Our Home -Before Sneak Peak

Seven years ago my Husband and I embarked on a nerve wrecking journey to purchase our first home.  A home with a yard, three bedrooms, a basement and a decent size bathroom. The market was still decent back in 2007-2008 when we had started looking. The market just started to slide and only a few homes started to foreclose. It was not yet all too common.

After looking at many homes for sale we finally walked into the one.

 It was a foreclosure. I will never forget that evening.

It was late in the evening and already dark outside so we needed to use flashlights. We had a little bit of light left in the very beginning. I walked in and just knew this was our starter home to settle and raise our Daughter and looked passed all the faults it had at that moment. I'm sure my Husband thought money signs and constant work in his head. To me I saw cathedral ceilings and just a cute little home that needed help and a family.

After a couple of years went by and we did some work on the house we started telling each other, "are next home is not going to be a fixer upper." I'm not sure if we were joking or not? Because now our dream is to by an old farm house and fix it up! Ha! You may just call us crazy or maybe normal? Since we bought our home in January 2008 we...

• Replaced the old 90's lights throughout the house. 
• Fixed the bathtub.
• Replaced the carpet throughout the house.
• Replaced the kitchen sink faucet. 
• Replaced the old 90's stove.
• Bought a new fridge.
• Bought a new dishwasher.
• Put in a kitchen back splash
• Bought new washer and dryer. 
• Put in a brand spanking new furnace!
• Put on a new front screen door.
• Put up a shed for storage.
• Finished a toy room in the basement. 
• Had the windows replaced.
• Put in new tile in the bathroom.
• Painted ever single wall in the house. 
• Painted the front porch.
• Added a brick patio in the back yard.
• Added landscape and grew a lot of grass!! - Yard was a giant sand box when we moved in with no landscape yet. 
• Built a privacy gate.

When we look back at all that we have accomplished it's hard to believe we did all of that to the house. We had some help along the way from my in-laws, my parents and some helpings hands. We have learned a lot about each other as a married couple in this journey we decided to embark on. We learned that I am OCD and can get bossy when it comes down to home projects. 

I am so proud of the work we have been able to put into our home. With that being said we are going to start sharing with you our DIY projects we have been doing on the house and currently. Yes are are still busy working on the house. 

Below is our eating area before. 

The previous owners had painted it this odd purple/pink throughout the great room and hallway. As you can tell down the hall way there are two major blue bedrooms popping out at you. They had all boys. Silly huh?! It's really sad story and I wouldn't never want a family to lose their home. One of the boys actually came back last summer to see the home. I felt awkward but I was very kind to him. 

before

Below is the after! Now the room is filled with conversations and laughter all over again. Oh yeah and that crazy pup under the table. As I mentioned this room is still under some construction. 

Before picture.
The master bedroom. It has a walk through bathroom.

After sneak peak photos. The mater bedroom took me about seven years to get it right. 

Before photo of our two Little's bedroom. As we call it the garden room.

After Photo. Please take in mind these are all sneak peak photos. 

Before photo of the brightest blue bedroom I think I have ever viewed in my life thus far. 

We still joke about it to this day. Our oldest was too young to remember this blue when we moved in and painted it. We actually left it for a bit since it was our computer room/toy room for a while before we announced our second Daughter was on the way. Then this room became A beautiful green that is still is. My husband picked out the green that went with our gender neutral baby bedding back then. Since then our Daughters have seemed to like the color and it hasn't been painted since. I'm okay with that since it gives me that last feel of my baby nursery to hang onto. This room has been so many things for us since this became our home. It has been a nursery to two babies and now it is transitioned to a tween girls bedroom for out oldest Daughter.

After photo sneak peak. 

Before photo- Looking into part of the kitchen. That ceiling fan and kitchen light were the first things that had to go. Yuck!

After sneak peak photo. The kitchen is still not yet how I would like it. I am still figure out the cupboards.

