Topsy Gardening Pots

Do you remember when I blogged about some gardening ideas? There was 1 project on there, that I really wanted to make. Those topsy looking pots. I REALLY wanted to make them! That post was written back in February. It's now August!!

I'm the size of the moon! Weeks away from meeting our baby girl. And those pots are still on my mind! I'd been telling my mom-in-law about them. And when my in-laws came into town for our Baby Shower, they bought us all the supplies. And showed us this tutorial. :)

Well, for the last few weeks, everything has been sitting in our garage. We had meant, to get busy a few weekends ago. Actually, right after my in-laws bought the supplies, our mommas got busy painting. We have 20+ pots that are painted and ready! They had offered to make us these little guys, while they were here. But we wanted to spend time together. Enjoying the fact, that our family was here.

Here we are. Weeks away from meeting our daughter. In the crazy August heat! I'm the size of the moon. And all of a sudden, I need to finish 100 projects!! Crazy....even I know this! But I went shopping today. With a friend. And picked up a bunch of flowers, and some herbs. I figured now that we've made a little financial investment in the project, there is no putting it off!

My hubs agreed. Tomorrow, we're working on these cuties. As soon as we get home from the Farmers' Markey. I know! But this momma is in desperate need of fresh bread, produce, and plenty of Kettle Korn! Maybe even a fresh lemonade. :) ~Chels

Brilliant Idea!!

I'm trying to find things to keep me occupied. Inside. Preferably! I almost past out, Friday when I went grocery shopping. I walked from a close parking, right inside. At 10am! And thought I was just going to pass out. This heat, is really starting to get to me. And I'm coming to terms with, I MUST stay inside....during the "peak" heat hours. Ugh!

Like I said, I'm looking for things to keep me busy. Inside. If you have any ideas, please leave me a note! I'm going a little crazy here! But I've been looking for ideas, to make things. For our nursery. For our yard. Things like that. And I found something fun on Pinterest!!

Isn't it brilliant? A hula hoop chandelier!! Honestly, I've got plenty of Christmas lights. Hubs went a little crazy buying them up this past Christmas. Apparently, I just need some paint, lace, fabric, things like this. And a hula hoop! How fun! I'd actually like to make one of these. Maybe 3, for our back porch. But I'd prefer to hang ours with rope. What do you think?

Is this something that you'd try? Or that you even like? I'm I going nuts? I hope not. Because I think this would be so fun!! Especially under the summer sky. Just a little bit of twinkle, to make every night, extra special!! ~Chels

You'll NEVER Believe....

You'll NEVER believe what I've been up to today! NEVER!! Cleaning out old jars. You see, in our fridge, we have an entire door, of jars. Of jelly, salsa, dip, honey, sauces, etc. All these jars have nothing in them. They are essentially empty. But in the fridge.

I don't know what our problem is. Why we can't throw these jars out. Why we feel it's important to have an extra large jar of pickle juice, taking up all that room. But today, I got to it. I was pulling out jar after jar, after jar!! Why we feel like a jar with no jam should go back in the fridge....is just beyond me! I had like 30 jars on the counter....

I thought, I could make something with these. Then I stopped myself. Why would I do that? We can recycle them. Either way, I'd have to wash them. Peel labels off. And if I decided to recycle the jars, I'd have to get my hubs to drive them to the recycling place. Since we're not allowed to stick them in our recycling cans.

Well, about half through my washing, I just thought, my hubs will never agree to drive all these across town. Maybe I should make something. I swear to you, if anyone would have come over, they would have thought, this woman has lost her mind!! Talking to herself. With all these empty jars!

I took a break. While half the jars were drying. And I got on my laptop. I searched out easy crafts. To use up some of these jars. And you'll never believe what I stumbled on! This cute little picture. That lead to this post. :)

I think this would be such a fun idea! I've got so many jars. I could make of bunch of these. And put them around our porch, with flowers and candles. Brilliant. Now I just need to finish getting the writing and glue off, some of the jars. If you're wondering about that. Simple rubbing alcohol is taking it off, really easy!

