Adventures in Apple Butter

Do you remember the 80's movie "Baby Boom" starring Diane Keaton? Remember the beautiful farmhouse in Vermont she bought in the movie? Remember the awesome fireplace in the kitchen? Remember the cutie patootie baby girl named "Elizabeth"? Most of all, do you remember all the homemade applesauce she made and sold as "Country Baby"? Do you think it is just coincidence that I myself had a cute little country baby named Elizabeth whom we call Libby? That is one of my favorite all time movies! Scott even bought it for me on DVD after Colt Joseph was born when I was in desperate need of entertainment while nursing a newborn a couple times a night.

Let's just say I was channeling JC Wyatt (Diane Keaton's character) today while experimenting with some homemade apple butter. I made just enough to fill 3 pint jars. With a few phone calls to some expert canners and some help from my Sexyman, I was able to complete my first "canning" product! I kept one jar for us and I decorated the other two jars to give away. So, if you have never seen "Baby Boom" you are missing out on a great movie with great 80's synthesizer music. If you have never tasted apple butter, go directly to your friendly Cracker Barrel Restaurant and buy a jar! My apple butter still needs tweaking but I have the cutest jars!

Master Bathroom Made New

Here is the way the master bathroom has looked the past 3 years. What can I say...I love wallpaper border. I know, it is sooooo 90s. I still love it. I fell in love with this border and built the whole bathroom around it. I painted the walls ( for about 3 years before that they were blue; I like to change things around...a lot), got new towels and the whole works. Then, about a month ago I was ready for more updating. I first started painting the super dark wood cabinets a lighter color. That is why they are two toned. About halfway through, I remembered to take a "before" pic. Here is the ugly shower door that I was trying to find a way to cover up.

This was my solution to the ugly door! I found this beautiful fabric at Hobby Lobby that I fell in love with. I bought some with a coupon ( it was $8.99 a yard!!!) and commissioned my mom to make a faux shower curtain. I bought a silver curtain rod and some cafe clips.

I painted the walls the same color as we have been painting the hallways (yes...we have several home improvement projects going on at the same time!) which is "Burnt Almond". Got some new towels and got rid of the old jewelry box. I bought this one at Hobby Lobby in the unfinished wood aisle and spray painted it. Please disregard the pink cabinet pulls. I am still looking for the perfect blue or green ones.

Since our towels previously hung on hooks over the ugly shower door, I had to find a way to hang them. I had seen so many cutie "HIS" and "HERS" but came up with a cuter idea that was more US. I bought some robe hooks at Target and hung them unevenly. Then I bought some glass frames and then...

...I wrapped the backs with left over fabric from my faux shower curtain. I wrapped it around the back and secured it with double sided tape. I then used pinking shears to cut brown card stock into rectangles. I bought some OH SO FANDANCY green letter stickers and spelled out our names we call each other. i call Scott "Honey" and he calls me "Sweetie". So...just a more personalized version of "his" and "hers"!

The so much better painted cabinets and the new counter top stuff.

Oh yeah...I bought this blue candle garland at Affair of the Heart for something else but never used it. I just used the cafe clips to grab it and make a swag for the top of the curtain.

Country Crafting...

A few little crafties. I made these oh-so-cute-on-your-arm button bracelets but I still need to tweak this craft a little. I'm thinking I need one for every season! Plus...my mini-belle was in desperate need of more flip-flops. Besides...can a country girl truly have TOO MUCH gingham?

Dining Room prettiness...

I'm in love with my new dining room table prettiness! I got the runner at the Apple Barn in Sevierville in the Smokies! I have a "Ball" jar full of lemons & flowers; a "Kerr" jar with a taper being held in place by this really cool gadget I got a Apple Valley in Townsend...IN THE SMOKIES; and I have a "Mason" jar full of Smoky Mountain honey I bought at the BOMB roadside stand in Wears Valley...IN THE SMOKIES! Ahhh...a little bit of the Smoky Mountains right here in the land of Piedmontia!

Smoky Mountain Fun!

Our 2010 trip to the Smokies!

