Friday, June 29, 2012

Patriotic Wreath {Happy 4th!}

Happy {almost} 4th of July, everyone!
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Last year, I pinned this patriotic wreath on Pinterest.

The best thing about this project is it was absolutely free…I used some old fabric I already had and cut up an old pair of jeans I haven't worn in years.... and, voila!

Of course, I have to say that I suffered a pretty severe burn from my hot glue gun during the work of this wreath. I would recommend being VERY careful because holy smokes, hot glue hurts!
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Check out the tutorial I used, here from The Scrap Shoppe. !

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We’re heading up north for a few days to celebrate the holiday weekend with family! Happy Independence Day!

Monday, June 25, 2012

Bathroom Cabinet {Before & After}

The bathrooms in our house have the original cabinets, so I’ve been wanting to paint the sink cabinet in our hall/guest bathroom. The other cabinets were already painted white, so I wanted them all to match. It’s possible that we will re-do this bathroom one day, but for now this was a “quick & cheap fix.”

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I hand painted the cabinet and doors with a white paint I already had.  I used spray paint to re-finish the hardware.  Click here to see more about spray painted hardware and my painted dresser project.

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It’s definitely not perfect, but I like it much better than before! And, the best part about this project is that it was FREE since I already had the paints!

Thursday, June 21, 2012

The Most Creative Birthday Gift Award goes to....

My husband! He knows that I love having a little extra cash to spend on things I like, so as one of my birthday gifts he gave me some “Bethany Bucks!” 
I thought it was such a clever idea, I had to share!
Bethany Bucks
Except, now I don’t want to spend the money because the bills are so hilarious with my picture on them!
Ha, maybe that was his intention after all?

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Another Year to Celebrate!

 

This weekend my parents came to visit to celebrate Father’s Day & my Birthday!

 

My parents and husband know that even though I’m turning 26, inside I still LOVE opening presents like a 6 year old girl… so they piled them on! {We also didn’t have any candles to blow out… so I blew out the candle sitting in front of me. Ha!}

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We celebrated Father’s Day, too! 

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I got my Dad a something that he has ALWAYS wanted, a sailboat…..

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Alright, well it’s actually a sailboat KITE that apparently doesn’t fly very well.  So we had to get a little creative…

 

Over the weekend, we went to play Top Golf! While we were there, we also played bean bag toss…which Dad loved! So, Kyle and Dad decided to make their own bean bag toss games. I’m thankful to have such a handy husband and dad! They built the boards while Mom and I searched all afternoon for official size bean bags. (You can find them at Dick’s Sporting Goods, by the way!)

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Tonight, we’re having our community group over for a Birthday Bash! We’re going to eat watermelon (in honor of Juneteenth!) and homemade ice cream (my favorite!) while playing bean bag toss on this beautiful day … Can’t wait!

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Washer & Dryer Shelf

Happy Thursday, EVERYONE!

Just wanted to share my most recent favorite project {thanks to the DIY sidekick, once again!}

 

A while back, I had pinned this laundry room on Pinterest because I loved the shelf over the washer & dryer.

After seeing this, I thought, “what a GREAT idea…why didn’t I think of that?!” 

So, we created one of our own…

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After digging in our “big hall closet that no one else is allowed to open because it’s such a mess,” I found a couple white shelves from college that I’ve had all these years.  Kyle measured and cut them to size. With a little glue and a few brackets from Home Depot, we created our own little shelf above our washer and dryer!

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On the shelf, I set a mason jar for spare change when I’m checking pockets & about to start a load of clothes.  The other jar has pens in it {we ALWAYS need a pen & can never seem to find one around here… it will be nice to have a “go-to” place for them now}

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The two baskets hold a variety of items as well.  The small basket on the right is our “coupon basket” & the one on the left is a variety of things… {scissors, paperclips, flashlights, etc.}

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I also have to show you our awesome light fixture in this room {thanks to the previous owners…once again!}

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Isn’t it adorable?

 

Ultimately, I’d like to add a few more things to this room like an “organization station” to keep track of incoming mail & a calendar to keep up with our schedule. I’d also like to paint stripes in this room someday… we will see!

To date, we have conquered 2 projects in this room:

1. DIY Laundry Rack {click here to see}

2. Washer & Dryer Shelf

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Thanks for stopping by!

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Fish Tacos @ Home!

A few weeks ago, I was CRAVING fish tacos, but didn’t have a clue how to make them.  That same night, we went over to see our community group and our leaders had made fish tacos for dinner for their family! It looked so yummy,  easy, and inexpensive….. I tried it a few nights later & it’s now one of our favorite go-to’s!

