Vintage Revivals Epic Room Makeover Entry!

This lazy prego is finally working on a post that could lead to an amazing reward! I follow a blog you all should too (notice it's linked over to your right): Vintage Revivals! And. . . Mandi is the bomb! She's inspiring and frugal and keeps her family in mind while she's become a blogging sensation. She has now started a contest for an Epic Makeover Giveaway! I WANT HER IN IOWA! Luckily, it's in June so she'll get. . . 

AN IOWA SUMMER

AND NOT AN IOWA WINTER!

The room I want redone is what we call "the purple room". It's not the guest room, anyone's bedroom and has not been touched since we moved in last summer. So, it remains the room it was when we moved in: someone else's! I want it to be the PLAYROOM! (All of you who will be voting are thinking "OMG, a playroom!" I know). We are expecting our first bundle of joy in October. 

Yes, we're planning way ahead BUT. . . we host lots of our family functions and have a niece and nephew that would love more entertainment and play space while they are here (especially while Baby Decker takes time and attention). So. . . here it is:

The beadbaord adds a charm I love but this needs to be a bit more contemporary and funky while remaining gender neutral so all are comfortable playing inside. Take out the bed and picture a craft table, storage, and PLEASE picture some creative rehab for these hideous mirrored closet doors. There also must be a place for a TV and room for the bassinet to stay from time to time. We spend lots of time in our family room and would love to have a quiet space to put baby to sleep when the need arises (and the others aren't playing).

One thing Mandi is great at is taking old crap and making it new again. To furnish this playroom, I've got lots of thrift store finds and incomplete projects as well as some really nice stuff that we just don't have the same use for any longer. (Her mouth is watering as she reads this). So, to up my offer and give her an added incentive to choose my room for this amazing opportunity at an epic makeover and grown-up sleepover, check out this smorgasbord:

 A: An old dresser that I would love to see remain for storing crayons, coloring books, and whatever other small crap I can keep out of sight but readily available. ($30)

B: This is really cool. It was an antique desk I got for $10. I asked my hubby to increase its height and add shelves and doors to be used as a changing table. Well, it never got done (but really close, Honey) and will now be replaced by an old dresser that fits better in our new yet-to-be-completed nursery.

C: This is the top cabinet to a hutch for which the bottom is unavailable. It could be used for something right? Maybe not, but it's here . . . 

D: Actually, this is a very nice glass top coffee table but we have no use for it in our current place. I thought we could get pretty creative in using it as the base of the kiddie craft table.

E: Another optional piece to give or take-our old nightstand.

Clearly, with all of this lovely unused furniture to use in filling the small space we have to epically transform, we may just have money left over. I know Mandi and I are both pretty fabulously frugal, so there just may be a small amount left to address this drab room next door to the will-be-playroom. Ya think? If not, so be it. 

So, I could play the pregnant card. Oh wait, I did that with the ultrasound pic.

And I could use my cooking and cozy guest suite as bait. Yes, you can check out recipes and my guest room makeover in past posts.

I could also tug at your heartstrings with pics of my adorable dogs whose tails are seen in most of these pics as they're under foot 24/7.

I could play up the fact that I'm an uber fan of Vintage Revivals and read all the present posts and even search posts past when looking for inspiration.

Or, I could give you the honest truth. I LOVE YOUR GUTS MANDI! And I need your help as I take on the nursery in the next few months and my hubby works his heart out on this master reno which will eventually be where our bed is. . . not in my will-be-playroom. I can't transform this myself, so I need his help:

Bring your epic fantasticness and your sister and buy a ticket into Waterloo, Cedar Rapids, or Des Moines. I'll pick you up from any of the above! I promise I'll be agile enough to help out in June. Oh yeah, AND my birthday is in June AND we find out the sex of Baby Decker in June AND you'd love to be around for all the festivities, right?

Voting is now open BRIEFLY. Go to Vintage Revivals and Vote for my entry: #63 The Iowa Playroom Challenge!

