DIY Birthday Board

I made this for my dad last year for Father's Day, after I realized he was using chicken-scratched post-its on the wall of his office to try to remember kids/spouses/grandkids birthdays... And his system wasn't working well (apparently it was my fault he forgot my hubby's birthday since I didn't remind him lol).

Here was a solution. I saw some on etsy, and decided to just make my own. All it took was a small board from the craft store, stencil letters, paint, round wooden disks, some eye hooks/rings, some little stars from the craft store and a sharpie. I included some extra discs too so he could add other birthdays to the board that he wanted to remember.

I think it's working because he hasn't missed anyone's birthday to my knowledge :)

Re-Purposed and Grown Up

A had a very girly, very pink baby nursery. When she started becoming more of a little girl, I re-did her room (adorable owl theme - and blue walls...I think I had enough of the pink). I sold and donated some of her nursery decor items but a few of them I held onto to re-purpose (even though I didn't know yet what for). This is one of those items I kept.

I loved this coat hanger in her nursery. I love what it said, and it just fit with the sweet pink theme that was going on in there. (I searched my computer files and could not find the before picture of this - not sure what happened to it. So I found this pic of the exact same  print. The only difference is mine didn't have a frame and it had hooks for a coat rack. But the design/saying/colors are identical.)

I had many ideas of what I wanted to do with this, but ultimately, I decided it needed a home in the playroom. Here is what I did to it:

Bright blue paint, white letters, some flower detail, and of course a little bling for her majesty. Screwed the hooks back on and voila! Easy enough.

I think it turned out cute. Fun and bright - and much more grown up (kid grown up...) than the sweet babyish decor it once was. And best of all, it serves a purpose! It is perfect for hanging up dress up clothes, and while it doesn't hold all of them (hence the bin below it), it highlights some of A's favorite dresses. I love functionality. Ultimately it was a little sad to cover up those sweet words, but I like knowing they are still under there and I LOVE that I was able to re-purpose something that no longer worked for us.

What items have you re-purposed? I'd love to hear about them!

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Pinterest Crayon Art

If you are on pinterest, then I'm sure you have seen this or something like it a bazillion times by now. From the moment I saw it I knew I was going to make one for the playroom.

I gathered my supplies (crayons, canvas, glue gun, hair dryer) and got started.

I hot glued all my crayons on in a rainbow-ish order...

And then, I broke out the hair dryer. I gather my kids around for the show...and had no anticipation that it would take SO long! After 2 minutes, my almost 2yr old of course lost interest and ran off to something else. My almost 4yr old lasted about 15 minutes and then she got antsy too and was off to something more interesting. I envisioned this project with my kids, their little eyes in awe at the melting crayons... Instead, I was sitting by myself on the kitchen floor over a large piece of cardboard, holding a crayon canvas and a hair dryer for what felt like hours. 

First I didn't do it right - I didn't know there was a "right" way and none of the tutorials mentioned there was. Apparently I was supposed to just know this, so incase any of you are not experts at crayon melting I will share what I learned. First, do not put the hair dryer at an angle. This created splatter everywhere. I am ok with some of it, but I quickly realized that was the very messy way to proceed (turning the hair dryer on high vs. low makes this worse...I kind of knew that would happen but I was getting impatient). It also made the colors want to go off to the side and not straight down from the crayon. I figured this out quickly luckily. You want to aim it directly straight on at the crayon and hold it close...like pretty much ON the crayons.  Holding it this close will also make it go MUCH MUCH MUCH faster. I think I was 30 minutes in before I discovered this and it made a world of difference. The other thing, I originally focused on the crayon tip. Don't do that. Focus a little lower than center of the crayon - it really made things flow better. 

I had started on the right side of my board and by the time I got to the left side I had the system down. So much so that I decided to try going back to the starting side and re-melt some of the crayon to make it look better. Well, that was a great idea...except my hair dyer quit. You can see where there is a tiny bit of white space between the drips and crayons on the purple and part of the blue...this is what I was trying to fix. I thought it had over heated, but nope, the crayon melt project ended up being a bit more expensive and cost me a hair dryer. Oh well, we got a fun piece for the playroom out of it. I love how it turned out and the kids had that awe in their eyes I had been hoping for finally... once it was done. I will not likely be doing this project again, but I am really glad I did it once. How many dripping crayon art canvases do you need anyway? 

