This and That

Dont cha just wanna squeeze this chubby cheeked, squinty eyed baby?? He has been thrilling us with smiles these days... so fun to watch him grow.

This is TUG... she is our Christmas MIRACLE this year... she had been missing since September... we were convinced she had been eaten by a coyote this fall... and POOF... she shows up at our door the other day! I was SPEECHLESS when my husband walked in the door with her! Gives me hope for the other missing kitties of years past! :)

AWWW.... So its IMPOSSIBLE to get a decent picture of 2 boys under age 2! I cannot get them to smile and hold still simultaneously... so I decided if I cant do it... neither can a photographer and Im not gonna waste $$ on watching one try! I got some really good ones of them SEPARATELY instead... but Im too lazy to upload them right now! :) So this is what you get off my Iphone for now :)

How nice is it that its in the 50's in IOWA right now? feels like SPRING... not Christmas! its just crazy. I found this bench at a local flea market . LOVED IT... and bought it up....added a" handmade by me" snowman.. and my handmade NOEL sign to welcome my guests. I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN BETTER putting that cute snowman outside... the DUMB DOG mauled him within 24 hours..... oh poor frosty. I DID manange to sew him back together again... but he smells like DOG SLOBBER. gag.

Well NOW WHAT? all the partying for Christmas is over! It took us 3 days to get all our gifts open...it was THAT over the top of a Christmas. The inlaws came form Georgia for a week and SPOILED our boys rotten. Yet... I caught Isaiah playing with the trashcan today....SERIOUSLY???? Go play with a NORMAL toy! Now all he needs is a toybox to put them all in so mom and dad stop tripping over it all :)

For Christmas hubby gave me some new UGG boots which I LOVE.... but needed skinny jeans for. I have met a new LOW... I found and bought a pair from the GW!!! (Limited brand) but STILL... my 130$ shoes with 4 dollar GW jeans! haha! But hey... I still have baby weight to loose and am NOT spending $$ on new jeans now. I also got a primitive/ colonial table runner and a primitive thermostat cover, a subscription to The Simple Life magazine, and some cash! I will try to post pics later.

 I did regret not getting THE NATIVITY movie viewed with the family.... so easy to get caught up in the superficial nonsense and not spend near as much time focusing on the birth of our Lord and Saviour. We DID have a LOVELY Christmas eve service and Sunday morning service on Christ as our PRINCE OF PEACE !

Hope your Christmas's were wonderful! ~Elisha

Greens, kiddos, and crafts, and a laugh

I am loving the simplicity of just GREENS this year... and I love that all I have to pay for them is the price of going out in the cold and trimming them off our trees! I really love the blue berry spruce.... and Im even watering them to avoid dried needles on my floor! Thats ALOT for this mommy with 2 kids under 2! A funny for you.... so the sign is barnwood... I found it out by the dog pen... he had been chewing on it for awhile... or should I say he "distressed" it for me??? anyways I loved the rustic texture... so I added some NOEL :) what a dork am I?

More greens in our back entry way.. and my homemade star jingle ornament :)

Micah.... no this isnt his first bath... ( Im not THAT bad of a mom!) ... however now 5 weeks old... I realized I never took a baby bath picture of him! AND BONUS... got a bit of a baby grin! We are REALLY enjoying some smiles from him these days... makes a mommy's heart melt.

Isaiah holding Micah... and the darn cat stole the spotlight... its about impossible to get a decent picture around here without a distraction.

WAIT... whats THIS?? a semi decent picture? WITH MOM?? that is so rare!! :) Notice the blue bracelet Im wearing?( This is what lack of sleep resorts to for this mom)..... I must wear it to remind me of what breast I last nursed on so I can feed my child! ha! It says LEFT... and RIGHT on it.... I just flip it over... when I can remember to do that! If I forget this complex step... I am totally in trouble... because then I must THINK and try to REMEMBER. If all else fails... its the boobie test... the largest one wins the baby! LOL.... TMI? I believe all my readers are women?? Sorry if thats too much... but something we moms find hilarious these days amongst the diapers and spit up :)

My saturday night craft! Ok... he is missing his soon to be "stick arms"... but I had so much fun sewing his little hat and scarf up and jingle buttons. I even BAKED his nose :) I love him.... I think I need to make another to put on my prim bench outside with some more GREENS :) And maybe another " dog distressed" sign to sit by him to say "let it snow" ?