Ring on a String

You've heard of this one, right? It's an old wive's tale about how to predict your baby's gender before the technology of a 20-week ultrasound (given you have an agreeable and photogenic baby willing to bare their special parts for the camera at such an early age). Here's how it works:

Take your wedding ring and attach it to a thread. Hold the dangling item over mom to be's belly while she is lying down. If the needle or wedding ring swings in a strong circular motion, you will be having a girl. If it moves in a to and fro motion like a pendulum, you will be having a boy.

What else did we have to do Easter Sunday? :) It was a strong circular motion. . . Just 6 more weeks until science and technologically can confirm or deny!

Deviled Eggs

Who decided to call these things deviled eggs? They are, after all, almost heavenly. In an effort to spice up the deviled eggs we all love so much, I added some extra ingredients this year. We all love some mustard and mayo mixed with the hard-boiled egg yokes, but I wanted them a bit creamier and with added taste with no added crunch (I just hate it when they have pickle relish). So, I added a bit of sour cream to the mix along with some dill weed and celery seed for a little more kick. They were creamy and delicious especially once sprinkled with some paprika for even more color and variety. The best way I've found to fill the fragile whites: my cookie baller! You scoop out the mix and just drop it in place with no handling of the white itself, scraping a spoon with your finger, breaking the white at its thinnest point, etcetera. Little mess, big reward!

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter! :)

Taco Tuesday Casserole: Recipe to Share

Taco Tuesday Casserole

Base:
Crescent Rolls

Filling:
1 lb ground beef
Taco Seasoning
1/3 cup water
1/3 cup chopped onion (more to taste)
1 can refried beans (fat free with half reserved)
1 box (8 oz) cream cheese, softened (reduced fat works great)

Topping:
2 cups shredded taco cheese
1 1/2 cups crushed tortilla chips

Preheat oven to 350.

Line the bottom of your casserole dish (or cake pan) with the crescent rolls and pinch the seams to make one sheet. Pre-bake for 2-3 minutes before adding other ingredients.

In skillet brown hamburger with raw onion mixed in until cooked thoroughly. Drain before adding all other filling ingredients to the skillet while on low heat. Add mixture to the casserole dish and cover with the toppings thoroughly.

Bake fully assembled for 15-20 minutes checking the crust to ensure doneness. As all other ingrediants are already warm, this is just about baking it through for crunchy tortillas, melty cheese and a fully-baked crust.

Serve with sour cream, taco sauce, and your other favorite taco toppings. There's less mess than a taco and they're extremely filling to ensure leftovers!

Nursery Jones

I am jonesing to work on our nursery. Too bad it's another 8 weeks until we find out if I should be going floral and feminine or masculine and marvelous. There are a couple things that are certain. One, I can't go too gender-specific. Why? Our house has two bedrooms up (now that we're renovating our master from two tiny rooms into one sweet suite). As such, we will have both eventual babies share a room until we're all comfortable with them living in the basement bedroom. Two, It's going to have to mesh with the base colors we've already started. "What? You've already started the nursery?" Oh dear. . . this can't actually surprise you.

Here are some photos of the "Before" Nursery. It's not all that before because we've already demoed the horror that was left in this room by the last owners, painted the walls, the door, the trim and put in shelves. Not to mention, my rocking chair project and a cradle already adorns this baby space.

So, oak it is as you can tell. We'll attach the changing table to this dresser. See the firehouse on the dresser? It says "Decker" on it. I love this piece. It's a little bit of Daddy in the room good for boy or girl. The pic-yes, it's Mommy and Daddy kissing just waiting to be surrounded by the baby pics in the frames on either side. The sign: "Dream". What esle above the crib, right? The valances. . . may not stay as is. Wait til you see my inspiration pics to guess the change they may undergo! The green bedding is adorable but I may fem it up a bit for a girl. More clues on that in my inspiration pics too!

The shelves existed in multitudes screwed into the wall: damaged, unclean and ugly from the old owners. We removed them all, spackled the crap out of the wall they once graced, and renewed this portion to adorn this small corner of the room making it useful space. For now, it stores the randomly purchased stuff that may or may not call the nursery home in a few months. The tiny door is an indiciation of the closet we'll be working with. That tells you why there will be a dresser for each baby, huh?

