Be aggressive, Be Be aggressive!

"B-E   A-G-G-R-E-S-S-I-V-E!!"

It was only his first practice but I was already sweating bullets on the bench and shaking in my boots for him.

I've had to do a lot of "coaching" with this boy from the time he was little until even now. He's needed the reassurance that he can do this.

You see, we've already been through baseball. Getting used to the whole "team" thing. Learning what a base is, and a strikeout, and how to run like Forrest! After three seasons, I believe, he finally has some confidence in the game. Hitting pretty consistently. But he's 6. It isn't the Major Leagues. I don't stress over it but finally found my comfort zone and could relax.

And besides. I've always said I don't want to be that mom. Whatever that mom is. I don't want to be her. I don't want to force any sport or activity on my child. I don't want him to do things that he doesn't enjoy. I don't want to place the emphasis on winning, and being the best.

I want him to learn how to be on a team.
To play.
To have FUN.
To "Be Aggressive" when he needs to be. (He does have an older brother after all!)

I want the kid to NOT be like me. To not be scared to play a sport because his fear of failure takes over. I still to this day will not play volleyball. Don't ask me why. But I don't like things being hit toward me. Duh. And I don't want to look stupid when my face ends up in the sand. Or disappoint the team when I'm not paying the least bit of attention and I'm day-dreaming about chocolate ice cream. Mmmmm.

Anyway, get to the YMCA. He immediately begins. "I don't want to go to this YMCA. I don't want to play here!" We get out of the car, kicking and screaming and crying. "I don't want to play. Tell them I'm not playing. I'm NOT going inside." He's blocking me at this point. What he doesn't know is that I am more than terrified for the both of us. It was like the first day of school. I was nervous. I wanted to cry with him. He didn't need to worry or be scared, I was worried and scared enough for the both of us!

We get inside and down the hall into Gymnasium 2. Kids are hooping it up, laughing, dribbling, just jumping right in. Not my little mini-me. He's tearing up again...fighting it. We go out to meet the Coach and he won't speak (which drives me batty by the way but we're working on being polite and at least making eye contact). So we go back to the bench and I begin coaching him on how fun this is going to be and look!! there's Hunter from baseball and Ava from Kindergarten....you can do this baby! But it isn't working. Praise Jesus, Doc walks in and up they go out onto the court to begin stretching and announcing to each other their names, what grade they are in and what their favorite thing to do is. Amazingly they ALL love to play basketball. Imagine that. But not my kid. I couldn't hear him well and he was last to announce his biography. But he definitely didn't say "basketball" as his favorite thing to do.

So they warm up.

And BAM!!

No joke. The Coach has them running suicides (he was last and we almost had a breakdown), dribbling down the court and back (he was last, again), bounce passing to another teammate (he was enjoying this actually), doing layups (he had no CLUE what a layup was), and all kinds of other basketball related drills. It was fast. I was sweating.

And he was enjoying it!!

He was smiling and having a good ole time. I had to remind myself that basketball is fast paced, he's gonna be ok. I could see it in his eyes though. At any minute he could break. Coach was telling them "whoever is last will have to do 10 pushups". He was ancy to get a head start. He didn't want to be last. But still, he was.

And he got down and started to do pushups.

My heart dropped to my feet. And it broke.

It broke into a million pieces and I wanted to swoop him up and get out of there. But he smiled. And did his pushups. And Coach told him how good he did and they carried on.

You see, this life of boys...I'm not sure I'm cut out for it. I'm an emotional basketcase sometimes. I cry a lot. I'm tender-hearted. And I sweat like a man because I'm nervous, and I get scared at stupid things!! Boys are so much tougher and I want to keep my big boy a soft-hearted baby. But while I pray he continues to hold onto that soft heart, I also pray he grows into a strong, BRAVE, young man! 

That he one day, boldly, shakes the hand of his Coach.

That he one day doesn't even think twice about starting a new sport or hobby or job.

He was the last to make his free throw so that we could leave. I was biting my nails. A couple other moms that I was talking to were staying to watch Lukas make his shot. I was so nervous for him thinking "is he REALLY going to make him do this? in front of everyone? the kid doesn't even know how to shoot the ball" and BAM. He makes the basket.

Yeah, so, he was last.

But who cares?! HE MADE THE BASKET!! The smile and joy....and the cheers of the moms around me (THANK YOU!).....made my heart burst!!

