of Painting Kitchen Cabinets

I'm about six weeks from our move to Iowa, and five weeks from a special pre-moving trip to Iowa.  The hopeful plan is for the Nicest Sister in the Whole World and I to go up to Iowa a week before we move in order to get a little work done before all the boxes and little people enter the house.  I'm hoping we can at least get the kitchen cabinets painted, so that when we move, the kitchen will be ready to receive all our kitchenware and we can start cooking - kitchens are kind-of important that way.  I'm so excited to make this trip!

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Here's the kitchen as is.  I'm reeeally excited for the "After" picture.  I know a little paint is going to make a huge difference in here.  The question is what color to go with???  That's what I've got to get figured out pronto. 

{Our new house kitchen}

Should I just pain them all white?  I do love the clean fresh look of white kitchens....and farmhouse sinks : )

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Or color??? Probably not.  But these are some pretty kitchens.

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If I didn't go all-white I'd probably do white on the top cabinets and a color on the bottom, like so. I do really like this look, too.  Hmmmmm.
 

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I've never painted any kind of cabinet before, so it'll be a little learning curve, but if I can just make a paint color decision I feel like that's half the battle ; ) This is going to be hard for the gal who tries a minimum of four shades to get the right color....but I really won't have time to be changing things as our time will be so short.

I'm wondering if any of you have tackled painting your kitchen cabinets??   If you have a picture, it'd be lovely if you'd to link to it in the comments!  I would love some additional inspiration and any tips you have for cabinet painting would be muchly appreciated!

If you haven't painted your cabinets, now might just be the time to go for it : ) 

Engagement Session: Jenna & Aaron

It's that lovely time of year when everything looks beautiful and green outside and people start thinking about pictures again....I've had quite a few photography requests lately, which I love, but it's obviously not really the best time for me to gallivanting about country roads with my camera (hello! still haven't unpacked our bags from our trip).... but when there's the most adorable, nicest-ever couple in your church, who just got engaged, you just have to make time.  It was lovely fun to do this as a pre-wedding gift.

The only day that worked for them was also the day it was cloudy and rainy.  However, I remembered how much I love taking photos on overcast days.  You don't have to worry about any shadows on faces - the light is just really lovely.  Plus how fun and romantic is a little rain and kisses under an umbrella? : )

See how adorable they are??

 

At the last minute before I drove over I grabbed our umbrella, this quilt and the yellow sweater since I remembered Jenna said she was going to wear short sleeves and it was getting chilly and wet.  I was so thrilled at how well the colors all came together.

  

 

I always love a sweet shoe shot. : )

 

So that's what I let myself be busy with this weekend.  Along with some distracting Craigslist and secondhand finds....now to get those bags unpacked and pull that bridal shower together! yikes.

Hope you had a more productive, but no less enjoyable weekend. : )

with love,

cailan

Sleeping Pictures

Phew! We're finally back home. Just got in last night...and my oldest little man is still sleeping.  That never happens.  These pictures are of my other boy back in Indiana.  While we were there we had all the kiddos on air mattresses in on room - it was a great primer for our plan to have them together in the new house.   Somehow this little guy not only managed to take a nap, but stay sleeping even with his brother and sister bouncing and squealing about. 

So I cleared out the rowdy people, opened up the curtains, and took some sleeping pictures before he awoke.   I've been wanting to try to get some of these for a long time, so it was a perfect (albeit brief) opportunity.

We had a wonderful vacation in Indiana.  The kids wore themselves out every day playing outside and with their grandparents.  It was just a really sweet time away.  

But now I'm trying to gear myself up for all the fun crazy that's ahead.  There's laundry to do, of course, and office work to catch up on, the bridal shower and a garage sale to prepare for.
Somewhere in there I probably should start packing. 
So good times, straight ahead. : )

Love Is in the Air

About six years ago, at this time of year I was just a few weeks from my June wedding...and I was in England with my mother for a last-hurrah-trip together.  It was of course very lovely to get to go together, but unfortunately I was about as loony lovesick as a silly bride-to-be could be, which made England a little hard to appreciate at the time...ah, young spring love. ; )

Six years later, we're getting ready to enjoy our last day of family vacation in Indiana while I also try to get some bridal shower invitations out for a dear friend who is presently at the height of her spring love.  I may have had fleeting grand aspiration of making the invites myself, but that soon passed and I ended up ordering some from Etsy. 

Was instantly taken with these, but the shop owner was very inconveniently on vacation as well and unable to assist last-minute-me.

So I ended up with these vintage lovelies instead, which was just as well as they were a bit more economical.  Going to make every effort to get them printed today!

So, I'm all set-up for a sweet, vintage-y themed shower...in two weeks.  {yikes} 

Any ideas for me???

