DIY Painted Canvas for Playroom

Leave it to Pinterest to make me addicted to crafting.

That being said, I saw a canvas project a while back on Pinterest and I knew I wanted to make something similar for my play room. I also knew that I wanted to use it on my Family Photo Gallery Wall that I was planning, so I had to select the appropriate size canvas for my project.

I ended up selecting a white 24 x 36" canvas from Michaels and I spray painted it BLACK. I did a few coats to make sure it was fully covered, and once it was completely dry I sanded it down with a sheet of sand paper to give it a rustic look. Here's what it looked like after sanding.

For the letters, I ordered some foam stamps online because I couldn't find them in a store ANYWHERE, and I used white acrylic paint.  

I wanted a "worn" look for the letters, so I dabbed them in the paint and then blotted them on a paper towel before stamping them on the canvas. I planned my words out in advance, but I didn't put much thought into the spacing. I just kinda rolled with it as I went along.

Here's the final result. I like the imperfections...they add character ;)

This project was relatively easy and ended up being PERFECT for my Gallery Frame Wall! I tried to think of phrases that would mean something to Briggs as he grows, and I love how it turned out. You'll see the Family Photo Gallery Wall in completion in a post coming soon :)



Kitchen Remodel

I am THRILLED about this long-awaited post! Ever since we bought our house nearly 4 years ago, I have hoped and dreamed of having an updated kitchen. Not a day went by that I didn't complain about my kitchen. I always told Blake I would cook more if I had a kitchen worthy of cooking in ;)  Guess I have no excuses now!

We started fixing up our kitchen piece by piece. First we replaced the nasty vinyl floors, then eventually we replaced all of the appliances. Finally we demolished and replaced the awful brown tile counter tops with BROWN grout and we also refaced all of the cabinets. Oh my, what a difference it makes. Take a look!

BEFORE

Brown tile counters & backsplash, brown grout, green walls, and ancient cabinets.
I used to have to VACUUM my countertops to get them even remotely clean. Gross.

Another view. Excuse the mess.

We're not finished with the BEFORE pictures yet. Awful sink. Even more awful backsplash.

DEMOLITION!!!!

And...drumroll please...

AFTER

Granite countertops (Santa Cecilia), Shaker Style cabinets, Tumbled Travertine backsplash, and a fresh coat of paint (Sherwin Williams -- Universal Khaki)

New sink and fixtures

LOVE my new kitchen!

So there you have it. My beautiful cook-worthy kitchen! Our contractor was a friend of a friend and he and his guys were fantastic. Let me know if you need his number. You can find some of his info here.

That's all for now! Stay tuned for pics from some DIY projects I've been working on. Come over and see my new kitchen. I'll cook for you ;)

8 Month Update

Tomorrow is Super Bowl Sunday and Briggs will be 8 months old. I know everybody says they can't believe how fast time flies...but I LITERALLY cannot believe it has already been 8 months since this child kicked his way into the world. These have been the most magical 8 months of my life.

At 8 months Briggs is:

• crawling ALL over the house. Put him on the floor and he's gone.
• pulling himself up to standing whenever/wherever possible.
• has 6, count them, SIX teeth! Two on bottom and 4 on top. He needs braces.
• weighs in at a whopping 15lbs 12oz. His weight keeps fluctuating in the 15lb range...we're working on packing on some extra pounds for my little guy!
• and is eating solid foods (homemade by ME) twice a day, in addition to his breastmilk (Yes, I'm still nursing! 8 months strong).

He has been working on his mobility for a while now, but about a week ago he really started moving. At first he mastered what we coined "the dead leg crawl" where he would use his right knee and his left foot to maneuver around the house. It was like a half regular/ half bear crawl. Hilarious. Now he just crawls on his knees, but he's getting really close to figuring out a full-on bear crawl. He'll be walking before we know it.

Here's my favorite portrait from his pictures we had done at 7 months:

Courtesy of Mary Little Photography

Our sleep habits have taken a plunge lately. For a while there he was doing great, but over the past few weeks we've had a serious regression. He cries when I put him down (which he never used to do) and then he'll wake up screaming every few hours. He has never been the greatest sleeper, and by that I mean he has always woken up at least once a night to nurse. but these past few nights have been worse than usual and it's really taking it's toll on this momma. Whew, I'm exhausted! It's time to call in the reinforcements...FERBER! We'll be refreshing ourselves on Ferber's techniques over the next couple of days. I miss the days of laying my smiley baby down in his crib and watching him on the monitor laugh and babble until he falls asleep. Soon enough I will have that back. I just keep reminding myself that this is only a phase. It will pass!

Other than that, we've been making some BIG CHANGES in the Searcy household! After 4 years of living in this house and dealing with a hideous, but functional kitchen, we have finally started updating it and bringing it into this decade! Out with the old brown tile countertops, brown tile backsplash, and brown grout...in with the new granite counter tops, tile backsplash, and re-faced cabinets! WOOO!! It's looking beautiful. I will do a whole kitchen remodel post as soon as it's done!

I am taking on a few DIY craft projects myself and I look forward to blogging about them. One thing I am most excited about is the Gallery Frame Wall I'm going to be doing. I purchased several frames to house our most recent Mary Little Photography gems and I can't wait to get the finished product up on the wall! Look for that post in the next few weeks :)

Here is a glimpse of some of our favorites from the photo shoot:

Courtesy of Mary Little Photography

my new favorite past-time

And so it begins...a new internet obsession for me (which is probably the LAST thing I need). Alas, I have decided that I want to be an expert "mommy" blogger because, let's face it, facebook and pinterest don't take up enough of my precious spare time (insert sarcasm font). I visit countless blogs and websites on a daily basis and admire the work that goes into them, but I never thought I'd have the will-power or commitment necessary to maintain a juicy, read-worthy blog...BUT it's 2012 and it's sort of still a New Year and I decided that this year I'm going to stop procrastinating on things I say I'd like to do, and instead I'm going to actually DO them. Like, for real. So all those "To Do" lists I've got saved in my iPhone are going to start getting did. Stay tuned for pinterest projects galore!

First things first, this will be a blog about anything and everything, because I am WAY too A.D.D. to focus on just one thing. I will be talking about everything from babies, pregnancy, and infertility, to wearing stretchy pants for a living (lululemon duh), running marathons, and being obsessed with (but rarely completing) DIY projects. Things are going to start changing around here! Not only am I going to become an expert blogger, but I'm also going to become a professional DIYer, Suzy Homemaker, and Party Planner Extraordinaire...all while striving to be the best and hottest mom on the block (and blogging about it)! That sounds easy enough right?

So now I leave you with a picture of my pride and joy as I contemplate my next blog topic/craft project/party theme. Ahhhh I have too many thoughts swirling in my head!




Briggs Sterling Searcy


Let the blogging commence!