Christmas around here, just in time.

burlap stockings i made this year.

once i learn to sew, i'll "remake" these because i'm kind of in love with them.

Jack's tree that he is quick to mention he decorated all by himself.

(notice a new wall color in the background?)

and because the toddler who typically refuses to have his picture taken was being ornery and couldn't resist the camera this morning, i snapped away.

i canNOT wait to see how big those blue eyes get with each gift Christmas morning.

decorating ideas came from Holly's post last year seen HERE

and

the stockings I noticed in photos HERE

Merry Christmas!

wishing you the happiest of holidays filled with lots of love and laughter!

...and one more thing.

I'd rather buy a new paint roller each time I need one than wash out the one that I've used.

The good news is: Jack's room is painted. Done. Finished. Complete!

The even better news is: I loooove the COLOR!!!

It's Horizon by Benjamin Moore (although I had it color matched in Behr paint). It's a light gray with a faint blue hue. Perfect for a little guys beachy bedroom. More on that to come once we get him a big boy bed and I can start having fun decorating! I already know it'll be my favorite room in the house, and the one I'll be most proud of.

On to a "Craigslist steal" / "Intimidating Project" note. I picked up this chair over the weekend for $35. Which is $15 higher than my typical price point of Craigslist finds but well worth it.

What?! You don't like it?! Geesh, rude.

Ok, ok, I don't like it either. At least not with that fabric on it. But, what if... it looked like this?

Stunning, you say?

I know.

So it looks like I better finally open the sewing machine I got for Christmas last year and learn how to use the intimidating little piece of magic to create a lovely slipcover for my not-so-lovely Craigslist find.

Wish me luck. Lots of it.

And, tips are welcome and appreciated.

Not the kind you'd give to someone for bringing you delicious food, serving you an adult beverage, or making your favorite 'cup of joe'.

The kind of tips that would help me learn to sew.

*just making sure we're on the same page people*

;)

the sweetest thing I've ever been told. seriously.

In his precious toddler voice, as I explain that he's a boy and I'm a girl, Jack looks at me and says,
"You're a perfect girl, mommy."

(be. still. my. heart.)

Words cannot express the love my heart holds for this little boy.

let's be friends. shall we?

I hate being this thin.

I don’t have the patience for the one kid I have, and yet I want about three more.

I usually only paint my toenails black, or bubblegum pink.

I don’t always wear a bra.

I can cook, but prefer not to.

It makes me happy to open a fresh can of paint.

I’ve fallen asleep in the bath, more than once.

My grandparents raised me.

I delivered my son so fast, the doctor almost didn’t make it in time.

My name means “worthy of love”.

I’ve been with the man I’m now married to for 11 years. I’m 26. Do the math. ;)

I was afraid of dogs until I got my first one at age 19. RIP Max.

I absolutely loved labor and delivery. No joke, I would experience it every day if I could.

I didn’t get my drivers license until I was 18.

I’ve lived in 5 different cities in 8 years.

If I had three wishes, one of them would be to sleep in every day for the rest of my life.

There are times I wish I could do about nine loads of laundry at once.

My boobs may be fake, but my personality isn’t, so don’t judge me.
(we'll leave this one to the imagination. hehehe.)

I look terrible as a blonde.

The only thing I’ve learned from my mother is to be nothing like her.

My son was born 9 months to the day after my niece was born.

I’d rather repaint a room than clean it.

I fold a fitted sheet, perfectly.

The only time I iron is when stitch witchery is involved.

Sometimes, when I want to soak in a hot bath but Jack is being needy, I put him in the bath with me.

I’m still not sure what I want to be when I grow up. …I take that back. I still want to be a Victoria’s Secret supermodel.

I have very few girlfriends but can count on the ones I do have.

I hate anything in the morning that doesn’t involve sleeping in, sex, or bacon.

I truly believe I have angels in my life.

I like buffalo dip and football, just as much as I like pedicures and ruffled anything.

I hate my laugh.

I have a tattoo on each foot and want more.

I could enjoy ranch dressing on almost everything.

I may be a married, mother, who is closer to 30 than 20 but I still wear cotton candy scented body lotion.

 

I’m pretty good at singing, and do so, loudly.

I get my “neat freak/everything has to be a certain way” problem, from my dad.

I dream of having a little girl with curly hair, wearing ruffled skirts and cowgirl boots but feel more confident in having another boy.

I cannot go without mascara and lipgloss.

I am addicted to diet coke and Starbucks.

I love being barefoot.

I wish to meet, shop, have coffee, and laugh with all of my lovely blog friends.

*this post inspired by Little Miss Momma*

so what about you, friend?

*be sure to link back to this post and let me know if you choose to share "need to know" details about yourself! :)

gray paint nightmare. help!

