Command Central.

I don't know about your neck of the woods but our fine city is singing the economy blues. My front door is plastered with flyers advertising home improvement services at astonishing low rates. Gifted craftsmen are begging for work and will do it for very little. Sad.

This is Command Central at my house. It is the place where we work, schedule doctor's appointments, blog, play games, read, lounge, work on homework, all that stuff.

When we first moved in this home almost 2 years ago I envisioned something like this California Closet setup. They gave me some very pretty drawings and a $5000.00 estimate. I then very kindly escorted them out the door.

Home Depot didn't do much better even for stock cabinetry. In the end I settled for pre-made shelves and brackets that my husband hung above the desks. I found the desks at Pottery Barn.

This gap between the desks has always bugged me.

So that's when I enlisted some help from the flyers off my door.

I told Mr. Handyman that all I wanted was a cheap bookshelf that would fit between the desks. Make it out of the cheapest stuff available and don't paint it. Nothing fancy because I was going to hide it anyway.



I put a piece of painted wood on top of the bookshelf. ACE hardware cut a piece piece of plexiglass for me.


Do you like my bulletin board? Read about that DIY project here.

Next, I purchased a spring tension rod from Walmart, made my own curtain and VIOLA! A mess of board games, toys and scrapbook clutter is hidden behind the ruffles.



The shelves above the desks are filled with Ikea storage boxes, yard-sale finds, old gym room locker baskets, things that are ecclectic and make me smile.

It's not my built-in mahagony dream but I like it even better because I spent very little (compared to what Cal. Closets quoted me) and it has charm.

Mr. Handyman did some other things for including make two more plywood book shelves. They are all about function...not pretty to look at or made out of quality wood but that's what I wanted. Tune in tomorrow for pictures of those. Guess what he charged me for three bookshelves made custom to my specifications...$50.00? Now where can you find a better deal than that?

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MINE!

These babies are now mine thanks to my good friend Craig...('s list). (Shhh...don't tell my husband, I sometimes check him out twice a day). The color and fabric are all wrong but they are in pristine condition.

I've spent much time debating what to do with them. The cheapeast option would be to slipcover them...yawn. Been there, done that. Most my furniture is slipcovered.

Next option is to re-upholster them. Too bad it's so stinkin' expensive. I've even strongly considered DIY'ing them. Crazy talk, I know. Too difficult with two little men running circles around me all day.

Listen to this. Did you know that many prisons have apprentice programs that teach inmates a trade? Upholstery is one of them. They charge about a third of what it would normally cost. Turn around time is 30 days. Sounds a little iffy but I heard their work is excellent! They also offer other services such as sandblasting, powdercoating, metalfab, wood working, etc. This morning I called my Arizona Correctional Industries and had them email me all the info. Check back with me in a month and we'll see how they turned out.

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Pouf.

Oh, that Amy Butler...what will she come up with next?

Have you seen her Gum Drop pouf pillow patterns?

I have been entertaining the idea of sewing one up. But hey, apparently that's what friends are for.

My friend presented this to my boys for their birthday. No Damask Rose prints here (to my chagrin). It's all superhero business in this household.

Just when you settle in for a cozy read of "Little Quack"...

Someone comes in and plows you over.

Nevermind that you may have been minding your own business...

Or that mom may be trying to get a good picture of the Pouf Pillow.

"OH, IT IS ON NOW"!

Defending the universe is exhausting work.

This thing should be looking like a pancake in no time!

(Thanks Lindsay!)

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Happy Birthday Naish.

Today my youngest baby turned 2. I can't believe how time has flown.

When I was pregnant with Naish I didn't think it was possible to love him as much as I loved Matani. Not so. On August 27, 2007 I wrote in his journal, "I can't help but stare at you all day long. I have no desire to do anything but hold you. I love the way you cross your feet, the way you smile in your sleep and the way you try and nurse my neck when your head rests on my shoulder. My heart is full of joy."

