So exciting, the audience will stomp and cheer!

I have to interrupt my shame files series until next week.  I am in the last two days of my previous job before I begin my new job (hooray, dreams coming true).  So I am a mother working two full time jobs, and the show I've been directing opens tomorrow.  Excuse me while I take several deep breaths.

title courtesy of that consummate theatre geek's musical movie Moulin Rougue - the Pitch

I guess I just lost my balance. (Shame files: Organization Series Week 4)

I am back at it.  Showing the whole world (or at least my limited number of readers) my shameful clutter sins.    
Today it's time to admit that the clutter had spread to my whole life.  Including my car.

I was driving around in clutter (easy to do with a contributing two year old).

And it took forever people. I mean like I am still working on it.  First I removed all the junk and sorted it into 3 different bags and then I dumped it all in front of our front door in order to make myself put it away again (this trick works great for me).

After I vacuumed, and scrubbed and scraped (eww what was that substance?) Here's how I organized my little car...

Document & maintenance file --- via

Ordered this from etsy in a cute fabric!

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And I made one of these. This image is from Pinterest.  I will upload my whole finished product when my organizer arrives!

It's honestly a breath of fresh air in my car.  It previously smelled a little bit like a toddler after a long day at the park.  Cannot wait to get my hands on my organizer and fill it up with goodies for Sloane to reach on the road.

Hope you have something to link up this week too! title courtesy of Sloane's favorite sing-along song at the moment...Taylor, I knew you were trouble

You deserve an award for the role that you played

It's the day of love. And there are few things I love more than awards season! I love the fashion & the films and (sometimes) the actors themselves. In anticipation for the Oscars (AHHHHHH!YEAH!!!!) coming soon & the Independent Spirit Awards (coming one day sooner!), I am going to show you my favorite and my worst dressed of the awards season so far and leave you with some wishes for the Academy Awards and my predictions.

My favorite of the globes...Claire can do no wrong (plus she just had a baby!)
Atelier Versace-- her kohl rimmed eyes make it, in my humble opinion

She did the Angelina Jolie leg pose!  I thought we heard the end of it.
My worst of the night (again this is Atelier Versace)

SURPISE-- a lot of people hated this.  I don't like the fishtail braid but I LOVE BALL GOWNS
And this Carolina Herrera is no exception.

Best of the SAGS...it was divine, and the Lorraine Schwartz Art Deco pendant...I die.

You know what else can go away along with Angelina inspired leg-slit poses?  Side-boob.  Yuck. Michelle Dockery in  Chado Ralph Rucci.  Michelle can stay in the post-Edwardian era.

SURPRISE-- I can't stand Marion (like at all), but I  LOVE this DIOR...LOVE

I don't usually count the Grammy's in my award season viewing, let alone fashion as I tend to prefer the classic to the outrageous.  But this year I did love a few looks.

Carrie in Cavalli = Flawless

Dear Gucci, I am a sucker for green on the red carpet...and I do not oppose cleavage (just side boob)

She's SO pretty-- but the hair is too sparse and the leg is too, well I've already told you now a few times. WORST!

Dear Solange, Ralph Russo, those pumps and that natural hair did you RIGHT.  Surprise, I love it all, head to toe!

Predictions for the Academy Awards...Best Pic- Argo, Best Actor- DDL (although Bradley Cooper had such a performance in Silver Linings!), Best Actress- Chastain (I love Wallis too).

I wanna see ball gowns ladies....  someone please wear these...

Arca Reem 2013 collection

Love the red, love the fushia

Dear Jessica, You are beautiful in sapphire!  

Miss Wallis,  you rock that puppy purse.  You are only  the youngest oscar nominee once! 

I found all the photos at the page I am addicted to each year:  RCFA!

Enjoy the show all, I can't wait!

title courtesy of lyrics of Oscar nominee herself: Madge-- Take a bow

So show me family (The Shame Files Organization Series Week 3)

If you are having a time like mine I can see why only 2 people were able to link up this week.  My little 2 year old, Sloane has been running a fever for 3 days now.  Sigh.  Not much time for organization around here.  But I still have one little thing that will help me out today.

The two of you that did link up had the greatest trash to treasure link ups.  Your projects cost you zilch!  My favorite kind of transformations!

