Pottery Barn Inspired Empty Frame Art & Card Display

I think we have created a monster.

I picked up a paintbrush for the first time in years. And I liked it. a lot. In fact, I've been wandering the halls of my house warning the mismatched picture frames that they're next.

As soon as I saw the Pottery Barn catalog that came out a few weeks ago, I started ripping pictures from it, storing ideas of things I wanted to knock-off for Christmas decor. I shared some of those ideas here.

This was one of them:

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But with a hefty $200 price tag, I knew it was something I would never own. Then I looked to my right and saw a picture frame hanging on the wall. Sure, it had a picture in it, but this frame was just begging to be transformed. So I did.

I am so excited about how this project turned out. It's the first "big" project I've taken on in a long time.

Here's the original 16" x 20" frame:

First I sanded it down, not wanting to completely lose the dark color.

Next, I painted the frame Cottage White. I used a couple coats of Behr's Primer Paint (I actually bought a sample size for $2.94) and it worked great!

Once it was dry, I distressed the frame using both coarse and medium sandpaper.

Then I was ready to attach the wires. I purchased a picture hook kit at Home Depot that included picture wire, sawtooth hangers, picture hooks, and screw eyes for around $4.

I screwed in the eyes evenly spaced on the back of the frame.

Then I doubled up the picture wire, looped it through the eye and twisted it to secure it, making sure to hold it as tight as possible.

I kept the original hanger, and just screwed it back into the frame high enough and tight enough that once it was hanging it wouldn't be seen.

I hung it on the wall, and stood back to admire my work!

The entire project cost me about $7 for the paint and the picture hook kit. That's $193 cheaper than Pottery Barn!!

My original intention was to use it to display Christmas cards.

But then I thought it might be a great thing to leave up year round to use as holiday decor throughout the seasons.

I think that my favorite idea though, is to just hang a few black & whites on it.

What would you display?

Make sure to check back on 11/11 when I'll be posting a GIVEAWAY for personalized printables!


Linking to these great parties!

Considering Foster Care Adoption

In celebration of National Adoption Month, I am planning a few posts on the topic of adoption, specifically adoption from foster care, since that is where I have experience myself. I do not consider myself a spokesperson or an expert by any means, but I am certainly an advocate.

I'm guessing that someone you know has adopted a child or was adopted themselves. I can name four adults off the top of my head who are close friends or family who were adopted. All of their experiences were vastly different, from the age at which they were adopted to the reasons leading up to termination of parental rights. I also know numerous families that have adopted children. Again, there are many different circumstances leading up to their adoptions. In both my adult adoptee friends, and families with adopted children, there are several who went through the foster care system.

Children in foster care are removed from their natural parents for numerous reasons, most often neglect or abuse. In many of these cases, there is no one in the child's natural family to care for them, either because they are not able, or not fit. While many are removed as infants, there are even more older children who are removed. Nearly 425,000 children are in the United States Foster Care system today, and 115,000 are currently available for adoption, meaning the rights of the natural parents have been terminated due mostly to abuse or neglect.

More children become available for adoption each year than are adopted. Some children wait three years or more to be adopted, often moving numerous times to different foster homes and group homes. The older a waiting child is, the less their chance for being adopted and having a permanent home and family.

I chose adoption through foster care because it was the more affordable option for me, and the most likely, considering I was adopting as a single parent. Most child welfare agencies cover the costs of homestudies and court fees, and offer a monthly stipend plus free medical insurance until the child is 18, as well as reimbursements for some costs before the adoption is finalized. Some employers offer reimbursements for costs and paid leave, and let's not forget the federal/state tax credits.

I believe with all my heart that adoption is truly a gift, to both parent and child. It's not about giving a child a better life, or about infertile parents begging for a child, or at least it shouldn't be. In fact, it's not really about the adoptive parents at all. It's about giving a child who needs it, a loving, nurturing, permanent home, which every child deserves.

For more information on how you can become qualified for foster care adoption, contact your local Social Services Agency.

Links and Resources:
Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption
National Adoption Day

Presidential Proclamation for National Adoption Month

Do you have any questions about foster care adoption, my personal adoption experience or a suggestion for a topic during National Adoption Month? Leave me a comment or email me at coopsmommy07 (at) aol (dot) com.

Christmas Inspiration, or, Too Many Ideas Swirrling Around My Head

Halloween is barely over, but I've been thinking about my Christmas inspiration for a few weeks. ( I realize that some people do this all year long, but I'm not one of those people).  I've decided that I don't want to buy any new decor this year, rather I would like to make some. I also plan to make most of my gifts for friends and Cooper's teachers. I've been scouring the internet, trying to get some ideas of some projects I'd like to complete, and I thought I'd share a few with you...

Home decor:

All of the above images are from Pottery Barn

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Centerpieces for the Christmas party we're hosting: 

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Christmas gifts for Cooper's teachers:

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Be watching in the coming weeks to see my take on all of these projects. Hopefully my oven will be fixed soon, because I have an amazing Cinnamon Chocolate Christmas cookie to share with you as well!

Where do you get your inspiration for the holidays?

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Did you know that November is National Adoption month? I'll be revisiting some of my old posts, and I have a few new ones in the works, so stay tuned!

