Can you tell their happy!?
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Bean Bag Chair
I don't know about your kids, but my children have about 1500 stuffed animals. Don't get me wrong, they love them and play with them daily, more Savannah than Caleb, but still, they get daily play. Well, over the years, the animals have piled up, and into a basket which is now piling up and over the sides. So, I had some scrap fabric that I absolutely hate for clothing.
I then cut 6 equal sides. I first started by pinning each side to the corresponding piece of fabric and then just sewed it all together! It was time consuming, but TAKE YOUR TIME!! I rushed and had to rip out several stitches because I sewed the wrong pieces together. At the last side I stitched on a zipper. After about two hours of sewing and resewing, I finally finished it and stuffed it full of all the animals! They use it now just as they would a bean bag chair!
Saturday, January 11, 2014
Attack of "Cluster-Phobia"
I am almost 29 weeks pregnant, and my nesting is kicking in, and lets just say I am getting a little ummm... cluster-phobic. Yes, I made that up. I look around and all I can think of is how I can organize and clean up. I have spent countless hours over the past year on Pinterest, and I think now is a pretty good time to put those Pins to good use! I will post my progress over the next few months on what I have done to become more organized. With that said, I will also post on here, what "pinspires" me, and the blogs that help make it possible!
Downstairs we have a very, very small half bath, and storage is non-existent. We have zero storage, an old mirror, and no rug. I put up some nice picture frames, and made a burlap valance, but that is the only thing I have done to the room. I think these, Floating Shelves would be absolutely perfect. They add space, but don't give the appearance of typical shelves... also our toilet is surrounded by a wall identical to the one in the picture. Now the mirror down there has to go, and I am fond of what these people did with their Mirror redo. I also would like to add some baskets for extra towel storage and for toilet paper that can be neatly and tastefully hidden. These Baskets are a perfect fit for my small bathroom, right under our sink. The only thing left is a nice rag rug, but instead of buying, I will easily make one with some old sheets and t-shirts, just like this one.
In our living room, right in front of our front door, we just have a small cardboard box that I have reused to throw our shoes into, tacky right!? Well, it works, and I don't care! Ideally, I would like to get a small bench to sit on while you take your shoes off, but even a small shelf like structure would work. This reused fruit basket is a perfect, and cheap idea that I could do in just a few hours.
Honestly, our living room isn't really in need of being reorganized, just really needs to be cleaned and refreshed. We have some old curtains, I hate them with a passion, I almost growl at them every time I see them. I would like to get some venetian blinds and turn them into roman shades, just like this tutorial instructs. The curtains are the only thing I would really like to change, but it may end up getting postponed until we have extra cash coming in. With just how much fabric I will need, I know it will get pricey. This room is where I have sort of gotten, dare I say it.... cluster-phobic.
Now, our kitchen is a work in progress, seriously.. I mean I love the size of my kitchen, the function of my kitchen, and how much light it has. But, the floors are from the 70's, they are linoleum and are chipping up. Unfortunately, we cannot afford to replace them, but that doesn't mean we are out of options! We will be painting the subfloors! Now, I know you're probably thinking thats going to look terrible, but honestly, it can be tastefully done. Just like here, here, and here... oh and a full tutorial here on just how to achieve them. Our plan is to paint the floors white, than with an poly-acrylic layer, or several over the top for protection.
After the floors are all done, we will be sanding down and staining the cabinets. I am truly in love with the color Kona, from Rust-oleum. From what I read, redoing the cabinets, is fairly inexpensive, you just need some elbow grease and time. Here is a very thorough tutorial, that also shows you both fails and success.
We are also going to be redoing our countertops, and I know what you're thinking at this point... "how much money is she putting into this kitchen, I thought she said fabric for the curtains were expensive!" Well, not much money actually. Rust-oleum makes a paint specifically for countertops, just in case you have ugly, white and green snowflake patterns on your formica........'eh-hem'. We have actually already bought the paint, which is a light gray, we just need to wait for a nice warm day to open up a window and actually do the painting. With me being pregnant, it's also ideal that I not be here, and let Jordan do it all. Again, here is another tutorial, to give you an idea what we are going to do. A few other organizational ideas I have, are wire baskets such as egg baskets, lots of wooden utensils and cutting boards, and cast iron. Oh, how I love cast iron. I also have some wooden bowls that my grandpa hand made and stained, and I would like to display them all on an open shelf somewhere as a focal point of the kitchen/eat in dining room. That should basically do it for the kitchen, lots of hard work, but not a lot of money put into it.