Then I have to decide on some sort of color scheme. What do you recommend? I'd LOVE to hear your ideas. Or any other ideas, you might have. I'm telling you, we have like 40 or 50 jars in total. Maybe more. I'm totally embarrassed about this little fact....

On the other hand, I can finally stock the fridge again. You know with jam, cherries, pickles, etc. All of a sudden, our fridge looks so empty! But honestly, all the food is in the pantry. Just waiting to go in the fridge. :) ~Chels

Green Space

We're having a "hotter than usual" summer. That is saying a lot for the desert. You know what I mean? And it's only June! It doesn't help that I'm pregnant. Or that all I want to do, is make our yard, a green oasis. Just like Cari's yard. Oh, it's gorgeous!!

I want a green place, to relax in. To get away from all of this heat!! Something that's beautiful and inviting. I took to Pinterest for a little inspiration. And I just can't get over this space!!

That vertical box thing, just makes me smile! All these beautiful potted plants, make me happy! This whole space is so fresh. So green! I want a space like this!! Maybe add in a little water fountain, some comfy seating, and some good shade. Yes, we NEED a space just like this!! ~Chels

Starting My Search....

Goodness! It has been so HOT around. Like all of a sudden, someone turned up the thermostat! No lie!! Just a few days, I was in HEAVEN with the weather. Now, I don't want to leave the house! But we're getting a cold front...and should be back in the 90s through next week. :) And that makes me want to spend more and more time outside. You see, the Honky Tonky Husband and I, are investing a little money. In some good outdoor furniture.

We actually spent the better part of one entire day, looking at outdoor furniture. With no luck! We just didn't find anything we LOVED!! And if you know anything about outdoor furniture, well it's a good investment. You just don't want to buy something, for the sake of buying it. Only to find out, a month later....you really can't stand it.

We decided to put that shopping on the back burner. For another week. When there are less people at the stores. And I've done a little more research. I took to Pinterest. For a little inspiration. And I found this cute little picture. Oh my!!

A. Don't ya just LOVE this? B. This just screams summer to me. C. The colors are so fun! D. It looks like a combination, of a lot of different stuff. Not one of those sets you buy at Lowe's or HD. I'm just sayin'.

I just don't think my hubby will go for such girly colors. Not even with baby girl on the way. Nope! But I think if we can find a comfy looking bed like that, and a decent set of furniture, we can do this. Just paint everything white.

Love the pink! But I'm thinking, if we can work with yellow, turquoise, and lime green...this could be fun. And my hubby would love it too! Now I just need to start searching. I can't wait to have it done. What do you think? I'm I nuts? Or is this a good idea? ~Chels

GREAT Idea!!

I've been hanging out on Pinterest. It's seems like, that's all I do now. But the fact of the matter is, my nausea is so bad, I really can't do much else. I read blogs. And search through Pinterest. I force a meal down, 3 times a day. And I feel like death! My dear friend insists, that means I'm having a girl!!

While hanging out on Pinterest, I've been looking for nursery ideas. I know we're still 10 days away from finding out if we're having a boy or a girl. But we need to start getting some ideas. I've seen tons and tons of beautiful nurseries. But this one, just caught my eye!!

I personally LOVE these colors. The navy is so rich and gorgeous! The white is just the perfect lightness for a nursery. And that orange....it's so fun! I think this would be perfect for a boy's nursery. Although, I'm almost 100% positive, that this is a girl's nursery. I think this would also be great for a girl. But I'd use a bright pink! How fun!! Who knows, we might just be going this route, in a few short weeks! ~Chels

Colorful Fun!!

Some things just make the world, a very happy place. You know, like walking through Hobby Lobby. I know, it's just February. But I walked through all the aisles in Hobby Lobby. And I spent an extra long time, in the "Summer" aisles.

There were so many colorful things! Pinwheels for you yard. A heck of a lot of garden stuff. But also, lots of fun summer stuff. Like kitchen utensils. In all these fun and bright colors. It totally didn't help that everything in that section, was 40% off this week. I wanted it all! Including this cool cutting board. That has a fold out bowl attached. To put your peelings and stuff. Really cool! Well, I walked out with nothing....

