Five tips I'm taking from staging

When we got our house ready to sell we had to get things in order.  That meant clearing out the clutter and really trying to scale back.  In some ways it was bad (I really miss the kids playspace) but in lots of other ways it's been really good.

Here are 5 things I'll continue to do when we finally find our next house...

1. Keep cooking things off the counter. 

This isn't my counter top, (thanks gcmenezes) but it might as well have been.  We kept olive oil, salt, pepper, random spices, vinegar, etc. all on the countertop right next to the stove.  So when we were getting ready to sell all those things had to move up to to the shelf above.

This is my kitchen:

Enter the bright and sparkly, and not cluttered, countertop.  See those hanging shelves down from the upper cabinet?  Those were where my spices are.  Despite these clever storage units there was still a TON of stuff where those flowers are.  Needless to say, my realtor was not a fan- she made me clean it up.  I thought it would really drive me nuts, but it dosen't.  I just put everything in that cabinet above the countertop and put it away when I'm done.  It means a nicer workspace for all of us.

2. Put it away, immediately

I know we've heard this before, but living in a house where at any moment you could get a call from your realtor about someone wanting to stop by really drives the message home.  I wouldn't wish that stress on anyone, but it really puts it in perspective about how the little things (like really finishing a project, or only doing the things you really have time for) can impact your feelings about the house.  With things neat and tidy I had more time to spend scrapbooking, and making messes that I knew

3. Get rid of it.

A huge piece to staging is clearing out the clutter.  From piles of papers to anything else.  It's totally liberating to realize how little stuff you need.  Yes, there are things that I was missing in my life, but honestly, those things are fewer than I thought they might be.  There are tons of things that we just don't need but we own anyways.  And no, I'm not talking about Halloween decor or Maternity clothes, I'm talking about the 6 different random coffee mugs, or the cards from college that you really don't need to be hanging on to.  When you are packing, and prepping the house for sale you realize all the things you just don't need.

4. Toy Rotation/Less Toys

I've always been a fan of this idea, but it wasn't until my kiddos were living with less than a quarter of their toys, both at home most days, and still doing totally fine that I realized my kids are inundated with toys.  We had a whole playspace full of them, in addition to whats here in these photos, and they don't really miss a them almost ever.  Sure there are items they do miss (guitar anyone...?) but over the long haul it's been totally fine.  Paper, a few crayons, playdough and bubbles have kept us happy since EG stopped school in mid-June.

5. Mementos and photos make a house a home

This has been the easiest lesson to learn.  Without the things that make us who we are, it's a sad place to be in.  A house is more than a house- it's a home to you and your stuff.They moved a lot of our photos, and living without touching anything makes it a really stressful way to live.  So bake that bread, hang up that photo, and enjoy living in your home.

Taking over Easter Decor

Now that it's finally Easter, and the Easter bunny has come and gone this morning, it's time to go out there and snap up some after Easter steals for the season.

Here are my Target finds that work all year long:

Spring has sprung whether there's Easter or not and if I had a baby with a Springtime birthday you could bet that these would be at her party.  The cute floral design is good for a tea party, or a birthday party at any time.  Just adorable, and the price is great at full price, and should be wonderful once they cut it down a touch.

Having a baby girl anytime soon?  Getting married?  These adorable little birdies are great for table tops and totally unique for decor in a little girls room.  Imagine them as part of a wonderful baby mobile, or dressing up the ends of a bookcase.

They would make adorable little items to put along the aisle at a wedding.

Don't think we've forgotten about the boys.  These are 'easter' baskets that would be great for anytime of year.  You have a friend who's into sports- fill this with some balls and a glove, and you've got a spot on birthday present.  Same goes for a pirate party- fill these with pirates booty and a few shovels and the kids party snack food is done.  The dinosaur is especially sweet- I could see that being in a boys bedroom with books inside, or even filled with plastic dinos as a great storage item.

They have a great selection of tiny hands gardening supplies right now.  Though not for easter (so probably not on sale) they would be great gifts for those kiddos or parents with interest in gardening, butterflying, etc.  Sorry the photos aren't the best...

Last but not least these are adorable springtime plates.  In this case both of these are actually microwaveable- something I'm always looking for in dinner plates for my kiddos.  You have the smaller one for the youngins and the larger one for when you get to have toddlers, etc.

These are wonderful items to re-fresh your kids perspective on eating.  Sometimes a toddler dinnertime disaster can be changed around by a new plate.

Here's to springtime!

Passover at Target

I have to say that Target is probably my favorite store right now.  Not only is it convient for me (right down the street) but it has almost everything I need on a given day.  And this is especially true for Passover.  Does it have three types of Matzo Meal?  No.  Is it as good for food shopping as the Ralphs on Sepulveda?  No.  But it is probably the only store that has a selection of Passover decor items.