Brooke showed us something that we can do for ourselves or make for a gift for others.

And Meg at The Coop showed us a wonderful makeover of her dry goods for kitchen canisters.  And the best part about this one for me was that I had literally bought a canister the night before, then saw her DIY and took it back.  6$ more in my pocket.

Perfect job ladies!  I hope people will have some time to organize this week and share with us.

For my quick project this week I focused on a little thing that drives me crazy.  I loathe when I get home from work, open up my clean dishwasher full of sparkling dishes, getting ready to put them away and see a rogue dirty dish.  It seems my husband feels that if there are dishes in the dishwasher they must be dirty.  I am just not that quick to put away the clean ones folks.

And when I find that dirty fork in there it's like the whole load is ruined (it isn't I know, but my tendencies toward OCD find that hard to accept).  So in order to save more water, energy and sanity.  I created a new little thing to keep my kitchen a little more sane.

Thus, this magnet was born.  I created it using left over supplies from my Christmas coaster project, some paint, ink, a emery board to sand and ModPodg to seal, and a magnet glued to the back.  Pretty simple.  Now if I can only remind myself to change the magnet and my husband to heed it's warning.

Here's a look at another project I'm working on this week.

I am finally going to try my hand at DIY laundry detergent

title courtesy of The Lumineers Ho Hey (That sweetheart song) Don't forget to link up your solutions for diminishing shame in your life. I linked up here:

It would be a deep deep blue

I have this H&M sweater that I adore and is sentimental because Mr. K bought it for me while we were in Philadelphia together, but I haven't worn it in 2 years because it has a strange unknown and unforgivable stain.

I have tried every stain solution and just can't seem to get it out. As I was speeding through the laundry section the other day trying to find the ingredients to DIY my own laundry soap (still have yet to find washing soda in stock). I saw the cache of Rit Dyes. I have a pair of jeans that are a few years old and are looking pretty acid washed lately so I thought I'd pick up a little "denim" color and try my hand at dying the jeans.

When I got home and read the RIT packaging and it said I could add up to 2 lbs of clothing per bottle. All I had was this measly pair of jeans. It seemed like a waste of time/dye. Then I thought about my old sweater (it's been living on my closet floor for so long!). I have been crushing on all things chambray & maxi skirt w/ graphic tee lately...and I thought the sweater might just turn out a lovely chambray shade. (Hello two birds, meet one stone).

Polyvore, of course 

I was super nervous because everything on people's blogs about RIT shows the difficulty of the process (granted most of these are hombre techniques and crazy cool other stuff). I chose the top loader technique (since that's what I'm working with) and frankly the stove top method terrified me. I added a cup of salt (for cotton) to the dye bath (hottest water on longest setting) and wetted my clothes in the bathtub (check out how I transported them medical personnel, I found a momentary use for the mauve hospital tub). After dying you wash on warm with detergent, then you do another load (while your dyed clothing is drying) either empty or with old rags/towels and bleach to cleanse your basin of all the dye, worked like a charm.

My jeans didn't have a dramatic effect, but they are less stone-washed.

But the sweater, the sweater I LOVE. A whole new life for it. I love how the buttons and the button threads stayed white, and the rest is that yummy chambray color. And the cardigan I found on Polyvore, it's 149 pounds, the RIT was about 3 dollars, the sweater was a gift (gratis!).  

And an option, if you can't find the perfect chambray shirt, dye a comfy white one. The stain is completely unnoticeable. I will definitely RIT dye again.

Linking up at Sugar and Dots, and Cowgirl Up link parties.

 (PS RIT doesn't even know about this post, let alone compensate me for my opinion).

title courtesy of It Would be You: Gary Allan, here's looking at you Ash! 

Honey pick the red corner shoes The ones that hardly ever get used (Shame Files Series: Week 2)

It's time for more shame purging.  I am loving that I am also purging my Pinterest boards as I go as well!

Last week was the first week and we had 7 of you link up.  I loved all the posts from last week.  Here are the highlights I found.

Meg did her spice cabinet (although in my hoarder sensibilities I thought  "I hope desperately you kept that old mustard tin and just cleaned it out, that would make a fabulous little craft someday").

