then and now {home inspirations}

Having 3 bedrooms on our list to re-do all at the same time is a bit overwhelming. 

Especially when I am feeling a bit "lost/confused" in my style lately.

It's weird.  But I just feel my style changing so much.
Has that happened to any of you?

Maybe that's natural.  Maybe it's outside influence - blogs, magazines, or friends with great taste.

Maybe it's that new house that I started dreaming of all the things I'd do there and how it would look.

I think that is a huge part of it.  I was excited about lots of windows and just the old house look and feel.

I was excited to redo some things that I would do differently if I was to do my current house again.

So needless to say, I've been searching the web for inspiration, ideas, new bedding, colors, etc.

And thank goodness for Pinterest!!  Have you heard of it?  Are you on?

Instead of filling my internet "favorites" with a mile long list of websites that would take me forever to sort through and find something - I am loving "pinning" all my finds on my boards. 

In one place, so I don't have to forget where I saw something.

LOVE LOVE LOVE pinterest!!  And I love following friends' boards who I know always find good things too!  That makes the searching even easier!  You can follow me at http://pinterest.com/abalzer/ .

It's just so weird how my style seems to be changing so much.  I THINK. 

I'm also not completely ready to get rid of some of my current style that I love.

Maybe pictures will help explain a bit more. 

For example, nurseries.

The first nursery I got to do I was drawn to girly details, sophistication and chicness, and black and pink.

Now, I'm loving the vintage feel and bright colors!

I have beenVERY drawn to yellow, teal/turquoise and red combos.

And I just got my hands on a jenny lind crib for $10!!!  And I'm pretty sure I'll be painting it yellow.

 And then there's kitchens.  Although we will not be redoing anything anytime soon, and I'm not really sure we will at all.  Here's something I'd consider my dream kitchen a few years ago...

 I used to love dark rich colors.  Low lights were cozy to me.  Loved anything that gave me a cabin or rustic feel (not that this kitchen does that).

But then I began dreaming of a bright, white kitchen with pops of color.  

 And then back to bedrooms.

I would have fallen in love with bedding like this...

And I do still like it.  Reds, greens and browns always caught my eyes.

But now this is catching my eyes..

More color and brightness.

I'm leaning towards a pale bluish/gray wall color in our room.  Just need to find bedding.

Have you ever searched for bedding?

Oh. my. goodness.  The hardest thing ever!

I've spent hours and there just doesn't seem to be much that is what I have in mind.
I think I've checked every department and home type store possible.

Or at least what I DID find, it took me FOREVER to find it.

I went as far as looking at custom bedding on Etsy - but man, that stuff can get expensive!

And sheets??? WHOAH EXPENSIVE!!  Especially when we have to buy deep pocket and I can find them hardly anywhere.  We haven't had to buy sheets since we got married - so I guess this is my first real experience at buying sheets.

I'm having the same problem with bedding for Taylor and Mason.  They'll be moving in together - using the bunk beds that were Dave's.  Trying to come up with a gender-neutral room is hard. I'm trying to start with bedding and then pick wall colors after that.

But honestly, it looks like I MAY be making all of our duvet covers.

Dave doesn't believe I'll do it.  And to be honest, I haven't quite commited.  But the thought of being able to just buy fabric and get the exact look I want seems the way I may be going.

Although I am NOT ready to change all my rich colors to white or light colors, I am feeling ready for a change.  It's that new house pursuit that did it to me. So we'll see what happens a little at a time.

But for now we'll stay focused on the bedrooms.

If you have any ideas for Taylor and Mason's room I would love to hear them!

That's definitely where I'm stuck the most.

Or if you have favorite places that you find bedding, sheets, etc.

bits and pieces of our summer

It's been such a great summer so far. The heat is definitely here.

We have lots of triple digits ahead of us.

We had visitors all weekend due to the heat.

Dave's parents' air conditioner went out so they've been staying at our house, waiting on their replacement.

It's been nice to have some extra hands and energy around here to spread between the kiddos and the dishes.

Here's a quick, and kind of random, catch up on our summer.

Our garden is looking TONS better than last year.

Our first pick was a banana pepper.  Which didn't make it past Taylor's mouth - they are a favorite of hers. We planted them by her request.

 The kids' pots of zinnias are growing like crazy!

It's been routine every day to go out and check for blooms (which we now have lots of!)

 Despite the heat, we've been outside A LOT.  Pretty much every evening.

It's hard to keep these kids inside.

 Sometimes we feel like we live next door to the Selenski's in "Honey I Shrunk the Kids".

You know, they'd always look over the fence to see some really strange things going on at their neighbor's house.

