Monday, November 23, 2009

It's just my style...

HomeGoods StyleScope - I'm an Earthy Casual

Yep, that's me! Even Ryan agrees with me. This didn't seem to work so well for John and Sherry over at YoungHouseLove but they nailed my style. My design challenge being organization anyone that's been to our place knows that I have an antique buffet right upon entry into my house. A place to put mail or keys temporarily and a spot to pretty up when the mood strikes! The mirror and lamp also help for last minute check-ups before I leave the house. Wow...it's like the guys and gals over at HomeGoods have been here before!

Monday, November 16, 2009

This morning we're waking up to this...

I'm always in awe of nature on the first day of a really gorgeous snow. This morning the boys were watching with eyes wide at the front window at our first measurable snowfall. I've moved camp up to the kitchen table so I can watch it fall in the backyard. It's truly gorgeous.











Monday, November 9, 2009

Happy Graduation to me...

Ryan's mom and dad gave me money for my graduation and told me "buy something for you." Indeed I shall...

Enter Lisa Leonard Designs where you can find the most precious jewelry for yourself or as a gift. Here's what I ended up with (it was hard to decide by the way):




The front has the boys' names and the back says "remember" for the wee little one we lost in 2006. Just a really sweet necklace that i'm so happy to be wearing! P.S. Don't forget to sign up for her newsletter and get an extra 15% off your first order!

Monday, November 2, 2009

New view from the kitchen...

My kitchen has been stuck in 2005 for quite a while. I decided it needed something. I have been wanting a cupboard to hang above the little buffet I got from Nell Hills a couple of years ago. But in the meantime I got a million dollar makeover for $0...seriously!

Before:

After:

I had used this frame for something else entirely but needed to frame these baby feet:

Some of Owen's art...gorgeous!


I cut this out of the most recent "Parents" magazine. It spoke to me the minute I saw it and i'm thrilled that it just fit into this frame that I had sitting around.


To me this is such a transformation and I'm thrilled with the results!

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Kindergarten field trip...


Kindergarten field trip
Originally uploaded by renaelyre
Fun stuff eating ice cream after a long day of playing. What a sweet group of kiddos!! Hope the moms and dads love these prints!

Monday, September 21, 2009

Getting creative...

My photos straight out of the camera are pretty good most of the time. But sometimes I want something a little more edgy, interesting, dare I say...creative? Not sure i've quite hit on that here, but it's what i've got so far.




Friday, September 4, 2009

Whoa...

More than a month? Awful...good thing I don't blog for a living or i'd be eating mac & cheese every night. Okay, so it's been a busy summer, vacationing, graduating, getting Max off to school, planning a trip to Switzerland, excuses, excuses! But I wanted to share a few of my fave photos from the summer. Some were for fun, others for friends...enjoy!






















Friday, July 10, 2009

Things that I want...

besides the general things like a healthy and happy family, i've started thinking about other things that might make my life easier or that could add new layers of joy! So the first thing I want is my Master's degree!! Good thing is I can actually make that happen and it's happening 5 weeks from today!! Woo hoo!! :) Another thing i'd like is an iPhone...what fun are those little guys? I keep reading about cool apps and things that can keep the kids occupied, that would be fantastic! One more thing i'd LOVE is a new lens for my camera!! I feel as though i'm currently limited by the lenses in my bag. I've been trying to work on my photography and have been shooting wide ranges of people: groups, babies, my kids, sports, etc. I shoot with a Nikon D40, have the kit lens as well as the AF-S Nikkor 55-200mm 1:4-5.6G ED. I have a note to myself that my next lens is a Tamron.
The good news is that there's a giveaway that I'd be absolutely thrilled to win!! To enter yourself, go here and look at the July 8 post: http://mcpactions.com/blog/



Can't wait to see if I might be able to win this!! Have a great weekend!

Monday, May 4, 2009

Sing and rejoice...

Before and after...


The weekend brought a new bedroom...thanks mom!!

Monday, April 20, 2009

Think BIG...







What a fun project I took on over the weekend! I have been thinking about this since probably December. When Uppercase Living had their buy one get one 1/2 off sale mom let me have the 1/2 price item so I got this for about $12.50. The canvas was about $24 (30% off from 34.99 at Hobby Lobby) and the paint from WalMart for about $1.75. I have to say that this honestly turned out EXACTLY as I had imagined it. Hopefully i'll get pictures of the new "art" hanging up in the toy room soon!


Friday, April 3, 2009

He calls it Drunko...

But me and the girls, we don't care!! Here are our fancy pants name tags...damn we're classy!

I'm not playing tonight so I guess they'll have to wait until next month to put up with me.

Have a great weekend...hopefully the big ass snowstorm misses us here!!

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Kristen Wiig, My Boys and other random thoughts...

Okay, if you haven't seen SNL in a while, you have to check out these Top 10 Kristen Wiig moments. In my opinion she is the funniest SNL character since Molly Shannon. She definitely brings energy and a new brand of funny to the show. You can check out some of her hilarious performances here:


You can thank me later!!


My Boys is finally here tonight!! Ana and Ipek and I will be living it up with PJ and the boys tonight. I can't wait!! It's the one show you should definitely be watching, and it only takes 30 minutes so there's no excuse:



And finally, yes, the Bravos resigned Chipper Jones through 2012. Good sign. Now if he can just stay healthy!! You go Larry, we're looking forward to a few more good years!

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Can't hardly wait...