This is good for him. I have to keep reminding myself of that because if not, I'd be at the front desk asking for a refund in a heartbeat. But it's good for me too. He makes me stronger. And wiser. And it makes so SO proud of him for being brave and DOING it.

He's a pretty OK kid, ya know?! :)

But he's still this little baby in my eyes.

And his little brother.....this little spitfire. He's not scared at all. He's ready for his turn, crying because he WANTS to get out there!

It's crazy. Their personality differences.

My boy is big for his age. Everyone has always thought he was much older than he is because of his height. But he's only 6. The doctors say that he'll be at least 6'4" when he gets bigger. I'm afraid "bigger" is just around the corner at this rate. He's already to my chest and growing every day.

Moms, please tell me this slows down a little. Tell me that I'm not crazy. Tell me that it is normal to watch videos like the one below and boo-hoo......



Because today...I'm a mess. I am so proud of these kids. All of them. And I don't care what sports they play, if any, or what hobbies they enjoy, as long as they are wholesome! I just want them to be brave and feel good about themselves while doing it. I want them to (gently, slowly!) spread their wings.

And just....
take.the.shot.

The Quest for Kids

This is probably going to get deep. Grab a kleenex. (I'd loan you one, but mine are all used up!)

There was a time when I wasn't a mom. It's hard to even imagine now. That person. Who was she?

Back then I was so naive. I wanted 6 kids, to be precise. I didn't care about the house or the dog or the white picket fence. That all would fall into place somehow, because those things just happened. Right?

But I always knew from the time I was a little girl, that I wanted lots and lots of kids.

I kept the nursery in church.
I babysat during the summers.
I always reached for the little child, to hold her, and smile.
And dream of my turn.

And I knew I wanted to start right away having babies from the time I graduated high school. The husband part escaped me though. I searched in all the wrong places, and wrong ways, looking for love and acceptance. Someone to be the man in my life. I didn't have a concept of what a "real husband" looked like. I saw it before and I knew what it was. But somehow, this fantasy of a family just took over all logic and reasoning. I wanted my six children, and I wanted to be young when I had them. Any promise was a good promise to me. Every boyfriend was husband material. Which honestly, was unfair to them. I was way too young. I didn't relax and just enjoy being young.

So, I got married at 19.

19.

I quit college. And instantly became a mom. Insert Child #1

She was two, just turning three. I was smitten. Hook.Line.Sinker. There was nothing better than knowing I had someone else to care for. Someone to look up to me. Someone to tuck in at night.

But it wasn't easy. The whole process of becoming a mom, none of it was easy. And none of it was her fault. Please know this sweet girl because you changed me and made me the mother that I am today. I was so young. And I was just then learning to be a wife too. Laundry. Litter boxes. You know, the fun stuff of "playing house". Preschool. I was a "Stay-at-home-mom". Life was great, or so it seemed in my own little head and what I wanted everyone else to believe.

Fast forward, skip the drama, moving on....we divorced two years later and my life went into a tailspin. I saw her. I didn't see her. I kept her for weeks on end. Then I didn't see her for a whole year.

Life was crazy. I was a mess.

But somehow I overcame. There was something waiting for me just around the bend.

It wasn't long before I met the man of my dreams. No scratch that. Man of my prayers. This is when I started to let go, and let God. I wasn't doing so hot in this department. Surely He could do better??

Were we really that young? And THAT skinny? I forgot about them!

And guess what?

It was better. Life was good. 

And instantly I become a "mom" again. Insert Child #2. 

My second child was a stepson. He was also two. Ups, downs, difficulties but mostly good, easy living. This second addition to my brood was a piece of cake. Not that the first child was hard. Just that the situation was difficult and at times very painful. Not her fault by ANY stretch of the imagination. Just....well let's just say...I took life into my own hands and was running my own plan and that's just not the way things are supposed to go. God was in the details of marriage #2, because I had finally broken enough that I allowed him there. Some at least.

We married a LONG three years later in 2006. I had still yet to birth a child, the yearning was there, the flame had not been extinguished. I was jumping feet first and ready to make this happen. Let's do this thang!!

Six months into our marriage, it happened. I got the positive test, THIS is what I had been waiting for.

Circa 2006. This photo totally cracks me up. This was before I got wise and went the Dollar Store route for pregnancy tests.

