Making Home Upgrades a Little Cozier

Tadah! New Yoga Studio!

Here's my confession: I don't have this big amazing gift for design (I know, big shocker right). But I know what I like when I see it -- sometimes it's hard for me to just come up with a concept out of nowhere -- especially when I lack the funding to style my house straight out of a Pottery Barn catalog. That's why I was thankful the sweet ladies over at CozyWallArt.com asked me if I'd like to check out their designs. They've got some fun new patters.... some inspired by everyone's favorite 15-minutes-of-fame Pop Art Prince, the late Andy Warhol, and plenty of other goodies (because soup cans and Mariyln Monroe are not for everyone, though they should be). Just kidding, it's not like that. But I'm pretty sure in my email correspondence with them I replied: "You had me at Warhol."

I took some time on their website, imagining how this or that would look here or there in my house, and ultimately decided my mantle could make a big splash with some CozyWallArt.com quick (link is to their Etsy store). Oh but before you see the odd picture with the shelving to the left of the mantle, let me say that odd furniture locale was the result of me tearing out the carpet in the sunroom whilst my better-half was on a business trip in DC.  (I had to get the furniture out of there). The before pic is in the top left hand corner... 

Anyway, so we've been in home improvement mode here. Getting ready to put the house back on the market later this month. (Any of my cousins reading this, seriously, I would love to keep this place in the family. Any potential buyers?) But back to the mantle....

#whahwhah

Heres the before (again, do not pay attention to the furniture on the left. Just notice how boring I am... 

And then BAM! Splash it up with a little CozyWallArt.com, and suddenly I'm in a whimsical blue spring dream. This is from their Tree Wall Decal section.

I know a lot of people (especially in Utah) embraced vinyl in their house 10 years ago... for us, outside of an Avengers peel-set my mom gave Holden for his playroom, I just hadn't figured out exactly what would work for me. 

But thanks for taking a chance on me CozyWallArt.com. I'm digging my upgraded "digs." 

30 Days of Thanksgiving: Twelve

Wish I had more time to write, but we've kind of been busy lovin' up on this VOC-FREE variety in "Naturalist Gray." I forgot to take "before" pics of our living and dining room, but you can bet they'll be "afters" coming sooner than later.

Airing My Dirty Laundry

My dryer just got fixed today! Huzzah!!!!
It had been out of commission since before we left for Maui.
But when it broke, there were diapers in the wash and so this was the result:

Air dry!!!!
Which on further reflection is what I should be doing anyway, right?

Unfortunately, any carbon offsets we may have acquired from the natural solution was killed ten-fold by the landfills we were adding to with our share of disposable pull ups and diapers.

Upgrade

Although Danny wishes Beyonce would make a personal appearance at our home, I don't see it in the foreseeable future. Logistically it's just not happening, right? I mean, what would I cook for that kind of dinner guest?

But I am happy to report our home did get an UPGRADE -- by means of our Frienters (Friends who rent our basement=Frienters,). They are brilliant and painted the bookshelf in the basement. True, it's not actually our living space; but I think it represents a lovely improvement to the overall home.

In a separate but similar note, I think about some of my cousins/relatives reading this blog and wonder if it's hard for them to see changes to Grandma & Grandpa's home (the new door, the kitchen). But I am reminded that my Grandpa was always making improvements to the place, or had some sort of project going on... so I feel like it's done in likeness to their spirit of home and yard beautification.

Check out the QNC upgrade.

Hits and Misses (Another Edition)

So what's going on with the Mangums?

Hit: New door! I am normally not a fan of storm doors (they can be seriously so tacky)...

Exhibit A:
My Grandparent's storm door from 40-plus years ago,
you may be able to see that the screen has completely ripped out,
and it is far from being functional.

...but I think until we our in our dream home with knotty alder cabinets & doors, granite counter tops and bamboo flooring that this is a nice upgrade.

Plus I love the extra light we get from it (the storm door), Holden loves the view and when the main door is open, it's like one more window. If only my entire house were made of windows. I think once we paint the house dark grey I'd like a black door, or a red door - very feng shui (or so I hear).

This inside view is much improved as well. From this:

To this!
(It's even better with the door open,
I should've taken one of those shots too.)

