Saw It. Pinned It. Did It. - DIY Succulent Wreath

Sure, we're moving soon (News to you. I know.). And per yesterday's post, you saw that packing is in FULLLL swing these days. What better time to craft up a wreath when one townhome is being completely packed up and on the other side of the story, for a door that's not even installed yet? 

You see...there's no rhyme or reason to anything I do. The good thing is that Beau knows this and has learned good and well over the years to not even question my thought processes anymore. Smart man.

So yes. My wreath is technically front door-less for a few weeks but soon enough it will have a brand new, and permanent, home to live in!

Moral of the story: whether you're moving or not, making a wreath is always a good idea. Especially when it involves succulents and burlap.

My original inspiration came from this pin:

However, I'm not the fake-flower kinda girl so I opted for succulents instead!

What you'll need:

• Wreath (any size or shape, but I chose a medium-sized round one if you wanna be a copy cat. I don't mind!)
• Fake succulents (or real ones if you can fancy a way to keep them alive? I don't have the patience for that so I got mine for half off at the Hob Lob.)
• A wooden initial (preferably one that makes sense. H for "Howard". See? Makes sense.)
• Burlap bow (optional for those of you not from the South.)
• Something to hang it with. (Most people would opt to buy a real wreath hanger but I'm cheap and used twine.)
• Hot glue gun (& it goes without saying you'll obviously need glue sticks, too.)

Organize your succulents in the bottom left of your wreath before you glue them into place. Once you've decided how you want them to look, glue those suckers down. (Sidenote: gluing ANYTHING to a wreath made of nothing but sticks feels nearly impossible. Rest assured after several burnt finger tips, 12 glue sticks and 30 minutes of holding them into place later, they WILL stick. Ok so 30 minutes is exaggerating a little...)

Voila!

Paint your wooden initial (I used a cream color), glue it to the top right of your wreath and slap a pretty lil' bow on there somewhere.

 

Oooh. Aaahhhhh....

Loop twine around the twigs in the back and hang from a regular over-the-door hook like so (or for you fancy schmancy folks, you could hang yours from an actual "wreath hanger". Pssh.):

Sit back, relax and bask in all of it's succulent glory! (& pray to God you don't wake up the next morning to fake cacti and wooden letters all over your floor...mine have somehow managed to stay glued on for 4 days now! Whoop whoop!)

Total cost: less than $15
Total time: less than 30 minutes

So how'd I do?! I'm not the "decorate for every season including President's day" type so I figured this one could be fitting for any season, yes?

Win/win/win.

***

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House Update {& Two Reasons Why My Husband Is A Flippin' Genius}

Soooo it's Wednesday and you know what that means!

Oh wait...no you don't? Because I don't even know what that means. Besides an obvious update on the house, you know, because that's what I don't do every other day on this blog...

 

Currently happening:

 

Yep. As of last Wednesday night, my life has consisted of boxes, packing tape, packing paper and bubble wrap. Oh the joys of packing! (Said no one EVER.)

I'm not lying when I say my little Lex is stuffed in the garage like a friggin' sardine. Between my wedding dress (Yes, it's stored in it's original bag and hangs on the garage wall. Far left.), boxes, new washer/dryer, Beau's hoardish-like collection of ice chests and the BBQ pit, it's all I can do to get in and out of my car every day. If I were 5 pounds larger, getting into my car each morning wouldn't even be possible.
(Note to self: stop eating)

Stupid one car garage. I am OVER you!

 

Ok now for the goods. Let's just jump right on in, shall we?!

 

Our house has cabinets!

 

And baseboards, crown molding, window sills and doors but we all know that stuff's boring...so back to the cabinets it is! I don't know why but now that the cabinets are installed it's starting to feel even more like our little home! Things are just coming together and I am luh-huvving every second of it!! I mean, if you couldn't already tell...

 

They look almost black in the pics but rest assured...they are more like a deep espresso (if that's even a color?). Also, we'll be having a light colored granite installed so you'll have to  use your imagination until next week. ;)

Right side of our kitchen. (The refrigerator will be underneath the wine rack.)

Reason #1 my husband is a genius: the wine rack.
I knew he was good for something...

Left side of the kitchen. (Microwave and stove/oven will be mounted in the gaps.)

Next up: the other side of the kitchen (island/bar area)

This is the kitchen sink you're looking at and that long, typically unused drawer right in front of the sink...