Same with us.

 But really, there has been lots of playing with neighbor friends.  Regardless of what kind of exterminating they are doing.

Sometimes our pool, sometimes theirs.

 And lots of grilling.

And rib smoking (thanks to the awesome smokin skills of my hubby! Ribs are his specialty)

 We also had our first "date night" with each kid separately.

Daddy and Taylor headed out to eat, a movie and ice cream. She was so excited to get dressed up with Daddy.

While Mommy and Mason headed to the park, pulled over to watch a football game from the car, out to eat, bike riding and a paddle boat ride. (man, my date required a lot more energy, and I was BEAT by the time it was over).

The funniest thing is that we couldn't get them to pick different restaurants. Thanks to my earlier suggestion of Huddle House (b/c I really needed a ham and cheese omelet), they couldn't get their minds off it.

So we had to go in shifts.  Dave called to tell me when he and Taylor were leaving so that Mason and I could go there next.

Our golf ball collection is up into the hundreds, thanks to the frequent 4-wheeler rides to the fields behind the golf course. 

A few days ago, Taylor decided she'd try to count them all.

She started over about 7 times before she finally gave up.

 We have spent lots and lots and lots of time on the deck.

In the mornings. For lunch. And definitely the evenings.

Mornings are by far my favorite.  But I'm sure not even those will be enjoyable much longer.

We enjoyed a great evening with family for Father's Day.

To be remembered by Papa "slipping" into the pool.

We have a few small outdoor projects we're working on.

One that I'll show you soon, another that I'm hoping we can start soon.

Other than that, it's time to move inside - we've got 3 bedrooms to redo!

Our room, the kids' room that they will be sharing, and the nursery.

But definitely some more summer to enjoy too!

going fishing

So, there are definitely a few, if not A LOT of things, we would have missed if we had moved.

As much as we really really want to raise our kids in the country (or as close we can get to the country),

we do love our neighborhood!

For many reasons - but one being, that we love the pond!

We take walks to it almost daily, sometime multiple times a day.

We walk around it.

We paddle boat around it.

We see duck families, frogs and turtles.

And just recently, we took our first family fishing trip to the pond.

I made 15 whole dollars on a few things I put in a friend's garage sale- and rather than buying a few pepsis or a trip to Chipotle with it.  We spent it on a few fishing supplies we didn't have yet.

And put it towards some quality family time!

We taught them both how to cast.

Ok, ok, Dave had to kind of remind me too.

But soon we ALL had the hang of it.

We started in one area and weren't having the greatest luck.  It was really hot and sunny.

 So we decided to try the shade.  And we found them!

 You could pretty much guarantee every cast would get you something.

 Both the kids casted and caught fish on their own, and reeled them all the way back in.

Daddy tried to get Taylor to hold her fish.  She really wanted to, and was so close.  But always chickened out. Mason would not even think about it.

So she settled for a picture with Daddy holding it.

We fished for over 2 hours - wow, time sure flies when you're having fun and kids are content!

 I think we caught about 15 fish altogether - a handful for each of us.

And Dave caught a frog (on purpose).

We tossed them all back in so they'd be there the next time we want to catch 15 fish.

I took the challenge

For 2 months or more, routines and the norm at our house were kind of thrown out the door while this pregnant mommy laid around trying not to throw up.  There were days I'd grab a book or my bible and look at it, and then I'd feel nauseous even thinking about reading words.  Kind of like how I can't read in the car at all - but that feeling somehow transferred to the house, or at least I convinced myself of this. But I was sick, and tired and just plain lazy. And why is that sometimes 2 months or so feels like forever?

So Jess's challenge came at the perfect time!  Back from vacation, feeling better than I had in months, and desperately missing and needing my time with the Lord.  And not just a day or two here and there. I needed SOMETHING to help cultivate the daily habit in me.

I started by listening to the breakout session by Nancy Leigh DeMoss all about our devotional lives, that Jess linked to. I took notes and really prayed that the Lord would begin to show me again how absolutely necessary he is every day, and that I would make Him the highest priority in my life.

So it's day 15.  Half way through the challenge.  And I really can't even begin to explain all that God has shown me and been teaching me in the last 2 weeks.  It has been soooo good.  And although I am not setting my alarm and getting my booty out of bed before the kids do, I have been so lucky to have some amazing morning time while the kids play.  In my new favorite spot, outside on the deck...

