Blue + Green = Color Scheme Dream

I love me some color.  I love how color can convey emotion and set the tone for a room.  It can make me feel passionate or peaceful.  I love the nature of contrasting colors.  I love how one color with a certain undertone can make a room feel completely warn while the same color with a different undertone can make the room feel the complete opposite.  

I love color.

So, here's how color is working in my homestead.  Though one of my favorite colors is red, I couldn't seem to pull that off in my last house without it feeling too country or traditional.  In our current home, which we bought when we realized we were having twins, I decided to change it up.  Now more than ever, with 3 kids under the age of 5, I need a peaceful home.  That's the main reason I chose blue and green for our main colors in our home.  

The other reason is that blue and green ROCK.  

OK, let's start in the living room.  Colors: slate blue and medium olive green.

Here's the current work-in-progress state of affairs.  I know.  It's looking pretty scarce without the rug and curtains.  We're working on that.  Each time we've sat down to buy those, my transmission goes out or a kid has to go to the hospital and rack up a huge bill.  I think its God's way of telling me NOT to put my hope in home decor, but in the Lord.  :)

Here's a close up of the chairs we recently bought.  I love the modern wingback/armless style chairs out these days.

Soon, we'll put these bad boys up...

And, this rug from Serena and Lily.  In the meantime, I might just paint a canvas rug this style as seen here.

Here are a few pics of my all time favorite DREAM living room:

Love.

Love.  Love.  

Love me some Nate Berkus living room as well.

Here's a pic of our kitchen.  I fell in love with this kitchen two years ago when we were looking for homes.  I loved the backsplash.   I wanted to get my stylist to come in and help arrange the kitchen for this photo (you know, but out some fresh flowers, have some food out like we're in the middle of a nice meal) but since it was such a last minute photo shoot AND since I don't even have a stylist, that didn't work out.  

As for the guest bedroom...it has been poorly neglected. Actually, it has been misused, even, as I change the twins' diapers and do laundry in there daily.  One day, however, I hope it will look something like this:

I love those turquoise walls with the bold red curtains.

Though, I would totally "settle" for this as well:

{House Beautiful}

Gorgeous!!!

Now, for the master bedroom.  We have not done too much to the master since moving in.  There is so much to do in this house!  However, if I could snap my fingers and just wish myself into my dream bedroom, it might look something like....  

this gorgeous room:

I am crazy for ikat.  However, not at the $400 a yard pricetag.  Boo.  

(The original source of this pic has somehow been lost.)

As for my craft room, I couldn't possibly post a picture of that right now.  It is a wreck!  However, below is a somewhat recent pic to give you an idea of the color of the walls/furniture.  Blogged here.  Since we bought a new spec home, the entire home was already painted this lovely tan color.  It's a nice enough color, but I SO wish we had the time/money/energy to paint some of the walls.  Thankfully, my hubby allowed me this one concession in allowing me to paint my craft room walls grey.  

This was one of my many inspiration photos.  There is something about those dark grey walls that make the color just pop.  I painted one of the walls in my craft room a similar color.  I'll blog about one day...when it's all finished.  

(Unsure of the original source.  Shoot me an email if you know!)

Now, on to the kiddo rooms!

For the twins' room, I decided to go with a blue/green and pink/green color scheme.  

 Here's Scout's side of the room:

And Sawyer's side of the room:  

(For those detailed mamas amongst us, I no longer use the bumpers.  I just put them on there to give you an idea of the colors...)

Here's the space in between their cribs.  The curtain is Amy Butler fabric, but I'm so ready for something new.  The silhouettes were blogged here.  

For Merrick's room, I found inspiration for the navy/grass room (with small splashes of red) from Serena and Lily.  The pictures above his bed are photographs I took of letters around Austin, TX to spell out his name.  I made the curtains to match (sort of) his bedspread.

This is across from his bed.  Merrick and I made the painting together when he was four.  That's his handprint signature at the bottom right corner.  More on that later.  

Here is my current project: the homeschool room/playroom!  Everything in this pic (with the exception of the Serena and Lily stool) we've built in the past several weeks with plans from Ana White (looooove her!).  I'm about half way done with this room and hope to be finished by September.  

This was the inspiration (mostly) for the playroom/ homeschool room.  I'm hoping to make one of those adorable fushia/turquoise seats.  Unfortunately, I won't be painting the walls blue, but I'm working on a little wall art that will hopefully bring more color to the room.