Wait for iiittttt....

Boo yah...tip out trays for sponges and brushes!

And this would be reason #2 why Beau is a genius.
That man...he really knows the way to my heart. 

Here I'm standing in the dining area looking into the kitchen. The island/bar is on the right side.

Moving right along...

Master bathroom :)

And that same typically unused space in front of the sink...

BAM!

Oh ya...more tip out trays for toothbrushes and toothpaste! It's the little things, people.

And per usual, I saved my favorite part for last...

Our little mudroom bench

I don't know what it is about this little thing that makes my heart go pittuh pattuh but I just LOVE it! Maybe it's because I TOTALLY forgot about until I saw it installed for the first time? Maybe it's because I forsee little baseball cleats and tiny pink frilly coats hanging from here one day? Maybe it's because I'll finally have one place to hang my purse rather than sending out a search party every morning right before I leave for work? Or maybe it's so that Beau will finally have a "home" for his stupid flip flops I find laying around 24/7. Either way...you get it. I'm in love.

 

Next up:

Paint

Stair railings (rod iron...ooh la la!)

Exterior brick & stone

Fireplace stone

Countertops

Flooring

 

One month, people.

ONE. MONTH.

***

And now you must go off and check out the newest blogger on the blog!

 My sweet (& pretty darn witty) friend, Meagan, has officially launched her blog and let's just say if you're interested in anything fashion, food, yoga or puggles, you're in for a real treat!
 
GO HERE NOW.
 ***

PS: Don't forget to link up tomorrow for Saw It. Pinned It. Did It!!! I'm pretty stinkin' excited about my little creation this week!!

 



Coming Home

Some of you may or may not remember reading the post I wrote several months ago about Beau's best friend, Brian, leaving for Afghanistan. I was terrified for him, for his friends, for his family, and most importantly, for his life. He's a captain in the US Army and was on the front lines for over 6 months. I'd never known anyone to "go to war" so these feelings of terrifiedness were all new to me and definitely not something I thought I'd ever experience.

In that same post, I promised that one day soon enough we'd be ridin' up to the airport to pick his butt up with tiny US flags and a bottle of liquor in tow. That "some day soon enough" was on Thanksgiving morning...

I tell no lies. 

Mini US flags & a bottle of liquor.

But what I didn't know was that his mom would have no idea he was coming home and that Beau and I would be the ones to watch it all pan out!

Is his mom not precious?!

I think I've found my calling: Capturing "coming home" moments. Yes? 

Seriously...this may or may not have been one of the coolest things (besides my best friend's proposal!) that I've ever witnessed! 

Naturally, we welcomed him home with a pair of hot pink owl footie PJs. It didn't take him 2 seconds to rock those babies in his front yard!

Welcome home, Brian! 

PS ladies...Yes. He's single. ;)
***
And a special birthday shoutout to my lover bear, Kristen!! Get on over to her blog and wish her the happiest of birthdays!! It's her GOLDEN birthday today!

Typical Turkey Day Recap

     Just like the rest of you out there, my Thanksgiving weekend was spent stuffing my face with an ungodly amount of delicious calories. Dairy-free calories, that is. (And yes. It's possible.)

You know what else it consisted of? 

Posed family photos.

LOTS of posed family photos...

Christmas card material right hurrrrr.

Daddy's side of the fam :)

My gorgeous little cousins, Madison and Jamie...

A casual family photo snagged on the comfort of my very own couch because after 2 Thanksgiving dinners...it's just what you do...

Our lil' fam - my brother, Chris, girlfriend Brooke, Momma Bear, the Beau, moi

Creepy photobombers and a UH win...

(Ok so that's our friend, Andy...)

Sock monkey footie PJs...

(Sidenote: these are technically Beau's PJs.)

...and, obviously, plenty of online shopping. Drink if you're already half-way done with your Christmas shopping!

Yaaa buddy! You read that right...halfway done!

Hope your Turkey Day was equally as fab! 

Now who wants to do a detox with me?!

***
PS-tomorrow I have something really touching for y'all.
It was hard to not include it in today's post! ;)

Just Don't...

