A Peak Inside: Jace's Room

And finally, the superhero’s domain.

I think my favorite part of this room is the homemade telephone booth.  I originally bought this old door at DI to make an oversized photo frame like this one, but decided late one night {when I couldn’t sleep} that it would make a perfect telephone booth for Jace’s room. The decorative topper comes from my neighbors wood shed. She brought it over one day after some spring cleaning for me to “be creative with”. She thought it was part of an old headboard, but couldn’t remember for sure.

A second favorite is the superhero artwork that Spencer and I handcrafted. I drew the images and Spencer cut them out with the jigsaw. They are actually quite large and take up an entire wall. Probably about 2 ½ feet by 2 ½ feet.

Jace’s favorite part is definitely the framed comic book covers. I had to buy him a brighter nightlight because he wouldn’t go to sleep at night unless he could see his superhero.

My lil’ superhero boy, I love him. Really, really love him.

A Peak Inside: Brynlee's Room

When I asked Brynlee if she wanted to give her room to her new little sister and make the guest bedroom her new room she was super excited. She only had two requests. She wanted the room to be blue {no pink!} and she wanted stuff to hang from her ceiling like it had in her old room.

Easy enough.

And in return she had to agree that her room would also serve as the guest bedroom. Meaning that when guests came to stay or at least the guests we liked {kidding} {kinda} she had to willingly give up her bed. So far there hasn’t been a single complaint. In fact, I think she secretly likes to have a slumber party in any room of her choice when guests are at our house.

A Peak Inside: The Nursury

Project: Reupholster Ugly Chair

I bought this chairs at a yard sale last fall.

Two of them actually.

For $7.00 each.

They were ugly.

So I bought some new fabric and recovered one of them.

Well, 95% of it.

And then the morning sickness came {gag}.

And it sat 95% done until last week when I finally finished it.

I sorta love how it turned out.

Sometimes, on this blog, I talk about my garage doors

So we got new interior doors, right.

Well, in the midst of all the measuring and trimming and painting and installing of our new doors we were also looking for something to replace the interior paneling of our garage doors.  Mainly because our current garage door situation was . . . um, gross.  The previous owners must have kept a small herd of wild animals in their garage at night.  Wild animals that had a thing for eating styrofoam garage door paneling.  I’m not sure how else to explain this:

Our original plan was to use metal to cover the destroyed, yellowing Styrofoam panels.  But then we looked at prices and holy geez.  So we started thinking of alternative solutions: particle board, paneling, bead board, new Styrofoam, cardboard, fabric, modge podging scrapbook paper, picture collages. . . you know, that sort of stuff. 

And then one night it came to me.  The old doors {cue flashing light bulb above my head}.  Perfect size, wood, FREE.  Plus, we needed to get rid of them anyway.

So we dismantled our old straight panel, hallow doors and we did this:

I also painted the entire garage + the garage floor + got rid of the cob webs. 

Spencer deemed it one of my best ideas to date.

He obviously forgot about the time we used a circular skilsaw to cut a nylon rug.  Because honestly, ttttthhhhaaat was my best idea to date.

Err. . . NOT!

Blog Hop: Summer Salad Recipes

Regarding cooking, I have very few Martha Stewart moments.  I mean, I’m a cook of sorts.  It’s an activity I do daily, even doing it willingly and triumphantly 94% of the time.  But I cook with one purpose: to eat.  Period.  End of story.  No further discussion needed. 

Moving on. 

Therefore, taking photos of my food and posting them on this silly little blog of mine is not a practice that I regularly engage in.  For the exact same reason that I don’t post pictures of my abs. . .it just doesn’t paint me in the best light.

Honestly though, I used to think I was a pretty good cook.  Then my eyes were opened to the world of gourmet food bloggers and I realized that I was mediocre, at best.  But I try not to let it bother me.  And luckily my family is easy please - we get a kick out of Costco samples – so it doesn’t take a Pioneer Women to keep them feed. 