Fish Tacos

Tilapia fillets {for 2 of us, I usually get 2 fillets- or 3 if they are small}

Lime Juice

Corn Tortillas

Mozzarella Cheese {shredded}

Avocado {sliced}

Pico de Gallo or Chopped Tomato

Tequila Lime Spice {this stuff is the bomb.com– you can find it at whole foods by the fish market. See the picture below}

Tequila Lime

1. Chop avocado, pico de gallo & tomato first because these tilapia fillets cook fast!

2. Season fillets with Tequila Lime spice

3. On stovetop, place burner on medium heat.  Cook tilapia fillets in lime juice.  Add extra Tequila Lime spice as needed. 

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4. When fillets are done, they should turn golden and begin to break apart. {Be careful not to burn them! It’s easy to. Make sure your heat is on medium}

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5. When cooked, place on a plate to break fillets apart. Place in a warm corn tortilla and add your favorite “fixin’s” …

{Thanks to our neighbors for sharing their ripe tomatoes with us!}

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6. Enjoy with your favorite Chips and Salsa! (For a healthier option, rice is also good with this meal} Smile 

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Hope you love them like we do!

Friday, June 8, 2012

Master Bedroom Tour

To continue the tour of our house, we’ll take a sneak peak at the Master Bedroom! This room comes in a close tie with our Family Room as “my favorite room” of the house.  I’ve loved putting it altogether! I stumbled upon the Barbara Barry duvet cover last year at Bed Bath & Beyond and got it as a Christmas present from my hubby! ( Our first duvet set is being used in our Guest Room). I love the Barbara Barry print and I also love how it fits with the bed skirt, sheets and euro pillows that I already had for our bed!

Come on in…hope you like it!
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We got lucky because the previous owners had painted the room the color that you see. We loved it & decided to keep it that color! Our calming creams, grays & teals fit right in perfectly. We were also very fortunate to inherite the beautiful chandelier with this room. {Thanks previous owners for leaving it!} It really sets this room apart. I love the medallion & the way the light reflects off the ceiling.

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A lot of things in this room are DIY (surprise, surprise!)…including the headboard. Last summer, I really wanted a bedroom set. I mostly just wanted our bedroom to tie in together a little better.  We even went to look at a few bedroom sets, but ended up deciding we didn’t want to spend the money when we could make it ourselves & make it the way we REALLY wanted it. This was probably the first project that kicked off this blog.  You can see the tutorial for how I made our fabric-tufted headboard, here. 

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This chair is the most comfortable chair you will ever sit in! It was given to us by Kyle’s sweet “Gammy” when she moved into her new retirement home.  It matches really well in our room! She is so generous and gave us some beautiful pieces of furniture that we are able to use throughout the house!
This little corner in our bedroom is my favorite corner of the house. I usually sit here in the mornings and have my quiet times, drink a cup of coffee & listen to some uplifting worship music.  It’s the perfect place to start my day! Of course, sometimes this chair acquires piles of laundry, but at least its multi-functional, right?!

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Here is the dresser I refinished a few months ago! Click here to see the before & after pictures! This dresser was my grandmother’s a looonnng time ago. Then, it was my Dad’s when he was a little boy. After that, it was mine when I was little. Finally, after all of the hand-me-downs, it sat in a garage for years. Once we bought our house & had a little bit more space, I brought it back home with me & made it new again!
And, if you look closely, you can see our little "prayer wall" on an old vintage shutter.

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Here is the picture gallery wall that I finished recently! It includes some of our favorite photos.. I love looking at this each day!

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Thanks for stopping by and touring our master bedroom! Have a wonderful weekend!

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Bev’s Graduation!

Last weekend, my sweet cousin Beverly graduated from high school AND turned 18 all on the same day! And, she didn’t JUST graduate, she was #10 in her class of hundreds! She also completed a very challenging academic program where she took classes that were much harder than average (harder than AP and many college courses) in order to receive lots of college credit  hours. This was also the first year they offered this program and her high school was the first in all of Fort Worth ISD to participate in it… It was obvious that Bev worked hard in her classes, but also made lots of friends over the last 4 years at Western Hills High School.  She had many friends and family there to cheer her on.  It was a fun day!

We’re so proud of you Bev!
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Mom & Me with the birthday girl & graduate! Brittany & Beverly: The Mary Hardin Baylor sisters!
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Can’t wait to see the Lord use you for His glory at Mary Hardin Baylor! Go Crusaders!