Whimsically Rustic Fenceboard Sign

So I recently threw a bridal shower for a friend of mine, and I wanted to share a project that I made for the shower. I was going for the Rustic Chic look, and I was trying to find something on pinterest that fit the vision for what I wanted, and I couldn't find it. So I made it myself and figured I'd share it with ya'all so that if you like it you can make one too! ;)

My friend is a photographer and it was important to me to incorporate photography into this project, and she also loves the somewhat rustic look so I took a chance and went pretty rustic. I am so happy with how it turned out and (bonus!) so is she!
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The How:
Pretty simple design concept, really. I started with a piece of fenceboard that I happened upon, and I shortened it up a bit. (I chose to do 5 boards across, at 5' tall). Then I whitewashed the fence by watering down some flat white paint (about 1/2 paint, 1/2 water). I brushed that on and took a rag to some of it to lessen the paint just a bit more. After it dried, I made a stencil of what I wanted on the fence. In this case it happened to be an outline of the state of Idaho, along with a phrase that I felt represented the couple. I used a permanent marker to outline the stencil of Idaho where I wanted it on the wood, then painted over the marker with a small paintbrush and some acrylic paint. Then I placed the word stencils where I wanted them, and painted them with a small brush and the black acrylic paint while I kept them as taut to the board as I could. There was a little bit of bleed, but since I was going for the rustic look I actually kind of liked that. After it was dry I tacked jute rope on the backside of the fence and strung it back and forth over the front in a pattern I liked. I hung pictures of the bride-to-be and her future husband with burlap-fronted clothespins I found at Target. I think if I made a piece like this for my own house or yard, I would probably forgo the jute rope and just stick with the sign, or I would make it smaller so it could hang on a wall and then maybe add pictures to that, but I do LOVE the dimension the photos added for the bridal shower, and if you love to change out pictures it is a nice way to do that! Hope you enjoy! ;)  

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May Your Day Be Beautiful! :)

In Dirt and Glory

 This mama thing is hard work, I tell you. Sweat and blood go into this job. Tears-both the happy kind and the sad-spill over this sacred duty called motherhood, and only God knows the number that has been shed. Thousands of diapers changed, meals prepared, prayers prayed, and questions left unanswered dot our days. Monotony can overtake, can't it? Sometimes our lives feel like groundhog's day...the same thing repeated again and again...and again.

Make no mistake mama, the repetition of your million little acts of love are not falling on barren ground. Your countless kindnesses to your children through dressing them, snuggling with them, smiling at them, reading to them, feeding them, playing with them, laughing with them, and doing life with them are watering the garden of their tender souls. You matter. You are doing an incredible thing--mothering your children--and whatever you may read in magazines or see on pinterest, don't let it fool you. This calling is not easy! But it is a calling--a glorious and incredible and messy calling. There are no clean, straight lines (or clean, tidy houses...at least not mine!) or cut-and-dried answers. We will feel we are doing it all wrong at least a million times over the course of this parenting journey and years down the road we may say, "If only I knew...".

But here's the thing, all we have is today. So as messy and dirty and crazy as this motherhood journey is, I want to be all in. I want to dig in the mud with my kids both literally and figuratively. I want to laugh hard and play hard and love hard. I want to give fierce snuggles and one more goodnight kiss. I want to throw off the hindrance of my insecurity and run with reckless abandon this mama race set before me. We won't be perfect--probably not even close. We will make mistakes--likely every single day. So what? I, for one, don't want to let that be an excuse to be half-hearted in my love. I don't want to hold back because I'm afraid...I want to get messy and earn my battle scars!