Now let me take a minute and just stop right there...because I want to be sure I reiterate how much I love my stepchildren. I can't describe it fully because, well, is there a single mom out there that can fully describe the depth of love they have for their kids? I was all in. I knew what it was like to be a stepchild and I've been determined to never, ever, ever treat them differently than my future birth children. I'm sure I haven't always succeeded. It isn't easy. But I honestly try with ALL of my beating heart to love unconditionally and without limitations because of blood lines or birth lines. And anyway, I pretty sure my daughter and I are blood related anyway. We pricked fingers a long time ago! (I wonder if she remembers that?)

So I get the positive test. Insert Child #3

It's a crazy feeling. Your world does shift. Something changes. As much as you say it isn't different, there is a change. And because of that change, somehow I loved Child 1 and 2 even more because I KNEW just what it felt like to be their "real" moms in a weird way.

(Sorry for such a small image. For some reason that's the biggest I can get it! Hey alien baby!)

I'm pregnant. There were crazy changes to my world. To my body.

 (Blue walls. See what I'm talking about? And don't mind the Photoshop Panty-Hide!
What's so funny is that I thought at this point "HOLY COW I'M HUGE!!! HA!!!)

And speaking of that....no one tells you the TRUTH about pregnancy. And then the REAL TRUTH about birth, and breastfeeding, and the lack-of-sleep-crazy-brain, and rock-hard boobs. It's not until you are going through it that moms are all like "Oh yeah meee tooooo!" Pfft. Let's just be real. Pregnancy can BLOW during some weeks/months. Throwing up is for the birds. Gagging at your favorite foods makes you really sad. Torturous heartburn and worry about whether they will have ten fingers and ten toes. And making decisions about circumcisions - um hello, meltdown.

And Birth is NOT glamorous. It hurts. I was not prepared and after a few hours of uncontrollable shaking, puking and crying, I got the epidural. Praise Jesus, amen!

You will have leaky boobs. Mastitis hurts like a son of a gun! Latching on is not beautiful. You won't take a bath for several days sometimes. And the bad thing is, you won't even care! You are lucky to get out of the house at all, much less on time. Everyone forgets about you after the cute cuddly booger-head gets here. And you'll feel like a crazed maniacal zombie trying to figure out whether to CIO (Cry It Out) or NOD (Nurse on Demand) or all the other ABC's and 123 methods. It's crazy. And I admit it and won't even try to hide it because hiding the crazy makes the crazy worse. Believe me. I took the pills to prove it. 

After a really fussy baby, and months on end of just not knowing what to do, I felt like a useless person. I was a terrible mom. I couldn't even get my baby to stop crying! That's when the crazy set in. "I was not meant to be a mom. God is playing a joke on me for all the bad stuff I've done in my life. Every other baby sleeps and when it does cry, it takes a boob and STOPS for the love of Pete. What is wrong with me? I can't even get THIS right. Why can't I do this? Why is this soooo hard when it's ALL I ever wanted?" 

Then I cut out my dairy. And VOI-FREAKING-LA! It happened. He slept. The rash (that somehow I managed to not notice before) had gone away. I was sleeping.

 Hey sweet baby. I've been waiting on you!

And 2.5 years later I got all crazy and stuff and went and got pregnant again. Insert Child #4

Now, at this point, I'm all a "pro" at this mommy thing now. I immediately ask for morning sickness medicine. I immediately start wearing the maternity pants, because comfort comes first. I had the anesthesiologist on speed dial. I was ready to go.

(Image by my fried Carey Pace during a photography "meet up" in Tennesee. Circa 2011)

His birth was quick. Even at 9cm, I got the epidural. Praise the Lord, thank you Jesus! And he slept. He slept so much I thought something was wrong with him. I literally asked the nurse, "is he ok? babies don't sleep like this!" I think he was drugged from the epidural maybe because my labor was just so fast. I don't know...but I can only pray that this next baby gets drugged too. Is that bad? I would've thought so before my first child but now..........I speak truth.

 Hey sweet baby. Mommy loves your little man face. 

And just like that, I shifted. Something changed. Things sort of just started making sense.

 (Image from Pinterest)

I wasn't any better of a mom though, honestly. I am still losing patience way too quickly and I was comparing myself to "supermoms" who just seemed abnormally good at being a mom. Weirdos. But I changed. My heart changed. This kid changed me. Each one of them has in their own little ways. But God has seen fit to change me despite my lack of cooperation. I've come a long way since 19. Do they see it? Do they forgive me and know that mommy isn't perfect, but wholly imperfect and needing to be filled with Jesus? I pray so. But I've got a long way to go. I don't pray for patience anymore! I pray for contentment. Getting through this day. And courage to trust His plan.

