hey there, pumpkin.

I don't really celebrate Halloween, or like scary things like I used to when I was younger, but I do love some things about the day: the candy, the cute costumes (on the little kids, not so much the teens that just slap on a mask and stretch their pillowcase out for candy... is that mean?), the Autumn crisp in the air, and seeing the glowing pumpkins carefully carved and on display.

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Tonight my hubby and I will be doing an inspection on a potentially new home we (randomly) put in an offer for (which was accepted right away), and we'll be giving out candy to the trick-or-treaters.
I thought I'd just spread a little Halloween happiness by taking a look at this season's treasured gourd (and to keep it as scary-free as possible... such a wimp, I know). ;)

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A lot of these images (and more) are on my Pinterest board. You can check it out by clicking on the button to the right, and follow if you wish :)

I hope you have a safe n' sugar-filled Halloween :)

our boob tube's gone wireless

Some of you might remember my previous complaints around Christmas last year when setting up our decorations... as ghetto as I can be, I hit a new low when I thought an inordinate amount of glitter and reindeer could hide our shame.
Exhibit A:

even with the bright and distracting lights, you can't help but draw your eye to the dark wires and printer in the background.

A closer look:

For some of you who've read my blog before know about the free credenza I refinished. Rather than finding a space in our home for it, it just sat in our hallway, and we posted it on Craigslist for $20. 

After receiving several responses, we then realized how we could use it as a TV console (and *gasp* forego the 20 buckaroos). 

My handy hubby got to work and started sawing holes into the wall to install a power outlet and two HDMI ports closer to the top (to eliminate the curtain of wires). 

(you can also see the exposed patch along the window we haven't painted yet in our two and a half years of living here!)

The outlet sticks out a bit from the side of the TV for two reasons: a wall stud was unfortunately in that place, but my husband also says it's a reason for us to get a bigger TV in the near future (to hide it, of course! ;)

One of the HDMI ports (the other was closer to the floor).

From the front, you can see a bit of the plug and the HDMI cord, but definitely a huge step up from the past! 

I was just so thrilled to see that the credenza fit perfectly in that space against the wall (annnnd it's larger than the previous console, which means more Christmas decorations to fill the tabletop! ;)

Now all of our pesky wires are not in plain sight, but nicely hidden away in our console.

And that ooglay printer? He has a new place in a dark, dark cavern.

Ahh.... no wires dangling, just pure, clean spaciousness.

hm... now I guess the only thing left is to go looking for a bigger TV? ;)

This is what the credenza looks like in all it's glory (at night with poor lighting, unfortunately).

Happy Monday, everyone! :)

life as of late - part 4

My cousin introduced me to this dessert place in Toronto that serves some seriously amazing Korean crushed ice. We ordered the strawberry and the 'green' ones (I'm guessing calling it 'green crushed ice' was easier than naming every green fruit that it had).

This happened a little while ago, but I thought I'd share. On the opening night of the new Batman movie, I happened to drive by a corvette that was transformed into a Bat mobile... I tried my best to take a picture without crashing into it. I sent the photo to my husband and male family members who (much to my shock) thought this was the coolest thing ever. Really?!

A friend and I took a lovely day trip out to this amazing town that is about an hour away, and that is known for it's Mennonite community (and equally amazing outdoor farmer's market). This lil' kid does not look impressed manning the jumbo pickle station we saw there.

On a sad note, our pooch (being the not-so-bright crayon that she is) broke her nail. Now before I make her out to sound like a complete ditz, it was enough to get her sedated, and have her bloody nail tended to by the Vet... :)

and on a baby note, we did manage to buy some more baby junk that we need (here it is all scattered across our living room floor). 

And from this weekend: I made cinnamon rolls for Saturday's breakfast while perusing blogs and things...

Then went shopping, taking in alllll of the lovely Christmas decor that's out already...

(I stopped at these flameless LED candles that are scented and wondered how I felt about them... I love that they're childproof, and won't potentially burn down your house, but I wondered if they're a little tacky... are they?)

I also loved the store display Christmas trees... I'm not so much of a glitter-loving gal, but there's something about it being a tree that makes it seriously stunning. :)

And I learned something new while admiring the ornaments; I always wondered why stores carried pickle ornaments every year, and now I know! :) This is such a cute tradition, even if my husband and I are not German.