Got the crafting bug and some decor to share!

I have the crafting bug big time! I think its the hormone switch from after having a baby bc my energy is coming back! I got this little mouse pattern from a tutorial off of "a simpler time" blog and have been making these little mice for Christmas gifts... some in stockings and some in mittens and some in mini baskets :) I think I will paint this basket however???

My Christmas centerpiece this year for the farm table

The lighting in this pic is horrible... but I am LOVING The SIMPLICITY of just fresh cut greens this year... have them all over the house in crocks... it smells so good!

Another homemade lil mouse in a mitten (recycled sweater) I made

My newborn has a cold (ALREADY!) and I was up with him til midnight last night... but managed to stitch up this little stitchery/ applique pic (recycled frame of course... and leftover scrap fabric... FREE!)

the entry way table decor... of course my little rice lights dont show up! (boo) .

Anyways thats some of my Christmas fun.... it is SO COLD and windy here today. I tried to take Isaiah out to play for a little bit and managed to cut down some more greenery for some outdoor displays... but we didnt last long.... BITTER cold! Been wanting to head out back of the property and cut down some "charlie brown" "weed" type pine trees from the fence line... but I might wait on that! BRRRRRR! Well thats all for now! Hope you are staying warm~ ~ Elisha

Newer Cupboard in my living room!

So I was gonna post this picture before baby Micah was born, but didnt get to it. I just wanted to share my new cupboard!!!! So yes... Im decorating it all up for CHRISTmas now... but just wanted to share this momma's attempt to disguise some ugly primary colored kids toys whiole maintaining the integrity of my living room :) It works well so far, Isaiah knows how to get in and out of it and the top hutch portion works great for crayons and markers, and things I dont want him getting by himself. Also, I  just converted the right upper side to Micah"s clothing storage since we are keeping him on the main level while this momma is nursing so often! WOW... thats alot of junk to hide away huh? I love it!

Just a couple more pics

Baby Micah, days old

Baby Micah 1 week old

Baby Isaiah, newborn, do they look alike??? Hmmm, we cant decide! :)

BABY MICAH IS HERE!

Well I have been a busy momma of 2 boys lately! Baby #2 went a whole week overdue, resulting in a low amniotic fluid level, which landing me in the hospital for monitoring and an induction the following am :) I was hoping to avoid the induction but it barely took any pitocin to get things moving and at 11:11am on 11/4/11 Micah Jonathan was born at 8# 14oz! I told my husband I definately deserve a PUSH gift for these big boys I deliver... he said only if they are over 9#!!! I said... he was only short a pee and a poo of that!!! :) He definately is a BIG boy.... much hairier and chunkier than Isaiah was ... he already has a hot dog roll on the back of his neck and a dbl chin!!! Good ol breastmilk.... hopefully it will remove my "rolls" as easy as it put them on Micah! haha. He is a good baby...likes to be held alot... and Isaiah LOVES HIM. Every morning he kisses and hugs him and over and over says "hi baby!!!!!" We praise the Lord for another healthy child... He has been so good to us with this blessing!

Happy Thanksgiving / NEED for prayer

I am posting this quite heartbroken as I have just recieved news that my sweet christian friend, Lei,  just came out of surgery and they have found pancreatic cancer... and were unable to do anything about it. Lei is a sweet godly woman devoted to the service of the Lord and to others... and I have been blessed with her friendship through womens Bible studies and fellowship.
Please pray for Lei and her family.... and let this be a reminder to us of how precious life is and how we spend every moment, not only how we spend it.... but that we can be thankful to our LORD for his EVERLASTING kindness and grace and offer of salvation to those who believe, repent and trust in Him. I feel as though my eyes have been opened to what God has given me..... a wonderful husband, two precious babies and a wonderful church home to mention a few. I cant help but feel like it should be ME, not her that has to struggle with this news/ diagnosis....as often I have found myself ungrateful and complaining about my circumstances, and my minor frustrations in this life.Least I say.... I am totally HUMBLED and ashamed. God truly has showered me with grace and patience.....not only with His gift of LIFE to me through  the death of His Son, Jesus Christ, but his everlasting kindness and forgiveness that I am unworthy of.
Please pray for Lei... and be EVER thankful this thanksgiving for the Lords many blessings to us.

