Be back soon...

 

 

On a mini break, before school starts for the kids. I have lots of great pictures to share.

Be back next week!

Blog I follow: Kasey Buick

Only a few people in my life know that I have a secret dream. My secret dream is to live on Kauai. Okay, I guess it’s not a secret anymore. But seriously, I really do. It’s not something I say casually, like “wouldn’t it be great to live there?” I mean I REALLY want to live there.

 

 

When I came across this blog, Kasey Buick; One Girl Talks, it was if I had stumbled upon someone else that was living MY fantasy life. I was shocked to see someone actually doing what I only dream about every day, and I was sucked right in.

I quickly devoured all her past posts to catch up to speed, and now patiently (tapping fingers on the table) wait for new ones everyday. I talk to my husband about her as if I know her personally, and like we are long lost friends. Me: “You know, Kasey said Anini beach is the best for snorkeling, and yesterday she went jumping of the pier in Hanalei.” Him: “Cool. Who is Kasey?”

Through her blog, I found Kasey to have the best outlook on life, and has a great sense of humor. If you have a love of island life, want to learn more about what to see/do on Kauai or just want a good laugh, I highly encourage you to read her blog.

Kasey and her family moved from Illinois to Kauai a little over a year ago, after her husband lost his job. They took this scary time in their life and turned it into an opportunity instead. They decided to take that leap of faith, try something new and do something that they probably wouldn’t have ever planned on doing. They decided to move to Kauai for a full year. It’s been over a year now and well, they are still there. If I was in their shoes, I think I’d stay too.

My family and I have been to Kauai only twice but since the very first time we went, both my husband and I fell in love with this island. We have been to Maui, Jamaica, Mexico, and other warm beach destinations but there was just something different about Kauai. I can’t quite put my finger on it on why it’s so different but I crave to go back all the time! I can’t tell you how many times my husband and I sit and talk about how we could pull it off to move there but sadly, we never come up with a good way to do it. One of my dear friends, Kristin also shares the same Kauai passion as I. We often joke about jumping on a plane and just doing it, no thinking, just do it. As we joke, I don’t think even she knows how badly I wish I could.Or maybe she feels the same.

Coming from a person that lives in the same town as where I was born, {cough- 40 years ago-cough}I SO admire people that can pack up and move somewhere like this and follow their dreams without concrete plans. If you asked me 5-10 years ago, if I would ever move away from my extended family and friends, to move away from the only hometown I’ve ever known, I probably would’ve laughed nervously and said no.

Now that I am getting older (ugh), maybe I am getting wiser to the idea that we really only do have one life to live here on earth and we should be really living it the way we dream of.

However, I feel my feet have been planted here so long, it’s tough to make them jump from my dream to reality or vice a versa. So while I wiggle my feet from this cement that I’ve created, I will temporarily enjoy living vicariously through Kasey and her family’s journey. So keep living the dream Buick family and thank you for sharing your journey with us. Maybe I'll see you on the beach someday.

Design Star All Star Winner

On last night's finale of the HGTV Design Star All Stars, the final three designers had to design a shipping container, and it's outside little deck area. They had to have a sleeping area, sitting area and a place where they could eat.

I have to say this was the best designing from all three designers so far on this episode. I thought all three did a great job tonight.

Here is what they had to work with.

 

 

 

This is Hilari's container.

 



I thought her idea of the planter boxes on the porch was great, the screen to divide the sitting area and the bed was also a great choice. The only thing I wasn't crazy about was the paint color.
And is that a Graypants pendant light I see?

Here is Tom's space.

Tom's space was pretty cool on the show last night, however it doesn't look as well in photos. But I love how he makes all his spaces look curated over time, even though he had only two days to put this together. He really styles things very well. And his sketches above are always my favorite. I am amazed when someone has this talent to just freehand stuff like this, while I can only do stick figures.

Here is Leslie's container.

 

 

Leslie's room was the one I liked the most for she designed it to be like a beach cabin bunkie and I am drawn to anything "beachy".
Her idea of putting in a murphy bed was great and as well as putting chalkboard for the back of it when it is upright was also well thinking. Overall, it was a very fun space.

And the first winner of Design Star All Stars......

