Saturday Portrait: October 2016

Saturdays in the fall are the best. Today we lounged around, watched football, burned candles that smelled like cinnamon and pumpkin, and did a really good job at messing up the house. I interested Parker for a brief bit with Halloween decor....but lost out quickly to "train crashes" (This is what he calls anything he watches on YouTube. It is rarely ever actual "train crashes"...which are, in fact, TOY train crashes. We aren't bad parents or anything! Usually.)

Anyways, I like how his sweet little room came out. Thank you, Target for your usual awesomeness. And all for only $7. 

 I've been wanting to start a family game night on Saturdays. Parker is old enough now that he understands board games so we chose Candyland Junior for our first game and tonight as our first game night. It was good, it was fun, and Hayes is not yet ready for board games. :) We were at the doctors office (for the SIXTH time in the last 3 weeks) and Parker reminded me that the torn sterile paper on the exam table was a result of "all the Crazy from The Haysie". Yes, Parker you hit the nail on the head.

Hayes likes tiny hats and watching football. Parker likes hats but not football.

Bryan: "Parker, what sport do you want to play?"

Parker: "Trains!"

Me: "But Parker, that isn't a sport. What do you want to play when you grow up?"

Parker: "Trains!"

**If you know Parker, then you know that this is not surprising at all.**

We can't bring ourselves to tell him that he needs to start liking a sport quick because that's pretty much how we plan for him to pay for college. 

(I'm kind of kidding.)

Lillie Mae is busy stealing the hearts of the three men in our home. She's pretty good at it. Bryan, hold on to your hat! (and remaining hair!) I think your daughter will give you a run for your money.

I have so much more to say about sister....I love her. But I'm trying this new thing of limiting my blog writing to 30 minutes SO THAT I ACTUALLY PUBLISH A BLOG POST. Adios!

Fall Home Tour

Happy fall, once again! I thought I would post the rest of our fall decorations today. Hope you like them as much as I do!

In hindsight, I should have taken these front patio pictures in better light, but it is what it is and I'm a bit lazy, so excuse the over-exposed photos :).

I love our patio this year, for the most part. My mom gave me this wreath last year (she made it way back when) and I added a few feathers. It has the prettiest grapevine. I also love my pumpkin display this year! There isn't much room on the patio for a big production or anything, but a few pumpkins, some moss, and a grapevine garland seemed to be enough for the space. 

I also spray painted some old lanterns that I had and put some little wooden pumpkins in them for an extra touch. (I think I got those at JoAnn on super clearance a few years ago.) I'm still debating on how happy I am with the green color. It may get changed to gray before Christmas. 

Out of necessity, I decided to just decorate a couple of areas in our house since most of it is pretty bare (like 90% of it). The first is the entry way, which I posted about here. 

I spray painted those little plastic pumpkins gray and white. They are from Wal-Mart and I bought them on clearance last year. I love the wheat bundle best! I'm a bit obsessed with wheat.

 Okay, this doesn't actually stay on our dining table all the time, but I had extra decorations so I stuck them here and thought it was pretty. I SO wish I had curtains, blinds, and other decor in here! Curse you, money and expensive furnishings. ;)

(Sorry, this picture is super blurry looking...)

I'm keeping the little dome and cake plate set-up on there at all times. I got the dome at a garage sale this past weekend. I've decided that garage sale-ing is my new hobby (among a thousand others that I don't make time for). I love it!

Here is a little console in the corner of our living room. I really just added the faux pumpkin and those pears. I still need to spray paint that pumpkin, haha. (Wal-Mart clearance)

Aaaaaaand I may have changed the fireplace. I couldn't help it. The other looked so dark and really traditional so I attempted to simplify and brighten it up. (Can you tell that the darkness of this fireplace is driving me nuts?) I also took the orange pumpkins out and moved them to the patio. I have a real issue with any bright colors being in my house. This quirk annoys me, but again, I just can't help myself!

I like this mantel a LOT more. All of the mercury glass balls are from TJ Maxx or Crate and Barrel (wedding gifts).

I really, really, really wish that the leaves were turning in Lubbock but they aren't yet....so I just clipped a branch from a crate myrtle in our yard and called it good. I got the little tree stump at a garage sale for 25 cents. I love it.  

