My home has an open floor plan, and the front door enters directly into the living room and a small foyer. Most of the first floor of my house is carpeted (to my chagrin), with only a 6-foot by 4-foot patch of linoleum by the front door foyer to protect the beige carpeting from dirty shoes and boots. Which means that when my family of four enters the home together, we all try to fit ourselves onto that small 24-square-foot patch of foyer space to take off our shoes before the mud, dirt, etc., finds its way to the carpeting. The area by our front door serves as a "mudroom" of Continue reading...
Baking Bread
I’ve long thought about buying a bread machine, but held off, thinking that the small appliance would become a short-lived fad, only to take up the limited space in my cabinets. But, I am happy to say that now that I have purchased my bread maker, the Zojirushi 1-Pound-Loaf Programmable Mini Breadmaker from Amazon.com, the appliance has a permanent place on my kitchen counter. I like the appliance’s mini profile, that the machine is so easy to program (most times, I just press “start”) and that its parts – like the baking pan and the kneading blade – are so easy to clean. Easy to Use I Continue reading...
Crafty Wine-Glass Tags
I love wine glass charms -- they add a little whimsy to a party or a moms' night out, and they make it so much easier to distinguish whose glass is whose (especially after a few glasses have been poured and enjoyed). But, the charms can be pricey -- "Ladies Night Wine Class Charms" from Wine Enthusiast sell for $24.95 -- plus, it can be difficult to find charms I like. So, when I saw some cute and simple charms in the jewelry section at my local craft store at the low price of $2.50 for 6, I scooped them up. I also then bought some earring hoops/findings (with rhinestone accents) for $3 Continue reading...
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Is An Open Floor Plan Home for You?
Photo courtesy of https://depositphotos.com/stock-photography.html When I purchased my family’s home about 9 years ago, I had no idea about would make for a good family home. It’s not until I had kids (twins) a few months after into moving into our house, did I begin to recognize what home features a mom truly appreciates in a house. For one, I discovered that my home’s open floor plan can be ideal for raising a family. My kitchen looks out into the family room, which made it easy for me to keep an eye on my tots as I cooked in the kitchen. The open floor is also great when we have Continue reading...
Crafting an Easter Garden Flag for Less Than $3
I am always astonished at how much it costs to purchase small decorative garden flags -- most cost at least $10. So recently, I've taken to making my own garden flags. I don't even have to travel to a local craft store to get the fabric -- I've been purchasing fabric for my garden flags from my local Walmart, which has a fabric section. Most recently, I made a leprechaun garden flag. (The fabric from that flag came from Joann.com.) But now that Easter is coming up, I decided to replace that one with one for the Easter upcoming holiday. So, I went to Walmart and found a cute Easter Bunny Continue reading...
Making Home Cleaning Easy
I have friends coming over for dinner tomorrow night, so that means between today and tomorrow, I have massive amounts of cleaning to do. Not only do I have to scrub the kitchen floors and clean the kitchen counters, but I have to tidy up the downstairs bathroom (floors, counter and toilet), but I also have to vacuum the entire main floor of our home. (Sadly, we have wall-to wall carpeting.) On top of that, I have lots of decluttering to do. My kids love to read, play and draw in the living, kitchen and family rooms, so there are books, pencils, crayons and toys scattered everywhere. Continue reading...
Crafting a Flag for the Garden
With St. Patrick's Day coming up, I wanted to hang a St.Patrick's Day-themed flag in my garden. But I am always surprised at how much those tiny garden flags cost. For instance, a Leprehaun hat garden flag runs about $12 at Amazon.com. So, using the leftover fabric from the leprechaun window valences that I sewed, I created a St. Patrick's day garden flag for my garden this morning. First, I pinned and sewed about .25-inch seams on each side and on the botton of the flag so I wouldn't have any frayed edges. Then, I pinned a two-inch seam on the top of the flag and sewed that, to create Continue reading...
Happy Birthday Girl Scouts!
I am a Girl Scout Mom. My daughters are both Brownies, and I co-lead their Brownie troop with a friend and neighbor. We’ve been Girl Scouting together for almost four years now, so today I’d like to take the time to wish Girl Scouts a happy 100th birthday! Girl Scouts was founded 100 years ago today in 1912 when Juliette Gordon Low founded the first ever Girl Scout troop (of 18 girls) in Savannah, Ga. There are many reasons to like Girl Scouts, such as how the organization fosters self-confidence and community among young girls. Over the years, these are the reasons why I appreciate my Continue reading...
Sewing a Handmade St. Patrick’s Day Curtain Valence
Now that the winter holiday season and Valentine's Day have past, my kids are going through holiday withdrawal. Our once seasonally decorated home is now lacking in fun holiday decor. So, to remedy the situation, I made some leprechaun valences today for St. Patrick's Day, using some cute leprechaun fabric I found at Joanna Fabric and Craft stores. Sewing the valances only took a few minutes, and they definitely add some holiday flair to the kids' bathroom and to our downstairs bathroom off our family room. The below YouTube video offers a great tutorial on how to sew Continue reading...