Easy Breezy

I'm taking a break (blogging-wise, Lord KNOWS I don't get to take an actual break) from my ceilings today, and creating a virtual vacation space for myself.  I'm surrounded by clutter and mess, so today I'm sharing my "happy place" with you. 
**P.S. I get to start painting my ceilings tonight and move the furniture back in tomorrow - wahoo!**

I'm imagining that I'm somewhere calm and sunny today.  Maybe a light breeze is blowing; it's the kind of warm weather where you feel like you're under a soft blanket and you enjoy the sun on your arms... Are we all there yet?  Good.  Now, the rest is up to you... 

Are you perhaps lying on this bed reading a book?

Mmmmmm, feel that breeze through the open windows...

Are you realxing in this family room on the couch, with an ice cold lemonade?

Just look at those waves roll in...

Are you taking a bath on this secluded porch?

Feel that warm sun on your shoulders...

Maybe you're relaxing in the kitchen as the kiddos run back and forth to the pool?

Wet feet? Who cares...

Enjoying your private cottage in the Hamptons?

Well, hello lounge chair and pillows, don't mind if I do...

Of maybe you're on the West coast, sipping something sweet by your pool, as you savor the view...

I can feel that ocean breeze and smell the sea, can you?

Ahhhh.  Wasn't that relaxing?  Whatever you're doing today, take a little time and relax in your own personal happy place.   Happy Wednesday, friends!

{all images via Elle Decor, House Beautiful, or Traditional Home}

Just call me Orville... Redenbacher, that is.

I'm dying under a mountain of popcorn. 

I like tackling big projects myself.  They always make for wonderful stories, amazing learning experiences, and pretty good blog posts (see here for Summer 2010's kitchen redo).  But sometimes, these big projects find me in waaaay over my head.  I've always been able to finish, but I'm having one of those moments where I'm asking myself, "What have I done?!" And even though Eric and my dad did a TON of work this weekend, there was still bunches of work left when I arrived home Sunday evening.  As if the volume of work wasn't enough, we're been removing ceilings that likely have asbestos in them, so we have to wear masks and long sleeves/pants that we want to throw away and never see again (have I mentioned lately that its eleventymillion degrees here??).  Also, we have to keep poor Ted in the bedroom so he's safe from the icky stuff.  And finally... it makes a TERRIBLE MESS. 

I am a neat freak when it comes to my house, and right now my living and family rooms look like this because all of the furniture had to be removed from the back two bedrooms.  I can't believe I'm posting this. *cue the shameful face*

Why, yes.  That IS several mattresses, part of a desk, a bike, sandpaper, a random couch cushion, and a fedora!

And in this corner we have more desk pieces, a nightstand, college textbooks (Why do I find it so difficult to part with these?  Probably because they cost me roughly my first born child...), sunglasses, our new Netflix movie, a glove, and an asbestos mask.   *And very ugly curtains that are coming down soon, thank GOD!*

Are you as queasy as I am looking at all this JUNK?!  How did we acquire so much crap?  I posted 7 things on Craigslist yesterday - I simply cannot have all this junk.  End. Of. Story.  Aaaaaanyway...

The de-popcorning is coming along.  In fact, the de-popcorning is finished, along with the patching, sanding round #1, the new texturing (using a skip trowel - tutorial to come), and sanding round #2.  Whew!  This morning, I'll be finishing the final sanding, brushing away all of the dust, and applying one coat of the new paint.  It's an exciting color, are you ready?  Here it is!







Yep.  White.  I really don't have a decorating plan for these rooms yet *blasphemy, I know!*  and it's probably good, since a friend of ours is going to be moving in with us next month and occupying some of the oodles of extra space Eric and I have.  For now the ceilings will be in a matte white, with "greige" walls.  I'm still deciding on the color, but it's going pretty much everywhere in the house.

DISCLAIMER: I cannot do half the things that I LOVE about decorating in our home (namely crazy paint jobs, custom finishes, cool floorings, etc.) because this house will be a rental home for us within a few years.  Have I ever shared that before?  Maybe not.  We are paying it off as fast as we can, and it will be an AMAZING source of income in the coming years, but as some of you may know, the name of the rental property game is LOW MAINTENANCE & EASILY REPLACEABLE.  Most (certainly not all) renters, particularly the college-aged ones who look in our neighborhood, don't take care of properties and everything needs to be basic so that if it is damaged or breaks, it's no biggie to take care of.  *Sigh* 

This post is getting wordy.  I need more pictures.  Sadly, ceiling re-texturing is not a great picture project, but I have a few, so I'll share what I've got!