Leslie!

I thought for sure it would be Tom or Hilari but I guess I am not very good at guessing these things.
Who did you think would win? Which container was your favorite?

All pictures were from HGTV.com and if you missed the show you can watch it online, here.

Showing Some Love Today

 Not sure about you but I am constantly redoing rooms or imagining different furniture in my house in my mind ALL THE TIME. Especially every season when the new home decor catalogs start coming in the mail with new stuff. I imagine changing my house decor with each season. Wouldn't that be nice?

While I don't think I can stop imagining different designs for my house, or stop decorating in my mind, I do know I need to be grateful for what I have. I am so lucky to have a roof over my head, and I am lucky to have what I have.

So, today I thought I'd show my house some love today, and show off things that I love about my home. There are many things I hate and things I want to change, but today I will bite my tongue and say only positive things about my house.

I love my new entry rug. It makes me happy when opening the front door.

I like my black doors, and I love my new boxwood wreaths. (Hopefully people don't mistake them for Christmas wreaths)



I love fresh flowers in the home, and I love this orchid in my bathroom. I will try to keep it alive.

I LOVE my new windows (though they are not completed all the way). I love that I can now open windows on this side of the house, and I can not even explain how much better it is temperature wise in this house now with these new windows. Heaven.

I really like our dark wood beams in our kitchen and family room.

 I like how our curved stairs in our house give it some character.

I like our shutter-type closet doors. I wasn't sure about them when we first moved in, and thought they would end up going but I've grown to love them.

I'm happy with our makeover on the fireplace in our living room (though the inside needs to be painted), and I love the lantern that I got from Target.

And I am very happy with the way the girls' bathroom turned out. Love the planking, the dark tile floor, the white subway tile shower, the colors in the hand towels and the fun yellow shower curtain.



There are more things I love about my home and the things inside, but it's summer and we are in the middle of our remodel with the one side of our house, SO... this is all I could take pictures of that wasn't looking like a tornado. I know bite my tongue... Positive thoughts.

So join me today in trying to put all those things about your home that make you cringe out of your mind and be thankful and grateful for the things that you do have, and enjoy the simple things like fresh flowers, the way the sun shines through your windows, or climbing in bed into clean, soft sheets.

Enjoying the little things can sometimes even make those dings in the wall, dustbunnies in the corner, or dated tile flooring disappear. For awhile anyways...

Over the Weekend

I thought I'd share some things that happened around here this weekend and a little peak into how the house is looking as of now.

I received my lights for above my kitchen sink. I got them from School House Electric and I am very excited to put them up.

We also did a whole lot of this... painting.

Here are some changes that have occurred here at the home front over the week.

The new siding is now complete!

As you can see all sheetrock is up and sprayed and now the painting fun has begun. I have decided on painting everything white.

Please tell me I am not the only one that has constant fears of making the wrong decision. I can see it in my head and hope it really turns out that way when all is said and done. I know it's only paint and it can be fixed if I hate it, but what a pain to redo it if I hate it. So cross your fingers and toes for me that I'll love it in the end.

What's next on the to do list... finish the painting, adding the trim around windows inside, finding new carpet, ordering blinds and curtains, putting lights up, and sitting back to relax a little.

For the outside; we need to paint, add more gutters, plant row of trees, build steps out of garage, put outdoor lights back up and make a pathway of gravel and stepping stones.

Even though I can definitely see the end in sight on this project, I have so many more ideas for this space, like redoing our bar area, refacing or painting the fireplace, new sofa/chairs, and a kitchen remodel. One thing at a time I have to keep telling myself, and the husband tells me this far too often as well. I need to reel it in, and slow down. No harm in dreaming a little though, is it?











Designer Spotlight: Amy Meier

I can't remember if I first saw Amy from an article in Better Homes and Garden.

Or, if it was finding this kitchen she designed on a blog or Pinterest.

I think she's got a great style sense, and none of her designs look the same. She is a designer based in San Diego, California and has her own design company. She has a blog but she doesn't post a lot, but you can follow her on instagram, on which she does post a lot of pictures of projects she's working on.
Here are some shots of her work.

If you'd like to see more of Amy's portfolio, visit her website HERE.