our $25 kitchen curtains and command center

Today was the day that the "final" big "moving in" product was completed.  It was my task to find the perfect curtains/binds/shades for our kitchen bay windows.  Being a Brindley (meaning we are money pinchers), I looked high and low and near and far to find the most affordable curtains.  That was a huge task in itself not to mention finding cheap, cute ones. 

I liked the idea of a roman shade, but those suckers are $30 to $50 each and just for plain colors!  I wanted some sort of pattern since our kitchen pretty much are just "blocks" of colors.  Nothing other than the Auburn platter had more than one to two colors on it. 

Probably a month or so after moving into the house, Mamski so graciously told me about this website with "self-made" curtains.  The best part was that there was NO sewing involved.  (I must confess that I do own a sewing machine, thanks to Daniel, but I have only used it once.  I don't feel like I have mastered sewing in a straight line yet.)  So I headed over to the website and found a roman shade-like curtain.  The woman gave a step by step on how to make them too!  She recommended using liquid stitch to keep the ends from fraying after cutting the fabric.  I thought easy enough and now I have to find the perfect fabric!

After another month or so, I remembered about some bed spreads from Urban Outfitters that I had bought last year.  Leah had told me about huge pieces of fabric being sold for $4.99 at Urban Outfitters.  I ended up buying 3 blue/green striped and 1 red/yellow striped patterns, all for less than $20!  I had thought about making a shower curtain and window curtains from them while living in the apartment, but that never happened.  Once I remembered that I had "free" fabric already in my possession that made the process 10 times easier.  AND it matched our kitchen!  I was on a roll to have cheap and cute curtains!

After an esitmated 5 to 6 hours worth of work, the final big move-in product was complete!  I never knew that I could love curtains as much as I love these.  Take a look for your self.

last night- taking a look at what was to come

Liquid Stitch-this stuff was SUPER easy to use!

the final product!

a closer view of the middle window.  look at those beautiful marigolds that my husband brought home for me.

Here's a breakdown of the cheap and cute curtains:

-one bed spread of fabric from Urban Outfitters:  $4.99

-3 spools of navy ribbon from Hobby Lobby:  $2.00 each (they were 50% off)

-Liquid Stitch from Hobby Lobby:  $2.50 (also 50% off)

-3 tension rods from Wal-Mart:   $3.97 each (11.91 total)

Grand Total:  $25.40 plus tax

So I got all 3 for basically the cost of one at a store...a really cheap store.

Command Center

In the last post I talked about our new command center.  Well, it also got a huge boost to being completely finished, but I thought I would let you see what I have done so far.

We still need a calendar which will come in 2010.

my addiction to Vera Bradley

It has taken me a couple of years to grow a fond obsession with Vera Bradley and everything she has to offer me.  I wish I was rich enough to collect all pieces in all patterns that I think are precious!  Alas, I am not rich.  (shocked?)  Furthermore, I would LOVE my house to be like the Vera Bradley stores.  I am not talking about the retailers that carry VB along with other merchandise.  I mean a true VB store like the one at the Summit.  I think Daniel would have a veto on that idea before I could mention the words:  bright pink/salmon walls. 

I guess I must dream about living in a VB covered house.  The closest we have come to letting VB decorate our house is the mention of a new foyer rug.  Granted I have to keep within my color palette so no baby blues, purples, or pinks.  I think it would go quite nicely at our entrance way...

After this season's new patterns emerged, I feel deeply in love with paprika.  It's the perfect color for fall.  And reminds me of the burnt orange that I love so much especially paired with navy blue.  :)

This pattern created an overwhelming urge to go to the Vera Bradley store and purchase a cute fall purse.  So what did Daniel get me as part of my anniversary gift?  A gift card to VB!  (Score!)   After a hurried decision (because we only had a few minutes before our dinner reservations at The Melting Pot) I picked the Saddle Up style.  It is quite small compared to my typical hobo style purse.  I really do like it...a lot!  I have one setback though...does it look too much like a diaper bag?

And before I could leave the store, I had to get a brush and pencil bag and a large cosemtic that was only $10!  I couldn't pass up that great deal:  typically $24 on sale for $10.  uh, yes, please!

After dealing with a fever yesterday and STILL feeling like poop today, I had to get out on my lunch break.  The weather was icky, but when is it not these days?  Are we living in Seattle?  I might need to go there just to dry out. 

So where did I decide to go on my lunch break?  You guessed it...The VB store!  I think I see 10 new items everytime I go there.  This time a lovely decorated dry erase board caught my eye.  Now is this something that I need?  Of course not.  Is it something that will look fabulous in our new "Command Station" in the kitchen?  uh, YES!  It will add just that special touch to the command station that I got the inspiration from the Southern Living magazine.  Granted the command station is geared towards trying to help a mom with at least 2 kids stay organized, but I am a mom of 2 dogs.  That's the same thing, right?  Plus I have Daniel and he is like a big kid.  I think that justifies my having a command station in our kitchen.

Side note:  A command station is a place where you have a calendar, To Do lists, kids' artwork, photos, and other things of that nature to live at the end of your cabinets.  I used some cork board that I had leftover from college as the "back board".  This way I can pin things up instead of taping them straight to the cabinets.  I will get ribbon to create a border for the cork board to have a complete look.  I also need a calendar for our numerous events.  (ha!  what events?)  The new dry erase board will be our new To Do list.  I think it matches well with our kitchen.

Once I have the command station finalized, I will definitely post pictures.

Am I going a bit overboard with Vera Bradley?

....neh.

And you are more than welcome to feed my addiction.  I take cash, checks, and VB gift cards.

the honeymoon: a year later

Since this past week is considered our "honeymoon" week (the week after our wedding), it has dragged for what seems like weeks now.  I have become caught up in the week long vacation of last year and remembering the fun and not-so-fun moments that we spent together. 

We were fortunate enough to get a fabulous cruise from (Daniel's) Uncle Dave and Jeff.  We were on the ship for 7 (and need I say extremely long) days at sea.  We visited Nassau, Bahamas; St. Thomas; and St. Maarten.  Each island was beautiful, but our favorite was St. Maarten.  There is nothing like looking at clear teal blue water.  It was gorgeous and a great reminder of the Creator and His work.  (If the things He made on Earth are this beautiful, can you imagine what Heaven will be like?)

I haven't realized just how much bonding Daniel and I did on that trip until a year later.  Everything about the trip was wonderful even getting (home) sick while watching football in the room while at sea.  I never thought that I would be homesick for football but it was great to watch Oklahoma and someone play.

Please enjoy a few pictures from our first week married. 

The scariest van ride from Ft. Lauderdale to the Port of Miami.  We seriously almost died...three times.

Goodbye, Miami!

Topping the bridge to go to Atlantis in Nassau, Bahamas.  I wish we could afford to stay there every year.

Seriously.  What is this towel animal suppose to be?  And what is Daniel doing?

Beautiful Coki Beach, St. Thomas

This is the scariest place that we went to on the trip.  I felt HIGHLY uncomfortable, so we left after being there for 10 minutes.  I could actually smell people smoking pot.

Celebrating that I am still alive after visiting Coki Beach.  I wanted back on the boat.  Daniel talked me into going down the slide.  It was great!

Goregous St. Maarten

I want to live there.

Downtown Phillipsburg, St. Maarten.

If you are claustrophic, do NOT go here.

Ironically, we didn't take too many "together" pics during the entire honeymoon.

St. Maarten

*Stay tuned for our One Year Celebration post.

happy half birthday to me!

I think every October I say to myself, "Self, where has the year gone?!"  Do the years seem to fly by faster and faster?  Am I the only one who feels this way?

Typically I am ready for the holidays and will welcome them with my arms wide open.  However, this year is a different story.  I am pooped. 

This year has been nothing but "go, go, go" and "do this and that".  I need a break, people!  And I am not going to lie.  I think I secretly should have been an only child for this very reason:  I have to have my alone/chill out/me time.  It stresses me out to be around a lot of people for any extended length of time, whether it's family, friends, or strangers.  I never knew that I enjoyed being by myself as much as I did until I was in college especially during my senior year.  I would have movie night by myself some nights.  It was a great way for me to relax and enjoy something that I wanted to watch.  I have always considered myself a shy person, but I really am intraverted.  The moral of this mini-story:  Don't be offended if I need to get away/be at home after being around people.  The holidays always bring out that side of me.

Maybe I can rest in the new year?  Extremely doubtful.

Oh yeah, today is my half birthday, which means I am half way between 25 and 26.  Wow.  Am I suppose to be this old?  I still feel like I am 21 or 22 most days.  And my parents definitely still think of me as being 15 or 16.

