The post in which I pause.

This week has been stressful, and that stress is 100% due to my job. When I went to school to become a teacher, I didn't sign up for the girl who speaks to me in a way that would have made my 14 year-old self sooner curl up and hide in the corner of my room for the next 18.5 months. I didn't sign up for the FAQ of "Do we really have to read books in English?" I didn't sign up for the parent who chooses to believe their child's story rather than mine, despite the fact that said child's story has changed more times than I have changed my mind about what colors to put in our future living room.

No, I didn't sign up for any of the above, but they come with the territory. Duh, Erin. Even the biggest sigh of exasperation won't change the fact that teaching is a difficult and trying job. I try to stay positive, praying every morning for patience, a sense of humor, and wisdom about the right way to deal with anything that crosses my path, and I try to focus on the kids who make me laugh and the parents who are the strongest of allies. Unfortunately, despite my best intentions, weeks like this happen, and all of my commitment to optimism dissolves faster than the commotion of students when they realize just how angry they have made me.

It's weeks like this that really put life in perspective for me. Without these bumps and problems, life would seem too perfect. It would be too easy to fall into the trap of thinking that we are self-sufficient beings, and that life on earth is the best thing we have going for us.

But it's not. And weeks like this remind me that the Lord, in His infinite wisdom and goodness, will plant these obstacles and frustrations to remind us that we can't do this life thing alone, that we need to rely on Him for our every need. It is so comforting to know that He has already anticipated the events that make me question my sanity and my choice of career, and knows just how He will use it to make me grow as a stronger person and teacher, all the while teaching me to lean on Him like crazy, and to be grateful for these setbacks that he is using to set me up for being a better teacher and human being. Do I like the problems my job presents? I'd be lying if I said "YES! BRING ON THE DISRESPECT AND IRRESPONSIBILITY!". I'm getting better, though, at being grateful for these inevitable facets of my job, rather than resenting them.

Weeks like this also make me realize, in the grander scheme of life, just how insignificant a new mirror is, and how meaningless couch shopping is. Don't get me wrong: I still get ridiculously excited about spotting 80% off signs, sifting through fabric swatches, and testing every couch in Raymour and Flanigan with saleswoman Marcia close behind (OK, well, maybe I wasn't so excited about Marcia being close behind). And I probably always will get excited about these things, because these things all are linked to the gifts and abilities that God has given me. The Lord wants us to enjoy our gifts and blessings! I just want to enjoy them with a greater sense of gratefulness, without getting sucked into the material and temporal nature of this crazy world.

So here's my goal for the new year: I am still going to blog, and I'm still going to blog about my house. But I am going to do it all with the clear understanding that the truly greatest treasure can't be found on any clearance rack, magazine page, or home decorating blog. I am going to do it without forgetting that these earthly treasures are just that: earthly. I am going to give every last ounce of glory to the One who has allowed me to have the means to buy the things that I enjoy.

Hold me to it!

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

Matthew 6:19-21

The post about taking apart a frumpy chair.

Some people buddy up with Ryan Seacrest, noisemakers, and Budweiser on December 31st.

We buddied up with some pliers, screwdrivers, and disintegrating foam.

Yes, that's right: we spent our New Year's Eve taking apart this frumpy but one-of-a-kind $20 Craigslist chair:

With some new fabric, cushions, and paint (which we haven't selected yet because I'm not sure yet where I want the chair to go in OUR NEW HOUSE), we'll be able to transform this ugly duckling into a swan. Or at least a more attractive duckling. However, due to the lack of weather temperatures that allow us to paint outdoors without going frozen from the waist down (name that Christmas movie) or indoors without acquiring a perpetual paint-fume headache, this frumpy duckling is, right now, more like a....well, a dismembered frumpy duckling.

That last statement was rather graphic. I promise no animals were harmed in the dismantling of this chair. See, our head project supervisor Gingerbread approves of our work:

 

Well, she at least approves of the fact that we created yet another new nook for her to explore and take up residence in.

Anyway, we tackled this chair the same way we tackled the zebra one. Our process is fairly straightforward:

1. Snap way too many pictures of the chair from every angle...

2. Remove all staples and tack strips, bemoaning the person who used these nasty metal tack strips when they put the chair together in the first place...

 (In that poor soul's defense, he probably never expected that anyone would spend their New Year's Eve taking his hard work apart.)

4. Take off the fabric one piece at a time and make a list of the order (putting the new fabric back on will happen in the reverse order)...

 

5. Notice that this chair's olive velour fabric is reminiscent of the gold velour fabric we removed from this chair and wonder during exactly what era gold and olive velour chairs were popular...

6. Keep the vacuum handy so our entire living room doesn't become covered in 60-year old disintegrating foam (alas, we didn't give it a chance to ring in a 61st year)...

7. Sand the chair's frame when we're blessed with a balmy 44 degrees on January 1st (the only part of this process that we didn't complete before Dick Clark's countdown)...

