It's coming!

The time is drawing near.  The day will be here before we know it. 

 And then, sadly, it will all be over even more quickly than it came.

I love Christmas time.  For many reasons.

I haven't always.  There have been times I was down and out.  Overwhelmed.  Frustrated.  Or just.....tired
. 

I'll be honest....last year I was kind of a Scrooge.  I just never did get motivated enough to really decorate.  This year I have been so excited.  I have no idea.

But really, as a child of the King, I have every reason to celebrate!

One of my most favorite things is the tree lights at night.  I love to sit in the room after everyone is settled in and turn off all the other lights.  The soft glow of the tree lights {and this year the mantle lights!} are super relaxing.  I have been up way too late these last few nights alone with my laptop, soft music, and glistening lights.  I love it!

Late nights make for really slow mornings, but I'll trade it for the short time it's here.

We are getting ready.  Slowly.  I've had a few speedbumps.  {like all the tree lights going out AFTER it was completely decorated!} Thankfully Mama was here to help me figure that one out and fortunately we found the problem right away;)



I like things simple.  Not so cluttered.  Therefore my Christmas decorating is simple.  Not too much. 



I think clutter makes me crazy.  Literally.



So, for now, this is it.  We'll get there.  For now we are enjoying what we got.

And, of course the sunset ;)



Haaaaaaaaapy Friday!

Decorating on a {tight} budget part 2

Finally, here is a few pictures of the next two projects done on our {tight} budget.

Perhaps my favorite so far is our patio.



 I have spent many hours out there sitting and relaxing, reading and watching {kiddos that is}, and even drinking coffee {or tea} and having my quite time.



Before:::







I have to give all the credit for this one to my John.  He had the idea and thankfully being in construction, he has some sweet connections :)  I was hesitant about the top, but I'm so glad now I listened to the hubby.  He was right.  Especially in the summer heat.  One day maybe I'll add some sky lights or ceiling fans.  Not sure which just yet.




I'd eventually like to add a water feature on one of the empty walls.  And replace that solid black back door with a solid glass door.  John is also working on getting a firepit built in to the far end.  Can't wait for that!

{The white adirondack chairs were made by my sister-in-law's daddy- $100/each.  I love them and recommend to anyone! The black table came from Wal-Mart-$15. The lamp from Dollar General- $6. The white bench to the far left was another gift from my friend Treva.  My husband brought me the silver tub home one day from an old barn he was tearing down. The green table/plant stand came from The Salvation Army- $5.  The black wrought iron table and chairs on the other side of the patio came from Wal-Mart- $40.  The cushions on the chairs are Pottery Barn and I found those at a consignment sale for $20 for the set. The red umbrella came from Wal-Mart- $40.  All the plant stands were given to me by various people.}

And the absolute best part of having this comfy patio is the afternoon view...

Okay! Okay! I'll move on...I told you I loved it!

Anyway, the point is, it's a simple change but it's been so well worth it!


Laundry Room continued....

Remember this:::



After:::





Notice the picture:::



This is our family portrait.  Painted and autographed by John Luke.

One day we were all drawing pictures and he drew a smaller version of this picture.  I started asking him to describe what he was drawing. I was so in love with it, I asked him to paint me a portrait.



I'll give you a short description.

The larger red person on the far left is John.  If you look closely, you will see a long line going down the middle of his "body" Right under his eyes.  John Luke informed me that was his scar.  {From the last surgery from his cancer}. I'll have to get a closer picture and add on here later.  You can't tell on here, but it's amazing how much the details of the scar that he drew look just like the actual scar on John.
The next smaller brown person with red hair is John Luke.  {Not sure the reasons behind his choice of colors}.  I asked him what the line between his legs was, and yep, he said it was his tee-tee.
The largest of all with black hair is me.  I have no idea.
The blue person with yellow hair is Allie Beth.  She has enormous hands and fingers.  Again, I have no idea.
I'm so glad I got him to do this.   I will cherish it forever.


{The frame and glass is from an old deer picture John had from his single days.  I painted it with my newest favorite color Dover White {Sherwin Williams}. I added a piece of twine to the back to hang it. The row of hooks were here when we bought the house.  I bought the "Keep It Simple sign from Freds- $8.00, and the glass jar from Wal-Mart- $10.   I had the valance from our previous house.  The washer and dryer were also purchased with the house.}

Kitchen Update:::



I have been wanting a "Family Rules" sign from a fellow blogger.  Unfortunately it just doesn't fit into this budget right now so I made do with a smaller version from Wal-Mart.





