One Room Challenge ~ Tween Room {Week Two}

Well, hardly a productive week. Between Easter and the mother of all sinus infections, I've really only collected packages from the UPS guy. 

I have GOT to get moving on purchasing carpet (especially since I dropped a red solo cup of paint while cutting in...) and the furniture switch. 

But accessories are important too and those I've got! 

Bicycle pillow cover was on clearance at pottery barn and I used a cheap Walmart pillow to stuff in it (PB inserts are expensive). The tea-stained American flag is from eBay.

The lamp is from Kmart, as is the white parsons desk...

The two combined with shipping were $80. Kmarts rewards program is pretty lucrative, if you want to check it out. 

Another painting mishap. The window seat will be sanded and painted.

My linens came in and were from Pottery Barn and Macys.  My new motto is all linens and towels will be white (for the most part) and bleach-able. Because boys.

This is our office right now, I am in serious need of a yard sale. Anyone need a 4-foot rattan giraffe?

One of my inspiration pics.  I learned this week that the bed I inherited is not brass, but plated cast iron. *Little tip* if you acquire a brass bed or furniture...magnets will not stick to solid brass. 

So that's where I am at this week. Next to tackle, picking out and scheduling carpet and a ceiling fixture.  

Check out all the other goodness at Calling it Home.

Thanks for visiting!

Five on Friday {Easter + Menu}

Happy Easter Weekend!

1. These boys are getting too big, too fast. 

2. We went to St. Andrews on Saturday for an amazing Easter egg hunt, pancake breakfast and overall party.  They had 10,000 candy-filled eggs hidden for the kids and 4H was displaying the biggest of bunnies!

3. My husband is a police officer and out of work recovering from shoulder surgery, so he is growing a normally-not-allowed beard.  I'm on the fence about it, although I love it with the tam.

4. Have you checked out the goodness going on over at Calling it Home?!  It's One Room Challenge time again...and between the designers and linking participants, it's all sorts of fabulous.  Check out my entry as I breeze (struggle) through 6 weeks on a limited budget and a broken husband.  You can see it here. 

5. What are your Easter plans?  We will spending a quiet day at home after church and a backyard egg hunt.

Our Easter Menu

Appetizers

Cheese and Charcuterie Board

Hummus + Chips

Shrimp Cocktail

Deviled Eggs

Dinner

Baked Spiral Ham

Cheesy-Olive Potatoes

Roasted Asparagus

Succotash

Bacon Herb Cupcakes

Dessert

Double Chocolate Brownie

Fruit Salad

Wishing everyone a lovely holiday weekend!

Thanks for visiting!

One Room Challenge ~ Tween Room {Week One}

My first project of the year and my one room challenge room, is our son Collin's bedroom.  It's long overdue; the poor kid has lived with flesh-colored walls and questionable carpet since we moved in.  Brennan's nursery was even worse when we moved in, so that took precedence.  All gray paneling and teal astro-turf-like carpet.  Collin hit the room jackpot though...it's big, bright and has a bigger walk-in closet than me!

We spent a snowy weekend peeling off tons of transformer decals from the walls and glow-in-the-dark stars from the ceiling.  Cleaning out drawers and packing away stuffed animals (sniff).  He's 10 now, he gets adult innuendo, it's time.

The plan is as follows:

1. Paint - samples below of Benjamin Moore's Hale Navy and Van Deusen Blue.  We ultimately decided on Van Deusen Blue, and are loving the results.

2. Carpet - I'm old school, Carpet in bedrooms.  Will be looking for a sand-esque color berber.

3. Furniture switch - The 5yo is getting the bunk beds with plentiful storage in his smaller room.  He also has the gold standard in carpet padding, so if he falls out, it's all good. {wink}.  Collin will be getting an antique brass full bed (pictured below) and Brennan's dresser and nightstand. I'm still undecided about the brass bed, paint or restore?

4. Furniture purchase - A desk, chair and some sort of upholstery for the window seat. Perhaps I'll get creative and make a cushion?

5. Lighting - Task lighting and ceiling fixture.

6. Artwork, Accessories and bedding - I'm shopping my inventory for some items, like the black and white beach scenes pictured below.  I will no longer buy items just to fill a space...we have to love it.

