all fenced in!

Good Morning! I don't think I've done a weekend post before. First time for everything, right?! :)

For about a week now we haven't been able to leave Oliver (our 5 month old Westie) outside by himself because he has discover 2 areas in the fence he could fit and escape, and he did just that, 3 times.

The first time it happened was last weekend. I let him out to go potty while we were cooking dinner and when I went to check on him he was in the side yard, outside of the fence.

This is where he escaped...

So we bought some chicken wire and got busy.

Guess we should have worn those gloves!

The second time he escaped was this past Monday morning when I was home sick. I took him outside and to go potty and he saw the neighbor come out of her house and walk to her car and he darted after her from here:

I had to run after him in my bathrobe, a little embarrassing.

We got busy on this area. There was an area he could fit under the fence so we covered a couple feet at the bottom and up the side where he had been escaping.

And Oliver was with us the whole time, probably trying to find a new way out! ;)

So, for now, Oliver is free to roam our back yard until he discovers the bunny hole. We have a bunny that comes in our yard from the woods behind our house. We will be working on that area of the fence next weekend.

Did you conquer any pet related projects this weekend?

just say "NO!" to jack's carpet

We have been living in carpet/ tile hell since the 15th of this month. We ordered carpet and tile for our entire house sans the kitchen and dining room on July 3rd. Jack's Carpet called and said your tile will be installed on Friday the 15th and your carpet will be installed on Friday the 22nd. Well, Friday the 15th came and went with no tile installers at my door. They showed up Saturday the 16th with no tile but had our carpet. We weren't prepared for carpet installation so we went around the house packing boxes with our belongings so rooms could get carpeted. On the 16th they finished installing carpet (all but our master bedroom). They said they would be back Monday evening to finish the carpet in the master and start on the tile. They also said they would be finished with the tile Wednesday night. Well, Monday the 18th rolled around and I got a phone call at 4:30p that they would not be able to make it to our house because they were stuck at another job, "are you kidding me?". Okay, so they make it out to our house Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday nights... still not finished.... they come out all day Friday... still not finished. He told me that he could come out Sunday at 10 am and finish up. Sunday rolls around and I get a phone call at 11:30a that his brakes went out and he needs to change them but assured me he would still come out and finish the job.... 3:30 pm comes and I call our sales associate and tell him we want someone to come on Friday the 29th and finish the job, send multiple people if necessary but this needs to be done Friday... "no problem" is what I get. 4:30p on Sunday I get a call from the tile guy (after he "fixed" his brakes) and he tells me his on his way... I told him to come pick up his tools... no work will be done on a Sunday night.

Today rolls around.... I get a phone call from my husband telling me that the new tile guy is there but he won't be able to finish the job today and will have to come out tomorrow.

All along we have made ourselves available to these people. Giving up our weekends and nights. Living with one bathroom because the other has a toilet sitting in the tub. I am beyond pissed off. Not once have we been offered a discount, all we have gotten is "we're so sorry" well sorry isn't working for us any more.

I will go around town and bad mouth Jack's Carpet to everyone I know. NEVER EVER USE this company. Oh, and I forgot to mention that when I called on Friday the 15th trying to find out where these guys were, I was lied to by their customer service hotline 4 different times... each time it was "they are on there way."

And that is all...

diy tissue pom pom's

I wanted to share with you a very simple DIY project you can do for your next shindig for super cheap.

For the baby shower I co-hosted this past weekend I created Martha Stewart's tissue paper pom pom's. I hung these over the table that showcased our yummy snacks and beverages.

I was so surprised at how simple they were to make. Such an easy task for such a big impact. Click here for Martha's step by step instructions. All you need is tissue paper, floral wire and scissors.

I can't wait to make more of these for future events!

Do you have any cheap DIY projects for parties you would like to share?

a family is blooming!

This past weekend I had the honor of co-hosting a baby shower for my bestest bud. It was a co-ed shower filled with lots of love and laughter. We decorated bibs, played "What's Your Guess?" and munched on yummy food while enjoying good company and great conversations.

This was our "welcome" table. 

This banner was a DIY project that one of the co-host's created.  I *heart* this banner. I think it might be one of my favorite things from the shower. The baby is Victoria but her nickname is Vika. 

The banner was made out of scrap book paper. 

We had advise card's for the new parents and this cute little box to place them in.

We went with a "garden" theme so for favors we bundle together seed packets and placed them in a flower pot. I made this picture in photo shop to go along with them. 

We set up a table for bib decorating. I was so surprised at what a hit this was with everyone. Almost everyone got in on the bib decorating action. We made it easy for everyone by providing a variety of stencils. We also had fabric paints, paint brushes and fabric paint pens with a large selection of colored bibs. 

My husband being a good sport, he was one of the first to sit down and start painting!

The spread! We had a winner (picked by the Mom and Dad) for the best girl created 

and best guy created bib. Each winner received a prize! 

Upon the request of the mommy-to-be we created a chart for guests to place their guesses on Date of Birth, Weight, Length of Victoria, Length of Labor and for laughs, "Will the Dad Cry?" I can't wait to see if anyone gets a guess right! 

The Food!!

We had yummy snack foods. Fruit, Veggies, Chips with Spinach Dip, Crackers, Cheese and Salami. Iced Tea, Punch, Water and Beer. 

We found the perfect beer for the guys! If you remember the baby is Victoria! 

For dessert, I made yummy cupcakes. Red Velvet & Lemon with Vanilla Frosting. 

I also DIY'd the tissue paper pom pom's that hung over the table. 

And we put flowers everywhere! 

This was my first ever baby shower as hostess and I think it was a huge success! It wouldn't have been possible without my co-hosts, they were both wonderful! I feel so blessed that I was able to be apart of this special day in such a big way.  I can't wait to meet baby Victoria soon.