And, speaking of color, I can't end this post without sharing one of my favorite inspiration photos.  In the future, when I (with a heavy heart) will have to split up the twins and give them each their own room (or have the boys share), I hope to give Scout a room similar to this one:

And that's the home I'm making!  It's a work in progress.  A very, very long work in progress.  But, I soooo enjoy the process.  :)

By the way, this post idea originated from Ashley at the Handmade Home.  I'm linking to her True Colors Par-tay:

Cubby Storage System - Part 1

I've had my eye on the Cameron Storage System from Pottery Barn for about 2 years now.  I love the size of it, the storage it offers, and even the fact that the bottom doubles as a little bench.  The only thing I wasn't crazy about was the $1500ish price tag.  

Amazingly, I came across these plans here on the Ana White web site for how to build the exact same storage system...for only around $350ish!  As you can imagine, I [coxed and pleaded and implored my hubby and then...] immediately jumped in!

Initially, I was going to try to have all the MDF cut at one time.  I thought that would help me to get the most out of each board.  However, after a week of making lists and lists of materials needed and graphs of how each board would be cut (and then realizing I made a mistake and having to start all over), I decided to take it one step at a time.  Also, had I tried getting it all cut at one time, I would have to wait while they made 56ish cuts for me at Home Depot.  

So, I've started on my first open cubby!  I bought enough wood (MDF) to build three cubbies.  After reading about other peoples' experiences online, I decided to paint the inside boards before nailing it all together.  

Deciding on which white to use was also a task!  I definitely didn't want it to be stark white.  I ended up going with Magnolia Blossom, which is a creamy white with a hint of yellow (as opposed to hints of brown or gray).

This is the look with which I hope to end up.  I'm positive that if I have this storage system with little baskets inside, the children will never leave a toy on the floor and the school/playroom will be perfectly picked up all the time....right?....right?!?  

Elementary Table Build Complete!

I am so excited to share these photos!  Normally, when I make something, I am very quick to point out the flaws in it.  With this table, however, I keep looking at it and thinking, "I can't believe I built that!" 

For a couple of years, I have had my eye on this table from Land of Nod, but haven't been able to swollow the $500 it would cost to get the table and chairs.   I had all but resigned myself to compromising and getting some less expensive Ikea furniture when I came across Ana White's website.   I about fell out of my chair when I came across the plans to make the same exact style table.  In addition, all of the hundreds of plans on her site are free.  Thank you, Ana!

Here are a few photos:

And, in the play/school room:

Here is proof to all you doubters that I can actually use a power tool!  (Though, technically, I guess this only proves that I can hold a powertool, but I promise I'm using it here.)

One of the best parts of building the furniture is getting to spend time with my husband, Marcos.  I love when we end up in the garage building together after the children have gone to bed, instead of finding ourselves in front of the tv or, worse, in different rooms watching different things on different tvs.  

Here is the work in progress.  Notice the pallet in the background?!?  That's going to be used for our next little project.  All of this furniture is going to be used in Merrick's homeschool room.  After we finish putting the sealer on the table, we are going to make a crate for library books, $5 wall shelves for forward facing books, 2 bookcases inspired by the Land of Nod Cube Collection, and some wall art that I am VERY excited about. 

I can't wait to see the whole room come together.  Here's to hoping I still have all of my fingers once it's all finished...

Making My First Chair!

 My friends, I have a new obsession: woodmaking!

After having my eye on the Elementary table from Land of Nod for more than a year, I accidently came across the plans for how to build it at Ana White Knock Off Wood.  Actually, that one plan is just one of hundreds (if not thousands!) of plans on her site!

I'm not very experienced in the art of woodmaking.  I've made three things to be exact: this Subway art, our raised vegetable garden bed (does that even count?), and a somewhat defective train table for Merrick when he was just a tot.  This chair is the first official piece of actual furniture that I made.  And, yes, by "I", I mean "my husband and me".  And, yes, by "my husband and me," I probably mean, "mostly my husband."

I chose to make the chair before making the table because it seemed simple and a good place to start.  It's also called the "$4 Stackable Chair" so I thought that if something went wrong, I'd only be out $4.  Little did I know, it actually cost me $34 to build.  The $4 only applied to the wood itself.  I also had to buy screws, a square, a right angle clamp, more screws, and top coat spray paint.

By the time I started in on the first step, I had to run to my hubby for help.  I had already completely stripped a screw and was about to just toss the beginnings of my chair in the trash.  He had to help me each step of the way.  Half way through, one of our neighbors popped into the garage and said, "I have a Pottery Barn table and chairs we no longer use that I can sell you."  I was about to jump on it, but Marcos shooed her out saying that he was confident in my mad skills with a drill.  He's lucky I didn't have a hammer in my hand at the time.

