Around the House: Scraps from the Past

Prominently displayed on our hallway bookcases...

Some items we found during our home addition project...

The framed wall paper pieces were on the original plywood- 1938 wall paper... so pretty!!

This whiskey bottle was found in the walls of our home when we tore the siding off.

Looks like some of the original workmen in 1938 were drinking on the job!  Explains why the house tilts and slants :)

These tiles are all that's left of our original blue and pink bathroom.  I did NOT like the bathroom, but I will gladly hold on to the memory.

January Tablescapes

The weather may not actually be cold here in Texas yet.. (well we get random days of cold here and there). But I chose an "icy, snowy" color palette for my tablescape anyway.

I've used most of these pieces in the past... but I still love how it feels brand new each January.

Toille tablecloth from Williams Sonoma, blue placemats NEW from Homegoods, silver chargers from Michaels, white dishes from TJ Maxx, teal napkins from Crate and barrel, and clear square napkin rings (lucite maybe?) NEW gift from mom (don't know where they were purchased)

In the sun room... I tried something new... I like parts of it... not sure I'm sold on the whole thing, but I'll live with it until I can think of how to improve it.

Brass platter from my tea set, with a hand painted wooden dish (from my times in Ecuador) and my new/old black candle holder with green tapers (since I couldn't find 5 white or blue).

Placemat from Williams Sonoma, blue dinner plate from Marshalls, peacock salad plate from World Market (chose not to use a napkin because there were so many patterns going on)

So those are my January tables.  Not really feeling up to Valentine's tables... so think I'll skip that this year and head into spring next.

Southport Sailmakers Pillows and Totes

I mentioned last week that I'd get back to the big square pillow, so here I am.

This pillow is awesome!  It is made from old sails from a sail boat!  So it could totally be outside or actually on a boat! But I love it in my window seat!  Apparently sails get old and need to be replaced.  So this talented lady uses the old sails (which would normally get thrown away) and makes pillows, tote bags, wine bottle holders, shower curtains, etc. 

Each pillow comes with the little rope to tie it to the side of the boat. I think it's cute and wanted to keep it on to make me feel like a real sailor :)

Even the back is cool looking.

I also got a tote bag for Christmas...

Here's the other side of it.

Each side has a meaning- she uses the flags they use at sea to add meaning to the totes. These mean "Whiskey" or "Needs Medical Assistance."  Whiskey actually just means the letter W - but you know how transportation people are, they add words to letters.  I just know I like the stars.

She includes a tag with the meaning of the flags AND info about the boat that this sail came from.  My tote was from a colgate 26' which raced the Cape Fear up to Baltimore!  I have a racing tote! Awesome!!

You can check out her other products on her facebook page (here).  Or call the number above in the photo to order (910-880-4307).

I promise you will NOT be disappointed!

Around the House: Book Cases

At one of my bridal showers, all of the guests shared a verse that was meaningful to their marriage.

The one that meant the most to me was Ruth 1:16-17

But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. ¹⁷ Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may the LORD do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me.”

I realize this verse was not talking about a marriage relationship, but the idea can definitely apply.

The idea is that my husband and I are now ONE.

Together we make decisions.

Together we go places.

Together we have friends and family.

Together we lodge.

Together we serve the true and living God.

Together.

Nothing but death to part us.

So when I saw these on pinterest....

I had to track them down and purchase them!

Right now they are on our bookcases next to some globes :)

But eventually I envision them right next to the door leading into our bedroom.

Symbolically stating that the two people who live in here "go together."

Changing Names

Good Morning and Happy Monday!!

I've been getting lots of random readers and viewers from google searches due to our home addition posts.  which is awesome! I'm hoping those posts are helpful to others!

But- I've been thinking about security and privacy.... so I've decided to change the web address for my blog in order to take our names out of the link.

So- starting February 1st, the blog address will be www.mydailydoseofjoy.blogspot.com

When I make the change, if you type in tyandkelley.blogspot.com, you will find a screen that says "the blog was removed."  Please remember, the blog wasn't actually removed, simply the address changed to "My Daily Dose of Joy.blogspot.com"

Thanks for following me!
Happy Reading

Around the House: Half Bath

Just off of our kitchen and laundry room we have a tiny little half bath.

I mean tiny. It's kinda shaped like a triangle. It's small. And cute. And nice to have.

I love the paint color I chose a few years back, but didn't love the way I arranged the items on the wall. So I spent the last few years collecting new items and frames, and have been saving them up.

I was finally ready.

Here's the big reveal.

Looking in the door.

 Still from the door way.  One reason I wanted to change things up was so that this precious corner pedestal sink would be the focal point. I love this sink.

 I found this mirror at Target and it was the perfect size and shape! And it was on clearance for $20. This is an astounding fact since it took me about 2 1/2 years to find a mirror that fit this space!!

It did have a black frame, but that's nothing a little white spray paint couldn't fix.  The sink does not have a lot of space for a soap dispenser.  I found this cute little shelf at Canton, TX First Mondays a couple of months ago and was sold!