And speaking of God and His infinite wisdom....

One day, a crazy irrational thing happened. My hubby and I decided to let go and let God...again. And God delivered. I kind of knew He would. He's like that. But in speaking in all truth and straight up honesty, I kind of kicked myself thinking "what in the world did we just do?". But can I tell you, that I feel complete peace today? God is so much more wise and He knows what we need and on what timeline. He has never forsaken me, even when I doubted, and cried, and tried to fix things myself.

He provided. Insert Child #5

I am pregnant. 14 weeks and 1 day.

I'm still in the sick phase. Everyone says this one is a girl because of that. And because, as innocent as they are in wishing so, everyone thinks we need a girl. But me? I'm ok if it's another boy. I'm ok if it's a girl. A healthy baby, right?! That really is ultimately what we pray for. And because we ARE dealing with honesty here, I do pray for a sweet sleepy newborn - or at least a little more common sense in letting people help me.

Yesterday (in my pink shirt):

A little baby bumparoo! And no, for the third time, we won't be finding out. It's a SURPRISE!

But I'm pregnant. I'm pregnant. I really.am.pregnant. I'm well on my way to my six kids....

Which leads me to the big question "Are you going to have anymore?" Well truthfully, people quit asking me that a long time ago, and now they just say "Oh really? Another one?! Wow!" LOL I know they mean well. It's ok people. We understand the comment. And for the most part, people are really excited for us. Whether it's because we might "finally get our girl" (ahem, I already have a girl!! see Child #1!), or just because we are in a different place now. We have new friends at church. Great people surrounding us. People who are genuinely happy for us and know that we are being equipped by the Master for our big ole family....and maybe even bigger plans. And Child #6. or #7. or however many He gives us by either birth, foster, or adoption. As I said in the other post, I feel done. I feel like for me, birthing babies, I'm complete in that department. But we'll see where the Lord leads us.

"Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one's youth. How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them..." - Psalm 127:5

The quest for kids has really only just begun.

Lord, make my quiver full....

I should REALLY edit my beach photos from last year!
We do have a more family photo. *photographer's kid/family syndrome*

And in all effort to Keep It Real. 32 year old mom with no makeup. A crying (but laughing) 5 year old and a pestering 2 year old brother.
Ahhhhh, that's more like it! :)

Kitchen Curtains

So because we aren't even close to being done with the kitchen, I figure now is the perfect time to pick out curtain fabric!! You know, before you actually paint the cabinets and verify the shade of gray. And before you actually build the barnwood base cabinets to be sure the rustic and retro goes well together.

Curtains first.

Priorities people!

It all started on Pinterest when I found these super cute, but country, crisp and clean cafe curtains with pom poms. This project will be super easy peasy. I know for sure this is the style I want. Sometime airy that will still allow in light and the cute little pom pom trim to just add some extra oomph.

But first....Let me just go ahead and air some of my stubborn personality traits. Ones like.....

• I'm OCD when it comes to a sticky note list...I must rewrite it if I check something off.
• But I couldn't care less about the pile of clutter on my dishwasher.
• I'm very particular about where every single item is on my desk at work, and when the cleaning people come in and move things....argh! Drives me batty.
• But I always, ALWAYS, to my sweet loving husband's demise, leave my clothing tags laying wherever they got pulled off. Sorry babe!

And last but not least, because I only have a few weird, stubborn personality traits..... ;)

• I am such a plain jane. I am tragically scared of patterns and prints and bold colors. I would wear black or gray or white every.single.day of my life if it weren't for the fact that, well, it's boring and that sweet husband gives me a hard time about it. And everyone always buys me pinks and purples when they buy me clothes! 

This fear of color and patterns really is quite the setback to decorating, or making crafts. I used to not be able to stand mixing playdoh together either. But well, four kids later and I'm sort of over that crazy notion!

When we moved into our house about ten years ago, my husband was dead-set on painting every single wall in the house a different color. Every room anyway. And it happened. Magician's Cloak Purple in the front bedroom, some Army shade of green in the Master Bedroom, Country Wine in the Dining Room, Granny Smith Apple Green in the Kitchen, Electric blue in the kids' room, Orangey-orange-orange-orange in the Bathroom. I mean color threw up in this place!

