there-two words for ya- Frog Tape. Its the best thing in the world. We went through three rolls of this throughout this whole painting process.

So we went over that night, with the goal of painting our dining room, kitchen and bedroom. By 10:00 Friday night this is what we had accomplished:

Yeah. We learned real quick not be to be too much of a perfectionist with the painting. Or at least Shawn did. My artistic ability comes into play when painting, I don't know a good wall from a bad wall.
I started truly considering how much of our house we wanting to paint ourselves at this point.

But, the next morning we started again:
Here is the beginning of our bedroom-

 Painting the bathroom...So excited about having a new bathtub installed!!! I plan on spending many a night there.

Our dining room finished! Yes the chandelier is weird-there are even monkeys and pineapples on it-Shawn likes it, but it may be a little too eclectic for me. However, we managed to bash our heads on it a thousand times as we painted-we really need to move our table in apparently.  

The kitchen. No more fruit bowl wallpaper-Another thing we really didn't mind, but felt compelled to tear down and change right away. 

We are super pleased with our colors-Sage Green and Cup of Cocoa-only five trips to the Home Depot! 

 And the tub is finished!

Our bedroom completed 

The biggest change for sure is the downstairs bath. Before, it had this marble design wallpaper:

Shawn liked it..me not so much. I won. It came down-adding about 4 hours to our worktime:)

But now it looks great!! With some wall decor, it will be much more modern.

 So, I would say our first house project was a success. We learned a lot about painting, enough to know we don't want to do it again for a while...but are very happy with the results.

I also learned how thrifty my husband is. The baseboards in our house are pretty beat up. Me, I would have gone out any bought new right away. However, Shawn took them off, stained them and now they look awesome! That saved us money...one of the many reasons why I love him:)

A baseboard before:

A baseboard after:

So, we have been busy busy busy with house stuff. But the first project is checked off!

Along with house stuff, I have been busy busy with summer school. At this point, it takes about as much planning as it does during the school year! But, the kids have been great. It is kind of neat to meet kids that I do not know through Pinckney. I have kids that have challenges that I have not worked with before, so its challenging and continues to be a good experience for me as a teacher.

So far, I have found that kids love to dance, will do about anything for food and while Lego's are a wonderful toy they can cause issues. I am now missing a chunk of my hair after asking a child to pick up his Legos....life is tough huh? Luckily he only got a few strands on top (you really can't notice it at all-THANK GOD), but this certainly is a first.

For those of you who don't know, getting beat up is naturally part of my job. I have been hit with a whiteboard, bit, slapped, head butted etc. It used to bother me, now it just takes me back a bit, but doesn't get to me. What mattered most to me was the fact that the next day the same little guy who have me a haircut was able to make it through the morning with only hitting once (small victories huh?) I also figured out that he likes Goldfish. Do I use it as bribery? Absolutely. And I will in the future:) 

 So, I imagine this week will be a lot more summer school and a lot more house projects...busy busy busy!

5 things I am also loving about summer:

1. Longer daylight hours-I love not feeling like I need to go to bed at 5

2. Orangeleaf frozen yogurt-cake batter with hot fudge and sprinkles! Its my Saturday night go to

3. Three day weekends

4. Having time to grocery shop, plan meals, play with the cat etc...instead of worrying so much about work!

5. Getting the house ready for move-in-our first home is almost here!!!

Summer Time!

Hello!

Shawn and I are back from vacation in Hilton Head with my Dads family-we had a great time:) I am hoping to get some pictures uploaded from the trip soon!

Now that we are back in Kansas, we have started to get back into the summer routine. We have a very busy summer ahead of us! The biggest thing is that we are moving into our first home this summer! We have already started packing for it. This last weekend, we went through all of our clothes. I of course went through all of my clothes, shoes and purses. I donated two bags of shoes ALONE to Goodwill:) It felt good to get rid of stuff though-I love getting rid of stuff, it just makes you feel better (and it justifies buying new-haha:))

So, summer is already taking off and while its going to be busy, its going to be a great one. I hope to get a lot done this summer, but also take some time to do some things that we have not had time for in the past. I also want to get on track with a few things-especially when it comes to being healthier. Its been a busy, exciting by stressful past year with planning a wedding, finishing school, starting teaching and being newlyweds, and although we have loved it, we still want to welcome more and more calm and settlement into our lives:) I am hoping this summer is that start of all that!

In teaching, we are told that helping our students set goals work towards them is one of the most effective ways to teach them. I write goals for my students all of the time, so I need to write some for myself for this summer! I won't write them like IEP goals (for any of you who have read an IEP goal, it usually takes three or four times reading it to understand them:)), but I do have some that I want to set for myself. These are goals that will be ongoing beyond summer, but are things I really want to get going this summer:

Start becoming a true homemaker
For years I have moved from place to place each year, and while I have lived in some great places with some great roommates, I am very excited at the prospect of settling into one place for several years. I really want to take my time and make it a clean, organized and welcoming home. I also want to continue to learn how to cook:) Over the years, while I still think that eating out is fabulous (and would consider it a favorable hobby) I have decided that cooking is so much more healthier than eating out. So, I am going to try and make one new recipe a week- I am going to make family recipes, recipes of things I find, and try to make as much healthier things as possible. I usually try something new over the weekend, so I have a few hours to burn it, make it again, and go get pizza if all else fails:)

Get Healthy
Over the past few years, I think I have underestimated the power of prioritizing health. Even though I don't consider myself an unhealthy person, I need to make both eating healthy and exercising a priority. I am going to start by giving up pop and eating more fruits and veggies. Yep, that's right you heard me-no more pop, starting today. I have decided I can have one when we go out to eat once a week, or when we go out for drinks (since I usually want a Coke over an alcoholic beverage anyways-I know weird right?) Its gonna suck, but I need to do it. There is just no need for that junk in my body!

Plan for the school year
Individuals who believe teachers have the summer off are frankly stupid. Maybe some teachers are able to abandon their rooms in May and not think about them until August, must be nice. I am going to be teaching summer school this summer and working in my room, both on planning for next year and moving rooms (which I am excited about-my room now is the size of a fitting room at Target...and my new room has Windows and a projector!!! yeah)

Read, read, read and read some more
I have always loved to read, but sometimes its just much easier to watch that episode of The Housewives of Orange County that I have already seen eight times:) Not that I am going to give up my lovely TV, but I am going to try and read as much stuff this summer-fiction, non-fiction, classics, books for work, self-help books (yes I do love to read these-haha clearly I need a lot of help:)).
Not to mention, my goal to read is now going to be even easier now that I have a Nook Color:)) That's right-I start reading more once they make it electronic:)

Really I just want to have a great summer-doesn't everyone? I am so excited about things coming up for Shawn and I - and hopefully I stop to take pictures and document it-you only have your first home once:)

Have a great first week of summer everyone!!:)

"I used to be someone who couldn't wait for the next thing to happen. I would count the days until the next big event, whatever it was, ignoring the now. Lately I never count the days, because each day is so full and precious. That's one way I've truly changed."
-Bethenny Frankel (A Place of Yes)