Guest Bathroom Update - Round 1......GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now it's time to get to hard fun stuff!!  We're coming up on a year in our house, which means that our house has settled, our drywall is soon to be fixed, and it's time for the big projects I've been salivating over.  I know a lot of people might say that we're crazy for taking on these large updates to a brand new house, but the truth is that brand new often means "builder basic".  We could have spent a lot more money up front to get more upgrades, but we'd (OK "I'd") rather do it myself and get exactly what I want for a lot less money.....plus I genuinely LIKE tackling DIY projects.

So - to kick off our Phase 1 projects, I'm starting with the boys/guest bathroom.  Why?

1 - The bathrooms are the only rooms we're not going to be adding hardwood floors in
2 - Little boys + white tile and grout = GROSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS....luckily the tile was a free upgrade so we didn't pay extra for it, but right now I'm missing the linoleum floors in the old house

The first step to this bathroom upgrade -

Update the Vanity

The builders grade honey oak is soooo not our style, but it's foolish to just replace something in such good condition.  After some Pinterest surfing, I found quite a few How To's on staining the wood to a dark brown color with Oil Based Stain.  I gotta say - I am SUPER happy with how this turned out, and really proud of myself (the under $50* price tag for the whole project, including the hardware, was pretty nice too!)

The tutorials that I followed seemed to turn out a lot darker than mine, but I actually like that you can still see the wood grain and there's some variation in the color.  The Oil Stain is extremely messy, but not really that hard to work with and I would totally recommend it to anyone looking to tackle something similar.  Just know - you gotta be really patient.  The coats take a very long time to dry so if you like projects with instant gratification, this one is not for you.

Oh and just because I'm crazy, I decided to paint the inside of the drawers and cabinets too - still waiting to see how these will hold up over time.

So Step 1 down, but still a lot to go.....here's a checklist of what we still have planned so you can play along at home:

Before Pic

• Stain the Vanity and add Hardware
• Remove and Replace the Shower Tile / Add Shower Niche
• Replace Shower Fixtures
• New Shower Rod and Curtain
• Remove and Replace Floor Tile
• Add Beadboard and Trim
• Replace Door Trim
• Paint
• Replace Sink Fixtures
• Replace Light Fixture
• Add Medicine Cabinets
• Add Shelves / Hooks / and Accessories

Sound doable??  Only time will tell

**I feel like Jon would want me to disclose that that bill was slightly a bit higher if you consider the ER bill from when I fell in the garage looking for a roll of brown paper....I just consider that part of the fun of being married to a klutz.

On a totally unrelated note, here's a fun pic of GOB who was taking a bath while I was taking pics

Late Fall / Early Spring Recipe Round Up

I've actually collected some really good recipes over the last few months that I'm finally getting to share.  And I've been continuing my monthly chocolate baking project so check out the desserts from March, April, and May at the end!

Halibut w/Crispy Shallots and Beet/Goat Cheese Salad - and a yummy green tea/lemonade cocktaile

Pasta with Brussels Sprouts and Bacon

Finally got the hang of my slow-cooker ribs

Fried Pork Chops and Peach Sauce

And to satisfy your sweet tooth..........

March - Double Chocolate Croissant Bread Pudding

April - White Chocolate Cake

May - Mexican Chocolate Brownie Sundaes

Hey Lindsey - where you been at??

Well let me tell you - the big reason I've been extremely MIA lately is that I've been working on an incredibly special (albeit stressful) project for a very good friend of mine.  I had the extreme pleasure of making the invitations for her beautiful wedding last month.  I am planning on sharing the final product at some point because I'm really happy with how well they came out, but for now let me just say that from December until a few weeks ago - I was heads down in this project and am finally really coming up for air and ready to get back to sharing some of my favorite things.

So without further ado - here is a new TOP TEN FAVORITE THING LIST....enjoy : )

TOP ROW
1. Not only has Blake joined me in my love for Nutella, I also discovered a secret stash that I forgot I had in the basement!  And added bonus, I now have tiny brown handprints all over my walls like at the end of the Blair Witch Project
2. Sometimes I remind myself how lucky I am to have a little guy who sleeps soooooo well
3. After a little scare with our pup, Cash is back to acting like himself again
4. SPRINGTIME!!!!!!!  WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
5. Does anyone else go through periods where they get really into CHOPPED and then pretend like they're on an episode when they're cooking in the kitchen?  No - just me?

BOTTOM ROW
6. Grown up night out for Jon's Birthday at Ooka....been too long since we had some delicious Sushi
7. Thank you to our friend's Sarah and Haig for introducing us to Smith Playground - what a great place to play, and did I mention there was a WAFFLE FOOD TRUCK parked right out front??
8. For all of those people who give a small chuckle when I tell them to zip up their purses around this guy - I give you Exhibit A
9. My brother and sister-in-law, who not only took on the overwhelming task of watching all 4 kids while we were at my friend's wedding - but somehow got them to all willingly take a bath together!!!
10. In memory of this incredibly delicious guilty treat that has already been taken off the menu - we didn't get enough time together but I will always remember you

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And even though I've been focusing most of my time on my invitation project, don't let that fool you....We've still had plenty of things going on around this place....so look out for lots of new posts this week.