introducing ...

... our cute little thomas!
he arrived monday, and he's been a little dream baby!
he's a tiny little guy, he weighed in at only 6 lbs 6 oz.

while i snuggle with this little fella, and keep up with my other two crazy kids, i've rounded up quite a few fun guest posts for the blog that will start monday!

have a great weekend!

april fools day ideas ...

can you believe it's april starts tomorrow?
that means it's april fools day!

i've rounded up a few fun april fools day recipes for you to try out on your un-suspecting crowd tomorrow.

check them all out on my post over on the zupas blog today. click here.

what fun/funny things do you have up your sleeves for april fools day?

{image credits: martha stewart, family fun, taste of home}

felt bunting gift bag ...

i made this cute garland / bunting gift bag with some felt, and i thought it turned out cute!
i guess i'm still not over the bunting craze.

i used the pennant die cut from lifestyle crafts to cut out my wool felt, then i just hot glued them on some canvas draw string bags.

this would make a great favor bag for a party, don't ya think?

{image by me}

recycling an old calendar ...

some calendars are really too cute to just throw away after the year is over.
good thing there are a lot of options on what you can do with the pretty images.

i decided to make a mini desk calendar with my old snow and graham calendar using some of my die cuts from lifestyle crafts.

i used my small circle die cut to cut out some of the pretty images from the back of my old calendar.

then, i cut out a bunch of the coupon booklet dies.

then i attached all my pretty circles, and printed out small calendars on label paper.

and, attached the mini-calendar together with twine.

i thought it was a great way to recycle my old calendar, and also make myself a new mini-one!

so, what do you do with your old calendars?

fun kid recipes ...

it is officially spring, but i doesn't quite feel like it where i live.  sunny one day, then snow the next.

my post today on the zupas blog is all about some fun recipes that you can make with your kids to help keep them happy while being stuck indoors.

check them all out here.

{images via family fun magazine}

lucky kids magazine ...

i got a nice surprise with my lucky magazine subscription this month, the new lucky kids magazine!

i was looking forward to checking it out, and i did not disappoint. 
i've subscribed to lucky from the beginning, so it was exciting for me to see the kids edition. 
who doesn't like a magazine all about shopping?

so, have you seen the new magazine yet?  you like?

aden + anais for target ...

i was happy to see my favorite little swaddler blankets are now available at target for $29.99 for a 4 pack!

the original aden + anais stars four pack is also a great deal over on the lucky kids magazine online breaks right now!

toddler activities ...

with baby number three due any day now, i've been thinking a lot about what i am going to do with my other two children while i'm occupied with the baby, and we're stuck at home for a little bit.

here are a few fun ideas i've seen around the web.
 
set up a fun craft table filled with colorful crayons and paper.  via ohdeedoh, via simply seleta.

 

make colorful blocks like these ones from fawn and forest by painting plain wood blocks found at craft stores

make some rainbow crayons, via say yes to hoboken, via momtastic

velvet homemade play dough, via the coterie blog

muffin tin snacks, via ohdeedoh, via muffin tin mom

 fruit and peanut butter sushi sandwiches, via the kitchn

diy felt faces, via say yes to hoboken

make ice cream in a ziploc bag, via ohdeedoh

make a homemade quiet book, some friends and i are working on this, can't wait!  (image via wood pond designs etsy shop)

so, any ideas you want to share?  any tips on how to occupy a 4 year old and 20 month old?

i'd love to hear your fun ideas!

for japan with love ...

i'll be signing out now for the weekend, and participating in the bloggers day of silence tomorrow (march 18th) for japan.    my heart breaks for the people of japan.  hopefully we can all pitch in and help out.

go here for more information, and what you can do to help.

happy st. patricks day ...

happy st. patties day to you!

did your mom ever feed you green pancakes for breakfast?  well, we are taking it one step further at our house, and we are celebrating all things green with some green crepes today!

for my favorite crepe recipe, check out my zupas post, here!  


{photo by me}

ezra's bed on ohdeedoh ...

be sure to check out ohdeedoh today, they are featuring ezra's before and after ikea malm bed today on their site.

and, for those of you who asked questions about the painting process i used for his bed, you can read the full instructions here.

the making of a gallery wall ...

here's a few in action shots of how we (meaning my good sport husband) put up gallery photo wall we recently put up at our house.  

now, i just need to finish filling up all my frames.  i figure we'll add a few of the family with our new little guy set to arrive any day now.

here's a breakdown of the frames we used and the process:
we decided on how we wanted the frames layed out, and we spaced them about three inches apart.  as you can see from the pictures, we started by hanging the largest frame that would be in the center first, and worked our way from there.  it wasn't too hard, because a lot of the frames lined up at the top and bottom with the one next to it, so we just had to measure out three inches.  i'm sure there is an easier way to do this, but it ended up not being too bad.