My amazing friend, Michelle R. of Wondertime Photography, took these photos just a couple days after Naish was born. She was also at the hospital when he was delivered snapping away. She put together a little photo montage. Check it out here. (Click on the smallest photo right under his name and birthdate).

Thanks a million Michelle. I will cherish those memories forever.

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ding, Ding, DING!

My hot handyman spent last Saturday working on my "honey-do" list.

Grandma gave the boys a fun addition to their room. A captain's bell to go along with the nautical theme in their room.

Jake rigged it so the boys can ring it anytime they want.


I'm about ready to take a pair of scissors to that rope.

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High-Heeled Foot in the Door.

It's always flattering when someone you've always admired admires you right back. Thanks to High-Heeled Foot in the Door for crushing on me! I have long since loved her style and posts. If you haven't ever visited her blog then you simply must. Check her out here.

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1st day of preschool.

It was a special day for this 4-year old.

Would you believe a few months ago I stood at line at 4:00 AM to ensure a spot at this preschool? Even at 4:00am I was still something like 21st in line. It was worth it!

A new year, a new room number.


This little guy wasn't about to be left out of all the preschool fun. (He was totally miffed when I packed him back in the car with me when it was time to leave).


A special day calls for a special after-school treat!

Brownies gone in 10 seconds flat!

Me: "Tani, how was your first day of school?"

Tani: "Good."

Me: "What did you do at school?"

Tani: "I don't remember."

Me: "Did you meet any new friends?"

Tani: "Yeah."

Me: "Who?"

Tani: "I don't know. Can I watch Caillou?"

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M.I.A.

I know I've been MIA for a few days. I'm happy to report that all the painting is finally done. It took a lot longer than I anticipated. The piece of junk paint sprayer was returned and replaced with a spay gun attachment for the air compressor which worked miracles. Once the pillow covers arrive from Marie's Cosy Cushions on Etsy I'll post pictures of the completed room.

Glidden-Granite Grey

Ralph Lauren-Neutral White

Behr-Evening Hush

Disney-Bee a Friend

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Wingbacks on my mind.

You may recall my funny little round room that I've talked about before. It acts as a hallway and leads to the kitchen, front entryway and dining/family room. It's such a puzzling space. I've finally decided to make it an informal breakfast nook and plan to do this sort of staging:

Photo: ?

I've been dilligently on the lookout for a couple of wingback chairs. Could these be any cooler?

I came accross this photo of Condoleezza Rice (www.casasugar.com) in these lovely wingbacks...

Don't these Craiglist Wings look similar? And at $50.00 / a piece! Oh, the possibilities!

Owner, please email me back already! Please don't tell me you sold them within one hour of listing them. I know my three emails is bordering stalking but your chairs are perfect for my round room. Please contact me...a phone call, an email, a smoke signal...I promise I'll treat them with care!

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Just because they're so darn cute.

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When it rains, it pours.

Time to work some magic on our bedroom furniture (a.k.a. a lot of paint). I've been doing quite a bit of research on painting furniture. In a nutshell, fastest way and best coverage is with a paint sprayer.

I decided to rent one from Home Depot. Turns out they only have monster sprayers that rent for $89.00. The guy tells me his would be way overkill for just painting some furniture. He suggests I just buy a smaller version for same price of renting the monster sprayer. Not really what I had in mind but okay.

I bought one of these Wagner models. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES DO I RECOMMEND THIS THING! It's hard to tell from the picture but it just splat big blotches of paint everywhere, EVERYWHERE! Then to top it off, it hasn't monsooned in weeks, but today it decided to dump. So we scrambled to get everything back in side. We took extra care to protect everything from possible paint spillage. PAINT IS NOW EVERYWHERE! I stepped backwards in to the bucket, spilled it all over the grass, tripped over the cord and dropped the paint sprayer, turned around backed my rear back in to painted wet dresser, here comes the rain. &*%$!

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