Monthly Archives: May 2013

05.10.13

This Friday I have a lot on my mind, like the fact that Mother’s Day is this weekend and I haven’t even started stringing pom-pom garland and crafting gold leaf floral bouquets.  I’m not a very good blogger, or daughter apparently.

The problem with waiting until the last-minute to start planning your holidays is that you can’t order cute lockets online and procrastination flowers are always on the pricey side.  So craft I must and craft I will.

For those of you that are sinking in the same puddle, one solution I have found is Etsy prints.  A lot of times after you buy them, the seller will just send you the file to print.  Of course, every shop is different but this technique has gotten me out of many a bind.

Here are some of my Mama reppin’ favorites. mothers day etsy prints 1.  One of my favorite books growing up.
2.  Could this be anymore perfect.
3.  Totally adorable.
4.  Ain’t it the truth.
5.  My mama’s favorite quote.
6.  Such a great song, perfect for mothers.
7.  My all-time favorite quote.
8.  So cute for the new mom.

Have you already got all your mother’s day shenanigans planned out?  We luckily have Tim’s mothers present all figured out, thanks to a sweet little hint she gave us at Christmas.  Better late than never right, at least that is what I am telling myself.  If only my mom gave hints.

What are you getting your mom?
For the moms, what are you hoping for?
Is it inappropriate to finger paint your present still?

Written by Christina and Tim
05.09.13

Please tell me I am not the only person who drives through their neighborhood and stares at all the houses.  When I go out walking I tend to peep into windows just a tad too long.  Please don’t call the five-ohs (hi mom- that’s slang for cops) I fully admit to being a creeper but I mean no harm.

I oogle pretty doors, and swoon over landscaping.  Most of the time I see a house I love and I can’t quite put my finger on what I love about it.  Those are always my favorite, because it is all in the details.

The perfectly level green grass, the landscaping rocks that surround brand new mulch, the pretty porch light that matches the house numbers that match the screen door.

One thing I have begun to notice is crazy mismatched curtains.  You never notice the homes with nice clean matching curtains, but you better believe those red bedroom curtains will always catch your eye.  Especially when mixed with the bamboo curtains in the living room and the white sheers in the bathroom.  A crazy mumbo jumbo of window treatments.  Get that under control number 4256.

After a few hundred nights of pulling in and seeing our blinds all torn up from a psychotic dog that has figured out how to destroy manipulate the blinds into perfect guard dog positioning, I decided that consistent window treatments needed to move to the top of our project list.  The next time we hit up the hardware store we beelined for the roman shades and commenced the “great shade debate”.

He wanted Roman, I wanted Bright and Light.  After quite a few arm curls with all the choices we landed on a white bamboo roman shade.  The perfect compromise. before & after blinds It may not appear to be a major change to our neighbors, but this is the definition of an upgrade at this house. blinds up your curb appeal It is little things like these that pull your house together.  Now I pull in the driveway and smile, until I see my dying ferns.  Greenery hates me.

Any tips for reviving ferns?
Do your blinds match?
How do you up the curb appeal at your house?

Written by Christina and Tim
05.08.13

Have you entered to win?  Get on that.

You know that lately I have been backyard dreaming.  Longing for days of margarita sipping and sun soaking.  So obviously when Sherry, Katie, Renee, and Emily announced the Spring Pinterest Challenge my attention went straight out the window.

My original plans were to build a grotto ala Mr. Hefner but Tim put his foot down when I said the only bunnies making an appearance would be furry.

So I turned my attention to a few of my favorite pins. pinterest inspiration We already have a welcome mat surplus, so I started making plans to bring color into our backyard oasis in other ways.  Enter stage left, the wooden wind chimes. painted windchimes I have a weak spot in my heart for the tink tink of a wooden chime.  You too?  Well, here let’s make them together.  Go put your patience pants on, and bring a pair for me too. the goods I began by painting one little chime while sitting on the floor.  Then it dawned on me, I would be painting one chime at a time and holding it until it was fully dry so that I didn’t get paint everywhere and ruin my project.  Then I put on my thinking cap.

