Chip and I have had it on our to-do list to complete this home workout and gym space in the basement for quite awhile. Before the renovation, this room was my absolute least favorite in the house. It wasn’t completely finished out, and for a host of reasons it was just difficult to make it useful, much less pretty. In the redesign, because of where it is in the house, it still couldn’t have windows, the ceiling space is lower, and it has that recessed area on the right because of ductwork details, making it once again a challenging space. sources for above: Frame Tv | Sconce | shelf brackets ..read more

Vivi turned 11 last fall, and to celebrate, we threw a Mysterious Benedict Society party. All of my girls loved the book and the series so much, and it was fun putting together something very bookish and mysterious. (Links above: red buckets (these are the exact ones I used, but they aren’t available currently); green velvet ribbon; green beanies; candy cane candles, gold fringe garland, dining chairs) We decided to have the party in the library; that felt very much like something Mr. Benedict would do. Vivi dressed up like Kate, and for party favors, we assembled red buckets similar to hers ..read more

This post is sponsored by Columbia TriStar Marketing Group. Have you read “Where the Crawdads Sing?” It’s such a good read, a page turner that kept me up all night finishing it! The movie adaptation will be in theaters on July 15th, and I can’t wait to see it. Chasing Paper has released a line of wallpaper inspired by the movie, and I went with the Birds pattern to make our guest space feel more personal. Here is a look at the room before: The ceilings in this space are lower (about 7.5 feet), so I added some 12” wide stripes on the ceiling to add some interest and I love how they work with t ..read more

We celebrated Ellie’s 6th birthday party, and she adores Baby Grogu, so she wanted a Star Wars/Baby Yoda themed party. It was really fun to do something different, and it turned out to be such a fun afternoon! JavaScript is currently disabled in this browser. Reactivate it to view this content. At first, she wanted the party room to look like the inside of the Mandalorian’s ship. That is an awesome idea, but I decided to go with more of a Star Wars/space look because creating the set of a spaceship felt a bit ambitious, ha! I hung up this backdrop (I hung it using small thumbtacks) and strung ..read more

I’ve rounded up some of my finds for the girls’ Easter baskets this year. I always love including some items we need to get them anyway, like a new bathing suit, slippers, an umbrella, or a few new clothing pieces. My oldest grows so quickly that it seems she is all of the sudden out of clothes at the beginning of each new season. The big girls play a lot of card games right now, so they would especially love a fun set of playing cards. All of my girls love Calico Critters, from age two to eleven. That karaoke set is really great because it has TWO microphones. The cat puzzle is a really huge ..read more

This past weekend, we celebrated my Brigette turning 9. She loves all things animals and tiny and she adores Calico Critters. For her party, we had a little camp themed soiree, and put together little playsets for critters with her friends. JavaScript is currently disabled in this browser. Reactivate it to view this content. For the table decorations, I used two of these plastic tables (I have them on hand and use them ALL THE TIME – the height is adjustable, so they are great for both kids or adults, and when you throw on a tablecloth, you can’t see them at all!) and I added some of this can ..read more

I recently swapped out the rug in the girls’ reading nook with this gorgeous piece from Revival. I plan to put it into Marjorie’s room eventually when she transitions out of the crib, but it is so lovely in here, too.  Revival has an extensive library of beautiful handmade rugs in a variety of colors, sizes, and patterns. The colors and textures are just so lovely that it is difficult to narrow down the options! I ended up choosing a muted pink rug with punches of blue, (check these out for more with a similar feel!), which will be perfect in Marjorie’s room, but really work well anywher ..read more

This post is sponsored by Walmart+. There are few things that get me in the Christmas spirit more quickly than Christmas music. It’s also such a fun gift to give. Vinyl is one of my favorite ways to share music in a thoughtful way, and it’s so fun to have a tangible memento to put on display each year as we listen to our favorites. This year, my Walmart+ membership is coming in so handy for this family tradition and gift giving favorite, as we can get early access to Black Friday deals, making shopping from the cozy comfort of our own home even more appealing. JavaScript is currently disable ..read more

I’m mostly basing these gift guides on my girls, and this list is perfect for my 8 (almost 9) year old! She adores Calico Critters, and these new guys in the costumes look like they are straight out of her imagination. I’m also smitten with these adorable Harry Potter characters – so fun! This chess set is so beautiful, too. These books are amazing – she has the baby animal one, and it’s a favorite that she reads often. It has so many fun and interesting animal facts, and the drawings are so lovely! I’m going to get the other two for her for Christmas. The Klutz craft kits are some of our fav ..read more

Tweens can feel hard to shop for, but here is a list of fun, quirky gifts that will feel special and thoughtful. Recently, one of my favorite babysitters brought over her laminating machine, and the girls just went crazy. They had so much fun making bookmarks, pieces of art, cards, whatever! Pair it with a hole puncher, some fun yarn (maybe a pom pom maker for some bookmark tassels?), maybe some fun markers, and they will have fun making little special items to give to friends or to use themselves. Also, how fun is that Harry Potter Sweatshirt set? I’d like it for myself, please. I’m also a b ..read more