It honestly feels never ending some days until you make that list of everything you did so far. Then you sit back and think wow. We have also encountered some disasters while living here...a really bad thunderstorm with 91 MPH strait line winds the took out trees, roofs, and cars in our neighborhood. We had a major flood of Grand Rapids that flooded our basement. Last summer we had a tornado go through our backyard and damage our home a little. We did get pretty lucky though. I praise God! This is when we started to think our home had a curse. Ha! Not too long ago we had an earthquake. Crazy huh?! I pray nothing else happens in our home!

If you have any questions on our remolding, DY projects please feel free to email me at: kaitlynhoff3@gmail.com

If you would like to advertise or send a product review again send me a direct email to Kaitlyn at: kaitlynhoff3@gmail.com

You may find more photos and keep up with our journey with us on instagram. 

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DIY Christmas Card Holder

I know it may be nearing the end of January and Christmas is no longer on our minds. In fact most of us probably have put the holidays on hold until next season.

I like to take down all our Christmas decor the day after Christmas. I know it makes me feel like a scrooge sometimes. But I just want my house back in order honestly. One thing I waited on taking down this year was our beautiful Christmas cards we received in the mail from our family and friends.

This year I did a little DIY to hang them up. With the hustle and bustle of the holidays I missed out on sharing it with my blog. Therefore I thought I'd share it now for next year. You may PIN this DIY on your pinterest and get a head start for next season.

Christmas Cards DIY Holder 

(Less than $6 Dollars) 

1. I bought my supplies from The Dollar Tree and Meijers. 

2. Supplies: Paint, Paint brush, Heavy duty yarn, Wood clothespins (The Dollar Tree) 

3. Paint the wood clothes pins. You may even use modge-podge and sprinkle glitter on top. Let dry. and your all set. So simple.

4. Hang up your heavy duty yarn. Now your all set to hang your Christmas cards on the yarn with the painted wooden clothes pints. 

What was your favorite part of your Christmas this year?

DIY Simple Jewelry Organization

Let me start off with a back in the day....

Back in the day before I became a wife and had three little princesses I had a beautiful vanity that also made as a large jewelry box. Once I married I had to leave it behind in my bedroom at my parents home. Then it later became in storage in their attack. Even later as the seven years have passed and my parents have moved this past summer it is now collecting dust in my own basement because I just cannot part from it. Why is it not being useful in my master bedroom? Well...sadly I have no room for it.

In the mean time my jewelry has been all thrown in one drawer from my vanity. All while gaining knots and breaking. Shame on me.


Until I had this brilliant idea. I had an unused key chain holder laying around. I hung it up on the hall and it sure makes for a great necklace or even bracelet holder. For now that us where my necklaces and bracelets will reside.

DIY Christmas Tree Ornament

I love Christmas, it is one of my favorite holidays of the year. There is just something about Christmas that feels so warm, cozy and joyful even though it may be cold and sometimes frightful outside. Unless you live somewhere south or out on the west coast. Then I may envy you at times when I am brushing my car off in  negative wind chills. 

 When it comes to Christmas it seems to bring out the craft side in me more than the other holidays. One of my favorite things to do around Christmas is Creating new decorations for our home, creating gifts for family and friends and having fun quality time getting messy with our Daughters. 

With that being said, here is an easy DIY card stock Christmas tree ornament.  Great for most ages kindergarten and up. The younger children may need your assistance. 

 .

 You may hang the ornaments from your tree or anywhere in your home that heart desires. As you can see I hung mine on my dinning room tables center piece last year. This year they are hung on the same tree but next to our TV.

Supplies needed:          

• Holiday card stock paper
• A cup to trace the circles
• Scissors 
• Pencil to trace with.
• Glue stick
• A thinner yarn

How to step by step:

1. Trace all the circles you need with the glass.
2. Cut out your circles.
3. Fold your circles in half. (fold the ugly side of the card stock facing out.)
4. You will need at least 6 circles for each ornament. (you can use less or more if you choose to.)
5. Glue the ugly sides together.
6. Cut your string and tie a slip knot at the end.
7. Add the string right before you glue the last folded circle in.
8. Trim if needed and your done. 