8. And last, not not least, pile the pieces into the empty corner of the living room where the Christmas tree stood just a mere 24 hours before and pretend it's some newfangled modern art sculpture (hey, if a urinal on a slab of concrete can make it to the MOMA, I say our chair can, too) until we have the supplies, plan, and weather to finish the project once and for all.

Take that, frumpy duckling. We'll turn you into a swan yet. :)

The post about 2010.

My little blog has not yet celebrated its 1st birthday, nor even its half birthday, but I thought I'd participate in Southern Hospitality's 2010 round-up just for fun anyway. So without further ado: The Top 5 Things Erin Learned about Decorating in 2010. I was going to take on a Top 10, but David Letterman must have more list-making stamina than I.

*       *       *

5. Reupholstering is not a one-day gig. A mildly "duh" epiphany, I know, but we have always been overly ambitious/impractical, whichever way you want to look at it. The makeover of this hideously gold velour chair was mostly accomplished in one day, but slid to a grinding halt when a mildly serious battle with the sewing machine impeded our progress. Not to mention that it was past midnight when we finally looked up from our tack strips and fabric.

4. Flat paint is a bad idea on furniture, unless you never plan to clean and/or dust said furniture. I never wrote about this desk that Rick repainted as a display for our wedding photos and mementos (I think it occurred BB--Before Blog) but the nasty gray streaks ground into the formerly white finish (which I couldn't, sadly, adequately capture on camera) will haunt me forever. Or at least until we repaint it. Whichever comes first.

3. It's perfectly acceptable to hang garbage on the wall.  Not that you should take your packed Hefty bags, however, and mount them above your fireplace. I do, in all seriousness, love this perfectly weathered ladder that I Rick dragged off the curb. I'm pretty sure it is going to join us at our soon-to-be new house (!) as long as I can smuggle it into the moving truck without Rick noticing.

And those bottles were dragged off the curb, as well, before being coated with some fun aqua and pear spray paint.

2. My Cricut can be used for more than just cards and scrapbooking. I made this die-cut frame...

...these silhouettes...

...and the accents for this basket collage that I hung on the wall...

 ...all with my Cricut. Who knew?

And the number one thing I learned about decorating in 2010:

1. I couldn't do any of it without my wonderfully patient partner in crime. I think he's even learned a few things himself, like what I mean when I say "good lines" and "trust me." He may have also learned that you shouldn't attempt to reconstruct a couch unless you know what you're doing.

Fortunately, this particular couch was a freebie hand-me-down that A) we didn't want and B) had already been loved a lot, so we didn't feel too bad about putting its sad dismantled skeleton out for garbage day after completing taking it apart and realizing we were about as clueless as the student who asked me, with utmost seriousness, how to spell TV. No, that is not a joke. Yes, I teach ninth grade, aka 14 year-olds who have seen TV spelled for approximately, well, 14 years. Yes, I did have to refrain from laughing and/or fleeing from the room in despair.

Anyway, back to a less disturbing topic: Rick sporting his super stylish safety goggles and gloating about how he had just used his brawn and sweat to remove the rusty springs from the couch. When I consider how triumphant he looks in this picture, I figure that all was not lost.

See what I mean? Couldn't function without him. They didn't teach me how to remove springs from couches in Girl Scouts.

 *       *       *

So, that wraps up a sampling of our experience in 2010. Happy New Year, and here's to another year of learning and laughing!

The post on Christmas Eve.

We've had a busy Christmas Eve day, full of centerpiece arranging...

 

...chocolate cover pretzel making (I swear we didn't intend for them to come out looking like they would glow if we held a black light over them)...

...final gift creating (more on the latter after I give it to my parents)...

...and emails about SALE PENDING! Yes, that means our offer on a house has been accepted, signed, and sent to all those wonderful people that help us through the tedious part of this process. Says our realtor: "Rick, how will you ever top this Christmas gift for Erin ever again?!" We are now 60+ days away (God willing!) from being the official owners of an amazing old house that is near our families, has enough room for several sets of twins (hi Mom), and needs some decorating TLC...which is exactly what we wanted!

This chocolate to drizzle over our chocolate-covered pretzels, however, is not exactly what we wanted:

Not sure what happened, but for some reason the food coloring made the chocolate really thick and non-drizzlable. So, I had the brilliant idea of adding milk, thinking it would thin the chocolate out. Right?

Wrong.

Garbage can, meet our latest DIY disaster.

This is why I blog about crafting and not cooking.

We're praising the Lord for our marriage, our families, all of our many blessings, food on our table that looks nothing like that mess above, and the most perfect gift that He sent us so long ago. We're doing our best to keep Christ at the center of this Christmas season, as we do in every season!

Merry Christmas!

The post with the wine bottle wrap.

We went to a friend's Christmas party this past Saturday, and our wine gift was looking a little naked, so I made this festive wrap for it (inspired by a similar project I saw in my holiday Paper Crafts magazine).

I started by cutting some lightweight cardstock to cover the height of the label and snugly wrap the circumference of the bottle, and then I used my Cricut to cut out circles from regular scrapbook paper in sizes between 1" and 2".