Inspiration Board

And I'm off!

My previous challenge entries can be viewed here: Home Office and Playroom Bathroom.

Please join me in my journey and check out all of the other amazing participants.  Thanks for visiting!

Collin's Tween Room

Collin's Tween Room by coastalpinesint featuring beach scene wall art

Tripod light
highstreetmarket.com

Flex lighting
$9.29 - wilko.com

Crate and barrel bedding
crateandbarrel.com

Wooden home decor
belleescape.com

Leftbank Art beach scene wall art
blisshomeanddesign.com

ArteHouse american flag home decor
macys.com

Ethan Allen white accent pillow
ethanallen.com

Antique style furniture
onekingslane.com

Stanley Furniture wicker nightstand
purehome.com

West Elm white lacquer desk
westelm.com

Chair
furbishstudio.com

Tween Room Remodel

2 days in a row...how about that?!

My first project of the year and possibly a One Room Challenge room, is our son Collin's bedroom.  It's long overdue; the poor kid has lived with flesh-colored walls and questionable carpet since we moved in.  Brennan's nursery was even worse when we moved in, so that took precedence.  All gray paneling and teal astro-turf-like carpet.  Collin hit the room jackpot though...it's big, bright and has a bigger walk-in closet than me!

We spent a snowy weekend peeling off tons of transformer decals from the walls and glow-in-the-dark stars from the ceiling.  Cleaning out drawers and packing away stuffed animals (sniff).  He's 10 now, he gets adult innuendo, it's time.

The plan is as follows:

1. Paint - samples below of BM's Hale Navy or Van Deusen Blue.  I'm leaning toward VDBlue, but ultimately it's his choice.

2. Carpet - I'm old school, Carpet in bedrooms.

3. Furniture switch - The 5yo is getting the bunk beds with plentiful storage in his smaller room.  He also has the gold standard in carpet padding, so if he falls out, it's all good. {wink}.  Collin will be getting an antique brass full bed (pictured below) and Brennan's dresser and nightstand. I'm still undecided about the brass bed, paint or restore?

4. Furniture purchase - A desk, chair and some sort of upholstery for the window seat. Perhaps I'll get creative and make a cushion?

5. Lighting - New lamps and ceiling fixture.

6. Artwork, Accessories and bedding - I'm shopping my inventory for some items, like the black and white beach scenes pictured below.  I will no longer buy items just to fill a space...we have to love it.

The Little one will be getting a makeover of his own as well.  That I will share as well.  It's time to move on, our babies are growing up.  

As always, thanks for visiting!

Irish Nachos {recipe swap}

Oh hey...long time, no see!  I'm back after a whirlwind (okay, stagnant) holiday and winter season.  But I'm getting back to business (sporadically), as I miss cooking and doing projects around the home.  I also use the blog as a means to share our life with family and friends around the country.  So I'll start with a really fun recipe...

I made these on Superbowl Sunday when our family was home and down for the count for one illness or another.  This is PERFECT for March and St. Patrick's Day events!

Irish Nachos

1 Corned beef brisket (about 3lbs.)

4 Cups beef broth

2 Bottles Sam Adams Boston lager

1 Bay Leaf 

1 Package of frozen waffle fries

1 Package of sauerkraut

1 Pound of deli Swiss cheese, sliced thin

1 Bottle of Russian dressing, or make your own

Sliced green onions (optional)

Place your brisket in the crockpot along with broth, beer and bay leaf and cook on high for an hour.  After an hour, lower crockpot setting to low for 4-5 hours.

Assembly prep: deep fry or bake your waffle fries, heat up the sauerkraut and slice your swiss and green onions.  I slice my swiss into 1-inch long strips.

Once brisket is done, remove from crockpot and fork shred.  Drain and remove liquid from sauerkraut.  Get a broiler-safe pan(s) and you are ready for assembly.  In this order:

Waffle fries, shredded brisket, sauerkraut and swiss cheese (I laid in an X pattern, to ensure every inch had a bit of cheese).  

Broil until cheese is bubbly.  Remove from oven and garnish with green onions and a drizzle of Russian dressing.  More on the side if you like!

Three pounds of brisket will make one large or multiple smaller servings of this dish.

This is super-easy and crazy delicious.  Enjoy!