My hubby and I also shared a lovely lunch out...

and my cousin and I went to IKEA and after shared a deliciously spicy dinner at a Korean restaurant where we had fried chicken two ways, a Japanese oyster and pork pancake, and spicy rice cakes...

Talk about comfort food for a rainy day!

 well, after a fabulous weekend, this woman's tired.

That concludes some random tidbits from my life :)

5 adorable art print sources

Here in Toronto it's been raining a.lot. which I usually love because it means I break out my wellies and listen to some good ol' emo music while driving (while singing at the top of my lungs, of course ;)

While not driving my car in teeny-bopper fashion, I've been spending my time looking for some art prints on the web for the nursery (I promise you, I won't turn this into an only-about-spawn blog!).

But, I thought I'd share some of them with you, as they are too cute to keep to oneself, and are perfect for any nursery or kid's room (or any room, if you're a recent helpless convert, like me!)

1. For an amazing assortment of seriously affordable & adorable prints, Sarah Jane Studios is where it's at. Some of my favourites:

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2. Minted has a great selection of prints (not just for baby or child). I'm loving their whimsy designs, and a great feature on this site is you can personalize the colours on the prints to better suit the room it'll be in! All pictured below can be found here.

3. For a unique and cheeky twist on artwork for the kiddies, I love what society6 has to offer with their selection of prints. I mean, seriously, who wouldn't smile at the Muppet alphabet or this cute dog print?

4. The prints offered at Sugarboo Designs are sure to bring a sweet sentimental touch to any space; their work have an personalized quality to them - like they are each special and uniquely made for the little boy/girl (it's also wonderful that they bring inspiration to anyone who walks in the room).
All these pictured below can be found here.

5. And I cannot get enough of Cinnamon Ink's Etsy shop. That red rover print (on top) is such a cute reflection of unity, love, and childhood happiness (... but we all know what red rover brings... forget those happy balloons, kids, 'cuz you're about to get a shoulder in the face. Or was that just what I experienced? ;)

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Now it's just a matter of choosing and purchasing (the hardest part!)

I'm sure there are many other great sites that feature hang-worthy prints that I just don't know about yet... 

If you know of any that should be mentioned, I'm all ears! :)

On a side note, can you believe that October is ending this week? Where'd it go??!

diy sonogram keepsake frame

Happy Monday, everyone!

I have been quite busy lately (which kind of explains my disappearance), but I bring you a supremely easy project that is sure to suit any nursery, be a lovely way to announce a future baby, or serve as a sweet baby shower gift!

I think I might even give these to each sets of future grandparents for Christmas this year. :)

Well, let me get on with it.

While in Chapters Indigo, I was in the baby section (which still feels strange to walk through for some reason), and I came upon this adorable ultrasound keepsake frame. 

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It came with several captions to place in the window below the ultrasound, such as 'bun in the oven', 'coming soon', and one of my favourites 'love at first sight'. 

At the whopping price of $30, I set out to re-create it for less.

Using an IKEA RIBBA frame that I got for $5 at a 50% off sale, some scrap booking paper, Martha Stewart labels, double sided tape, and our ultrasound picture, the process was simple:

I already cut my paper to size (making sure the scrap booking paper was large enough for all the edges to hide behind the photo mat), and secured the sonogram picture with double-sided tape.

Then I used double-sided tape to carefully secure it. It helped to place the matting over the picture to make sure it was aligned the way I wanted before taping it down.

Then I just added my faaaave caption to one of Martha's ready-made labels (which I love and have used on all of our storage containers in our kitchen).

The final product (nicely atop my favourite storybook series, Scaredy Squirrel, and a cute owl gift from my brother and his fiancee):

a closer look...

Easy. Peasy.

Better yet, the total cost?

- Ikea frame - $5

- paper, tape, labels, and marker - $0 (already had on hand)

-a cute way to cherish our little guy (did I mention it's a boy? :) - priceless.

I've also gotta say that I'm liking the extra colour on my version; it's also giving a sneak peek at one of the nursery colours we'll be using!

Another possibility with this frame is that it would look amazing as a set a set of three (or more!) all showing different stages of growth with the baby, and all with equally adorable captions underneath. 

hmm... something to think about!

Well, I hope your week is off to a great start! :)