How We Spent Our Halloween Weekend

Our Halloween festivities began on Thursday night with pumpkin carving.

Cooper had a bit of a meltdown so there aren't many pictures of the actual carving.

But I do have a fabulous before and after for you!

Before:

After:

On Saturday, Cooper's preschool hosted a "Fun Fest" carnival. I had a photo booth and took hay bale photos for eight tickets a pop.

On the BIG day, Cooper FINALLY got to get all decked out in his costume.

The cutest Woody you've ever seen right?

We knocked on exactly three doors in our neighborhood. Not because that's all we wanted to do, but that's how many participate on our happy little cul-de-sac.

We spent the rest of the evening at a carnival at Rick's daughter's church. We played games, and got lots of candy and cute prizes.

The vendors were really great with this little guy, even helping him "win."

We had a wonderfully busy weekend, although I am truly exhausted today.

Now it's on to planning for the next big holiday - BLACK FRIDAY!! Oops, I mean Thanksgiving...

Remember these marshmallow pumpkins? Well I've been coming up with some ideas for Thanksgiving and Christmas marshmallows, so stick around!

This weekend is the Grandma-to-be party I told you about here. I'll have a post on that next week. 

See, I told you there was lots going on around here! See you soon!!

Because I'm really THAT Interesting...

So I log on to Blogger today and I'm greeted by this:

Seems I have just hit 200 followers. I. Am. Floored. Am I really that interesting?

I mean, I've always got lots to say, but it amazes me that you show up every day to read it.

I just want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for sharing in my adventures. I have loved reading all of your comments, and I try to get back to as many as I can, but between working full time and my family, I don't have a lot of free time.

If you are reading this, know that I appreciate you!!!

Blogging has been a great way for me, like so may others, to get a little free therapy. It's nice to know there are people out there who have shared similar experiences, who I can learn from, and people who are willing to hear what I have to say, and learn from me.

I know there are many readers who don't always leave comments, but I hope you will leave one on this post.  But whether you are a serial commenter, or a lurker, I'm curious, what keeps you coming back?

I have lots planned for this little 'ol blog...stay tuned to see what adventures I'm up to next!

Looking For the Great Pumpkin

My favorite thing about this time of year is visiting the pumpkin patch. I think it has to do with one of my favorite movies of all time "It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown." One of my earliest memories is of watching it when I was little. I tried to get Cooper to sit and watch it with me, but ten minutes in and that was it. I guess Linus and Sally aren't as exciting as Shrek and Fiona.

Last week Cooper's preschool class went to a local Pumpkin Patch. What I love about this patch is that it's completely run by a local high school and is located on their campus. We got to go out into the patch and pick our own pumpkin for just three dollars, no matter the size or type. Very cool.

Here's my boy with his very own pumpkin.

 

They also had some livestock. Cooper made friends with a goat.

I mentioned you could choose a pumpkin of any size AND type. This is what I was talking about:

I tried to talk him into one of those, but he preferred this one. I guess it fits better in his lap anyway.

Hope you enjoyed our trip to the pumpkin patch as much as we did. We're carving pumpkins on Thursday evening, so come back on Friday and see how they turned out!

(Make sure to visit Supermom and I Should Be Folding Laundry for more great photos. )

Super Simple Frozen Breakfast Burritos

I love breakfast, and I believe in eating a good breakfast as a way to start your day right, but just don't have the time during the week to cook a meal in the morning. I'd like to, but with a three year old to get ready, most days it just doesn't happen. And picking up a coffee and a pastry at Starbucks was getting costly. I don't know about you, but $7 for a muffin and a latte is a bit extreme! It's time to start cutting back, and I decided eating out (or rather, NOT) would be the easiest place to start.

I got the idea from Mom's Plans to make Breakfast Burritos and freeze them, to use throughout the week. I thought it would be great to grab and go when there's no time to cook breakfast, as I'm tiring of the ritual cereal and toast. I figured it would be easy to just cook extra eggs and meat on the weekend, fold them into a tortilla and freeze them. Well, guess what - it was!!

Super Simple Frozen Breakfast Burritos
To make 16 Burritos:

1 dozen eggs

1 package bulk Sausage or Bacon (cooked and diced or crumbled)

16 Flour Tortillas (I use the soft taco size)

Optional Add-Ons

Shredded Cheese
Onions

Green Peppers

Salsa

Beans

Potatoes

Crumble or dice your meat, then cook in a large skillet. Remove to a paper towel lined plate to drain. Leave a small amount of the grease in the pan and cook your veggies (add a little bit of Olive Oil if needed) and cook until tender. Add your meat, egg mixture, and shredded cheese to the cooked veggies.Cook until eggs are done.

Warm some flour tortillas in the microwave for 30 seconds to a minute so they are easier to work with. Place a small amount of your egg mixture, add salsa and top with cheese.

Fold sides of the tortillas in and roll to make your burrito.

Wrap each burrito tightly with foil, place in a Ziploc bag and freeze! When you're ready to eat, just wrap one in a paper towel, microwave on defrost for 2 minutes, then on full power for 30 seconds. Super simple!

I did this on a whim last weekend, so I didn't add many of the optional things I listed above. I used what I had on hand - eggs, cheese, sausage, onion and salsa. And the best part ~ each burrito costs about $0.65!

Where are you cutting back these days?