Coffee Table Tray

On the coffee table in our den sits this cute tray to hold our remote controls. I got so sick of always looking for the remotes in the cracks of the couches and under the chairs in our den, so the new rule in our house is that if the remote in not in your hand, it is in the tray (ahheemm, ROSS...)!

I happened upon this cutie on the clearance isle at Hobby Lobby (aka my version of Heaven on earth... I think if Hobby Lobby would let me live in the store like that girl did at Walmart I seriously would...) and picked it up for $6:

Cute, but needed a little color... So I got a tiny screw driver out of Ross's workshop and unscrewed the wooden bottom from the metal side then gave the metal side a few good coats of spray paint.

And now it lives on the coffee table!

Gotta love the clearance isle and some spray paint!



Summer Shirts!

Here are some more Summer Shirts!

Wanna see?!

Love the dinosaur - and the green stripes!

And this polka dot plane just may be my favorite shirt EVER!

Gotta love Summer Shirts!

Just an idea: next time you go to a little boy's birthday make them a super cute Summer Shirt (and if it's winter, then just buy a shirt with sleeves!)

Beach.

A few weeks ago we spent 10 days at the beach.

The days began in the wagon. Loaded down and ready for the beach.

It was wonderful. It was beautiful. It was perfect.

The mornings were spent in our swimmie trunks splashing in the puddles, digging our toes in the sand and taking long walks on the beach, looking for the perfect shell.

Most importantly, we really enjoyed spending time together.

These smiles were on their faces for 10 whole days. It was beautiful.

Evening baths were taken on the deck in the kiddie pool over looking the beach.

It was different. It was new. It was fun.

Smoothies. We love them.

One day Ross and I completely lost our minds and decided to take the littles offshore fishing in our boat. Cliff caught two of the smallest fish in the Sea, but the look on his face was priceless. He was so proud and to hear him tell it, those fish might as well have been a 1,000 Marlin - just like a true fisherman. 

The days melted into rolling in the surf with Harley, our "buppeee", popsicles for lunch, filling the beach with excited squeals every time a flock of pelicans flew over us and chasing the Girl who ran straight into the ocean every chance she got. She is not scared of anything.

Speaking of the Girl, she is growing up.

Way too fast. 

After baths and dinner, we went back out on the beach to get the last bits of energy out of the littles.

Cliff rode and rode and rode his bike...

...while Harper ran and ran and ran trying to catch up with him.

Ross and I were so excited to see little feet prints on the beach for the first time. And Harper sure did leave a LOT of prints on that beach!

Speaking of Harper's feet, she scored an insanely cute pair of kicks at the Old Navy Outlet:

There were littles EVERYWHERE. Between all of us, there were 6 kids four and under. It was chaotic. It was crazy. It was the best trip to the beach we have ever had.

Friends and family.

Well, REALLY family and family.

Meet Jennifer, the cousin.

And my bestie, Jill.

Rules were broken and smores were eaten for dinner.

Jennifer, who is also an amazing photographer, and I took the girls out for a photo shoot on the beach... in their tutu's.

I have dreamed of moment for years.

My little girl in a tutu on the beach.

 Pure perfection.

Then Jennifer took stunning pictures of my family on the beach. She is soooo talented and knows how to work a camera! Check out Jenn K Photography for her information. She is super affordable, simply fabulous and super fast!

The entire week was beautifully perfect. Filled with family and friends. Lots and lots of giggles, laughter and most of all true love. We are comfortable at the beach. We can let go. No worries. No Internet. No clocks. Just us soaking in these moments as a family enjoying being together and thanking God that we are so blessed to have these opportunities.

(Well, at least I could "let it all go..." SHE seemed to hang on to her diva-ness the ENTIRE vacation... but we love Little Miss Priss just the way she is!)

A Little Desk.

Here is my latest furniture transformation.

This super cute little desk wasn't always this cute:

I found this cutie at the local thrift store for $5! There was NOTHING wrong with it except the fact it was a little drab and needed some TLC...

I began by wiping the entire desk down with a damp rag REALLY REALLY well. Then dried it with a clean, dry rag. Then I unscrewed the top of the desk from the "chair" part.

After the desk was disassembled, I attacked the ENTIRE thing (including the desk top) with Kilz Spray Paint Primer.

After a few coats of Kilz, the desk looked like this (make sure you let the paint dry REALLY well):

Then I got out a can of Krylon Catalina Mist (Me FAVORITE color EVER)...

and got to paintin'!

While the desk was drying, I got out a can of Krylon Chalkboard Spray Paint (the COOLEST paint in the entire world.. I mean you can literally make ANYTHING into a chalkboard!) And I painted the desk top following the instructions on the back of the can.

Once the desk was COMPLETELY dry, I took some sand paper and began to sand all of the edges of the chair (you know I can't resist the "weathered" look!):

Doesn't it add so much character?!

Now the littles have a super cute and functional art desk in our playroom!

They love it and I do too!

Isn't it amazing what a little spray paint and some sanding can do?!

I am linking this post here  here here here here here and to these awesome places!

Post Op Week 32!

Cliff did wonderful during his therapies this week!

His OT said this week was one of his best sessions Cliff has had since the surgery - he has very good trunk control! We love you Mrs. Andy!

The boy was so inspired by the Gamecocks that we had to go get him a T ball set! This is the MOST motivated I have EVER seen Cliff! He wanted to stand up and play baseball just like the Gamecocks! The other night we were watching the baseball game and Cliff looked at Ross and said "I wish I could play baseball one day..." Ross choked back his tears and said "You WILL play baseball one day Cliff!" This is just the beginning of Cliff's "baseball days!"

Here is a live shot of our little Babe Ruth:

Then after Cliff's PT and EI taught him how to play baseball, we went outside and the boy rode, rode and rode his bike all over the front yard! He is starting to REALLY figure out how to turn - which is soooo exciting for him and for us!

Then the highlight of our week came when these were delivered:

Yep, Cliff has CANES! WAHHHOOO! He was sooo excited and I was soo proud of him! (Please excuse my appearance... this is the reality of what I look like most days when I am home all day with the littles, cleaning up after them, crafting and shipping orders... can we say "hot mess?!")

So proud. Cliff has a long way to go before he is walking with his canes, but he is so determined I have a feeling it will be sooner than later!

Cliff's first time standing alone with his canes! I couldn't take my hands off of him because I was worried that he would be afraid of them if he fell and I have no clue what to do with them... I actually think he was standing with them backwards... oopsies! Can't wait to see Ann (Cliff's PT) Monday morning she she can brief me on the "proper" way to use canes!

Weeks like this are wonderful. Right now, we are on the way to the top and I can't wait to see the view that day when we get there and we all get to see Cliff walk away from his walker and canes. We soak these moments up because while at times it seem like things are moving soo slow, we know that one day we will say "Cliff remember your teeny tiny red canes and how cute you were using them?! My how far you have come!" We praise God for all of the wonderful ways he works in our lives. We thank Him for blessing us so much. We rejoice with Him when Cliff's face lights up with pride every time he accomplishes a new task. God is sooo good and He makes all of this possible.