Mirror turned Chalkboard

This was my Thanksgiving project. Long overdue to get done and long overdue to share. My bad. Most of what we have to share is baby G related (like registering and getting this damn chair ordered), so I thought I would break it up a bit.

You know that I am passionate about upcycling, repurposing or whatever you want to call refusing to throw stuff away. That is how this DIY headboard came to pass and so many other projects.

The backstory on this mirror goes like this....I bought these 2 mirrors for like $35 off Craigslist for my small studio space that I rented in Dallas (circa 2009). When I went to pick them up, the girl nonchalantly mentions that they have these obnoxious giant nails thru the wood framing all the way around. Since I was already there and I needed a mirror, I just took the damn thing.

Now these have been wrapped up in packing paper for 2+ years and schlepped from Dallas to our first house in Richmond and now here. Just like the wood in our shed that became the DIY headboard, I swore to the Dude that I would figure out some amazing and fabulously creative way to use them. It took me some time, but now that we are in our new house it came to me.

I decided to turn the smaller of the two mirrors into a chalkboard to hang in the dining room. After I hammered out the giant nails that were in the frame (I've got a pic of that from the 2nd mirror project that we did today), I taped off the edges and spray painted the chalkboard paint directly onto the mirror.

It was so easy! I did take a few coats. I think I did it 3 times, just make sure it was even. I let it dry about a half hour each time in between. 

 Each week, we have been taking my pregnancy progress photo and writing the number of weeks on the chalkboard. It also is a fun place to write our menu when we have people over for dinner. I am sure we will use it for all sorts of stuff!

We have been tracking the baby's progress with his size corresponding to fruits and veggies. I couldnt find a rutabaga that week:)

If you are a Pinterest person, I added this to my DIY decor Pinterest board. Its here if you want to  repin and save it for a future project.

See, told you so! Never doubt my creative vision. Today we put the 2nd mirror into action. It looks amazing, more to come on that.

12 Days of Jasmine

The life of Jasmine is coveted by most. The smallest of the bunch, she runs the show. After a few days of mobile uploads in a row, I decided to bring you the 12 Days of Jasmine. I hope you enjoy.

Day 1: Good morning! Ill be here all day, if you need me.



Day 2: Happy friday!

Day 3: Mine! (even though I stole it from Charlie!)

Day 4: I dont want it but I dont want to give it back so I'm guarding this bone with me life, while catching some zzzz's. I'm known for multi-tasking.



I have been looking for girlfriend for 15 min, calling her, yelling outside, upstairs, then downstairs. Now this is where I find her. Hidden on the back of the couch! Letting me run around like a crazy. Sorry, day 5 of jasmine isn't very exciting.





Day 6: we are not getting off to a good start. Perhaps I need to explain to Princess Jasmine that the holidays are about sharing and caring? She is really concerned that Charlie is going to steal her little bone. She doesn't seem to recall (or care) that she stole his a few days back. What am I going to do with her? And why does Charlie let her be the bully?



Day 7 was my spa day at the petco, where the pets go. I feel beautiful and ready for christmas. I hope you do too!

Day 8: All of the children are snuggled in bed, one day early. My mom and dad are watching the grinch who stole christmas

Day 9: This chick preaches constantly to protect yourself from the sun. Today, jasmine's message is "merry christmas: do want you love (like indoor tanning) even if you mom says you really shouldn't." Have a great day.

Day 10: feliz navidad from jasmine. If you are looking for her, she will be here, in her moms lap, all day.

Day 11: Jasmine decides that eating the bone in Charlie's bed while growling at him (even though he has no interest in her or her bone) is more fun than eating it in her own bed.

Day 12: Holiday Hangover. At least Sister Jasmine has this little nub of bone left to snuggle up with.

Every day with Jasmine is fun filled, emotional and exciting. I hope you have enjoyed the 12 days of Jasmine.

Merry Everything

If you are easily offended, please look away.

This morning, a friend of ours emailed me a YouTube video that made him think us. We thought it was super hilarious.


We found a few more but I will just share my favorite one.



Have a sense of humor. Its more fun than taking yourself so seriously. Merry Everything.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to all!

We are spending this Christmas in Virginia, snuggled up and settling into our new house. It has just been wonderful, to take much needed time to rest and relax. With 84 days until our wedding, I could use a moment of silence.

You know (or should be now), that we do love to hang out at home and eat really well. We have eaten really well this Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  Let me share some recipes with you.

Christmas Eve dinner: Braised Veal Shanks and Wild Mushroom Risotto.  I highly recommend this! Super delicious.

Followed by Toll House cookies for Santa. We always use the recipe on the bag o chips. Successful everytime!

Christmas Brunch:  French Toast Casserole and Potato Latkes.
* after 3 failed trips to Whole Foods for a challah bread, I gave up and we went with the back up option (cinnamon swirl) and it was really good.  Clearly I didnt get enough latkes at our hanukkah party. I had Jeff make sweet potato latkes last week, which were not good. I needed a little more latke in my life.

