Palm Sunday & Easter Egg Hunt

We went to Palm Sunday at my mom's church (where I grew up).  They had an Easter egg hunt afterwards.  It was a lot of fun.

She looks so white compared to other kids!

It was also very very windy that day.  We had gale force winds coming through.

 

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Part part 1 - Invitations

We are doing a Mickey Mouse theme for Millie's 2nd birthday party, which is small & at our house, because she loves Mickey so much.  She literally screams when she seems Mickey anywhere and will run over anyone in her way to get to the Disney store.  She's not two yet, but I see a storm coming...

So I designed the shapes to fit in the shape of the envelopes I have, which are A7.  They are half a sheet of letter paper.

First I drew and cut the black background, with half circle red pieces.

  

Then I sewed the red half circle onto the Mickey ears. I didn't change any materials on my machine, the needle & thread are the same.  I did have to adjust tension, but that was easy.

 

Then I used my silhouette to cut out little white "buttons" out of regular paper.  

And the last step was to insert the invitation wording:
"HOT DOG!  Put on your ears....it's time for cheers!  MILLIE is turning 2 so please join us for a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse party!"

The only thing I needed to buy for this was black & red cardstock and since the whole party is this theme, I'll be using it for more ideas later.  Only one month to go.

Like this?  Then  

Boat Day

We finally took the boat out again.  It was hot, but we had a nice time.

Easter Tree

I decided to use a bit of nature and make an easter tree to hang little ornaments on.  The project was going really smoothly.  I picked up some dead branches from our backyard, sprayed them white,

But of course, nothing goes to plan.  After I poured the plaster of paris and it set, the terra cotta pot cracked.

 So I got a new pot, that was actually cuter (although not the same size) and planned on chiseling the pot off the paris mold, then placing the tree in the mold in the new pot.

 And it worked!  The pot just chipped apart in rather large pieces :)

 The first time I put the mold in the new pot, I realized I would have to eliminate the top edge of the plaster mold to let it set down in the blue pot.

 There, much better.

 And aren't the ornaments cute?

 I got them for $2.19 at Goodwill :)

Updated Houst To-Do List

We've lived here 9 months and this is the updated to do list from 2012:
Here is a basic to-do list of the house.  There is no priority, there is no distinction between tiny items or big items and it definitely isn't thorough.  (Crossed out means I've already done it.)

Craigslist:
Washer
Dryer
Scandinavian Hutch?
Pool Table 

Living Room:
Remove wallpaper
Paint walls
Do something with curtains (dye them?)
Add crown molding (probably more than a year away from this step)
Widen doorways (probably more than 2 years away)

Dining Room:
Paint walls
Paint trim
Move dining room to living room and make current dining room office/playroom

Family Room:
Sell pool table
Build toy chest/furniture (picked up Expedit at IKEA...not in love)

Add built in bookcases (probably more than 3 years away)
Paint paneling (could be my first job to tackle)
Add crown molding (more than a year away) (There already is crown molding in this room.)

Widen doorways (probably more than 3 years away)

Kitchen:
Paint cabinets (maybe?)
Replace hardware
Put in IKEA apron sink
Replace faucet
Paint floors (probably replace but it would be fun to try paint)
Remove desk and cabinets on short wall
Replace appliances (already replaced dishwasher)
Add garbage disposal
Take down wallpaper
Paint walls

Hallway:
Paint walls
Replace 2 ceiling light fixtures
Remove wallpaper
Change hanging light fixture

Master bedroom:
Replace vanity, sinks, shower stall, lighting
Remove wallpaper
Paint walls

Nursery:
Paint closet doors, back of door, and trim
Install pallet bookshelf that is already built
Replace lighting (remove ceiling fan)

Utility Room:
Install upper closet bar for drying clothes
Build laundry basket holders for 4 baskets (Ana White plans)
Install iron & ironing board holder (already bought, just have to install)

Garage:
Move garage door opener switch
Make mudroom racks out of existing storage shelves for removing shoes

Florida Room:
Buy patio furniture

If I try to make a list in priority order of what I think I'll tackle first...maybe I'll give myself deadlines??
DONE 1) Paint family room paneling - October 13th (we are having a party and I think I may try to get this done)
DONE 2) Replace family room light fixture (it is SO dark in there) - October 31st
HALFWAY DONE 3) Remove wallpaper in master bathroom and foyer, remove wallpaper in living room, kitchen, guest bath- November 30th
DONE 4) Install upper closet bar for drying clothes in utility room - November 30th (we have Thanksgiving break)
DONE 5) Install iron & ironing board holder - November 30th
XX - Changed my mind 6) Get cable hook up for family room - November 30th
DONE 7) Install pallette bookshelf in nursery - November 30th
DONE 8) Paint master bedroom - December 24th
DONE 9) Paint master bathroom - December 24th
10) Replace bath light fixtures - January 15th

Here is the priority list as it stands now -
1) Remove wall paper in living room
$ 2) Add crown molding in living room and master bedroom
$ 3) Paint hallway
$ 4) Change mirror in master bathroom
$ 5) Replace 2 hanging light fixtures in master bathroom
$ 6) Replace 2 hanging light fixtures in hallway
$ 7) Paint living room walls & trim
$ 8) Paint dining room walls & trim
9) Remove wallpaper in spare bathroom
10) Paint spare bathroom walls & trim
11) Paint trim in nursery including closet doors

Most don't require a lot of money, in fact I have the trim paint.  I put $ next to ones that we'll have to save for.  I haven't picked out paint colors for most of these rooms either, I need to figure out how to get the paint colors to flow throughout the house.  We have gray stripes in the foyer and a deep blue in the family room. 

Disney World

On a whim, we decided to go to Disney World last Saturday.  I'll let the pictures explain: