Biggest Home Improvement Yet!...But not any prettier...

Hey, you know what isn't fun to see?This.

This, my peeps, is a water stain. More commonly known as "Oh crap! Where's the guy with the thing that you turn and it stops the water and stuff." Or, at least that's how I have referred to it.  We had to have our entire house re-piped. The. Whole. Freaking. House.

 If someone says to you, "Hey, this house has 3/4" Galvanized pipes." Politely sprint away.

 So, ya. Not too much fun, and it hasn't made our house any prettier which is pretty disappointing considering it cost somewhere around a small car.
On the up-side, it was really fun to see these horrid wallpapers and paint colors die a rather violent death. I don't even feel bad. (You know when people shoot the zombie, and you're like, "Ah. That was a person once. It's kind of sad."? None of that.) Whoever did this to our house....no. Just no. So, expect a lot of posts with room reveals very soon....and they will definitely be on a budget! In fact, I have so much to do around the casa that it's going to be a legit, full home makeover. I'm talking, teach her to use a blow-dryer, take her glasses away, consult Molly Ringwald kind of makeover. I may even make a video montage. So, get ready for that.

In the meantime, we are still doing a bit of cleanup (which I hope excuses my absence from el blog.) I think you'll forgive that when you see how cute my kid is putting putty on the wall with a spatula.

And, what do you do when you can't stay in your house, let alone paint and redecorate? 

Add to the hoard!!

I've had some pretty awesome-sauce days at my local Goodwill locations.

Never underestimate the lure of a snacky cup and a choice of $2 guitars for a 2 year-old. I'm pretty lucky that he puts up with my time-consuming "digs."

Oh snap, son!

Check you later.

Scarf it down!

I have a confession to make...

I hoard old t-shirts.

I pin all kinds of things to do with them, but ultimately, the pile just grows.

I hate having a zillion pins and zero finished projects.

So this month, I'm on a mission to craft it up or get it out.

 Today, I made a few scarfs.

The first one, I lobbed off the bottom and cut in some fringe. Not my favorite, but maybe with some turquoise necklaces....meh.

 The second one was a little high-low sweater that fell apart in the wash. I just cut off the bottom and doubled it over on itself for 2 loops. Much cuter.

Last but not least, a shirt I got for Christmas. LOOOOOOVVVV-ed it, but despite following the wash directions, it shrunk up about 4 inches. Crop top? No bueno. But as a scarf, it's my favorite of the bunch.

3 new accessories in just a few minutes. And 3 shirts out of the hoard! Booyah!

Vons Trip- Spent $27.54, Saved $35.93

Welp! I think breakfasts for November are taken care of! Here's today's trip to Vons:

I scooped up 4 boxes of Honey Nut Cheerios, 4 boxes of Nutrigrain bars, 4 boxes of Nature Valley Granola Bars, 2 boxes of Jingos crackers, 32oz Lucerne Coffee Creamer, and Organic Whole Milk for the boy....

All for $27.54. I saved $35.93 which is 57%


Go HERE to get all the deals and coupon info from Save At Home Mommy!

Halloween Home Tour

Would you like to see my Halloween decorations? I'm not super into this holiday, but I love the Fall and couldn't resist the opportunity to get the holiday season kicked off....on a budget of course! Everything you see here was done for about $35. So, below are some pics from around my house with references for the materials shown

 This is our mantle from left to right: small faux pumpkins from Target mixed with real pumpkins from Vons; short candle holder under the pumpkin is from Dollar Tree like 3 years ago; the candle holder with extinguisher is vintage and has been in my family's home for as long as I can remember; the Trick-or-Treat signs were made by sending "newspaper-print" wrapping paper (bought in the "dollar" section of Target) through my printer and placed in frames I had lying around; the baskets on the right were $2.50 each from the "dollar" section of Target; and who can forget my fav black crows from Dollar Tree?; Grimm's Fairy Tales was in my library, but you can get it at Barnes and Noble; lace from my stash.     Total spent here: $11

  On our entryway table, I plopped down these cutie patootie owls that I snagged from the Dollar Tree. One is sitting on a candle holder I got from there about 3 years ago. Its counterpart is on the mantle. I also used some stacking coupons at Target to get a Fall-scented candle. They all sit on a owl-shaped placemat my MIL gave me. Free! Holla! Though, she bought them at Bed, Bath, and Beyond if you'd like to get 'em. The placemat lets me feel at ease burning that sage-y candle on top of my antique hutch.    Total spent here: $2.69

Isn't this afghan lovely? My Grandma Jo made it when I was very little and I've held on to it so long that chevron is back again! And in Fall colors? Thanks Grandma!

