#makesmesmile

I love photos. I like to capture the every day in pictures. One of my hobbies is to learn more about photography and what settings on my Canon captures the moment exactly as I saw it. I cherish the many photos I have taken over the years, and I love sitting with a cup of hot tea and reminiscing. I have started following a few blogs lately that simply inspire me. So, thank you to all these talented artists.

To challenge myself, I decided to start capturing one moment a day that just makes me smile. So, I started a new account on Instagram called simplylifestuff. Feel free to follow me. One photo a day posted to Instagram and a photo dump on the blog on Fridays with #makesmesmile. Here we go:

Welcoming Grandpa with Smoked Bar-B-Que

Enjoying after working outdoors in the flower beds

Early morning sun shining on the mountains – view from my kitchen

Sharing flavored sugar with a friend to celebrate her Bday

Enjoying a glass of wine during dinner prep

New bright pillows in anticipation of spring

Snow is in our forecast for tomorrow. So, I leave you with a few additional photos.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend. I see some sledding in our future. What made you smile today? Sometimes, it can just be the little things.

Mar 21

Putting it in its place…

I LoVe being organized. For me, it is not just that things are put away in their proper place, it is a state of mind. When things around the home are cluttered, my brain is cluttered, not allowing me to relax. When I was in graduate school, I could not begin my long hours of studying and consuming coffee beans to stay awake, until the house was “straightened.” I am no organizational guru by any means, but I can share some ways I keep me and my family organized inside our home.

We love the outdoors and adventures, and a garage full of “toys” and equipment to prove it. Organization for outdoor activities would have to be a blog post in and of itself. Mental note made.

The first item of organization in our home is our mail envelopes. When mail comes in, it gets dispersed. Trash goes into recycling. Who am I kidding, the sorting usually happens after it sits on the counter for a day or so in one big pile. I purchased these from Target a while back on clearance. They are part of the Real Simple brand.

Mail – Organizational Tip

To keep us organized so we can head out of the door on time, IKEA comes to the rescue with what is suppose to be a shoe bin. We each have a drawer where we keep our sunglasses, wallet, volunteer badge for school, coupons, keys, etc. – all the little things that seem to grow legs. By placing things in our drawer, we can grab them as we walk out the door just a few steps away.

Things we need before walking out of the house – Organizational Tip

N has friends who like to visit. It snows in CO. So, this boot tray holds our snow boots and any kids’ shoes who come to play. So convenient because each kid knows exactly where his/her shoes are located. There is no need for a game of seek-and-find when it is time to go home for dinner. And, my floors stay cleaner longer.

Boot Tray – Organizational Tip

If the kids have a place for their shoes, they need a place for their coats and hats. So, the hubs and I made this simple coat rack out of water valves. Super cheap project that you can read more about here. Again, no game of hide-and-seek when the parents come a callin’. And since this little baby hangs on the wall, it takes up no space.

Simple Coat Rack – Organization Tip

Speaking of coats and hats…We have a shoe hanger right inside of our coat closet where we keep the gloves, hats, balaclavas, scarves, ski goggles, etc. that we use so often here in CO. Another system of grab and go which just makes life run a little smoother. I walk my N to school every day, so having these things readily available saves us valuable time.

Winter Wear – Organizational Tip

In our home, we have a very small laundry room. Luckily, there is only 3 of us. This basket drawer system works great. We each have a drawer and as I fold, I place the clothes in the appropriate drawer. Just like the mail bins, every one empties his/her drawer. Well, this is how it is suppose to happen. The baskets are super easy to carry upstairs, so even N can put his own clothes away. On a side note, I cannot wait to remodel my laundry room.

Sorting laundry – Organizational Tip

And now to the toys, children’s toys. The majority of N’s toys are housed in a double closet in the basement. IKEA comes to the rescue again. Labeled bins are the answer to tame all that clutter. The kids love it because they can find exactly what their little hands want to play with for that second in time. It certainly makes clean up easier, as well.

Taming Toys – Organizational Tip

And one final organizational tip for you that involves mine and N’s craft supplies. I purchased this little baby at Michaels right before Christmas.

Crafts – Organizational Tip

I hope these tips can help you become more organized in your home. What is your #1 organizational tip? Does being organized help your state of mind? Please share. If everything (well, most things) is in its place, I feel a sense of calm. Sometimes, it is the little things.

Mar 20

HaPpY SpRiNg

So, today is the first day of SpRiNg!! That, along with cleaning out my flower beds yesterday, has my nerve endings pinging for warmer days. I thought today I would share some images with you that speak “spring.” Spring makes me anxious for blooming flowers, scurrying animals, hiking and camping, growing vegetables and herbs, fly fishing, watching nature, grilling out, living outdoors, etc. I hope you enjoy!