 Originally this big "old door turned shelf" contraption was hanging above the sink with the mirror on it. I love the mirror and shelf thing together, BUT it totally dwarfed the sink.  And I did not like that!  I added this fun abstract painting Ty's grandma did to bring in some color!

 This window goes to the front yard, which is a little awkward when using the bathroom.  I purchased some cute material and want to make those fake Roman shades one day. BUT- in the mean time, this painting does the trick for privacy.

 My "old lady" collage of doilies. I love this wall.  I saw a framed doily in Anthro years ago and have always wanted to replicate the look. My great-grandma made all of these (well, not the Sawyer one), so it's fun to show them off!  I found all of the frames at the Goodwill and spray painted them all. Then I put some dark blue scrapbook paper in the back and put the doily in. I did not use any glue or adhesive because I wanted to protect the doilies and who knows how long I'll like this look.

 A close up...

 The Sawyer doily was a wedding gift. It was framed in a very "country" look with hunter green and a brown frame.  SO I took it to Hobby Lobby and had them help me "update it" a little. I like how it turned out.  The "roses" painting to the left is another of Ty's grandma's.

This frame didn't come with glass and I didn't realize that until I got home.

So I just sewed the doily onto the paper and glued the paper to the board in the back of the frame. I can easily take it off again if I want to later.

And a quick glimpse of the goodies on the floor... cute baskets for toilet paper and reading material. 

A happy LITTLE bathroom, with some character and vintage charm :)

Around the House: Window Seat

Over my THREE week Christmas break, I did AWESOME updating my blog.

AND I ENJOYED it!

Then I started back to school and started a new part time job and all of a sudden, I'm not updating much anymore.

In my dreams... I would be weeks ahead on lesson plans and could spend all day on Friday in my jammies, updating my blog, watching Dear Genevieve, and eating bon-bons.

Instead, I spend Friday's paying bills, running errands, and finally getting to lesson plans.

Maybe this Friday I'll get weeks ahead on lesson plans.

Anywho- I have a spare 30 minutes, so here I am. Going to bust out as many posts as I can and schedule them daily.  Yeah! 

Beginning with a house tour... updates from around our home!!

Here is the beautiful bay window seat in our bedroom... Have you seen the cushion and shades yet? They are amazing!

 And I have a dream to have LOTS of throw pillows of different sizes and textures and shapes all over this thing! I even have a whole pinterest board dedicated to throw pillows!

But so far I have 3 "leftovers" on the left side and 2 brand new Christmas gift pillows from my mom which rock my socks off!

I mean look at these two!!  This is my vision! Blues and whites and grays and texture and shape!

 This little guy is from Anthro. We found him the day after Christmas on sale for 15 bucks! At Anthro! LOVE

Even the back is cute with the "denim" gray looking material and ties.

 I'm going to feature the other pillow in another blog post. So hang on!!

Suggestions for more throw pillows???  Care to check out my pinterest board?

Paint chip snowmen

I found this adorable craft on pinterest and we made them in class the other day. I forgot my camera, so I took some pics on my phone and now I'm trying to write my first post from my phone. Not sure if I can intersperse comments in between photos.

So let me tell you- I love the colors. I love the BIG noses that look like ducks. And I love the little boy who made his snowman look like himself- glasses and all.

Enjoy!

Quick Life Update

After months of not blogging, I just jumped right back in.  And I have loved posting random pictures of decorations and my throat and my brother's socks.  But I realize there has been a lot of life that has been lost in the gap.  SO allow me a few moments, without pictures of my throat, to tell you what's new.

Blessings from 2012 (= life update)

~ our home addition that I posted about is complete. Well basically, there are a few things left to finish, but it is more finished than the last post about it.  And we LOVE it.  It gives us room to store things, room to live, room to grow as a family. 

~ I have a new job... actually a FEW new jobs.  All of which God has provided at JUST the right time, not a moment late and not a moment early (which always gave me a few moments to panic).

~ First main job... Teaching Kindergarten again!!  I am at a new school called Grace Prep Academy.  It is a 45 minute drive from my home, but I LOVE it!!  It is a university model school, so I teach on Tuesdays and Thursdays and then the kids homeschool on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.  I am 100% in charge of the curriculum, I give the parents the assignments and I grade them, but I only GO to school 2 days a week.  Not only is that an incredible set up, I have the BEST class I've ever had.  I am talking sweet sweet kids with basically ZERO behavior problems!!  This type of schooling attracts a certain type of family, which means AWESOME class for me!!

~ Next job.... subbing.  I have been subbing on Fridays in the local public schools. I have spent much of my time in 1st grade bilingual rooms and have LOVED it! I dont' think I'd like that full time- LOTS of work- but super fun to be a sub.  They are always VERY sweet kids!

~ Next DREAM job... scrapbooking.  I have a dear friend in my Sunday School who has a 2 year old and a baby on the way. She was stressed about not having a scrapbook and asked if she could pay me to make one.  This has been super fun!  I love getting to be creative with someone else's money! And I can work quickly on it since I am not emotionally tied to the pictures. I can easily eliminate something for the sake of design :)  Hoping she loves the results. I plan on finishing it this week because...

