Yard Love.

Our yard was looking pretty sad.  It has been neglected the past few months and it was time to do something to it!

Hubs mowed and edged the yard and I planted some plants Momma Llama gave me while we were in Spokane (hopefully they make it!).  Most of the plants are still green but i'm looking forward to the blooms! We've had such a weird spring!

I had to take some pics of the boys... I love them :]



I added some color on the porch to tie me over till the bloomin starts :) 

My mom-in-law gave me these great pots, she also gave me two matching smaller ones but I haven't filled those yet.

Aren't these Calle Lilys gorgeous?! They popped up last spring and I forgot to move them, at the end of this summer I am going to move them to a more prominent location :]

Bring Spring!

Weekend Fun

We spent this weekend in Spokane with my in-laws.  It was the pups first road trip and they did great!

They loved sticking their heads out the window and they took lots and lots of puppy naps :]

They met their Uncle Buddy for the first time and they all got along great!

My father-in-law has taken  a liking to golfing and now the hubs is wanting to get into it... 

They were out in the pasture for hours just hitting balls :]

Great weekend! Can't wait to go back!!

Joy's New Bedroom

Joy is our aunt. She is the one you met in this post.

She is 40 and is excited for this new time in her life :] There was just one thing that wasn't right and that was her bedroom.

As you look at the before pictures, sing to yourself of all the horror movie sound effects...

AHHHHHHH!

EEEEEEKKKK!!

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

Are your retinas burning?!

Joy desperately needed a bedroom makeover and that is what she got for her 40th birthday.  My mother and sister-in-law asked for my help in the transformation and we had so much fun doing it!

This makeover was done on a budget as all my makeovers are and everything we found was at IKEA. Normally, I try to work with pieces that people already have in there spaces but sometimes you just need a clean slate.  This was one of those times.

Before, the room was so dark and dated. Joy's bed was too high and too small and it wasn't a pretty sight. Now it's light and bright, all the furniture is the perfect size for Joy's small frame and it is now a visually stunning room that is both fun and practical!

We started with the new full sized bed that is much lower to the ground.  The birch color was chosen because of how bright it would make the room in contrast to her old, dark furniture.  The "Lack" side tables were the perfect match and sized perfect to the new bed.  Plus, at $9.99 a piece, you can't beat it!

I thought an "Expedit" shelf would be a perfect space to hold all her DVDs, movies, books and knick knacks.  Two green storage boxes were purchased to hide little items such as office supplies etc.  New green polka dot curtains were hung to make a statement but still allow the light to pour in the bedroom.  The two print artwork brings the color from the bedspread over to the corner and adds balance.

A new chair that is perfect for Joy now sits at the end of her bed facing her T.V. if she ever just wants to go in her room and "chill out".

A $40 mirror really grounds the bed area and joy will be able to see herself  :]

I also grabbed some little accessories to make the space a little more feminine...

while also using accessories she had to make the room have just the perfect amount of Joy  :]

This was so much fun and she LOVED her new room!

Joyfully 40

This past Saturday our Aunt Joy turned 40!  This is a huge milestone for her and no one deserved a special party and day more than her!

We celebrated the day fiesta style complete with a taco bar and margaritas :] She was surrounded by her family and it was a beautiful 70 degree day!

After the party, she went home to a newly decorated room. I will post details and pictures later!



Our Life Lately...

I have been HORRIBLE about posting lately and for that, I apologize.  Last weekend we were in Las Vegas soakin up the sun and damaging our livers :]

The reason for our trip was a coaching clinic that the hubs and his coach buddies wanted to take part in. It was the three of us couples and it couldn't have been a better group. So much laughter and so many one-liners I will NEVER forget :]

 Our daytime activities consisted of one thing... Pool.  We just wanted the sun and water and we definitely got it! Justin and I both got burned the first day (awesome) and had to take it easy the second day. (See shirt and towel coverings in picture below) Luckily we were back in action for the third day at the pool and thanks to my freakishly OCD aloe vera applying routine, there be no peelin - just brown, tan greatness... ah thank you.

This was our view during the day. We stayed at the Monte Carlo which was an awesome choice.  The price was fantastic and the rooms and facilities were clean and nicely updated.

Besides laying in the sun, we did a lot of this.  I need to prep myself for Vegas next time :]

Our night time activity consisted of walking up and down the strip.  We shopped in Cesar's Palace, Dined in Little Italy and rode the NY NY roller coaster. We ate a ton, drank all day and by 11pm we were all done.  It's hard getting old...

We also happened to meet some characters that I had no idea resided in Las Vegas Nevada.

Hello Kitty?! I thought she was from Japan!

Michael Jackson! He was just hiding all this time!! Silly man.

 It was my hunnys first time in Vegas.  Although, "overstimulating" and "nuts", he loved the lights and atmosphere the city has to offer.  Its the perfect getaway for a weekend of sunshine.

Fun, hot, tired, full.  Can't wait to go back!!

On another note.  I have found work.  Now I will have much more to add to the ol bloggity blog and we can get our back yard in tip top shape :]  Stay tuned!

Chalk it To Me

For a while now, I have been wanting a chalk board in the kitchen. I am always thinking of things that I need to pick up at the store or do and I thought it would be a much more effective way of remembering to write it on a big-in-your-face-board, than writing on little pieces of paper that go missing.

I was at a thrift store two weekends ago and this little baby caught my eye...

It was only $5 dollars!

I purchased some chalk paint from the local hardware store,

taped off the edges,

and started painting.

   

Once the first coat is on, you have to wait 4 hours to apply the second coat, third and so on.

After all the layers were applied, I peeled the tape off, taking some of the chalk board with it. I ended up just painting in the inner frame to make things easier.

It is now hanging where my "plate art" used to be.  It's kind of small for the space but I have some other ideas of what to add there.

After three days of drying, you can write on it. :]  We were out of town this past weekend and my sister-in-law house sat.  We decided to leave her the first message on our new chalk board!

Small changes with BIG results!

Along with the bookshelf, I have been doing lots of little things around the house to get it exactly how I want it :)

The first small change is the addition of blue glass added in the kitchen and dining room. I wanted to make these two rooms more cohesive so I decided to rearrange some artwork and add the blue :)

I took this plate piece from the kitchen...

and put it in the dining room.



The plates have a nice turquoise in them which doesn't exactly match the cobalt blue of the glass but gives the space a more cohesive feel by bringing in more colors from the kitchen.

The blue glass has been in my family for years! My grandma has been collecting it and wanted to give some to me!

These two little jars are from the 1920's!

I love the color it adds!

The second small change at Casa Dobson are a couple little additions to the picture wall.  One of my best buddies Macey and I traveled to Seattle one day for some antique shopping.  Most of the treasures we found were WAY out of our price range, but it was so much fun to poke around.  We had to take a lunch break due to the overwhelming amount of things to look at!

I did find two little things that I thought would be perfect to add to our photo wall.  I wanted to break up the bulky frames with some unique, yet personalized pieces.  For $5, I did just that :)

The first was this great "d", I bought it for obvious reasons (last name being Dobson) and I LOVE IT! I want to get more "D"s to spread around the house!

I also found this old "friends" flash card.

I really like how it turned out! I want to find more little pieces to add to the walls. 

Yahoo, Yippy, Yay!

Stay tuned for a semi-home made chalkboard!