And the days I don't - I just do it first thing when the kids go down for nap.
I've missed one day - last Saturday.  Weekends are the toughest. And to be honest, before this challenge I never even tried to find the time on weekends.  But this time I was determined that I needed God just as much on a Saturday as I do a Monday.  Normally, missing a day during a challenge like this would cause me to quit altogether - because I couldn't finish with a perfect score.  But this time I felt differently.  I just kept going, feeling encouraged that I am making God a priority in my life better than I ever have before - even on the weekends. It's not about marking something off my list for the day, but about cultivating a habit.

Along with reading through Ephesians, I just finished the book God As He Longs For You to See Him by Chip Ingram.  I mentioned this book awhile back in this post, when I had first started it.  I knew then it was going to change my life, change my perspective, and allow me to have a better understanding of who God is.

After the chapter on God's goodness, I couldn't imagine it getting better or being more life-changing, or able to expose any more misperceptions than the first chapter already had. But then there was the chapter on His justice (rocked me to the core) and then His love (an attribute that I came to understand so much more but can't even begin to grasp the depth and heights of his love for me still), and then His faithfulness. 

If I don't truly understand and trust how 100% faithful God is to me 100% of the time - then I won't trust the rest of his character either.  In a world that is so messed up, chaotic, ever-changing, disappointing and completely unable to satisfy me - why would I not want to get to know the ONE person who will come through for me 100% of the time in any and every situation, who loves me so unconditionally I can't even begin to truly understand it, and who because of his great wisdom, great goodness and unwavering justice will NEVER hand a raw deal to me, or ANYONE.  

Is this the God you know?

Who else or what else can do this for us?
It's a no brainer.
 Why would I not want to know the heart and character of this person to the very best of my ability?
Why would I not give Him the priority of all my days?
Why would I not want to spend all the time I can with the Creator of the Universe who longs to be my best friend?

If only my natural tendencies and sins wouldn't get in the way. If only my heart and mind didn't stray.
If only the world and it's temptations would just go away and leave me to focus on the only thing that matters.
But then again, if that were the case, I wouldn't need a Savior, and what happened at the cross for me would not matter.

And for that, I am grateful again for his attributes.  His immense love and faithfulness. Learning to understand that his love for me is there even when I don't feel it.  At my deepest times of need, when I feel most unlovable, worthless and weak - his grace will always show up.
This is a huge lesson for me, coming from past misperceptions that God is constantly looking down at me, disappointed, discouraged and tired of my failures.
Instead, I am just beginning to understand and see him as the perfect friend who steps in, picks me up, cheers me on, and helps me. He takes pity on me, hurts for me, and then he does something about it.

Zephaniah 3:17 reminds me that my God will sing over me regardless of anything I've done or not done.

"The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing"

I'm so excited about the next 15 days - and every day after that.

It's not too late to join the challenge.  If you need something to get you going again or even begin for the very first time - today is not too late.

learning to swim

This girl has always loved the water.  Has never shown even the slightest hesitation.

I know we need to get her into swimming lessons, but I hesistate knowing that after 8 years of teaching them myself, surely I could teach my own kids how to swim.

 I know, it's just not fun to learn from mom.

BUT, I caught her on a good day.  She was willing to practice her flutter kick, and practice front floating and putting her face in while holding her breath.

All of this practice turned into wanting to try to swim on her own.

So off the life jacket came and off she went!

Daddy kept scooting further and further back without her knowing, and she would always make it to him.

I know this is just one of those proud mommy moments that's not as big of a deal to everyone else.  But man, it's so fun to see them learn new things!  I maybe could have even shed a little tear as she took off swimming to Dave.  Maybe it's the pregnancy hormones.  Or maybe my baby girl is just getting way to big way too fast.

destin vacation {one last evening}

Our last evening started with dinner (Pompano Joe's, beachside).  This was probably our favorite dinner of the entire week.  Well, of course the crab legs were.  But as far as overall experience by us all - this was the best!  Best view, best atmosphere, best food! (not to mention the best color combinations - my family coordinated)

LOVED the big open windows!

We didn't really let our 4 year old order lobster. She just wanted to pose with it.

I guess Taylor and I had our favorite beach outfits.  Looking back over pictures I realized that we are wearing the same thing this night that we did in the other evening beach pictures.  You'd think with all the clothes we both took, we could have chosen more variety.

  

Lots of mornings, Taylor made us lists of what we'd be doing that day. She asked how to spell each word, but she came up with the activities on her own. And they were pretty much the same every day! This is all the kids ever wanted to do...

I think we pretty much knocked that list out!

And that's all folks. Our memories of our beach vacation. Definitely a trip we will never ever forget. And if it weren't for all the other places on our list to visit - we'd go back there in a heartbeat!

On Tuesday I'll share a video of something Taylor learned to do on vacation!