Happy Fall Ya'll!

 Ive had most of my fall decorations out since the end of August....we hosted a potluck for our Bible study group so I had the motivation to clean and decorate!
Here are a couple redo projects as well....
The sugar bucket was a 3$ flea market find... it was a cookie jar. I sanded off "cookie" and it didnt quite go away... so a prim distressed label was my solution! Holy moley... those REAL antique sugar buckets are PRICEY!!! I saw one for 100$!
To the right is a makeover of a spice rack I found also at a flea market...it was very VINTAGE colored ... almost a orangish stain. So it got beat up... painted and textured and took FOREVER! too many little crannies to paint. But I really like how it turned out... plan to use it in our master bath for little hair things or q tips or something once we get the bathroom refinished.

Below is my center piece.....would you believe the "warty" pumpkin sat out ALL winter long? So when spring came and I found it hadnt rotted... I sat it in the sun to completely dry and painted it! I know... Im a cheap loser! I stuck all these fall goodies in a barnwood trencher I found and made the lil punkin sign.... and YES... I spelled pumpkin wrong on PURPOSE! :)

Here is my window sill... sorry for the glare! I made this sign last fall and the little gourds I grew myself! ( ok... totally by accident as I left some out to rot all winter... and they seeded and now I have a GIGANTIC gourd plant that has taken over my sidewalk!) But I LOVE having free gourds this year! It was a total surprise blessing to me! Oh... and the crock...5$ flea market find! I have decided FLEA MARKETS are MUCH better priced than antique malls by FAR!
I have lots more pics to share... but I need to wait til the sun goes down... way too much glare and color distortion going on here. Hope you are all enjoying cooler weather! I am LOVING it.... now 33 weeks pregnant... I FEEL SO MUCH BETTER! AAAWWW.... relief! :) ~ Elisha

Cupboard Make over & the Munchkin

Remember my eariler post on this cupboard? It was unpainted and spackled? Well before that it was all kinds of hearts and scrolls and 80's country (but I still am mad at myself for not getting THAT pic of it). Anyways... here it is all redone up! The pic makes it look a bit more maroon than it really is.. but you get the idea. Isaiah will demonstrate my makeover :) ( Its so cute bc he tries to hide on the bottom shelf from me... but doesnt quite fit. I believe I will use this cupboard to hide some toys of his in a basket or something.

Yes... he already knows how to open it!

Some of my goodies on top... mostly from flea market and garage sales...

Wait a minute... hes only 17 months... how did he get to counter level???

LIL STINKER!!!! he is SO smart he blows me away every day with SOMETHING! (sorry... i tried and TRIED to get this pic rotated and I just couldnt get it done.. turn that neck a bit )

Welp... thats all! Now my next project is wiping wallpaper glue OFF our master bath wall in preparation to PAINT! I MUST get this bathroom done before baby #2!  ~ Elisha

preggos!

Baby Fever
This picture was our ONE and only triple baby bump picture before my sister Micki went into labor that very night! Micki 41 weeks
Me (middle) 21 weeks. Krista (sister in law) 12 weeks ( we had to make her force a bump out! :) haha.
You can imagine my mother is WAY excited to be a gma 3 times by the end of this year.

Garage sale goodies!