we used all ikea ribba frames: (listed from small to large, 9 frames total)
the only thing i don't like about ikea frames, is the sizes can be a little weird since they are from europe.  but, we just made it work.
here's a breakdown of the frames you need:
(3)-  9" x 11" (mat fits 5x7 print), $4.99 each
(2)-  12 1/2" x 16 1/2" (mat fits 7 1/2" x 9 1/2") (i printed 8x10), $9.99 each
(3)-  15 3/4" x 19 3/4" (mat fits 11 1/2" x 15 1/4") (i printed a 16x12), $14.99 each
(1)-  19 3/4" x 27 1/2" (mat fits  15 1/4 x 19 3/4"), $19.99

total price for frames, about $100.00, not too bad!

diy: ikea rast dresser to bedside table ...

i have seen a lot of great ikea hacks with the ikea rast small dresser turned bedside table or nightstand.  after i saw this one, i kept it in my "to do" files and i knew it would be a great option for some new bedside tables / nightstands we were in desperate need of.

it really is the perfect size and offers some great storage.  it is also nice that it comes un-painted so that you can customize your piece to any color you would like.  plus, they are only $29 a piece!

so, we started out with two ikea rast dressers.

this is what they looked like before:

and, here's the after, painted white with new hardware:

i've had a lot of questions about my painting process, so here's a little rundown of how i usually paint or re-paint any kind of furniture.

how to paint furniture:

1.  clean/ wipe down the furniture really well, especially if it is used.  i usually just use baby wipes or clorox wipes, but just make sure there aren't any fibers hanging around.

2.  apply two coats of kiltz primer (i prefer the latex kind) with a good quality foam brush from a good paint or hardware store, not the craft store kind.  the foam brush is key, it is what makes the end result nice and smooth.  this dries really fast, so i usually wait about 20 minutes or so between coats if i am in a hurry.  and, no i do not sand.  i feel like it is a waste of time and i don't want to inhale all those weird bits of paint.  so, i just use primer over everything and it has worked very well.  even for veneer finishes, like on the ikea malm bed i just painted.  the primer helps the paint stick to pretty much anything i've tried.

3. next, apply two to three coats of the color of your choice with a foam brush (i usually wait at least an hour between coats, or until it is dry)  but, look at the instructions on your paint.  i like the furniture paint found locally at four chairs furniture, they use old village paint, but i have also used stuff from lowes or home depot, and it has been fine too.  also, since the foam brushes are pretty cheap, i just throw them out each coat and use a new one.

4. next, i let the piece dry at least over night before putting on the two to three coats* (depending on how shiny you want it) of the top coat.  i prefer to used the water based minwax polyurethane finish. i usually let it dry at least an hour or more between coats.  *for the top finish, i don't use the foam brushes, because it sucks up the finish.  i use a synthetic brush like this one, i think it's made of nylon or polyester.  i paint it on quickly with nice long strokes.  it seems the more you go back over a layer, the more it seems to add a weird texture, so i try to work fast.  if you do find some clumpy-ness then just let it dry and sand it with a very very fine sand paper then re-apply.  when finished with each coat make sure to clean the brush really well with really, really hot water between coats, or you can get some stickiness and build up on your piece.  

5.  let it dry a day, then add the hardware!

hopefully this helps.  i have painted a lot of stuff the last little while, and this process is what has worked best for me!

i found the hardware for my nightstands here.  size 51 mm x 43 mm in burnished bronze.

seeing green ...

with st. patrick's day just around the corner, here's a few fun green things i've seen around the web...

st. patricks day cake, via twig and thistle, via i am baker

lucky coins, via one charming party {free download available too!}

a green smoothie, via one charming party

and, a little tin of shamrocks via you are my fave

before and after: ikea malm bed ...

so, we finally settled on an ikea malm twin bed for my little ezra for his new big boy bed.
of course, i had to complicate things and want to paint it to match the rest of the furniture in his room that we recently painted gray.

but, i am so glad we did.  it gives it a custom look, but without the huge price tag.
so, as you can see, it was white before, shown above.

and, here is the after:

i still haven't had a chance to decorate his room at all, but i am feeling good that the main pieces are in there.
i'll share soon on the progress.  i have some prints ordered, and a quilt ready to make and the rest of the trimmings.  so, stay tuned.

and, hopefully throughout the next little bit, i'll share a few house projects we've been working on around here.
let's just say my husband is sick of painting stuff.
oh the joys of nesting.

**update:  the gray paint color i used is called- mark twain house ombra gray by valspar from lowes.
also, for more full instructions on my painting process click here.

seeing stripes ...

while browsing ikea last week, i noticed they were putting out their summer outdoor items.
it made me excited for warmer days, and hanging out in the great outdoors.

they had some cute new things like:

a striped hammock

striped cushions

these great steel chairs that remind me of the ones in france where you can chill by the fountains at luxembourg or the louvre

and, of course the striped umbrellas.

are you excited for summer yet?

i know i am.