Rustic Living Room Storage + Tips

One of my favorite things to do on a Saturday with my Husband is to go thrift shopping . I love the challenge of finding a good deal. I love to thrift for some of our home decor that is rustic looking, shabby chic or vintage to go with my homes over haul that I have been slowly working on. 

In the above picture I is my newest rustic basket I found at a local thrift store. I added it into our living room. Right now it is being used as storage for our blankets. I hauled them out of our hallway closet where they were once located. Away from the living room and a pain when have to always go get a blanket to warm up. Instead I now store them in an easier place for all of us to get them now, the whicker basket. 

5 Home Decor Tips

1. Buy something that can have a universal use. 

2. Create your storage as an art piece if it is visible to guests.

3. Try to stick to DIY projects to save money.

4. Head to the thrift shops.

5. Stick to your color scheme. 

A look Into Helen's First Birthday Party

Our youngest Daughter is quickly approaching three years old. As I memorized through Helen's baby pictures It's amazing how quickly the years slip through our fingers. One thing she has taught me as her Mother is no matter what....dance!

Here is a throw back into her first birthday party. If you know me....I really enjoy throwing parties and playing host. Enjoy and maybe you can gain some ideas for your little ones birthday parties. Feel free to ask any questions how I did things.

Her first birthday party I did a lot of DIY on my own. I went thrifting and to the Dollar Tree. Read here how to plan a party. How to plan a party. Please note these photos were taken on my cell phone and may not be the best quality. 

Theme: Backyard Vintage

For a background I used wood lattice that I found in our woods. I had left over pink paint to paint it..of course right? At that time I borrowed the banner from Helen's nursery to add to the birthday theme. It's okay to borrow. 

I designed the birthday cake on my own based on a few cakes I found on pinterest that I liked. I couldn't make up my mind therefore I tweaked my own and brought my ideas into a local cake bakery. I created the cake banner myself. The cake is sitting on an upside down pie pan that I painted.

The birthday outfit is a very important part of the party. For Helen I created the tutu and slipped it over a onsie. On her onsie I ironed on a number one. 

Of course The Birthday girl/ boy needs to have their own piece of cake. In our case Helen had her own cupcake made by a friend of mine who also decorated the plate for it to sit on. Having special people involved in special moments like these make them even that more memorable. To keep the vintage theme going we used the high chair from Grandpa and Grandma D. Talk about Vintage it is actually my aunts.

And who doesn't love a one year old with a face full of cake. 

The Best Homemade Popsicles

One of the best parts of enjoying summer as a child are the Popsicles. Am I right?  As a Mom you know it's summer if you take your child with you grocery shopping and you hit the Popsicle isle. As a Mom I feel like I hit a jack pot if there on sale 2 for $5. 

That was till the other week. We decided we should make our own Popsicles. How hard could it possibly be. I have passed by those glamorized DIY ideas on pinterest because lets be honest, I like simple.

Therefore the girls and I headed out to the store and bought some fun character ice trays, Popsicle sticks, orange juice and our favorite strawberry pro biotic smoothie. The best part about these homemade Popsicles are...

• They are the perfect size for all ages. Even the youngsters like my 2 year old Daughter. 
• They are quick to make and simple.
• Cost effective
• You can pick out your choice of juice. May it be organic, a  pro biotic smoothie drink, you get my drift.
• You can make a lot of Popsicles if you prefer if you buy a bottle of juice. This is why it's cost effective. 

How To Make Homemade Popsicles

1. Buy all your supplies. Juice, ice tray, and Popsicle sticks.
2. Pour the juice into the ice tray and place into your freezer for about 5-10 minutes. Or until the juice is halfway hard.
3. Slowly and carefully place the Popsicle sticks into the middle of each halfway frozen Popsicles. 
4. Leave in freezer till they are completely frozen. I have noticed juice freezes quicker. They should be ready within an hour or two. 
5. Be careful removing the Popsicles. Remove them just as you would an ice cube. 
6. Most importantly...enjoy!

How To Throw A Summer Party!