And I HATE it.

So I've gradually worked in some light gray and tan. Oh yeah.

All that to say, while I do love color, I have a hard time committing to it because I'm so afraid I'll hate it a week later. Or that I'll find something better. So not only is it a bold-color-phobia, it's a commitment phobia too. I'll have 17 fabrics in my shopping cart and put everything back but the black and white chevron.

So back to the curtains. I've scoured. I even raided my mom's quilting fabric stash, which is quite impressive! I found a really nice print that I liked - for free. Had a nice limey-greenish-yellow and aqua print of flowers. Nothing too crazy, simple enough.

Took it to the house. Hated it. It looked very 70's pea green with all the light flooding through the windows. So. Back to square one.

Scoured the internet some more. And finally narrowed it down to a few options. Some surprisingly bold, others very typical. Of the twenty tabs open on my computer, I got it down to my favorite six.

Here were my narrowed down choices:

Surprisingly enough, I got these even further narrowed down to TWO!!!!

So I took those two favorites swatches and sent them to my mom along with a fancy schmancy photoshop job of them on a window.

Option One:

 

Josephine in Neutral from Hawthorne Threads

On the window -

Option Two:

Garden Rocket in Turquoise from Hawthorne Threads

On the window -

And here's her comment...

LOVE them both.. how did you do that?  cool! (cause I'm cool mom. you know this. you made me.)

The first one has that clean, simple look (bingo)...
the second looks like an older home to me (cha-ching!!)... and I like that...

I wonder if the print will look that large on the panel... that may make a difference... I see you as the first one (whodathunkit?)... the second is a step out for you (ya reckon?)... but both will be gorgeous... and it's the kitchen.. you want a cheerful look....Accent with some yellow and coral?  PRETTYYYYY...

Ha! See?! They know me so well. But honestly she didn't make a decision either. Just confirmed where I get my wishy washy-ness from!

Wanna know something funny though? I really, I mean REALLY, LOVE the second one. With a name like Garden Rocket, who wouldn't? It adds so much fun. I could even match my red Kitchenaid mixer and my lime green colanders. Oh, don't gasp. I didn't buy the mixer, my hubby did...and the colanders were for someone else but I ended up keeping them because I got a different gift for this person. *eyeroll*

And did even you notice the cute little pom poms I added to the window treatments above?

Whatever I choose...better believe they will be trimmed with the pom poms. They're white. That was an easy choice.

So what do you think? I think I'm going to go with the Rocket Garden Turquoise. Afterall, I am wearing hot pink today! 



(PS. Please don't tell me you love one of the other fabrics more. That will really set things into a tizz!!)

Bathroom Reno: Part II

We left off with me basically telling you that we have tile, we demolished the place, and now we are ready for some real renovation to begin!

Now that there's a happy surprise on the way, it's up to my husband to do most of the dirty work and up to me to pick the pretty parts. Colors. Knobs. Fixtures.

Wall tile. Check.
Floor tile. Check.
Lights. Check (Quintuple check! do YOU know how many lights that means?!)
Shower curtain rod. Check.
Tub & Sink faucet/fixtures. Check.
Toilet paper holder. Check.

I'd say I'm, by far, surpassing my lovely "assistant" in this area of the remodel. Bathroom is ready for neatly pressed towels and fancy pallet storage to hold mason jars with cute puffy cotton balls and q-tips. However, there's still a LOT to be done until the decorating stage sets in and I get to start freaking out about getting a NEW shower curtain!! I mean really, we've had the same curtain for like ten years. Actually, make that about 12 years because it was purchased when I lived with my sister back in the day before my hair was turning gray and when I had a brain and could remember the names of people without going down a list!

So let's pick up where we left off. First let's talk about the lights.

We had these suckers.

After seeing the ways these lit up the entire bathroom (and neighbor's yard 25 acres away!), I knew I wanted something bright. One-two bulb fixtures weren't going to cut it. There's something about a stark white, clean, blinding bathroom that just makes me feel so good!

I wanted something farm-like. Maybe like this galvanized sconce from Lowes:

Which I love. But like I said, I want lots of blinding light and I'm loving the side lights and how they reflect from both sides. Plus these are $40 a piece. Not bad at all....but.....I can do even thriftier!