That's it for now my friends :)

Happy Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Decorating on a {tight} budget

As of lately, John and I have decided that for many reasons we {this family} should become a little lot more aware of how we spend the money God allows us to make.  No doubt my husband works very hard to provide for his family and thankfully he supports me and my heart to stay home with our children.  So with only one income we don't always get to "keep up with the Joneses'" as they say.  Now, we certainly are not deprived in any way. We have a roof over our heads, clothes on our backs, wheels that roll, food in our bellies, and plenty of "things" that are not necessaties. As I've said before, we are blessed. 

 {And for a little side-note:::sometimes the best blessings are not things}.

Back to my story....I feel that God has impressed upon my heart to be more content.  To offer more opportunity for blessing others.  To not be "in debt" to our own desires {much less the creditors}, but to live in pure joy and contentment with our lives just as they are.

Do you know how hard that is sometimes?

Being conservative is much more work than spending freely.  It's a constant battle with your mind and your "wanter".  You know, none of us necessarily like the word, No.

Saying no to self is a job in and of itself :)

{Read Between Me & You and The Inspired Room . Both have just recently posted some great posts on this same subject.}

With that being said, I have a small confession to make::: I am a junk-store junkie and I love to decorate;)

Okay, for some that was not a secret but anyway....

So I am now a junk-store junkie decorating on a {tight} budget! 

I have found that it can be kinda fun to hunt for the bargains.  Makes it a little more entertaining.  And I do like a good deal.

 But..........

Another confession::: I am a perfectionist.  Decorating {or anything for that matter} on a budget doesn't always work too well when having to stay within the budget.  Especially for a perfectionist.

The reality is, keeping myself in check helps to control the perfectionist in me and "makes" me accept things the way they are.  So see, it's all good ;)

So, here we are....a house decorated on a {tight} budget....
Welcome:::

That little bistro table and chairs were free. Yup. {I'll tell you a little more about the free part later}. I love them and they fit perfectly on my teeny-weeny front porch, so we are happy.

I've mentioned before how much I l-o-v-e a fireplace.  And that I've dreamed about one since I got married and had a house of my own.  Unfortunately I have no fireplace and I'm not seeing one in the budget any time soon.  But I do have a beautiful mantel.  And for now I can handle that.  It's just perfect for those Christmas stockings that will be hung soon. We'll add the fire part to it one day.

 

This is probably a good time to make yet another confession:::  Remember the free table and chairs on the porch? I have a really sweet friend that is the most generous and precious person I know, and without her I would not be blessed with a lot of my "stuff". So thank you Ms. Treba {I mean Treva}. We love you! You are the best!} The beautiful mantel belonged to her as well. She added those awesome corbels and I added a coat of paint to it.

The window and shutters were also given to me from Treva.  See, I told you she is precious!

This is it for now.....not exactly 'right', but Christmas is coming and those stockings will be hung and some fresh greenery.  Cannot wait!

I was noticing as I took these pictures, that nothing in this room has been purchased {at full price}, since we have been married except the two end tables and lamps.



 

This table used to be under the TV.  It also has a story. It belonged to my granny and is over 100 years old. 



Now, it is sitting in my bedroom.





Speaking of my bedroom.....



See that empty space above the bed....I need an idea.



I cannot figure out what needs to go there.

{the white chest- a junkstore find-$25; the bookshelves- given to me by another sweet friend; the bed, armoire, and chest of drawers-bought by husband before "I Do" so paid for by him; the nightstands-made by my father-in-law; the nightstand table cloths-made by my mother-in-law; the lamps-need new ones; the ficus tree-given to us.}

The kitchen:::

This was such a fun project.   Can you hear the sarcasm in my voice?





To save $$$, we decided that we would paint the cabinets ourselves.  Oh. my. goodness.  What. a. big. job! I am glad {now that it's all over} that we saved the money.  They are definitely not professional quality so don't look closely, but they are white and bright.  And. Done.  And I have loved them so far.  And the best part::: the entire kitchen project done for around $300.

Before:::





After:::








{I love this verse}





{the table and chairs for the kid's coloring spot- junkstore- $20 for everything.}


Before:::

The eating area:::







After:::



{the kitchen table-purchased at the junkstore for the same price that I sold the old kitchen table!}



{the table-given to me by my sweet, sweet friend-the same one that gave me the mantel, etc... the chair- purchased at the junkstore for $10}}



Laundry room:::

This is still a work in progress, but I'll give you a preview.

Before:::



I called it the dungeon.  You can see why.

After:::






{another gift from my friend}

There's more projects going on around here, but I've run out of time.  I'll be back.