Happening Now

Heading to see The Fresh Beat Band!

Happy Welcome Home Day, Evan

Three years ago today we brought our babiest boy home after a 95 day stay in the NICU. What a ride we have had! It's been three years and Evan is what I always instinctively knew he would be...strong-willed, determined, strong. He's smart, funny, and outgoing too. I love you so much, Evan; more than you can ever know. I hope you enjoy your day. Can't wait for this weekend!

Happening Now

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Happy Welcome Home Day, Ryan

Three years ago today our Ryan came home for the very first time. To say he's come a long way would be an understatement. Ryan is sweet, funny, sassy, and so super smart! He's the star student in his class and he loves to learn. I can hardly remember the tiny little thing he used to be three years ago. But I know it's true, 'cause I'll never forget leaving my heart in that NICU for 86 long days. I love you, Ry. So much, so much, so much. Enjoy your new train set. You'll party like a rock star next week.

Bigger Boy Room

I started thinking about redoing the twins' bedroom before their third birthday, because like it or not, my babies were no longer babies and their nursery decor wasn't going to get it anymore. Since I don't want to do bunk beds yet and I certainly don't want the boys in separate rooms yet I had to find a way to turn their nursery into a bigger boy room without buying new furniture. I also knew I didn't want to break the bank on this room. Until we decide if we'll buy new beds or just convert these current beds to full size I'm holding off on the Pottery Barn bedding I've fallen in love with. What is a frugal mama who needs a change to do?

Head to Pinterest for ideas, of course! I always find so many neat things on Pinterest and many of them are DIY. I love an easy and cheap DIY project, so I found the perfect projects for wall decor.

Canvas + paint + ribbon + = easy peasy

Metallic letters from Anthropologie for $18 a piece? Chile please! How about cardboard letters from JoAnns and spray paint? I like that price much better! The paint color is Krylon's Satin Nickel and the letters are so light that I hung them with Command strips. The bedding is just as cute (and warm) as it wants to be and it was very reasonably priced. I'm tickled that is has a flat sheet!

The book shelf is another diy Pinterest-inspired project. Wooden crates from JoAnns and a million coats of spray paint were all I used. I zip-tied them together to hold them in place. This way if I want to use them for something else I can cut the ties, repaint, and reuse. It's really sturdy and you can't see the zip ties at all.

I was so tired of all these balls in my family room! I saw this idea in the Land of Nod catalog and almost ordered it. That is until I made a little trip to Home Goods and found this metal hamper for a steal.

I love the boys' new reading nook! We had this bench in our basement that someone gave us awhile ago. Honestly, the seat was ugly and I always planned on recovering it. I had fabric left over from the table runner that I used for the dessert table at the boys' birthday party. I recovered the bench with the fabric and even made curtain tie-backs to match. It's hard to tell from the picture, but the fabric is a fun print with cars, trucks, roads and street signs. The wall shelves are from Land of Nod and hold some of the books that are not approved for Pea handling. I've had to buy two copies of Llama Llama Red Pajama because the tore one and I don't plan on buying a third! 

The Peas are all about things that go vroom-vroom, so I had to get this play rug. They love it! As soon as they came home from school and saw their new room they emptied out their cars and started playing. They also kept saying, "Ooh look, a library!" There are still a million books in other parts of the house, but you can never have too many books!

I found this ABC art idea from Pinterest too.

And finally, this room definitely has Ryan's stamp of approval. He climbed right into his bed and nestled under his new comforter. The boys ask to play in their room all the time now and I'm slowly  but surely reclaiming my family room and purging toys and books.  I love Ryan and Evan's new room! It's fun, colorful and bright, not babyish, but not all the way big boy either. I think it's just right for my most Pea-licious three year olds! I enjoyed myself doing the projects, had fun bargain shopping, and I didn't break the bank. It's a win-win situation for all! 

Daycation Getaway

We recently went on a quick getaway with some friends of ours and their children. There's a hotel with an indoor waterpark not too far from us, so we made a little day trip so the kids could soak up the last drops of summer. Ryan and Evan had the best time at the waterpark! Evan, as usual, had no fear and was all over the place. He even went down two of the water slides~ by himself! I didn't have to worry about Ryan getting too far away from us. He's always underfoot and will not venture off, but that Evan had us going! After a day of fun we headed out to dinner and then back to the hotel for fun in the arcade. It was a great little trip with great friends! 

Lord, these Scooters!

We bought Ryan and Evan these scooters for their birthday. Unfortunately we couldn't given them to the boys on their birthday because I didn't buy them when I first saw them in the store. When I went back to get them I could only find one. On top of that, these stinkin' things were even sold out online! I had one scooter and two boys; not gonna work. Finally I found a scooter online and ordered it. The boys were so super excited to have a scooter like the big boys on our street. Daddy P assembled them and Evan immediately scooted right away! He is extremely athletic and just picks up on things easily. My poor Ryan, though...he couldn't do it. He just couldn't figure out how to make the thing go. We tried to show him, but he still had a hard time. My sweet boy sat on the steps and cried his little eyes out. It was the saddest thing I've ever seen. That night, Daddy P and I were determined that our boy was going to learn how to ride that scooter so help us God! We worked and worked and he finally got it! We didn't take the scooters out of town with us, but the boys are making up for lost time. Look at Ryan go! He had to work a little harder at it, but he has the hang of it now!