invite

Happy Birthday Mr. Kortland!

Kort is officially 8 years old today...and so begins party week. I have been hard at work getting all of the random details pulled together for this Friday's party, and I will be sharing them as we go along.

Today we are delivering invitations.

I made his invite using Adobe InDesign.

I took an "Advanced Editing and Desktop Publishing course at UVU to help distract and pass the time whilst in the midst of our infertility nightmare, and it was one of the best things I could have ever done. Love me some Photoshop and InDesign.

Anyway, I'm working on a bunch of projects today, more to come tomorrow!

party time.

It's party season in the Dugovic household!

We have August 13, 19, 22, and September 3rd birthdays, which means that ALL of our birthdays are within 3 and a half weeks of one another. {Say it with me now: YIKES!}

Tennyson's birthday went great.
We had a low key celebration with immediate family.

The hub's Birthday was yesterday, and all he wanted was a Cafe Rio Pork Burrito.
{Gotta love an easy-going man.}
Done and Done.
We will also be having a gigantic "old school" Taco Sunday celebration on the 28th because we stinking miss seeing our old college and mission friends! He is really looking forward to it.



But the reason I am saying all of this to you is because this week, I am gearing up for Kortland's Birthday Party. He is turning 8. Can you believe that? It feels like he should be turning three...or four at the very most! For awhile there, I couldn't decide if I wanted to curl up in a ball and sob for a week or celebrate and throw him a big  old party...but in the end, I settled on a party. {You're shocked, I know.}

We decided to do an "OUTDOOR MOVIE" theme this year. I have a few home-makeover projects that I want to share, but they are getting tabled for a week while I construct and share the various different elements of Kort's movie party.

Here are the plans:

Popcorn Cupcakes
Concessions Stand
Ticket Booth
Pennant Banners
Stringing White Lights
Popcorn Buffet
Big screen projector movie.
Showing: Despicable Me
{Is it just me, or is that just the best kid's movie ever?}

I want it to kind of have a vintage - old style - theme rather than the black and red and gold "movie theatre" style that is used for most movie-themed parties. We'll see how that goes...

Anyway, to get us into party mode, I thought I'd share some photos from a baby shower I hosted last week with my friend Katherine. She is an AMAZING baker/chef/cake decorator, so I did the decorating and left all of the gorgeous food stuff to her. We were NOT disappointed.



Come check in on Monday and enjoy a week of party mania!

mod-podgery and such

It all started with a Sunday painting project.
Kort and I decided to paint our very own tag-team mural.
{Woot woot!}
It was wonderful.

We sat, and painted, and talked, sweating it out in our Sunday best in the 95 degree shade of the back porch's old tin roof. Then, I realized it wasn't a super-great idea to have a 7 year old paint a mural in his Sunday best, so I made Kort strip down to his undershirt...

And then I decided it would be even better for him to take that off and go change into some old shorts. Now I didn't have to worry about how crazy he got with the paint. Ahhh, very nice.

We painted a tree. 

I loved the look of it. 

Then, I decided that I really wanted it to have texture, so I had the hubs fish a financial planning book printed in the late 80's out of our 3,000 volume collection in the garage. {Our garage is currently a hoarder's dream come true...I'll tell you what...I'm not ambitious enough to think about tackling that one just yet.}

I ripped the book to shreds and started mod podging a black and white newspaper sky onto our masterpiece.

And that really got the wheels turning...

We worked on it for about three hours. 

Then we had to stop because I needed more supplies to continue. So, Monday afternoon, I went to the craft store and bought a bunch of patterned paper and another bottle of Mod Podge cause I was a-burnin' right through it! {Our mural is huge.}

I mod podged a funky black and white tree trunk, and then started cutting out all different sizes of leaves in all of the different patterned papers. Then I glued them in layers on top of one another.

I did a lot of them.
It sort of took hours.

And this is what it looks like.

We hung it in the dining room and I love seeing it during breakfast, lunch and dinner. It makes me smile. Trees are symbolic and lovely for so many different reasons. Tree of life. Family Trees. Growing deep and lasting roots. Reaching for the heavens. Bending to life's breezes. Rebirth each spring. Beauty. Tranquility. Shelter... just all sorts of good things that I want my home to represent.

{BELOW: This is a shot of the dining room. It's all decorated for Tennyson's Birthday party and in this particular shot, the table is all laid out for a double baby shower I hosted for two sweet neighbors and dear friends of mine - that has a post of it's own though.}

This Project:

Huge chunk of wood: free {from a garbage pile}
Mod Podge: $6 {used 50% coupon}
Book Paper: free {cause I'm a hoarder of sorts...}
Scrapbook Paper: $12
Brackets for hanging: $6

*If you liked this project, please re-tweet it, fb it, blog about it...you know, spread the gospel of mod-podgery and joy around a bit!

Nothing's gonna change my world...