Double Miss: In this week's episode of Misadventures in Parenting: Holden ate dirt this morning from one of my mom's potting plants; so I called poison control to make sure the phosphates and whatever junk is in potting soil didn't kill him. It appears he shall live through the day. In other culinary disasters, yesterday at the park I was watching him from 8 feet away (trying to not hover and let the child explore), when he picked up what I though was one of those bean pod dried leaves from a tree... he put it in his mouth before I realized it was 1/2 a peanut butter sandwich some kid had left on the playground! I gagged, panicked and gagged again. But Good News: my son does not seem to have a peanut allergy!

Hit: I weighed in again today and am officially below the 150 lb barrier.

Miss: I am excited about being below the 150 lb barrier. I know it seems a bit odd, to be celebrating at 149.5 lbs. But in my defense (and as I have mentioned numerous times before), I was about 155 when Danny and I started dating (thank goodness I have a man who likes THICK women)... and on my wedding day -- starved and dehydrated -- I was 143. So what is a dire situation for some, is a celebration for moi. (And yes, it's taken years of therapy to be so open about my weight.)

Hit: I feel like we ate fancy food yesterday. We are normally whole-wheat-pasta people in this house, but yesterday I attempted tortellini (from scratch) for the first time. So yes, I used white flour for the noodles...I thought the leftover butternut squash soup would make a great base for a sauce, and it turned out to be quite tasty. Danny was bummed I gave the leftovers to my sister. To complement our fancy feast (not in the cat food sense of the word), but I took the leftover green beans (chilled), added a little feta cheese, crushed almonds and a quick garlic balsamic dressing for our salad and just cooked up some spinich. I did spend a little longer on dinner than I normally would, but it was worth it. Too lazy to download the pictures right now, but I'll post eventually.

I want, I want, I want...

I want to be the person that sends thank you notes on time.
(Actually), I want to be the person that writes thank you notes on paper, and not just in my head.
I want to be gracious.
I want to spend less, but give more.
I want to be more patient.
I want to do the splits.
I want my eyebrows to grow back in and look normal.
I want to get a brow wax.
I want to educate without sounding dogmatic.
I want to learn more.
I want to look good in a swim suit, and believe it.
I want to stand on my head. (Hmmm, maybe I'll do that now.)
I want clean cabinets and bathrooms.
I want my electrical rewired. (In my home, not necessarily me personally or philosophically.)

Also, I don't think the 'chocolate cake the size of the world' I've wished for every year at my birthday, since I could make a wish, is actually going to bring world peace. Bummer.

Speaking of cake, a couple of minutes of Holden eating his birthday cupcake. We thought he'd get all crazy (not so much)... apparently that's reserved for beets, avocado and yogurt.

Food Log
Breakfast-Glass of milk and whole wheat waffles with syrup and peanut butter. I just used some of yesterday's batter. Lunch 1/2 leftover stuffed pepper and a small twice baked potato (I will be sad when all the left overs are gone). Spinach salad w/ avocado, and a bunch of other veggies I forgot to write down (I also had this salad around 4). Dinner: wheat tortilla with a bit of chicken, Parmesan, sour cream and pico. I'm sure I had a few bites of something else (most likely fruit off of Holden's tray.) But I didn't write it down and it's late. I am not withholding information on purpose... my brain just feels lik mush.

Randoms, Again

So I should either be:

a) 'pumping' (sorry for the details)
b) painting my cabinets (I decided yesterday I wanted my kitchen cabinets white)
c) sleeping (no explanation needed, I'm a mom)
d) all of the above, none of which include blogging.



We returned from Lagoon (it's what fun is) a couple of hours ago. For the record, it is not the most desirable place to take a 6 month old who ONLY rides in a stroller about once a month. (Did Dr. Sears write a book on 'attachment parenting for amusement parks?!?!?)

I brought the sling -- just in case -- and was very grateful I had it (and that after 3 - 4 hours my mom somehow got Holden to fall asleep in the 'baby pusher.')

Plus it was blazin' hot... and even with a mister (i.e. spray bottle) and "momsicles" (ask Wikky H(2), wink wink), I still couldn't get his cheeks to turn anything but a flushed pinkish red.

