Tagalong Cookie Substitute

I love the Tagalong Girl Scout cookies...I mean I could eat a whole box in one sitting! Girl Scout cookies only come once a year and just don't last long. But I have found a fantastic substitute that is available year round!

These are available at Walmart for $1.34 per package. Seriously...$1.34! I think they taste just like Tagalongs.

Bathroom Reno

I realized that I have never blogged about the bathroom renovation. It was the first big project that we completed after we bought the house and it was done over 2 years ago! The good thing is...I still love it! I tend to decorate a room and then a few months later find a different style that I like...but the bathroom is still exactly the same and I don't feel the urge to change it.

Here are some "before" photos:

There was plenty of wood trim...but not the nice "original to the house" wood trim that you typically find in older homes, no it was cheap junk from a big box store.

Some of the walls were covered in what we assumed was wallpaper. I thought it would be no problem to strip the wallpaper off. I quickly found out that what was attached to the walls was actually plywood with wallpaper wrapped around it, then glued to the wall. Seriously? Who does that?

And here is a shot of the grimy laminate floor.

A few "during" shots:

This is what the wall looked like under the wallpaper covered plywood. The glue really tore up the walls.

Here is already looks so much better, and it's only primed!

And finally after lots of work, the beautiful upstairs bathroom:

We kept the toilet, just got a new seat and brushed nickel handle. The cabinet above the toilet is the same, I just painted it and put on new brushed nickel handles.

We got a new vanity and medicine cabinet. We went with granite countertop because it really isn't very expensive for one that small. I absolutly love this vanity! Drawers are so much more practical than doors. 

It was a couple of years ago that I picked out the wall paint, but I think it was called Bleached Wheat. The towels, rugs, and shower curtain are all from the Martha Stewart Collection at Macy's and the color I think was called Sea Spray.

You can only barely see the ceramic tile in this picture, but I am proud to say that we did it ourselves! Jake cut the tiles and I prepped the floor and laid them. Two years later, it still looks great, so I guess we did alright :)

4th of July

I've been feeling like a slacker lately because I don't have anything exciting to blog about, then I realized...duh!...4th of July! It's only my favorite holiday, the only day Jake and I jointly throw a party, and our anniversary!

This year, we celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary, and our 4th annual 4th of July party.

For our anniversary, I bought Jake a rest for his new bow. I picked out a new lantern for the post in our front yard, even put it on hold at a local store, but Jake has yet to pick it up for me. I don't know if he is trying to come up with a different gift idea or what, but pretty soon I'm going to give up waiting and buy that lantern for myself :)

The party was a success. We ate BBQ, drank alot, and set the field on fire a few times with some fireworks. Have no fear...the boys were ready with buckets of water!

Here is our 3 year anniversary photo:

And on our wedding day, July 4, 2009. Things really haven't changed much:

On a (very exciting) side note...Jake found out a couple of weeks ago that he will be promoted to Technical Sergeant! This promotion won't take place until sometime next spring, but I'm incredibly proud of him!

Cupboard Door Sign

I found an old, thick, solid wood cupboard door at The Barn and right away I knew it would make a cool sign. I started to sand it to prep it to be spray painted, then decided I liked the way it look all roughed up, so I left it with the old chippy paint. I got a vinyl "Home Sweet Home" saying for free with a Stampin' Up order, and luckily it fits perfectly!



It's pretty heavy, so I'm waiting for Jake to get home to help me hang it.

Chalkboard

When I found this at the thrift store, I wasn't immediately impressed. It was dirty, painted ugly brown, and instead of glass, it had this grimey plastic covering. What made me take a second look was the fact that the frame is solid wood and has an interesting home carved look.

Once I took off the plastic, I found that the painting is actually pretty nice. On the back is a nice plaque that says it was painted in Havre, MT in 1972, and has the artists name. I think I might try to track her down on craigslist to see if she wants it.

I cleaned the wood, spray painted it white, and distressed it. Then I bought a piece of MDF at Home Depot. It was only $3.95 and they cut it to size for me. I sprayed two coats of chalkboard paint, then attached it to the back of the frame.

 Now I have a big chalk board to play with!

Button Earrings

A few months ago, I found a photo of button earrings on Pinterest. It turns out they were being sold on Etsy. They were only about $5, but I have so many buttons that I figured I could just make them myself. I bought a bag of earring posts and backs, and a bottle of super glue. I use the brush on kind because it doesn't get clogged.



 Probably the hardest part of this project was finding two buttons in my entire stash that matched. I flipped them both upside down and brushed on a layer of super glue.

Then I stuck one of the posts in the glue and let it sit for a few minutes. Once it dried and seemed sturdy, I brushed another layer of glue around the post just to keep it more secure, then let it dry again.

I think I'll wear the white ones today!

Vintage Dress

Yesterday, I stopped in at my favorite antique/thrift store, The Barn. I like to do a quick walk through every couple of weeks just to see if there is anything new. I found a few goodies this time! I found a firebird hood ornament that I brought home for Jake...and I found this beauty for me...

I love to look at vintage dresses, but I'm usually reluctant to buy any. I instantly fell in love with this one. The colors and pattern are beautiful, and the fabric is nice, soft cotton. Luckily, I could not find any stains, the white is still a nice bright white, and the skirt is fully lined. A few of the seams are starting to come apart, but the dress is a little loose on me, so I think I might be able to take in the seams a bit. When my mama comes to visit in August, that will be one of our projects :)

The tag is hard to read, but I looked up Vicky Vaughn and found out the brand is Vicky Vaughn Juniors, a junior division of R & M Kaufmann. This blog has a little bit of info about the company. Anyone have an idea of the approximate year? I'll do a little more research to try to find out. The info I found says that the company sold to another company in 1969...so I guess it must have been made before that.

Look how well it fits!

Could be perfect to wear to a summer wedding.

I love that the fabric is so soft.