I grabbed some yarn and hung the chimes from a hook in our ceiling.  My smartest move to date, thank goodness for thinking caps.

I used my thumb to pull the chime out and give it a quick thin coat, then let it dry for a hot minute.  On to the next one. painfully slow I will not lie to you and tell you this project is incredibly easy and you can finish it in ten minutes.  These windchimes took over my life for seven hours.

It was as close as I have been to throwing in the proverbial towel, especially when I decided that you couldn’t see the orange and red paint well enough.

So those chimes needed to be sanded and repainted in the “cool” colors.  There may have been a nervous breakdown, or at least a lot of ice cream consumed. i know from experience Luckily, the result was marvelous and I couldn’t be happier.

I have already hung them up and forced Tim to sit outside with me admiring their cheery disposition.  I just can’t get enough. painted bamboo windchimes Are you a fan of windchimes?
DIY anything neato lately?
Need a gallon of ice cream?

 

Written by Christina and Tim
05.07.13

If you are hip to the Homemade Ocean Facebook page, then you know that last night I made a big blunder.

If you are not hip to our Facebook page, can you get on that because there is nothing I love more than talking to strangers.  Seriously.  Talk to me, not dirty though…my dad stalks that page.

Last night, we decided to keep the Cinco party train on it’s tracks and settle in with a margarita or three and some homemade Mexican food.  I started making some tasty queso, only to find out that we had no tortilla chips.  Bummer, so  I focused my attention on making the best chicken quesadilla this side of the US border.  We had a bulk six pack of canned chicken that I was too lazy to open so I scoured the pantry for more canned chicken.  Don’t judge me, I needed a quick and easy boyfriend-approved meal.

I found the chicken and microwaved (yup, microwaved) a tasty concoction of unhealthy cheese and pink chicken.  I decided I didn’t need any chicken in my quesadilla since it looked a little funny and served it to Tim with pep in my step and a smile on my face.  As I sat dipping plain tortillas in my cheese dip, Tim started questioning my gourmet abilities.  “Christina, this tastes like cat food” he says, “I am not sure I can finish this” he says, “gag, cough, gag” he says.

After some convincing on my part, I assured him that it was straight out of the can that HE bought.  It has to be chicken, because he bought it.  Tim hates canned anything, but he will deal with chicken.  Tuna is unacceptable.  Hold on to that nugget of info, mmmkay.

After picking every last ever-loving piece of “chicken” out of the quesadilla and sneaking it to the pups Tim finally got the nerve to dig through the trash can and find the evidence.

I had fed him Chicken of the Sea.

Where is my girl Jessica Simpson when I need her.  Come on, someone back me up here.  I mean I did make dinner after sipping on the syrup and that will get you every time.  Apparently, Chicken of the Sea = tuna.  Fail.

It just adds to the growing list of why I am not wife material. I am not Martha wife material The list.

1.  I wait until I only have one shirt hanging in my closet to do laundry.

2.  Dusting is an urban legend in this house.

3.  I always make myself a drink before I make Tim’s.

4.  My craft projects often take over the whole living room floor.

5.  Most of our dinners come from the freezer.

6.  I take foot massages, not give them.

7.  I am really good at ignoring dishes.

8.  I don’t always shave my legs, which means hardly ever.

8 1/2.  I get very fussy for about a quarter of the month.