The poor guy couldn't get comfortable... was tired, hot and the flower beds smelled oddly like manure. I am happy to report only one mullet sighting for the day; and I didn't see one couple sporting the 'I'm with Stupid' shirt! I'm thinking Lagoon's target audience/demographic has changed. (Any fellow Utahns care to weigh in?)

So yeah, I really should be painting my cabinets. I decided yesterday I wanted them white, so Danny came home to the beginning stage of my 'project' that probably has another 24 hours to go. (I am thankful for 'Fresh Aire' paint -- no icky smell, no harm to Holden/the world -- but doesn't anyone make a NO VOC primer too? The stuff takes a few more coats, if you know what I mean.)

Danny returns from Scout Camp/Jackson Hole tomorrow. We miss him.

Good Night all...

Lucky Me, Lucky Lawn

Here's what I want my lawn to look like....




Here's what my lawn actually looks like..
.

The first picture is what the kids are calling 'green.' And I don't just means because it's actually the color. By planting clover in your grass, it's one way to have a 'green' (read: eco-friendly, save the planet, crazy tree huggin', etc. etc) lawn.

There are so many advantages to a clover lawn...

• Little need for watering
• No need for toxic and harmful herbicides
  
• And clover out-competes other weeds...

Plus it feels so nice on your feet, and it's pretty much a perennial. I know some of you are thinking, "My husband spends loads of time trying to get rid of our clover." Well, that's your problem, not mine. ;)

Did you know that "a healthy patch of white clover was considered a standard of excellence in lawn care until the 1950's, when the rising use of broadleaf herbicides that killed clover as well as more harmful weeds made the current grassy monoculture the ideal lawn of most homeowners..." (Quoted from this smart lady.)

The thing is, Danny and I have tried the conventional methods to try and get our lawn green (the color, not the movement.) But it never worked... and there were all these crazy chemicals and smells, for nothing! So finally I said, if our lawn is going to be difficult and ugly and full of weeds anyway, can we at least do it without all the toxins? And he obliged. (Why not try it? He conceded.)


I'm excited to show you the results... though, it will probably take a year since we were supposed to seed in the spring, but can also do it in the Fall. Good luck to us!


PS. I also thought you might enjoy this picture of Holden loungin' at the pool today. Although his longsleeve onsie matches his coloring (from my father-in-law, bless his heart), I assure you it is infact separate form his skin.

Week(odds and) End/s

Television I'm Actually Ok With...

So I just found my new favorite way to post pictures (next to mass production on Facebook). I'm sure the novelty will wear off eventually, but I'm enjoying it for now.

These pics were taken last Father's Day. Cicely has Faye's blessing at her in-laws and the television shows a few pics of Holden trying to sit at 'the big kids table.'


My Great and Spacious Building
Before Holden and I got sick, we were taking walks in the morning. (Well, I walked; he kicked it in the Jeep pouch and sometimes fell asleep.) But I'd always find a way to wind back into Choke Cherry Drive (Lane?) and look at this house.
I love it. Even though there's nothing practical about it, except for the 2500 sq feet of open space (I think the whole house is like 6000 sq ft) to host the best parties in the world (or at least in our postal district... I certainly wouldn't try to compete with the Sundance crowd..) I imagine cooking in the stainless steel kitchen, taking in the gorgeous views of the valley, parking our hybrid SUV (yes, still dreaming) in the 4 car-plus garage; inviting family and friends over, and Holden learning to crawl on floors (did I mention there's 2500 sq feet of open space?!?!)

My relatives would hate it. People would make comments like 'their place just isn't homey' and 'it just doesn't seem liveable' .... and comment about how they 'would never want a place like that'... but I would hardly care. Because I think it's awesome.

To me, this place is a work of art. And listed (yes, it's for sale) at just under $2.5 mil, I'm sure Danny and I are just (more than) a life time from owning it.

Heavy sigh,

Well, it's not really homey and probably isn't really livable anyway (what would we do with the elevator shaft and the stairs alone would obvious be a nightmare with children?!?!).

Oh well... at least I've got really cool neighbors (or at least neighbors with a really cool house).


Money in Your Pocket
PS. My mom still wants to give you a grand.

Lowe's and Labor- A winning Combination

So yesterday my BFF from SG (Brandi Honey) drove down (over, across?) from spending the Christmas Holiday in Kamas with family… it was awesome! She is such a good a friend; she did not even comment on my sausage fingers (actually she did, but she just said she didn’t really think I looked bloated).