Breann was brave enough to tackle under the sink.  I took one look under mine a couple days ago and thought-- no way am I ready for that yet.  Especially since Keenan has started a new face care regimen that includes oats, honey, olive oil, tea tree oil and other such things now being kept in under our bathroom sink.  Weird/gross.

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In my dreams mine will look so nice too.  Someday.

And because I am always looking to do new things on a dime, I especially loved this organization post by Brooke of Blissful Roots (I'm a new follower!)

Check out her white bean tip for keeping your pens standing up so nice:  brilliant!

Hope you all play along this week as well.

I wanted to do something fun this week.  Among my favorite possessions in my home are my books.  Although you wouldn't know it if you saw my hallway bookcase a few days ago.

It was our hallway dumping ground.  The top shelf shows you a conglomeration of things I have yet to put away from the wedding (in October) There's a broken frame and three cookbooks to relocate to the kitchen, a pair of mittens and some washi tape on that second shelf, a nativity snow globe waiting to be put in the Christmas stuff on the third shelf...

I got myself a fabric grocery bag (to take some books to the used book store) and spent a little time on Pinterest gathering inspiration.

This one's my fave-- she has a lovely blog too! 

So I set out to do some organizing and here's what I came up with...Mind you the light in my hallway is atrocious, and of course I finished this last night...so I apologize for the photos being a little lot less than stellar.

 It looks a lot better.  It is still a work in progress though.  I am not happy with the non-fiction shelf (the second shelf from the bottom).  I also had to keep in mind that Sloane sometimes helps herself to the books on that shelf too (not just her own bottom shelf).

I plan to change the quotes up a little bit to go with the month.  I chose an MLK quote about love for February.  The chalkboard is a spray painted old tray.  The frame contains dates of when we met, moved in together and got married, and the little frame holds a domino (just thought it was cute).  Which knocked out 3 Pinterest projects for me.

I just love that second shelf.  The vintage books and the post is a table number (our anniversary day) from my brother's wedding.

The very bottom shelf I left disheveled for the littlest reader in the house, that way all of her books are within reach.

Show me what you got pretty ladies... title courtesy of Let's Make Peace Tonight: by the Indigo Girls

This could be the year for the real thing

Everybody's doing it.

At least that's what it seems like.  It's February, love month.  There's all the candies and sentiments and jewelry commercials.  It's Keenan's birthday soon. There's pressure everywhere to LOVE gosh darnit.

And then, Saturday night, after Sloane is in bed we settle in for a film.  And somehow we get into an argument, a literal raised voice, hurt feelings argument over whether the movie Seven Psychopaths is gratuitous for gratuitous(ity's?) sake or if the screenwriter's intent of cinematic commentary was useful.  (Seriously these are the things we argue about).  And it wasn't until morning that we both conceded that not arguing with each other is more important than the artistic merit of a movie.


Flash forward to sitting in church on Sunday the minister informs us that he is beginning a series on relationships, and loving our spouses and not being selfish, and being kind (my stomach was gurgling from guilt not the thought of Super Bowl snacks).

Then surfing my blog reader on my new phone one of my favorite blogs is just sweet as usual.

Everybody's doing it but us.

This month, Keenan and I are co-directing a show that goes up in the end of the month, he is starring in a show (where he commutes 45 minutes one-way each evening) which goes up the end of the month.  I find myself quite often wishing away the entire next three weeks.  Get me to the pay-off and get it over with.  PLEASE.

Sure I could chalk up February as commercialized.  Or I could use it to motivate myself to work on myself and our relationship.  Especially when I know how busy this month is, it's a good time to remind myself and the Mr. how great everything really is.

There are only 24 more days of the month.  So I've written myself a question on every day of my planner.  How will I show love today?  I don't like unanswered questions.

first photo of us

So in the spirit of February and in this love story that I keep coming back to...and in our own love story. I am going to focus less on "what have you done for me lately?"

I mean, cause a girl who gets to be married to a man who bears an uncanny resemblance to this guy, shouldn't complain too much.

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So the birthday will be the easiest day.  Now to figure out something a little special for the other 23 days.

lyrics courtesy of my favorite (don't call it corny) duet: Islands in the Stream (ok it's a little corny): Dolly & Kenny