So I see this blog post about using multiple lights and turning into something all your own! I was sold. They aren't side lights. They aren't the galvanized lights. But it was super cheap. And it's all my own!

Do you see these suckers? They aren't as cute but they are ONLY $5 a piece! I did the easy part and got five of them. Hubby and my uncle did the crappy part of spacing them juuuust perfectly above the mirror!

The plan is to take them BACK down, and spray paint them with the bronze spray paint. It has a really nice metallic shimmer to it. It will look nice with the fixtures. One day.

I think it will look amazing. And for $25. Who can complain? And guess what???

Pure beautiful blinding light. I love it. Exactly what I wanted! To finish them off, I am replacing the globes with mason jars!

Moving on.....

Let's now chat a little about the left wall behind me there. Hubby has been hard at work building me some built-in shelves. This is a small bathroom with not a whole lot of storage. And because I'm addicted to Pinterest, I'm going to do every single little fad that's going around right now for a farm-like bathroom.

Wainscoting
Built-in Shelving
Faux Brick.
Subway Tile.
DIY Countertop.
Glass knobs.

Everything!! The tackier the better, right?! Well I hope that isn't the case but we'll see!!!

So the left wall...

Hubby has been doing this project without me, little by little, here and there as he gets a chance. We decided on three shelves with the bottom shelf being at the level where the wainscoting will begin. And the vertical slats will be about every 12"-16" inches, totally depending on that vent (details to come!). We opted to not put a door over the built-in, for now anyway. I want to display a few hand towels, and perhaps a naked hiney picture or some perfume bottles. Make it staged and fancy like we have uncluttered lives. Because built-ins do that, you know?!

It's a total lie though. I have hoards of sample bottles and half-used Bath & Body Works lotions and scruffy old washcloths. But we'll pretend those things aren't shoved in hiding *somewhere*!

To this date, the wall has been mudded & sanded three times and is ready for wainscoting and paint! YAY!

Now for the faux brick wall.

I've been reading and researching, pinteresting and thinking....what to do with those stupid tore up sheetrock walls. I knew they had to be replaced or covered. So when I ran across a post about white-washing faux brick, BINGO! I remembered my sister had several sheets from her old Salon. So I called her up, she GAVE them to me!!! cha-ching!!! I love you sisterrrrr! Whoop there it is. Solution to the sheetrock dilemma and a cheap one at that!

So yesterday, I get a cup of half water, half of my mint green paint and stir it up and test it on the sheetrock. I'm not loving it. It took like 7 coats and was just too time consuming. As you can see in the picture, after doing the 50/50 white-wash (in the center), I took my brush and dipped it in the straight up paint, and brushed onto the top. I MUCH prefer the thicker version. My sponge brush was still wet with water...so I think my solution is to still white-wash, but with a much thicker consistency for more coverage. More like 90/10-ish. I'm not a scientist. And I don't do fractions (or percentages as you know) well either. I guesstimate.

Now here it looks really white. The paint is not all that minty. Juuuuust a hint. I didn't want toothpaste. Or 1960's cafeteria plate. Just a nice bright hint of mint! 

I let the paint dry. My mom came in and said she liked the white-washed because it had more character. So I had the idea to come back with a dry rag and just buff it a tad. And I love it. We both did! So, this is the finish we will be going for!

The only other thing to report on at this time are the cabinet drawers.

I chose a dark gray paint color for the entire cabinet to mimic this style.  White was my first, and obvious, choice. But with all of these muddy little hands, I figure grey should hold up better. Plus is popularrrrrr! ;)

(Image from Pinterest.)

I have only painted the drawer fronts so far. Before painting, though, I gave each drawer a good sanding. Each drawer side since they are sliding wood on wood. And also each front to remove as much of the previous layers of paint as possible. What's funny is the mint green color that was the last layer, is pretty similar to the mint green paint I've chosen for the walls!

Do you see the mint green? It's a few shades darker. But definitely minty fresh! or was at one time!

I've given them three coats of the gray with a small sponge roller. This first picture is with one layer.

(At night they are pretty dark but the lighting isn't helping in this shot.)

Now that the fronts are done, I'm trying to decide if I want to paint the insides of the rest of the drawers, possibly the mint color? or give them a good coat polyurathane for protection against mold and wetness and be done?  Thoughts??