This life--this mothering thing--it is a mix of dirt and glory. I want to have a little bit of mud on my face. I want to be in the game and not on the sidelines. I even want to fail sometimes (even though I hate it!) because it means I'm giving my all. At the end of the day there is nowhere I would rather be than right here, in this mix of dirt and glory. So for all the sighing and second-guessing and "I can't wait for this faze to be over-ing"...for the endless toy-strewn floors, sticky fingers, and tear-stained cheeks...for the "she started its" to sort out, apologies to make when we screw it up, and moments when we just don't have anything left to give...look for the glory that is showing through the cracks. I promise it is there. In the midst of the chaos and the mess and even the monotony, His glory shines. May we have eyes to see it, and may you--if only for a moment--catch a glimpse of the beauty that surrounds you this very day.

June Dinner Menu (#boringbutnecessary)

Okay, it's official. I am annoyed. The past few weeks we have been so off of our normal schedule that we keep planning on eating dinner at home and then something comes up and we end up going out or eating with somebody else. It's great to have this time with family and friends, but I have never had to throw away so much food! I just had to dump two whole, perfectly good chicken breasts because I pulled them out for dinner and then we were gone all day so they defrosted and then sat for hours. I get so hopping mad at myself for letting food go to waste and here it's happening again and again.

All that to say, I have decided to pronounce June the month of easy-to-whip-up, low-cost meals--so maybe I can put an end to this madness and bounce back from my frustration (while still being able to enjoy some spur-of-the-moment get togethers)! Not that you care, but I will share my meal-plan here (in hopes that it helps keep me organized and on-track to follow-through with said plan). Using ingredients I already have on hand, or ones that are inexpensive and easy to purchase we will try to make June dinners budget, waist, and time friendly (and yet still delicious)! :)

June Meals (Week 1)

• 1st (Monday)
• 2nd (Tuesday)
• 3rd (Wednesday) Homemade Guacamole & chips, Beef Tacos
• 4th (Thursday) Chicken salad w/ polenta pizzas (Like this one here!)
• 5th (Friday) Barbequed chicken, corn on the cob, salad, watermelon
• 6th (Saturday) Homemade Guacamole & chips, Taco soup
• 7th (Sunday) Barbequed hamburgers, watermelon, chips
• 8th (Monday) Black Bean & Butternut Squash Enchilada Casserole

...To Be Continued...

~Let's Get Cookin'!

 

Sink or Swim: Rescuing our Sanity this Summer

It's here, it's here, IT IS HEREEEE! Summertime (unofficially) has begun...at least in my neck of the woods. School is out, kids are everywhere, and opportunity beckons. One of the perks of being married to a teacher is that we really do get a bit of a "summer vacation" together. Hubs works a second job in the summer but it is not as demanding as teaching, so he's got more time and more energy. It is so exciting to think of all the different things we could try to knock off our bucket list...and yet, this morning I woke up in a bad mood. I couldn't quite place it and then Hubs gently pointed out that I don't necessarily appreciate having my routine thrown off and here we were at the start of summer, with a completely different routine from what we've had the past nine months. He was so right! I felt a bit aimless and discontented--not because I wasn't excited about having him home or about loosening up the reigns of routine--but because I wasn't sure exactly what the plan was--what our goals were--and I kind of like knowing where I'm going. It might sound a little fuddy-duddy to the adventure-types out there, but with little ones at home it can be tough for me to break off from routine and run without a plan.

All that to say, if you are anything like me, than maybe you're feeling a little out of sorts about the lack of structure and routine that come with summertime. I have found that just being able to name that discomfort has helped to ease the edginess tremendously. Now I can think through what my overarching goals are for this less-structured season, so that I don't miss the boat on what I feel is most important. Then maybe I can sit back, relax, and enjoy some of this summer fun!

 How can we rescue our sanity this summer? Our boats are unanchored and our crew is off of their routine, but we still want to end up in port at the end of our journey. Let's start with a few questions to define our destination...so we can know where we want to end up when the day is done.

I will be pondering these questions and hopefully soon be posting some of my thoughts and goals for this fabulous season! I would love it if you would share some of your tips, tricks, dreams, and destinations with me! I am hopeful that this will be a journey to remember--with plenty of photo-ops and giggle-makers for both my family and yours! Happy Summer!