A Very Milam Christmas 2013

       I thought I should make a pit stop and share some images from the holidays with y'all. Our Christmas season was busy and chaotic, just like most are. We tried to fit in a fair share of festivities, but also kept life as simple as we could. I had just about all of my shopping done by Thanksgiving, which helped relieve some of the holiday pressures. If you didn't get a card from us, you weren't forgotten. I just couldn't pull it off this year.
       I think there is so much pressure on us to do soooo much during the holidays. From Elf on the Shelf, homemade Advent calendars, Polar Express outings, family photo shoots so that you have just the perfect holiday card, holiday pajamas, fancy party outfits, and the list goes on.  This year I was really feeling like it was all just a bit too much. I was really and truly trying to just keep it all together. Despite all of the pressures, it really was a very blessed season for us. Our little family had so much to celebrate and be thankful for.

Quincy had her first encounter with the big guy this year. 

Nolan wouldn't get close, and I didn't pressure him.

He did however really enjoy the candy canes Santa was giving out.
He proceeded to talk about candy canes the whole month of December.

Nope, my kids just aren't the type that embrace Kris Kringle.

My resort does it up every holiday season.

Jon brought the kiddos by one evening so that Nolan could have  

a gander at our Gingerbread village, complete with a train.

Jon was just barely able to have Thanksgiving Day off and we 

were very thankful to have him with us.

We lucked out again when we thought he might have to stay over at work on Christmas,

 but didn't. He was working on Christmas Eve,

 so we joined the guys and the other families at the station

for a Christmas Eve dinner (the guys did all the cooking!). 

       Our Christmas' will probably never be filled with the same exact traditions year in and year out. That's something that I'm trying to come to grips with. Many years, Jon will be working on Christmas (in 2014, he'll be working Christmas Eve and Christmas Day), and we'll have to flex our plans accordingly. This year we decided to forgo a rushed trip to the bay area to be with my family, because it's a lot for our kids (and us) at this age. Next year, I will surely be out of town with the kiddos while Jon is at work. But what I already learned this year, is that it truly doesn't matter which day we celebrate. As long as we take a day together to celebrate as a family. Waking up without Jon at home with us on Christmas morning was made much easier by the fact that he was getting off and would be home to join us soon. 

        Nolan really just started to comprehend Christmas and all of it's magic this year. On Christmas Eve, I couldn't get the kid into his bed, but after explaining that Santa and the reindeer needed him tucked in before they could arrive, he was happy to oblige. He helped me set out a cookie, some brownie bites for the reindeer, and a glass of milk. He then asked me to close his bedroom door so that Santa couldn't get in. 

       First thing in the morning, I heard him stirring in the living room. 

I entered to find him checking out the leftovers from the night prior.

He was happy to help finish off the bits that Santa and Rudolph left behind.

The kids and I made some quiche and set out breakfast,

waiting for dad to arrive home.

I figured it was best to snap a couple of pics of the kids while I could.

This is Quincy's new trick.

Nolan really became the gift opener extraordinaire.

He may or may not have opened a gift at one point and said,

"this can't be for me…it's clothes".

Oh, the Christmas spirit at it's finest.

       More then anything this year, I was reminded of how much we have. Too much really. We are so blessed and fortunate. It was certainly a time to reflect on how content we should be with all that we've been given (health and family, not physical gifts).  We spent the remainder of the day watching a movie as the kids napped, and then making some homemade ribs. It was lazy. And simple. And great.

That Nook

       *** The response to our planked wall was encouraging, so Thank You! Back to our previously scheduled program...

       This house is full of poorly used space. Wasting space drives me bananas. Most of us can't afford the square footage we dream about, so we have to ensure we're using all of our precious space as best we can. We have to make our homes work for us. Sure, it takes some energy, planning, and thought, but there's lots we can do to make things function just a bit better for our needs. Nice interiors with expensive furnishings would be nothing if it weren't for good storage. So as we save up our big bucks (and energy) for a few key pieces of furniture and hardwood installation, we're working on some smaller storage solutions that will make our home much more successful.

Enter: That Nook.

It sits just to the right of our entry door 

(which will be upgraded to a single pane french door -after the hardwoods). 
You can see it from any vantage point in our living area.

It is such a waste of space!

It is only 17" deep, so not deep enough to actually hang human size coats.

This nook is complete with a cheap faux wood shelf, 

and a cheap wood dowel hardware contraption.

Imagine us digging through that puny basket for the other glove,

the missing shoe, or a hat for Quincy.  It's not good. 