Our plan was to go to the movies and get Chinese food, a tradition of Jeff's people. Since we have a little winter storm brewing and I am really enjoying lounging, we went for Chinese take out and an on demand movie.

Just as an FYI, we LOVE chowhound and highly recommend it. That is where we found this chinese place to get our take out from. Any place that has an American Chinese food menu AND an actual Chinese food menu has to be awesome. Just so you know, when ordering you, must specify that you want the actual Chinese food. If you are white they just give you the American, unless you specifically ask for it. But anyway.

Here is an update on the weather, the snow is really coming down and starting to build.

We (Jasmine and I) dont hate this snow, maybe because it is super sparkly Christmas snow? Its probably because I got some warning and I do not have to leave the house since we are on "stay-cation". 

If you are looking for us, we will be at home in our footed, fleece snow flake jammies. Thanks Jill for sending such an awesome holiday treat! How ever have I made it this long without owning multiple pairs of these!

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

This Bird Is Not Built For Snow

This chick has never claimed to be a snow bunny. I would say more semi-tropical than anything. But here we are, twice removed from the days of Spanish Town, this chick is now attempting to adjust to her new environment.

Charlie, while he has never actually lived outside Louisiana or Texas in the winter months, is a LOVER of the snow, just like his father. He loves the snow so much that I could not get him to come in at all! When Jeff came home from work, he went out to play in the snow with Charlie. Everyone was having a good time until Jeff tossed a snoball at Charlie. This was not Charlie's idea of a good time, so he got pissed and decided to pout inside. I would have done the sam thing.

Notice that you do not see Sister Jasmine. She is not a fan of the snow and could be considered semi-tropical like her mother.

playing in the snow

 For alot of reasons, I do not welcome this frozen precipitation falling from the sky. I will spare you my whine-fest. (Well, in short I will say, yes it is pretty. But I am not on vacation! I am not sipping hot cocoa and marveling at the wonders of winter. I am pissed off because I am cold and this shit is wet and gross. I have things to do and this is a huge inconvenience!....ok, Im done for now).

Please take a moment of silence in rememberence of my herb garden. It was once a flourishing masterpiece that I was so proud of. Then this snow storm snuck up on me and its safe to say that this is the end of a season. We will replant next year.

 This is the view from my front door. Ok, I guess it is pretty.

Today is the "first day of Winter" ( I wrote this 2 days ago) and Im ready for it to be the last. Will this chick survive in her new climate? Maybe, but don't look for her to spend much time outdoors until Spring.

Today Jeff informed me that we need to get ready for the big snow storm that is coming on Sunday. Being snowed in on Christmas weekend wouldnt be so bad.

Tacky Light Tour of Richmond

Thanks Chris and Ashley for taking us on our very first Tacky Lights Tour! 

Chris (a life-time local)  was a great trip advisor but if you do not have your own trip advisor, you can get the info here to manage your own schedule. People go all out, renting buses or limos. Its kind of a big deal.  

My personal favorite was the house that had a sign saying tune to this radio station. We followed the instructions and were pleasantly surprised when we realized that the lights were "dancing" along with the music, which happened to be the club version of "Amazing Grace". No, Im serious. You can't make that up! Strange song choice but impressive display of the Christmas spirit.

Our trip advisor, Chris, took alot of pictures. I will upload more to facebook since blogger is giving me fits today. Enjoy!

As a side note, I cant look at all this explosion of spirit withouth thinking,
#1. Why would you do this?
#2. How much is your power bill?
#3. And you want to cause a traffic jam in your neighborhood every night for a month?
#4. Do your neighbors hate you? year around or just at Christmas?
#5. Do these people plan to be on the tacky light tour OR are they shocked when their address makes it on t he list?

Either way, it was fun.

And I found this website with more info on the tacky light tour. Who knew it was the 25th anniversary!

After the very first "tacky lights" tour was organized by Richmond radio deejay Barry "Mad Dog" Gottlieb in 1986…
After being named "the capital of the lighting universe" by BusinessWeek…

And a "Christmas beacon" for tacky lights from Forbes Magazine…

After being featured on NPR for our tacky lights...

And TLC's "Crazy Christmas Lights" TV show...

Mayor Dwight Jones has named Dec. 15, 2010, "Richmond Tacky Light Tour Day."

Which basically means that Tacky Lights are being recognized by the mayor and its 25th anniversary here in Richmond.

The Making of Holiday Cards

This year, I decided, would be my first year to send holiday cards. Every year I enjoy so much getting them in the mail and displaying them through out the holiday season. In the last year, I have decided that I am going to be a full out grown up lady and do grown up lady things. I am of the opinion that one of these things is sending holiday cards.

So when my mom came to visit I decided that we would take advantage of the extra set of hands and have her take a family picture of all 4 of us. She took about 27 and they were not our best. It is really hard to get everyone to look at the camera at the same time. Here's a look at what we ended up with.

