Weekend Outlook: The Single Girl Edition



 Normally I write a post with a specific topic in mind.  I don't feel like it today.  I guess if I have to label it then we will go with "weekend".

Mark left this morning for a guys' weekend in the mountains.  He really deserves the mini-vacation so I am happy for him.  That means, however, that I will be single until Sunday. 

Mark is definitely not one to get in the way when I am trying to clean or organize or anything but yet I always get excited when this weekend rolls around annually.  I get the chance to not cook full meals, organize/clean at whim, and read hours on end.  It's my own little retreat, too.

I set out yesterday making my to-do list for the weekend; a list of all the things I wanted to accomplish on my own timetable and without distraction.  Unfortunately, everything might not get done as I planned (surprise. surprise.) because I woke up this morning with a cold.  Right now I am just looking forward to quickly swinging by Target for a couple things and then going home to bed.  NOT how I planned to start my weekend.  I am kind of bummed about it because I haven't been sick since April.  I was hoping to go a full year but no cigar. Maybe I will get a second wind when I get home.

Nevertheless, I have a to-do list and I am sticking to do.  I may not complete the whole thing but at least some is better than none.  In the spirit of organizing my thoughts and making myself accountable to my goals, here is my to do list as it stands now:

~ Read 1 book (maybe 2)
~ Detail inside of my car
~ Start (complete?) taxes online
~ Deodorize/clean carpet
~ Finish organizing and decorating the guest suite and "lounge"* from the room swap a couple weeks ago
~ Come up with an appetizer for the Super Bowl party (and then attend said party)
~ Laundry
~ Come up with menu/grocery list for the week
~ Clean the house (dust, bathrooms, etc.)
~ Go to a birthday party for a little friend that is turning 1 (this depends on the sick status .. no need to spread germs!)
~ Go to Target for items to complete tasks above.

I think that is about it.  There are ton of little individual tasks on my written list in front of me but they all generally fall under the categories above.  Honestly, the list is totally doable.  It's actually pretty doable with a cold (minus the birthday party) but you never know.  I may wake up tomorrow healed or I may wake up feeling dead.  We'll see. 

The point of all this is that I plan on having a productive, happy weekend.  I wish the same for all of you. Whether you are hammering out a to-do list like me or just want to sit on the couch for 48 hours...  I hope it's everything you want it to be.  I will report back and let you know how I did.  Happy Weekend!

* Ever since the man room moved downstairs it has kind of lost it's exclusivity.  It's not longer separated from the main living space and so "man room" or "man cave" just doesn't feel appropriate.  Right now it holds two lounge chairs, a bookcase and a small beer fridge.  (It used to have a couch, TV, etc but those were repurposed for other rooms)  Since its main purpose right now is reading or listening to music, we jokingly deemed it "The Lounge" .... and it kind of stuck.  It's embarrassing but we really just don't know what to call it.  So with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek .. I will now be referring to the former office as "The Lounge".

The Other Wish List

Looking ahead into 2012 led me to creating a personal Resolutions List.  It can be summed up as this:

be healthier

be braver

be quieter

All that is well and good but sort of incomplete.  Those goals only encompassed what I wanted for myself but left off my little "to do list" for other things .. namely .. my house.

Mark and I live in a great house but have come to the conclusion that our little Five-Year-Starter-Home is going to end up being our Ten-Year-Establish-A-Family-Home.  I like my house so that doesn't completely disappoint me but there are some things that are missing.  It's the kinds of things you don't realize you need/want until living with it a while.

The whole house has four bedrooms and three full baths.  It goes something like this: 

~ Bedroom 1 + Bath 1:  Master Suite

~ Bedroom 2:  Office                        

~ Bedroom 3: Guest room                 

~ Bath 2: Hall Bath/Guest Bath         

~ Bedroom 4 + Bath 3: "Man Room"   

This configuration has worked well for us over the past four years but things are a-brewin' in 2012 which means changes are on the way.  Below, in no particular order, is the list of updates/changes/etc that we want to make to our house in 2012/2013.  It seems like a lot but we have been slowly preparing for this for a while now.  I will, of course, be telling you about each step of the process so let's see how much we will actually get done!!
*Note: the ones with (??) are the ones that we are still mulling over.