{P.S.  My husband is mostly clueless to the world of food blogs + their cookbook worthy photos of tonight’s gourmet dinner so he is still under the assumption that he married a good cook.  Please don’t inform him otherwise. Thankyouverymuch.}

Anyway, this blog post is not supposed to be an All-About-Kim’s-Cooking post, this post is labeled Blog Hop: Summer Salad Recipes.  So I guess I should ‘hop’ to it {sorry, I couldn’t resist}.

Miranda does a monthly Blog Hop on her blog and has asked me to take part this month.  The topic: Favorite Summer Salads.  To me summer salads mean family parties so I decided to post a salad that reminded me of each of my sisters.  Because I’m cool like that.  Err. . . something.  

Jessica//Strawberry Spinach Salad

Tidbit: Jessica makes this Strawberry Spinach Salad for a lot of our family get-togethers.  Well, this salad and about 100 other salads.  Jessica’s the oldest child, therefore always and forever the most responsible.  Plus, she’s a pleaser.  If I were hosting a family party at my house and asked Jessica to bring the entire meal, she would.  Without hesitation.  If ever there is a family party where we are all asked to bring a salad, Jeccica shows up with three.  Because she’s the big sister.  Plus, she’s a Home EC teacher.  So, duh.

Strawberry Spinach Salad

Dressing:

1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 tbs. white wine vinegar

1/4 cup white sugar

1/8 tsp. paprika

1 tbs. sesame seeds

1/2 tbs. Poppy seeds  

Salad:

1 bunch spinach

2 cups sliced strawberries

1/2 cup almonds

Directions: In a large bowl, toss together the spinach, strawberries and almonds. In a medium bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, sugar, paprika, sesame seeds, and poppy seeds. Pour over the spinach and strawberries, and toss to coat.

Jami//Grandma Marilyn’s Baked Beans

Tidbit:  Jami’s a country cook, and a dang good one at that.  Comfort foods are her specialty.  And I think Paula Deen is her cooking idol. { Chime in, Jami.  Is that right?}  She lives by the cooking motto if it ain’t tasting right add more butter.  This baked bean recipe is my Grandma Marilyn’s and I can honestly say I don’t remember a summer family party where Grandma’s beans weren’t served.  Jami has become the unofficial baked bean maker in our immediate family.  And honestly, she’s a pro; they taste just like Grandma Marilyn’s.

photo via

Grandma Marilyn’s Baked Beans

Ingredients:

4 cans pork and beans

1 can of tomato soup

2 lbs ground beef

1 diced onion

1 cup chopped celery

2 tbs. vinegar

1/4 to 1/2 cup brown sugar

Garlic salt to taste

Directions: Brown hamburger, celery, onion and garlic salt.  Add pork and beans and tomato soup.  Mix in vinegar and brown sugar, to taste.  Pour into a crock pot and simmer on low for several hours.  Serve.

Katie//Italian Pasta Salad

Tidbit:  Last December my sisters and I were in charge of Katie’s after wedding luncheon.  We decided on serving soups, salads and sandwich and when we ran the idea by Kate she had only one request: that I make this Italian Pasta Salad.  A bridezilla she was not.  I’d made the salad several years ago for a family party and had forgotten about it.  But since her request it has become my go to summer potluck salad.  It’s quick, travels well, and doesn’t wilt in the sun.  It’s easy to fancy up with some halved cherry tomatoes, red or green peppers or artichoke hearts, but since I was making this salad in honor of Kate I left it as minimal as possible.  She’s the kind of girl what orders her Subway sandwich with meat, cheese and a tiny bit of mayo.

Italian Pasta Salad

Ingredients:

1 pound tri-color rotini pasta, cooked and drained

1 cup cheddar cheese, cubed

1 cup pepperoni, cubed

1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1 cup black olives, cut in half

Salt and pepper to taste

Italian style salad dressing

Optional: red or green pepper, artichoke hearts, green onions

Directions:  In a large bowl, toss together the pasta, pepperoni, cheese, olives, tomatoes, salt and pepper.  Pour dressing over pasta mixture to coat and toss.  Store, covered, in refrigerator.

Marie//Watermelon

Tidbit:  Marie’s my baby sister.  She’s nine.  Summer salads don’t really appeal to her.  I think fresh fruits and veggies are by far the best summer side dish and trump salads at any summer potluck.  Plus, it’s a way to make sure the pint size guests get fed.  Marie’s summer favorite is watermelon.  But really, whose isn’t?