As promised, here is "day 2" of my FULL WEEK of home improvement projects:

As you may have seen a little while ago, I posted about my new turquoise desk. I bought it on KSL.com for $40 and then painted it aqua blue. I love it, and practically live in that little corner of my living room now. Here is what that corner has looked like lately:

Cute desk, but kinda empty otherwise.
SO,
When the hubs brought home a pile of construction wood that got dumped on his paintball field {Thank you "illegal disposers of construction waste"... whoever you are.} I decided it was time for a home-made wall art project!

So I:

1. Painted the board gray.

2. Printed letters in "Bulletin Typewriter" font and then laid the printed letters over old book papers and cut out letters. This was a "cricut-less" endeavor, so I saved about $200 bucks cutting it by hand, and it only took about 30 minutes. Plus, I watched Pawn Stars while cutting them out, so technically, it wasn't like "work" at all!

3. I used Moge Podge to glue the letters onto the board and also to do a glossy, sealed coat over the top of everything.

4. Using different patterns of scrapbook paper, I cut out strips to make the word "change." {And no, my poster is NOT a shout out to the Obama campaign...in fact, the meaning of this art work is just the opposite.}

5. We hung it up. It is quite massive, and therefore quite HEAVY! We used a bracket kit that we bought for a couple of dollars at Home Depot.

And, voila!  That's it!

  A few years ago, I saw a very simple painting with this saying on it, and put it in my memory bank as something I'd like to have in my own home someday.

"Across the Universe" has always been a favorite song of mine, and I LOVE the personal meaning this particular phrase holds for me. 

I'm sure everyone can interpret it differently, but for me, it is a wonderful reminder that

No matter how tumultuous the outside world becomes, I have the power to create a heaven within the sacred walls of my own home. 

It's a task that I don't take lightly, and, as a mother, I understand that I must diligently guard against any unwanted negativity at every turn. But it's a job I'm willing to do. Especially if it means that my family can have a healthy, loving, happy environment where we can learn and grow together.

I love the way that this is summed up by such a simple phrase set to such a simple melody. I now find myself humming it every day as I go about my work.
"Nothing's gonna change my world...
Nothing's gonna change my world..."

{So neener, neener, neener, cruel world. You can just get lost.}

Summary:
Board: Free
Paint: Already Had it.
Modge Podge: Already had it, and I still have a ton left over for other projects. 
I used about $1 worth for this particular project..
Book Paper: Free
Scrapbook Paper: $4
Hanging Kit: $3

Now I have a piece of 47x45 inch wall art for $8 out of pocket. Woo-hoo!

*Note: I know that it's all sorts of crooked and skeewompus and such, but that's how the painting was, and I loved it that way. Perfection is over-rated.

Hello, gorgeous.

Confession time:
I love office supplies.
Like, to a point that cannot possibly be disguised as normal.
So I'm not gonna even try, kay?
I'm a nerd.
A weird, weird, nerdy little nerd.
And I'm okay with it.

I love the smell of new file folders.

I love knowing exactly where
a piece of paper,
or a recipe,
or birth certificate,
or take out menu {yeah, you heard me}
is at a moment's notice.

So, you can imagine my excitement when I met this little darling at a parking lot yard sale in St. George, Utah earlier this summer:

Oh baby.
A HANGING file cabinet.

I had to put my game face on and try not to make out with it right there in front of the seller. I didn't want her to know that I'd gladly pay $20 smackers for it, being the office-supply lovin' nerdy nerd nerd that I am. {You know, no need for her to be takin' advantage of a poor lil office supply addict such as myself.}

She only wanted three bucks for it, so I gladly paid her and hauled it's heavy ace over to the trunk of my mother-in-law's car.

I love it so much, but do you know what I decided I would love even more?

If it was Ballet Slipper Pink.
Yup.
Is it just me, or is it like, SUCH a beautiful thing that you can buy a can of color called "ballet slipper" at your local Ace Hardware store?

I think I love Ballet Slipper Pink almost as much as I love office supplies.
{Don't worry, office supplies, I said almost.}
So here she is:

Oh how I love her.
Should we give her a name?
She prolly deserves one.
I hung her in the kitchen because the kitchen is the nerve center of our home both in placement and purpose.

If a full-time housewife managed to find a reasonable opportunity to use the phrase "Step into my office." the office to which she might be referring would most likely have dirty dishes and more Capri-sun packets than one could ever aspire to drink. So it's only fitting that my "office" should have a file cabinet. {A pretty one, preferably in the shade of ballet slipper pink.}

And file folders. Of course.
What's a ballet slipper pink file cabinet without a few file folders?

So, I prayed to the Gods of Target for a set of funky, mod file folders, and BOY did the Gods of Target deliver! Love, love these.

Here they are in their new home.

And my paper towel holder practically BEGGED me to make her ballet slipper pink too.
And who am I to ignore the humble wishes of a lowly paper towel holder?

Eek, I am ready to say goodbye to those countertops!
But, for now, I will just keep myself happily distracted labeling and filing everything under the sun.