The other night, I finally realized what we could do to make that area work better for us,

so it's full steam ahead on some organization.

Compared to our plank wall, this should actually be a pretty quick fix type of plan,

and should take us less then two months to complete. Fingers crossed. 

I saw these striped canvas baskets over on pinterest several months ago, 

and I've been trying to figure out a place to use them ever since.

Amber Interiors

Many designers have used them and in every image I've come across, 

I love them.

Lonny Magazine

       More amazing about these bins, is that they are so obtainable. They are available over at the Container Store, and they start at $10.00 a pop. I watched Containerstore.com for a sale /free shipping for months (our nearest store is about two hours away), but just in case you're wondering, they don't offer much in the way of sales online. So, at 10 bucks a pop, I decided to get a little crazy, and pay full price (gasp!). They are on their way here, at this very moment. Consider it a little New Years, Let's Get This Damn House Organized, gift to myself. We're getting five, one for each of us, including Blue (to wrangle his dang leash, collar, tennis balls, bones, etc.).

       But I know you're dying to know what these beauties will now be perched on. Easy. In walked some thick wood shelves.

Southern Hospitality

Source Unkown

       We'll be keeping this project totally affordable by building ours from wood that we already have on hand, and picking up just a bit of what we need. I'll be using some stain to darken it to our taste. In my head these shelves will look very intentional, built in, and cleaned lined with no brackets showing (Jon loves it when I give him a little challenge). Now I'm on the hunt for the perfect letters, so that each bin can also be labeled for each of us. Hopefully, I'll have an "after" soon which will include a more final view of our planked wall! Until then...

Our Behemouth Wall: An Update

       Just when I was about to nickname our house the 50% house, because we only get to about 50% completion on any given project, we actually finished a project. Okay…sort of. I mean, we're really close. If you follow me on Instagram you may have had some idea that this post was coming. If you don't follow me on Instagram (you should!), then here's a glance at what we've been up to since November.
       Walking into our house, there is a small (as in tiny) mudroom and then you are led directly into our living room. Our one and only living room. It's been suffering in the looks department since the day we closed on the house, but it's currently the main focus of our work (and wallets). In this space, there is a 17', windowless, featureless, no-tv, wall. It was a gigantic blank canvas, that really needed some immediate attention.

Here is the wall, while the sellers were still packing up.

Kind of hard to believe we wanted to buy the place, heh?

To be honest, it has looked just as bad since we've been here.

I talked about this wall, and my plans for it, here.

A random place to start our main floor updates…possibly.

Very needed…totally.

I debated many an option for the wall. 

But the choice became pretty clear, all on it's own. 

You see, I have loved white planking for years. 

Years!

That character. That texture. 

It was just what our design challenged 1980's home needed.

It gives an open and airy feel and we wanted this area of our living room

to flow easily with our open plan dining and kitchen spaces as well.

It can read very coastal, but with lots of layered furnishings 

and contrasting dark elements I think it can also read as very Country Cabin.

It was just what the doctor ordered.

Next, I weighed what exactly I would hang on that large expanse of wall.

The previous homeowners didn't get it right.

One square image was certainly not appropriate for that expanse. 

I considered a mixed gallery wall with some dimension and different finishes,

but ultimately settled on a grid style gallery wall.

I love symmetry, and it would be a great place to incorporate this style of arrangement. 

Lastly, I had to decide on what style of frame we would use.

This affordable frame from Target quickly became the glaringly correct choice.

They have a reclaimed look to them,

and the tones were perfect for the other browns that will be popping up in our living room

(via leather, hardwoods, etc.)

We used a couple of them in our bedroom, and Jon actually liked them.

When we both like something, it's a no brainer.

These Threshold frames are in high demand, so needing 20-22 of them,

I had to place a few orders when they presented themselves as available online,

and I grabbed a few in stores in person as well.

I was able to take advantage of sales,

so in the end they came out to about $13.00 each. 

A totally affordable mass wall arrangement if you ask me.

There are lots of tutorials on how to accomplish a tongue and groove 

or planked wall online, and many are more economical then the route we took.

We want to ensure that any work we do on the home is done correctly

and will add value, so we went with the more expensive technique

of tongue and groove 8" pine planks. 

We picked ours up at our local lumber yard for about $350.00, 

and got them home just before some rain set in.

The kids were enrolled in daycare and we both happened to have a weekday off, 

so it was the perfect opportunity to jump on in.

That was back in early November.

