Spring Living

I've been working on a spring home tour for a while, but of course, keeping all the rooms clean enough to photograph all at once is impossible with kids.

Instead of sharing the whole house, I'm sharing a couple of pictures of the main room in our house.  We don't have a separate family room or den in our house.  Just this one main room.  It's our dining room and where we all hang out as a family and watch tv together.  I love this room, but constantly struggle with keeping the space light and bright.  The dark ceilings can be hard to work with.  And, although I love our performance leather sofa for the convenience of being able to literally wipe it off with a clorox wipe, it is a large dark piece of furniture.  Throw pillows and a soft plush ivory rug are really important to lighten things up in here.

These shoe bins from IKEA were one of the best organizational pieces we've ever incorporated into our home.  The kids each have two drawers, which makes getting ready for school in the morning so much easier when no one has to scramble to search for a missing shoe.  I'm also loving this new runner we found at Target for the entry way.  We have a smaller matching rug in front of the back door as well.

A gallery wall with family photos and art lines the entry wall and welcomes people into our cozy home.

We are still loving this new dining table we had made for the space.  I know that a rug under it would be a good choice, design wise, but we have three kids and between spills and crumbs, I just can't bring myself to put down a rug. 

Moving the credenza, pictured above, to the wall behind the dining table and placing the old hutch cabinet on top was one of my favorite changes I've made to this space recently.  It opened up this side of the room and allows a lot more light in through this window.  Some low stools and a plant add some extra seating when we have company and the plant brings life to the room.  I am a really big fan of adding plants, even faux, or fresh flowers to a space.  I feel like they bring life to a room, plus they make me happy.

I hope these pictures inspire you to incorporate some fresh spring touches around your home this weekend!

xoxo

House Plants - Faux vs. Real

If you follow along on any home decor blogs or Instagram accounts, you may have noticed the house plant trend.  Specifically, the Fiddle Leaf Fig trend.  This plant has so much popularity, I decided to write a blog post about it.  Specifically whether to buy real or faux.  Let me start by telling you that I have both, so I am sharing my personal opinion with you and will break down why one may be better than the other based on your lifestyle.

I have three kids and I can hardly keep up with how many pets we have! (Currently 3 cats and 1 dog.) I had been wanting a Fiddle Leaf Fig for a while, but they aren't the easiest plant to find in Northern California for some reason.  I had been watching bloggers talk about finding them at Walmart, Costco and Home Depot, but I have never seen them at any of those stores.  We do have some specialty nurseries and plant shops, but $$$...  I finally was able to find one at Emigh Hardware, for about $40 dollars.  It was about 2 1/2 feet tall and looked very healthy, so I brought it home.  I had done my research, and they are fairly low maintenance.  Water in the shower about once a week, let dry completely before watering again.

What I didn't take into account was how the plant would hold up with my busy family.  For some reason, my 14 month old daughter was obsessed with this plant.  She ripped the leaves up pretty badly and the poor plant started to look pretty pathetic.  I tried to find a fiddle leaf fig tree, that didn't have leaves down low, but they were well over $200 and I couldn't justify spending that on a house plant.

So, I started looking around for a faux plant.  I found one at World Market for $129, but I had 2 $10 off coupons and one 15% off my entire purchase coupon, so I went ahead and bought it.  Of course, about a month later I saw a faux one at IKEA for around $40... But, the truth is, it's not as full and I think the one from World Market is a little better quality.

If you decide you want to incorporate real plants, you may want to start off small.  Trader Joe's usually has a small selection of house plants in the $5-7 range that are nice looking.  If you kill it, you won't be that upset.  And if real house plants aren't your thing at all, IKEA has a pretty decent selection of faux small plants as well that are very cheap.  I happen to have both in my house and I'm a fan of both, equally.

Best advice, remember the type of household you have before you incorporate real house plants.  Especially ones that are expensive.  A faux plant may be a better investment for you.  For now, my real Fiddle Leaf has a nice home on a dresser in the spare bedroom, and the faux plant is the star of the show in the dining room.

What We Keep

This post might be a sort of weird concept for some people.  And, I'm okay with that.  If it's not your thing, move on and come back later for a recipe or design tip!  But, I think it's something that is important to talk about, so I'm going to!  Sometimes it's okay to keep things that don't bring us joy.  That's right, I said it.  For all of you out there reading books on organization, simplifying your life, purging your space.  Hold up!  Don't get me wrong, I love an organized home!  And, I'm not suggesting you become a hoarder, please don't!  But, there are times that holding onto something that does not bring you joy, is okay!

I was cleaning up my room today and I ran across a tiny piece of purple velcro I had tucked away under my jewelry box.  Seems like a silly thing to keep, right?  Did it bring me joy?  No, obviously I don't plan to use it for anything, I mean what could you use a small piece of one sided purple velcro for anyway??  But as I went to throw it out, something in my soul hesitated and I decided it was okay to hold onto that velcro.  Because that small scrap reminded me of a time when I had to be tougher than I had ever been.  Let me tell you what I mean...

