You know how it is. Over time you collect this and that. People give you “stuff.” And before you know it, you have an entire tubby full of Easter decorations you don’t use, much less want anymore.
That was the case for me last year. I put out a select few favorites and everything else stayed in the Easter box. The Easter box stared me down for a solid month before I couldn’t take it anymore.
I went through everything and since I already had my favorite decorations out, it was easy to get rid of everything else.
I feel better just knowing that this stuff is out of the house.
And it makes it much easier to find and utilize the things that I actually want to decorate with. Like this cute Easter sign.
Have you done any spring cleaning yet?
I love blouses with some detail down the front like this. Ruffles are my fave. I’ve always been a fan of black and white jackets. Now to find just the right one. Cause this one is $3000!
I’m big on curb appeal. It’s what sold us on our house. Ever since we moved in…gasp, almost 8 years ago… I’ve wanted to replace the doorbell. You’ll see why.
It only took me 20 minutes and $20 to make a big improvement. Okay, it’s little, but it feels big. And I’m glad to have made a little progress on the home front.
Old doorbell:
See how ugly, plain and yellow it is. Sure, I could paint it white to match the trim… or, I could buy this baby:
Very streamlined. No screws showing. And it matches the hardware on the door. Win!
So I turned off the circuit breaker to the porch (which reminds me, I need to get down there with my label maker!) and then removed the screws in the old doorbell. Be careful as you pull it away. The wires are tiny and I snapped one. Which meant it took extra time “skinning” the wire so I could get a clean connection.
Wrap the wires around the screws. The instructions came with pictures and it was very easy to follow.
Here’s the new doorbell with the wires attached and the screws retightened:
That’s it. Just two wires. Then slip the doorbell onto the bracket. The bracket is clear and makes the doorbell look seamless (no screws showing!)
Prettier, yes?
I love it!
And it was super simple. Really. If only all my weekend projects were that easy.
Info: I got the doorbell at Home Depot. $20.
As for that old doorbell? It’s going in an activity box for the niece and nephews. They love buttons as much as I do.
Here’s a look back at my 2012 via our newsletter from our family website, ericandalice.com.
One of my goals for 2013 is to create a different wreath/arrangement for my door each month. After spending the last 6 months on the road and not decorating my front door, I’m craving some door décor.
We’ve been back for an hour now and I’ve already been at it. What do you think? Is the bow too much?
I’m a little homesick right now. DH and I are spending our first Christmas in our RV and due to one circumstance after another we don’t have a Christmas tree yet. I want a live one. The local WalMart didn’t order live trees this year, table top or otherwise. So I’ve been looking back at some of our pictures.
It’s funny the things you miss.
Like these sconces. One of my favorite things to decorate each year. I thought this came out particularly well.
Or this collection of ornaments.
This picture makes me want to get home and repaint that room. And possibly, this cabinet. How very Bah Humbug of me, yes?
When we set out on this trip, I was secretly wondering if it would cure my need to decorate, decorate, decorate. The answer is, no. The desire to decorate is stronger than ever. I jokingly (okay, not really) tell DH that every room in the house is getting a paint job when I get home. Bless the man. That statement doesn’t even alarm him anymore.
Why Hello, September. So glad you decided to join us. You have always been one of my favorite months. And since you’re the gateway to two of my favorite things (autumn leaves and pumpkins) I thought I should celebrate with a cute autumn inspired outfit.
If you saw the first outfit I shared, you’ll probably recognize the grey t-shirt and jeans. I think partnering these orange accents make this the perfect outfit a lazy Sunday drive to see autumn leaves. Or depending on the shoes: a day of pumpkin shopping.
I’ll show you.
The mattress that comes with an RV is pitiful. We got rid of it immediately and put in a queen air bed. Then, once we decided we liked this whole RV lifestyle, we went out and purchased a Kingsdown (this is our third Kingsdown and we HIGHLY recommend them.)