I'm so anxious to see everything come together. You know you get this master plan in your head, but with Pinterest discombulating my brain with 10 million different ideas and themes and colors, you just never know what it'll look like once it comes together.

I pray, good!

More to come with Bath Reno: Part III

Bathroom Reno: Part I - Demolition

Part One. Hunker down folks. Long post coming....

Well all that matters is that we aren't done. But at least some decisions have been made! We are getting there. Slowly. But getting there! We just removed the toilet yesterday! Whoop for progress!! Nothing says "FUN" like a renovation project with no toilet. Good thing we have leaves! 

So a while back, I posted this on Facebook:

I compiled images from Pinterest that were similar to the look I'm going for in the bathroom. I needed to know what color knobs for the cabinet. Granted, nothing else had actually been chosen. Knobs were the obvious first decision (Said no home renovator ever!)

The overwhelming majority said the same thing. "I like the clear", "The white will get dirty", "The green is unique", and "The green clear is different". So I went with the obvious choice.

None of these!

Instead, I got these from Amazon for like $11 for a set of 10!! Whoop! Such a good deal I got 2 sets. The others were about $2-3 a piece. No, they aren't that cute green color. BUT. I think they'll look amazing. The only thing I'm worried about is the fake-ish chrome finish and all of the fixtures are bronze. So I may try to spray paint them. Thoughts??

Ok so then, a few weeks later I posted this:

I needed tile help. We already had the floor tile chosen. We found an amazing deal at Lowes for some 18"x18" tiles in a nice neutral color that would tie in the hallway hardwoods and the gray cabinet I want in the bathroom. They also work nicely for the kitchen. Win-Win! (I'll update with a post to the tile once I find it!)

So my question was, we knew we wanted the White Subway Tile for the bath surround, we wanted a farmhouse feel, I wanted something light and airy.... so what tile for the inset in the shower?

Vast majority said the White Penny Tile. So that's what we went with. I ordered it from Overstock.com. No issues whatsoever. I love them. Can't wait to install them.

So now that the tile is out of the way, if you can remember, here is what we started with:

Lots of pink. Lots of gross. Lots of demolition.

Wanna see a weird pano shot? Hi!

See those walls? They had that pink glue-on tile. Ripped the sheetrock to pieces. So we tried to decide...do we replace the sheetrock, put up a cool pallet wood wall, wainscoting all around the room?? But then I saw a really cool idea on another blog that I read for a white-washed brick wall.

So first things first, it is getting covered with this:

Ugly right? Well I have big plans for that faux brick. (I always feel fancy when I say faux!)

White-washed Faux Brick Project to come in Part II

But let's talk about brick while we're at it. See all that brick on the wall in the tub? And even in the picture above? It's hideous. Everyone keeps telling me to leave it, that "it's brick and don't you watch Nicole? Nicole Curtis says that 'why in the *bleep* would you cover that up?!" Pardon the bleeped out wordy-durd. But um, I'm pretty sure  when Nicole is talking about finding the really amazing, old vintage, chipped brick....she doesn't mean this stuff. This orange, obnoxiously long, perfectly-good brick. It ain't purdy folks. It's 1970's maybe? There's nothing vintage or retro about it other than the fact that it is in an old farmhouse. No charm. No connection. I can do this. I can paint the brick.

Anyway, the brick in the tub is getting covered regardless of my fear that one day I'll regret painting brick. I'm still working on hubby about painting the living room & back bathroom brick anyway. And yes, even the faux brick is getting painted or white-washed.

But moving on....

We tore out the sink and countertop. Tore out the mirror (planning to salvage it with a fancy rustic wood frame). Tore out the really amazingly bright side mirror lights. I loved the light. They reminded me of when I was little and I'd climb on the counter and sit for hours and scrub my pores and brush my teeth and do my hair and makeup. Nostalgic. I really didn't want to get rid of them, but face it, they are ugly and could land a spacecraft they are so bright.

Bye bye sink! (The old sink will probably get used somewhere else. I love the shape! See above.)

Oh, there's me! Hey! Wearing my fave purple hoodie. I obviously didn't come to actually DO any work that day....Just take pictures!

Another pano shot to show the exposed walls on the left. Cool little built-in going in there and wainscoting on that side. With maybe a few towel hooks! You know, like all the cool kids on Pinterest are doing it!

So that's where we are (were?)....

Part II to come... Painting the cabinet, Installing lights & Hanging faux brick.