Speaking of birthdays, Sissy has one coming on on the 21st.  She will be 24!  yikes!  I remember turning 24 just a couple of years ago.  She is trying to catch up with me.

...and I will said it again:  Where does the time go?

the nearly forgotten wedding...not really.

No, I haven't forgotten.

I know it has been close to 3 weeks since Sissy and Josh's wedding and I have made no mention of it on the Todd's blog.  I mean you would think that I am a horrible sister for "forgetting", but I did not forget.

I was waiting until I could post some picutres of both Sis and Josh together from the professional photographer.  It doesn't look like I will be seeing those anytime soon so let me congradulate Sis and Josh now...

Congrats, Mr. and Mrs. Pate!

The wedding was the second most beautiful wedding that I have been to (next to mine, of course).  It started out a rough day at the hair salon, but thankfully the hair stylist FINALLY got it together.  The rain was HORRIBLE and no need to worry:  I personally protected Sis and her hair from getting drenched.  I love getting 2 showers in one day. 

The walk from the condo to the beach was my favorite part.  The balcony people were so nice to yell "Congrats" as we walked the parking lot. 

The rough, sharp rocks on the beach were my least favorite part. 

I know they have "settled" in as a married couple by now, but it's never too late to talk about a wedding.  I talk about mine all the time. 

good-bye, sliver of toenail

Yesterday was a day that I will never forget and I don't mean this in a good way. Two weeks ago for Sissy's wedding the Brindley girls all got mani's and pedi's. I recall quite vividly the pain that I felt when the girl was removing the extra skin around my nail on my right big toe. In fact, I remember saying something about it hurting at the time. It hurt so bad that I even said "Self, that might get infected later on. Just keep a watch on it."

Sure enough...the infection came.

After 2 weeks of doctoring it with peroxide and neosporin, it progressively got worse. It wasn't until Wednesday of this week that I became hysterical and started crying/screaming like a crazy person. When I went to doctor my toe that evening, I noticed a huge chunk of skin over part of my toenail. I felt it was swollen so I tried to get some of the pus out (gross, I know), but that only made me cry and scream even more. I knew then that I had to see the doctor because my way wasn't helping.

On Wednesday Daniel was sweet enough to make me an appointment at the podiatrist, the same one that he and his MeMe use. We later found out that MeMe is quite the celebrity at Birmingham Podiatry. She is talked about fondly there: she and her toenail-less big toes. Bless her heart.

Yesterday afternoon was my appointment and Daniel was wonderful enough to drive me there. It was in Southside so obviously I had no clue how to get there. It just wigs me out to go downtown by myself anyway.

We walked through the doors to the odor of old people and funeral home. I mean the smell was outrageous! My observations were this: Daniel and I were the youngest ones in the waiting area, and old people do NOT like to wait long for doctor appointments. After I finally got called back, Daniel came with me because I was SCARED TO DEATH! I mean my teeth were chattering I was so nervous. I had asked Daniel the night before at least 5 times E.X.A.C.T.L.Y. what the procedure was to remove an ingrown toenail. It seemed like every time he told me that the procedure got shorter and shorter, but I am sure that he was doing that to ease my nerves.

It was only after they leaned my chair back and blocked my vision of my toe with a paper towel (with fancy little toe people on it) that I started crying. I tried to hold back my tears, but I knew that the pain that I was about the experience would NOT be a pleasant one. I couldn't stop crying either. I felt like the biggest wimp ever. Poor, Daniel. He tried to help.

The doctor finally came in and injected 3 shots into my right big toe to numb it. Let me just say that those shots were the most painful shots I have EVER had! I will NEVER get another pedicure just for the shear fact that those shots scared me for the rest of my life. Now once the toe was numb, those shots seemed like they were well worth it. Don't get me wrong; they were worth it...but just not at the time of injection.

Once the toe was numb, it was a piece of cake. I felt absolutely nothing...I mean nada...not even pressure on my toe. I didn't even know that I had a right big toe. It was so nice. And the pain was gone once the minor surgery was over. (Thank you, Dr. Clark, for working your toe magic.)

One more thing about my ingrown: I have a staph infection. (Yikes!) I am taking antibiotics for it so I am hoping that helps. Dr. Clark even commented on just how much pus was in my toe. Uh, yep...there was a lot and I was trying to get it out, but it was so painful that I couldn't.