The next step was to arrange the circles on the lower edge of the cardstock before adding some coordinating buttons.

Then, while I coaxed the accordion fold accent into staying glued together and not coming wildly undone, it nearly coaxed me into breaking into the wine right then and there. Seriously, I have never tried to accordion-fold paper into a circle before, and let's just say that I was almost as frustrated as the day we had to learn about proofs in math class. (If Fluffy is a poodle, then Fluffy is a dog. If Fluffy is not a dog, then Fluffy is not a poodle. If Fluffy relieves himself on the carpet and chews up my favorite pair of high heels, then Fluffy will wish he was never a dog nor a poodle.)

Well, that last one might not have been in my textbook. Although it would have made 9th grade math class significantly more interesting. As it was, we had to amuse ourselves by placing bets on when the dead plant in the window would spontaneously combust.

Anyway, I was feeling considerably agitated with Fluffy the accordion-fold medallion, but I did figure it out eventually. And it got easier after I did it more than once.

I would try to explain the process in writing, but it would probably make even less sense than that Fluffy nonsense above. Maybe I'll make a video of it--with Rick playing the accordion in the background! Get it? Clever, right?

Consider yourself warned if you ever click on a video we produce. ;)

The final touch was tying on the wired ribbon and adhering the bane of my existence the accordion-fold medallion with double-sided foam. I also added some self-adhesive gems to the bottom rim for extra holiday sparkle.

Voila!

We don't deal with full bottles very often (I tend to prefer the empty ones from strangers' recycling bins), but I thought this was a fun way to dress up a hostess gift for our friends.

And in case you were wondering, Rick can actually play the accordion. He taught himself, which was a process much speedier than the process by which I taught myself how to accordion-fold paper (and not full of nearly as many dramatic sighs).  If you're feeling skeptical, just ask our downstairs neighbor to vouch for his musical abilities. Or Gingerbread. She takes up residence under the bed when he breaks out that particular instrument. :)

The post with the felt poinsettias.

I saw this picture in my Paper Crafts magazine last week and was drawn to the felt poinsettia embellishment on one of the cards. (I could not get it to scan well...hence the weird coloring.)

I knew it would be pretty easy to make my own, so, on our fateful Black Friday trip to Joann Fabrics, I showed up at our cart holding sheets of olive and oatmeal felt. Rick looked at me like I was mildly insane (he does that now and then) before reminding me that I wanted to make poinsettias. As in flowers that are typically red, pink, or ivory. As in flowers that are only brown if they are dead. He really shouldn't have been so confused, because, after all, we do like to keep our plants good and crispy around this place, sort of like this poor plant that my cats like to munch on.

Anyway, I managed to smuggle the alarmingly non-traditional poinsettia colors into our cart without too much trouble. When we got home, I started cutting out petals (freehand, so as to be perfectly imperfect like a real oatmeal poinsettia--ha) with the deliciously sharp new fabric scissors that I had also purchased on our trip. They are definitely not your mama's safety scissors.

I spent a few minutes playing around with the  petals until I got them layered in the imperfect way I wanted. Then, all I had to do was hot glue them together, add the leaves and the pearl center (they're just individual beads glued on), and ta-da! My oatmeal and olive felt poinsettia was complete.

I think one of these flowers would look gorgeous on an all-white stocking, which I am planning on making as soon as Rick stops guarding our generic store-purchased ones with the machete we borrowed from a house on our house hunting tour. (Just kidding....he's only wielding a butter knife. No need for alarm.)

On a serious note, though, he did say that my poinsettias were unexpectedly charming.

Those might not have been his exact words.

But, he's learning to trust my instincts. :)

I'm linking this up to Centsational Girl's party today...check it out for tons more DIY Christmas craft ideas!

The post about the practically free Christmas decorations.

Last weekend, we put up our tree. Surprisingly, there has been nary an ornament knocked off by our kitties (although several have been swinging back and forth at alarming rates), but we're fairly certain that if we had a real tree, Gingerbread would have climbed it at least, well, two or eighty times by now. So, we're counting our blessings that so far, we have not yet had to experience the holiday joy of removing sap from kitty fur.

This weekend, in our continuing quest to decorate our apartment for Christmas, I took a few minutes and put together the following practically free groupings. And when I say practically free in the title of this post, I mean that, since both were created exclusively with simple things that we already had around the apartment (and none of the things cost very much in the first place). The first one features the candle jar I "made" a couple weeks ago, some decorative balls, and free books from a yard sale covered in festive scrapbook paper.

The other one on our coffee table features an old frame spray painted white, red and green scrapbook paper, some decorative balls, and glass bottles yanked from my unsuspecting neighbors' recycling bins.

My recycling hunt is, sadly, on hiatus until I can wear fewer than six layers when venturing outside. No time for digging through recycling bins when I have to spend my spare minutes digging my car, driveway, and occasionally my husband from underneath a mountain of snow. :)

Anyone else done anything simple and cheap as they decorate for the holidays this year? Do share. :)