Remember when....

I said I'd probably post a lot when I was in school because I'd be procrastinating??
can you believe that a person can actually be so busy there is no room for procrastinating?!
for real.

One of the reasons I've been so busy is because I've been jam packing my weekends with fun and adventures so I nearly kill myself during the week to fit it all in.  hence no time for blogging.
But I miss it so much.... I miss making things and taking pictures of my clothes and doing what I wear Wednesdays.... I surely can find time to do that right?? hmmmm maybe.

Here's my life of recent in instagram...

 I finally got a BLACK GLOBE!! because my husband is amazing and surprised me for our anniversary.

this is delicious. pumpkin spice cream cheese from Aldi!!

              I'M GOING BACK TO GRENADA!!!!!!!!! JUST FOR A VISIT. BUT STILL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It turned fall on me.

and I got a hair cut. a major one. and I'm still crying about it.  missing those long locks. 

So the past 2 months of my life in a nutshell is lots of work. lots of writing papers. lots of planning for Grenada. lots of hair gone.

adorable bunting 4 ways!

I am excited to share a few pictures with you from my older sister's house! {not the one who is doing a vow renewal, the other one}
She is a {young}30something wife and mommy with 3 absolutely beautiful daughters.  They recently moved to California for her husband's job and she has been having a lot of fun decorating their new home!  I love her style and her new-found creativity!  {this is the sister who didn't know how to decorate before and so she just didn't}
I asked her if I could feature some of the projects she has done because she no longer blogs {long story, but basically people are creeps} and I don't have a ton of projects currently going on nor do I have a camera. 
Win!

Today I am going to be featuring the adorable bunting that she has scattered throughout their home.  I love it!

1. story book bunting - perfect for a little girl's room, and great if you have some books that are torn or the binding is falling apart.

Her girls love Alice in Wonderland!

       2. paint chip bunting - aka free bunting!

Isn't her fall mantel the cutest thing you've ever seen!  candy corn bunting!

This shelf is set up in the room that her step-son uses when he visits.  I love how she designated a special boy space just for him!  I'm sure he loves it with all the pink in the house!  Bunting aside, isn't this skateboard shelf awesome!! Good job Sister!

rainbow!

          3. handkerchief bunting!
 

this is the window above her kitchen sink.  The dainty hankies allow lots of sunlight to come in and doesn't block the great view of the woods she has!  She says deer come right up in their backyard and will eat out of your hand!

        4. Scrapbook paper bunting!

I am so thankful my sister allowed me to show her home to the world... and I have so many more great things to show you all!  Bunting is just the beginning!


ps. what do you think of this new blog header? 

DIY Halloween Party

Last year I threw a little Halloween party at our house, mostly just because my friend Amber and I wanted an excuse to dress up.
I thought I'd share a few ideas from the party.

I was a watermelon smoothie from my favorite local shop here in Grenada called Native Foods and Fruits.

 My husband was reluctant to dress up and so he was "thinking Arby's"

I saved all my pop bottles for weeks to use as decorations.

a little bit of nail polish and electrical tape and wha-la - Halloween decor!

My banner is made from cereal boxes and drawn on with a sharpie.

Mummy utensil holder is a tin can wrapped in toilet paper.

Keeping with the ever so classy theme, we served pumpkin poop to our guests.

Scary pizza

Bones and blood
and that carved piece of pumpkin back there is the best you're going to find in Grenada.  They don't sell whole pumpkins, just portions for cooking, so we carved our little chunk I used to make pumpkin bread. 

And finally witch's brew to drink.
Want to have a frozen hand in your punch? 
Fill a surgical glove with water, freeze it, and then cut off the glove and you have a frozen hand!

I'm wanting to have another Halloween Party this year but I now have way too many friends in Grenada to host at our teeny tiny apartment so I'm looking for other options! Stayed tuned for more Halloween decor to come!

Find Halloween costume ideas for couples over at Newlyweds Bliss today!

Pretty Pumpkins

I love pumpkins.
I love to pick them, carve them, display them, and eat them.
I even like to call my husband and/or little kids pumpkin every once in a while... (my family will get this)

But {there is always a but with me huh?} no pumpkins in Grenada.  They do have them, but they are green... and they don't sell them whole.  They sell chunks to cook with.  And it isn't cheap... and I am.

These images will tide me over until next fall when I can decorate my own.
Happy Fall!

Source: craftinessisnotoptional.com via Kelsey on Pinterest

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Source: puertabella.blogspot.com via Kelsey on Pinterest

Source: allureeventconsulting.blogspot.com via Kelsey on Pinterest

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Source: theivycottageblog.blogspot.com via Kathy on Pinterest

Source: google.com via Nora on Pinterest

Source: honeysucklelife.com via Courtney on Pinterest

Source: mirrorsmetaphorsandkaleidoscopes.blogspot.com via Kelsey on Pinterest

That darn cabinet.

Do you remember that horribly awkward cabinet I have dividing my living room and kitchen?
I am still on the mission to cover up the glass panes and hide all my dishes and food that fills these cabinets.
but I think the cabinet is winning.

This is our apartment on the day we moved in.
I can't believe how empty it looks.  Where did I get all of this stuff?!
oh yea. from the trash...

Halloween Party Last year
the cabinet looks slightly less cluttered because I was literally using all our dishes for the party.
and um like jello much?

Christmas snowflakes

so apparently the bottom looked so bad I just cropped it out.

And this is what it looks like today:

I only had 2 sheets of tissue paper left, and they're not even the same color, but it is more noticeable in this photo than it is in real life, and they aren't big enough to cover the entire glass, so I added the newspaper to tie into the newspaper roses I made and for more texture, but I still don't know about it.
I want it to look full and complete, but not cluttered, you know?

Glass panes aside, I love the top shelf. 

that wine bottle again! 
I don't even drink wine, I just like the bottle.  I picked some flowers and berries & bam fall decor!
That triangle is a piece of wood I found wrapped in twine & the basket really deserves a post all of its own... it is a Calabash.  A fruit  that I picked, carved out like a basket, and let dry.  They sell them in the markets here.  When I get home I'm probably going to paint it. or not. I like the color and texture.

remember when I made magazine roses? well newspaper roses are even better!
I love the texture and they are much easier to mold into shape.

love my sign from the ditch!

Do you have a problem area in your home that you're always trying to cover up or fix?
I'm open to suggestions for mine!  But remember that I don't have a Target or Goodwill to run to buy something...

beauty from the rubbish

You're going to think I'm crazier than ever... but last week when I went on my twig hunt {and came home with that sign} I also came home with a random piece of metal wire, kind of like that used for a cage or something.
When I first saw it I thought it would be great to hang my earrings on, I've seen similar DIYs all over the internet, but once I started looking at it, I got a different type of inspiration. 
I have been drying some different flowers and leaves for fall decorations and decided that the rusted wire and the dried flowers would be a great combination.

Putting the fear of tetanus aside I began flattening out the wire and trimmed it down to about a 10x10in square.  After cutting the wire I bent the sharp edges down.

Arranged the dried flowers and hot glued them to the wire.

Added a little lace across the top for a hanger.

And since my hanging options are limited... I temporarily hung it from the light switch.

side note: see that red switch? it's to turn the heat on for our shower! crazy!

This week I'll be sharing some more of the little bits of fall I'm bringing into our home! 
Who's to say that because it's still a tropical island outside it can't be autumn in inside? :)