Saturday, December 31, 2011

Front Hall Reveal!

I have been hard at work creating a functional front hall.  Our house doesn't have a mudroom, although we really need one.  The weather in Oklahoma changes frequently and it's nice to have appropriate outerwear on hand.  A week ago we had snow flurries and yesterday it was almost 70 degrees!


Last month I showed you how I created a place for our hats here.


Yesterday I finished the hallway!  Here's a reminder of the before.



And here it is now!

Entry Coat Hooks

We have ten double hooks for coats, jackets, bags, lunch boxes, and scarves!  The basket is for the kids' shoes and boots.  The big shoe rack moved into the coat closet for adult shoes.

Each of the girls has their own designated hook with their picture hanging above.  Now when I say, "hang up your coat" they know exactly where it goes.  And when I say, "put your shoes away" the shoes will end up in the basket.  Unlike the lonely tennis shoe in the picture.  I really don't know where the other one was taken off and abandoned or "put away."  

Mod Podge Coat Hook Pictures

I also relocated the art displays from this post.  They came down when I painted the kitchen and needed a new home.  A boring wall went from this:


To this:

Clothespin Art Display

The girls have already started displaying their work!  Above the art display is a photo I just love displayed in a clip frame from Hobby Lobby.


This photo was taken when Lil' Bean was a newborn.  My mom and my grandma were in town when we had a photo shoot with Misty Lingnau, a local photographer.  

Did you also notice my new boot tray?

River Rock Boot Tray

I came across this idea a while back (more on that later).  I found a plain boot tray at Garden Ridge for $3.99 and took rocks from our back yard landscaping.  

An old night stand got a fresh paint of coat and now holds gloves, mittens, and hats, and a place for keys and sunglasses.


My guard dog, Riley, is on duty.  Good dog.

I just love how functional my hallway is now!  Here's a quick comparison.



Don't you just love happy endings?



Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Elf on the Shelf Day 6 and 5



Day 6


Elf barely escaped the dog...



Day 5

Elf on the Shelf Basketball Fan Idea

Lets go Bulldogs!





Sunday, December 18, 2011

Elf on the Shelf Count Down Continues



Day 8
Elf travel is very inefficient.

Elf on the Shelf Ideas


Day 7

Elf on the Shelf Trophy Idea




Saturday, December 17, 2011

Elf on the Shelf Day 9



Day 9

Elf on the Shelf Falconry Idea


This elf fits right in around here.


Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Elf on the Shelf Day 12



Day 12
Home

Elf on the Shelf Idea


Day 12
School

Elf on the Shelf Idea

I'm afraid my school elf won't be back tomorrow.  He was touched {{again}} by one of my first graders.  *sigh*


Sunday, December 11, 2011

The Quest for the Perfect Christmas Card Photo

Christmas is quickly approaching and we still haven't sent out cards!  Cards from family and friends started arriving this past week with beautiful family photos.  Of course it's too late for me to book a photographer (new year's resolution to plan ahead??) so I'm on a mission to take the perfect family picture.


Last weekend we went to Birch Lake with hopes of doing some hiking.  Turned out there weren't really any hiking trails so we climbed on rocks and walked around.  It was a beautiful Oklahoma day and the girls were happy so I couldn't resist taking a few pictures.



Cheese!!


 Stinker.


This last one is cute, but doesn't have the whole family.

So, fast forward a week.  The weather was once again gorgeous so I enlisted the help of my visiting mother-in-law to point and shoot.  We spent some time at a friend's cabin in nearby Pawhuska, OK.

Photobucket

Lil' Bean is ready...


...Monkey is not paying attention, but Riley Dog is!


Oh, Riley!


We lost Lil' Bean completely...


The sun is about to set on this session.  With squinty eyes we gave up and went out to dinner.



Elf on the Shelf Day 14



Day 14

Elf on the Shelf Idea


Saturday, December 10, 2011

Elf on the Shelf Day 15



Day 15

Elf on the Shelf Idea

 Hmmm...  Not so sure about this one...