~ New job! As of yesterday, I have been hired to be a lady's technical assistant. I guess that's the right word.  I will work 8 hour days on Mondays and Wednesdays and do computer stuff for her.  She has 3 main things in her life that I will work on... 1. Juice Plus (she is WAY up there in Juice Plus), 2. LifeSavers (she started this amazing ministry which I already volunteer for) and 3. Bible study.  So basically I'll send her emails and create her newsletters, format her Bible study documents, work her business and ministry facebook pages, help organize, run, and execute events for her.  And who knows what else. But I did 2 hours of training yesterday and that's what I learned so far (not how to do it all, but what I'm responsible for).  I really like her and am excited to work for her and get to know her better.  And, again, this consistent job comes at JUST the right time for our family!!

~ Trips... we took a few trips this past year that were amazing. Top of the list: Hawaii!! I  will post photos from that soon. 

~ Friends - this past year I started a women's Bible study with the girls from our Sunday School.  Many of the women got pregnant over the year and we have had the joy of praying for them and watching their new children come into this world (not literally watching, I was NOT in the delivery room).  And one of my dear friends had TRIPLETS!!  And it has been so fun being a part of that process! I have some sweet photos of the triplets and will post them eventually too.

SO that is my year in review... the main points. the highlights. the blessings.  the answers to prayers. 

If I've learned anything in 2011, it's that God is faithful.  He is who He says He is. And He will do what He says He will do.  And I love Him for that.

Antique Candle Holder... refinished

My sweet mama brought this gorgeous candle holder with her to give to me! I just love it!

 She found it in a good will or something for just a couple of dollars.  When she found it, it was brass, dingy, and yucky.

 But she is an artist. So she noticed the awesome lines and shape.  Things I forget to look for. I often can not get past the yucky, dingy part.

 She took it home, spray painted it with shiny black paint.  and voila! new life!  gorgeous! 

In the suit case some of the black paint started chipping off to expose the brass underneath.  Which is totally cute now that it's only being "exposed" and not "Fully brass."  It makes it "shabby chic" or whatever. 

Thanks mom!

Sweet Potato Pie

Hubby's grandparents live in Gilmer, TX... home of the annual Yamboree.  Yes, that's right, an entire festival for yams or sweet potatoes.  We go most years.  It's awesome- in a very small town sort of way.

There is a sweet potato pie contest each year, and after the judging is over, the pie entries go on sale.  Grandma always buys one for us and now sweet potato pie has become a favorite in our home.

Hubby asked for one for Christmas Eve dinner and I was happy to oblige. I've made this one time before, but have no clue what recipe I used. So this year, I googled it, read about 100 recipes. Figured Paula Deen's would be the best.  They are all very similar anyways. 

I did not take pictures of the process, but it really is pretty easy.  Here is my finished product (it was delicious)  recipe below.

Paula Deen's Old Fashioned Sweet Potato Pie

2 cups peeled, cooked sweet potatoes (this was 1 large sweet potato)

1 1/4 cups sugar

1/2 stick melted butter

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract or 1 to 2 tablespoons bourbon (I used vanilla)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (I used 1/4 teaspoon allspice instead)

1 cup milk

9-inch unbaked pie crust (I used pilsbury pre-made)

3 egg whites (this is for meringue, which I did NOT make)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the filling, using an electric hand mixer, combine the potatoes, 1 cup of the sugar, the butter, eggs, vanilla, salt, and spices. Mix thoroughly. Add the milk and continue to mix. Pour the filling into the pie crust and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Place the pie on a rack and cool to room temperature before covering with meringue.

For the meringue, using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form; beat in the remaining 1/4 cup sugar 1 tablespoon at a time. Continue beating until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is glossy and stiff, but not dry. With a rubber spatula, spoon the meringue onto the pie, forming peaks. Make sure the meringue touches the crust all around. Sprinkle with a pinch of granulated sugar. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until delicately browned. Cool and serve.

---------------------------

So there you have it... good ole fashioned sweet potato pie.  The consistency is exactly like pumpkin pie, but replace the pumpkin flavor with sweet potato flavor.  

Enjoy! 

A Love Affair and a Resolution

I love coffee.

I LOVE coffee.

 I love the many flavors of coffee.

 I love the smell of coffee.  It really does make a morning good.

 I love adding cream and sugar.

I love sipping 2 cups as I read my Bible study every morning.

 I go to bed dreaming of my morning coffee.  Literally.

 Yet, I woke up on January 1st and knew something had to be done.

I have been doing a lot of specific reading about a certain type of diet. 

One to help my body "regulate."

And on this diet, caffeine is not good.

So... I threw out my love affair and made a resolution...

Decaf

I'm starting small, half decaf, half regular, with the intention of changing the ratio each month until I'm fully on decaf.

Good bye my sweet friend. Good bye.