  

Also blog hopping:

Miranda

Lee

Stephanie

Sara

Christina

The moral: I turned a door into a picture frame

Okay.  So like a sweet forever ago I recommended my ever so hip and talented friend, Miranda, to be featured in our local At Home Magazine.  They were looking for local bloggers that blog about crafts, art, cooking and the like and since Miranda is a local blogger that blogs about crafts, art, cooking and the like I thought it to be a perfect fit.  And it was.  They featured her.

Anyway, somewhere in the email conversation mix of ‘Oh my goodness I have this awesome friend Miranda that blogs about craft, art, cooking and the like’ the editor of the At Home Magazine {we will call her Rebecca, mainly because that’s her name} asked if I would be interested in taking part in the “At Home Challenge”.

Sidenote:  Whenever I say “At Home Challenge” it is followed by a loud and mysterious don, don, don in my head.  You know, like the sound you would hear on a daytime soap opera when the handsome, albeit married, Michael realizes that the his current love affair is not only the woman once believed to have died in a horrible 4^th of July firework accident, but also. . . his sister!  Don, don, don! 

Moving on. 

I replied to Rebecca’s invitation with some sort of “me, you really want me?  Sure, I’d love to.  But, me?  I’m not qualified.” rambling mumble jumble and then I saw something shiny and I forgot about it.  Until I got an email from her a month or two later asking if I was ready to take part in the “At Home Challenge”.  Don, don, don!  A bit about The Challenge: Rebecca comes up with a design slash decorating challenge and then extends it to local business owners, designers, photographers {or in my case, completely unqualified and ever so awkward stay at home moms} to produce some sort of end product in answer to her challenge.  Fun, right?  Our challenge was to find a new and interesting way to display photos.

I happened upon this old door at a local antique shop.  Truly, I happened upon it.  It was buried in the back storage room, covered with vintage dirt and spider webs.  The owner of the shop took me to the back room to show me some merchandise that had yet to be put on the sales floor.  She nodded at the old yellow door, if you want that you can have it.  Sold!  I loaded it into the Swagger Wagon, bought a couple cans of spray paint, some burlap and went to work.

Here’s my final product.  The old yellow door, before:

And my new and interesting way to display photos, the after:

The black blocks {that I edited} on the bottom of the frame spell our last name in burlap.  My main motivation of hanging our last name up there was so I would have hooks to hang our Christmas stockings on come December.

And here is the At Home Magazine article.

P.S.  I would love to share the link to the actual article with ya’ll, but I’m cautious about posting my last name and where I live on my bloggity blog.  If you are interested in reading the article in a print you can actually read, seeing what the other challenge contributors came up with, or reading Miranda's article leave me a note in the comments or email me {kimberleeunedited at gmail dot com} and I’ll send you the link.  Alrighty?  Alrighty.

Photo Album: Brynlee's Rainbow Party

Giving credit:

*Strawberry skewer toppers printed from here.

*Idea for pot-o-gold birthday invite from here.

*Rainbow cake recipe and idea from here.

*Easter grass supplied by this punk.  Love ya, Kali Jo!

*Cake made by Miranda.  Most photos were also taken by Miranda.  All the good ones anyway. . . I took the rest.  She also helped decorate and brainstorm.  Have I mentioned how cool Miranda is?  Because seriously, way cool.

*Piñata hung by Spencer.  I believe in dividing up birthday party labor equally.  Spencer was in charge of hanging up the piñata, chillin’ with Jace {who wasn’t a bit interested in joining in on the party} and cleaning up the Easter grass.  And I did the rest.  I considered responsibilities split right down the middle.  There was a crap load of Easter grass, people.  And just for the record, Spence started a tater tot on fire during the par-tay.  Little tiny tater-tot fire in our oven.  No joke.

*This post is also being used as my Project 52: Glimpse into Motherhood post.

Because to me motherhood is fourteen hundred million hours scanning the grocery ailes to find rainbow loot. 
And motherhood is also a big ole' scissor blister on your right hand from crafting all things rainbow.