Here's that wall one last time, just before we got to work

(all of the white paint samples I debated over is a WHOLE other post).

Truth be told, Jon wasn't completely on board with the whole concept.

The coastal look I tend to gravitate towards, makes him nervous.

He's constantly (as am I) considering re-sale in our market and 

beach house, does not sell in the Sierras. 

He was doing it for me.

Those first couple of planks took a big chunk of time to get perfect.

Our house, like most, isn't perfectly level,

and as we had read the first couple of boards were the most important to get right.

All of the cut outs for the light fixtures and power outlets 

definitely slowed us down as well. 

I will say that Jon thoroughly enjoyed having me at his beckon call all day long.

When he said lift that or get me this, I was on it.

And I didn't complain, BECAUSE I WAS GETTING A PLANKED WALL!

At the days end, after eight hours child free, this is what our wall looked like. 

I should probably mention here, that this wall, has been a lesson to me in how long it takes to tackle something. Seriously! I have a whole new level of respect for craftsman and builders. I honestly thought the wall would be planked, primed AND painted within the first eight hours. 

Wrong!

Several weeks later, Jon finally had a half day to himself, 

and when I came home from work WE HAD A FULLY PLANKED WALL!

And then it sat. And sat. And sat.

Jon was actually convinced that we should leave the pine exposed.

A few nights before Christmas (festive, aren't I?), while Jon was at work 

and the kids were tucked into bed, I decided there was no time like the present to prime.

And so, prime I did.

And several nights later, I painted. 

And painted, and painted.

Two coats of primer, and two coats of paint, 

plus all of those little grooves, took a good chunk of time out of my life 

(the wine may have contributed to my slow pace).

Okay, okay, okay, enough already, right?

Here she is

(we had just dragged our dying and dry Christmas tree from the house,

so please don't mind the pine needles).

Obviously there is LOTS of finishing work still to be done. 

All of our new wall switch plates are currently on their way to our doorstep, 

there is trim to be decided on,

yeah, and photos in the frames might be a good idea too.

But it was either write this post, or put together a photo order, 

and I went with a blog post.

You're welcome.

I'm happy to report that Jon likes it as much as I do.

We finally have one place in our house that reflects our style,

and that we like to rest our eyes on.

Who knew that a white wall, with some picture frames

and a couple of new lights could make a girl so happy?

So consider this an in-progress post,

not a finished-project post.

I had originally been obsessing, 

and had actually purchased (but cancelled quickly) the Reed Sconce 

for this wall. They were going to be over $600.00 for the two, 

and I just couldn't live with that.

Thankfully, I had a little lighting miracle (I should share the full story),

and instead grabbed up these Jordan Sconces on sale with free shipping

coming in at $100.00 each. Done and done.

       This wall is actually just the starting point for us for this room. We have a full furniture plan for our living area, hardwoods being ordered soon with installation beginning in the Spring, a storage project starting any day, and several other home updates (including Jon and I's Christmas gift to ourselves), and an Outdoors/Adventure room taking shape for Nolan. There is actually a post already in line for Thursday, so stay on your toes people!

Five Years and Counting

       Last Friday was mine and Jon's five year wedding anniversary, but lets pretend that I got this post up on time, mmmkay? Right now, we are in the thick of adult life. Adult life and all its responsibilities, kinda-sorta sucks. Between work, drop offs and pick ups at daycare, varying schedules, overtime shifts, middle of the night crying, 5:30 wake up calls by our toddler or alarm clock (whichever comes first), and lots of monthly bills, it can be hard to remember to have fun. I know we'll look back and remember this as a sweet time when we were raising up our babies, but at the moment, the grass is seeming greener. We feel thankful and blessed for all that we have (please don't think that we aren't), but gosh, what happened to us? So consider this an 'Ode to our Early Years' post. Roll the credits:

We use to stay up past 8:30pm

(Golf party, obviously).

Okay, we stayed up past 8:30, like, a lot.

We spent every day off we had floating the Truckee river in our yacht,

or out on the lake, on the boat we kinda-sorta owned

(I can't believe we kinda had a boat...that we didn't pay for!!!).

WE USE TO GO SNOWBOARDING TOGETHER!

We use to go on hikes. 

Whenever we wanted.

With little to no planning.

We conquered Half Dome, 

and it's crazy cables together.

We use to remember to celebrate each others birthdays

(his curls kill it, every time).

We went to lots of fun weddings.

Lots.

We use to got to concerts. 

And sleep in our truck bed in the parking lot outside of said concerts.

