Headboard is complete!

We recently transitioned from our black bedroom set. We had to upgrade from a queen to a California King. We found our nightstands and dresser at the Deseret Industries. They make new furniture called the Homestead collection. In the store, they only display the light colored furniture. I was excited when I saw the darker set. We felt good about giving back to our church as well. The Homestead collection does not have a California King headboard. It's okay though because we wanted to do our own. I had looked at pallet headboards and ideas. My husband took the lead and began the build one day by himself. I was excited to see it take shape. We mixed pallets and 1x4s and secured them to plywood. We found out the hard way that the nails were too long and had gone through the back. We had to sandwich another piece of plywood to the back. We chose a cherry stain to match the existing furniture. All that's left is the bench at the foot.

June Visiting Teaching Message

Click here to view the Visiting Teaching message on LDS.org

Craftiness for the week!

Rich and I are finally working on our headboard now that the twins room is complete. We have found out that the nails are too long and coming out the backside. Ah, the joys of diy!

My friend Ashley is getting married on Saturday. I have been busy with her wedding preparations. Here is a sneak peek:

This is the Place Heritage Park - Salt Lake City, UT

Family Management Binder - Meals

Advanced meal planning is very important for me. Since I work so early each morning, I am usually exhausted by the time I get home. I have little motivation to throw and entire meal together. I'm finding that every little thing helps.

1. Pantry and freezer inventory. This is key as most of my meats are stored in the freezer. My pantry is necessary for beans, pasta, rice, etc.
2. List of family favorites. I love to try new recipes that I find online or from friends. I still have some childhood favorites as well as newer recipes that have become staples. 
3. The food nanny talks about themed nights such as italian, mexican, grilled, etc. I think this is a great idea to cut out the stress of deciding what to eat. Have you ever seen "Big Bang Theory"? Sheldon is very set in his ways. He insists that the same routine be followed each week. 
4. Coupons! I have been overly excited when meal coupons are released. There was one for lasagna, bread, salad, and a 2 liter of soda. I believe that if I had bought each separately, it would have been cheaper to go out to eat. With the coupon, I spent $10. I am also a HUGE fan of restaurant coupons. I have a separate email address for these promotions. I often get by one get one free coupons. It makes date night a bit more manageable.
5.  Meal planning sheet. I know that we are in a digital age. There are still things I need to see on paper. I created a meal planning sheet (see below). You can also use your family calendar (mine is too small) or dry erase board. The possibilities are endless.
6. Supplies. I have ruined several "good" plastic storage containers by freezing meals in them. I have learned that the dollar store has great options. Resealable baggies work well too. I usually just freeze the soup or sauce or anything else in the baggie placed in a pan. Once frozen, I take out the pan and have a nice flat bag. 
7. Variety. For me, there are nights that I have no time for dinner. When I know in advance of a busy day, I usually throw something in the crockpot that morning. The freezer meals are nice for the crazy days that you didn't know were coming. They do take 1 full hour to cook through. And then there are the few nights that I have plenty of time to prepare a full meal. This is were I choose to make a double batch and freeze the other half.

Star Wars Bedroom Reveal

After over a year, I am proud to announce that the twins Star Wars bedroom is COMPLETE. When the boys came for last years visit, we had a different bunkbed and they refused to sleep on it. Rich and I decided that a twin over full bunk would be a better option in case the twins room needs to act as a guest room. The bed building process was quite complicated. We found plans online. The issue was that they were wrong. There was lots of improvising to make it all work. Thankfully, both Rich and my dad's came to help with the build. We also lucked out in being able to borrow a Kreg Jig from Rich's brother. Now I want to buy one for myself ;) The painting process too longer than anticipated since we were painting bare wood. We're received numerous compliments since completion. I wasn't ready to show it off until the final painting was done and the blankets had been made. Yes, I made both comforters with the help of my mom and aunt. The blankets that I wanted to purchase from Pottery Barn Kids were discontinued. I couldn't even find any for sale on Amazon or Ebay. I had to choose a different option. Of course the cute fabric I found was extremely difficult to match. Then there was the ceiling fan. We had found an awesome Galaxy fan at Home Depot. Unfortunately, it was too big. I still wanted the fan to incorporate the Star Wars theme. We bought Star Wars Lego keychains and attached them to the fan pull chain.

Dreambaby's Furniture Anchors Review

Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial.

My friends TV fell and broke the other day. Her 6 year old son, K, was trying to adjust the volume and knocked over the TV in the process. I was thinking, Ooops! I should have told her about the Dreambaby's Furniture Anchors. Thankfully K was safe and not injured. These new flat screen TVs are just as dangerous as the old tube models. Yes, they are lighter weight. They are also easier to tip over. We have 3 flat screen Tvs in our home. One is on top of the corner mantel. One is wall mounted in the master bedroom. The 3rd and smallest is in the kids room. My boys are 10 almost 11. I don't worry much about the damage a falling TV could do to them. But, I am aware that accidents can happen. The TV could be knocked over (as in K's situation) and could possibly drop and break a bone. 

My other thought with these Dreambaby's Furniture Anchors was emergency preparedness. When I moved from California to Utah for college, I was happy to enjoy the mountains and be free from the earthquakes. I was in the Bay Area when the 1989 earthquake hit and have very vivid memories from the days following. You could only imagine my dismay as I sat in a geology class and learned that my university was sitting on a fault line. I now know that I need to secure my furniture as a safety precaution in case of an earthquake. We have had a few minor shakes. It's a good reminder to stay prepared. As part of my home decor, I have a very tall bookcase that houses my husbands prized sports memorabilia. This bookcase is heavy. Although it is in the office and not in any of the main living spaces, I have still anchored it. I also anchored our dressers. 

Now it's your turn. Leave a comment below to enter the giveaway for your own set. 

  I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Dead Sea Mud Shampoo Review

Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial.

I have been trying to grow my hair longer for about 6 months. In that process, I learned that the key to longer hear is healthier hair. I decided to try the Dead Sea Mud Shampoo as a part of this process. I have very sensitive skin and found that using this shampoo caused irritation of my scalp. I chose to discontinue use after about a week.


I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.