ikea hack plan

Joe and I have been talking about transitioning Emmy's nursery into a toddler room. As in, removing the side bars on her crib, taking out the changing table and making more play space. I've even had miniature fantasies of Christmas morning- imagining her room glowing with the little fairy lights hanging in her play house,  she'd hop down out of her bed and run in to our room to wake us up for Santa, too excited to sleep and begging us to take her downstairs so she can open her presents. 

Okay, I realize this isn't going to happen this year but I'm still so excited about Christmas. This is likely the last year we get to pick all of her gifts so I'm focusing on what she needs but will also love.

She doesn't really need "toys" anyway. She plays with toys all day at school and when she's home she really only has a few favorite stuffies and toys that she chooses to play with. One thing she definitely loves is coloring and toddler-sized furniture. Have I mentioned how much I love her Pottery Barn anywhere chair? It's still one of my favorite purchases of all time and will probably last much longer than I originally thought. 

 Emmy spends almost an hour every night playing in her room. Most of the time she plays by herself. I felt a little guilty about it at first but then I realized that it's great that she can entertain herself and I don't have to watch her every minute, she'll be okay (plus I keep the monitor on).

So, here's the plan...

The Ikea "latt" table and chairs are only $19.99 as a set (available online too!). I plan to paint the top of the table with black chalkboard paint. Then I will paint the table and chairs a combination of white and gray. I picked out these fabrics from www.hawthornefabrics.com - confetti dots in shell and charcoal at $20 for 2 yards. I'm hoping to cover the seats with the pink shell and then make a bag or satchel of some kind with the charcoal print to hold all the chalk. 

I'm just so excited to see her reaction when she comes downstairs on Christmas morning and sees her own art table with new little stuffies sitting in the chairs with books and lots of art supplies for her to try out.

I'll post the pictures of the complete project on Christmas Eve!

  

7 classy gift ideas

Let's be honest... This isn't just for any "classy" lady, this is my own Christmas wish list. I have started to notice my style getting more refined, more feminine.  I am completely obsessed with mixing silver, gold and blue and I want to see myself in what I wear, where I work and what I do.  
The shirt, watch, wallet and ring remind me to take care of myself, lose some weight and eat healthy so I can feel beautiful inside and out.  I have this candle already but it will likely fill my home for the rest of my life.  I think the scent embodies warmth and home and I absolutely love it. Plus, it's made in Misissippi just like me! 
The recipe cars box has been on my want list for months, only becoming available for sale in December. I have no interest in keeping recipes though.  This box will be in my living room, holding all the printsagram square matte photos I have. Our family's beachside condo always had a basket full of family photos.  Every year we would pass them around in a circle, laughing and reminiscing. I want this box to hold those photos, to be easily accessible and often opened. I'll type up a "family" card to replace the recipes and keep it up to date monthly. 
1. White Blouse 2. Michael Kors watch 3. Hobo Lauren wallet 4. Capri Blue Volcano candle 5. Recipe Box 6. Polka Dot Journal 7. Monogram Ring

a little coffee nook

I've admittedly become a little obsessed with our house. Once I realized that we wouldn't be moving anytime soon, I started to look at our house as a more permanent home. More than ever before, I wanted to spend the time and money on making it more reflective of my style.
Unlike the home and garden television shows, these things take time. I've been slowly but surely making changes since March of this year. Every now and then I do something small that I just love. 

This little coffee nook just makes me so happy.

Joe bought the Nespresso espresso machine and milk frother for me on Mother's Day.  We had a Keurig but I prefer lattes and he actually prefers old-fashioned coffee so I took the Keurig to the office and lined up our machines on the counter. It wasn't very pretty. We picked up a huge bag of coffee from Costco and didn't have a place to put it. I needed an air-tight container that I wouldn't be embarrassed to have on the counter all the time. 

