Dining Room: Mini Make-over Part 1.

I took my hutch from just fine ... to absolutely divine!

Before:

After:

I loved it before ... but now I really love it!!

These pictures just don't do it justice ... it looks so wonderful. :)

The grays really play off the grays on our Farmers Table.

Don't you just LOVE this table??

This set is AMAZING. It's solid maple and GORGEOUS!

My mom passed it down to me when we got married,

But it was just a little "too traditional" and it need something!

But not anymore!

The Fabric panels add the perfect amount of modern flair!

As I soon as I re-cover the chairs, add bling to the light fixture and put up some wall art, I'll update you on the Dining Room Make-over Part 2!

How did I do it?

Oh, it's so easy!

I used some cardboard from this box ...

(*Present for the Hubs from my mom! Thanks Mom*)

Some Fabric that you LOVE & Mod Podge.

I used less than a yard for all of it! :)

*Don't forget to Iron your fabric before!!!*

Spread on a thin layer ... smooth your fabric & wrap it around the back.

Pop it in the Hutch and Enjoy!!

Seriously easy, right?

 I did the whole thing (including a quick trip to JoAnn's for Fabric) in 1 hour!
It cost me less than $10.00!!

I'm linking up to these parties:

The Mod Podge Challenge @

Where I blog ...

ate over at Centsational Girl is hosting a Link Party called "Where do you Blog" ... and since I finally revealed my fancy/practical/wonderful Craft Desk yesterday I thought I would participate! :)

I'm a mover and a shaker when it comes to blogging ... I like to spice it up! Actually, it's usually wherever I can find my laptop! Tarzan likes mine better than his, so he's always stealing it! :)

Sometimes I blog in the sweet Little guest bedroom "Home Office".
This room makes me happy. The combination of Black, White & Turquoise puts me in a happy mood!
The printer is also in here -- so it's practical! :) Gotta love that.

Sometimes I blog at my new craft table!!

I just love this space! I love my old shutter that holds special pictures,

my galvanized collection of tubs that hold everything from paint brushes to scraps!

I blog here when I want peace & quiet ...

when I want to escape the chaos -

when Tarzan is watching "man movies" way too loud,

or MonkeyMan is fussing,

or Niles is barking. 

but realistically, most of the time - I blog here ...

On the Couch - in the middle of everything -

amongst my beautiful Burlap Lamp, Slip covered Pillows,

sweet little picture of Monkey Man & my favorite Starfish Basket!

and yes, that's a Wii Remote (LOVE. Netflix through Wii) & an empty glass of wine!

Don't Judge.

Hey, that's why I'm doing a Couch to 5K. :)

On Track Tuesday: Days 1 & 2

If you didn't catch my post here - I've decided to run a 5k in 5 weeks! I'm 2 days in....

Day 1: I walked/ran a little over 2 miles ... and today I did the same. Not enough but better than nothing. I wasn't exhausted after the 2 miles - I was BORED. Really Bored. ADD perhaps? :)

Maybe I just need to charge up my ipod ...

Here are some of the thoughts that were running through  my head this morning as I was briskly walking jogging ...

1. What the heck was I thinking?
2. Is it possible to ALREADY have shin splints? Side cramps?  OUCH.
3. Ugh - I swear this stroller weighs 900 pounds.
4. Holy moly - when was the last time I actually went for a jog?
Then I did the math ... math while you're running, pushing a jogging stroller and avoiding cars takes a little longer but I came up with this ...

Nelson is 7 months old -      7 months
                                           +
Pregnant for 9 months  -      9 months
                                           +
2 lazy years post college -   24 months
                                           +
4 years of college               48 months
                                          +
HS Senior Year Fun          12 months
                                         +
HS Junior year abroad      12 months         
                 TOTAL           112 months

SERIOUSLY? It's been 112 months since I last worked out consistently ... like REALLY worked out. In case you're wondering -- that's NINE YEARS!!!!!!!!!

No wonder I'm about to DIE.

Talk about a reality check ... I should have NEVER done the math. Shame.On.Me.

5. Did that truck just drive by, honk and yell our the window? Heck yes he did...  and who cares if he's old, salty & creepy .... all I was thinking is MAMA STILL GOT IT! :)

Nine years. Shmine Years.

New Button!

I have a button!!! 
I'm so excited!!

Everyone else had one ... so now I'm fancy too!

I followed this awesome tutorial here!!

You likey? :)

Copy and Paste Code

<a href="http://diaryofapreppymom.blogspot.com/" target=”_blank”><img src="http://i776.photobucket.com/albums/yy48/apreppymom/sTROLLER-1.jpg" alt="Diary Of A Preppy Mom" />

Oh - and check out that sweet new signature too!!

I made it: Craft Table.

In the [wise] words of my husband ...

 "You're like Martha Stewart meets Bob the Builder!".

It made me smile!

A girl can dream, right?

Anyways - Yes, Over the weekend - I built a craft table!

I've been looking for the "perfect" table for 3 months ...

I wanted it to be TALL - so I could stand up and craft comfortably (or sit on a stool!)

I wanted it to be WIDE.

and I wanted it to have a shelf on top, storage on bottom.

but I couldn't find one in my budget.

So I did what any crafty/DIY-er would do.

I went to Lowe's.

And I walked aimlessly up and down the lumber department.

Until I FINALLY decided what I wanted!!

So I bought my wood -- a sweet man named Eric cut it all for me!

(Thanks Eric! Yes, I gave him my blog address - I promised him pictures!!)