My surgery afterthoughts:
-Even though the pain of the 3 shots was close to unbearable, they were WELL worth it. My toe was numb up until this morning. It was weird!
-I was in so much pain before the doctor that I couldn't walk right nor could I sleep well at night. I am happy to report that I slept fantastic last night!
-I am 95% sure that I can make it back to the doctor's office by myself in 2 weeks for my check-up. I don't think I will get too lost.
-I will miss the sliver of toenail. I saw what my toenail will look like now and it's just not the same. RIP toenail sliver.
-I will NEVER get another pedicure again...at least not from a Chinese, only Americans. Is that racist? No, it's just a fact. I more than likely got the staph infection from that place. Beware, Mamski.
-Old people have feet problems...and I am only 25. Does that make me an old person? No, because I was living young and taking a risk in getting my toes done.
-Yes, I took one for Sissy and Josh's wedding. Again, another "You're welcome" from me.

If you want more details from this fascinating/painful/traumatizing experience, just let me know.

Never Forget

Today is the day that will forever be imprinted in my brain as I am sure it is for every one of you. Eight years ago one of the worst days in American history took place. Where were you?

I remember as if it was yesterday. I was a high school senior and the day before was War Eagle Day at Auburn. Since it had always been my dream to attend Auburn University (and I believe I had already been accepted at this point in time), my parents and I went down to Auburn to check out the campus with the hundreds of other high school seniors. September 10, 2001 was a great day which held a promising future for me and my college career. I felt completely safe being in Auburn with my parents. The world was great...until the next morning.

September 11, 2001 started out as any other high school day. It was so normal that in fact I don't remember anything before my 1st block class, Physics with Mr. Lambert. I was living in the routine of everyday life.

Just a little background on Mr. Lambert and his Physics class: he was a super cool teacher. We hardly did any work in class, which was mainly the reason why I made a 40-something on my first test. (Thankfully I was able to receive A LOT of partial credit on that test so it brought it up to either a B or a C.) Every day in Physics was a new day. We were always doing a different project whether it was the Wheel of Death (this was a seesaw looking board where 2 people sat facing each other. Instead of seesawing, the board was spun in a circle as fast as possible with the 2 riders holding on for dear life! In fact, they had to wear a seat belt looking thing to hold them in place. As a class we would calculate their speed and something else Physics related. I really don't remember the whole gist of this experiment, but it had something to do with Physics.), launching coke bottles and plastic bags on the football field, and picking up various student's cars in the parking lot with a large wooden board. (Yes, this was a real class in high school where we were supposed to learn something. I can say that I didn't learn too much.)

The morning of 9/11 we were outside looking for spiders and webs in the woods surrounding the student parking lot. I am not 100% sure why we were doing this and couldn't tell you to this day how it relates to Physics. Maybe something to do with the spider's weight and how it can make a web to hold itself? eh, I really don't know. After the parking lot "fun", I remember rushing back into the building when the end of first block bell rang and going to my next class, AP Calculus with Mrs. Sahawnah (or however you spell it). As students started entering her classroom, I heard them talk about the towers and a plane crash. It seemed so unreal at the moment that I wasn't 100% sure what they were talking about, and I didn't understand it was on US soil. Mrs. Sahawnah didn't realize what was happening either until she turned the tv on for a split minute. After a minute or two of coverage, she turned it off, because we had too much Calculus to cover.

It wasn't until I was in third block, AP Government with Mrs. Pressley, that I was able to know exactly what was happening. Thankfully Mrs. Pressley thought it was important enough for us to watch the coverage. I was blown away!

While at home later that night, I remember watching more coverage with Dad. It was the first time in my life where I didn't feel safe...even in my own home. Dad said that it would never be the same...America as we knew it would never be the same. Granted there was Pearl Harbor in 1941, but Hawaii wasn't an official US state until the 1950s. September 11th was the first time terrorists were able to attack official US soil...and succeed. The events of that day still haunt my thoughts, because what if....? What if it happens again? What if President Obama pulls troops from overseas? What if our Homeland Security is weakened because it has been 8 years since the attack? What if people forget the importance of that day? What if people forget the heroes who died for us on that day? What if...?

Have you forgotten? Will you forget? What is your 9/11 story?