Time for a change.

Hello.

It's been a few months since my last post and I'd like to thank those of you who

emailed me to see if everything's okay.  It's all good, but up north our summers

pass by in the blink of an eye, so I've let my laptop sit idle while the days fly by.

I had no intentions of posting today, but since I already uploaded the photos

I thought I'd dust off my keyboard and sneak in a quick post about the 

changes I've made in our living room.

 

I loved the original color of my clock, but it was too dark for this corner.

I mixed up blue and cream flat finish interior paints and covered

 the grayish green body of the clock.  Yikes!

  To tone down the bright blue, I rubbed on a mixture

 of Johnson's Paste Wax and black and burnt umber artist oil paints

and what a difference it made!

I also painted our too-large-for-this-corner armoire with the same creamy off-white

as our kitchen cabinets and now it feels less like the "elephant in the room".

Before.

(These are the 2 colors I mixed to paint the clock.)

Earlier this spring, Lowe's was kind enough to ah... lend me this sisal rug

 for a trial run, but in the end I returned it.  We're waiting for a call from the movers

so now's not the time to invest in a rug that I may not keep.

Oops!  I guess I should clarify.  Piano movers!

Yes, our piano is moving on to greener pastures.....literally.

Very soon it will make the trek to Beaverville (my pet name for their home

in the country) where it will live for all eternity.  hehe

I also recovered the red cushion on my seagrass chair and now I know,

without a doubt, that white furniture will not be making an appearance

in this room.  Our low-maintenance navy furniture has served us well 

over the past 25 years!

The reason I took these photos along with dozens more was to help me decide

 where to hem my curtains.  I found 2 sets in the perfect color for our double-hung windows

at HomeGoods for only $29.99 a pair!  They looked perfectly lovely right out of the package,  hanging straight down to the floor...but, as you can see, they would be right up against our

extremely hot live steam baseboard heaters, so I made countless trips up and down

a ladder to find the best length and I think this is it.  deep breath

*My Google safety experts recommend anywhere from 6 to 12 inches

between the bottom of the curtain and the top of the baseboard heater and I went with 6.

Inspiration photo.

Source: Georgica Pond

I'm in love with the look above, but without the built-in bench seating,

 the sill length panels made our windows look short and squat.  I'll live with them

 pinned up to the length they are for a while before I take my scissors to them....

scary business!

The curtains take up about a foot of wall space, so my lead glass

window had to come down and I replaced it with one of my many old mirrors.

  Now that I see it here, I think it needs to be moved up an inch or two, but no biggie.

 What's one more hole in the wall, right?

I have to work the next 5 days leading up to

our city's Jubilee Celebration with parade and fireworks,

 so today's my one and only day to get our house ready for our extended family.

Time's a wastin'!

Ready or not, here we come!

Five little.....angels?

(Our grands and grand niece on the left.  Photo by Ashley.)

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful summer!

Vickie

*I'm joining the parties at:

Mod Mix Monday Mod Vintage Life

Tweak it Tuesday Cozy Little House

Share Your Style The Essence of Home

Furniture Feature Friday  Miss Mustard Seed

Magic moments.

Winters around these parts can get long and rather depressing at times,

but there's something magical about the first snowfall of the year.....

especially when viewed through the eyes of a child.

Free Holiday Mouse pattern by Barbara Prime available on Ravelry.

Our two city mice spent almost a week with us while their parents vacationed, and
as luck would have it, we received our first dusting of snow during their stay!

Before they braved the weather, I shared a tradition with Maggie and Mack that I carried on
 with our own girls when they were small.  They were serenaded by Christmas music
 during lunch while we watched the beauty of the snow falling outside.

  I don't rush the season in any other way, but year after year my Christmas cd's
 are dusted off and played on a regular basis as soon as we have snow covering the ground.
  Even the drive to work is a whole lot merrier when I've got Bing along for the ride.

 After lunch they were each given an Oreo for Frosty's eyes, but
one little elf felt the need to take a bite out of hers first.

What big eyes you have Frosty!  And I guess there is no
"right" way to insert his carrot nose.

Snow day.  :o)

Meanwhile, over in Beaverville (my pet name for their home in the country)
Finley and Willie are busy decorating the oh-so-sweet homemade dollhouse we
found for Finley's 4th birthday.  If they're anything like their DeeDee, they'll
be entertained for many years with the wonder of life in miniature.

I managed to snap a few photos while they napped,

but once they were up, my camera was set aside for snuggle time.

  Unfortunately
the birthday girl was sick during her party, but she soldiered on and hopefully
she'll enjoy some quiet play time with little bro today.  Sending hugs and kisses your way, Finley!

If you look closely, you'll see that whoever made this house even added

rubber doorstops to the handrails.  Don't you love the doorknobs?

A big smile for her invitation photo taken in their woods
with a deer friend.

I haven't had a chance to do much around the house these past few weeks,
but I did carve out enough time to make about 10 yards of fabric twine.
You can find an excellent tutorial to make some for yourself over at My Poppet.