Excuse the mess...

Yeah...I know...the header is huge. I have to do some tweaking.

Gettin' Crafty!!!

I spent my last day with just my cowboy seeing a movie and then finishing up some craft projects! I made this awesome sign for the front door out of a wooden charger from HL. I really like it! Then, I made another chalk board for the area between the kitchen and living room. Another unfinished wood piece from HL. I spray painted the frame, painted the back with chalkboard paint and made a little sign to welcome home my mini belle from her last day of school! I even found a wooden "P" that I painted to match the kitchen walls. The little bow on the top corner is because, well I love bows!!!

Chalky Skillet

I know...I have a love affair with my cast iron. I can't help it. It is so southern, so pretty, so fabulous to cook in and so the best thing to have in your kitchen. Well, I was in desperate need of something to act as a sort of book end in my little cookbook nook. I had a little box there but it just didn't look right. I went in the garage to get the mop today and this skillet caught my eye sitting on the shelf with all of my Sexyman's hunting stuff and some of our camping stuff. That's when I had one of the few original ideas I've had lately. A cast iron skillet is dark like a chalkboard and I am sooooo into chalk right now so I wonder...

Here it is!!! I took that skillet (our camping skillet...we'll get another one) and I cleaned it up all purdy and broke out the chalk markers. Found an extra easel thing and propped it up and it fits PERFECTLY in my little space!

Cutie Patootie!!!

I know...this pics are backwards. I've got to work on that. I found several pics of these little picture holders on a few different blogs. I decided to take a few ideas from each and make my own little pic album for my purse. It is made with key rings, badge holders, ribbons and some scrapbook supplies. I just love it!

You can Modge Podge ANYTHING...seriously!

So...since we are totally re-decorating the kids' bathroom, everything that is not completely coordinated with the new theme is really standing out...to me. So, the ugly white Dixie Cup holder HAD to go. In comes the Modge Podge and the scrapbook paper. I am loving the result!

Master Bathroom "pretty-fied"!

This is still a work in progress that I will finish over the summer but I had to share the best part! The first pic is what all the master bathroom cabinets looked like. The same 1970's hideous cabinet color. Well, I got some gloss paint that is the same color that we painted our bedroom walls. I painted all the cabinets and even the inside of the built in medicine cabinets that are on each side of the mirror. Just to pretty it up even more, I found some Beautiful scrapbook paper and I Modge Podged it to the back of the cabinet shelves. Super easy and super cheap! I love it! Now...I just have to finish the trim and paint the walls. I'll keep you posted.

Teacher Appreciation Week

My mini-belle reminded me that this is teacher appreciation week at school. After brainstorming for a while, SHE came up with the idea to make her OH SO FABULOUS kindergarten teacher some flip flops and a matching bon-bon necklace. So off to Hobby Lobby I went! I found out her teacher's favorite color is green and here you have it! Some cute summer shoes and a matching necklace. All wrapped up in a cute basket. She is so deserving!

Steak and Shake!!!

Scott and I had been to Steak and Shake in Tulsa and thought we should take the kids there. They would love the 50s music and the cute hats. Well, Sunday after church we went to the one in Edmond. Scott and I ordered burgers and fries and the kids each got a kids' meal with fries and 2 sliders. Thy LOVED the tiny hamburgers. They even bring the kids little cardboard cars to put together and decorate with stickers while you wait for your food. I had a coupon for buy one get one free shake so the cowboys shared one and the belles shared another! Then we learned that on Saturday and Sunday...KIDS EAT FREE!!! We got out of there for $17!!! It was tons of fun and the kids asked if we were going to go back next weekend. So...if you have kids, head to Steak and Shake for a fun, good and cheap meal!

Brother and Sister

I never know what clothes the kids are going to put on if I don't supervise. I told them to go put on their jammies and they did...along with a crown, princess shoes, cowboy boots and Peanut (my mini-belle's stuffed dog) and Dumbo on a leash. After taking their animals for a walk, mini-belle begged to sleep in the cowboy's room. So there they were...snuggled together! I hope they are best friends forever!!!