I think, that should do it for now. The bathroom upstairs, organizing my room, and reorganizing Savannah's room into "the girls" room will be my next adventures, but I am the type of person to overwhelm myself with projects, and then I get caught up in doing so many that I don't fully finish the entire job. I will make this a "part 1" post of a many part series of how we are catching up with the projects I have listed. I will work on one floor of the house at a time and work our way up! Once they are all done, I will start a new organizational list. Wish me luck on my many adventures of thrifting for goods, and starting projects, and I hope that my "pinspiration" also give you "pinspiration"!
Downstairs we have a very, very small half bath, and storage is non-existent. We have zero storage, an old mirror, and no rug. I put up some nice picture frames, and made a burlap valance, but that is the only thing I have done to the room. I think these, Floating Shelves would be absolutely perfect. They add space, but don't give the appearance of typical shelves... also our toilet is surrounded by a wall identical to the one in the picture. Now the mirror down there has to go, and I am fond of what these people did with their Mirror redo. I also would like to add some baskets for extra towel storage and for toilet paper that can be neatly and tastefully hidden. These Baskets are a perfect fit for my small bathroom, right under our sink. The only thing left is a nice rag rug, but instead of buying, I will easily make one with some old sheets and t-shirts, just like this one.
In our living room, right in front of our front door, we just have a small cardboard box that I have reused to throw our shoes into, tacky right!? Well, it works, and I don't care! Ideally, I would like to get a small bench to sit on while you take your shoes off, but even a small shelf like structure would work. This reused fruit basket is a perfect, and cheap idea that I could do in just a few hours.
Honestly, our living room isn't really in need of being reorganized, just really needs to be cleaned and refreshed. We have some old curtains, I hate them with a passion, I almost growl at them every time I see them. I would like to get some venetian blinds and turn them into roman shades, just like this tutorial instructs. The curtains are the only thing I would really like to change, but it may end up getting postponed until we have extra cash coming in. With just how much fabric I will need, I know it will get pricey. This room is where I have sort of gotten, dare I say it.... cluster-phobic.
Now, our kitchen is a work in progress, seriously.. I mean I love the size of my kitchen, the function of my kitchen, and how much light it has. But, the floors are from the 70's, they are linoleum and are chipping up. Unfortunately, we cannot afford to replace them, but that doesn't mean we are out of options! We will be painting the subfloors! Now, I know you're probably thinking thats going to look terrible, but honestly, it can be tastefully done. Just like here, here, and here... oh and a full tutorial here on just how to achieve them. Our plan is to paint the floors white, than with an poly-acrylic layer, or several over the top for protection.
After the floors are all done, we will be sanding down and staining the cabinets. I am truly in love with the color Kona, from Rust-oleum. From what I read, redoing the cabinets, is fairly inexpensive, you just need some elbow grease and time. Here is a very thorough tutorial, that also shows you both fails and success.
We are also going to be redoing our countertops, and I know what you're thinking at this point... "how much money is she putting into this kitchen, I thought she said fabric for the curtains were expensive!" Well, not much money actually. Rust-oleum makes a paint specifically for countertops, just in case you have ugly, white and green snowflake patterns on your formica........'eh-hem'. We have actually already bought the paint, which is a light gray, we just need to wait for a nice warm day to open up a window and actually do the painting. With me being pregnant, it's also ideal that I not be here, and let Jordan do it all. Again, here is another tutorial, to give you an idea what we are going to do. A few other organizational ideas I have, are wire baskets such as egg baskets, lots of wooden utensils and cutting boards, and cast iron. Oh, how I love cast iron. I also have some wooden bowls that my grandpa hand made and stained, and I would like to display them all on an open shelf somewhere as a focal point of the kitchen/eat in dining room. That should basically do it for the kitchen, lots of hard work, but not a lot of money put into it.
I think, that should do it for now. The bathroom upstairs, organizing my room, and reorganizing Savannah's room into "the girls" room will be my next adventures, but I am the type of person to overwhelm myself with projects, and then I get caught up in doing so many that I don't fully finish the entire job. I will make this a "part 1" post of a many part series of how we are catching up with the projects I have listed. I will work on one floor of the house at a time and work our way up! Once they are all done, I will start a new organizational list. Wish me luck on my many adventures of thrifting for goods, and starting projects, and I hope that my "pinspiration" also give you "pinspiration"!