Here is a frightening photo of me, filthy, and in front of a drop cloth.  Thanks, Sperian mask, for keeping me cancer free!  Hey, you guys love pictures - I didn't promise they'd be cute...

 Here's the setup: rinse bucket, mud bucket, trash bucket.   And dirty floor.

Here's a "before" picture of sorts.  Although the offensive popcorn is already down, and the patching and sanding are done, this is before the final texture goes on (the most time consuming and labor intensive part of the job).  Loving the dated fan-without-blades/light fixture?  Me neither.  It's gone before the end of the month.  Final Answer.

"During" picture.  Good old dad is taking his turn at skip troweling (he is MUCH better at it than I am - it's an art, for sure!).  Disregard the difference in colors, it's topping joint compound, so it's wet.  *don't I sound like an expert?  "Topping joint compound," not to be confused with "all purpose joint compound," so professional!*

And the "after" shot!  Kind of.  We haven't sanded or painted yet, and that horrid light fixture is still there. *shudder*  Tomorrow we paint, and maybe we can clean up a bit so my carpets stop looking like this:

At least it vacuums easily.  Oh, the joys of big projects.  I REALLY need to finish this one, and sell my Craigslist junk, so I can feel like a real person again in my house.  The mess has Got. To. Go.  Anyone else an obsessive neat freak?  Do you love/hate/love messy projects or am I the only crazy?  Oh!  I was going to show you my Goodwill elephant that I spray painted a chic glossy white last week, but it got all smudged on the top, and needs a bit of sanding, and another coat.  I'll do it this morning so I can show you tomorrow.  Along with my one-coat-of-paint-so-far ceilings.  Win!  Happy Tuesday, friends!

**Also, Happy Summer Solstice!  The longest day of the year will surely feel that long around here!**

Popcorn and weekend travels

Hello all!  I promise I'm not dead, just scraping and spackling and sanding and texturing and watching topping compound dry.  It's truly thrilling here today, to be sure.  Since I don't have the time/energy to post all of the real pictures I have (full popcorn ceiling removal tutorial is coming soon!), I'll just post some pretty pics from our weekend travels.  Enjoy!

The Court of Angels in  New Orleans Square in Disneyland (where Eric proposed to me!)

AMAZING new show at Disney California Adventure: The World Of Color

More World of Color.  Imagine the Bellagio fountain show (only bigger) mixed with one of those boxes of 120 crayons. Awesome.

Quick detour on the way home through Palm Springs.  Adorable little town in the middle of the desert, and it has WONDERFUL shopping (decor and clothing - like a dreamland!).  I wish we could have stayed for the festival of short films there this week!

The Hyatt Regency in Palm Springs.  Yes, please!

I hope you all are having lovely Mondays, as for me, I've got to get back to my bedroom ceilings.  Happy Monday, friends!

Aaaaaand, we're off! (again)

Yep!  Another vacation is headed my way!  Today, my sister, mom and myself take off for her birthday trip to...

We LOVE Disneyland.  It's always been a place where our family could make amazing memories and spend good quality time together (it's not a real Disney day unless you both open and close the park - a 16 hour day!).  My sister and I are taking my mom on Friday and Saturday, in celebration of her birthday which is tomorrow.  It's going to ba a great girls trip! 

And because I have the BEST husband in the world, he and my dad are gearing up for their boys weekend project... removing our popcorn ceilings.  I can't believe I'm leaving my home stuck in 1977 and returning to a nice modern update - I'm so lucky!!  They'll be doing a LOT of this:

They're starting with the two bedrooms (one of the three already has an updated ceiling), and at the end of the weekend, we'll see how it went before we tackle our two main rooms.  I'm SO excited to see how it turns out, and SO thankful that my hubby and dad are so wonderful that they will skip out on a trip to do this!  Hoorah!

In other news, I picked up a few items the other day at  my favorite haunt, Goodwill.  I snatched up this pewter shell-shaped bowl for $3 (it is far better than this picture makes it look - darned camera!!)

 

And this little golden apple bowl and lid for $0.50.  I'm not sure if it'll retain it's gold color or not, but I loved she shape!

An last, but not least, I saw this HORRIBLE looking thing for $1.

BAD, right?!  While I love a good "artisan" product, wouldn't it be cuter if it looked like one of these?

 I'll tell you that I started spray painting it yesterday afternoon, and so far it looks AMAZING!  I can't wait to show the final product to you on Monday when I get home!  Be excited for another $2 make-over!  Have a happy Thursday, friends!

Ted's new loot!

