The Pantry is Finished!

This project took me way longer than I anticipated but I'm thrilled to say that I actually finished it.
The before pictures are quite embarassing but I'm so happy with the finished product that I'm going to show just how bad the state of affairs was in there. Oh My.

We were buying multiples of things because once something got "put away" in there it was practically lost forever.Plus I'm a real stickler about using foods past their expiration date. Once it's past the date on the container - it goes. I didn't have too much I had to throw away but the winner was a can of chicken stock that expired in 2007 - eeewww! I don't know how that one survived the move to this house.

Look at those beautiful white shelves. No more builder's beige. I can't believe how much the space has been brightened.


The only things I want to see on the floor in here are the dog food containers and the trash can. No more dumping crap!

One more project crossed of my list so now, what's next?

Making Progress!

I'm happy to say that by putting my list "out-there" I'm making some progress!

I've painted the laundry room, and am almost finished painting the pantry. One more coat of paint on all the shelves and I'll take care of that tomorrow. I'll show pictures of the pantry once it is finished. Can you believe it took me an hour and a half just to empty everything out of there. Now, all that stuff is on all the counters in the kitchen and in the dining room. Ugh - what a huge mess! But I will finish it.

We bought and hung a new mirror for the kitchen (yay!) and today Doug bought a new ceiling fan for the back porch. This past week I finally got all the plants in the back yard planted. I have a very bad habit of going to the garden center buying pretty stuff and then leaving it unplanted until it dies. Although there were a few casualties, mostly everything got planted and although the landscaping is no where near finished back there, it is an improvement.

I'm determined to get everything off my list so stay tuned!

Birdsong Tags Have Arrived!

I'm so excited that my Birdsong Tags have arrived! I don't know how Karla packages them all up and sends them on their way. As I was looking at her blog I wanted each and every tag I saw and it would be impossible for me to pick only seven to keep. I'm thrilled with the ones she chose for my book. :) Don't forget that you can click on any image to make it larger.
Here is the beautiful cover that Karla made:

The first tag in my Birdsong Tag Book is from Lena Staggs of ahappymiscellany.typepad.com. How clever to use the sweet little buttons and the needle threader as embellishments. I never think of things like that!

Freda Butler of sewwhatsnew-fredab.blogspot.com made this beautifully layered tag with a real twig for a branch and a lovely birdnest charm.

This pink tag with the little bluebird was created by Jennifer Colvin-Allen.

Christine Nay of changeofheart56.blogspot.com made this sweet pink tag. That little bird is just precious!

This beautiful Awaken to Song tag was created by Charlotte Smothers of seahorseranch.blogspot.com.

This tag is by Kimberly Laws of artjoystuff.blogspot.com. Kimberly and I have been in a few swaps together prior to this one and her tag has incredible detail!

The last tag is made by Pam Perrella. Isn't the red just gorgeous!?!

Hope you've enjoyed these as much as I have!

Just get it done!

I have a list of projects that I want to do around the house and it seems like it is a mile long. I know if I would just dive in and get to work on my list, I would feel such great accomplishment, it's just getting started that is so daunting. Plus, I keep getting sidetracked with other things.


We've been in this house almost three years and I can hardly believe it. The only room I've painted is our bedroom and it is time to freshen things up a bit. Shortly after we moved in we had a mishap in the laundry room and I have been wanting to paint in there ever since. Just a word of caution - don't place a full container of laundry soap on top of the upright washing machine. Even thought they are quiet, efficient machines, they still shake enough during the spin cycle to send the container crashing down to the floor and believe me ~ when the bottle breaks open it splashes soap *everywhere*. What a mess!
Anyway - I'm putting my list on here to remind me of what exactly it is that I want to accomplish, and hopefully either motivate me, guilt me or shame me into getting some things crossed off my list.

Paint laundry room
Paint and organize pantry
Paint and organize master closet
Paint office
Paint hallways
Finish landscaping in the back yard
Fix sinkhole around mailbox and put in plants
Paint bookcase
Sew shower curtain for upstairs bathroom
Paint back patio
Buy and install ceiling fan for back patio
Buy and install new sconces for hallways
Wash windows inside and out
Buy a mirror for the wall over the kitchen table
Do a menu plan
Order new business cards
Build my website
*finish my studio/craft room!*

I appreciate any words of encouragement. :)

Tag for Birdsong Tag Swap

I finally finished my tags for Karla's Birdsong Tag Swap and I'm mailing them off today. Since there are over a hundred participants and we only had to make seven tags, chances are that the recipients of my tags won't read my blog until after the tags are received so I'm sharing my tag now.
I collaged one side of the tag with music paper and then dry brushed both sides of the tag with a pretty yellow paint. Then I wrapped the entire tag with a pretty blue mesh ribbon. The sweet bird is a download from The Graphics Fairy. I added the green gingham trim and attached the bird to the tag. Finally, I added a grommet to the top and attached a tag to the back with my information on it.
Karla will be packaging them all up this week and getting them in the mail along with a beautiful cover that she made. Can't wait!

Summer Lovin Tag Swap

Okay - here they are and trust me that they are so much cuter in person! I thought I would try scanning them but the ones that have dimension on them came out blurry from the scan and I have no idea why some scanned larger than others. To see better detail, click on the picture to enlarge it.


The first tag is by Cindy Bellamy - LOVE the fourth of July theme; the second tag is from my Brave Girl Sister Sheryl Eggleston - the palm tree makes me smile and reminds me of Hawaii!

The pinwheel on the first tag actually spins and was made by this Swap's Hostess: Jonnelle! Plus, I don't think it shows in the picture but where there is a "bite" out of the ice cream, it looks like there is a drip. :) The second tag is by Dawn Tavela and I just love the way she used the paper punch for "waves". Definitely reminds me of summer!

Love the tag with the actual sand and real shells. Makes me miss the British Virgin Islands - I'm ready to go back! Thanks to Wendy Robrecht for this cute card. Next up is the Bathing Beauty tag by Jane Palmer. Jane always has such detail on her tags.


The "Summer Loves" tag with the flip flops, the watermelon, the sun and the ice cream *I think* was made by my other Brave Girl Sister Dawn Blackstead. There are only initials so if that is wrong, let me know! So cute. And the refreshing looking snow cone was made by Wanda Clark. Wanda used glitter paper for the snow part and it glistens just like a real snow cone.


The tag on the right is mine. My favorite thing is the cute little crabs that I punched out of red glitter paper. The final tag is a fun surfboard tag made by Jess. So cute!
I always love participating in these tag swaps. The next one I'm doing is a Birdsong Tag Swap hosted by Karla Nathan. Those are due pretty quickly so I have to get moving on those. You may remember that I went to Karla's Birdsong Event this spring and had an absolutely wonderful time!

Hello Bird

I had some fun creating this today
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I received my Summer Lovin' Tags in the mail - wait until you see those!

Happy Fourth of July!

I have work to do and I'm doing everything I can think of to avoid it. All of a sudden I have all of these crafty ideas and I just want to be upstairs in my craft studio playing. I made a "prize ribbon" in celebration of the holiday.

We are going to watch fireworks tonight and that should be fun so I really need to buckle down and get my work done then I can relax. If I would just get started it should only take me two or three hours but I just don't want to do it! :(
Let me procrastinate just a little more and share one more thing with you:
I've mentioned before about our Shih Tzu Teddy Bear - he likes to see what the neighbor's dogs are doing by peeking through a small knothole in the fence.

Here he is trying to resist but he just can't stand it!

He can sit there all day and it's a bummer for him when they are not at home. He gets bored but keeps coming back to make sure they aren't there.

Have a great 4th!