It can be used for all sorts of things, like embellishing gifts,
Christmas tree garland, string bikini, tying kitchen cabinet doors shut, etc.,
 but I machine-stitched mine into an oval shape to make.....

a sweet little braided rug for the dollhouse!  It took all 10 yards
of twine to make this 9 1/2 inch rug.
Tutorial for rug making can also be found here at My Poppet.

The rug warms up the very pink floors of the dollhouse.
*Note: I bought a lead paint testing kit and the dollhouse tested negative.
You can find the testing kits at Lowe's.

And lastly, my mother turned 75 years young last Sunday.
(I hope I'm as young as her when I hit that milestone birthday!)
She had plenty of help blowing out her candles from 4 of her 5 little elves.

One little elf woke up with the stomach flu the next day.
I think we all know how this story ends.  :o)
The gift that keeps on giving......

Thanks for visiting and enjoy your magic moments while they last!
Vickie

Four balloons tied to the mailbox.

*I'm joining the party at:
Cozy Little House  Tweak it Tuesday

Oh, boy!

We've got a new grandpeep!

Megan, Dave, and Finley welcomed 

their 8 pound 14 ounce baby boy yesterday.

They're still thinking about a name.

(I wonder where the indecisiveness comes from?)  hehe

Of course I found a vintage fishing hat to decorate his room.   :)

We had the pleasure of visiting at the hospital for a few hours last night, 

and in a few weeks we'll have all four of our grandchildren

 and their parents spending the weekend with us.

 It's time to get the guest bedroom finished!

Congratulations Megan, Dave, and Finley!

Thanks for visiting.

Vickie

Update:  He's got a name!  William David.

Stork Report

It's a girl!!!

 

 

Apparently she (no name yet) didn't want to share a

Christmas birthday with her mama, so she arrived today at 11:54

weighing in at 8 pounds 8 ounces and 21 inches long. 

 

 

We'll be on the road bright and early tomorrow to see her in person.  :)

 

Congratulations Julie, Jeremy, and Mack!!!

 

xxoo,

DeeDee

Summer Camp is not just for kids.

Around this time last year, Bill and I were scouting for a cabin to rent

for this year's family get-together.  It proved to be almost impossible

to synchronize all our vacation schedules, but a few months ago we finally agreed

upon a time and place to spend a long weekend with our girls and their families.

 Paul Bunyan Camp

• Electricity
• Running water
• Indoor toilets
• Air-conditioning

It had all the amenities on my list.

Oh, how I love to rough it in the wilderness!   :@

We actually decided to spend the long weekend at Megan and Dave's

country home.  With two babies under 2, it seemed like the best choice.

They live near the Headwaters of the Mississippi River,

 home of Paul Bunyan and Babe the blue ox.

There was plenty of wildlife with 2 dogs, 2 kitties, and 2 babies.

Fishing, golfing, bonfires, games, all-you-can-eat fish fry, swimming (in the blow-up kiddie pool),

and comfortable beds at the end of the day.  Ahhhhh.....

Anyhow, I made the camp sign to hang on the Z family's house

 in honor of the occasion.  The idea for both the screen porch sign in my previous post

and the camp sign came from this book.....

  Here's the inspiration photo for the camp sign...

Isn't this a fun room?!

I made the sign in a couple of hours using a small piece of plywood,

some twigs, a short piece of rope, a few brad nails, and craft paints.

There was no shortage of branches to pick from after the storms we've weathered in July.

I drilled pilot holes in the branches with our smallest drill bit and tacked the

branches to the dark green painted board with small brad nails.

At first I tried cutting the branches with a miter box and hand saw,

but I discovered Bill suggested a much easier way to make some angled cuts.

I used my handy pruning tool that's meant for cutting dead branches.

I don't have a lot of hand strength, but this tool makes the job easy!

I tried to pick branches that had right angles to decrease the number of pieces

needed for the letters.  I then haphazardly dry brushed red craft paint over the letters.

I drilled 2 large holes through the board and threaded a piece of rope

through the holes.  To finish, I just tied a knot in each end of the rope.

Once again the sign cost me nothing, using only what I had on hand. 

Here it is hanging under the shelter of their wrap around porch.

Megan and Dave got their "craft on" by making a themed bean bag game.

The red "Paul Bunyan" team.

And team "Babe the Blue Ox".

(The pictures were taken at dusk after the kiddies went to bed.)

The beanbags also work well for juggling contests

as demonstrated by Megan and Jeremy.

I'll be practicing my beanbag skills (or lack of) before next year's event.

Summer camp also proved to be quite educational for us city folk.

We learned it's best not to befriend the neighbor's barn kitties.

It's quite possible Gunner has 2 new feline brothers.

It's perfectly okay to lock the neighbor's unattended 4 month old

puppy in the outdoor kennel......

especially when I so carelessly left my chewy leather sandals outside.

Unlike kids at camp, nobody had to tell us when it was lights out.

