This and That

 

 My new BFF.  No lie.  This "5-in-one" tool is the single most handy thing I have every used in my life.  It gets gunk up of the floor and everything else like none other.

Things are finally starting to fall into place around these parts!  All of our outsourcing is finally scheduled, and the countdown to list by the 17th is on.  This week is jam-PACKED with all kinds of stuff {both house and non-house-related}, and I'm pretty sure things will only get crazier as the weeks go on.  As things are winding down that I,  personally, can take care of -- i.e. cleaning, organizing, scheduling -- I am looking forward to seeing things shape up as our outsourced work begins.  

And just what exactly is that work, you wonder?  Well, for starters, there's carpet cleaning.  Boom -- checked off the list yesterday.  Some electrical work.  Double boom -- taken care of by 9 o'clock this morning.  A little painting {the front hall and stairway} and general fix-it stuff -- boom, boom, and boom.  Started this afternoon and will hopefully be finished up by tomorrow.  At this point, all that's left to be done is some landscaping {to boost our curb appeal} and a little power washing/deck-staining action to round out the picture.  Things are definitely beginning to shape up.

With a LITTLE more free time on my hands over the last few days, I've taken on a new project for the house.  After painting and neutralizing the look of the Living Room, I felt it needed a little something to keep it from looking so bland.  A quick trip to Target and Home Goods supplied some color in the form of throw pillows, but I also got it into my head that what the room really needed was a big piece of artwork.  And you know me -- once I get something into my head, I don't rest until it's out.  So, Saturday night a whipped up a copycat painting of THIS print by Laura Gunn:

{original piece by Laura Gunn}

I changed things up by going with a darker magenta for the flower color and a pale yellow background, but decided as soon as I was finished that I wasn't crazy about the colors.  So, last night I attempted to lighten the petals and make the background a creamier, less yellow hue.  Unfortunately, I got a late start thanks to children who wouldn't go to sleep and only finished one of the flowers before it was midnight and I decided I should probably just go to bed myself.  During naptime today, I finished everything up and once again decided the coloring wasn't quite right for the room.  So, in a last ditch effort I lightened and brightened the backdrop to a pale, icy blue and finally liked the end result of my painting.  However, I'm still not sure if it works for the Living Room.  Now I'm trying to decide if I should leave it as it is and just find a different spot for it to hang, or go back to the drawing board once again and tweak some colors here and there.  Thoughts and opinions are welcome.

 First edition.

Half-way through the second edition.

And the final edition.

And just in case you're wondering what the painting is going up against, here are some photos of the new Living Room decor.  

And there you have it.  The latest comings and goings over at our house.  Things are about to get even more exciting around here once my little sister, Amy, flies in tomorrow morning and comes to my rescue once more!  She is a super nanny, ultra cleaner, worker bee and errand-runner extraordinaire and I'm so glad she is coming to help.  :)