What is better than to bring in the first day of summer with a "end of school year"/ "beginning of summer" party"?  Therefore that is exactly what we did for our oldest Daughter. It was a ton of fun and filled with so much excitement. She invited her close friends from her class at school. The party was like their, until next school year. 

With that being said here are some insider tips how to throw a summer party. I like to keep things simple and low cost. 

How To Throw A Summer Party

1.Plan: Plan out your guest list first. Next plan out what style party, food and the decorations. Remember your party can be simple and low cost and still look great, it just may take a few extra steps. Therefore plan ahead of time.

2. Food: Hot dogs are a great main course. Make it even more unique by roasting them over a fire. Each child roasted their own hot dog at the party. Watermelon is always a hit. You may cut them into triangles and simply add a Popsicle stick. Kids will love them. For dessert roast s'mores over the fire. It's fun and a great way to kick off summer and kids really love s'mores, who doesn't?

3.DIY: When I talk about keeping it low cost that is where I am talking about planning ahead. Make your own decorations. Visit your local Dollar Tree store. In the pictures below I made my own party banner. I purchased almost all my summer party supplies from our local Dollar Tree store. The Green bucket worked great to serve the chips in. I used the small purples buckets for the s'mores and silverware, which by the way came in a pack of 4/$1.  I already had the cups from my kitchen that I had recycled from the past. 

4.Games: Kids love playing games. At our Daughter Ev's age they pretty much entertained themselves though. Can't complain.  We played soccer in the backyard, the camp fire was a total hit and took up a lot of the time, at this age they enjoyed chatting with each other. On the other hand some fun games are...

Bing bang toss, Hanging a pinata from the tree, bubbles, sidewalk chalk, painting, crafts, etc. 

5: Do not over do yourself. Remember you do not have to prove anything. 

 The DIY party banner

 S'mores are great for a summer party or get together. 

Watermelon on sticks are perfect for little fingers and make less mess.

                                         

What are you doing to celebrate the your summer? 

DIY Home Decor Under $10

Do not mind my taste in books, they change every so often. But that is far from what Today's post is about. 

Lately I have had the itch to DIY for my home. Something cost effective and simple. Therefore a trip to our Local Meijer's was in order with my youngest while the two older girls were in school. Our youngest gets to do all the fun and not so fun trips with Mommy. It's always easiest when their one on one. Why is that? Why is it that my Daughters are best behaved at the stores when their by themselves with me? Anyways, that is also besides the point. 

One of the points is, you only need a few craft supplies for this simple DIY project.

• acrylic paint
• box letter 
• paint brush
• paint tray
• paper towel 

I chose teal and gold to match the colors in my home. Trendy huh? I prefer simple clean lines. You can do a chevron pattern as well. Polka dots for a child's room would be fun too. The how to is where the simple part comes in.

1. Make sure you have all the price tag stickers on the letter. 
2. Pant your letter. 
3. Dry.
4. Paint a second time if it may need a second coat. Mine did. 

Now find the perfect spot in your living room, dinning room, kitchen and or bedrooms for your letter. Mine will not be staying on the book shelf. For it will be going on the collage wall sitting on a picture self instead. I have yet to buy more picture shelving to hang up. Therefore its home is next to the books for now.  

This project cost me less than 10 dollars. You can't go wrong there. I even have left over paint for my next project that I just can't wait to share with you.

              

My Favorite Wall In My House & $10 Starbucks WINNER!

It started out as one of my brilliant brainstorms. Continued as a mention to my lovely husband who then thought I was once again nuts. I tend to come up with all these wonderful and fun ideas. Okay maybe they are at least to me. Ha ha. And I have to admit most of these ideas he calls "projects" because yes they mostly do involve 90% of his work a 10% of my help.

I knew I wanted a chalk wall in our home and found the perfect location. The kitchen. Not only would our daughters be able to draw on the wall but I could use it as a memo board as well. Plus that way I could show it off when guest came over. He he.

 We ended up painting it from the floor to ceiling. He thought I was a little bonkers about that idea at first since we have slightly cathedral ceilings. The chalk wall has now been up for a year or maybe longer. We love it and it has come in so handy. Now when guest come over who have never seen our chalk wall they mention how much they love it. It is pretty cool and now is my favorite wall in our home.