Which was great because I spent some time on Saturday and earlier Monday morning at Yoga; and I have also given up eating my weight in Chocolate Texas Sheet Cake for the past few days… and I think it’s really made a difference with the whole “bloating” factor. Eeek! What a horrible word – bloat. It’s almost as bad as “moist” – but for entirely different reasons.

Anyway, I digress.

We had lunch at Porcupine (“Chicken Soup for the Skiers Soul”) and she almost went into cardiac arrest when a neighboring table was brought out the ½ order of nachos… (yes, the ½ order is larger than your head).

Then we went to Lowe’s to “Build Something Together.”


"The Danny" and I have been in need of a new dishwasher since we moved into this place… but to invest in the dishwasher (because of the 12 layers of linoleum and sub-floor below) means new flooring; and countertops… and why get new countertops if we’re not going to get new cabinets? And wouldn’t it be great to knock out a wall or two to “open the space up”… you know how it is.

Brandi's husband is a big-time painter in SG and does Parade of Homes houses; and she LOVES that kind of stuff so I knew her opinions would be fabulous to have...

So yesterday we priced out things we can’t afford that would be perfect; and things we can afford that aren’t worth it. It was a great afternoon!

Last thoughts – Yesterday when I walked past a table at Porcupine that had ordered a FULL-ORDER of nachos (2 adults and one child?!?!? Come on! That’s like eating 2 Thanksgiving Dinners each!) I found myself self-narrating their experience:


• “Oh my gosh, I just walked past a table with a full plate of nachos and it put me into pre-mature labor.”

Here are some others that may or may not equal the dramatics:

• “I totally tried to fit into my pre-pregnancy jeans and the pressure on my lower abdomen totally put me into premature labor.”

• “That man’s Christmas sweater was so over the top, the shock put me into premature labor.”

• “Edward Cullen is so hot, he totally puts me into premature labor.”

• “I just saw [So-and-so] from high school; and they totally got skinny. The stand-by jealousy put me into premature labor.”

Feel free to add your own… As of Friday, I’ll be considered “Full-Term” (ok, 37 weeks); so hopefully these things will just “put me into labor.” I’ve also heard that Raspberry leaf tea works…Care to share what puts you into labor? ;)

My House Smells Like Burnt Smores or "I Smell Sex and Candy" the director's cut

Tonight I tried to make my "crowd pleasing" fruit slush. Now my house smells like burnt smores and I've again succeeded in almost burning down another house... or at least smoking it out.

The recipe:

*2 parts sugar, 3 parts water - bring to a boil - freeze overnight

*frozen fruit, any variety (to taste)

*Fresca / sprite / ginger ale/tonic water (pick your poison) any variety to taste

*fresh banana cut up in the mix

*Mix and VIOLA! Party time!

It's a no brainer... easiest treat in the world and practically no-fail. I say "practically" because tonight I learned a different story. I had successfully served this delightful treat (which is also a no-fail for my dinner parties, any of you that have attended) at a young women's activity... and I was making a few extra batches for my cousin's wedding reception on Saturday (Danny and I are heading outside NY for a wedding this weekend... we get in Friday night, attend the wedding dinner and wedding saturday and head back to SLC Sunday... it will be a quick but brilliant trip.)

Anyway, I got the simple sugar syrup boiling on the stove.... and then I started watching the Red Sox game in the 9th inning, thinking it was going to be over shortly... yeah, it went 14 innings...

I now have 1) no simple syrup to freeze for slush, 2) a pan that looks like carmel burned to the bottom of it (because it did), 3) EVERY window in my house opened AND 4) a smokey house.

I swear I am not cut out for domesticity. (Holden, what are we getting ourselves into?!?!? It's going to be you and me on our own kid... and I'm not sure how safe that is...)

I don't want to scar (or scare) any of you. But I couldn't help but think of another domestic experience that I decided to share with all of Washington County shortly after Danny and I tied the knot. (I have shared this with you before. Find it from the magazine here at the online version.

GREAT NEWS!!!! And graduation pictures!