Target used to re-create their Passover line each year.  In fact the seder plate that I have at my house is marked 2011.  They stopped doing that right at 2011, since the seder plate they are selling this year is the same as that one.  However, I'm still saying hats off to Target for stepping up to the plate and doing something...

Here's the food section.  Again, I wouldn't recommend that you do your shopping here.  Apparently they think we only need to eat Matzo balls, Macaroons and Matza.  Oh, and dessert.  But, never the less, it's sweet that they have the foods and are totally trying.  Good spot to stop if you forget something on the way to someone's house.

Here's why we love Target though- there selection of decor products.  That are actually cute, and totally usable.  All the plastic is BPA free, and although the blue cups were out for Chanukah, they have some truly distinct Passover items that you won't be able to walk into a typical store and find.  

They do have a seder plate (it's on the second shelf) and it's quite nice.  But since I already have it, and it's not new to the Passover line, I didn't take any specific pictures of it.

 The children's seder plate is awful cute- wonderfully colorful, and totally appropriate with both pictures and words.  I'm impressed by their use of Hebrew on the plate, they didn't shy away from including it.  Though not microwave safe, it can go in the dishwasher.

Last year I had 10 kids under the age of 4 at my house.  And I searched high and low for plates for all those kiddos.  I totally should have gotten these.  No need to remember which are the passover dishes- it says so right there!  Part of a a great kiddos set, that's dishwasher safe.

This is where I think Target really stands out.  Yes they have the traditional seder plates, but they also go out of their way to include these decor items.  I'll give you a little hint about Target.  They do a great job of labeling their items. You can see what season/promotion the item belongs to by lifting it up and looking underneath.

See the Jewish star?  That means it was designed exclusively/specifically for a Jewish holiday.  It could have been Chaunkah or Passover, but regardless, it was for the Jewish community.  And that, to me, is where Target wins points.  On the display there were at least two items not specific to the holiday (aka one had a sun since it was a summer item, and another was just a random item) but they are just about the only store that is continuously making items.

So cheers to you Target!  Thanks for including us in the spring time celebration!   Now, just because something isn't marked with a star doesn't mean it wouldn't be adorable at your Passover seder.  Here's a cute selection of items for the kiddos that fall into the Frog theme of the Passover world.  I could just imagine my little girlies in those PJ's and my tiny Ocho in these Froggie slippers!

I'm also always on the lookout for little entertainment items that will keep EG at the table.  This year target didn't disappoint with this adorable frog creation you can make yourself.  While it does involve glue (so may not be appropriate for all seder tables) it's certainly a cute and adorable project that she can do her self.

And thankfully she doesn't look at my blog- so this adorable froggie cup that I bought her for the seder will still be a pleasant surprise.

This post wasn't paid or perked in anyway (though, note to Target, I wouldn't mind getting paid!) I just want to share the goods for everyone.  And I hope that some of you go out there any buy these Target items.  That way they are inspired to continue to make them for us every year.

Tu B'Shvat Tablescapes

I'm not the most fancy when it comes to table decor.  As much as I try, I don't think I'm ever quite able to get across what it is I'm trying to.


You've seen my Passover table, and I've had some pretty Rosh Hashana tables, and I've done my best on Purim too, but I get so involved in the practical- especially when you have little children and tiny hands on the table.

This Wednesday is Tu'Bshvat, and while we won't be hosting our dinner until Saturday night, I thought I would share a few beautiful tables, so we can all strive for something new this year...

License

Some rights reserved by Didriks

There are so many beautiful tables designs at Chai and Home.  She even has a whole pinterest page dedicated to these gorgeous tables.

I love the idea of using a platter and displaying some of the fruits and vegetables of the season, or of the holidays...

 This shows how gorgeous Wheat can be in a vase- and totally simple too...

Also cc  Didriks

The Jewish Hostess also has some nice tablescapes, so you can look at her website too for some additional inspiration.  Just because we have tiny humans doesn't mean we don't want pretty things... right...?

Oh Chanukah oh Chanukkiah

No, I didn't spell the name of the holiday wrong- I'm just obsessed with the fact that we don't light Menorah's we light Chanukkiah's.  To clarify- a Menorah has 7 candles total, 6 on each side and one in the middle.  It was what was used in the Temple to light up the space, and created the concept of the Eternal Flame we see in synagogues today.  The story of Chanukah is that the Temple was defiled and desecrated by Antiochus.  So, a bunch of Jews named the Maccabees decided to make a stand and take the temple back.  My mom always commented that this was the first fight for religious freedom.  My husband says the Maccabees were terrorists...but moving on...