I have three daughters, but the road to get there wasn't easy.  I was not the person who planned, went off the pill and two months later was pregnant.  My first pregnancy ended in miscarriage almost the same time I realized I was pregnant.  After I had my first baby, when we were ready to try for a second, it took almost a year to get pregnant.  I miscarried again when my second daughter was 10 months old, and then had a missed miscarriage four years later.  So when my third daughter was born, I knew she was my last and my biggest blessing.  Finding out she had hip dysplasia, was really hard for me.  I had all these plans of breast feeding, cloth diapering, and dressing her in the sweetest clothes.  We had a swing and a bumbo, a bouncy seat and a bassinet...

Letting go of expectations was hard, but what was harder was the actual process of correcting the dysplasia.  She was fitted for a Pavlik harness at 5 1/2 weeks old.  At first, I thought she would only be in it for 6 weeks, but that was just a misunderstanding and lack of proper explanation on the doctor's part.  The truth was, she was in the harness for almost 7 months.  For the first six weeks, I could not take it off to bathe her, and had to change her diaper around it.  I lived in fear of poop leaking out of her diaper and getting the harness dirty.  My baby also had reflux issues, so I used bibs and went through so many burp cloths... Cloth diapers leaked occasionally, so I couldn't even use them.  Her sweet newborn skin became raw from the straps and the velcro scratched my chest every I breast fed her from the one breast she would take, in a sitting up position.  That one small scrap of purple velcro was something my best friend gave to me to put over one of her exposed velcro straps so my raw skin wasn't being scratched off any more.

That one small piece of velcro.  Does it bring me joy to look at?  Not really.  But you know what?  It makes me proud of myself.  It makes me think about giving up cloth diapers, living with one saggy deflated boob and one giant leaky boob.  It makes me remember selling a swing we never used, and ultrasounds on hips.  It makes me think of sleepless nights, spit up, tears and frustration. And, it makes me think about how tough I had to be and how strong I was.  It makes me proud of myself.

So when you are purging and organizing and you come across something you have a hard time giving up, it's okay to own that.  To feel a connection to something.  To keep a memento that my not bring you joy, but may bring you something even more powerful.

Just my two cents...

The Hot Mess Mom Dairy - Vol. 1

Hi, I'm Heather, I'm a mom to three girls, I love to cook and enjoy home decor.  And sometimes I feel like I've got it all together, and sometimes I don't.  I have a confession.  I'm a hot mess.  Just like pretty much every mom I know, I try my best to keep it together, but when shit gets real, well, I hold on for the ride, because there's not much else I can do.  Welcome, and I hope my little diary makes you realize we're all a hot mess just trying to do our best.

I'm going to start with a little story from a few months ago...

Cold and flu season is the worst for parents, amiright?? The endless amounts of snot, vomit, coughs, fevers... It goes on and on... In our family we get flu shots.  It's not for everyone, I get that, but two of my daughters have asthma and the third is a baby, so we get flu shots, just what we do.

Well on this particular day, it happened to be a minimum day from school, my six year old had a well child appointment, so I brought all three kids so they could all get their flu shots done as well.  We had our regular pediatrician appointment, without a hitch, but when it came time to go down the the flu shot clinic things began to go awry...

First, Lily Claire got her shot.  At nine she was very brave, a bit nervous, but she did fine.  Next up, six year old Ella.  Well here's where things go south.  Ella decided she didn't want a shot.  She would not hold still, she started hysterically crying and completely melting down.  The nurse asked me to hold her still, so I stepped away from the stroller with the baby, and made my best attempt at holding a screaming banshee in place while the nurse wielded a needle and attempted to stab her. WTF?!   Of course, as all this insanity is happening, I look over to see my nine year old puke all over the place.  Yep, the stress of the shot and her sister wigging was too much for her and she yacked.

Here we are in the main lobby of Kaiser with all these old people and one of my kids is puking and the other is acting like a possessed daemon. Lovely.  Of course, what do I do? Laugh. Laugh. Laugh. You know, the hysterical laughter that is completely inappropriate, but it just won't stop?  Yep.  That's me!  I called it there and said I think we'll head up to pediatrics and ask one of them to help with the shot.  Those nurses are no joke, and they got the job done in a jiffy.  Thank god for baby wipes.  And wine, thank you, thank you, for wine!

Stay tuned... today we went to the dentist.

Peel & Stick Subway Tile Backsplash

For years I have wanted a new kitchen.  But its not realistic and not happening any time soon.  I felt bitter about this and just lived with how it was for years.  Then, one day, I decided that even if I couldn't afford to remodel my kitchen, that didn't mean that I couldn't spend a little money to make it a more aesthetically pleasing space.  We spend a ton of time in this room.  I cook here, my kids eat here, do their homework, I blog here...

Slowly I have made a few changes and they have made a big impact on how I feel about this space.  Covering my counter tops in contact paper, made a huge difference.  A new window treatment helped, but one of my favorite changes was a project I undertook this weekend.  Peel and stick backsplash.



