Well, did you?

I really do remember how many times my mom asked if I washed my hands when I was little. Because it was a lot of times. Heck, she still asks me every now and then! And now, I sure do grab my little guys' hands to see how wet they are and if they smell like soap. 

The sticker labels of the Wal-mart brand hand soaps come off very easily. I thought about getting a friend with a vinyl machine to make the letters for me but then I thought, what can't I do with a Sharpie?! A few minutes later, voila! Less than $2 for custom mommy nagging. And, it's refillable. 

Now these directions make me laugh every time: "Use ... to wash hands as you would use any liquid hand soap." What if I don't know how to use any liquid hand soap?!!!! Seriously, what is the point of these directions?

Made by You Monday

Come and sit awhile

My neighbor and friend Christine is starting her own decorating business — Reinspired Living. She can help you redecorate, restyle, repurpose and reorganize. In other words, she takes what you got and makes it look a hundred times better!!!

Christine offered to redecorate my porch to fatten her portfolio.* Took me about five seconds to say, heck yeah! It could use it! In the winter, the area turns into a dumping ground — stuff that should go in the shed but it's too cold to walk the extra five steps. In the summer, the area turns into a dumping ground — stuff that should go in the shed but it's too hot to walk the extra five steps. But in the junk, Christine found a few pieces to transform with a little paint and a lot of creativity and now I have a wonderful space to relax, entertain and/or enjoy dinner alfresco. 

Before she could get to work, I had a lot of work to do. From the porch and shed I took six big outside trash bags to the curb! All the stuff on the porch that should go into the shed finally got moved to the shed. It took several days but when I was finished, Christine pretty much had a blank slate to work her magic. I got out of the way (okay, I tried to stay out of the way).

BEFORE I CLEANED

(I know, can you believe it?!)

AFTER I SWEATED IN THE HEAT CLEANED

CHRISTINE'S MAGIC 

She painted the chairs to give the space some color, using the pillow/tablecloth fabric as inspiration. The desk now acts as a buffet. The file cabinet is repurposed to hold napkins, candles, plates, stuff for entertaining while the bottom has a cooler for cooling drinks. Cool!

BEFORE I CLEANED

(A toilet?! So ashamed.)

AFTER I SWEATED IN THE HEAT CLEANED

CHRISTINE'S MAGIC 

You're welcome to come over anytime for a visit. Be warned, you must follow the rules!

*Christine did not ask for anything in return, like this post. Of course I was going to show off my new digs! Love it too? Contact Christine — reinspiredliving@gmail.com

Life on hold

We got interesting news on Thursday. Then promptly left for the weekend to try and enjoy some summer time fun with the family on the lake despite the news. Cut and dry — Chris could be laid off and we won't know for a couple of weeks. We try not to talk about it in front of the kids but it seeps into every conversation, the elephant in the room.

I'm still processing the idea that The Birmingham News will only be published three days a week come fall. I think it's stupid. I'm also in denial and angry. Not so much depressed by the idea that Chris might be losing his job. More like waves of panic (Agghhhhhh!!!!!) followed by a detached calm (we'll be fine). Worst roller coaster ride ever. Maybe he won't lose his job. Maybe we'll just be facing a huge pay cut. Both turn our lives upside down.

This is our first time facing layoffs. I know this does not make me unique in today's economy. So many people are in this situation but it's raw for me. It's happening to me and I want to scream. But it's not my first time without money. I've been poor. It's no fun. Counting every penny. Not being able to give your child everything you want to give them. It's no fun at all.

I hate change. Big change especially. Chris leaving the paper would be a big change. My having to go back into the work force would be a big change. Heck, it took me a few years to get used to not having a "real" job. (Not that raising children isn't a real job ... it's a very important job with no vacation, no overtime, no breaks. And certainly the hardest job I will ever have!) So now that I'm this rockin' soccer mom, you mean I might have to switch back?! I'm not opposed to working. We've felt lucky that I have gotten to stay at home with the boys. I throughly expected to go back to work once Joseph started kindergarten. My expectations were to give him the same commitment I gave Will. That's two years of me Joseph wouldn't have.

So these thoughts and many more swirl around my head all day and night. But we can't start doing until we have some facts. Life is on hold ...

then again, there are dishes in the sink and clothes in the dryer. Life does goes on ...

we'll be fine, right?

What's inside? Grab bag fun.

I'm a big fan of CoolMomPicks. These, well, cool moms keep me up to date on the trendy stuff that I'm just not trendy enough to know myself.

A good example is Bunny & Bee. I would not have found the San Francisco-based children's line on my own. And to be honest, I would never order from them because I can't afford $28-32 T-shirts for kids that wake up bigger every day. But I did recently order a $20 grab bag filled with 4 random shirts. What a great idea to clear out the warehouse! What a good deal! I can't wait to see what William is going to be sporting this summer.

While I love a good deal and can ride the bargain high for a few days, in this case the main attraction is the anticipation. Grab bags will never go out of style in this house. Just ask my husband about bags o' crap ...