The space is big enough for an RV King (not the same size as a king you have at home.) We decided to get a queen (standard queen) because it is the right length (and DH is tall) but it left us with empty space on either side. We use that little pocket of space as a “nightstand” and have plans to build one, at which point the mattress will be shoved all the way to one side.
We got rid of the “comforter set” that came with the rig. Too much chocolate brown for such a small room. I put on a white blanket and brought the slipcovers from the daybed in my office. Light turquoise and white, with a bit of a pattern thanks to the stitching. Makes for a very bright and airy bedroom.
The mirrored doors hide the closet. The louvered doors hide the washer/dryer cubby.
Blackout shades are on my to do list.
This is from my corner of the room. We love this floor plan because there is so much space around the bed.
We added the TV and are considering hanging it on the wall. We lay it on the bed when we travel. And then there’s the fish tank. Yes, we have a fish tank in the RV. You can read all about it here.
Down the hall you’ll see the two paintings that we brought with us. These are by one of my favorite artists. Katie McRostie. I’ll get a better picture of them later. They’re held in place with 3 Command picture hangers.
The “throw” at the end of the bed is really a beach towel from WalMart. I love it. It’s big and soft and the colors go really well with the pillows.
So there you have it. Our RV bedroom. Small but functional, and no longer a bear cave!
Because they get dirty just like everything else.
I’m amazed at how crufty and gross our washing machine gets. Earlier this spring I gave it a good cleaning.
I suppose it shouldn’t surprise me… I mean we do put load after load of dirty laundry in our washers each week. Right?
So when your washer gets gross like this…
I’ve found the best way to clean it is borax powder (I’ve used baking soda too), a general purpose cleaning spray, a thick rag, and a Mr. Clean Eraser sponge.
Spray everything down. Even the inside of the drum. Let it sit for a few minutes.
Dampen the rag with the cleanser, then dip in the powder. The abrasive gives you extra scrubbing power.
Use a little elbow grease and give everything a good scrub down. You might need an old toothbrush to get in the crevices. I find that Q-tips work well too.
Once you’ve scrubbed and you’ve scrubbed and you’ve scrubbed till everything looks nice and new again (or you just can’t scrub any more, which ever comes first) wet the sponge and wipe everything down. It may take you a few rinses.
But look at all this nasty dirt, dust, lint, and fuzz that you’ve just saved from getting on your clean clothes:
That started out as a white rag! OMG, that’s so embarrassing. I’m officially putting this on my Spring and Fall Cleaning schedule. Don’t be like me. Don’t go years between Warshing Machine (as my Grandma says) cleanings. Don’t. Do. It.
Because they get dirty just like everything else.
I’m amazed at how crufty and gross our washing machine gets. Earlier this spring I gave it a good cleaning.
I suppose it shouldn’t surprise me… I mean we do put load after load of dirty laundry in our washers each week. Right?
So when your washer gets gross like this…
I’ve found the best way to clean it is borax powder (I’ve used baking soda too), a general purpose cleaning spray, a thick rag, and a Mr. Clean Eraser sponge.
Spray everything down. Even the inside of the drum. Let it sit for a few minutes.
Dampen the rag with the cleanser, then dip in the powder. The abrasive gives you extra scrubbing power.
Use a little elbow grease and give everything a good scrub down. You might need an old toothbrush to get in the crevices. I find that Q-tips work well too.
Once you’ve scrubbed and you’ve scrubbed and you’ve scrubbed till everything looks nice and new again (or you just can’t scrub any more, which ever comes first) wet the sponge and wipe everything down. It may take you a few rinses.
But look at all this nasty dirt, dust, lint, and fuzz that you’ve just saved from getting on your clean clothes:
That started out as a white rag! OMG, that’s so embarrassing. I’m officially putting this on my Spring and Fall Cleaning schedule. Don’t be like me. Don’t go years between Warshing Machine (as my Grandma says) cleanings. Don’t. Do. It.
