A Simple DIY & Another Home Depot Challenge

Today I am over on the Home Depot Apron blogsharing my next challenge, DIY outdoor games! I must say this challenge was REALLY quite the challenge since when we shot the DIY we were still living out of suitcases, hopping house to house. Our old home flooded and our new home was not ready for us. It was fun none the less and I am sure our game will bring us joy and sweet memories years to come. One of the biggest challenges though was not having any of my "styling" goodies with me. Everything was packed away and some stuff ruined. I knew the game itself needed "more" for the photographs. Yes, we did have a fun get together, but let's be honest the pictures need to look good too. HA. That is where a simple and inexpensive DIY picnic blanket came into play.

I bought a 5x5 dropcloth from Home Depot and picked Martha Stewart Terra Rosa as my stripe color. The best part of using the drop cloth is that it is lightly lined with plastic on the underside so as in this case dew can not seep through.

We used a small roller to first make the stripes. I used the fold lines as a guide. KJ then followed with a foam brush to fill in the missed spots. I did not want the stripes to be perfect, but to mimic one of my long time favorite tablecloths that is way out of budget.

So simple really, but we have used it often since the original shoot.

Hope you will visit my Home Depot challenge! It was tons of fun.

nine

This little lady turns 9 today! I can't believe it honestly. She is the kindest, most loving, and strongest Jesus lover I know. This year she wanted a small party/sleep over with a few of her closest friends. I can not tell you how happy I am to see her do life with such a sweet group of girls. They are the way I believe all girls should be... uplifting to each other and always full of giggles.

 This is by far the simplest party I have ever thrown. Not only was the decor simple, but at this age I realized I did not need a dozen activities set up for them. They made friendship bracelets, put on shows with glow sticks, and simply let their imaginations go wild. It was such a joy watching them all. KJ was a good sport mostly and gave up his room upstairs so the girls could have it all to themselves. Here are a few before the party photos. I am also so grateful for Oh Joy for Target  who most definitely came through on party supplies. They are as fun as can be.

The Mr made the cakes again this year. He took a cue from all the naked wedding cakes we have seen and made it a bit more fun for our color loving girl.

The week was really was all about Ellie. She spent the week at horse camp. At the end the girls put on a drill team show that took my breath away. I may have been the mama that cried, but that surprises no one. She hung with all the older girls like a champ and the routine was magnificent. Then on Saturday she a fun horse show and she came away with a couple ribbons. I really am just so proud of this girl...

The Bath {in progress}

This home being a rental means all the changes have to be super budget friendly. Our landlords of sorts are good friends and are really open for us to do whatever. In the next few years this bath needs to be gutted. The floors are so warped it makes the toilet sit on an angle. It was once so wobbly it could tip over, but my sweet papa managed to rig it so it no longer moves on a dime. A whole gut is not something I really want to tackle as of yet so we are making do with what is there. We had it painted the same color as the rest of the house, Martha Stewart Talc from Home Depot. As you can see I am in the beginning stages of painting the vanity Annie Sloan Paris Grey. You can't really tell here, but the vanity is quite beat up. I found the new hardware from Anthropologie. I won't be 100% sure about them till after I finish painting. I simply changed the glass on the given light fixture to save money. I shared the new faucet before and I feel it takes the whole bathroom up a notch. The shower curtain was one of my hoard items that I had stored away. So happy I kept it. It's from Serena & Lily. The stools are from here and for now make a great toilet paper holder. The other stool sits in the kitchen for now. The hand towel is from West Elm and came from the old house. I still need to find some sort of hook or ring for it. The cup was a TJ Maxx find, but I found it's match here. The mirror I came across at Home Goods and it really pulled my whole vision together on making the tile work for us rather than against us.

Here is the bath in progress. The old mirror was already removed and the toilet seat changed out. The tile in the bath still needs to be repaired, but do you see how white I got it all! It used to be black, so gross. It only took me a mere 4 hours to scrub it all down. HA.