I just wanted to quick share a few of my fun garage sale finds! A friend and I headed out this last Saturday am with my lil boy for a morning of local Rummage sales. 3 1/2 hours and 17$ later... I found some new PRIM decor! Im most excited about the lil lamp (5$) and leaves (4$ for two garlands) for a possible wreath this fall. Pictured also is 2 grapevine balls (1$..ive been wanting for some topiaries) and 2 "wheat" candle rings (50 cents), dried pomegranates and artichoke( 50 cent), a friendship stitchery (4$) on a black frame and some "fake" looking olde dry goods for a kitchen shelf( 2$ for all)! I would post close ups but blogger has failed me at attempt #3 to upload them! GRRR. I also got some AWESOME deals on some little man clothes for Isaiah... lots of Carter's clothes and Childrens Place brands and some shoes in great condition still! I just cant help but feel foolish for NOT getting used clothes bc they grow out of them SO FAST! My only "regret" was a beautiful 15$ all wood highchair in EXCELLENT condition... wishing I would atleast picked it up for my sister (DUE ANY MINUTE NOW!) I am just so grateful that the Lord gifted me with being able to find these lil THRILLS for the day... what fun we had! ~ Elisha

New Projects

Well I think I got a bit of my "Mo Jo" back... bc I have started in on some projects again.... projects that are totally unnecessary and just for FUN.. not the projects that I SHOULD be working on... like weeding and de- wall papering and preparing for baby #2! Oh well... a girl has got to craft!




This is a 20$ GW find that had hearts and scrolls on it... my momma tried to convince me to NOT buy it, but I saw some potential. NO its not DONE yet... but making some good progress. Mad I didnt take a BEFORE pic. I got to play with a jigsaw to make a new cabinet door here... kinda fun but I was SCARED!( I like having 10 fingers)Anyways I got rid of a McNasty 80's heart door and the white stuff is filler for some grooves I wanted covered. My manly carpenter father got rid of the scrolls that made it too "frilly".
Now I need to pick some paint colors for it! (if you cant tell by the pic it IS a drysink on top)










BEFORE pic of GW clock














AFTER pic of GW clock.... however its looking pretty MUSTARDY in this picture... doesnt look like that on my shelf. I do think I wanna change the color of the maroon ... not likin that at all.















Forever ago I printed off the free pattern to make this cutting board.... and after my cupboard project had the guts to scroll cut this! Not the greatest job.. but HEY primitives are MEANT to look old and worn and beat up! :) (I did beat on it for awhile as well however) The fly screen I made from a 3 dollar strainer that already had the handle popped off... it was that old! :) all I had to do was add the knob.
OH! I just felt this baby kick me!




THIS candle box thinger I loved in a magazine.... and Im WAAAY to cheap to pay for most primitives so I MADE ONE!!! whoo hoo..... got the scrool saw out again (still have all my fingers) and made the lil colonial hanging handle and then I CHEATED! ( I got one of those 90's country candle boxes from the GW with a ugly apple cut out on the front for 50 cents) KNOCKED off the apple side and nailed it to my scrolled out wood backing... painted and drilled the hangin hole. (its not distressed yet... but soon will be :)

The scariest ultrasound ever!

This is the newest member of our family. He/ She is about 13 weeks old now in my tummy and already giving us quite the scare. We like to call him/ her "Skeletar" ! Usually ultrasound pics are hard to read but I dont think you can miss this child staring you straight in the face here :) What is even funnier is that baby is DUE Oct 29th.... very close to halloween! SCARY stuff! haha.... lets pray she/ he is much cuter by the time he/ she arrives ok?
I have been blog absent for quite some time... having some major hormonal "blues". During my first trimesters I loose all energy and excitement for ANYTHING.... its like Im living in the pits of despair... even though I have EVERYTHING to be thankful for. HORMONES... they are so fun arnt they?
Praying these blues go away soon .... maybe if the sun showed its face it would help ?!?!?! :) SPRING where are you? Hope everyone is well who reads this! Maybe I will get some spring decorating pictures up soon.

Baby GQ

Here is the lil munchkin in his handmade robe that my husbands' cousin made for him. I think its darling... he looks like such a lil man in it now that he is finally big enough to wear it! :)
He is 14 months and TROUBLE. This morning I already sweeped up half a container of quaker oats he sprinkled all over the floor!

more heart stuff...