Here's a close-up of the flower arrangement on my dining room buffet. I already owned the silver vase, birds, and striped napkins so all I had to buy was the flowers and those spider-leg-looking ferns from the Dollar Tree!   Total spent here: $4

Of course, I had to have a centerpiece for my dining room table as well. Here I just threw together some things I already had at the house and plopped a wicker pumpkin ($2.50 in the "dollar" section of Target) on top with one of my little birdie friends from the Dollar Tree.   Total spent here: $3.50

 For whatever reason, I couldn't get a good shot of my new front door wreaths while outside, so here's a pic from just before I hung them. Aren't they sweet? I just used some clearance items from Michael's and a few things from my stash. Total spent here: $15

And just for a giggle, here's some pictures of my little!

Happy Halloween!

Organizing Kids' Clothes

First, let me say that I am probably the last person to give advice about organization. But, there is one area of my house that I am proud to say is always in good shape. Shockingly, it's in my son's dresser!

Ever go to get your little one dressed and spend 10 minutes shuffling through a messy drawer only to have your kiddo walk out in a crazy, mixed up outfit that barely fits? I got fed up with it, and had to put us out of our misery! Here's my tips for getting your kid's drawers looking like this:

 1. Take out all the clothes that don't fit, aren't season appropriate, or otherwise aren't going to be worn on a regular basis. This will immediately cut down on drawer clutter. Duh!

2. Sort clothes into outfits as they come out of the dryer, and clip the pieces together with wooden clothespins. You can mix up the pieces into different outfits if you want variety.

3. Lift up any outfits that didn't get worn between wash cycles, and slip the freshly clipped-together outfits under them. This will keep the clothes evenly worn.

When it's time to get dressed, you can grab an outfit without shuffling a thing! The clothespins get dumped into the diaper bin that sits on top of the dresser (or get a cute pail from Target) where they await the next laundry day.

We've been using this system for a few months and it has been sooooo easy to keep up. My boy's drawers took like this 99% of the time with zero extra effort, and Daddy no longer dresses him like a crazy person! Hope this helps!

Pretend Play for Boys!

Since the Halloween season is upon us, it's time to think about Christmas! What?

Ok, I have a 2 year old boy. I want him to dress up and practice pretending. It's good for the imagination, right? Well, if you have girls, it's not hard to find pretend play items. Tiaras, mom's old dresses, and a few Goodwill fans can be found year-round. But if, like me, you have sons, you have one time of year to find a good selection of pretend play items- Halloween! Check out what I found at the Dollar Tree today:

That's 1 pirate costume (hat, eyepatch, and hook), 1 fireman costume (helmet and vest), 1 soldier costume (camo vest, helmet, and playset with walkie talkie, etc.), 1 knight costume (breastplate, sword, and shield), and a construction vest. I paid just $10 for all that!



Plus, for his birthday, his auntie gave him a bunch of play food (so I am looking for a small chef's hat) and a doctor bag which is his current obsession. Paging Dr. Cutiepants. Dr. Cutiepants, please come to the ER.


Sorry for the blurry pic. The kid hardly stands still.

I am also on the lookout for a construction helmet and a cowboy outfit. I saw some superhero capes in the party favor section at Target last week, didn't get them, and now they're sold out.  Arg! I'm sure they'll be back soon. She says hopefully.





I can't wait to stock all these cool dress-up clothes in my little guy's TARDIS that I am building to house toys in his "big boy" room that we're planning to unveil for Christmas. So, obviously, more posts to come on that!

If you have a boy, I'd love some comments on wear/what to get for dress-up stuff!

Vote for Me! Please Help!

Ok, so if you haven't already heard about Vintage Revivals, yet, where have you been?!?!
There's this gal, Mandi, who does amazing Epic Room Makeovers.....and I wanna win one!!!!
All I need is a mess of people to vote for me!
Watch this funny video then scroll down for more pictures!!!

Here's why we need this:

1. Popcorn ceiling with 70's recessed lighting.

2. Mystery stain! Ew.

3. Ghetto-rigged curtain sitch-y-ation.

4. No headboard, and that's just stupid.

5. Dated, too-short bedside tables.

6. Black moulding. I'm talking black baseboards, people.

7. We have a tiny little bathroom that also needs some Mandiliciousness. It's all functional, it just needs some lovin'. I've already taken the hideous Moulin Rouge wallpaper border off so it's pretty much half done! Right?

8. There's virtually nothing on the walls. No mirrors, no pictures, no decor except hand-me downs and an alarm clock that we still can't work after 8 years of marriage.

9. Mismatched doors.

10. It's U-G-L-Y, and it ain't got no alibi!

Why hasn't it been done yet?
1. Ever try a remodel project with a feral 2 year old running around?

2. After buying this house, we sunk what little decor budget we had into replacing all the stuff the previous owners "liberated"- i.e. ceiling fans, light fixtures, fireplace mantle, the back door, etc. We had to repaint the front of the house since it was a lovely shade of "Buffalo Pee". There were also a lot of 1/2-done projects that had to be finished like "framing doors" and "changing locks". Hey, how do you type air quotes? Then we got pregnant and had said feral child. So...ya, he's kept us pretty busy. ;)

Have I convinced you yet? Please help by voting for me! Visit Vintage Revivals now!