I'm Still Alive and a Blog you must check out

Hello friends!

Sorry it has been so long since my last post. I've been so busy with the kids, the house, the job and reading everyone else's blogs that I've not given my own much attention. I eventually will get back into it and have good intentions of posting regularly but in the meanwhile you simply must check out this blog http://mysweetsavannah.blogspot.com/2009/06/one-lucky-reader-will-win.html. I stumbled upon 'My Sweet Savannah' while perusing Rate My Space. She has a fabulous house, fabulous sense of style and a super fun fabulous blog to read.

I'll leave you with some random pictures from over the past couple months until I post again (hopefully soon). :)

Me and the kids over Memorial Day weekend (I have plans to replace the tile surround. Can't wait to show you!)

Little home project, added the moulding and kids height coat rack

The kids being goofy

Cora Paige

I like so many others have been extremely touched by little Cora Paige. Cora went to be with Jesus on after a short battle with cancer. I've cried and cried for her and her family. For some reason feel such a connection to this little girl and her family even though I don't know them personally. They are fellow Kansans and live just a few hours from me. Perhaps I should just drive down there and give them a big hug!

I wanted to post about Cora and their story not just because of how much I've been touched by this little girl but to spread the word. They are working to collect money to build The Cora Playground in her honor. You can learn more about Cora and her family here http://corapaige.blogspot.com/.

A group of Etsy sellers have also banded together to create neat items that are for sale with proceeds going to the playground. I ordered an adorable little Cora Paige flower pin and there are so many other cute things as well. http://www.etsy.com/. Just type in 'Cora Paige' to find the items for sale.

If you're able please donate to this wonderful project in honor of this precious little girl who has touched so many please do.

Goodness, just looking at her little picture makes me want to hug her and cry. I must say, I've hugged my Aidan and Delaney a bit tighter and for a lot longer. My heart aches for Cora's family.

That's one spooky tree!

This project was so much fun! Susie posted about this project on her blog and I knew I had to make one too. We took the kids out to a nearby park for a nature walk to find a 'spooky' branch for our tree. It was a beautiful day and a fun little adventure for us all. I had all the items I needed on hand for this project except for the crows (Dollar Store) and the branch (nature trail :) . The little lanterns were from the dollar bin at Target last year, I just spray painted them black. Love 'em! For specific steps on how to do this project be sure to check out Susie's blog. She's a very talented person. Love so many of her ideas!

Fall is in the air....

And I couldn't be more excited! I like apparently many fellow bloggers LOVE, LOVE, LOVE fall. It's my absolute favorite time of year.

I love so much about fall; fall clothes, fall colors, the smell of burning leaves, KU football season, Halloween, crisp evenings, yummy cold weather foods, cozy cable knit throws, pumpkins, mums, cute jackets. I could go on and on but I'll spare you. :)

I have started some fall decorating and thought I'd share with you. As always everything is a work in progress!

My latest unbelievable Target clearance deal is the big silver lantern you see in the first picture. I've been ogling them for months now and just the other day I found 2 (the only two left) marked down to 5.98. Yes, that's right girls, only 5.98! They were originally 30.00 and they are absolutely GORGEOUS!

Oh my goodness! Has it really been that long since I last wrote?

Aidan and I have started a little mother & son tradition of going to garage sales a couple Saturday's a month. We always start out with a stop by our beloved Starbucks; I get my non-fat Cafe Mocha and Aidan goes for the old fashion glazed donuts. Ok, so I generally get one too. :) Once we've got our drinks and donuts we set off on our treasure hunt. Aidan's on the watch for toys he didn't realize we couldn't live w/out and I'm on the look out for anything else that strikes my fancy. We visit as we go and it has been a great little bonding time for the two of us. He's almost 4 and it's always amusing some of the conversations we have.