Also wanted to share this little gift idea I've used a few times. 

Engagement is such a sweet, wonderful time, and though it seems people so rarely have engagement parties anymore it's fun to do a little something small to let the gal know that I am rejoicing with her in this lovely season of anticipation.

Was happy a couple years ago to find this little gift.

It's just a little something, and I always make sure to tell the bride that I have absolutely no expectation that she actually use them.   Firmly believe the bride should definitely have whatever "blue" she wants.  Unless of course, you're me, and you forget the something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue thing altogether.  I had a hard time engaging in any wedding plans, period. 

I found this at my local florist, but you can also get them {HERE}.

I love that it is just the sort of gift that is easy to tuck in an envelope and mail.

Aaaannd bringing lovering line of thought round full-circle back to my own little sweetheart...thinking I really need to get on board with Ms. Rebekah and start her Dinner at Eight, at-home date nights.  She has put together some of the loveliest dates for her and her hubby.  So inspiring.

You can read about her date-night project {HERE}.

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Ever since I wrote about our date-night revival last summer, we have been enjoying a night out about every other week.  I think once you finally start date-nights, you wonder how you ever managed without them.   However, when we move to Iowa we'll be back to square one as far as babysitters go, so perhaps that will be a good time to try my hand at a little wifely thoughtfulness and do some home-dates.  Keep me accountable about that one, will you?  : )

Hope you're enjoying some of your own love in the air this spring.

with love,

cailan



We Are Going Places

So we took our very first family road trip.  We were three years overdue for a trip to Indiana to see my husband's family, but finally gathered up our utmost courage and did it.

Introducing my traveling companions:
{These first pictures were taken on my iphone last Sunday when we were neat and tidy.}

Here we are on the actual trip, crumbled and fuzzy. 

But surprisingly happy! 

We had a good bit of apprehension about this 18-hour trip - would our children fall apart? would they cry and fuss the whole way?  Our precious children are not the most easy-going bunch, so these were very reasonable concerns.  And though we invested in a DVD player, I dreaded having to use it much.  I wanted my kiddos to look out the windows, to talk, sing, and laugh, to enjoy the journey. 
Yes, I'm a bit of an idealist.

However, the kiddos completely floored us with cheerful, happy-camper little attitudes (almost) entire way.  
Floored, I tell you.

The first hour of the trip was my favorite.  The novelty of the experience was carrying us at an all-time high, and there was no noise in the car except the children's happy chatter and singing. 
We looked at cows and clouds. 

Then we turned on some of our favorite cowboy music, Riders in the Sky.  This is the same group that recorded "Woody's Round-up" from Toy Story 2.  It is happy music, and we love it. : )

We also took the audio cds that were included with our Big Picture Story Bible by David Helm.  We've been enjoying this bible for the last few months.  It's pretty simplistic, esp. for my five-year-old, but provides a nice overview.  We'd never tried the cds and I thought my kiddos might be bored with them - but the cd is well done, and they really enjoyed them for about a half hour each day and even protested when I turned it off.  Wonders, I tell you.

I tried to start reading this, and did thoroughly enjoy the first chapter (gives me such vision and hope for the whole homeschooling venture) ....unfortunately, I'm a complete wimp when it comes to car sickness, so that's as far as I got.

Fortunately, the Iowan scenery was pleasant, and yes, it about drove me nuts to be in Iowa but not go see my Iowa house.  So close and yet so far away - about a ten hour round trip detour :(

We stopped halfway and stayed at a hotel - another first, which added considerable to the "adventure" experience the kiddos were eating up. 

And we went swimming.  And I confess this was another first - swimming as a family.  I know, I know!  I am ashamed to admit it, but my sweetheart is not much of a water-guy and I have been content with our backyard wading pool.  So driving all day, staying at hotel, and going swimming - for us, it felt like we were being the Ultimate fun family.

Then we lined our kids up sideways on the queen bed.  They loved it, and excepting one mid-night panic, they did really well with the arrangement.

And today we made it the rest of the way with some additional fussing but really nary a hitch.  We listened to music and audio books, colored and had some snacks, talked and looked out the window, and watched one Blue's Clues.  We enjoyed the journey.

And now, while I'm not so naive as to expect this happy experience will be our "norm" for family travel, I do feel awfully encouraged knowing that We CAN travel.  Road trips are possible for our little family, and it's even possible that we can have happy travels.   This is pretty empowering knowledge, and my brain wheels are turning about all the opportunities and doors this opens for us....let's drive to the beach! to Chicago! to Canada! ... Paris. ; )

Anyway, it's certainly a significant milestone for our stay-at-home, we-have-little-kids-so-we-can't-family.

We are going places.