1. Build a shed
2. Landscape with mulch and a tree or two
3. Install a pantry
4. Install double sinks in the master bath (??)
5. Open up the wall between living room and stairs (??)
6. If #5 happens then: extend the hardwoods to the edge of the stairs. (??)
7. Move the office into "bedroom 3"
8. Temporarily make "bedroom 2" the guest room (until it becomes the permanent home of our first born)
9. Create a second closet in "bedroom 3"
10. Build better closet organization in "bedroom 2" and "bedroom 3"
11. Install a back splash in the kitchen
12. Build outdoor planter boxes/benches to line the patio

Whew!  Some of the items are easily completed (as in #7 and #8) and some will take a lot more planning (as in #1 and #11).  As we tackle each project I will get before, during, and after pics to share. I am sure many of you who are friends with me on pinterest are not surprised by the items on my list (given my pins lately).

I know some of those items might sound confusing but bare with me.  I simply wanted to get the list out there and I will explain as we go.  So that is our Wish List (on behalf of our dear house) for 2012 ..and perhaps a little of 2013. ;)

What's on your wishlist?  Do you have any planned project for the place you call home?  Have you done anything on the list and can give us any advice?  I would love to hear from you.

Kohl's Coupon Code

I know it's early but some of you out there (including myself) have started Christmas shopping already.  Some of you just like to shop and are looking for any excuse.  Whatever the reason, I have a coupon code for Kohl's I would like to share.  The verbiage says:

Take an extra 20% off everything.  It's our thank-you for all you do.  Good every time you shop from Thursday-Sunday, November 17-20, 2011.

The coupon code is PARTNER20 and can be used online.

HAPPY SHOPPING!

Daylight Saving Time ends

Don't forget to "fall back" one hour tonight!

Fun fact:  The correct term is actually "daylight saving time" and not "daylight savings time" .. who knew!?

Organizing Kitchen Chaos

As you all know, I love me some Pinterest.  I have compiled some tricks and tips regarding one of the hardest-working rooms in your house.  I hope you discover something new today!

I love the idea of using a magazine rack to organize pot lids!  This article has several great suggestions for using containers to organize your kitchen and make it aesthetically pleasing.

 

Short on cabinet space?  Have too many canned items stacked on top of and behind each other?  Check out this tutorial on how to DIY a great cabinet.  This particular cabinet fits between the refrigerator and the wall and holds canned goods.  I think this could also be a great option for a large spice collection. If you shrink it down you could even install it in a cabinet!

 

I love a good cleaning trick and, since it is sort of food related, I had to throw this in! There are a ton of stain and spot removers on the market.  I have had experience with many of them and only some of them actually live up to their claims.  I am a big supporter of OxiClean products but this tips is even better (and much cheaper!).  Mix one part of Dawn dish detergent and two parts hydrogen peroxide.  Either dip the stained material into the mixture of pour it on top.  It will disappear!  It's awesome!  I saved two shirts doing this.

First I want to apologize for not having the source for this pic.  I found it on Pinterest and when I clicked the source there it took me to someone else's blog ... who then acknowledged that they got it off Pinterest .. so there ya go.  If you know the REAL source .. let me know and I will update and give credit asap.  Any way .. moving on..

I do not currently have a proper pantry but I can guarantee that this will be happening in my house when I get one!  I think this is such a great use of space.  I love that the "peg board" idea, typically reserved for garage spaces, is transformed for something useful in the kitchen.  The hanging baskets is great too because you can reposition them based on what's inside.  Love it!

OK .. this is just perfection!  I LOVE a good before-and-after and this certainly did not disappoint!  If you go to the source you will actually see a kitchen overhaul .. which is quite fitting for this post!  So much inspiration!