We have been so BUSY lately with projects and our house is a mess from it! :)
Im SLOWLY working on spackling and priming and painting our bedroom (bad wallpaper so LONG!) and my hubby is now stripping bathroom wallpaper... hooray!
Just had our lil boys FIRST birthday party...(Ill have to post later about that) and had all the granparents up to stay with us for that.
Just wanted to post a few Valentines finds/ projects. Im really not a big heart decorator at all... but looking at evgeryone elses cute vday decor has made me get more into it! :)
This is a table top quilt I made several years ago... I loved all the different pieces of red fabric for each heart... it was fun... wish I had time to quilt ... but not with a one yr old! :)

SO instead I make mini projects.... this is my "winter wreath" with a little quilted heart (from a scrap of quilt i didnt know what to do with... was gonna make a pot holder with it)... and my friend Nicki gave me the little rusty old key hanging right by it.... which you can barely see!

Found this heart wood bowl at the GW... and I stained it and never knew what to put in it. So it got some rosehips and a old primitive scoop in it. The braided jute rug behind it I found at a place called Aunt Pattis Attic and couldnt believe how PERFECT the colors went with my kitchen and living room... so my momma picked me up some more along with 6 coasters in the same colors.... now Im on the hunt for a trivet or two! :) Hope you all have a great week... pray I get some painting done.. im dying to have my bedroom back! We have all our bedroom furniture pushed right up around our bed in the center of our room so I can paint.... its like an adult crib! getting kinda old! ~ Elisha

Valentines 2011

oh HERE it is.... my lost picture of my 2 $ Vday find at GW. Sorry for all the posts... But dont worry ... you probably wont hear from me for another couple of months! :)

Antique Mall finds

I probably spent too much on this lil thing... but I just kept coming back to it... I just really love the old tin and crimped design to it... its a 1800's matchstick holder.... but I have it by my kitchen sink




My wonderful husband bought me this colonial light fixture for our guest bath for Christmas. Im SO EXCITED about it... too bad Im not allowed to start ripping the wallpaper out of there to hang it until our bedroom is done! :) Guess this will motivate me to get er done quicker!

Two lil tin top jars I got at the antique mall in Omaha NE.... they were only like 4 bucks each... I though maybe Id used em for qtips or cottonballs when we get out bathroom re done?? I figured Id find SOMEWHERE to use em! :)

My new CROCK! I LOVE the color of this one... its dated 1800's.... i paid about 34 bucks for it. Im no expert on these babies... but I know if they have any blue glaze on em the price goes up like 150 bucks! But im happy with this one... and my utensils are too bc they are no longer invading eachothers personal space as much :)

VaLENTINES and re-do's

Isaiah's new/old highchair. I so wanted an antique one... this one was given to us from Jons folks... was used in his family.... it was pretty beat up and I thought I was gonna have to paint it... but hated to. I sanded it down and applied some dk walnut stain over it... which darkened it some (which was NICE bc it was a bit too "golden" for my taste)... and I made a lil chair pad for Isaiahs rump (and to cover up the most wear and tear)... as well as the back (covered with towel). Just needs a coat of polyurethane to the tray. Its very unique as it converts to a DESK! but the desk part was in BAD shape so my F.I.L replaced it with some plywood. I know I wont get the stain to match so Im considering painted it with that chalkboard paint... that way Isaiah can learn his letter and numbers on it?? Not quite for sure on that one yet!

THese are calendar pages that I converted to envelopes for my grandma Arlene! Her sister had the idea of doing this and she loved it... so I told her I could try to cut them out on my cricut and it was pretty easy! I think she will likey:)

Ok...this is my coffee table decor right now... and NO its not Christmas bc its a SLED! :) I found it at GW and it was UGLY and so I worked my fake antique charm on it to distress and such and beat it up some... it looks better with some real green around the candle as well... but its TOO cold to go out and cut down some ! :)

Ok... another HEART thing... Ive had this for years.. it as a gift and often I have thought about getting rid of it.... so now I just use it for Vday :)