Woo hoo...one week from today is the season 3 premiere of My Boys! The best sitcom i've seen in a long time and one that doesn't get enough press/credit/viewers/blogs/props...whatever. Some friends and I are getting together to watch next week and can't wait!

http://www.tbs.com/video/index/?iref=My%20Boys#/all-video/shows/my-boys/full-episodes/

My kiddos got me the Season 1 DVD set for my birthday last year (or was it Mother's Day...doesn't matter, they're practically the same). Check it out if you haven't already!

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Why I love the game of baseball...


Check out this story by CNNSI.com's Tom Verducci. It's what's right about the game of baseball and why I am in love with it. Click on the WBC ticket.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Spring is coming...

I don't care what the temperature is outside, spring is definitely coming. I mean, the robins have been here since January (maybe even prior to Christmas) and they are outside right now singing their little hearts out. Maybe their songs are telling me to be patient...but it's just so hard!

I'm having an internal conflict right now about what I should do next. I have a blank spot in my kitchen that needs to be filled, another that has been the same for so long I could barf. The picture window in the living room needs to be replaced (as do all of our windows) and so i'm waiting for that to get blinds (it's only been 7 years) and new draperies. Our bedroom needs a redo and two closets (okay, four) need something done with them. Should I start small or go big? What will make the biggest impact in the shortest amount of time and give me some much needed momentum? I think I could do something in the kitchen fairly quickly. I have this kit from two peas and could see that either on the west wall in the kitchen (coincidentally it's green too) or maybe in our bedroom above the bed. I should play around with it and see what I can come up with.

I've been inspired lately by Becky Novacek, photographer extraordinaire, when I took her photography workshop this past weekend. Her work hanging in her studio is on big canvases and is really stunning. My problem would probably be finding photos that I would want to look at every single day on a large scale and hang them around the house. I might need to wait until it warms up and see if I could catch my boys outside. Or, we want to have our photos taken and may see if Becky can do them. Guaranteed to have a shot or two to enlarge from her i'm sure. Anyway, here are some of the shots I managed to get:



Nevermind that she is gorgeous and has the patience of a saint considering all of us sticking our lenses in her face. Thanks Michaela! I had such a fantastic time on Saturday that I didn't want it to end. I do hope that I get to see these ladies again and to learn how they are progressing. Hopefully I will be able to do the same!

And for the last couple of photos, it's Owen. First of all how he's been feeling lately (poor baby!) and what he decided to do today while we are at home. I heard a chair scooting along the kitchen floor and went out to find him "cooking" on the kitchen counter. Sheesh!




I am realizing now that I should have napped while the boys did. I'm crazy tired and Owen will be getting up any time now...maybe just a few winks! ;)

Monday, February 2, 2009

Long time no post...

i'm afraid that today may be a non-photo day. i would have to run upstairs to get my camera and that seems like a long way to go just to add a photo. i am feeling the sunday hangover today. i didn't want to get out of bed, i don't want to work, worse yet, i don't want to use any capital letters!! i was on the scale today for the first time in a while and have gained about 3 pounds. so that's it. as of today i'm trying to lose 5 pounds this month. okay, 6 would probably make me feel better but hey, baby steps. so i'll try to walk today and am already drinking water. breakfast is in order too i guess, probably yogurt or something else good for me. but again, have to go upstairs...lazy!!

enjoy the day, the week...the month? for as often as i post that is! this week is supposed to be gorgeous here so i'm already looking forward to friday as it's supposed to be the nicest day of all. oh, and the bunco i'm playing friday night with some ladies here in town. i know 3 of them so the other 8 will be new to me! yay! new friends!? :)

Monday, January 5, 2009

Wow, what a break!

My Christmas break from the U started on the 23rd of December...yes, that's almost two weeks ago. Wow! And what a much needed break it was. I suppose I need to start with the fact that I finally finished my class on the 16th and see that i've received an A for a grade. Ryan and I were discussing the fact that this was by far the most stressful course i've taken towards my MPA. The work involved was overwhelming and I was more than a little stressed at times. But it's over and I have two courses left. Hopefully this time next year I will have my degree. :) I guess that can be my new year's resolution (of which I resolved to have none).

I was able to have a holiday lunch with my friend Kerri and she turned me on to this little store we have here in town called Heartland Gifts. I managed to find something for my Aunt Dawn and a little something for me too!! I've been trying and trying to find a tree topper to no avail. I finally found something I really love...



Next came Christmas! A trip up to Ryan's parents for Christmas Eve (3 hours away). Fun with his family and the mounds of gifts that the kids got (see the picture above of the boys and our nieces)! That same evening we drove back to my parents (2 hours away) and woke up to share Christmas Day with my family. My niece and nephew were able to be with us so we were thrilled!! The following day we got home (only 1 hour this time) and had our own Christmas!



I received the most beautiful camera bag from Wicked Stitch Designs. I chose the fabrics ahead of time and told Ryan what I wanted. He ordered it and it is just gorgeous!



See what I mean? GORGEOUS! I love it and am thrilled to be carrying it around!

Okay, last thing. Mom and I painted what was the spare bedroom in our basement last monday. I wanted to turn it into a play room for the boys. Beyond that, it means that Ryan and I can relax in the basement right next to them, a place we haven't been able to hang out in for some time due to the clutter and general lack of comfort down there. I remedied all of that in one week's time. Here is the final result...




So much fun and the boys just love it! Max especially loves the art center. When I finally get chairs I guarantee he will spend hours in there! What a productive and fun-filled break! Happy New Year everyone! I hope it is a fantastic 2009!!