Last Weekend I....

......Learned how to knit!

My in-laws came to visit and were here Friday and part of Saturday, and I talked my mother-in-law into teaching me how to knit. Turns out its a whole lot easier than I thought!


......Finished making-over an old chair for my sewing table!
My in-laws bought a house in Dallas, so they are trying to get rid of a lot of stuff and I happily inherited this chair that fits perfectly at my sewing desk.

Amazing what a little spray paint and fabric can accomplish! :)

Weekend Getaway

This past weekend we decided to take a long weekend and go to Fredericksburg! It was kind of an early Valentine's gift/waaaay early anniversary gift (michael's work is about to get really busy and time off in april will be hard to get). We stayed at a little B&B that we actually went to 2 years ago during out first anniversary. We only spent one night there last time and told ourselves that we would come back and stay longer, so we did! 

The B&B we stayed at was called The Italian Place.

It's super cute and owned by a couple who live in Stonewall (about 7 miles outside Fredericksburg). One of the best parts is that our pup was allowed to come with us! They have 2 rooms, and one of them is dog-friendly. They also have a neat little dog run out back so when you go into town, the pup can hang out there til you get back. It's pretty perfect. 

Our room was a converted above-garage apartment behind the main house

looking into the yard from our porch

outside area with a fire pit

Pretty nice right?? Its so quiet and peaceful there, and they put a homemade (delicious) breakfast in our fridge every night so we were able to sleep in and eat whenever we wanted!

On Thursday afternoon after we checked into our room, we went and toured a winery. It was really neat because we learned all about the process and the grounds were beautiful. I had no idea that it takes over a year to make good wine!

Here's a couple of pictures of the room where the huge vats ferment the grapes and then the "barrel room" where the wine is stored for about 9 or 10 months before they bottle it

On Friday, we slept late, took the pup for a walk, toured the Pacific War Museum, and went shopping at all the cute little shops downtown. The museum was definitely our favorite. It was really well done, and talk about a great history lesson! We only allowed ourselves about 3 hours at the museum, but could have easily stayed much longer. I highly recommend it.

All in all, it was a really nice, really relaxing weekend, and getting up and going to work this morning was so tough!

Organizing My House: Master Closet Edition

I've got another room organized! Well ok, so its a closet, BUT a very important closet. We use this closet every day and it had finally reached a point where I couldn't take the mess anymore. Also, since we mounted the TV and weren't using the shelf in the upstairs living area anymore, I saw a great opportunity to use it in the closet.  

So here's the very embarrassing state of my closet before:

We have all these great built-in shelving units and really just have no excuse for the mess this closet was in. Just comes down to laziness, and no defined area for things to live. I basically spent most of a Saturday taking things out, filling up a bag of stuff we don't need anymore for goodwill, and putting it all back in an organized fashion. I only ended up needing to buy 2 big bins and 3 small ones (since we already had the wire shelves and the small brown bookshelf) so this was a very cheap project that ended up with wonderful results.
Here's the after:

The brown shelf fit perfectly on Michael's side of the closet and was a great place to put some of his miscellaneous things (like clothes that have holes and are only appropriate for walking Gaius at the park) that looks really nice. The pictures aren't the best because its really hard to take good pictures, but you can get the general idea. So far, we have lived with it for about a week and I am loving it!

Some Changes

Well I guess its time to play catch-up again! I have been working on several small projects the past 2 weeks, and its nice to see all the little changes around the house.

So first up, I painted the wall behind the stove. We replaced our appliances last November, and when we did, it left this blank white space that looked gross.

This was a nice and easy fix that looks great!

Next, I got some inspiration from a DIY book that Michael gave me for christmas (which I LOVE), and decided to paint the chandelier in our kitchen.

I think it looks so fun! I originally wanted to take the whole thing down and spray paint it (including the chain it hangs from), but Michael took one look at the connection to the ceiling and declared "no way am I taking this down." 

Next up is the upstairs living room. This is how it has looked for a long time:

We have been looking for a sectional for this room for awhile, and finally found a great deal at costco of all places. I also made some curtains and a dog bed for the window where Gaius spends his days (and most evenings) hanging out. We put a Lowe's gift card to use and installed a ceiling fan, and mounted the TV so we could move the shelf out to create more space.

It's looking so much better up there now!

I already have plans in mind to finish out this room. I want to make that wall where the pictures are into a nice looking gallery wall, sew a lot of cute pillows for the couch, paint the room, and either build or install shelving in the area where Michael's desk sits. 

The Liebster Award

My sweet friend Julie nominated me for this award (her blog is: http://confessionsofanapper.blogspot.com/). The rules say you are supposed to tell 11 facts about yourself, then answer 11 questions given to you by the nominator. Julie has a fun and interesting blog to read, and was nominated last week by one of her friends.  Basically this award is just a way to connect a bunch of small blogs all together and form one big online community. So here goes:

11 Facts:

1. I used to despise running, but over the past 6 months I have made a point to give it a good try, and I am finding myself enjoying and (gasp) even looking forward to my runs
2. I love birthday parties
3. I have watched every Grey's anatomy episode since it started when I was in college
4. I am addicted to peppermint mochas from starbucks
5. I have learned everything I know about fashion/how to dress from my little sister who is 8 years younger than me
6. My mom used to take away my books as punishment when I was younger
7. I took classical ballet lessons for 8 years
8. I loved all 4 years of high school, and would consider that time my favorite out of all my growing up years
9. I went on my first date my freshman year of collage
10. If I had endless funds, I would spend most of my time traveling all over the world
11. I love roller coasters 

11 Questions from Julie:

1. What is your favorite part of the day?
Around 9 am, I like mornings the best, but hate waking up early. 9am is perfect because you can still enjoy the day beginning but you get to sleep in a little bit :)

2. What is your favorite cereal?
Captain Crunch

3. Are you named after anyone?
Yes, my mom; her name is Donna Kay

4. What is your dream career?
I have dreamed about being a nurse since I was around 7 years old, and thankfully I am living my dream!

5. Where is your favorite place on earth?
Michigan, specifically the cottage that Michael's family owns in Grand Haven

6. What is your least favorite fashion trend right now and why?
I am not really very tuned into all the current trends, but I have seen people wear high heels with shorts, and I think it looks really weird

7. Morning person or night owl?
Morning (mid to late morning specifically)

8. What is your guilty pleasure?
TLC bridal shows

9. Would you like to have lived in any other decade?
Not really, I'm pretty content with the 20th century and all the advantages we have
If I had to pick, I think the 50s might have been fun

10. How did you and your best friend meet?
My best friend is my husband, and we met at church

11. What is your most cherished possession?
My puppy dog


Now I am supposed to nominate 9 other people who have small blogs, but the only people I know have already been nominated, so I am going to be a bit of a party pooper. Thanks Julie for thinking of me!