July Before and After Party!

Hey there! Welcome to another week! I’m looking forward to temps in the 80’s around here this week – compared to “feels like” 110, it’s going to be positively fallish!

Since I was on a little vaca last week, we’re moving the July Before and After Party to today -- hopefully it works out well for all of you.

Like always, I want to highlight a few of the awesome projects linked up last month before we start the festivities today! :)

Let’s kick if off with Mandy’s awesome fireplace redo:

I LOVE the added trim and the tall mantel – how unique! Now it makes a statement. (And that rug is gorgeous too!)

I couldn’t stop staring at the before and afters of this kitchen remodel at Decorate With a Little Bit:

It is truly a top to bottom makeover and it’s gorgeous!!

Maria performed magic when she  reupholstered these chairs:

They used to be her great-grandmother’s and were orange, cracked leather. You won’t believe the before! (And don’t you love her drapes too?)

Karah took advantage of a gorgeous view on their rooftop deck and created a comfy pallet bed:

Oh my goodness, can you imagine? How cool is that?

I loved this room redo, with the green and navy combo, over at Rooms for Rent:

Hey, that rug looks familiar – it looks so good in this room!

And holy cats, Kristel’s bedroom makeover had me swooning!:

The bed, the headboard, that chandelier! Gorgeous!

And finally, I love how Andrea made cool striped drapes from a shower curtain:

Striped drapes aren’t exactly the easiest to make so I love this simpler DIY version.

As always, I was blown away by your spaces and projects! If you’d like to pin one of these, I ask that you visit their blogs and pin from there!

So let’s see what you’ve been up to this month! If you’d like to be considered for a highlight, please link to TDC using this button:

<div align="center"><a href="http://www.thriftydecorchick.blogspot.com/" title="TDC Before and After" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.homestoriesatoz.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/beforeAndAfterButton_thumb1.gif" alt="TDC Before and After" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Now link it up!

An Asian Invasion

A couple weeks ago we were walking into church with the six youngest.  Kim suddenly asked if I ever notice that now Patrick is the only bio kid in the bunch. 

I looked at the sea of brown faces and realized she is right. 

It used to be the other way around.  In fact, when we adopted Kim, we thought she would be our last child and we worried about how she would feel growing up as the only Asian, and only adopted child, in a family of blue-eyed blondes. 

God must have laughed.  Especially since the very next year we adopted Paul.

Standing outside the church that day I laughed too, because I honestly don't walk around constantly thinking about who and how many are Asian or Caucasian, bio or adopted. 

And then Kim laughed and said, "Hey Mom and Dad!  It's an Asian Invasion!"

That has become one of the quotable quotes of the summer! 

And how appropriate with our upcoming trip!

Back from a break!

Well hello strangers!! How the heck are ya?

I’m back from a lovely blogging break. :) It was just what I needed! What I didn’t mention earlier this week is that we were off on a little trip during my time away from the blog – and most people probably would have been really stoked for this type of trip, but it had me a little, ahhhh…fidgety.

I’ve had a bit of a fear of cruises for years now:

It’s the whole out in the middle of the ocean, no way to get off, what if we hit an iceberg, the railings really aren’t tall enough, kind of fear.

Over the years I’ve had rational irrational thoughts about cruises that have kept me away. And we still wouldn't have done it, but it was a business trip like most of our vacations. Hubby did a conference that was on the cruise, (hello, best idea EVER), so I got over my fears and went along.

The first few hours were touch and go, but about 50 Titanic jokes in, I was actually feeling pretty good.

These helped:

Only one of those was mine. As far as you know.

And by the second day, I was thoroughly enjoying it:

Thing is, I didn’t do much. I found the rocking of the boat incredibly relaxing…like I had taken a sleeping pill...constantly. I was totally chill the whole time and all I wanted to do was sleep. And sleep. Sleep some more. I slept for me, you, everyone who needed sleep.

It was the best sleep of my life, seriously.

So I did that, and ate. Like, a LOT.

Our destination was Nova Scotia Canada:

We docked at St. John’s for a day and walked around for hours. Our favorite spot was the City Market:

   

And then we went back to the boat…and slept. For real, it was ridiculous.

Turns out I didn’t think about falling over the railing once, and only thought about hitting random objects in the ocean about 15 times. I thought that was pretty good.

Views like this helped a bit:

Stunning!

Hubs and I are already looking into another cruise, this one with no work for either of us. :)

The day after we returned we picked up a last minute addition to our family:

Little miss Nya (Nee-ah, after one of the Bub’s favorite Lego characters) joined us last minute (we had plans to adopt her weeks ago but thought they had fallen through).

We’ve spent the past few days getting her and the other kitty and the dog acquainted. So far, so good. Actually, I think Peanut is a little in love with her. Nya, not so much.

But she seems very happy here, and is in LOVE with my husband. She barely leaves his side. :) After the dog, I’ve forgotten how easy it is to add a cat to the house (if you only have one other cat) – they are SO EASY:

She is such a sweetie!! I’m sure she’ll make it into plenty of pictures like the other animals.

It’s been a busy month and I’m SO happy to be home and settled. I love to travel but I’m becoming more and more of a home body the older I get. I’ve finished up some fun projects over the past few weeks, I can’t wait to show you! I’ll get caught up next week, and don’t forget the July Before and After Party – it will go up Sunday evening.

So have you been on a cruise? Did you love it or hate it? Any suggestions for our next one? What did you do for the 4th? We went to watch fireworks but couldn't do any at home because of our drought conditions – such a bummer! Our neighbors will LOVE us in November when I’m guessing we’ll finally be able to set off our supply. ;)

Please Be My Tour Guide--Parade Help Needed!

