The Exciting and Miscellaneous

We are missing Grayson, but sure love these cute cousins!

The porch is all dressed for FALL.

I dressed up my wreath with more flowers, ribbon and greenery and am real happy with the results, aren't you?

I love these cute kids walking in the door from school.

I especially smile at my fresh-out-of -Elementary-school Zekey in his more grown-up look. He found these jeans at D.I. They are very full-legged, with an elastic waistband, no back pockets. I like to think a snazzy older lady wore them as she power-walked the mall. He loves how comfortable they are! Seventh grade...

 The Bat Cave has arrived...

These strong boys!

The kids all congregate on our bed at night while waiting for the others to join. We get chatting and then try to remember if we've said prayer yet or not!

I sent this quote to my friend group after a discussion about feeling like we are messing up at life.

Then I snapped a pic of friend Mary's beautiful burning bush for the group. 

FALL is BEAUTIFUL!

Halloween sort of came and went this year without too much hooplah. It was nice! Adren and friends dressed up as "Urban Dad's". Adren was trying to find Jon's shorts and sandals and some tools. I was a little confused until I saw all the guys together, and I think it was the most clever and funny group I've seen! They even gathered for a photo shoot. Hilarious.

Then on Halloween night he dressed as a vampire to attend the school dance. For this one he raided my jewelry and makeup.

Eli was asked to the Halloween dance and his group was given the assignment to dress as Nineties Musicians. He and date Chloe dressed as Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love. Off they went to the dance!

Paisley and friends dressed as characters from Scooby-Doo. Paisley was Scooby himself, and I thought she was adorable, as always. She said they all danced their hearts out at the dance.

Zeke was an Ikea worker. He loved my suggestion of taking my Ikea bag trick-or-treating. 

Jon and I stayed home, watched a movie and handed out candy. There were not many kids that came by this year at all. It was a real great night!

The time has come to part with kitchen table #3. I found it at Savers, sanded it down and repainted. It is a pretty thing, but a bit wobbly and hard to maneuver around in the tight nook. Time for an upgrade. I posted it on our neighborhood page, Free to anyone interested. My good friend snatched it up for extra seating at Thanksgiving and then on to her daughter and husband. Perfect!

I had Jon make a frame for and "L" shape bench which will be easier to slide around. I'm on the hunt for a center pedestal table so we don't have to deal with climbing around legs. I found some cute fabric online to reupholster the bench, and used the legs from the end chairs I was going to get rid of anyway. 

The bench turned out really pretty, very comfortable, and has increased the ease for getting around the table. It checks aaalll the boxes!

I kept my eye on facebook marketplace and spotted a table "For Free" at a nearby trailer park. I took Adren and Paisley with me to investigate. (And help load if it went well.) It was rough! While very heavy and sturdy, it was burned in a corner, deep scratches and paint drops covered the top. Since it is solid wood it all sanded right off and with some stain and paint, it looks great! 

I also repainted the nook. I just painted it a darker, muddier shade than what was there before. Much richer.

While I have loved no window treatments over the years, I feel like we are a bit exposed in the evenings. I also wanted to add a little pattern to the area. I really liked the faux roman shades I did years ago and decided to do them again. The problem was, the fabric I had my eye on was pricey!

So I bought a thick, creamy white fabric, some fabric paint markers and made my own. I like it!

I really love how it all looks, but especially functions now. I love seeing Eli stretched out in the sun on that back bench. It's a cozy little place to sit and do some work. It is a fun refresh!