But I still had all this on my mind. When I got home, we had this catalogue in the mail too! For the love of mankind, I couldn't help myself. I sat down, and looked through the whole thing. Filled with kitchen gadgets, tools, and essentials. We're talking pots and pans, towels, and decor. In the best colors ever!! Including some fun spoons. Wooden spoons. With fun colored, painted handles.

When my hubby came home, I was going to show them to him. Being that I had been so good all day. All day people! I didn't buy a thing we didn't need. And I paid all our bills. :) But I couldn't find that catalogue anywhere. :(

My hubby decided over the weekend, that we should go back to Hobby Lobby. Pick up a few things. Being that everything was on sale again. It's the 3rd week in a row, that these things were on sale! This time, I couldn't bring myself to spending the money. I know! I'm a fool. But we're saving up for a really good cause....our baby's nursery.

And honestly, in the back of my mind, I was still thinking about those spoons. I'm almost 100% positive, that they were 6 spoons for $20. Kinda a lot. But totally worth it! And I didn't want to blow money, on something that I wasn't 100% sure of. Yes, I liked the brightly colored spatulas, whisks, and gadgets. But even with the discount, they were $5 a piece. Oh, and then how would I decide on a color, or which to buy. We left....empty handed.

Then we crossed the road, and did our grocery shopping. Totally on the wrong day. At the wrong store. Wally World on a Saturday....is a MAJOR SIN!! Especially in this college town. Hobby Lobby's lines had been insane! This was ridiculous! At one point, 2 hours into shopping, 90 minutes in line....my hubby wondered away. He actually snuck to the McD's in the back. To get us a little snack. And on his way back to the front, he saw a package of wooden spoons. Hanging on the side of an aisle. And because I had shown my hubby, this picture earlier in the week, he brought them to me. :)

I left hubby with the his fries and ice cream, and our grocery cart. Still in line. And I made a beeline for the small craft department. How can you call 1 and 1/2 aisles, a "Craft Department?" Anyway, I picked up a few different colors of paint. And some sponge brushes.

Long story short, I spent my Saturday night, painting. I ended up using this picture as a good inspiration. And I'm happy that we still had some painters tape, in the closet. It helped make my handles straight. A few coats of paint later, we have some fun cooking utensils. Now I'll be on the lookout for more wooden utensils. Thank you Hobby Lobby and Pinterest for my new, colorful, and fun kitchen accessories! ~Chels

Can We Say Fun??

Some ideas just make you smile. From ear to ear. With no explanation! You just smile. And walk on air. That's how I felt, when I seen this cute idea!

Oh Pinterest, how I LOVE you!! I just think this idea is genius. At least for us! Because out here, the weather is wild! For the last few winters, we've had an insane amount of snowfall!! Then we have a ridiculous amount of heat, in the summer. Say 40+ days of triple digits!! And the heat, is just unbearable between May and September.

This idea is just genius! I'm going to save it. In the back of my brain. And on this blog. So when our Honky Tonk Babe is about a year and a half, I'll start bugging my Honky Tonk Hubby. You know, to build us something like this! That way, we can play. No matter if we have 12 inches of snow, rain for days, or triple digits! Oh, I can't wait!! ~Chels

Fun Gardening Ideas

Maybe I've been watching too many garden shows. You know, on PBS. But they are really interesting. And now, I want to garden. Never mind that it's just February. Or that I have a "Black Thumb." Or even that on a good day, I've got "Morning Sickness" for 20 hours a day!

But I want to garden. The more I search, the more I want to dig in the dirt. Invest in garden projects. And grow something green! There are definitely a few projects, that are sticking out more than others. Because of Pinterest, I've got nearly 200 things, that I'd like to try. But 3, I'm hoping to finish this year. :)

I don't really know what this is. But it makes me think, of securing plants to our back fence. I've seen this done a few different ways. With brightly colored containers. And they just make me happy!!

This sculpture/pot makes me so incredibly happy! I want to make this. Like 5 of them. This weekend. And I want to buy tons of colorful flowers, to fill them with. Oh, this is such a great idea!!

How about this vertical box? I've seen the one on the Home Depot commercial. Filled with flowers. But I think, it would be fun to put herbs in the box. And attach the box, near our kitchen. For me, this would be the most useful of the 3 projects.

