Repurposing Lawn & Garden Equipment

We have a major issue in our house. An issue that drives me crazy. It's a toy issue. My poor baby boy has way too many! ha! What an issue. But, seriously, I am always looking for creative (and attractive) ways to hide his toys! I have a copper tub that sits in front of our fireplace that houses a lot of toys, there is also a rather large basket behind our couch and a basket in our bedroom. That is in addition to a toy box and some bins that are in Rhett's room. But, that still doesn't keep the toys from piling up all over and in every room of our house! I wish we had a playroom designated for his toys, but alas, we do not! So, the other day I was at Ace Hardware, and stumbled upon this:
It is a water hose holder thingie. I was immediately drawn to it due to its formality. I thought it would be perfect in our formal living/dining room to hide some of Rhett's toys. It is made of lightweight resin, and after showing him how to move the lid off once, he has it figured out. Oh, and please excuse the massive mess of cords! I didn't notice them until posting this picture. I am going to fix that right now!

And, while we're on the subject of lawn and garden equipment, I thought I'd also showcase a few other lawn and garden pieces that I've repurposed in my home. I think I have a pretty traditional style, but I also love a little bit of whimsy. So, I like to throw in an unsuspecting piece here and there. (I know, I'm so wild and crazy!)

This is actually a three-tiered plant stand. I really wanted some sort of tea cart for this area of my formal dining room. I received a gift card to Pier 1 shortly after moving into our home, and decided to see if they had anything that would work. I stumbled across this, my gift card was for $100, and it was $80, so I decided it would be a pretty good match.
This piece actually received a little makeover of its own. If you look closely, you can see that the copper drink tub at the bottom also serves a toy purpose as well, holding all of Rhett's balls.


This is an old trellis that my dad salvaged. I think it was on a porch. I love its chipping paint and the little roses on it. When I saw it, I begged and begged and begged for it. And, he obliged and I am so thankful! It sits behind the bed in our guest bedroom, and I love it.

And last but not least, you have seen this before here. But, I wanted to show it off again. This is a part of an old iron gate that my dad also salvaged. Jeremy cut it in half for me, and I painted it white, turned it on its side, hung it in the laundry room, and voila! It now serves as a drying rack!

So, I guess my point is, that when it comes to choosing pieces for your home, it doesn't always have to be the obvious option. Sometimes I think outside of the box, and I like the results!

How?

How does she do it? I am referring to Money Saving Mom. Seriously, HOW? Every week (or several times a week) I read her posts and check out her coupons and deals. She frequently posts weekly shopping trips were she spent next to nothing and has a table full of groceries. I have tried and tried and tried and cannot seem to do it. It seems so easy, but when I go to the grocery store, I have other things that we need on the list that I don't have coupons for. I just don't get how she and her family survive on a$30 weekly grocery budget. If I had that, I would seriously come home with like 3 things! I do use A LOT of the coupons she posts and am very thankful for those. But, I really, really, really need to figure out her art of shopping to save my family some money! Last week, I went to Target and did score a few deals thanks to her. I bought PopTarts for $.71, Fruit Snacks for $.70, Bananas for $.69, and a small loaf of bread was free after coupon. Those are some pretty great deals, yes, but the rest of my trip wasn't so great. Someone please explain to me what I am doing wrong!

Chef Point Cafe

I totally forgot to blog about this!

A few weeks ago, my mother in law, her sister, Rhett and I ventured out to Watauga, TX to a GAS STATION and dined on 5 star food. No kidding, this place, Chef Point Cafe, is literally in a gas station, with real working gas pumps, aisles of candy bars and junk food and refrigerators full of beer, cokes and bottled water... and they serve dishes like Escargot, Lobster Bisque, Eggplant Parmesan, Duck, Lamb Chops and Ribeyes. The story is that the man who owns it couldn't get a loan to open a restaurant, so he asked them what he could get a loan for, and apparently, that was a gas station. So, he did what anyone who is chasing a dream would do, and opened his restaurant inside his gas station. The food was so good! It took quite a while to get a table, apparently they attract more people with their food than their gas! But, I would have to say the food was worth the wait and all the hype about this place didn't disappoint! It has been featured on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives on the Food Network. If you are ever in the DFW area, I would definitely recommend taking a drive out to try it out! You can eat there, and get gas! ha!

CIRCUS!!!

We took Rhett to the circus on Saturday. My mom and half brother, Scotty also attended. It was Scotty's 36th Birthday, and they announced it over the loud speaker before the show started. I don't know who was more excited about it, me or him! I literally got tears in my eyes, I am such a sucker :). Rhett enjoyed people and animal watching, and enjoyed the toys that both sets of grandparents purchased for him (good thing for Mommy & Daddy because those things are EXPENSIVE!). But, I think the circus is a little too long for a 14 month old, and he became restless and our laps (all 4 of us) became a jungle gym. We had plans to meet up with Betsy and her family afterwards at a Ft. Worth legend, Joe T's, but Rhett and Jeremy had both had enough, so we called it a day and headed back home. Enjoy pics from our fun-filled day!Lunch before hand. Scotty got a percussion set. He loves music!Walking to the circus, such a big boy now!Cheering for the circus, YAY!There were several pics I took, but these guys bouncing and flipping on rubber tubes were way cool!This was pretty crazy too!

Yes, I made Jeremy and Rhett match! :)

They let you try on circus "wardrobe" before the circus started. Scotty enjoyed dressing like a circus star! I think he looks like a wrestler or something here!

Don't know what is going on w/ my hair here!

Talking the Talk

He can walk the walk and now he can talk the talk!

I know that every baby says words, and I am sure that there is nothing exceptional about this, but I think it is so cute that he keeps going for so long, and this isn't even all of the words that Rhett can say. Enjoy our little video!

7 Years!

Today is my 7th Wedding Anniversary! Hard to believe it's been that long, and yet, I barely remember life without Jeremy! I know I've said this before, but Jeremy is the best friend, best father and best husband I could have ever hoped for! Thank you, J, for being my everything and making me so deliriously happy for the past 7 years of marriage (and an additional 4 years of dating). I love you more than you will EVER EVER know!Our family minus Jeremy's & my heads!

More Chalkboard Paint

I had a little chalkboard paint left over from painting my door. So, I made my SIL a plate chalkboard for her kitchen and decided that I liked it so much, I would make myself one as well. I already had all of the stuff, so this was a FREE project!

Then, I decided to organize my laundry room a little more with what else? Chalkboard paint! I got 3 white, plastic bins at Target for $1.89 a piece. I also had a little plastic container and a big plastic container that I spruced up as well. I used them for my clothes and safety pins.

(Please ignore my ugly handwriting!)

It turned out WAY cheaper than buying pre-made bins with chalkboard paint on them!