It's Been Awhile...

I hope you have chalked my absence up to being too busy and hopefully not neglect. My days are filled with painting...painting an entire house takes a LONG time I have realized. Thankfully my husband-whom I have nicknamed "The One Coat Wonder" has taught me his ways! My husband used to paint as a job through high school and early college...so he knows how to do a good job quickly. Here's his best piece of advice for a one coat coverage: one roll in the paint=one roll/pass on the wall. Put it on thick...but not so thick it's dripping. I have finished the first floor and get to move up to the bedrooms tomorrow! The first floor is all different shades off of the same color card from Sherwin Williams. It's a very open plan. I used Vintage White in the Powder Room...Believable Buff in the Mudroom, Kitchen, Dining and Hallway...Whole Wheat in the Great Room...Baguette in the Den. My trim throughout the house is Alabaster. We're still a little ways off of being done, but seeing paint going up is making it feel more like home...plus while I'm painting a certain room I think about how I'll decorate it, where I'll put a Christmas tree...fun stuff like that! Here's a little sneak peak for you:

Because I'm busy with new house stuff, I haven't been working on extra little projects. I did have to lead a Daisy Scout meeting tonight and one of the activities we did was make these flip flops for each girl.
I bought the gingham from Wal-Mart's $1.50 pile...I only needed an 8-inch wide piece. The flip flops come from Hobby Lobby...50% off this week! That made each pair .75 (probably around $1.00 when factoring in the fabric). I cut the fabric with my pinking shears to deter fraying as much as possible. You can cut the fabric as narrow as you want, but I wouldn't make it any thicker than 1-inch. The girls then proceded to tie each piece of fabric onto the flip flop in a knot. Push the tied fabric close together for a fuller look. Use the shears to cut off any long pieces that might drag and get dirty...there you go...now go make a pair...or four!

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Daisy Scout Journal and Pen

I am the leader for my oldest daughters Daisy Scout Troop. This is the project I have planned for this months meeting. It's a daisy pen and journal with the Daisy Scout Logo on it.

I bought:
1 composition notebook for each girl (with heavy cardboard front)
1 piece of paper per notebook
Paper for each of the Daisy Petals (see list below)
Modge Podge
1 disposable foam brush and cup per girl
1 pen per girl
1 roll floral tape
Silk Daisy Flowers

I cut the paper to size for the notebook fronts. The girls will then modge podge the paper to the front. Put a piece of wax paper inside the front cover, so the cover doesn't get glued to the paper inside.

Then they will modge podge the daisy petals on the front, which I used Word to print the Daisy Scout "values". Also, I cut these out ahead of time. Here's the list of the colors you'll need:

(1) Blue Center (promise) I will have the girls write their names here. (2) Light Blue-Honest & Fair. (3) Yellow-Friendly & Helpful. (4) Spring Green-Considerate & Caring. (5) Red-Courageous & Strong. (6) Orange-Responsible for What I Say and Do. (7) Purple-Respect Myself & Others. (8) Magenta-Respect Authority. (9) Green-Use resources wisely. (10) Rose-Make the world a better place. (11) Violet-Be A Sister To Every Girl Scout.

Cover everything in a coat of Modge Podge. This will eventually dry clear and serve as a protective coat over the whole journal cover.

For the Daisy Pen. I hot glued a flower stem to the side of the pen. The girls will then take the floral tape and wrap the whole pen (not the actual writing part of course ;)).

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