By the end of the day, we were all exhausted!

So long from this happy camper,

Vickie

Join the parties at:

Funky Junk Interiors Junk Party

Hot Fun in the Summertime

Guest Post: First comes love.

You've seen many of my vintage purchases and may have wondered, "What in the world does she do with all that stuff?!"  To help answer that question, I've invited Julie from "First Comes Love." to be my special guest today.  Take it away, Julie!

Photo by Jen Meneghin Photography

Hi, I'm Julie, and if you haven't already guessed, I'm the firstborn daughter of the Rangers 911.  My mom asked if I would share with you the reveal of our son's nursery highlighting many of both her and my vintage purchases and blog inspired creations.  Now you can see for yourselves how everything came together in a room perfect for our little man.  Enjoy!

Mack does not like the word nursery.  A nursery is for a new baby.  My baby is 9 months old.  {Yes, it seriously took me 9 months to post these pics.}

Without further ado.  Here is Mack's Mini Man Cave.

Airplane from my mom (aka Gramma).  Hung from the ceiling with fishing wire.  Mack loves when I hold him up so he can make it fly.

Collection of what else...trucks, of course.  {Mack.  Mack truck.}

Hoping he gets his daddy's musical ability.  {Present from gramma and grampa before he was even conceived.}

Chalkboard wall.  I used it to record feedings and diaper changes the day we came home from the hospital.  {think that lasted about a day and a half.  "he ate for 15 minutes on the right side and 10 on the left.  will you write that down please?"  "oh, he just pooped.  i think there is pee, too?"  remember that?  what a different world with a 9 month old.}

Scrabble tile holder to hold the chalk.  One day Mack will be able to use this to create artwork.  {he will just silently sit and create.  for hours upon hours.  hahaha.  somehow i doubt that.}

The Mustache Mobile (from etsy).  Soon he will be able to reach up and grab it.  Time to take that down.  And lower the crib.  {bad parents.}

One of my favorite items in the room.  A $7 old army ammunition box repurposed as a toybox by my very creative mother!  See it here.  It is so me Mack.  LOVE it. 

For making Mack's Melodies.

I found this vintage toybox {aka basket} on one of my very pregnant antiquing trips.  {that was my teddy bear when i was little!}

Mack's grampa's (my dad's) old softball glove.  Mack has some big shoes to fill.  The first son and the first grandson to two very athletic guys.  {sorry guys, he does have half of my genes.}

This table was another antiquing find.  And I made that changing pad cover.  Remember?  {Time for the changing table to go into storage.  Was very useful for first several months, but the floor proves to be the more convenient option now.}

Vintage metal locker baskets.  Perfect for holding diapers and burp cloths.

Sign made by...you guessed it.  Gramma.  Simple, white IKEA curtains with yellow pom-pom trim.  "Made" by me.

Another favorite.  The "sweet p sign."  {p-baby.  mack's genderless in utero nickname.}  Complete with tiny disco ball.  {get it?  "won't you dance with me?}

The teeny, old fishing poles were purchased before Mack was born.  {i knew in my heart he would be a boy.  yes, i know, finley.  that does not matter.  you will be right alongside the boys with rod in hand.  with a cute fishing hat, of course.}

Definitely a gramma present.  No baby room is complete without one.  {ok, one more time.  click here.}

The sought after gift from this year's Ranger family dice game.  Jeremy won.  Or shall I say Mack won.  {looks like he is guarding mack as he slumbers.  plus, i get to accessorize him!  name suggestions are welcome.}

Ok.  I think this takes the cake as my all-time favorite part of the room.  The Bobber Chandelier.  {Must give my mom credit for this idea.}  Antique chandelier, boy-ified with some red and white bobbers.  {mack has loved this chandelier from day one.}

The grand tour.  {of his teeny, tiny...but much loved....room.}

Vintage red wagon shelf.

White Jenny Lind crib from Walmart.com that we purchased in black.  But changed our minds.  {not a fun thing to paint.}  IKEA curtain rods {cut off at each end accomodate corner windows} and IKEA rug.

"P-Baby" sign made by sis Megan for Mack's baby shower.

I take back all of my "favorites."  My favorite part of this room is you, Mack. 

Love, Mama.

*Thank you Julie for being my guest today and I hope you will come back again!  So, what does the little man think of his room?

Oo, la, la!

(His hat is a vintage French wool beret we found on an antiquing trip to Buffalo, MN.)

Not all of my vintage finds hit a home run.  I've learned to only buy big items our girls are looking for after I've emailed pictures and have their approval.  As for the smaller items they weren't exactly smitten with...

Garage Sale!

Yes, we Rangers will unite this spring for a group garage sale.  Even if we don't sell everything anything, I know we'll have plenty of fun!

Thanks for joining us today!

Vickie, Julie, and Mack

Join the party at:

Knick of Time Tuesday

The Farmhouse Porch Cowgirl Up

Common Ground Vintage Inspiration Friday

Ivy & Elephants What's It Wednesday