{Note to self, put the light plates back on already! You painted the kitchen 3 weeks ago.}

There is SO MUCH more to do, but the house is coming along, and it's so fun to finally be making changes that I've been wanting to make for a long time! Hope you'll check in throughout the week. More projects to come!

project kitchen clean up.

So, I have hated my kitchen ever since we moved into our home five years ago. It's my fault, really, because the layout of my kitchen is actually pretty awesome. I just hate the color I painted it. {DARK navy blue.} I knew that I hated it the minute it was up, but we had just finished remodeling and repainting a 2000 square foot house, and we were all painted/funded out.



So, it has stayed that way for five years while I have loathed it, and "intended" to change it, but never taken action. Well, that has FINALLY ended. Woo-hoo! I decided to tackle phase one of "project kitchen clean up."

Here is my action plan:
PHASE ONE: New paint
PHASE TWO: Art Work/Decorations
PHASE THREE: Curtains {When I find the perfect fabric}
PHASE FOUR: New counter tops and tile {When I find a great deal on the tile I want}
PHASE FIVE: Appliances

I woke up the other morning and said: "Today is the day!"

The hubs looked at me like I was nutty. {And in his defense, I am.}
I pulled some gray "Home Depot Reject" paint {that I'd been saving for a special purpose such as this} out of the garage, and wiped the walls down while Tens scooted along the kitchen floor and raided the Tupperware cupboard.

Then I put Tens down for his morning nap, PRAYED that it would be a long one, and went to work.

Kort was {mercifully!} invited to go to Seven Peaks with my dear, dear neighbor friend, so he was outta the way too!

{The stars were aligning.}

But what, you may ask, is a mother to do when she still isn't finished painting when her lil' dude arises from a THREE hour nap? {Yeah, that's right. A three hour nap. Isn't he a peach?}

Well, here was my solution.

Naked baby + Swimming Pool + A lil bit O warm water = Supervised-Corralled-Toddlerness

 

{Told you I was nutty.}

Phase One complete! 

Can't wait to share what's next. 

A major master-piece-y work of art is in the works.

Wish me luck!

Re-excited {not a word}

So, I have recently started reading the book "Pillars of the Earth"

{My good buddy Oprah said it was awe-to-the-some, so I figured I couldn't go wrong.}
I'm a couple hundred pages in {not saying much since this whopper comes in at just under a thousand pages}and I am enjoying it...sort of. {It's a little harsh in spots, harsh but realistic, so I can't really fault him there.}

It's about a monk {well, a prior} who is passionate about building a beautiful cathedral to God.
He believes that a monk shows his love for God outwardly through the way that he cares for God's buildings, namely the small - very run down/neglected- monastery in which he is made prior.  When he arrives at his new post, he is furious with the other monk's laziness and quickly whips the monastery into shape.

As I've read about his devotion to the place he calls home, it has caused for a lot of reflection about the care of my own home and the day-to-day life I lead here.

And it has inspired me anew to get to work!
And I am really excited about it.

Creating a beautiful, clean, and orderly space is honestly the most important task I have in this phase of my life {and probably in every phase of life, really}. This is the place where I'll raise my children. The place where all of their memories will be made. The place where my husband comes to relax at the end of a long day. The place where my children will learn and grow and form life-long sibling relationships. And I want it to be a good great place for them to do all of those things.

I also want it to be a space that makes me smile when I enter it.
A space where I can relax, do the things I love to do, and regenerate day after day.

I think that I have gotten into a rut again where I am choosing to do "other things" {reading, prepping the tv segment, running errands, working on craft projects...}BEFORE I do the essential things that will make our home a happy, organized place to be.

Don't get me wrong. My kids aren't living in a pile of filth and wondering where their next meal is going to come from or anything nutsie like that. I just know that our day-to-day existences could just be that much brighter. More meaningful. More beautiful. A better outward expression of our love for God and the joy that this love infuses into every facet of the way we live our lives.

So, I'm HOPING {fingers crossed!} that I can start blogging about our daily progress and sharing small successes with you. I want to do the following:

*Make our home more beautiful by decorating it with things that we love, things that have meaning, and things that make us smile.
*Clean more and more regularly. Try to find a system that works for me - something that I can stick with.
*Go to bed early and get up early and stop taking naps when Tentens does. {He's almost one and is sleeping through the night for crying out loud! I think the good old "Sleep when the baby sleeps." adage has officially hit it's deadline! Darn.}
*Keep spending quality time with the boys each day. Today we painted a painting to hang in the kitchen. Kort had so much fun, and we had such a good talk, and if I could regularly create moments like that, our home couldn't be anything other than heavenly {even if it was "technically" a mess}.
* Go from room to room and make a list of all of the small repairs or decorating issues that need to be tackled, then make a conscious effort to check those things off. {slowly but surely}
*Go through all of the closets and drawers in my house {one by one, baby steps, of course} and purge, purge, purge!!

I am working on some really fun organizational and decorating projects that I am really excited to share. {In true Laura fashion, they are all about 50% done... heaven forbid I start and finish one thing at a time! That would like, make sense or something!}