• It is great for the girls to practice writing, spelling, numbers, etc on it. 
• It's great during the winter to play with chalk.
• Since we painted it from floor to ceiling I use the top to put up their special school work.
• My husband and I use it as a memo board. 
• We store our wifi pass code for guest on it for guest. Brilliant I know!
  
   Something I did not think about when a few of our guest wouldn't allow their child to draw on our chalk wall because they were afraid it would give their child the okay to draw on other walls. At first I was astounded and thought they were just being mean. But at the same time understood and had to respect their parenting choices. 

So here is how our daughters understood to only draw on the chalk wall. We instructed that they were only to draw on the black wall in the kitchen with their chalk only. No other walls in the house were ever okay to draw on what so ever. They understood very clearly and we never had issues.

TGIF hop $10 Starbucks WINNER is Jordan Gibbs. Won by following @kaitlynmarie003 on twitter. Thank you so much for participating in the GIVEAWAY. We hope you continue to follow and link up with us. You have 24 hours to email Kaitlyn at kaitlynhoff3@gmail.com. 

Whats your favorite wall in your home?

                      

Valentines Headband with Heart Crochet: Free Tutorial Included & TODDLER HEART HEADBAND GIVEAWAY!!

Continuing with our Valentine's Day series, today I would like you to meet a guest blogger Desiree from  Complete Bliss Blog.  She is your first time mom who loves to craft and crochet in her free time.

In this post she is sharing a crocheted toddler size Valentines heart headband along with the tutorial. If you do not crochet don't worry because there is a GIVEAWAY! Thats right are giving away Valentines Heart Headband. All you have to do is follow the instructions and enter. Enjoy.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Valentines Headband with Heart Crochet Tutorial

This tutorial was used with Red Heart yarn in red, and a size 5.0 crochet hook. 

The Heart

Row 1: Chain 2

Row 2: Single stitch 3 in the second stitch from hook.

Chain 1 and turn

Row 3: Single stitch in each of the three stitches. Chain 1 and turn

Row 4: Single stitch 1 in your first stitch

single stitch 2 in your middle stitch

single stitch 1 in last stitch

Row 5: Single Stitch one in each of the 4 previous stitches. Chain 1 and turn

Row 6: Single stitch 1 in the 1st stitch

Single stitch 2 in second

Single stitch 2 in third stitch

Single stitch 1 in 4th stitch

Row 7: Single stitch one in each of the previous row. Chain 1 and turn

Row 8: Single stitch in the 1st stitch

2 single stitches in the second stitch

1 single stitch in both the third and fourth stitches

2 single stitches in the 5th stitch

1 single stitch in the 6th stitch

Row 9: Single stitch in each of the 8 previous stitches. Chain 1 and turn

Row 10:

Single stitch 1 in first 1st stitch

Single stitch 2 in 2nd stitch

Single stitch 1 in both 3rd and 4th stitches

Single stitch 2 in the 5th stitch

Single stitch one in the 6th stitch 

Single stitch 2 in the 7th stitch

Single stitch one in 8th stitch 

Row 11:

Single stitch in each of the 11 stitches 

Chain 2 and turn

Row 12:

Double chain 8 in the third stitch in.

Single stitch in the 6th stitch in (your middle stitch)

Double chain 8 in the third stitch from end 

Slip stitch into last chain on your previous row

Cut off access, tie off and weave in your ends

The Headband:

Depending how wide and how long you need/want it, you can adjust the number of stitches. 

I chained 6, turned, and chained a single stitch in the second in from hook all the way across.

Single stitch in each of the 5, chaining one and turning each time until you reach your desired length. Slip stitch in each stitch WITH BOTH ENDS once you have reached your desired length joining them together, cut off access, tie off and weave in ends. Sew the heart onto the headband. 

*you can also use a double stitch to give it a little more stretch*

Playing around with different size hooks, and varying weight of warn can give different size hearts. Making one with even a half of size bigger can give you the "layered" heart look with the white and pink together demonstrated below.