9.  You ever seen a hangry girl?  They got nothing on me.

10.  I can never remember anniversaries, or birthdays, or Mondays.

11.  The last time I sewed, I lost.

12.  I hate worms, which rules out gardening.

13.  Coupons and I don’t get along, much less save money.

14.  I would rather travel than save for retirement.

15.  My idea of romance is a night of Duck Dynasty.

16.  I’m stubborn, insanely stubborn.

17.  Sometimes my jokes are mean, I admit it.

18.  I like to poke, pinch, and tickle.

19.  I can’t keep a plant alive.

20.  I apparently can not cook.  At all.

That list makes me sound pretty disgusting.  I promise we don’t live in filth.  We usually have at least one person over a week, which evokes a mad-dash-cleaning-spree.  I do shower, occasionally.  I try to feed veggies and luckily, I can make him laugh.

Have you ever fed someone something they hated secretly on accident?
Think you are not wife material as well?
Have a maid that wants to come do our laundry and dust?

Written by Christina and Tim
05.06.13

Those margaritas were sure tasty going down yesterday. However, the ache in my head tells me I regret them.  Even though I feel like my head is in a vice grip, I’m going to keep a smile on my face today.

Smiling leads to happiness and I am trying to spread happiness all over.  Just call me Johnny HappySeed, or not, I can’t tell you what to do.  But I do think you should smile today…. a lot.  People won’t expect it on a Monday, trust me. make monday matter 18 Did you know that children laugh about 400 times a day.  Take a guess what that number is for adults.  Go on guess, I will tell you a little later.  Let a number settle in your brain.

People who smile are judged to be more pleasant, attractive, sincere, sociable, and competent.  Those are all things that I want to be.  It seems so simple, the more you smile the more people like you.  Unless you are creepy, then your smile just makes you creepier Gary Busey.

Smiling is contagious and besides it keeps you from getting sick, or so I am told.

You know something else, no matter where you go or who you meet a smile can never be misconstrued as a gang sign.  In India it is offensive if you shake with your left hand because that is the hand you use in the restroom if you catch my drift.  These are the things I remember from college.

Have you guessed how many times a day the average adult laughs, did you guess four?  If you did you are way off and need to smile more.  The actual number is fifteen.  The average adult laughs only fifteen times a day.  That means kids laugh twenty-five times more than we do.  Let’s make an effort to change that, at least for today.

Are you a smiley person?
Know any weird cultural customs?
Think Gary Busey is awesome?

Written by Christina and Tim
05.03.13

It is Friday….that should make you smile.

If that doesn’t make you smile this will. WATER IN MY PAINT It is like quirky cuteness overload.  Deidre’s Etsy shop Water in My Paint is pretty much the funniest animal art I have ever fawned over.  It’s like a little critter line-up and I need those fuzzy faces all over our house.

Which one is your favorite?

Speaking of favorites, here are some gems I found whilst roaming around blogtown. DOS FAMILY We have a million stools hanging around the house.  I love that Dos Family took something normally boring and basic and made it so fun and feisty.  I am all about that map stool, I mean does it get any better?  I am not sure how well it would hold up to our wear & tear, not to mention saltwater splatter. BEAUTIFULMESS I have developed a serious crush on attic bedrooms.  If I could find a way to make some stairs work, this would be on our project list.  I love how open and airy they are, and I also imagine sleeping would be breezy in such a sanctuary.  Janae from Itsy Bitsy House’s attic was featured on A Beautiful Mess and I almost fell out of my chair lusting after all the beautiful details.

Where do you find all these thrift shops with hidden treasures.  All the thrift shops I go to are full of ceramic ducks and plastic tumblers. HOUSE TWEAKING I know, I know, you would have never guessed that this was a laundry nook.  The award for most beautifully hidden washer & dryer goes to Dana from House Tweaking without a doubt.  That girl has mad styling skills. GLUEGUNGIRL Oh how I miss the days of pen pals and hand-lettering.  I hope it makes a comeback once all our thumbs get carpal tunnel from texting.  The Glue Gun girl gives us a tour of the prettiest papers to spice up your mailman’s life.  They are so adorable I want to send myself mail.

Did you find anything great this week?
Love llamas in funky glasses?
Wanting to do a virtual margarita clink on Sunday?

Written by Christina and Tim