My "Corner" Office in Progress

When we bought our house we decided right away that the third bedroom would be hubby's office; especially since he was going back to school and would need a place to study with no "distraction", meaning JD and myself. Hubby has always been an office, desk and bookcase kind of guy, I on the other hand tend to work just fine at the kitchen table! After I started working on JD's party and my Etsy shop it seemed that hubby's office became cluttered with all my stuff; I thought soon enough I'd get an eviction notice from him but instead I received an invitation to join him and now his office has become our office! I still have a lot to do in the office including painting, adding new furniture and decor, but for now I'm just happy to have my little corner office to work at!

IKEA Party Supplies

I love IKEA, but I especially love IKEA during the Spring because they have an amazing collection of not-so-typical party supplies. Last month I drove to IKEA in Covina, CA just to get a sneak peek of the Spring/Summer garden collection (which wasn't available at my local IKEA yet) and came home with a bunch of items I will be using for JD's birthday party. Here are a few of my favorites!

1. SOCKER Planting tray $4.99
2. SOCKER Planter marker $0.99 / 2 pack
3. SOCKER Plant pot $2.99 / 3 pack
4. TOLSBY Frame for 2 pictures $0.99

Happy Birthday Mom!

Happy birthday, Mom!

May every second, minute

hour, day and year of your life

be filled with the kind of

comfort, security, and happiness

you give unfailingly to me.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Without you, there would be

a gaping hole in my life, an emptiness

that only your love can fill.

Thank you, Mom, for all that you do,

for the extraordinary person you are.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Semi-DIY Side Table

This weekend I had a bunch of little projects to work on, but the one I enjoyed immensely was turning this IKEA BRATTBY kitchen cart into a side table for our living room. This kitchen cart was one of the first pieces of IKEA furniture we bought 5 years ago when we were married. It has functioned as a kitchen cart in our tiny back house rental, then an entryway table in our apartment and now a side table in our new home. Here is how I (we, my daddy and JD helped too) did it!

Materials:

1. Miter saw - to trim down cart legs after removing the wheels 
2. Medium Sandpaper - to lightly sand the cart before painting 
3. Spackling paste and spatula - to fill in any holes and imperfections
4. Trim kit roller tray and paint brush - to paint cart
5. Drawer Knob
6. Paint & Primer In One- Color: Valley Mist

Galvanized Drink Bucket

This week I visited my local Tuesday Morning and came across this galvanized drink bucket with stand and just knew I couldn't leave without it! Hubby was admiring one at the Pottery Barn Outlet a couple months ago, but after seeing the price he immediately walked away from it; so I bought this one just for him for $24.99 at Tuesday Morning (they also carry it in teal, red and yellow). Now that we have our very own backyard, hubby seems very interested in patio furniture, decor, decks, and pergolas (I didn't even know he knew what a pergola was), so I'll be posting a lot more backyard finds!

Wordless Wednesday

Rocket Fabric!

Today I stopped by Joann’s to pick up some ribbon and became completely distracted by fabric, which is funny since I don’t know how to sew. I’ve checked out Joann’s fabric section at least 10 times in the last few months, so I was completely surprised and delighted to find this rocket fabric; I already know exactly what I’m going to use it for, but will need some help from a couple of my dearest friends who know how to sew (hint-hint)!

Rocket Fabric

$3.99 yard (on sale)

Collage of Frames

One of the projects I've been dying to work on is adding a collage of frames to our hallway. I follow so many great home decor blogs and every time I come across a collage of frames I'm in awe of how gorgeous they look. So this week I stopped by IKEA and picked out some white frames and began framing all our favorite pictures. Since today was a pretty gloomy day in Southern California and we've been stuck indoors, I hung all our new frames. I still want to add a few trinkets in between the frames and some new lighting, but for now I'm content to have our very first collage of frames, I'm already planning two more!

Plastic French Bottles

After finding the plastic soda pop bottles for JD's birthday party, I realized that there were so many other great bottles being used for kids parties that would be so much easier and safer to work with if they were plastic! One bottle that I personally love and plan on using for my friend's baby shower are the super cute French bottles. It took me a while to find just the right ones, but I finally did and they arrived yesterday! As you may have already guessed I will be adding these 8oz plastic French bottles to Quaintly Amusing very soon!

Our 5th Wedding Anniversary

Today hubby and I have been married for 5 years! As I look back now to when we first met I realize that even in those first weeks of dating I already knew I had met my match. We are complete opposites in so many ways, but in the ways that really matter we are the same. I can't even explain the amount of love and appreciation I feel for Noel, he has given me everything a girl could ever hope for and so much more. I thank God everyday for bringing us together, for giving us a beautiful son, a beautiful home and most of all a beautiful life!

Wordless Wednesday

TPPM: Robot Invitation Inspiration

The one thing I've had a really hard time finding for JD's party are robot invitations. I've come across so many cute invitations, but none of them have that retro robot feel I’ve been looking for. For years I've made invitations for parties myself, including our wedding invitations but lately I've shied away from making them because they can be so very time consuming. Well, last week after taking a second look at a really awesome robot I plan on adding to JD's collection, an idea popped into my head; so I've decided to bite the bullet and make JD's robot invitations myself, especially since a smaller party means less invitations to make. Wish me luck!

Here is my inspiration!

Mr. D-Cell Robot

"2009"

Our Blooming Garden

When we first toured our home, the back yard literally looked like The Secret Garden; the roses, the fruit trees and the flowers were in full bloom and this was one of the biggest reasons we fell in love with it! Since the day we moved in we’ve been slowly working on the back yard and it’s been a lot of work; but this weekend we pretty much dedicated all our time to it and I of course couldn’t help but to take a few pictures of our blooming garden, especially after spending all winter looking at bare trees.