lego my messy legos

I wrote this post a few weeks ago, knowing I would be too busy to blog for awhile. The table's been finished for almost a month now, and we are still loving it!

if you have boys, then you know what i'm talking about. legos have taken over our lives here. my 8 year old son LOVES them, asks for them for every birthday/christmas. the problem is, with so many different sets, how do you find the teeny tiny specific piece that you need when making a particular project?

you dump out all 240,000 legos all over the carpet in your bedroom and dig through them. then when your mommy comes in and says it's time to pick up and get ready for bed, you cry because you just spent the last 6 hours hunting for that piece and still didn't find it, and now you have to pick them all up and start over tomorrow.

my kids may tell you differently, but i really am a compassionate person. i TOTALLY understand the frustration of not being able to find something when you need it. believe me, a good portion of my childhood was spent searching for things and then giving up on whatever game/craft/school project i was working on because our house was a black hole.

this boy is so creative and i don't want him to give up on that. coming up with a lego solution was on the list, but lots of other things were coming first, until my friend Kathleen needed to go to IKEA and even though i didn't need to, i went along (because i can always find something to buy at IKEA) so the project began, even though it was probably not as urgent as some other things on the list.

here's how we did it:

i bought two TROFAST units in pine and primed them.

eric and i went to Lowes' and got some 1/2 inch MDF and 3x1 birch boards, and built a top for the tables.

then we painted the TROFAST units black using a gloss latex enamel and a sponge roller (and lots of Flotrol)

two coats

he spray-painted the table top - it needs to be a bit more durable.

we sorted all of the legos by color, as well as people and wheels, and any other categories that make sense to the kids. (there is room for 18 small bins)

Eric went to the Lego store and got some of the flat gray base pieces. he was going to glue them down, but then we wouldn't be able to use the table for games or other stuff, so they are just sitting on top.

i made some labels using clip art from Just Something I Made, cut them out and taped them on with packing tape.

the kids were thrilled, and I love that the legos get put away! there is a huge resurgence of creative building in our house thanks to this simple and awesome organizing tool!

Dining room

I've had a busy month or so. Late winter can be really depressing here in Ohio, so every year I make a list and try to keep myself busy until spring comes. A few weeks ago I changed a few things in my dining room.

before

after

I really love how light and fresh the room feels now! I love the contrast between the white walls and the dark furniture.

Bathroom remodel

I finished redecorating the downstairs bath, and I'm very happy with how it turned out. I need to remember to take REAL before pictures next time, instead of in the middle of the mess, but I think you get the idea.

I had the hardest time deciding what to do with this space, and it was always a little embarrassing that it was so bland and boring, but I absolutely LOVE it now! (I'll even come downstairs to use it, even though I have 3 bathrooms upstairs!)

before

after

The shower curtain fabric is from IKEA, I used 6 yards, but not really. I cut the center section out of 3 of the yards (I didn't want it too billowy and crowding the toilet) and used that for my kitchen cupboards. The edge pieces left over were sewn to the outside of the other 3 yards. I mounted the rod almost to the ceiling, I hate it that most shower curtains are way too short, like J's jeans. The artwork on the closest wall is a piece of cut stone from Indonesia that Eric brought back from a business trip.

I built the shelves. Well, sort of. Eric had started building me a bookcase for my office when I found the perfect thing somewhere else, (much to his relief) and these were made from the leftover pieces from that project. He had already faced the MDF with mitered birch, I just had to cut them down to size and add a small piece on one end, prime and paint, and then mount to the wall. They turned out great, but it was really hard to get them level from front to back, floating shelves tend to want to sag forward a little, but as long as I don't place eggs or pens on them, it shouldn't be a problem. The glass bottles are from IKEA as well (LOVE that place!) and the little horse is from China (another business trip find).

I moved the mirror downstairs from the master bath, the one that was there previously didn't fit inside the molding, but I think it looks better this way anyway. It's not perfect, but it works for now while I keep my eyes open for something better. The lacquered box is for holding girly items (no cupboards) and if I had remembered I had it I would have made the shelves deeper so it fit on them, but oh well, I think it looks nice on the tank. The towels are also from the master bath, they look better here too. All I need now is a basket for magazines and extra TP and it's perfect.

Kitchen Cabinet makeover

I've always hated how the glass cabinets in my kitchen just didn't seem to have much of a wow factor. So I used some of the leftover fabric from my new shower curtain and made them a little more interesting.

I took out the glass shelves, hot glued the edges of the fabric to the back of the cabinet, and then put the shelves back in (that was the hard part)

I love how they make my kitchen a little more modern and fun!

Oliver

The holiday season was so busy, that I never had a chance to blog about E's latest drama adventure. She played a pickpocket and an orphan in the middle school production of "Oliver" back in November. As a parent, I got the opportunity to help out, and I got the really fun job of working with another parent to decorate the courtyard entry into the auditorium. Now, you may think this is unnecessary, but it really adds to the atmosphere if as an audience member, you walk through the streets of London before you get to the orphanage.

I got this great idea to make these streetlamps from my friend's husband, who had made some a few years ago for a dance, but they had been so abused that he tossed them out. My father-in-law was in town to watch our children while we were in Paris, so he helped me (translation: he did all of it himself)

We used PVC pipe sunk in cinder block that was filled with concrete for the base and pole, and then my husband used foam insulation from Lowe's to construct the lamps on top. Father-in-law fitted them with lights, and the cord came down the middle of the pipe and then plugged into extension cords. We painted them black.

That's London Bridge over the door in the background - made out of 2 sheets of foam insulation as well.

We also used a left over aluminum pipe gate as a prop, standing it up in the dirt with a sign that read "Workhouse: Home for Paupers & Orphans" It turned out pretty neat for very little work.

E was adorable as one of Fagan's boys. Here she is in her costume - for some reason I don't have any shots of her the night of the play.

Business trip project

When Eric has to leave for several days on business, I take the opportunity to work on a big project around the house. It keeps me busy, I can make all the decisions, and then it's a nice surprise for him when he gets home.

My downstairs bath was driving me crazy. Very boring, and I just couldn't decide what to do with it. I painted it a light khaki, but mistakenly used flat paint, so I had to repaint anyway. I left the ceiling the same color, repainted the walls the same color as the trim (a very light cream) and them added some molding detail and crown molding.

before

After

After

I'm still on the prowl for a new shower curtain, mirror and shelves. I love the way it's turned out so far, though!