Once they won the fight with Antiochus and reclaimed the temple mount, they discovered that all of the holy oil had been desecrated.  It takes 8 days to make new oil.  Somewhere, someone found a single flask of pure oil, and they used that to light the Menorah for the first time.  However, a great miracle happened there and the oil remained lighting the Menorah for eight days, until we could make and purify new oil.

So, when we talk about Chanukah, we are commemorating that there were eight days of light with a special candleabra made for the occasion.  I have no idea when we started to just call it a Menorah, I wish I knew.  My understanding is that in Israel a Menorah just means a lamp, and the Chanukkiah (the actual word) was created by Eliazer Ben YEhuda.

So, enough of the history lesson- on to the Chanukkiah

Around our house there is a Chanukkiah everywhere you look practically.  And that's not including the ones we are actually using candles on. 

It's tradition to have your Chaukkiah by the front door, or by a window so that those who are passing by can share in it's light.   We used to do this (see evidence of previous years below), but since we've moved EG's playspace to this area, it didn't seem like a great place for a Chanukkiah.

So we've put up a sticky window Chanukkiah instead.  We have two of them, one on the front window and one on the back

Next we have the two ultimate child friendly Chanukkiahs.  One was a gift from Auntie Lezlie to EG last year, though she's only really old enough for it this year.  The other is a great find from Target.  They have similar ones at Pottery Barn.  Those two stores are my favorite place for Chanukah items.  They really go all out and include the holiday in their offerings...

Anyways, the wood one has numbers, and you turn the numbers around to reveal the flames.

This one has small felt soft candles that you stick into each of the different holes at the top.  Unfortunately it has each candle numbered, which EG can't do right now.  So, I let her choose the candle to add to the Chanukkiah, then when she goes to bed I fish out the right one.  Yup, that's right folks, I undo her hard work and do it again myself.

 The last Chanukkiah that we have is probably my personal favorite.  That's because it was made with extreme care and love by my Sister-in-Law for EG last year.  And it's absolutely wonderful. I couldn't ask for a better SIL, and this is just one of the many ways she proves that!  It's made like a felt board, and is really fun for EG. It's hanging in her playspace, so she has easy access to it.

You may be wondering about why we are lighting the candles what will probably seem to be backwards.  Here's a little infographic on that...  From Chai & Home, a blog I really like.  It's also incredibly accurate, which is a nice touch as well.

Decor for the holidays

You know that we are techincally an Interfaith Family (despite Working Dad's insistence that are aren't).  Since he grew up non-Jewish, we have a lot of family heritage that harkens back to Christmas, and that's something that we try to incorporate into our lives.

For us, that means that we celebrate Christmas with his family every year.  This year we have at least 3 different celebrations, and I'm excited to enjoy them.

However, inside our home we've always just celebrated Chanukah.  It comes with a catch, however.  Since Working Dad is out of his parents home, he was gifted all of his original ornanments- the cute 'babies first Christmas' and other meaningful ornaments from his childhood.  These memories don't just disappear because we don't celebrate Christmas.  And we've since been gifted some lovely Jewish star ornaments as well.

So, we improvise...

I give you our holiday mantel.  It has the family menorah (given to me when I was 13) plus a wooden menorah for EG. A bunch of cute blue and gold/silver ornaments and candles. It can look really pretty when they all have their candles burning.

You can also see off to the side, our celebration of memories.  A wreath that smells nice, brings some of the evergreen home, and also allows us to hang those ornaments that we otherwise wouldn't have a place for.

 Ever since I've known Working Dad he's always had a wreath in his home for the holidays.  Typically you would put one on the front door, but that wouldn't really work with all the delicate ornaments we have decorating ours.

You can see that it's really become a place for everything- and that I've Jew-ified it up quite a bit. We have ornaments that mean a lot to both Working Dad and to me.

What do you do with your Interfaith traditions?  How do you incorporate your family history, while staying true to the religion of you family?

Minor Projects

I've been busy working on lots of little things around the house- you know what I'm talking about, those little projects that you've had on the list for a while, but never seem to get quite done.  Since I've been basically just sitting on the couch daily (between groin pain and indegestion, it's been a rough week 41) so these little projects have really helped me through it.

The first project I'm going to show you is actually a wall calendar I made for everyone for Christmas/Chanukah.  I made one for my mom, sister, mother-in-law and sister-in-law.  It's a really easy and fun project, and can include any kind of celebration you'd like.  I really like that it's interactive, so it's so much easier than looking through a book to remember important dates.

There are really only two components.  The first is the plaque sign, which I've decorated with the word CELEBRATE.  For my SIL I made it blue and white, for my mom it's white and black.  My MIL got one that was more natural colored.  You can do anything you want- some people just put Birthdays- but my plan is to add anniversaries at some point...

 You can buy the piece at Michaels or Jo-Anns, and it's not that expensive.