For months now, I've had tons of things ready to go into Jack's "big boy" room. Bedding, accessories, a headboard from Craigslist waiting to be painted, and a pretty good idea of the direction I want to take it. The problem? Well, apparently it's a bigger one than I even anticipated, and that means it's pretty big because I have delayed his room makeover for one reason. Paint. Such a simple word isn't it? Simple until you pick out a swatch, fall in love with it at the home improvement store, race home to get it up on the walls then discover it's all wrong! I didn't do that with Jack's room, but can you tell I've done it before? It's soooo stressful to me. So, I knew this time I'd do it the "safe" way. Tester size samples first, then buy the gallon(s) I'd need. However, I'm trying to find the rigth shade of (the dreaded) GRAY. It's not easy. I thought after seeing a few shades of gray look beautiful in other bloggers homes, I was ready to tackle finding the perfect shade for us. Wrong. I'm not ready. I'm aggravated. Stressed. And eager to paint! Instead, this is what I'm dealing with:

You can't even tell how bad it is in that photo. It's bad. Most of them look purple and obviously any hue of purple is unwelcome in the little guy's room. I can't even recall what color name each of those stripes are anymore but I did try a few I've seen on popular blogs.

Since I didn't use a large enough font and am completely frustrated with anything and everything involved in figuring out a paint color, I'll just list them from top to bottom.

-Gray Pearl by Martha Stewart (too dark???)

-Subtle Touch by Behr (too purple)

-Horizon by Benjamin Moore (a possible option)

-Windham by Pratt & Lambert (love love love it, but it's too dark for his low light bedroom)

All others unlabeled are too purple. The ones that look too dark in his room look just fine in this photo. The shade/color/hue I'm going for is similar to these:

via: Dreamy Whites

*note: that color on the walls? Gray Pearl by Martha Stewart. It looks completely different in Jack's one window bedroom because of the low light. :(

via: Life In The Fun Lane

*note: that wall color is Windham by Pratt & Lambert which again due to the low light in Jack's room is way too dark for us to use. :( :(

So you get the idea. A light, true gray, to show slight contrast against white trim and white furniture. Right now I think I'm leaning toward using "Horizon" by Benjamin Moore since it's light, and NOT PURPLE! If anything it has a blueish hue and I have various shades of blue accessories to use so it would work.

I'm signing off to tape off around the trim and window then I'm going to get ready to head out to buy paint. So anyone who has opinions and recommendations, share quickly! I need all the help I can get and I know here is the best place to find it! :)

*EDITED TO ADD*:

I went with Horizon by Benjamin Moore, thanks to a quick email back from Maria who had used the Martha Stewart color "Grap Pearl" in her home but agreed it could be too dark for a room with only one window, and without knowing I was considering it, mentioned liking Horizon. So, that's what I have two gallons of waiting to be opened. Juast as soon as I get back from Home Depot with a "sureline edger" in hopes of making "cutting in" go ALOT quicker. Once the little guy is in bed (my bed since I'll be painting his room), I'll have paint roller in hand transforming his cream walls to a lovely gray. Wish me luck!



Dear Santa (for the home).

"Little Miss Momma" Etsy Shop

Pottery Barn

Anthropologie

Home Depot

Anthropologie

Ikea

Urban Outiftters

simplicity at it's finest.

As of late I've been trying to simplify everything in my life. So when I saw that Torri was offering her old blog design for *insert magic word here* free, I just knew my blog should have a fresh new look and be simplified along with everything else. Torri is the sister of Holly whom you all already know I am a huge fan of, and she's just as stunning and just as sweet. Lucky parents those ladies have.

After an 11 hour work day yesterday (gotta love retail in December *sarcasm*) I attempted to install the new blog layout and made a complete mess of it. Soooo, as if sharing the design with me wasn't nice enough, Torri offered to install it for me as well. And, with the way things have been going lately, her simple kindness really brightened my day. Do you love it? If so, this design along with many other "freebies" are available through Torri's blog, Digital Confections. Be sure to tell her I sent you.

While my blog was getting a makeover today, so was the Christmas decor around here. However, I'll have to wait until tomorrow to photograph it all since it made quite a mess. Let's just say that 30 feet of fresh garland and a project involving lots of Martha Stewart glitter will have me busy cleaning this evening. In the meantime, I thought I'd share the photos I was able to capture of my stubborn 3 year old the other day for this years Christmas card. The attempt ended with us both in tears. Him, because he couldn't play on his swingset which was, is, and I'm sure will be for months to come, covered in snow. And me, because I dropped my camera (that I just got for my birthday in May) on the driveway. Luckily, the pictures turned out pretty dang cute and his smile cheered me up.

warning.

While Perfect Imperfection (emphasis on the imperfections) is "under construction" please take the time to view all the beauty one of my favorite new blogs has to offer. Jenni, at House Of White is lovely AND beyond sweet. Not only does she have a gorgeous home, she sent the nicest email trying to help me find the wall color she's used throughout most of her (white) house. Teaser photo below, but you'll have to stop by her blog for pages and pages beautiful images to take tons of inspiration from.

I hope to be back tomorrow with a fresh lovely new blog layout and design (after receiving editing help obviously) and a report on how an effort to make new Christmas stockings out of white burlap is going.

Wish me luck!