Saturday, January 4, 2014
Ticking Time Eggs
Well, it's unbearably cold out this week and will continue to be for the next week as well. We are supposed to get some high winds, along with a snow storm, so it's supposed to be -30 wind chill on Tuesday, and close to that Monday and Wednesday. So with that said, we have been doing a lot of stuff inside. It's about time to stock up on things in the kitchen again too, but that's another post!
Caleb has been doing his routine school work that we usually do, but instead of reading a book about telling time, we made a game! 
I used old Easter eggs from last year that I know I can just easily replace this year!
I took the top piece and drew on a face of a clock, with a specific time, and on the bottom piece I wrote the time. You then unsnap all of them and mix them all up! He had to find the matching pieces and put them all together! He loved this game, and it only took him about 15-20 minutes to match all these eggs. It was a great way for him to learn to tell time, and he didn't even realize he was doing homework!
Thursday, November 28, 2013
Thanksgiving Popcorn
- Dried corn, specifically for popcorn
- Bowl
- Paper towels
- Lots of strong hands
Since it's just Caleb, Savannah and I, we only really needed one big bowl to share. We each had an ear of corn and just started peeling the corn back against the grain and it really just falls off.
After removing all the seeds removed, all you have left to do is to transfer to a jar or container to store until use!
The kids really had a great time and it was just enough time between basting the turkey!
I hope you all enjoy your popcorn as much as we did!
Happy Thanksgiving,
The Websters
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Whittle and Wool Collective
So, it's been a few months since we have started a collective, but we really haven't publicized it very much, mainly due to lack of time... and maybe a little fear. We have had two craft shows where we had the opportunity to sell and promote our products. One was a total bust, it was outside and it was cold and rainy and windy...just yuck! The second, we did amazing! We almost sold out on all our products!!! I have to say, we are super excited to finally have a little seed money and expand on our products.
We will have another show on December 7th and I honestly cannot wait!
Here is the link to our Collective page, just in case you want to stop by and take a look at what we offer. Also, add our collective page to your list of regular blogs you follow and check back often to see whats new!
Whittle and Wool Collective
We will have another show on December 7th and I honestly cannot wait!
Here is the link to our Collective page, just in case you want to stop by and take a look at what we offer. Also, add our collective page to your list of regular blogs you follow and check back often to see whats new!
Whittle and Wool Collective
Monday, November 25, 2013
First Colds of the Season
Well, it was inevitable, the temperature has dropped here in New York, and winter is in full swing it seems! Which in a household of kids, and a husband who goes to college, germs are everywhere! We regularly do not do the flu shot, as will be the same this year, for a number of reasons which I will not get into today.
Yesterday was a not so busy day, but we did run a few errands. As soon as we got home savannah cuddled up on daddies lap and fell asleep, that was around 7pm, so we figured she would be out for the night.... NOPE! She woke up around 830 and with a fever of 101.5. Not super high, but high enough for me to have to take some extra precautions. She drank water constantly, and I rubbed peppermint oil on her feet. I didn't want to break the fever, I just wanted to control it. She slept with me and around 4 am she was up and happy as could be, didn't feel hot anymore at all. We ran a few errands throughout the next day, not a lot but we were gone a few hours, and when we got home she felt hot again, but it now also followed with a horrible cough and congestion. It was my fault really, I should have kept her in bed and called it quits with running anywhere. So, when we got home it was hot tea, spoonfuls of honey, and homemade honey and ginger lemon drops which are to help suppress cough and heal any soreness in her throat... Plus they taste great! I tried plugging in her humidifier but long story short... It's broken. So I rubbed eucalyptus oil on her chest and feet, and Vicks on her chest as well. Let's see what tomorrow brings! Just praying over her, and believing that god can heal even if it's just a cold!
Monday, November 18, 2013
Time In the Kitchen
Lately, I have spent a lot, and I mean a lot of time in the kitchen.
It may be an area where I can cook; it has a sink, a fridge, a stove and an oven.....sure, but it's more than that. It's a space where I can create, not only food for my family, but memories WITH my family.
We have a table in our kitchen where Caleb can do his school work, and savannah can create new projects or color. Today her project of choice was salt dough with cookie cutters!
For me, it isn't a chore to cook, or to create projects to keep the kids busy, or to even homeschool. I find joy in taking the time out for my family to make sure their needs are met. My kitchen really gives me the opportunity to be able to watch my children, help them to learn and to expand their creativity, all while I make delicious meals!
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