From My Inbox to You

I was ranting the other day about not being able to find practical and cost effective ideas to use around the house. Here are a couple of things I've found that have a few good budget friendly tips. Bonus points for these also being "green" ideas.

I somehow got signed up for an email newsletter from DIY Network a few weeks ago. I've actually started reading it now and it's pretty cool. It's full of DIY tips (obviously), green products, budget friendly ideas, and on and on. It's great to click through their site and find all kinds of easy and cheap tips for around the house.

From DIY Network I found Ecologue. Ecologue is where I am going to spend the majority of my afternoon I'm afraid. It looks like most of the articles are compiled from other sources like HGTV and DIY network. It's great that everything is all in one place where it's easy to find and reference. Right now I'm loving Going Compostal! I've always wanted to start a compost pile.

Check out their Crafty Recycling tips. There are a few really cute decorating ideas in there for little money. I really like the tips for reusing cans in Can the Clutter but I think I would give my husband a nervous breakdown if I put any of that stuff in our house. His biggest phobia is cutting himself on the edge of a cut can. I would have to buy one of these.

My Issue With Home Decorating Recources

I love to read home decorating blogs but I'm becoming increasingly annoyed with them. First off, home bloggers and magazine editors must think that everyone lives in an architecturally stunning home. I do not have twelve foot ceilings. I do not have 100 year old wood floors. I to not have a patio that overlooks hills and mountains, nor do I have columns or archways.

I have this:




This is a home. This is what the vast majority of Americans live in. Houses. Average, everyday, affordable to the other 95% of us, houses. Of course I wish I was living in something Frank Lloyd Wright designed or a townhouse on Park Avenue, but let's get real. I'm 25, recently married, and a first-time home owner. I do not have the resources to afford such a home.

This lady knows what I'm talking about.

Which brings me to my second issue. Money. I want to have a great, personal looking house but I don't want to spend thousands of dollars on furnishings. If I had thousands of dollars to spend I'd make major home renovations, not buy some crazy ass sofa that my dog or morning coffee spills are going to ruin. I love good deals and cheap crap. I think it's possible to make a lovely home with next to no budget but it's hard to find the resources sometimes. And yes, that $300 lamp on sale for $99 might be a steal, but it's still $99. I want to make my own lamp with fabric scraps and $4 in supplies. But I need someone to show me how!!!

You know one person who really gets what I'm talking about? Martha Stewart. Martha gets it sometimes. I just read on her website how to create a faux wood looking table using paint and some weird roller brush. YES! Cheap! Awesome! Creative! Leave it to one of the richest women in the world to show us how to pinch pennies in style.

That's why she's Martha.

I'm trying to come up with some of my own ideas and plans for cheapo home decorating. I bought all the furniture and big stuff I can afford and now I want to make the room look full and cheery and personal without spending an arm and a leg that I don't currently have. This is a recession people. And I am certainly recessing with the frivolous spending in my life. Starting with this. I will not buy that. Even though it's on sale for $199, it's still $199. Maybe Martha can show me how to weave my own peace sign rug with old unraveled sweaters.

Running Your Own Race

Here it is. Month three already. Can you believe it?

I certainly can't.

You know what else I can't believe? How great that 50mm lens is. It's changed my life. My photos have improved tremendously without me actually learning anything new. I'm impressed...







I'm finally getting to the point where I like my shots straight out of the camera, and I don't feel the need to bury them in wild Photoshop actions. I definitely love me some actions. I do. But I use them as a crutch most of the time to hide the fact that my photos are sometimes flat. With this last batch though, I didn't even touch half of them. I'm so happy that I'm seeing improvement in my work. The learning curve is the hardest part of any process and it's easy to get frustrated with it. I love looking at other portrait photographers' work and I have a hard time not comparing myself to them. There are so many amazing photographers out there and it makes me feel like I have such a long ways to go.

That reminds me of something I read during marathon training a few years ago: Everyone has to run their own race. That's become my mantra in life. You can't compare yourself to everyone on the track. There's always going to be someone faster and in better shape than you are. You'll never make it to the finish line if you spend the entire race focusing on everyone else. You have to focus on yourself, your own training and your own motivations. Crossing the finish line is the ultimate goal. It doesn't matter how long it takes you to get there.

That thought definitely applies to everyday life. Let's all try to remember that. Let's also remember that if you don't keep up with your cardio, those awesome calf muscles you built during marathon training will disappear about three months after you stop running, leaving you once again with chicken legs.

Update On the Living Room

We (I) started working on fixing up our living room back in September. This is what we started with...



We rearranged it a couple of times...



And this is where we're at right now.





If I had more money I would continue to fill the room with furniture.

I. Love. Furniture.

I think the room still needs more texture too. Another rug, maybe some wallpaper... It just needs more. The room is really open so I kind of throws me off. An interior decorator I never claimed to be.

It feels like our home though. It's definitely a room that looks like Matt and Christine live in.

Whoops. Impulse Strikes.

I did something a little impulsive today. I bought this:



50mm / 1.4

I've been eyeing that lens for two months now. It's never in stock though. Anywhere. I finally found one here in Omaha so I bought it. Yikes. I was afraid of it selling out again.

It's a business investment, it's a business investment... I just have to keep repeating that to myself.

Busy Weekend!

I don't think this last weekend really counted as a weekend. I'm exhausted this morning.

Friday, I spent three hours baking a German chocolate cake.

Saturday, I woke up early to do last minute Easter prep shopping. You know, there's something to be said for living in suburban Nebraska. Everyone gets up and does their Saturday morning shopping in their pajamas. I'm never alone in looking like a dirtbag at the grocery store. If I lived in a trendy city that required me to look good when I went out, I would probably never leave the house. I suspect that's why home delivery services are so popular in places like New York.

I got home from shopping and then cleaned the house. And then raked the yard. And then battled the giant tree-sized weed that we let run amok behind the shed. And then baked another cake. All in preparation for...

Sunday. Easter. Thanksgiving the Sequel.

All of my family came over for the holiday so Matt and I cooked our butts off. We made a pot roast, a spiral ham and three casseroles. We managed to send home all the leftovers except for a small container of candied sweet potatoes (which I hid from people) and some of the pot roast. My absolute favorite part of any holiday is eating leftover meat and dinner roll sandwiches.

Needless to say I didn't get to do much relaxing this weekend. So, it's extra needless to say that I'm not jazzed about working this fine Monday.

Meeting Jackie

I finally got to meet Jackie last night. She is the tiniest thing I have ever seen.



That picture is a couple of weeks old. And obviously from a phone. But you get the idea. She is a wee one. Her head is about the size of a baseball. Her weight is up to 3lb, 11oz and her preemie clothes are still too big for her. It's pretty cute. Her legs reach about half way down her pant legs. She's noisy though for how little she is. She makes little squeaks and has big huge yawns.

So. Freaking. Adorable.