Monday, January 24, 2011

Painted White Hutch

This beautiful Pottery Barn secretary's desk was on my Christmas Wish List, but I know better than to think I would get the real thing, so I've been searching Craigslist for something that could be just as useful and beautiful.  I have this great wall space in my dining/kitchen area that needed something we could set our computer on, yet I also wanted it to be decorative because of where it's at.

So this is what I found, and I knew it was "the one":


 Bottom of hutch


Top of hutch


The hutch was $65 on Craigslist and was in great condition, except the counter top had some bubbling and needed to be replaced.  The original price sticker was still on it, $699.99, I love that part!  My wonderful husband helped me with this project, which was so nice.  We unscrewed the existing top and replaced it with a new slab of wood.  Then I primed the whole thing, twice, two coats of oil based primer, sanding between coats.  I painted one coat of oil based enamel paint, and then touched it up after it was dry.  It actually took longer to paint than I thought it would.  I'm thinking when I'm ready to paint my kitchen cabinets, it may be a bigger project than I thought, but it will still be worth it.  Here is the finished project:



I love it!  I now have somewhere to keep the laptop, instead of roaming around the house with it wondering where to set it down.  I'm excited to decorate the rest of the hutch now!

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

LOVE MONTH

What is "LOVE MONTH" ?

For those of you interested in giving your love life a lift, I suggest Love Month. January is a time to make a few goals and renew yourself to be a better you. February is a time to renew your marriage. This will be my friend Emy's fourth year doing love month, and each year she tries to get as many friends and family to do it with her because she wants you to experience some of the joys that have come from LOVE MONTH.  This will be my first year to do LOVE MONTH and I'm excited, mostly because I know Jason is going to LOVE it, what spouse wouldn't?

LOVE MONTH- Pick something small you can do for your spouse every day for the month of February.


Here are some suggestions from Emy for LOVE MONTH:

For the first day of February and the first day of Love Month, I like to decorate the house (or maybe just one room) with paper hearts while Trevor is at work. This is something easy to do and my kids have a great time sticking paper hearts all over. Trevor can't help but smile when he comes home. I leave a little pink note of the counter with a "Day One" written on the front and inside I write a short love message.

I love Love Month. I know I'm the one doing all these little things for Trevor, but he really appreciates all the little things. We get a long better and feel more love for each other for the entire year. It is well worth the investment and is so much fun to do. I promise you won't be disappointed.

Stephanie helped me put the following list together of easy Love Month ideas. If you plan a little ahead of time and write down your ideas on a Calendar it makes the month run smoothly. I don't feel like I'm scrambling to do something or think of something last minute.



Ways to say I love you:

1.  With glow in the dark stars shape a heart or write ‘I love you’ above your bed.
2.  Write on his side of the driveway with sidewalk chalk, ‘I love you’.
3.  On a freezing night write I love you on his car window with whipping cream.
4.  Make a coupon book.
5.  Order a pepperoni pizza with the pepperoni in the shape of a heart.
6.  Personalize his screen saver.
7.  Neck Massage
8.  Scalp Massage
9.  Hand Massage
10.  Foot Massage
11.  Back Massage
12.  Leg Massage
13.  Family Home Evening on why we love Dad and why he is important to our family
14.  Put his towel in the dryer for a few minutes and have in for him when he gets out of the shower.
15.  Write a note on the mirror with lipstick.
16.  Write him a note on his lap top
17.  Put his favorite snack on his pillow or in his lunch (Pepper Jack Cheese)
18.  Dice game (you can get dice with Valentine things written on them at your local Fred Myer)
19.  Candle light dinner, spread out rose petals
20.  Play his favorite game with him
21.  Wash his car
22.  Display old dating photo
23.  candy bar gram/poster
24.  Play his old high school music
25.  Play Strip Poker (Wear lots of accessories)
26.  Go for a walk and hold his hand
27.  Make-out in the car
28.  Man Night with his friends
29.  Watch his favorite movie with him
30.  Email a love note
31.  Iron his favorite shirt
32.  Heart Attack (Put hearts all over the house or his room)
33.  Write him your top 10 or 100 reasons you love him (Frame it)
34.  Dance with him in the kitchen
35.  Have a nighty-night
36.  Be intimate
37.  Cuddle on the couch
38.  Share a milkshake
39.  Make his favorite meal (The way to a man’s heart)
40.  Write a love note and send it to him in the mail at work
41.  Make a giant heart cookie, or a batch of his favorite cookie
42.  Make cupcakes in Valentine cup cake wrappers
43.  Have his favorite drink cold in the fridge when he comes home from work
44.  Make heart shaped pancakes for breakfast
45.  Breakfast in bed
46.  small gifts (golf balls, driving range gift cards, tee's) Can you tell what Trevor likes:)
47.  Surprise date (Pick him up from work unexpectedly and take him to his favorite restaurant)
48.  Do one of his chores
49.  Make up a nice bath for him (join him if you like)
50.  Put a love note in his lunch
 
I hope you will do LOVE MONTH too!  Remember not to expect anything in return, just give of your LOVE!!!