 This is the first shot, probably the best one.

 It all kind of falls apart here.

 What am I looking at?

Where is Jeff? Oh, yeah, he is chasing Charlie around the back yard. Charlie decided posing for a picture is lame and we should play a game. I thought this was a great shot of the ladies of the house but not appropriate for our holiday card.

 Charlie, what are you looking at?

 Jasmine decide Jeff needed a little kiss.

 I thought that was a great idea so I gave him one too!

The top half looks great.

 Jasmine and Charlie gave up and retired to their corner.

The next day we took this one on our visit to Jamestown. It came out very nice, probably because we werent trying. So this year, it is just the two of us. Sorry, Jasmine and Charlie!

I was starting to get a little worried because I hadnt gotten any cards from friends and family this year. Maybe people dont know our address? Maybe they forgot about us?  Luckily, today (what started as a terrible day) was turned around when I received cards from Lindsay, E'tage & Mark, Stephanie & Angie, Claire & Richard. Thanks for brightening my day with your holiday cheer!

Dogs love Turkey Day too!

Meet Maggie (all white) and Morgan (smaller by the door). These are Jeff's parents doggies. They are really sweet and stayed out our house while Jeff's parents were here for Thanksgiving. Baby G had the rights to our only spare bed so all parents stayed down the street.

They are probably staying really close the door to avoid Jasmine. As usual, Jasmine did not greet her guests with open arms. Instead I had to pull her off Maggie since Jasmine immediately started trying to rip her face off. When I separated them, Jasmine had mouthful of white fluff. Oh hell, is this what its going to be like!

Jasmine has a tendency to  come out of the gate with a full force nasty attitude. I have tried to explain to her how much I do not care for this behavior. She has no interest in what I think and we all just have to live with it. In a short time they are all ganged up and begging at the door together (as seen above).  

 Then napping together. Im surprised Maggie hasnt kicked Jasmine's butt. It seems that she forgives. Morgan (the baby) sleeps in the corner on my bag of linens that were ready to be returned to the rental joint.

You may have wondered where was Charlie? Well, he is a smart guy. He stays far, far away from the three titty babies. This picture makes me laugh because it looks like he has had too much to drink and is planning his next home made ice cream recipe. That sounds more like this chick!

All in all, things went well. Everyone (with the exception of Princess Jasmine) was well behaved. Lets see if we can keep it up and make this the year we create new traditions.

We Gather to Celebrate

With age comes wisdom, or something like that. This year, we have planned ahead, instead of pulling it together in less than 24 hours. Now we can actually enjoy the party. We are so lucky that we got  to spend this evening of 13 new and old friends.

Chris and Ashley

 Chris and Ashley are new friends of ours. Aren't they a cute couple? Chris and Kristen are old friends. They hiked all the way from D.C.  Kristen is the MOH in our fast approaching wedding. Kristen was our only guest who has attended multiple Hanukkah parties hosted by us. She agreed that this one was also a success.

Kristen and Chris



This was the perfect occassion to break out my "woozie". Skeeter, my fabulous friend gave me this at our stock the bar shower in Baton Rouge before our big move.  Its a coozie for your wine glass! Apparantly this is a must have for all the girls. My first question was, " Oh, cute but whats with the G?". Um...."that would be your new last name!", Skeeter informed me. Oh yes, this chick is getting married.

The spread. Jeff made his famous Bloody Ceasars and latkes (from scratch), I will get back to you on the recipe for that. We cheated and bought the apple sauce this year. Jeff made it from scratch year 1 but this year we went the easy route. These latkes were so freaking good, we ate them all in no time. I wish I could have one right now!

I made cupcakes, yellow with fudge frosting and chocolate with chocolate chips and chocolate frosting. Some with sprinkles some without. Ashley brought some treats from her baking extravaganza she embarked on earlier that day. I loved those peanut butter cookies with the Kisses in the middle!

 The boys lit the candles and sang the blessings.

 Then we lit another candle. Happy Birthday Drew!

Every party needs a signature cocktail and some fun games. For this special occassion, we decided to go with Dirty Santa with a twist. We asked every one to bring a re-gifted or something recycled from their house. This was a BIG hit.

bubbles!

keeping it klassy!

This was very successful for everyone involved. Everyone was really happy to get rid of some random stuff but it seemed that everyone was even more excited to get new random unncessary items. Jeff could not have been happier when he stole this Christmas mug from Alana. Good thing Kristen snagged this from the Dollar Tree on her way in. Look at the joy on his precious face!

Princess Jasmine perched on the highest pillow she could find and observed the crowd. This chick was super proud of how well behaved and hospitable this little doggie was with a house full of guests she didn't know.

To top it all off, we had our first snow flurry! We didnt get much more than this  but it was still on the ground in the morning. By noon it was melted away.

 Happy Hanukkah to all. And to all a Good Night!