You Really Like Blue, huh?

So, i have been promised that I will be able to take pictures of the completed (yes, i said completed) family room fireplace project by this weekend.  I have my doubts.  

While we're talking about the family room, some friends of ours came down and stayed with us over the weekend, and I saw the wife eyeing my family room walls.  I thought perhaps she was taking in all the construction around the fireplace windows...but no.  She took a long look at the wall and turned to me and said "So...do you really like blue?" 

I wasn't exactly sure how to take that.

I mean, uh, yea, i do.  Thus my blue kitchen and family room.  So then i started thinking about how it wasn't the right blue and how worse my walls must really be...and so it goes.  And by "..so it goes.." I mean I got in my car and drove to HD and got some more paint swatches.  I have not however broken the news to Vance.  I can't risk the bathroom not getting done so i'm going to just keep the paint thing quiet for a few more days.


I did try and find some cute bathrooms but i have found nothing that really wows me - except for this one...she's a beauty.  Oh...and she's blue. So there.

This is from HGTV RMS.  Where do all of you go for inspiration? I would love some new sites to pick through...please share.
 

Hello Luvah....

One more day, and February is here.  I can't believe one month is in the books for 2011 already. It seems unreal that we've knocked one month out.

     Found on etsy by modernprariedesigns

That means it's only 2 weeks until Valentine's day.  Are you ready?  Do you have anything fun planned?  I try and do some special things for all of my boys every year and this year is only different by the fact that I'm actually planning more than a few days ahead. 

We'll do Valentine's day twice, since they will be with their dad on Valentine's this year. They will probably ask for spaghetti and garlic bread again - which is fine by me, easy peasy.  But for the grown up dinner, if it's cold, Vance will want comfort food.  Right now, i'm leaning toward this casserole with roasted chicken, gruyere cheese, shiitake mushrooms and spinach.  Recipe from Coastal Living here.

On a side note...it looks like our hall bath will be getting a slight update sooner than later.  Walker accidentally pulled the towel bar out of the drywall over the weekend leaving a gaping hole and broken ceramic pieces.  Awesome.  Because i don't have enough going on.  So...i'm off to houzz to view bathrooms for some ideas. - night all.

The Inspiration Files Strike Again.

January is a tough month for me. 

• We come off of the holidays and slide right into
• baseball tryouts - 1st week of Jan
• winter football - 1st week of Jan
• hubs bday - 2nd week
• oldest son's bday - 3rd week
• statewide camping, scouts (which got canceled - HALLELUJAH) 3rd week  
• and because of all this STUFF, i don't get much time to myself.  unless i want to stay up until 2 am. and even if i wanted to, i couldn't. i'm an early bird, not a nigh owl.

• Days are still way too short - and i have a thing about needing sunlight on a regular basis

• Tornado season starts.  Yes, we really have a tornado season - and it scares me more than hurricane season.  And today, our weather radio went off way too much.

Anyway...for some reason - the dark crunch days of January make me want to lighten up the house.  Add color.  Get organized and rid the house of all unnecessary things.  (you should have seen what i took out of our master bedroom closet over the weekend).  


I long for super tall windows...and fresh tulips...

A gorgeous bed beside beautiful corner windows.  I see trees out those windows, let's just pretend it's the ocean...
 

I am in love with everything in this next picture.  Especially the gray blue paint.

 

and this..still loving that black interior door...and those bamboo blinds...not really digging that table behind the sofa though. forgiven on that.

Happy Tuesday, almost Wednesday....halfway to the weekend guys....

 

 

Inspired to Retire

I read a post the other day over here that had a great sentiment.  

The statement simply said...

"Never Give Up On Anything You Can't Go 5 Minutes Without Thinking About".

Well....that struck a nerve.  I use the term "nerve" instead of "chord"  because I constantly (and I mean constantly, friends) say that i want to do something to increase my income, be a little less dependent on the weekly grind, and live on the water. And it has to be getting on the 'nerves' of all those around me...because all i'm doing is kvetching and not doing anything to work toward that goal.

This...this is what i can't go 5 minutes without thinking about....

  Georgia's on my mind.  Actually, the low country is on my mind.    Thunderbolt maybe.  Isn't that a great name for town? Thunderbolt.  For some reason, not sure why, it reminds of a comic book every time i say it out loud.  You would think it would be rain, storms, etc - but no.  I get super-heroes and words like "SHA-ZAAM!" and "POW!" that pop into my head.  I'm not sure what that says about me...

Anyway....i'm not going to get there by dreaming and talking about it.  And i've been playing around with this idea for awhile...just taking a small bit of $$ and getting it to start working a little harder.  And since i can be somewhat bored by a dry read sometimes....i decided to start with this.  I figure if he can speak plainly for a teenage audience, I should be able to understand it, right? (I hear my stepdaughter snickering i think).