I think he doubted me, haha! :)

But - here she is ... my new craft table THAT I BUILT!
(without my husband!!)

Oh and without any tools besides a hammer
& a regular old screwdriver.

I was determined. and determination makes you do crazy things!

Simple? Yes.

Beautiful? Maybe not to you - or anyone with carpentry skills,

but  to me - yes!!

Structurally Sound? I put a lot of weight it and it's still holding up! ;) So yes!

Budget friendly? Yup, It cost about $25.00 Total!

Now on to the details!

I put an old tape measure all the way around the ends! It's practical and it screams - This table has a purpose ... A craftsman works here! :)

Then I added some hooks/knobs to the sides ... my trashcan (with chalkboard tags I made) sits perfectly there! :) I love it! It's so easy to access and even easier to dump!

Then I put up a curtain rod, so that I could easily hide my junk storage underneath!

Then I made a curtain from an old Twin sheet.

But it was just too boring.

So now it looks like this!

ahhhhh, much better! :)

and what's hidden behind that pretty little curtain?

Just a lot of crafting goodies on an old bookcase that I painted a pretty blue!

Then I primed, painted & re-covered my $3.00 barstool! :)

Love.it!

Then I re-covered my old ugly ironing board to match!!

But for now - its goodbye cozy craftroom ...

I'm off for Day 1 of my "Couch to 5k in 5 weeks"

ugh, why am I doing this again??

I'm so excited to be linking up to my first  Blog Parties @ Cottage Instincts and Making the World Cuter 

and

 
  

Couch to 5k in 5 weeks!

Yes - that's my goal!

Get my butt off the couch and start training to run a 5k!

(ok -- well in fairness to me - I actually never "just sit" on the couch, I'm always doing something - it's just that something is rarely the gym) :)

Some of you are laughing because you.don't.run.

Others of you are laughing because you think a 5k is easy!

Well, I'm somewhere in between "No way can I do" and "Heck yes, this will be easy!".

I used to run 3 miles 3 times a week for soccer -- but that was high school.

and that was a LONG time ago!

So I've picked my race -- it's local and in October!

Now that doesn't give me much time, but I'm going to try!!
If I don't feel "ready" by October .. there is one in November!

My ultimate goal would be a half marathon in December ...

but I don't want to get ahead of myself. :)

My reasons?

1. It's good for me!!

2. It's good for Nelson -- he's going with me!!

(Love.Jogging.Strollers. -- even though I've rarely used it. hehe)

3. I love having a goal to work towards - and reaching it!

4. Baby Weight. (need I say more!?)

I found this article here that gives you a weekly workout to follow ...

So - I'll keep you posted on my progress!

But tomorrow is Day 1.

Ahhh. I already want to quit and go hide out in my craftroom!!

Maybe you guys can check on me? Keep me on track?

Sunday Inspiration

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

- Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)

Man's Best Friend!

This is Niles!

My first baby! :) Isn't he handsome??

and here he is wearing his "I'm going to be a Big Brother" shirt we made to tell everyone we were expecting! :)

Niles & Nelson meeting for the first time!

He is always right next to monkey man!

:) Just being lazy together!!

Nelson LOVES him!

You should see the smile on his face when Niles walks in the room! :)

Poor Niles!

But he's so patient!

Niles sleeps under his crib,

comes and gets me when monkey man is crying,

and let's him pull on his ears & tails!

I'm sure in a few months Monkey man will think he's a horse and want to go for a ride!

I can't wait to watch them grow up together. :)

My Craft Room: The Sewing Table.

See this little cutey??

Look at those long, slender legs!!

BEFORE:

Best part about her?

She cost $4.00!!

The creepy guy at this creepy thrift store was trying to get rid of it & he said name my price!

I handed him my $4.00 and off I went with a big grin!!

I had plans!!

I sanded her ... primed her and painted 2 coats! ;)

Then I drilled a hole and added a cute little drawer knob.

(1/2 off  at Hobby Lobby)

Love the porcelain/vintage look! :)

AFTER:

For now I'm leaving the top alone ... but I'm considering chalkboard paint!!

I think I love chalkboard paint more than I love spray paint ...

shhhh, don't tell Krylon. :)

I just love my new sewing table! :)
Not bad for $5.00!!
(I already had the paint on hand so I just had to buy the knob)

My craft room is almost complete - so stay tuned!

Cork Cans!

I saw this post, Put a Cork In It, from Young House Love (LOVE.THEM!) and wanted to give a try! What a great idea! :)

I searched the house endlessly and no square glass vases for me... (that just means that Tarzan doesn't bring home enough flowers ... )

But since I already had some cork board on hand (leftover from another project) - I wanted to try and do this project without spending any money! :) I knew I could come up with something - just had to get the wheels turning a little!

Well last night we had lasagna! Which required a lot of cans ... Ding Ding Ding!

DUH, Cans! I've seen numerous posts about bloggers re-purposing their cans into all kinds of fab things! So I decided to make my cans pencil holders wrapped with cork board! :) The perfect little "message center". I covered one with fabric and left the the other one naked - no reason in particular ... just can't decide which I like better!

and coincidentally I just created a little desk/computer/printer/"home office" area in the Guest Bedroom - so I knew the perfect spot for my cork cans! :)

I love this little area!

It makes me just want to go print something!

(and thanks to the post-it reminder on my cork can- I bought some ink today!!)

Oh and please ignore that hideous wall color & ugly carpets ... we're renting and no painting allowed! :(

Oh and don't you just LOVE that lovely white chair??

Well, I'll be posting on that soon but it wasn't always so pretty! :)

Linking up to :