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Friday, October 31, 2014

BEST OF THE NEST LINK PARTY {OCTOBER}

Friday, October 31, 2014

BEST OF THE NEST LINK PARTY {OCTOBER}

Happy Friday, everyone!  Thanks for all of your sweet comments and prayers for my Father in Law and our family.  This week has been a crazy roller coaster ride but he was doing SO much better yesterday, really for the first time.  We're hoping to get the vent removed today and move out of the ICU asap!  All of the notes and calls and texts to check on us have been much appreciated. Since it's the last Friday of the month, we're back with our best project of the month, and we want to see what you've been working on, too! I cannot quit eating these  Chocolate Covered Coconut Bon Bons .  Someone send help.  Especially when they're frozen...thawed just enough to bite into...  YUM!  Get a jump on your holiday to-do list and make some now, and they'll be all ready for parties or to pass out to guests for favors when the time comes.  If you still have any left by then.  ;) ...
Wednesday, October 29, 2014

GIRL'S ROOM REFRESH DESIGN PLANS

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

GIRL'S ROOM REFRESH DESIGN PLANS

I can't believe that it's been 3 years since my daughter's room got a makeover.  Even when it was "finished," I knew I wasn't happy with the bed and had plans to change it out at some point. Fast forward three years, and many other projects jumped in line ahead of that one.  However, her room got pushed to the front burner again recently when we decided to move her from a twin to a full bed.  So, with the need for a new headboard and bedding, I decided to take the opportunity to freshen up this entire side of the room. ...
Friday, October 24, 2014

WANT TO PLAY KITCHEN DESIGNER? LET'S HELP A GIRL OUT!

Friday, October 24, 2014

WANT TO PLAY KITCHEN DESIGNER? LET'S HELP A GIRL OUT!

A few weeks ago I shared my plans for a little mini-makeover in my kitchen.  With our big trip wrapping up, I'm ready to start tackling that project next week.  It's one of those projects that I dread doing (painting the cabinets), but can't wait for the finished product!  I'm ready to see in real life what I'm only seeing in my head right now. Earlier this week I received a text from a friend (and my daughter's awesome Sunday School teacher!) who is moving to a different house.  She wanted my opinion on some changes in her kitchen, and I thought it would be fun to share here and get thoughts from you all as well.  Many heads are better than one, right? She texted me some quick photos of the space, and here are the plans that she is considering: ...
Wednesday, October 22, 2014

PRETTY LONDON DOORWAYS

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

PRETTY LONDON DOORWAYS

Hello friends!  We have returned home safely and are trying to get back into the swing of things.  Still waking in the middle of the night and not being able to return to sleep, but we'll get there! Our trip was better than we could have imagined, truly a once in a lifetime experience.  Staying in the country with our friends made it an entirely different experience than staying in the city would have been, and we absolutely loved it.  I have SO much to share with you from our trip, I think it will be necessary to break it down into several posts. As we walked around all of the places we visited, I couldn't help but notice pretty doors everywhere.  Many were painted bold colors, or had architectural details that my eye was drawn to, or maybe just looked inviting with a few pots of colorful flowers to frame them.  Not all were especially fancy, but had just enough details to make them special.  Here were my favorites, and hopefully I've remembered their correct location...
Monday, October 20, 2014

DIY AGATE EMBELLISHED MIRRORED BOX

Monday, October 20, 2014

DIY AGATE EMBELLISHED MIRRORED BOX

We're headed home from London today, and only crying just a little.  ;)  Although it was wonderful, we're ready to be back with our kiddos! During our recent trip to Poland, we visited the  Wieliczka   Salt Mine (SO amazing, I'm working on the photos to share with you!) and I purchased one little souvenir there, an agate slice.  Agates are extremely popular in design right now, and I was happy to find a pretty one as a memento. Wanting to display the one I bought in a special way, I thought of all of the agate boxes that I've seen from retailers and other bloggers and decided it would be a perfect project for my pretty little souvenir.  I planned to find a small clear acrylic box to use, but came across a little mirrored box at TJ Maxx and decided to use it instead.   ...
Wednesday, October 15, 2014

HOME DEPOT STYLE CHALLENGE - TODAY'S THE DAY!!

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

HOME DEPOT STYLE CHALLENGE - TODAY'S THE DAY!!

It's finally here!  My project is live on the Home Depot's Apron Blog today.  My husband and I are roaming around London, but I am so happy to share my project with you.  I was assigned "Mantel" to decorate and sent a variety of mystery items to incorporate into my design. Here's a little preview, but you'll have to click over to see the full reveal.  Along with a ridiculous picture of me. ...
Monday, October 13, 2014

THE PASSPORT IS PACKED...

Monday, October 13, 2014

THE PASSPORT IS PACKED...

