A Quilt for Mom

I told you about the fabric scraps that my grandma gave me in this post and this post. Who knew that a little shoebox-sized storage container could hold something that could make so many cherished heirlooms! There were two different types of scraps that my great grandma had cut out. One type was the star-like shapes used to make the "Peace" pillows and my little memory quilt, the other scraps were strips she had cut out to make a fan quilt- a whole bunch of strips. The really neat thing was the the pattern was in the box along with the scraps (and it's very, very old!) that she planned to use for the quilt. I asked a dear lady in my church (who made Levi's baby quilt) if she would finish piecing the scraps together and finish the entire quilt for me, which I knew would be a difficult task. She happily took on the challenge and I didn't give her a deadline since I knew it would take a while.  

My brother and sister contributed and we gave the quilt to my mom for Mother's Day. It was a total surprise, which made it even better. She thought all the scraps I had were used on the pillows and my small lap quilt. Here are some pictures:

{We witnessed some tears...sign of a good gift?}

{Not sure what is going on here}

{Before opening gifts...she was wondering why anyone was taking pictures}

{The quilt pattern - we laminated it to keep it intact}

{The tag on the back}

InstaFriday

Pictures from the last week via Instagram

 

{Starting/Finish Line @ last week's race in Sallisaw}

{Dad, at about the 3k mark}

{Crashed at dinner}

{Dr. visit 5/7/12} 

{Mom & Dad's pool during a treatment - they said it was crystal clear and blue and beautiful the following morning}

{Warming up after swimming on a cool day}

{Comfort food during a long week}

{Levi & Hunter playing}

{Levi & Hunter playing}

{Levi & Hunter}

{Levi & Jake playing}

{After two play dates & a lunch date with Dad & Grandad, he couldn't quiet make it}

{After-dinner playground visit}

{This wasn't forced at all:)}

{Playing on the same equipment his mom and dad played on over 20 years ago}

 

Embarrassing Before & After

I love a good, dramatic change.

InstaFriday

Pictures from the last week two weeks via Instagram

{Levi and Caroline playing at dinner}

{My first 5k Trail Run - very hard!}

{My cousin's family shower}

{Mexican Monday @ our house}

{He always wants to play with my hair}

{In the nursery at church}

{Caroline's 2nd birthday party}

{Caroline's 2nd birthday party}

{After a hard day of partying and playing, he just couldn't stay awake for dinner}

{After-dinner walking}

{Our new favorite summer spot}

Project Post 23: Removing a "Pop of Color"

You hear people talk a lot about adding a "pop of color" to this or that, but in my case lately, I've been doing the opposite. I'm sort of on a neutral kick because I have a fear of having too much color. Our living room, dining room, and kitchen is all one large room, which is exactly what I wanted and I love it. However, it is sometimes a challenge to keep it from looking cluttered, especially in the last year with the addition of eleventy billion toddler toys (my brother-in-law created that number and I use it any time I need to exaggerate).
With that being said, I'm not a huge fan of counter clutter in the kitchen, whether the clutter is functional or decorative. I absolutely hate a toaster permanently left on the counter (this is pretty controversial, so to anyone's toes I've stepped on, sorry). We do keep our coffee pot out, because it's used daily and there simply isn't a place to hide it. In our next house I'm rooting for an appliance pantry.

One of the things I do keep on the counter is a set of large glass jars that hold my bulk flour and sugar. Chances are, if you've gotten married in the last 5 years and invited myself and/or my mom, you've received a pair of these jars stuffed with kitchen gadgets/accessories. We love to share a good idea. Several places have carried these same jars over the years, including Target, Hobby Lobby, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Wal-mart recently started carrying them. When Target first came out with them, they had 4 or 5 great finishes for the lids - lately I have only been able to find stainless or black lids. When I bought mine several years ago, I bought jars with red lids. I don't really have a lot of red displayed in my kitchen, although almost everything I have stored in the drawers/cabinets is red. The pop of red on those jars has been annoying me lately, and my clutter radar has been going a little wild. So I decided to paint the lids to look like the stainless finish, and give my counters more of a streamlined/blending in look.

I could have sworn I've seen a spray paint color called "Stainless Steel," but when I went shopping for it, all I could find was metallic silver so that is what I came home with to try. After several coats and a good cleaning/disinfecting, I achieved exactly what I had hoped to. It looks great and my clutter radar has calmed down a little (until I look over in the living room at the giant toy box called The Floor ;)).

{Don't mind all the dust, they got a good cleaning}

{It took 3 or 4 coats to get good coverage}