Although, despite how challenging it was to put even the simplest chair together, and despite the fact that it cost pretty much the same as if I had bought one at the store, and despite the fact that it is a bit crooked and rough in some areas, I loved the time that Marcos and I spent together building it.  It was great bonding time.  And, I love how my children have a chair their size that they can use every day...and Marcos and I made it with our own two hands (and heart).

Scoutie Girl loves the chair.  I about jumped out of my skin with excitement the first time the kids sat on it...and it didn't break.  

Now that the paint has dried and I'm no longer having hallucinations from the top coat fumes, it is on to making chair #2.  Then, if we survive that, on to the elementary trestle table.  Wish us luck!

A Cat in the Hat Fiesta!

I was thrilled this year when my twins, Scout and Sawyer, started getting into the Cat in the Hat cartoons.  Finally, I could throw them a Thing 1 Thing 2 party without feeling entirely selfish about it.  Now, it wasn't just about my desire to throw a party with an adorable theme, it was also about how ecstatic my 2 year olds would be when they saw pictures of the Cat in the Hat all over (that's what I tell myself, anyway...).

As always, I simply stole any and every idea I had from other bloggers.  As my hubby says, I am "a pirate, not a pioneer".  Another friend, however, in an effort to reassure me of my creativity, reminded me that originality is simply the art of "remembering what you heard but forgetting where you heard it."  :)  

So here are some of the details of the party:

I love making birthday banners for my kiddos special days.  I leave it up all week to make them feel special (or is it because I don't want all my hard work to last only for one day...hmmm).

This was the birthday goodies table.  I basically just imitated this party here at Annie Eats.  The flowers on the wall were my favorite decor of the day.  They are actually red paper lunch bags tied together.  Thank you, Martha.  

These cupcakes were one of reasons I wanted to have this party theme in the first place.  However, I was a little disappointed at how quickly the cotton candy disintegrated.  This pic was taken about 1 minute after putting the "hair" on...

This was taken only about 10 minutes after putting on the "hair."  Although it's a great idea, I wish I could have figured out how to do this cupcake instead.  

My favorite party yummy.  These are Oreo Balls, which I've been making way before cake balls came into fashion (at least 6 months prior, at least).  

Although I LOVED the idea of these Cat in the Hat marshmallow pops, I'm not sure they were worth all the trouble.  I only ended up with 6 decent hats because my hubby and I kept cracking the white brims when trying to poke the pop stick in.  

We made several more hat marshmallows without the white brim and just placed them out on a cake stand.  People ate these up!

These are another party favorite at the Esparza house.  I am not crazy about eating these myself, but they are super finger food.  People LOVE these and they are so easy to make!  We made similar pretzel rods at Halloween, but made them into ghosts.  

My first time making our own water bottle labels.  Why haven't I done this before?  It's so easy!

I was up at 2am the night before the party drawing this little baby.  We didn't actually use it, of course...

A fun idea for fruit kabobs...

You can't have a Dr. Seuss party without some green eggs and ham!  I wish I would have gotten a better picture of the ham sand cheese sliders.  They are so yummy!

Of course, I think my green eggs were probably a better idea in my head than they were in reality.  These look a little too much like green dog poop, don't you think?

Outside, we played with bubbles and, later, a water sprinkler toy.  Big brother Merrick came straight from his soccer game where he scored his tenth or eleventh goal of the season!

In the end, I'm not sure it was such a good idea to make a double batch of The World's Best Bubble recipe and then just leave it out in a bucket.  Scoutie Girl used the bucket as her personal bath tub, then progressed from there to washing Sawyer's hair.  It was cute, but not so cute once the soap made it's way into their eyes.

How could we not have an awesome party when we have such fun friends with which to celebrate?!?

A family birthday picture.  Two out three looking...that ain't bad.  

I'll write more later about Scout's dress and also make a post with a couple of the Cat in the Hat printables (water bottle, welcome sign, etc.).

Happy Birthday to my Little Thing One and Thing Two!  Now, to start planning their 3rd birthday party...

Silhouette Give Away at Tatertots and Jello!

Jen at Tatertots and Jello is giving away a Silhouette machine!  

I started coveting this machine after I saw all the neat things Shelley from House of Smiths would cook up with her machine.  I am pretty convinced at this point that if I don't get one of these machines that I will die.

How's that for dramatic?  :)

I rarely enter in blog give aways, probably because I don't believe I could actually win.  However, for a free silhouette machine, I'm putting my name in the hat.  I don't care that 3,000 people have already entered.  I will do anything to have a machine that can make cool signs like this one:

So, please.  Do go over to Tatertot's and Jello.  But, DON'T enter the giveaway contest.  I don't need the competition.  :)