What other ideas should I work on? I've got a head full of ideas! Too bad, our bank account isn't endless. But I won't sit here and pine on that. Nope! I want to get started. ASAP. On some fun and useful yard projects! Hopefully, I can grow something green. :) ~Chels

Who Woulda Thought?

I was wondering around the internet today. Looking for some inspiration. I need to start decorating for Halloween. But I want to try something new this year. I got all inspired. You'd be shocked at all the good ideas in "Blogland." But it was when I wondered onto Pinterest, that I really got inspired!

Who woulda thought? Black and white. So classic. And elegant. Would it be weird if I decorated in all black and white this year? Maybe a few touches of orange. I mean, I'll really have to challenge myself. Being that most store bought stuff, is so colorful. But I thought it would be so fun! ~Chels

Sassy Halloween Fun!!

Once in a while, I run into something that I LOVE!! Something that's a little sassy. And a whole lot of fun! Enter in this fabulous wreath. Made by Mallory. I don't just adore this wreath. I adore Classy Clutter.

I'm like 2% crafty. No lie! My friends try to help me. I'm just not there. But you know what, this bad boy and I....we've got a date! With that sassy ribbon! Hopefully, I can get a wreath made before Halloween. How fun would that be? ~Chels

Mod Podge Glass

I was just doing a search for colored glass. Last night, we went out for Cinco de Mayo and J's birthday. Lots of fun. Some friends of ours were performing. And the decor was beautiful! I really wish I was more risky. You know, to buy some of those bright accents. They sell them everywhere around here! But the glass, it was just gorgeous! The candles from inside made the glass glow beautifully. :)

Back to my search...all the glass was really expensive. Because most, if not all was "Depression Glass." You know, the antique stuff. In fact, Lola has a bunch of that stuff. And it really is beautiful. But really out of our price range.

But when I did I search on Flickr, I found these cute jars. And Hello! They're old glass jars. Like salsa, jelly, and spaghetti sauce jars. :) They were painted with Mod Podge. Um, I'm not crafty. So I have no clue. I'll probably call Lola before I start my project. But take a look...



Hanging in your garden. Oh that would be so beautiful for a cookout! Or just on a pretty evening.



Glowing along the fence. They would look gorgeous with our new hearts. :)



Could you imagine the collection that you could come up with? And they're not opaque. So I'm sure my hubby wouldn't mind a few pink and purple mixed in with the blue and green. :)

Honestly, I can't wait to start this project. You just never know what you're going to get when you do a google or flickr search. But I'm glad I found these little gems. :) ~Chels

I Heart My In-Laws

A while back, I was talking to my mother-in-law on the phone. We were talking about our house. And the things I wanted to buy for my house. I've posted about a few of the things on here. But honestly, my hubby and I live on a pretty tight budget. We save for twice a year trips to the rodeo. Because we really enjoy going. And for the occasional trips home, to visit family. We live in a different state. And we each get one splurge a month. That's about it.

The rest of our money goes to the house. You know DIY projects, and just making the payments. So I don't buy much to "decorate" with. If I happen to find a good sale on something, I'll pick it up. If not, I just dream about it. Knowing that one day, we'll be able to afford stuff.

But I seen this a while back. For $15. And for most people $15 isn't a lot of money. Most people would just buy it. But I couldn't. Because I felt guilty. If I hadn't mentioned it, I'm also in college. So we live off of my hubby's income. That's it. He has a good job. But to juggle the cost of college, a new house, and living expenses...let's just say it's tight on 1 income.



Back to my phone call with my MIL. We were talking and I said that I really liked these hearts. I thought they'd look cute in our backyard. You know, 3 would look darling on the back fence. That's all I said. I didn't really think much about it again.

Today, when I got home from my classes, I found a big 'ol package on our porch. I didn't know what it was. I knew I hadn't ordered anything. And I assumed my hubby hadn't either. So I was in shock. Well, I drug the box into the house. Because it was too big and heavy for me to pick up.

Since my hubby was at work, I decided to open it up. I was curious. Inside was the sweetest letter from my in-laws. Telling my hubby and I just how proud of us they are. And inside, were 7 barbed wire hearts that my FIL had made. And you know what he made them out of? The old barbed wire fence.