Releasing ladybugs

Hiking to new destinations

Planting sunflowers and watching wildlife

Just enjoying the outdoors

Spending time on the beach

Finding baby bunnies

Blooming flowers

Nature

Lush, green garden

Herbs to use when grilling out

Being outdoors and fly fishing

Hiking with the family

Outdoors

Sipping a glass of wine while enjoying a beautiful campsite

Have you started cleaning out your flower beds and making plans to bring them alive again? Do you plant a garden or grow herbs? Please share. All of these things just make me smile because sometimes, it is the little things.

Mar 19

Tracking Travels With 3-D Butterflies

I love adding little details to my house to make it feel more like my home. In my guest room, I recently added some 3-D butterflies to the wall. I originally got this idea from the Young House Love book #134. They used pages from an old book for their art, but I chose to use maps. My family loves the outdoors and adventures and the hubs makes maps, so it was a no-brainer. Here is all you need: a butterfly cookie cutter, a pencil, a map of the area you have travelled, a pair of scissors and some little pins. I used little red map pins.

Needed supplies

No detailed instructions are needed. I simply opened the map and folded it in the area I wanted to use, traced half of the butterfly on the fold, and cut it out. When you cut it out, you will have a complete butterfly. I cut out multiple butterflies in some of the areas we have travelled, and then pinned them to the wall above the bed. This is a small way to keep track of our adventures. You can see another way we track our adventures by clicking here.

3-D Adventure Butterflies

Here is a close-up.

Map 3-D Butterfly

If you noticed in the above picture, I paired these little beauties with a Katie Daisy print that displays words my family and I live by: The World is a Playground. I chose butterflies because they mimicked the butterflies in the print. However, you can choose any shape you like. Every time I look at these little butterflies I know they depict some of our many adventures, and I smile. I hope my guests enjoy looking at them. Sometimes, it is just the little things.

Have you repurposed old book pages or maps to make something for your wall? How do you track your adventures or travels? Please share.

Here is one way my family sees the world as a playground.

Hiking at Chicago Lakes

Mar 18

Accessorizing Completed

I love small projects that pack a big punch. I love them even more if they take very little money from my pocketbook. For awhile now, I have been admiring a certain cracked glass LED outdoor light on a house at the end of my street. Oh how that light shines with a nice brightness and cool pattern. We like it so much that we even approached the owner when he was outdoors one day to ask him where he purchased it.

When the hubs and I went to the local Home Depot this weekend looking for a mini fridge, I found a cracked glass LED light, not just like my neighbors but oh so nice. In addition, I had recently pinned a certain little garage door makeover from the Garr Den of Love blog. In my logical way of thinking, I figured if we were changing out the light fixture right beside the garage door, we may as well add some accessories to that said door. Here is what we purchased.

Hampton Bay Cottrell Collection Wall Mounted Outdoor Aged Bronze LED Powered Lantern

Crown Bolt Traditional Decorative Garage Hardware Kit in Black

I will not go through a step by step for you because the instructions to install the accessories are listed on the Garr Den of Love blog post that you can find here. As well, the instructions are listed on the back of the package. I will say that the accessories were on sale for $10 bucks. Here is our before.

Before

And after a little magic from the hubs, here is our after.

After

We have plans to add some stone work to both sides of the garage door and add another one of those LED babies to the other side. What do you think? I ran outside twice last night just to see that baby shine. So, we have glammed up our garage door area without spending a fortune on a brand new Carriage style door and I can now lust after my own lighting.

Have you made a small change to the outside of your home that took little time and money? What “big bang for your buck” projects have you completed? Please share. Small projects with little effort and money just make me smile because sometimes, it is the little things.

And before I leave you, this little guy greeted us this weekend. Are you ready for spring?

Spring, Anyone?

Mar 17

Action – Photo Challenge

A Word in Your Ear hosts a Word a Week Challenge. She merely opens the dictionary and chooses a word from the page. This week, the chosen word is ACTION. I decided to have some fun and look through my hundreds of photos to choose a few that depict this Word of the Week.

Check out the weekly challenge for yourself at A Word in Your Ear blog. Do you participate in any photo challenges? If so, please share.

Mar 14

AdVeNtUrE Time last year…

Adventures with my family make me happy. Memories of these adventures make me smile. So, I decided to start a new series each month called “AdVeNtUrE Time last year…” I will load this post with pictures/memories of my family’s adventure this time last year. Hope you enjoy.

In March of last year, my family was fly fishing, camping, hiking, and slacklining at Stone Mountain, NC.

Dad teaching son about fly fishing gear

Happy Fly Fisherman

The hike before the fishing

A boy and his dog

Slacklining at the campground

Can’t wait to share another “AdVeNtUre Time last year” post. To reminisce just makes me smile. Sometimes, it is the little things.