A quick trip to Target and I came out with this tray (clearance for $14), a 1 gallon mason jar ($17) and a brand new little tea cup ($10 for 2). 
I know it's a silly little coffee nook but sometimes that's all it takes to make your home a little bit cozier. And, I might be slowly but surely sneaking in the Christmas decorations. I know, it's early but I can't help myself. Emmy pointed at this reindeer, threw her head back and said "MOOOOOOO". It was hilarious so I let her hold it. She cuddled it and loved on it like a baby. So obviously, it was hers and now it's on the mantle.  

christmas pictures

Last year, Joe and I decided to do 5 Christmases in 5 days so that we could see everyone since we knew that we would not do 5 Christmases in 2012. And then we did. 

We do love our family and it was hard to tell them no. But by the end of the Holidays, we were exhausted and decided to be more proactive in next year's planning (we'll see).

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Our first Christmas was in Huntsville with Joe's dad's family.

This is the only pic I have, which I stole from my sister in law, It's Emmy with her Bell, the talking dog from Hallmark. I think I loved this more than her!

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On Christmas Eve we drove to Centre to join Joe's mom's side of the family. They live on Weiss Lake so we went outside to take a few pictures and well, they didn't go too well. 

Believe it or not, this look wasn't even directed at me. I don't know what happened, I just looked at the camera and these were their faces. I laughed hysterically, then regrouped for one good one.

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Then we drove back home and met my sister and brother-in-law to make cookies, watch Home Alone and drive around looking at lights. Courtney takes the most amazing pictures and it's always so hard to choose which ones to post! 

Emmy loves her Uncle Alex but that doesn't mean she's going to share her apple!

She stayed up way too late. All the traveling got her schedule off and this is her happy as a clam at 10pm. 

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My dad and his wife came over Christmas morning with Courtney and Alex. We had to wake Emmy up at 10 so we could open presents with her! I might have been more excited about her new toys than she was. 

But she did love getting into her daddy's stocking (check out her hands)!

and... my favorite gift of all was what me, Courts and Alex got for Joe: karate lessons!

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We left to go to my mom's house around lunchtime. Mom loved holding Emmy while we opened our presents. In all the chaos of ripping presents and tossing bows and ribbons, Emmy fit right in. She just crawled all over it tossing ribbons behind her. 

The whole family at the table... except Courtney who didn't make one single picture because she took them all. I guess next year she's going to have to get a tripod for that camera!

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Our last Christmas was back at our house on Thursday night with Joe's dad and sister. We had a blast with all of our family but I think next year will have to be a little different. Joe and I need to focus on our little family and make sure that we do what we want, not just what everyone else asks us to do. 

This was still one of my favorite Christmases of all time. I imagine it only gets better as they get older and more aware of what's going on. I can't wait until next year!

christmas with emmy

People said the Holidays are more fun with kids and we have definitely found that to be true! Despite the week at the hospital, Emmy's first December has been so full of joy. 

Strangely enough, she developed a strange sort of chipmunk laugh at the hospital and it has kept Joe and I laughing since. She tries to listen to our conversations and laughs when we do. She laughs when she thinks of something funny and at almost everything Rufus does. 

Her happiness is contagious and Joe and I needed that more than she knows. She is making her parent's marriage better without even trying. 

She also enjoys unwrapping presents, which has been fun for her and not so fun for me but since she's laughing about it I can't bring myself to stop her. She has crawled under the tree a few times and tried to pull it down and has been responding to "no ma'am" very well! She just smiles back at me and moves on to something else. 

We got so lucky with Santa this year! We weren't sure if we wanted to brave the largest mall in Birmingham to wait for Santa but we knew we needed to do it for Emmy's sake. After church on Sunday my mom and Rich took us to lunch at the Summit. It was raining and cold but when we walked out of the restaurant, Santa was just sitting in his chair with no one around! I asked if he was "open" and he said his camera man had bailed due to the rain but that we could take our own pictures for free. Heck yes!! 

Emmy loved him, look at her smile!