Ted is a happy happy dog this morning.  He recently won a giveaway from Decor and the Dog (go check the blog out right now! You won't regret it!) for a $50 PetSmart gift card!  He was originally concerned that he would not be able to buy exactly what he wanted, due to his parents' practicality and his lack of pose-able thumbs (otherwise I'm very certain he would have gone himself).  However, he neglected to remember that his mom is a total SAP and wants to spoil him completely.  We all jumped in the car a few nights ago, and headed out to PetSmart to see what we could find.  And we came home with a good amount of loot:

Ted absolutely insisted he be present in all shots so as to show how much he's loving everything!

We took home:

~Doggie nail clippers (they're still in the packaging and he thinks they're a treat -shhhh!) to help treat Ted's "raptor claws," as we like to call them

~A new bowl that's shatter-proof, has a rubber bottom and is MUCH more stylish then the pink girly other one he's been using for the last 6 months...

~A new "unstuffed" toy in the shape of a dragon.  He picked it up and carried it around the store for the entire time, and any of our attempts to show him other toys were met with disdain.  (We tried the wubba, Michelle, it just couldn't compare to his new dragon buddy, apparently!) =)

~A new collar to match his red leash and his new bowl.  Collars get to be so grungy looking after a while, especially here in hot, sunny, and dusty AZ!

~A package of "Greenies" treats that are AMAZING at helping keep your pooch tartar-free.


Ted is so thrilled with all of our purchases, and I think his faith in our shopping abilities has been restored.  He posed for some pics with his individual items, and you can see his annoyance growing in each of the shots.  To me, his face says: "Stop this and give me my dragon toy.  Right. Now."

Posing with what will undoubtedly be his least favorite purchase, and looking slightly annoyed.

Posing with his new bowl, and more annoyed that it is empty for picture-taking purposes.

Posing with his new collar, which he actually likes, and now definitely giving me the "stink eye."

 Finally happy that I gave him back his beloved dragon!

Thanks, Michelle for a great giveaway!  We are so thrilled with our new toys!  I hope everyone is having a lovely day (it'll be even more lovely if you check out Michelle's blog and see her drool-worthy monkey bread post!), and as always, have a happy Wednesday, friends!

Big Bear Lake (and how we were almost murdered)

We're back!  We had an absolutely lovely time, and we are the happy kind of exhausted being as we arrived home at 2:30AM yesterday.  WARNING: this post contains pictures of a family vacation and if you are not interested in such things, turn back now (however I do promise several amazing pictures of houses!).  Now we've got that out of the way...

Let me first say that we did not mean to arrive home so late.  We were headed back at a completely decent hour and should have been home by 11:30.  However, if you've ever driven to Phoenix from LA, you will understand the following story a bit better than others.  You drive almost the entire way on the I-10, and past Indio, there's really nothing until almost the border of AZ.  We were plugging along here (Eric was driving) going about 75 when we came upon a red suburban in front of us who was going about 55.  Naturally, we got over to the left to pass and gave him plenty of space (Eric is an AMAZING driver - SO careful).  This punk speeds up so that we cannot pass.  So, we get behind him again, and he purposely slows down.  I'm annoyed, Eric doesn't really care (another example of why he's an amazing driver - he's impervious to other people's stupidity on the road.  I am not so kind...).  Mr. Red Suburban Punk now gets into the left lane and boxes us in while making rude hand gestures.  If we speed up, he speeds up, we slow down, he slows down, etc.  Ummm, wtf?!  Eric calmy decides to get off the road at the next exit, as it's NEVER good to drive boxed-in on an interstate (there are only two lanes in each direction at this spot).  As we are bout to make good on this plan... BAM! I slam back in my seat, black out a bit, and Eric swears.  CRAP.  Turns out, because we were boxed in, we hit a TIRE, a whole effing TIRE and we couldn't swerve because Mr. Red Suburban Punk (this is FAR too nice a name for him, but I like to keep it family appropriate around here) was right next to us.  We had to pull over immediately in the dark to see if any damage had been done.  We could see several things hanging down from the underside of the car, but I urged Eric to keep driving (albeit slowly) until we could get to a real exit.  We were about 25 miles from Blythe at this point.  He obliged and told me later that he hurried me into the car because he had seen someone walking down the highway about a mile back and wasn't anxious to meet that person (this is where the story stops being so much about a tire and our car and more about how we were almost murdered...).  We drove about 40mph to the next real exit, which had NOTHING after it, but a dirt road and some very bright distant lights. I was HORRIBLY uncomfortable with the situation.  Something wasn't right about the whole place.  Eric took a look and discerned that the belly pan on our car (the bit that shields the engine from the road) had been cracked and needed to be secured.  Duct tape was his thought and he started searching the car for some.  At this point, by GOD's grace... I remember where we are exactly and I ORDER him back into the car because I see a few people running down the dirt road at us, carrying backpacks.  We quickly re-enter the interstate and about 30 yards down the road we see this sign