Things we are celebrating at the suite-mangum/mangum house (not necessarily in order of importance):

• Danny's swanky new job with Zions! Some of you have heard us talk about this opportunity... and just a couple of months ago we were thinking it wasn't going to happen as the timing was just not seeming to be there. He had got a great offer from First Utah Bank, but Zions was where he wanted to be, and yesterday he got the call... the offer... and accepted!  He starts on June 9th.  I'm so proud of him!!!!

• King bed, yo! Danny's family (mom & dad and aunt & uncle) bought this swanky pad in upstate-Utah (Eden in Ogden Valley) and asked if we'd be willing to trade out our Queen bed for the joint and replace it with their King bed... um, HELLO!?!?!  Twist my arm?  Ok, yeah... don;t even need to think about it.  So Monday we're going to hit the memorial day white sales and pick up some 800 thread-count linens!!! Hollah!!!  

• Yoga a go-go. Well, I finally got my paperwork completed and have officially applied for Flow Yoga's Teacher Training program.  It starts July 7 and is a month-long 200-plus hour "intensive" that if completed successfully means I would be a certified yoga instructor. I haven't been accepted yet, but we're anticipating a positive response. I'll need to be away from my official job at SkyWest during this time... so there's a lot of pieces that need to fall into place, but I'm super excited about this new opportunity. 

• We got the house! That's right!!!!  The pad that we've been living in (basement-status since we relocated to the East bench early this year) is going to be ours!  They took our offer, and paperwork will be processed this week.  I can hardly believe it.  Of course, I must make note that this whole deal wouldn't be possible without help from our families. We're so blessed...There are so many memories in this home for me. It was my grandparents.... in fact, we even lived here when I was a wee little tot for just over a year when my grandparents were serving a mission in Montana. I lived across the street, and down the street around the corner...I love this piece of property... and am so thrilled we are back to the neighborhood of my childhood!

• "I is now a GRAD-U-IT!"  OK, not so much me (well, I think Danny and I figured out I had actually graduated with my bachelors two years before he graduated from High school... man, am I a cougar or what?!?!?!)  Anyway, he is now officially a graduate from the U of U -- with a bachelor of Arts in Economics and a minor in business.  I am so proud of him.  I think I was more excited for him to graduate that I was for myself!  (Actually, I wasn't really excited to graduate. I was only 21 and would've stayed studying for years in the safe-walls of institutionalized learning as long as they would've let me... but the $$$$ was not there.)  So, please enjoy these pics from Danny's big day earlier this month. 

Below: Danny's Dad, the grad and Princess Di 

(oh, wait... that's my mother-in-love Stevie.  Doesn't she have 

a striking resemblance to "the people's princess"?

Below: Three generations of Mangum men.  Danny's grandpa Garth used to teach (head of the dept of Economics at the time, actually)  at the U.  While we were there, all of these professors and the dean of the Social Sciences came up to talk to him and shake his hand. 

It's pretty cool to be part of a family 

that's so amazing and well respected.

Below: The Suites and Us. Do I look tan?  

I got a spray-on tan earlier that day that my husband thinks 

smells like teriyaki sauce -- nice!

Below:Danny just chillin' ... wishing his wife would stop

 yelling at him to "Smile!!!"

Below: the greatest picture of Garth Mangum possibly ever taken.  To the left, his wife and Danny's grandma -- Marion (she's hilarious... and also has the same name as my college town in Indiana, so we've got a connection.)  To your right... barbara.  

I could not adequately explain the dynamics of this woman in one post-- she's hilarious and I love her: we'll leave it at that. (Oh, and Barbara is Princess Di's mom)

Below: Um, if you don't know who this is... 

why do you read this post?

Below: Barbara and the grad... Every year Danny and Barbara 

go shopping for his B-day and do a lunch date.  

I LOVE that I am married to a man who has 

lunch dates with his g-ma.  It warms my heart. 

 

***Danny says he likes this post because he is the star.  I like it too... and for the very same reasons***

Also, did you know that neither of us like hot fudge on our brownies and ice cream?  If that doesn't prove we're soul-mates, I don't know what would.  Also, neither of us have showered today... but all that proves is that we're dirty hippies... well, maybe just dirty. ;)

Have a great night!  We're counting our many blessings this evening, and it feels great!  We could go on forever... but I've heard complaints form my sister that my posts are already too long... so I'm shutting it down now. ;)

Namaste.

ssm