See a few summers ago, my hubby and I went back to TX. And we stayed in this little house behind his parents house. There was this barbed wire fence behind the little house. I'm not sure what it was for. But it had wooden posts and barbed wire. Well, in the evenings, after I had helped my MIL (at the time, hubby and I weren't married yet) make dinner, I would go sit out there on one of the posts. And I'd wait for my FIL and hubby to get back from working.

When we got married, my FIL told a story about one day I was sitting there on that fence. My hubby had had a tough day working. He was beat, and a little dejected. But as they road their horses back in, my hubby seen me. He sat taller in his saddle, got a crook'd smile, and a twinkle in his eyes. Then he told my FIL, "Pops, I've found my gal. I know she's the one. Every time I see her, she makes my life better. I just know she's the one."

A few weeks later, we got engaged. It was the 4th of July. And I was sitting on the post of the fence. Hubby and I were watching the fireworks. It was really sweet. So my in-laws always think of us when they think of that 'ol fence.

Fast forward a bit. And my in-laws took down the fence. My BIL's small kiddos had tried to climb it and would get some pretty nasty cuts from it. Remember, it was made out of barbed wire. So they took it down. But when we got married, my FIL built us a bench out of the posts. He told me, that way I'd have a proper place to sit and wait for my hubby. He was always worried that I'd hurt myself on the barbed wire.

I love that bench! It's in our little entry way. And I do find myself waiting for my hubby there. I like to see his truck drive up in the evenings. :) But I never asked about the wire. Who asks about barbed wire? Well, my FIL had rolled it up and stuck it in the barn. So when my MIL mentioned these hearts, he dug out the old wire. And he made us 7!

I know exactly where I want to hang them. And now, there is a cute story to go along with our barbed wire hearts. I know we'll have them for many, many years. And guess what? I LOVE my in-laws with all my heart! ~Chels

Being an Adult

My hubby was almost in a panic a little while ago. He asked me if we had sent our tax papers in. Ya, we did. And we already got our rebate. It was really quick. Less than a week. And we had already talked about what we wanted to use the money for. We decided to make an extra house payment. And only to keep $100. We split the money.

When our rebate came in the mail, I deposited it in the bank and made the extra payment. It actually made almost 3 extra payments. :) It felt really good to pay ahead on our house. That night, I gave my hubby $50. Remember, we decided to keep $100. He didn't say anything. Just smiled.

Tonight when I assured him that we had sent our taxes and got our rebate, it must have rang a bell for him. "That was what the $50 was for." I just smiled. Sometimes he makes me laugh! But ya, that's what we did with our tax rebate.

This is probably the 1st time I've ever used my rebate for something good. Last year, we used our rebate to go on vacation and buy some furniture. We did save a little. And we used that for our down payment for our house. And the year before, we used the money for our wedding.

Before this, I would have gotten the money and treated myself. You know, some new clothes, makeup, fun dinners out, etc. But I can definitely tell that I'm growing up. Besides, it much nicer to own a home than it is to buy new clothes. I'm just saying. What did you do with your rebate? ~Chels

Lights

It's starting to get warm. I just love spring weather! And my hubby and I are wanting to do more and more work on our yard. We have a really nice back patio. And with all the beautiful grass, I just want to sit outside. But I also want it to feel more inviting. More like an extension of our house. :)

Enter in, these cute lights.

And because they're not too girly, my hubby liked them too! I really like these ones. They're £16 a strand. We could hang these around our back patio. And they match these stepping stones that we put in the back. :)



And these are cute too! For £13 a strand. These would be cute to hang in our entry way. I know it sounds weird. But it's all country bumpkin cute!



What's with me and finding these UK sites? Oh well, but I really like these lights. These might be my splurge for the month. :) ~Chels

I Hurt...Everywhere!

I really do! Every muscle, every bone...they all hurt! My hubby and I worked so hard on our yard this past weekend. But it looks nice. The sods is gorgeous! Our entire yard looks amazing. With just sod! :)

We also planted our trees and rose bushes. And some flowers that I bought. There weren't many, so I really spread them out. But all weekend, we were out in our yard. The dogs really enjoyed it. My Hubby and I are so proud of ourselves. I'm glad we started with the "bones."