Things you should absolutely NOT do the week of Thanksgiving:

1. Start camping out the Tuesday before Black Friday to get the "BEST" doorbuster deals. Really people? Maybe if you were actually WORKING, you wouldn't have to camp out for days on end to get $200 off a TV. Mmmmyahhh...I'd rather pay twice as much before I set up campgrounds at any store. This is NOT what the holidays are about. I don't care if Pottery Barn was giving away furniture...I'll be celebrating Thanksgiving the way it should be celebrated...with family, and friends and lots of food. Oh-and booze, but that's a given. No tents necessary.

Sorry for the blurry pic but this is real life footage from Best Buy last night. 
Ridiculous, I tell ya.



2. Give up dairy. (Or sugar, or bread, or any kind of food item for sanity's sake.) Take it from me...everything has dairy (and bread and sugar) in it, whether you like it or not. While I'll continue to be dairy-free for the rest of my friggin' life, if any of you are considering it...wait until AFTER the holidays unless you want to be that girl who brings her lunchbox to Thanksgiving dinner. Hey...I'll trade you my celery sticks for one bite of stuffing?

3. Work. I miss the boat on this one every year and will be working up until Thanksgiving day AGAIN but lets be honest...everyone is already in holiday mode. Businesses should really just start shutting down from Thanksgiving eve all the way through New Years Day. Wait...two days after New Years so we all have plenty of time to recoup. Who do we need to talk to about this?

4. Go to the grocery store. Unless you want to come out missing a limb and possibly an eyeball, you will avoid the grocery store at all costs. If you were smart, you would have already gone by now. If you haven't been yet, let me know when the funeral is.

5. The 99 workout. You've all seen it floating around Pinterest and it looks like that's where it's going to stay. Lets just say I saw it. Pinned it. I tried it and absolutely FAILED at completing it. (Consider this my Saw it. Pinned it. FAILED at doing it. post for the week.) I kid you not I made it through the set of 99 and 88 and wanted to commit suicide. Ok so that's a little on the dramatic side but really...my hip flexors and abs have never hurt so bad. Save yourself the misery and go for a light jog.

(Yes. It's as terrible as it looks.)

And there you have it.
Don't say I didn't warn you.
 ***
Happy Thanksgiving Eve turkey butts!

Hard to be Happy

Oh November 20. Never an easy day. Such a mixture of happy and sad...this day every year is nothing short of an emotional rollercoaster for me and my family.

November 20, 1959 a handsome blonde haired, blue-eyed baby boy was brought into this world and celebrated his very first birthday. November 20, 2007 was the birthday we never thought in a million years would be the last one he'd ever celebrate.

But at only 48 years old, he was taken from us.

While I try to be happy every year on this very day, it's hard. It's hard knowing we'll never get to take him to his favorite barbeque restaurant for his yearly birthday tradition...ribs, sweet tea and homemade blueberry muffins. Or go with him to his favorite sushi spot so he could show me all the best rolls to order. Or that I'll never get to research nights on end for the latest hunting gadget to give him to add to his collection. (He was always THE hardest person to shop for!) Or call him just to let him know I was thinking about him and wanted to wish him the happiest of birthdays.

Oh November 20. Such a bittersweet day.

Happy 53rd birthday to my daddy.
My angel.
My everything.

We love & miss you so incredibly much.

Move-In Ready

Whew! I just realized it's been a while since I gave y'all an update on the house!

Sooo...our house has WALLS, people! Like legit walls...I can't see through the framing anymore and it actually looks like something two people could physically live in! Honestly, I was really confused as to how it was all panning out before the walls went up but this thing...it's really taking shape these days...

Who needs cabinets and floors? Can we just move in now??!! ;) 

Kidding...I NEED cabinets and floors.

Consider this to be a sneak peek...

Front entry way looking into living room/fireplace

Art niches (oooh the possibilities!)

Front bedroom, which will be converted into an office for a while.

 Living room. 

Stairs and master bedroom to the left. Breakfast nook & kitchen to your right.

Breakfast nook/Kitchen. The zig zag thing is our island. and for some reason the temporary front door is currently residing in the middle of the kitchen?

Left side of the living room. Stairs on the left, master bedroom on the right.

Master bedroom/bay window

Stairs leading up to the game room and 4th bedroom
(ahem...or Katie's room as she calls it.)

Also where we snagged this photo:

Game room (well... half of it, anyway...)

 Master bedroom at the bottom of the stairs.

Next week the walls will be textured and painted, the cabinets will be delivered and installed and then hopefully flooring won't be too far after that!!

Whatdya think?! Who wants to come spenda night wif me??!