Then there are the circles- I bought a TON of them on Amazon. These are about 1.5" wide, which I found to be perfect.  With them there's enough space to write the names, and the date, and still have it look really good.

Then you need these little metal rings to connect the discs together.  These are really easy to get, and pretty cheap.

I drilled a small hole in the top and bottom of each disc, so I could attach them together.

Here's the final product:

The other thing that I've been working on is a small spot to put my jewelry in the bathroom.  I don't know about you, but I take my jewelry off before I take a shower.  Even if I don't take a shower, I almost always get undressed in the bathroom, that's where the laundry basket is, isn't it? 

So I took an old shelf that I've had since college and added a few open rings for the necklaces to hang off of.  It looks great for the hanging section- and I'm totally happier with the space I've gain back on the counter-top.

I think I need to add a little bowl or some type of small item on the top of the shelf for rings, and earrings, but it's been working really well so far!  easy peasy project!

New changing table-

My Mother-in-Law was the first to suggest that we move our changing table into the hallway for when B2 arrives.  Being in a basically one-story house we almost always take EG to her bedroom to change her.  I expect that once B2 is done pooping in the night, we'll do the same for them as well.  So when she suggested we would want the changing table always accessible, I knew it was a great idea.

Unfortunately the space that made the most sense- outside our guest/kids bathroom- is a really tiny space/hallway.  We'd had a dresser/secretaries desk there and that might have worked, but when we fold out the top it would be impossible to move, and I didn't want to constantly think about where to move the changing pad.

Months of searching later I found the perfect dresser- in our own bedroom!  I had gotten to my wits ends about this dresser, and then realized that the one we had would already work.  I wanted two top drawers (diapers for EG and diapers for B2) and then at least two other drawers (PJs for each kid).  I imagined that we would do bath time, take each kid into the hallway to diaper and dress for the nighttime, then we would head off to bed time routine.

Once I found the dresser I started really thinking about what it would look like.  I loved the look of these drawer pulls:

Pottery Barn drawer pulls

 They would be great to number each drawer and then I could tell EG which drawer and we could practice her numbers.  Wonderful and easy.  Except they are discontinued.

Back to the drawing board.... I saw these dinosaur drawer pulls:

This is from the Misadventures of the WolfPack, and they have an excellent tutorial on how to accomplish this look that they created for their little boys.   However, being pregnant myself and having put more than enough on Working Dad's plate, I just knew the foam would be too much for us.

Enter EG's Melissa and Doug puzzle:

I realized that these would be the most adorable drawer pulls- perfect for what we were going for.  And each animal has a distinct color, so we could practice animals and colors at the same time!

I knew that it would be the most adorable item- if I could pull it off.

When I went through the process of this dresser I took photos of just about every step that I made along the way.  However, when push came to assembly shove, it didn't work the way I expected it to.  So, I don't want to share with you in great detail what I did, because I would NEVER recommend it.

We started off with a plain brown dresser, and had to trim down the legs just a bit to make it the right height for our changing table. I love the look of white and wood, and I knew that would help the drawer pulls to 'pop' so I painted the drawers white.  I really like that look.

Then it came time to figure out the pulls themselves.  I know how regular pulls are- they have a metal nut or screw base inside, and get screwed into the drawer.  I thought that I wanted to be able to replace the pulls if I needed to, so I began heading that direction.

Basically I drilled out a hole the size of a nut, bought myself a specific type of screw that has a screw on one side, and a bolt end on the other.  I thought these would be perfect- use wood glue to keep in the nut, screw in the bolt end (with a spacer around it to make it pretty) and then screw into the wood.

What a disaster!  The particleboard the puzzle pieces are made out of weren't hard enough to hold the screw in.  Almost all of them totally broke apart.  I was able to fix them using epoxy, but if I were going to recommend how to do this, do it backwards.  Same hanger bolts, but screw into the puzzle directly, then bolt into the dresser.

No matter, the finished product is AMAZING! (or at least I think it is)... (ignore the stuff on the top, we're trying to get it all ready for B2- which is challenging when you only manage to get a day or two of good work done before you injure yourself again!)

I left the lion on the left, since that is where we normally went for EG's diapers in her bedroom changing table, and one of her first little things was an adorable roar/growl that her dad taught her.  I chose the other puzzle pieces based upon their look and their ease of use as a pull.

It took WAY to long to get this project done, but I'm thrilled.  Now all I have to do is get a new changing pad, and set-up the accessories we'll need in the area- aka creams, wipes, etc.  The top of this table isn't as large or wide as our old one, so I'm planning to hang those items on the wall.

Did you make any furniture yourself for the babies room?  We've been working on moving a LOT of stuff since we turned the guest bedroom into B2's room.

Later this week I'll share the progress (or lack thereof) on B2's room, as well as a few of the other house related projects we've been tackling lately.