So if you are harboring some clutter in your kitchen and can't seem to find anything .. check some of these tips out!  A little organization can go a long way!!

Pinterest, where have you been all of my life?

I have a new obsession.  I can not lie.

Pinterest.

What is Pinterest, you ask?  It's an online bulletin board where you pin pictures and links to all of your interests .. thus Pinterest.  I had heard about this website a while back but never thought I could utilize such a tool.  Then, a few weeks ago, it was referenced on the same day by two separate blogs I follow.  I took it as a sign that I needed to revisit the issue.

I went to the website and requested an invitation.  (By the way, if you are interested in joining, let me know and I will send you a direct invitation.  It's faster that way.)  As I awaited the evite, I began to click through pictures and figure out how everything worked.  I started to grasp how others were using the site and began to realize it could be a wonderful tool and not just a social outlet.

As you probably know by now, I would thoroughly love to be Martha Stewart (sans the jail time) and so I am constantly brushing up on my organizing, cooking, reading and general homemaking skills.  Since I work full-time out of the home and I do not have an unlimited budget or time, I tend to plan more than create.  That's not to say I don't follow through, because I do, it's just that I take a little longer to get to the final result.  I like to break things down in stages, versus completing an entire project outright, because it's generally faster and cheaper that way.

Up until now I kept all of my ideas stowed away in my brain, flagged in emails, etc.  This has worked for me thus far because, as it turns out, I have the ability to store large quantities of inspiration in my head.  I do have a limit though.  A couple months ago I arbitrarily decided to start planning SEVERAL projects .. some large, some small, some for now and some for a year or two down the road.  Crazy, right?  Probably.

I had been trying to think of ways to manage all my plans when I landed on Pinterest.  I realized I could just create a board for projects and store the information in one location.  I can tag pictures or articles or anything.  So this is how I have decided to use it.  I have a board for each room that I want to decorate, recipes I want to make, outfits I want to wear, ways I want to store future belongings, etc.  It's wonderful!  I know there are a ton of reasons and uses it would be good for but, personally, it was a simple decision.

I encourage you to check it out.  Maybe it's not your cup of tea but just maybe it is.  If nothing else, you can at least spend a few minutes looking at pretty pictures :)

Oh, buddy...



http://www.floorplanner.com/

...my inner over-planner is freaking out right now!  As we all know, I love me some home decor, plan making, and controlled change.  I have come across a program that allows me to enjoy all three of these things at one time! YES!!! Now, I fully realize I am a total dork.  No argument there.  But seriously though .. this is really cool.

SOOO basically this program allows you to easily make a 2D or 3D model of your home and property.  Why is this awesome!? Because if you, like me, love to rearrange furniture, plan color schemes, or generally would love to see what it would be like to knock down a wall or two in your home .. this is for you!  There is an extensive library of furniture and decor so you can match most anything you have.  It may not be exact but it should be close enough to give you a realistic overview of what changes might feel like.  I can't tell you how much LOVE this.  I don't know how many times I have broken a sweat moving furniture all around only to realize it was the worst idea ever ... afterwards.

So go ahead and check this out.  You know you want to.  I will, however, warn you now.  There is some legwork up front because you will need to take the measurements of all your spaces so you can "build" your home.  After the initial setup, though, you can save it and return to it whenever you want to make a change.  So take a peek and see what it's like and have fun!!

PS - Mark and I will be using this to tackle our backyard makeover so you will be seeing some of our plans for plant and shed placement. Yay :)

Update:  After spending a long time playing around with the program last night, I have come to the realization that it is a little unsophisticated for my specific needs.  I still think it is a great program but for the application with which I wanted to use it, not so much.  Mark has professional 3D modeling software (it's what he does for a living) so that is what we will end up using.  If you find it lacking, too, check out Google's Sketch-Up program.  It is much better but with a steeper learning curve. Happy Drafting!