Mar 14

Hair and Crack Talk

Should I get my hair done or buy a weeks worth of groceries? Women, do you ask yourself this question? I had this very conversation with myself last week. Oh how I enjoy having my “hair did” and having someone else massage shampoo and conditioner through my locks. Hope the back of the shampoo bottle reads, “Wash, Rinse, Repeat.” And don’t get me started about having someone else more qualified dry and apply a flatiron to my hair. When I leave, I think I always have more bounce to my step, my shoulders are held a little higher, and my smile radiates a little more. Here is my before.

Before

Why is it that your hair decides to behave on the day you have an appointment to get it cut? It must know that I have been unsatisfied with it lately. Decided to get a few highlights and lowlights and a few inches taken off in prep for warmer weather. Or did I want shorter hair because I wear a winter hat around CO a lot these days? Either way, here is my after.

After

Does this haircut make my cheeks look fatter? While I am speaking of hair, I have to share a new product that I was brainwashed into trying. You see, I was subjected to advertising brainwashing when Ulta sent me a free sample of this product with my purchase. I tried it, and by the time the sample packet was empty, I was typing Ulta into Google and buying a full size bottle. This product is called Crack.

The air is so dry here in CO that I have to battle major fly aways and dry hair. But no more! Now, I am sporting shorter hair and no fly aways. Sometimes, it is just the little things.

Do you cringe every time you lay down money on your hair? Do you have a favorite hair product that you cannot do without? Have you ever been subjected to advertising brainwashing? Please share.

Mar 13

Keepin’ Track of Our Adventures

This day is a journey, this very moment an adventure. (Rebecca Pavlenko) My little family enjoys adventure. I love leaving the routine behind and letting the dust settle on the furniture without a care. So far, we love camping, hiking, backpacking, biking, bouldering, fly fishing, etc. Since moving to CO, we have added skiing, sledding, and snow shoeing to that list. When we moved to CO from NC, we hooked up our Coachman camper, packed our supplies, and headed cross country, enjoying adventures along the way.

To keep track of our travels and adventures for N, we purchased a map soon after moving to NC. Since that time, we have been pinning the places and storing away the memories.

N’s Travels

Here is a close up to show you the actual pins.

Pinning N’s Travels

N enjoys coming back from a trip, grabbing the pins and his Daddy and adding one more red dot on the map. He gets excited that he has been to about 10 states already. We plan to add at least 2 more this summer in our travels. Of course, we not only have the map, but we have millions of pictures. I always tell N that his entire life is documented. Here is one of my all time favorites!

Does your family love adventures and do alot of traveling? Do you have a way that you document your travels for yourself or your kiddos? Where is your all time favorite place to visit in the U.S.? Sleeping under the stars makes me smile. Sometimes, it is the little things.

Mar 12

Rewarding Myself Because…

Do you ever reward yourself just because? Well, today I did. My morning started off trying to drag myself out from under my cozy comforter in a darkened room thanks to this ##### time change. This was followed by the usual routine of showering, getting N ready for a fun filled day at school with a full belly, packed lunch and snack, warm clothes, and clean teeth. We had an amazing walk to school with a gentle snow falling around us. While walking home with a friend and neighbor, I learned that her birthday was Sunday. So, my brain starts churning. What would this person enjoy and what little gesture can I do that helps her celebrate her special day, even if I am two days late. So, after sitting in a doctor’s office watching one pregnant woman come in after another, I had some blood work done. Now, here is where I decide to reward myself.

I drove to our quaint little bookstore called The Tattered Covered. I perused the magazine section looking for a gardening magazine for my friend. She loves flowers and gardening, and I knew she would reward herself by looking at this magazine while sipping a cup of hot tea after her four kiddos are in bed. Of course, I also flipped through several house decorating magazines, wandered over to the card section to find the perfect Bday card and checked out the kid’s section and business section (I know, a little nerdy). Well, I had to pass by their Coffee Shop on the way out. So, I bought this little reward.

My Reward Just Because…

I first tasted this gem of a drink when we were in Breckinridge this past weekend, as I wrote about here. So, as I write this post today, I am sipping on this baby, 16oz baby to be exact with a smile on my face.

Before I end this post, I had to share a line of cards that I discovered while touring the bookstore. They are by Positively Green. I will let you in on a secret…I am a card hoarder. I buy cards just because I love the picture or the saying. This time was no different. I will share my little craft with these cards in a later post. Here is the card I chose.

Positively Green Card

I miss my friends in NC. It is a blessing that I have such an amazing neighbor who makes me feel right at home. Do you have a reward that you give yourself from time to time just because? What is it? Please share.