Playroom Art Display

My children create a lot of art work. Since my daughter started preschool, her contribution to this has easily quadrupled. I needed a way to display some of the favorites and thought the playroom was a perfect place for this.

I saw this on pinterest and was inspired to get started.

I originally was going to use a wire with clothespins but the more I thought about it, the less I liked that idea. When I saw the idea with wood it all clicked. I decided to use some boards and clothespins for mine. I found some lightweight boards at the craft store. They were light enough to easily hang on the wall, but firm enough to be durable. I painted them a lime green - a nice, bright gender neutral color that brings life to our playroom's khaki walls. I covered the clothespins with ribbon (because it's way faster and easier then taking them apart and painting them, and I liked being able to add in some fun prints) and then measured their spacing on the boards.

Then I hot glued the clothespins on. I thought about using wood glue, but hot glue did the trick and I didn't figure anything too heavy would be hanging on these for it to matter.

I added picture hangers to the back of the boards and hung them on the wall. And then hung a few of the pieces of artwork stacked on our counter from the week.

For what I wanted, this was a quick and easy project and it turned out how I envisioned. My preschooler beams seeing her art work hanging while we play. Now when she paints or colors she asks "can we hang these on the wall too?" Maybe I should have made longer boards! 

Running and a fun project for those race bibs!

Last summer I ran my first 5k. I had spent my whole life loathing running...and avoiding it at all costs. I went from not being able to run around the block to running my first 5k in a couple months via a couch to 5k type app called 5k Runner. It gradually increased my running time, while building my endurance and confidence.

In the past, I would try to run as long as I could, then panting and out of breath, walk for a while...and end up discouraged that I could not run very long without needing to stop (and try to breathe!!). I also got hubby on board running with me. It is something I enjoy doing with him as well as on my own (and not just because he pushes the double BOB...though that IS nice!!) Running together provides time for conversation without distraction, and opportunities to  encourage each other to push harder. Running alone is like my own private meditation with my thoughts. Both are nice.

Running became a peaceful and surprisingly enjoyable place for me to escape in. If I am having a tough day with the kids, a run is just the ticket to refresh me. If I am mad about something, I run faster, harder, and farther - and feel much better at the end. Even on a "perfect" day, a run is a great time for me to collect my thoughts and ideas.

I can now say, I really enjoy running...and I never thought I'd say that...ever. Once I did my first 5k, I felt empowered and inspired to keep running. I did a few more. I took a break through the winter months since I am big baby for being cold and how my lungs feel running in frigid temps, but spring is here (well, almost) and I am ready to go again and have started signing up for more runs. I am lucky to know some great mama friends of varying levels who inspire me to run with them. I am not the fastest by any stretch, but I finish running and that feels great. I also have zero desire to move beyond a 5k. 3 miles feels just right for me - at least at this point.

After the runs, I am left with these race bibs - reminders of some fun and challenging times (YES, I referred to running as "fun" - crazy, right?!). I don't want to throw them out, but I also didn't really know what to do with them. I stumbled upon some ideas on pinterest (of course) and the wheels started turning. I ran (pardon the pun) with the inspiration I found to make it my own and fit what worked best for me.

I got a board from the craft store and painted it a couple coats of a nice charcoal grey. Then I stenciled on "RUN".

This was my first time stenciling. I had to do each letter separate so they didn't mess each other up, and I did a couple coats of a fun marigold yellow (I have NEVER been a yellow person, but I have been loving grey and yellow together lately so this may be my first item of decor with yellow on it!). The letters were a little messy...

so I cleaned them up with a small paintbrush and my charcoal grey again.

Finally, I used some screw hooks and placed them where I wanted them. (They fit all the bibs I currently have, but if I need to add a different size later I can, or I might just punch additional holes in the bibs to make them work for what I already have in place. 

And finished! Easy, functional project, ready to hang in my craft room. Love it!