Love my rocker? Me too. A previous post tells you what a steal and project it was. I can't wait to use it! The lamp-$40! The shade may get a little rehab depending on the time and ideas I have in the next few months. The red stool and pillow you see are the start of my intended accent color no matter what the sex. Finally, how much do you love the big brown stripe? I love it a lot! It was not an easy task for Mike to tape off with a 60-year-old house that is not exactly level but the line is straight! It's 16 inches-plenty of space for hanging things at a height which is still out of reach next to the crib for now. This is my "blank slate" Not so blank but not nearly as spicy as the final afters are bound to be in this house! :)

So, this is before I really get to have fun. It will change. I have so many ideas and have found inspirations worth posting. I'll post each project as it takes place. There are so many to look forward to. As a foreshadowing to really get your suspense building, here are some pictures of my inspiration pieces. This DIY diva cannot wait to start personalizing the future home of my first precious prince or princess from God!

No longer available for purchase. . . what's a girl to do?

Hint: It won't look like this if it gets done here but it will be naturally glam!

Doesn't fit in? Tell me about it. There is just ONE feature in this room I want to replicate. You'll see. . .

Notice how many inspiration pieces scream "It's a GIRL!"? Well, we have no idea. I have more ideas for a boy too but they have never been done before. HA! Well, that must be true or why else can't I find any inspiration pictures.

Okay June. . . hurry up and tell me what projects I can start on. Is it a Tucker or a Lily? Any guesses?

Pupdate: Big Brother Big Sister

 Here they are. . .


BIG BROTHER



BIG SISTER



This pair is about to have a rude awakening in their house. They are about to have to SHARE! And not just with each other (which they've gotten better at in the months they've lived together) but, alas, with a human child. Poor kids! Here they were -the center of our lives and they were here FIRST!

We knew it was going to happen. So, we are coaching them for baby's arrival trying to differentiate between baby toys and dog toys, training them not to jump in the pack and play even though Lily physically could, and introducing them to baby blankets and, eventually, even a cd of baby noises to ease their adjustment. Overkill? No way! They're in this family too. Just to make them feel really comfortable and still included, I wanted to give them a visual sign that the baby is their friend so. . .

What do you think? The little one will fit right in, right? :)

12 Weeks: True Confessions of the Pregnant Woman

12 weeks in, I've got to say. . . I need to come clean!

I sometimes forget my prenatal vitamins but rarely forget 12-16 starbursts can make up my "300 extra calories" per day.

I actually enjoy my little bump but I know that will change when I can see it's bigger than my girls.

I am super duper tired but actually enjoy sitting down after dinner for the rest of the night.

I do cry more readily but usually about tv more than real life.

It does bug me when someone says
a) "you don't look pregnant" or
b) "aren't you too young to be pregnant?"
because . . .
a) although this bump is tiny, it is NOT what I looked like 12 weeks ago and b) if I'm old enough to be married which is visibly clear to you, then I am certainly old enough to start a family, right?!?!?

I read more about pregnancy before I was pregnant than I care to indulge in now.

I have been so luckily asymptomatic that I sometimes feel like peeing on another stick just to be sure.

Truest confession so far: I have been so lucky in this pregnancy so far that I can't decide if it makes me want to do it over again all the more or if it makes me fearful that I'll get an extremely difficult pregnancy if I risk it for a second round.

Second truest confession so far: I actually vocalized (and now published) the idea of using my dogs' names as middle names for my children since the children are more likely to outlive the dogs than vice-versa. I was told by the few people I shared the idea with that it was both wrong and creepy. Too bad. I think Tucker and Lily are adorable middle names!

Tucker's Birthday!

Our beautiful boy turned three this year! That's 21 in dog years so he just had to have a party!

No party is complete without cake and ice cream and his presents are shown here too.

There is a little bone etched into the frosting around the three candles too!

He, of course, invited some of his favorite little people. . .

And left his dad to entertain them as soon as he got his doggie bone when opening presents!

By the end, he was all TUCKERed out!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TUCKER!