I found these peel and stick tiles on Amazon.  They were $42.97 cents for 10 tiles and they made a huge impact!  They are really easy to put up, but a little tricky around the outlets.  Make sure you have a very sharp utility knife if you give this a go!  Other than that, the directions were great, and this took about an hour to do.  I love the outcome and I feel so much happier spending time in this room now!




Do you have any affordable tips for updating a kitchen? I'd love to hear your comments below!

Spaghetti & Sun Dried Tomato Alfredo Sauce

My recipe for basic Alfredo sauce is one of my most popular recipes of all time.  I love this variation for a little twist on the classic.  It's so easy to make and add a little chicken and some spinach or fresh basil and you have yourself a hearty delicious dinner that your family will love!!

Ingredients:

4 oz. cream cheese

1/2 a stick of butter

1 1/4 cup of milk

1 cup of Parmesan cheese

2 tbs of garlic powder

2 tbs of julienned sundries tomatoes in olive oil and herbs

Directions:

Over medium low heat melt butter. When butter is melted add cream cheese and melt for a couple minutes (it will look funny, like it is separated) add the garlic powder and slowly whisk in the milk. Continue to whisk until smooth. Add Parmesan cheese and whisk until melted. Add the sundries tomatoes and using an emersion blender blend until smooth. If sauce is too thick add a little milk. 

Serve over pasta and add chicken, shrimp or simply enjoy as is!

Sprouts Market & Pasta

Remember that time a few months ago when I shared my recipe for Broccolini & Sausage Penne?  Well, I'm back with more variations today!

We recently started shopping at Sprouts. Do you have one near you?  I love this store!  They have so many great things, but by far my favorite part of the store is their butcher/meat counter.  They make their own sausage on site. You can get cordon bleu stuffed chicken breasts (one breast feeds my husband and me, they're so big!) or even gourmet burgers!  If you are a busy mom or work full time, this store could be a huge time saver for you!  They also deliver locally, so even if I don't make it over there, I can order online. Game Changer, I tell ya!! And, I'm sort of obsessed with their sweet chicken Italian sausage.  So good! Their produce is also fantastic! I can get already diced butternut squash and broccolini there as well, so you know I'm a happy girl.

Here's my latest take on my family's "go to" pasta dish using the chicken Italian sausage, the diced butternut squash roasted, and broccolini. So yummy!!

Kitchen Counter Makeover Take 2

I originally undertook this project in November of 2016.  At the time I was about 7 months pregnant with Camille and I was soooo tired of looking at the ugly blue formica counters we had been living with for years.  I found some cheap granite looking contact paper at Walmart on clearance for about $3 a roll and decided to cover my countertops with it.  The result was clearly soooo much better!  And, it lasted over a year, making that the best $10 I have ever spent!  But, the paper was not very thick, and with the every day use a kitchen gets, it started to peel and get a bit worn through in spots.  So, about a month ago I decided to redo the countertops in fresh contact paper. 

The paper I chose this time was a little thicker and actually has a bit of texture to it.  I love the neutral color and it actually went on a little easier because the thicker paper didn't stretch as much.  I also found I didn't make as many mistakes this time. Not sure if that's because of the paper or if I just got better with practice.  Below are a few pictures of the first round with contact paper.

And here are the ugly counters with nothing on them...

So much better after, right??





Here is what you need for this project:

• Contact paper (use a measuring tape to take a basic measurement ahead of time so you know how much to buy, and make sure to buy a little extra)
• Very clean kitchen countertops
• Room to move around
• utility knife, scissors & credit card
• good music
• coffee

Here are my main tips for this project:

• Start in a corner or section of countertop that isn't the main focus in your kitchen.  I started mine in this corner (pictured below) because it is a little darker here and harder to see imperfections, and also because I keep a lot of everyday supplies here so I knew I could hide any mistakes with a strategically placed cutting board or bowl of fruit.  
• Work in small sections when possible.  If you cut too big of a piece and try to cover a large area all at once, it is much more difficult to smooth out bubbles and prevent creases.  Using small sections to cover the back splash area and to go around sinks or edges/corners made for a much easier application and smoother look. 
• Have a sharp utility knife on hand and a credit card.  I put a brand new blade in my knife before I started this project, which made cuts really easy to make.  The credit card is good for smoothing air bubbles.
• Have a ton of patience.  This can be tedious and frustrating at times.  The contact paper that I used was not very thick and therefore stretched a little if you needed to lift and re-position. 
• Don't start this project without having several hours to devote to it, or plan to do it in steps. I have a very small amount of counter space and it still took 3-4 hours to apply.
• Don't expect perfection.  You will miss some air bubbles and some seams may not be perfectly straight.  Try no to let this stress you out.  Remember the end result is just to cover whatever god awful formica or material you have underneath them.  It may not be perfect, but it will be so much better than before.

The end result for me was worth the effort.  I don't know how long it will last or how it will hold up, but I will be happy to update you as time passes!  I hope I inspired you to be brave and tackle a project like this in your own house!