I heard that even though this book is somewhat older now - it's a great resource for learning terms and how different investment tools work.  And you know what? It's a GREAT read.  Not dry.  He summarizes each chapter, and I have learned a lot so far.  No where near 'market ready' but I've taken the first real step toward working toward the finish line!

Linking to Vanessa's Inspiration Friday's....




 

Total Randomness

I complained about the number on the scale yesterday....and then had Del Taco for dinner.  I am my own worst enemy.  I should have been eating this instead... this is a great summer salad i found here.  We made it about 10 times last summer and changed it up every time.  It's awesome.

We have had a handful of chamber of commerce days here with weather in the 70's...thank the heavens...because i am OVER using a space eater to warm my feet during work.  I would much rather put my toes here....on Anna Maria Island.

My living room still looks like a tornado went through.  The bookshelves are halfway there but i have a ladder and toolbox and paint and and and....and was told by my dear man that i needed to just change rooms if it bothered me that bad.  and to be quiet.  ok....maybe i will be quiet and l just start planning my summer reading list instead of nagging.  This was last year's bag - i didn't really dig Wendy Holden though...new choices for this year.  Still working on it...suggestions?

And even though we are in save mode around here...but am still looking forward to this...lazy afternoons on Rod and Reel Pier waiting for fried fish sandwiches and sweet tea.  Ignore my little one's face - he HATES to be still (but adores her...promise...and she lives to torment him...lol)

And then Tracy posted this...and now i want one.  Isn't it awesome?  She is super talented.

Go poke around her blog - she has the cutest pics.

See...totally random.

Kitchen Clutter

I wanted to start this post with "I have a dream" and then i remembered it's Martin Luther King Day today.  And i think what i'm posting about would almost be offensive in it's 'smallness' to MLK, so i will just call this a wish.

I have a wish that my kitchen counter would stay absolutely free of clutter.  I hate clutter.  CANNOT STAND IT.  But....I have children with legos, trains, matchbox cars.  That have decided that my counter makes the perfect launching pad for car races.   I have parents still in town that need their medications laid out so they don't forget to take them, and i have this man i live with that has my family room completely torn apart right now in a home improvement project. (which he is doing absolutely for me because he loves me and i just need to do an Edith and stifle.  And if you don't get that reference you are far too young and should just stop reading my blog and go watch Jersey Shore.)

Some people dream of these HUGE kitchens with all the gadgets.  Not me.  I dream of Lissa's kitchen, in it's small, clutter free sense.  With grapefruit or seashore candle burning and a simple dutch oven sitting on the stove waiting to be filled and warmed.

 So...at 7am this morning, i cleaned off the counter again, determined to maintain my space and sanity, only to be reminded that it's MLK day and the kids are out of school.   Does the schoolboard not get the whole "kids should be in school, and in Japan go to school 7 days a week"  - ok i just made that Japan thing up but really....it is time for these wee ones to go do a math problem and bug a teacher.

Dreaming of Summer...and a bigger bank account

I think the cold weather here has me in a funk.  I can't stand weather in the 30's, 40's ....BLECH. Have i said I live in Orlando? This is stupid cold for here. And....my boss can't stand to hear me kvetch about it one.more.time.  Especially since she's knee deep in snow with lots of snow days inside with kids.  I don't know how she does it.   Margaret - you need to move. I get cold talking on the phone to you.

I thought i'd sunny up my mood a little with some warm weather wishing.  Above pic from HGTV RMS.  Below from Blue Haven pool's website.

Here's to some Jack Johnson or Zach Brown, some magazines, suntan lotion and trash mag Saturdays....linking to V's Inspiration Friday's of course....

Keep or Take Back?

Help - have i lost my mind on this?

It's not what i would normally gravitate to but I saw it and I fell.in.love.  But you know, we all can fall in love for the wrong reasons. But oh, i heart it so....

Remember my inspiration pic?  Have I strayed too far?

 I mean, it's not stripes.  I haven't painted my door yet either.  Is it too... contemporary? It does have it's issues too - like the door won't clear the darn rug.  The bottom sweep on the door would have to be cut.  That is irritating me.
 

 But it makes me happy just to look at it.  Stupid i know, but it's a happy rug, what can i say - small things people.  And you can't tell from this awful lighting but it looks gorgeous against the wall color, and it has a great olive color that the living room rug works with....

 

 And i AM going for a cottage feel....and Pottery Barn did use a similar rug in this bedroom that I've been carrying around for ages....

And then here's another but....we aren't getting rid of this rug anytime soon - like years...and my house has no walls so everything flows from one room to another - so am i jumping too many styles here in too short a space?  Like when you're at the piano (pic above) - you're looking at this to your right  (below)

So...that's my dilemma....should i just start over?