My hubby even left me a little corner. In the sunniest part of the yard. For my garden. Now I just need to find time to start it. It's not that I don't appreciate my hubby's help. I just want this to be my project. You know, he's working on so many things already. I just want to do something to add to our household. Do you understand?

So that sums up our weekend. We worked on yard work. Our dirt yard is now covered in green sod. I've got beautiful roses bushes. They really do make me smile! And now, I'm researching small gardens. Life is good! ~Chels

I Want a Garden

I've been wanting a small garden. Nothing fancy. But something I can keep up with. And I want it to be my project. I mentioned it to my hubby the other day. And right away, he started drawing pictures and making diagrams. Making it a lot more complicated than I'd like. So I'm going to Lowe's tomorrow. Alone. Hopefully, I don't get too overwhelmed.

I want to grow a small patch of flowers like these. Aren't they pretty? I don't care what kind of flowers. Just as long as they're colorful!



And some veggies. Oh and strawberries. I want to grow something we can use. Do you know what I mean? And if it works out, maybe next year, hubby can make us some of these raised beds. :)



Because I really want some of this yummy goodness! There is nothing better than fresh fruit and veggies!



So that's my plan. To go do some research tomorrow. To see if it's better to go with plants or seeds. To see what is good for our area. I don't know if I'll buy anything tomorrow. But I do want to start researching. Around here, you're supposed to plant between April and May. I'm a little scared. But I'm also excited! If you have any advice, please leave it in the comments. I can use all the help I can get. ~Chels

Our Yard

Today hubby and I spent almost the entire day at the local nursery. We're starting to get our hands dirty...in our yard. So we went with our lists to see what they had. Of course, I wanted all the pretty flowers. Rose bushes, seasonal flowers, and even strawberry plants. My hubby wanted all these "structured" bushes and trees. Go figure huh?

But we've made out a plan. We're going to slowly work at our yard. That means all the "bones" need to come together first. Ugh! But we'll get it done. We priced a lot of stuff today. And talked to a really nice man. He gave us all kinds of tips and tricks! What a nice man he was.

Well, hubs and I, we ordered sod today. We figured that's what is going to be the most expensive part of the yard. And the part that is going to need the most labor. I guess my roses are just going to have to wait until later. But I'm glad we have a plan. I don't feel so lost anymore. ~Chels

NuWave Oven

Hubby and I are still in bed. We're being a little lazy this morning. And we're watching a ton of infomercials. Well, sorta watching them and falling asleep. We're really being lazy! But the infomercial for the NuWave got me interested! I know, it's all gimmicky. But if this could help me and my cooking...it might just be worth the $150. It might be worth it. If only I could cook like that. But I'd probably still make a disaster out of my meals. I guess I should really think before I go out and buy me a NuWave. What do you think of them? Would you buy one? ~Chels

The Good and the Bad

Today I tried to make dinner. But it didn't end well. My hubby wanted to eat it. I'm pretty sure that he just wanted to make me feel better. Because it was a huge fail! I wouldn't let him. So we ended up ordering some pizza. I felt really bad. Like a failure as a wife or something like that. But my hubby tried to make me feel better.

We've only been in our house since November. And we've slowly been tackling all these rooms. Trying to decorate and all that jazz. We're knee deep in DIY projects. And some days, I'm not sure if we're ever going to get our house to feel like home. But tonight, while we waited for dinner, my hubby encouraged me to search for something to buy for our house. I got online, and started to search.

I found this wreath. I know what you're thinking, "Chels, you don't even have curtains. Girl you need something more than a wreath!" Believe me. I know this! But when I did a search for an entry way table, this picture popped up. I really want it. But I'm thinking that $28 is a lot for something we don't really need.

I'm hoping that Lola comes around soon. She's so crafty. I'm not. Not at all. But I like to read all about crafts. I'm hoping Lola can help me make something similar to this this wreath. Maybe a little more organized. You know, not all that stuff failing off. I really want a warm and inviting wreath for our front door. ~Chels