I found these chairs for the dining room table. Just begging for me to take them home and fix them up!month ago. A subdivision not far from us had a neighborhood garage sale and it was pretty amazing. It is a very wealthy neighborhood with some beautiful 'junk' but we weren't really finding much until the last stop of our trip. It was a beautiful, and I do mean BEAUTIFUL home at the end of this winding wooded cul-de-sac. I could almost hear the heaven's sing as we neared the house. The driveway was loaded with furniture of all kinds. Some were antique and some was thrift finds that she was reworking.

I ended up buying these 4 chairs at $10 a piece.

BEFORE - looking a little worn and sad.

AFTER - all freshly painted and feelin' sassy!

I sanded them down and painted them in a satin black. Added the foam to the seat template Handsome Hubby made and added the fabric. I wanted something in a floral print and stumbled upon this at JoAnn's. I believe it's from the Liz Claiborne line. I love it! It has the chocolate brown and greens I was looking for. Sort of a mod, vintage, even slightly South Pacific vibe...I will probably switch out to a black and white check or something with red this fall but I think this will look great for the spring/summer months.

I just love a good project and the thrill of a good garage sale hunt! My list of projects is long and plenty and I can't wait to share them with you. I promise to write soon!

Walmart, I'm impressed!

Ok, as you all know I'm partial to Target, very partial. But, the other day I was at Walmart.com looking at the HP 3-in-1 printers when I came across a new line that they are carrying called 'Canopy' and I have to say that I'm impressed!

We'd like to start slowly updating our master bedroom furniture. Everything in our bedroom is hand me downs. We have a very large, very ugly dresser that I got at a garage sale a few years back. It's made of solid oak but it's not very functional and often find ourselves (read Handsome Hubby) stacking clothes on top of it for easier access.

Check out this dresser! Based on the description it is well made and it looks sharp. The best part is that it's under $300 which is really a good deal for a dresser if it is indeed well made.

A few other items from the Canopy line that I think have promising potential....

I've not been into Walmart in awhile and I don't know if the line is so new that they're not all in store yet but I'm anxious to check them out. If any of you end up purchasing something from the line you'll have to let me know what you think!

Weeks pass yet again and here I am....I really am not a good blogger. So many times I think of blogging but then I end up reading everyone else's blogs and lose track of time.

The new scale has been helping me keep my weight in check, sort of. We learned that through the company Handsome Hubby's just started with he can get a great deal on a family membership to the YMCA. The YMCA here in my suburb is really pretty nice with lots of new equipment and classes to choose from. We joined a few weeks ago and have been going 4 days a week. We have been meeting there 3 days a week on our lunch hour and going with the kids on Saturday morning. I lost almost 5 lbs according to my new scale last week but managed to gain almost all of it back over the weekend. For shame! Now, I'm spending this week trying to reign it back in. I'm so frustrated with myself because my goal is so attainable, 12-15 lbs to lose, but I seem to sabotage myself on the weekends.

Switching gears completely, I've been thinking about unique things I can put in the kids' Easter baskets next weekend and haven't gotten too far with it but I did find the super cute 'monster toys' at Room Service Home. They were originally $29.00 each but have been marked down to $5.00 each so I bought one for each kid. Aren't they so cute?

They both will get chocolate bunnies and all that good stuff. We'll have to eat Delaney's for her since she's too young. Oh shoot! ;) But I was also thinking about getting them both a pair of Croc's. Aidan wore his pair from last year ALL summer long. They are so easy to throw on and so comfortable. I'm thinking Delaney would use them a lot this summer too since she's just learning to walk, they're lightweight and comfortable. The big decision is the colors, they have about 50 colors to choose from!

This weekend my Mom is coming down to visit. She and I have a 'date' with Aidan on Saturday. We're taking him to see 'Horton Hears a Who'. I can't wait to see it and Aidan is super excited too. It just looks so darn cute doesn't it? We bought the book last weekend in preparation for the big date.

Oh and before I forget! Happy Homemaker I miss reading your blog now that you've gone private. If you read this, I'd love to be invited to read it!