Hey guys!  Thanks so much for all of your input last Friday on my painting the pantry doors in the kitchen.   I really thought that I would paint the doors black, but I think those of you who voted white might have won me over.  I like the idea of the island being the stand-out, and the doors not competing with the fridge right next to them.  I might just try a little something special with the white doors, though... and if I paint them white while the paint's in the sprayer, I can always paint them black later if I change my mind. Just letting you know that I'll be away from the blog this week.  The last few times I've been away this year I've still had posts scheduled, but even with pre-planning and scheduling posts ahead of time, there is still some real-time maintenance involved with new posts going up. I'm taking a complete break because Ray and I are headed across the pond to London!  We weren't able to properly celebrate our 20th Anniversary this sum...
Sunday, October 12, 2014

CHOCOLATE COVERED COCONUT BON BONS

Sunday, October 12, 2014

CHOCOLATE COVERED COCONUT BON BONS

This post brought to you by Dollar General . All opinions are 100% mine. Did you know that there are less than 75 days until Christmas?  And even fewer before the first holiday parties fire up!  The season will be here before we know it, and it's never too early to start making plans if you'll be entertaining or hosting friends and family in your home. My mother used to make Chocolate Covered Coconut Bon Bons while we were growing up, with a recipe that her mother used to make.  It has been a favorite of mine since I was little, and now my daughter begs for "those things with the chocolate on them" when we mention holiday baking.  They are so easy to make, now she's helping me with the task. More and more, I'm shopping at stores that I can run in and out of quickly to get what I need.  I found just about all of the necessary ingredients for this treat at my local Dollar General.  Their Clover Valley line carries many baking essentials.  I...
Friday, October 10, 2014

MINI KITCHEN MAKEOVER PLANS

Friday, October 10, 2014

MINI KITCHEN MAKEOVER PLANS

When we did a fairly substantial kitchen remodel about 4 years ago, I knew not long after painting the cabinets that I didn't love them and would re-paint them eventually. Now, with the new wall color, the time has come.  Last year when I had the white subway backsplash installed, I knew I'd probably be headed towards white cabinets, so even though the backsplash doesn't look great with the current cabinets, the choice was part of a long term plan. With the scads of kitchen photos I come across, I kept coming back to this photo, the crisp contrast of the black and white wins me over every time.  You can bet I'm hunting for a cheap persian rug to use in the kitchen too. Domino via Burlap and Lace  These kitchens helped sway me toward the black island and white cabinets as well- via via So that's where I'm headed, but here's the reality right now. You can see just how bad the cabinets are now with the new wall color.  I'm SO over t...
Wednesday, October 8, 2014

BANISH FRUIT FLIES

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

BANISH FRUIT FLIES

I'm not sure what brought it on, but we've had an invasion of fruit flies for the past few days.  Maybe the pears I left ripening on the counter... Not many things are more maddening than those things flying in your face, and never quite being able to swat them!  My friend had a similar problem in her home last year, and she finally got rid of them with a simple home remedy. You only need two things that you probably already have - apple cider vinegar and dish soap. Put a small amount of apple cider vinegar (about 1/4 c. or less is plenty) in a small dish, I used a ramekin.  Add a small squirt of dish soap, and swirl it around with your finger.  That's it! Leave it out on your counter overnight and have patience while it works it's magic.  In the morning, your bowl should be full of drowned fruit flies!  The vinegar attracts them and the thick dish soap traps them in the mixture. After about a day, we had over 60 in that bowl (my son counted!).  I dumpe...
Monday, October 6, 2014

SUPER EASY SAVORY RANCH CROCK POT PORK LOIN

Monday, October 6, 2014

SUPER EASY SAVORY RANCH CROCK POT PORK LOIN

Well, that weekend sure did fly by!  Hope you had a good one!  I attended our state Baptist Ministry Wives conference and had a blast catching up with old friends scattered all over our state. Yesterday I made a Sunday lunch that is becoming one of our favorites, and I thought you might like it too.  My friend Denise shared it with me several years ago when we were both rocking babies on Sunday mornings in the nursery.  She shared the original recipe on her blog , but I tweaked it just a little and I'll share my version with you today.   If you have 2 minutes, and a few ingredients that are probably already in your pantry, you're all set! Ingredients: 2-3 lb. pork loin (or pork roast, or pork chops) 1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup 1 can Cream of Chicken Soup 1 packet dry ranch dressing mix 1 can mushrooms (drained if desired) You could totally just use 2 cans of one kind of soup if you prefer one over the other.  I like the mix or just use whatever I have on hand.  ...
Friday, October 3, 2014

BEST OF THE NEST SEPTEMBER FEATURES

Friday, October 3, 2014

BEST OF THE NEST SEPTEMBER FEATURES

You all had some really fantastic projects for us to look through this month!  Be sure to check out the other hostesses for their features as well.  Pam from  Simple Details  // Lisa from  Shine Your Light  // Kris from  Driven by Decor   **PLEASE REMEMBER...if you'd like to pin any of these images, click the link and pin from the original source.  Thanks!** How could I not love this DIY vintage style poster from Beth at designPOST Interiors ?  The color, the subject matter, the frame, the styling around it... it's all so good! Tracy from Right Up My Alley shared her family's new command center that she added to their kitchen.  I don't know about you, but we've been back in school for about 6 weeks and we could definitely use some organization like that around here! Mary from At Home on the Bay showed us how to create this fabulous wood patterned lampshade with a stencil and paint.  I think it's pretty convincing! Would you belie...