Lunchbox treats

I made the yummiest cheesecake for my husband's birthday this week. We had lots of left over batter, so I had my 5 yr. old fill our mini cupcake pan. I've been popping them in lunchboxes this week, and they've proved to be a big hit!

* Looking for a guilt-free treat, try these.

Around the House

We're making baby steps around the house, getting beyond the messy things like jackhammering tile & sanding subfloor. I cannot explain to you the amount of dust we've had swirling around this house. It has infiltrated every last nook and cranny in this place. (Did I mention I've been sneazing like crazy?) I have a newfound respect for those home reno warriors that have been working on their homes for years, and blogging every step. With a of couple projects finally under our belts, I see it's not all shiny results that seemingly happen overnight. It's a ton of work, a lot of delays, & a constant stream of receipts from Home Depot. We've laid 640 sq.ft. of hardwood in the kitchen & living rooms, the walls,ceilings and trim have been painted, and my Dad painstakingly refinished all 3 sets of french doors a creamy white. Buh bye, honey colored oak! Hello light. We still have a million projects staring us in the face, but for now I'm happy to cart all the ladders, saws, paint buckets, etc. down to the basement, and pretend that just for a few days, we're done with them. In the meantime, I'll put out flowers, hang some art, spruce up some of my thrifted finds, and just enjoy what we've accomplished so far. Whew!

What boundaries?

We started the week off with a snow day around here. Not technically a snow day, but a "backroads are icy" day. We gladly took it! Sleeping in feels like such a huge luxury! There's been very little snow here thus far. How about where you're at?

Today I stepped out to the studio where I finally took scans of the above paintings. I worked on these last week, and it felt really good to paint something outside my usual style. It still feels very me, but florals aren't something I've done in the past. I love them. It gives me a little push to try other things, which I'm excited about! You can find the originals here, and the prints here & here.

Post Holiday

We had a great holiday break! How about you? The best part for me was having the girls home for 10 days. They had so much fun playing with all their new stuff. We played with new board games, made pottery, etched glass vases, made mosiacs, and did science experiments! Hooray for crafty gifts! We spent the after Christmas portion of our break working on the house. The living room has been painted and flooring is being installed a little at a time. We hope to have the living room & kitchen done by Febuary, when my Dad will be flying in to help us knock most of the painting out. Cannot wait for that!

The Ugly.

One good thing about the holidays is the impending arrival of company. Having guests always puts us in productive mode. We have a huge list of things that need to get done around here. We spent our first couple of months at the new house focusing on the outside, while the weather was still decent. The previous owners raised show dogs, and as a result, had the entire back yard set up as a kennel. We had tons of fencing to remove, as well as 5 acres of overgrown brush to get rid of. We also dug up old landscaping and planned next years garden area. And...just before the frost came, we managed to start landscaping around the pond. Finally, it's freezing outside, and the inside gets some attention!

The first thing on our list is paint. The previous residents left behind a ton of nail holes, blistering drywall tape, a picket fence stencil ( in mauve, no less), and hand painted clouds. Cannot wait to see all that gone! I've had a patchwork quilt of paint samples on the wall for a month. My husband finished all the drywall repair in the living area, so we'll be painting this weekend. We're going with Sherwin Williams Aloof Gray. It's the greenish/blue gray to the left, above the mantle. I seriously about drove him crazy bringing home samples. Our living room is back lit by the sun room, which makes the color change throughout the day. This was the only gray I found that didn't turn muddy looking at night. The woodwork will be painted white, but not until spring, when we can open the windows and bust out the oil based paint.

Next up, hardwood floors! After ripping out the carpet and walking on sub floor for two months, it's another project we're pretty excited about!

Baby It's Cold Outside

Is it cold where you are? The big chill is officially on in Michigan. And while I don't necessarily love the cold, I do love the snow. I snapped these pictures with my phone one morning after I dropped the kids off at school. I love how a fresh coat of white makes it much easier to spot the birds, squirrels, and deer roaming around here. I'm looking forward to watching our pond freeze. We have our ice skates ready!

Up & Running!

Well folks...it's been a looooong time since I've posted anything here...talk about a dry spell. I'm excited to be blogging again! I even gave the space a colorful little facelift. I have news to share...

1.) We've moved! We're settling into our new home, slowly but surely. By slowly, I mean we've been here 2 months, still have unpacked boxes in the basement and 17 million half- finished house projects on our plate. More on that later...

2.) I have a brand new studio space. It has a couple of sunny windows, one which looks out across our backyard and towards the pond. (someone slap me- I still think I'm dreaming) My sweet husband hung shelves for me and put a shiny lock on the door. It's my lady cave and I love it. My dog comes to work with me everyday.

3.) Items 1 & 2 have me on cloud 9, which means I'm pretty inspired right now, so you can expect to see lots of new art over here on the blog. Yay!

*Paintings are here, here, & here!