Only it was COMPLETELY dark outside.  THAT'S what those bright lights in the distance were.  I don't even want to think about who was running towards us with backpacks...  We were almost MURDERED!  Probably not, but it felt that way, for sure.  At this point I'm starting to feel very sore and feverish and swollen.  It's a big impact to hit a tire going around 60mph, and it mostly hit my side of the car.  In the end, we duct taped it back together in Blythe and drove safely home albeit two hours later than we'd planned.  Yesterday, I was so sore I could barely move, and so swollen I couldn't fit into my clothing.  UGH.  I'm recovering more today, but that's largely why there was no blog entry yesterday.  And in my usual stubbornness, I'm  refusing to go to the doctor,  Nothing they can give me is any better than Tylenol, right? ;)  Also, the damage will cost right around $400 - look our for karma, Mr. Red suburban Punk, I hear she can be quite the bitch not-so-nice-lady (sorry, trying to keep with the family-friendly vibe). That is my CRAZY story from our trip.  Now, onto the good stuff...

Big Bear Lake is gorgeous.  It's park ski town, part resort town, part hick town, part celebrity hang out.  Best of all worlds, if you ask me...  We took a tour around the 7 mile long, one mile wide lake from this marina:

On this boat:

This is "The Time Bandit" a 1/3 scale pirate ship used in the filming of the 1981 movie by the same name. It's about a boy who joins a group of time traveling dwarfs aboard their pirate ship.  Sounds like a winner...  But hey, it was produced by George Harrison, so it must be good, right?

On our tour, we were told about the history of Big Bear Lake and some of the famous people who live there part of the year.  It was really interesting, and some of the houses we saw were OUT OF THIS WORLD.  Here's a little taste...

This residence belongs to Olivia Newton John.  I expected more than a pontoon boat from her, I'm just saying...

This one belonged to Andy Griffith for YEARS until my aunt and uncle nearly purchased it, then decided they didn't want it (no sewer, only septic - yuck!), then someone else bought it.  And now I'm whistling that Andy Griffith song in my head...

Homeboy on the porch with a megaphone is Noel Blanc, son of Mel Blanc, voice of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, and almost every Looney Tune there is.  He comes out to give the tour boats a sample of his voices that he learned from his dad.  Cute =)

Gorgeous mansion.  You can see how high the lake is; people who didn't have retaining walls had parts of their yards flooded.

I could live here too - twist my arm...

3 stories and a private dock.  Yes, please!

The homes were absolutely breath taking, and I couldn't believe the lake wasn't more crowded!  It's a 90 minute drive from L.A. to a sunny lake with cool weather and NO SMOG.  No wonder my aunt and uncle moved up there permanently from Orange County. 

We also got a little time to go thrifting/antiquing.  We found a lot of adorable thins, but the prices were really inflated, so we didn't come home with anything.  However, we did see this gem and had to take a picture: 

Yes, that IS a monkey cookie jar where you must remove the monkey's butt to retrieve your snack.  Awesome.  But sadly, we left it there for the next monkey-butt enthusiast. 

We had such an amazing time celebrating our anniversary.  We even got to spend most of Sunday with my aunt and uncle seeing the sights of Big Bear by land and sea.  I highly recommend a visit, especially by those of you who already live in Southern California.  It's close, convenient, and a great getaway.  Our actual anniversary was yesterday, and we celebrated by stuffing our faces with Mexican food and taking our dog to PetSmart to spend his gift card he won over at Decor and the Dog (Even more confirmation I married the right man: Anniversary = copious amounts of Mexican food + time with the animal).  I'll show you tomorrow what Ted came home with (he's so excited!).  I hope you're having a wonderful day, and happy Tuesday, friends!!

Off we go!

Eric and I are packing up and heading out today on our little anniversary getaway!  Two years ago Monday we had the best wedding EVER, and became the two happiest people EVER.  We're headed off to Big Bear Lake, California and I can't wait to look at views like this all weekend...

*sigh*  It's going to be great!  I hope you all have fabulous weekend plans - and I promise I'll show you my finished pillows next week.  Happy Friday, friends!

Update: It's just occurred to me that there are creepers out there who wait for people to announce they're going out of town and then rob their homes.  If you are such a creeper, go for it.  A few of Eric's college buddies are staying here for the weekend, so if you fancy fighting off three grown men to steal our two gaming systems (pretty much the only things of value in the house), then be my guest, haha!