Oh, and we are in Colorado this week! I always forget how beautiful it is here in the fall. My family lives in Highlands Ranch, which is seriously like the perfect little bubble of a suburb. Being here always makes me weirdly nostalgic, because I tend to forget about it when I'm in Texas. It's nice that nothing seems to change when you go home....you still listen to the same radio stations, your mom still cooks the same meals, and you kind of get to revert to being a kid again :).

Anyways....that was a weird little side note, haha. Have a wonderful day!

Our Fall Fireplace

Happy fall, everyone! I was very excited to decorate our mantel for fall, even though the fireplace is not really how I want it to look at the moment. I still like how it turned out, though :).

We almost tore the fireplace apart this weekend and began the renovation process, but then we changed our minds and did the laundry room floor instead. (Pictures to come!)

I did paint the inside of the firebox black with some high heat paint. For some reason, it looks like there are little drips on the paint and I have no clue why! I may have to redo a bit of it. 

I bought the wheat this year at Hobby Lobby along with some real pumpkins... that was pretty much it though as far as new purchases go. I got a ton of fake pumpkins last year at Wal-Mart for like 25 cents each. I love after-season sales! I spray painted a few of them gray and white.

So that's our very traditional looking mantel. I cannot wait to get this brick out of here and lighten it up! I think I've figured out exactly what I want to do for the fireplace surround and even made a sketch of it (because I'm so professional like that). We are going to completely cover the brick and the wall above the mantel, and then beef up the mantek by building it out with some thick columns and then painting the whole thing white. I'm thinking of a simple cape cod, cottage-y feel.

Can't wait to share it! I'm excited to see everyone else's fall mantel's, too.

Have a great week. 

Our New DIY Growth Chart (And Some Fall!)

I have wanted to DIY a growth chart for Parker ever since he started walking. About a month ago, I finally got a free afternoon to knock this project out. And I love how it turned out!

I guess this vintage ruler trend was first started by Pottery Barn a few years ago, but all you have to do is Google search "growth ruler" and there are a million and one tutorials on how to make one yourself. Of course I did this after I was done, but oh well. ;) Jenny from Dear Lillie (one of my favorite blogs) makes and sells these and hers are perfection. If you have the money and want something professional, I would buy from her!

This project really wasn't too complicated, it just take a bit of patience. I took some pictures while I was making this and am thinking of posting my own version of this tutorial...who knows, haha.

The main supplies for this project consisted of a plain pine board from Hope Depot, some Danish Oil, a  measuring mark and number template that I made myself, and a Sharpie. Oh and scissors, a pencil, and a ruler. 

We have this in our entry and it is too darn narrow to get a shot of the whole thing from the front. 

I also put out some of my fall decorations! I still want to switch out that botanical print for one a fall-themed one, but I really love how this vignette looks. I will share more details next week, most likely.

The ruler is not completely perfect, although I really tried my best. It only cost us about $8! I LOVE this project.

So, there's that. I hope you all are having a wonderful week. Sorry for my sporadic posts this week and last, I hope to get some free time this weekend to get ahead on posts.

Have a wonderful day!

A Fall Wish List

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Here is a small wish list I've compiled of my absolute favorite "must-haves" for fall...of course we have zillion other things that need to be paid for at the moment (including a visit from the bug guy because I've seen one too many spiders around the house and that is NOT okay), but hopefully I'll get around to seeing a few of these in my closet/house sometime in the next few months...;)

1. Oh, these will come home with me, and probably later this month. Old Navy is usually hit and miss with me, but I saw these red booties in person and fell in love. Cute, comfortable, and they work dressed up or down.

2. I've been debating splurging on nice sunglasses for, well, years now. I definitely wouldn't go this pricey (the ones pictured above are $395), but I've been keeping an eye out for some structured looking shades similar to these....especially with tortoise shell frames!

3. Leather, leather, everywhere! I love it. I've already bought a faux-leather shirt and am debating on getting some leggings...but I know without a doubt that a leather jacket is definitely on the want list. I love love, LOVE this diamond-patterned one from SheInside. 

4. Another big comeback trend that I want to hop on (again) is the distressed jean, and thankfully this time around they are skinny jeans and it's not 2004. More than likely, this will be a DIY project with one of the many pairs of neglected skinnies already hanging in my closet ;).

5. Okay, this hat reminds me of the 80's, and maybe in a bad way, but it's still a fun trend, so why not? That's right: printed baseball caps. All I need is a scrunchie and a can of Aqua Net. (Kidding.) But seriously though...a loose pony, skinny jeans and an oversized sweater...so cute!