And get warned by the security guard as the sun came up that there were 

bears that came through the parking lot looking for garbage.

Whoopsie!

We use to take the slow scenic drive home.

We got a dog together five months after we started dating.

Because why wouldn't you? 

Our amazingly well tempered lab, 

gave us a fall sense of ability with

being able to rear children.

We use to go on little sunset hikes to picnic.

NBD.

And now that I'm looking at these, 

apparently we use to have a lot less wrinkles

and look much more rested.

Happy Five Years to us!

Our Fall Porch

       Hi. My name is Meg. I'm an absentee blogger. Now that that's out of the way, let's move on.
       
       On Friday, I finally committed to what Nolan & Quincy will be for Halloween (I have a real commitment issue when it comes to Halloween costumes; so many good possibilities, so few un-opinioned years), and I placed a few key orders online for the pieces of their costume that I needed (please note that I am already second guessing my costume choice, but at this time, I have to move forward). With that out of the way, I decided that I actually had some time to devote to some Fall decorations. So that's what I did this weekend. I was devoted to decorations.
       Here's where the story takes an interesting twist. Jon was out of town for the weekend, so it was just me and the kiddos. As I usually do on nights when Jon isn't home, as the sun sets, I lock everything up. All the doors. The windows. Pull the bedroom blinds. My car. You get the picture.  After bedtime on this particular night, I had a second wind so I did lots of picking up around the house. I figured my Saturday morning would be a happier one if the house was already in good shape. But oh no, I didn't stop there. I figured I should get a jump on my decoration projects while I had a few moments to myself, so I headed out to the garage to see what I had that I could work with. I had run into our neighbors that evening on a walk, and found out that I had free rein on lots of freshly felled trees in their yard, so I was basing my plans on incorporating some free stumps into the design. I walked into the garage, and decided I would use some spray paint that I already had on hand to spruce up a few things that were sitting on my shelves. Here are the inner workings in my head over the next few minutes:

"Well, if I'm going to spray paint (in the garage), I should close the door so that the fumes don't get into the house." Picture me then pulling the door from our garage to our small mudroom closed. 

"I should make sure that door (that I just consciously closed) is unlocked."

Imagine me then walking over to the door, attempting to open it, and realizing: Oh Crap! I just locked myself out of the house!

With the kids asleep inside!

At 9pm!

And it's 30 degrees out!

And I'm wearing flip flops!

       After I had a mild heart attack in the garage, and for a moment thought I might actually be trapped IN the garage (seconds later realizing that the garage door button was 3 inches from my shoulder), I proceeded to check all of our doors. Yep, locked, just like I thought they would be. Luckily, we have a little lock box with a house key in it. Unluckily, I couldn't remember the code to the box. No problem right. I could just walk to a neighbors house, call Jon, and find out what that code was. Oh wait...I don't know Jon's cell phone number either (5 years of marriage, and I cannot for the life of me remember his last four digits). For years, when I need to know his number, I refer to our checks which have them printed on them. That wouldn't work this time...those checks were inside. Oh crap. Oh crap. Oh crap. Will I need to call a locksmith?
       Before I allowed myself too much time to freak out, I started checking windows. My first attempt was a bust, it was locked. Then I thought I could give our kitchen window a try. From the day we moved in I was frustrated that I could never get it to latch well. So I popped off the screen (which I didn't know that I knew how to do, but desperate times call for desperate measures), and gave the window a push. IT WORKED! Oh Lord. I have never been so happy to climb over a kitchen sink before in my life. When I descended into the kitchen, Blue was staring at me very concerned and confused. I on the other hand, was extremely relieved.
       And that my friends, is a long way of saying: Here's our Fall Porch set up.

       I'm pleased with myself to say that this cost me $4.00 + the cost of the pumpkins. I had grabbed the lanterns years ago for free at someones yard sale. They were brown and rusty. The thought has probably crossed my mind a dozen times that I should get rid of those dang lanterns, but I could never bring myself to do it.  A little gold spray paint later, and I'm loving them. 

The blue vase- that was a $4.00 clearance find at Michael's that I picked up on Saturday. 

I just wish I had picked up about four more of them.

The pine cones and leaves were all courtesy of our yard.

And all of the other knickknacks, I already had on  hand. 

They just needed some new life.

The view from our front door looking out.

       We're still hoping to make a big scarecrow to post on our front lawn. Crossed fingers that it happens this week!  Happy Fall Ya'll!   A little update soon on our Master Bedroom project, and where our house plans are taking us the next few months.