I am now in full throttle mode for the Mondo Adventure!  There are SO MANY places we are blowing past touring by and I would love your input.  Pretty please?

If you live along our parade route and have input on must-see/must-do/great-site/great-park/great-adventure/ great-potty-stop-rest-stop please let me know! 

And of course, I need to know SKATEPARKS!!  (No, I did not say state parks, I said SKATEparks as in for skater-boy 14 yo son.)

Also, please let me know if there is something famous NOT worth seeing with a boatload of children. 

The parade route includes Sacramento, Los Angeles, Grand Canyon, Phoenix, El Paso, Austin, Little Rock, Nashville, Indianapolis, Chicago, I-90W forever and ever (including Sioux Falls, Rapid City, Mt. Rushmore), Yellowstone, Butte (I will refrain from Butt jokes), Spokane.

 You can comment below or e-mail me at r8rgr8 @ frontier.com

If you comment, I promise to throw candy out the window as we blow by! 

Get out your lawn chairs! 

The CrazyForKids are on the move!  T-minus 8 days!!!

4th of July = Best Teriyaki Recipe

Happy 4th of July!  We are so blessed to live in this great nation!  Thank you to all who serve!

We spent the morning at a small hometown parade! 

I think everyone in town was either watching or participating (it was 2 1/2 hours long!), and the kids came home smiling with their pockets full of candy.

I let Vu take over the camera.

The family went every-which-way this afternoon, since Kim is still not feeling great.

I did whip up a batch of our favorite teriyaki and tonight we will go to neighborhood fireworks!

Have a blessed 4th of July!

Best Teriyaki
1/2 C. soy sauce
1/4 C. olive oil
2 T molasses
2 teaspoons dry ground ginger
1 T mustard
6 cloves of minced garlic (I use 1 Tablespoon of ready-to-go minced garlic in the jar)
2 pounds stew meat or cut-up round steak or cubed chicken breast

Combine all ingredients and pour over meat.  Let sit for a couple hours, stirring occasionally.  Place on shish-kabob sticks (or wooden skewers that have been soaked in water), along with veggies of your choice (mushrooms, green peppers, tomatoes, onions, etc).  BBQ.  EAT!!!  Especially delicious served with rice and corn-on-the-cob!  YUM!

Caution: Easy-To-Parent Children

Yesterday was Paul's 14th birthday.We enjoyed a little family party and will do the full-meal-deal next weekend, with a van full of boys heading to a big skatepark--pics coming soon to a blog near you.    I am behind on my birthday posts--put that on the to-do list before the Mondo Adventure.

Paul is a joy.  He is our easiest child and always has been.  He is happy-go-lucky, laid back, and witty.  Paul is our social butterfly--he gets invited to more birthday parties than all our other kids combined (even other parents remark about it)!  Paul does well in school and enjoys multiple extra-curricular activities.

Happiness is a Taco Bell gift card

Not only is Paul easy to parent, he is quiet.  While most of his brothers and sisters like being center-stage, Paul is happy to meld into the perimeter of the family.  The other kids command attention.  Paul does not.  He's independent.  He doesn't mind getting his ice cream last.  He doesn't mind having to wait extra long for his turn (and won't necessarily remind us if we forget).  He doesn't become emotional if he feels there's an injustice in his life.  He's rarely the squeaky wheel demanding the grease. 

But here's the deal.  Here's my parenting tip of the day.  I believe an easy child is one who should be handled with care.  An easy child should come with a warning of CAUTION: THE BUNDLE ENCLOSED IS AN EASY CHILD.  HE WILL BRING YOU GREAT JOY, BUT HE HAS A VERY LOW VOLUME SO LISTEN CAREFULLY TO HIS WORDS AND ACTIONS.  FAILURE TO DO SO MAY RESULT IN UNEXPECTED OUTCOMES.

With Paul, I have to constantly remember to NOT let him be last, and I have to keep reining him in to the center of family life.  When we watch a movie, I have to consciously sit down next to him, because he won't clamor to sit by me--and yet he likes to.  When he complains about something or makes a request of me, I have to consider it megaphoned at the level of 10X.  I have to mentally dub his sub-titles, read his non-verbal communication, and KEEP REMINDING MYSELF to find ways to connect.  It have to remind myself over and over again. 

I have to mentally stick up for him, his wants and his needs, because if I don't, I worry that eventually he WILL get tired of being the easy one--the one who is easy to ignore.  And maybe we'll be so used to it we won't even notice. 

Because it's easy to let an easy kid become invisible.  Especially in a large family. 
Caution, easy child.  Handle with care. 

Oh, how I love this boy!!!

Silence is golden

Hello there! I hope you had a positively lovely weekend!

I’m doing a little something different this week – taking some time off to hang with my family for the Fourth of July holiday. I’ve only taken a few weeks “off” from blogging in four years – and I don’t mind that it’s been so little because blogging doesn’t feel like work to me. (Best. job. ever.)

But this week I know you’ll probably be spending time with your families and friends as well, so I figured instead of coming up with posts to schedule, I’m going to take a few days off – and not do anything blog related. 

It’s exhilarating and frightening all at once! :)

Usually the July Before and After Party would go up this week, but I’ll push that back to next week. The next Show Us Your House party will be bathrooms, so get those ready for the week after (the week of the 16th).

I’ll be back later this week so until then, if you are new to TDC, check out my Our Home tab and my past DIY projects here to see what I’m usually up to.

I hope you have a WONDERFUL Fourth of July holiday with you and yours, and God Bless America!!