6. So, I realize a tea kettle is not in the clothing/fashion category...but the idea of a pretty little kettle to make tea on those cool fall nights has been on my mind for a while!! And the copper is SO perfect. 

What's on your list for the fall? Do we have anything in common?

Have a great day!

Are You Ready For Some Fall?

Because I am!!

I know. It's still August. And yes, I know that it will pretty much be summer around these parts until mid November...but I've always loved fall. And so many good things come along with it... cute clothing (boots!), a slice of apple pie, crisp air, and Sunday afternoon naps with football games playing in the background...ah, I am a happy girl just thinking about it. And then, for those of you who are like me (which I think is anyone who reads this), there are the decorations!! Oh, how the decorations call to me. 

A week or so ago I unpacked all of our fall decor and took inventory. I always overspend during the holidays and am bound and determined not to this year. I've given myself a $50 budget for all decor (including pumpkins) and think I can stick to it. Bryan was pretty excited about my sudden urge to be frugal :).

This is what we have. It may not look like much, but since I like to mix seasonal decor in with my normal decor, it seems like plenty to me! Also, please ignore our very stark white bedroom :).

Last year I was a bit minimal with my decor, but I really liked what I ended up with. The year before that, there were ZERO fall decorations since I was newly pregnant, very sick, and usually asleep. And as much as a I love to decorate, I always have a hard time with seasonal decor, because everything MUST match in my book, but I don't decorate with reds or oranges...so obviously that kinda puts me in a bind. 

Thankfully though, I have learned that you don't have to use traditional colors to make your seasonal decorations look amazing. 

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I am SO painting some pumpkins this year. I stocked up last year on faux pumpkins at clearance sales and am SET. All I need is a free naptime and some paint. Can't wait!

This year, since we've just moved into the new house and about 80% of it hasn't been touched as far as general decorations go, I will just be focusing on a few areas: Our front door, the dresser in our entry hall, our mantle, and our dining room.

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I would love to try my hand at these velvet pumpkins. I've found a few tutorials, but none that I'm totally in love with, so I may just make it up as I go along. 

Isn't this table set-up to die for? I love the apples surrounding the jars and the wheat. I saw wheat bundles at Hobby Lobby and am sorely tempted to go back and buy a few.

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Oh, you're about to see a sprinkling of pictures from the blog, Dear Lillie. I mean, seriously, Jenny is so so SO amazing at seasonal decor. I could look at her blog for hours (and have many times).

I love these fresh cut leaves and antique hydrangeas. Well, I really love this whole table.

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These are beautiful examples of how to style urns and vases.

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Again with the leaves. The simplicity of this really gets to me. I love it!

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I'm thinking that something similar to this pumpkin set-up will be happening on the front porch this year. And that peek of spanish moss? So very perfect.

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The texture in this wreath is awesome, as is the homemade "thankful" tree.

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So what are your plans for fall this year? Will you be going all out or just picking a few areas in your home to go crazy with? Where do you find the most inspiration?

Have an awesome day!

We went to the Pumpkin Patch.

 

We did many other things this month, but going to the Pumpkin Patch was a definite "big event".

 

In all actuality, it was a terrible day. Our garage door broke down (again)--which cost us another $100 that our bank account just doesn't seem to have at the moment, which in turn led to a missed birthday party, and an on-going argument between Bryan and I that lasted well into our little outing. The camera also managed to be "missing" from the car upon our arrival, which meant another argument and another trip back home to get it. It was chilly outside, getting dark, Parker was in the beginning stages of his first cold, his coat was too big, and we gradually lost his hat, shoes, and socks amongst the pumpkins.

 

Yes. I know.

 

 

 

But now, I look at these pictures and I see this sweetest little boy, who had no clue what was going on and didn't really care either way. Instead, he gave us his cheesy, big boy grin. He made us laugh and made us realize what was really important--at least for a little while. :)

 

 

 

 

These pictures never cease to crack. me. up. Look at that little ham! He looks like he's five years old.

 

 

 

 

 

This is literally the only family picture that little mister is not a blur of motion. And I love it.

 

 

 

 

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I hope that all of you had a wonderful Halloween with your families and friends! We are truly blessed, even if it is not always obvious to us.

 

Have a wonderful day!