Author: Big Mama

A little painting party

So I thought I’d give y’all an update about the progress I’ve made on the house in the last few weeks because I think at least ten percent of you might care and it’s not like I have anything else exciting going on here right now.

Here’s what I’ve done so far:

Not much.

Actually that’s not totally true. Right after Holly left I was motivated. With a capital M. And not even fake motivated like I sometimes pretend to be to make everyone around me feel good, but really and truly excited and ready to get some things done. I painted those lanterns red, ordered some word art for above the mantle, and bought some fabric for the couch and throw pillows.

I’m still waiting on the word art to show up. Meanwhile, the fabric is lying on the floor in the playroom, rolled up and covered in plastic, just waiting to be dropped off at the upholsterers. But I’m not sure when that’s going to happen because did I mention that our dog, Scout, had to spend five days at the hospital so we can enjoy him for eight more months?

And did I also mention that P’s twelve-year-old truck finally wore out and we had to buy a new one?

Being a grown up is super awesome.

We also got a few bids on fixing all the cracks in our walls (Thank you, Texas drought!) but decided the first bid seemed too high and then our second guy, Lupe, never called us back with his estimate and I’m not really excited about hiring someone who isn’t even motivated enough to call us back.

And so basically my home improvement project is the complete opposite of all those shows on HGTV where they have almost immediate results.

At least it was until yesterday.

When Holly came to visit, she made a ton of suggestions. And I loved all of them. She just has the best taste and can envision things that would take me years to figure out.

Who am I kidding? I’d never figure them out. I’d put ivy on top of my china cabinet and call it a day.

One of the things she suggested was to paint the base of the island in my kitchen a charcoal gray color. And I thought that was a great idea. I’ve wanted it to be painted since practically the day we got it and I realized that what I thought was going to be a gorgeous, dark wood stain looked more like cheap laminate. My problem was with the realities that actually come with painting a large piece of furniture.

That is to say, IT IS HARD.

The last piece of furniture I painted was the cabinet in Caroline’s bathroom and that was back in 2002 before she even existed. And I had to use oil based paint. And primer. And I still think I have black paint on my hands from that experience and lost countless brain cells. I’d paint a few drawers and then go to the kitchen and eat a pan of brownies.

It was terrible.

And so I haven’t been motivated to paint anything else. I’ve been motivated to hire someone to paint, but that requires money and taking the time to find someone who knows what they’re doing.

So when Holly suggested that the island needed to be painted, I agreed as I mentally put it WAY DOWN on my list of priorities because in what deluded world am I going to exert that much time and effort?

Here’s the island since I like to provide visual aids:

This is the prettiest side because the doors are a good wood finish.

But this is one of the sides that always bugged me. The plain flat surface looked cheap.

And here’s a picture of it featuring P’s elbow floating mysteriously in mid-air.

Then Holly posted about my house project on her blog and mentioned the island. And a nice lady named Jennifer sent me an email and told me she owns a store in San Antonio called Woodley Cottage Finds and Design that carries a brand of paint specifically for furniture named Annie Sloan CHALK PAINT. She said she would love to supply me with the paints, brushes and wax I needed to paint the island. And, not only that, would come to my house and help me do it.

SHUT UP.

But I’d never heard of Annie Sloan CHALK PAINT and was a little concerned this might all be an elaborate ruse by a ring of thieves to gain access to my home. I forwarded the email to Holly and said, “What do you think about this?”

And I received an email back from her that said, “YESSSSSSS!!!!!! DO IT!!!!! IT’S AWESOME PAINT!!!!!”

It took me a while but I eventually figured out that meant she thought it was a good idea. Then I looked a the Annie Sloan website and saw all the gorgeous colors.

I emailed Jennifer back and told her that sounded great and figured I didn’t really care if she stole my T.V. as long as she painted my island before she left. We agreed that Monday was a good day for both of us and she said she’d be at my house by 9:00 a.m.

Which meant that I spent Sunday afternoon cleaning the island so it would be free of grease and dust. It was a very humbling experience that made me reevaluate my cleaning skills. But, finally, it appeared to be ready for paint.

Jennifer showed up and we got to work almost immediately. I was prepared to lay out all manner of tarps and newspaper to help with the mess, but once she showed me the paint I realized that wouldn’t be much of an issue. Annie Sloan CHALK PAINT is water-based so you can totally drip it on your wood floors and wipe it up with a paper towel.

You can even do this a hundred times. I know because that’s how many times I did it.

But it was so easy. There was no need for primer and oil-based paint and all that other stuff I read about that stresses me out and makes me decide that everything is a color I can live with because painting would kill me. It’s all just one paint that goes on easily and dries quickly. There is no prep work required.

I repeat, there is NO PREP WORK REQUIRED.

Are those angels singing?

We’d already finished with the first coat when P came home to make sure I hadn’t been taken captive by a mass murderer posing as a kind boutique owner specializing in faux finishes and various painting techniques.

Here it is after one coat.

And here it is after two coats, but before the wax.

And here is the general wreck that was my kitchen.

Anyway, we finished the whole thing (two coats!) in just a couple of hours and then there’s a wax that seals it all in and makes it like the Superman of furniture. I would have made Mr. Miyagi proud yesterday. You have never seen someone WAX ON, WAX OFF like I did. My left arm is totally in shape for summer now.

Best of all, the island looks great. It’s not totally finished because I still need to wax one little section, but ran out of time and had to pick Caroline up from school and whip up a delicious hot dog dinner. BEST COOK IN THE UNIVERSE.

Here’s the finished island after I put the hardware back on.

And my favorite view.

I wanted to show you the whole kitchen and how great it looks, but I still have a few shelves I need to finish waxing and put back in and I bought some feet for the island that P is going to help me install. Plus, the contents of all my drawers are scattered from hell to breakfast.

But tomorrow I’m finishing the island and painting my barstools and putting the kitchen back together. By myself. Which ought to be an indicator of how easy Annie Sloan CHALK PAINT is to use.

If you’re in San Antonio, you should totally check out Woodley Cottage. Jennifer offers workshops that teach you how to paint, distress, crackle and wax furniture. I honestly learned so much yesterday that I may paint anything that stands still long enough. It will be like that time in fifth grade I got my own label maker, but with paint.

And if you want to find a store that sells Annie Sloan Chalk paint near you, check out all their stockist locations.
Tea parties, manicures and lame pedicures

Before I say anything else I just want to say thank you for all your sweet words and prayers about the loss of Nanny. It was all very much appreciated. Last week was a hard week and I was thankful for all the love.

I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned this before but Caroline has the same teacher for third grade that she had for first grade. And in first grade this teacher helped the class host the sweetest Mother’s Day Tea party for their mothers and grandmothers. Secretly, I’d been hoping that she would do it again this year and so I was thrilled when Caroline came home a few weeks ago with a little decorated invitation to the Mother’s Day Tea.

Although I would have totally understood if Miss C. didn’t want to do it again this year because it is a lot of work and I can’t even imagine how many hours she puts into the whole thing because there is a huge cake and glittery cards and actual tea and a photo slideshow that always makes me cry. Not to mention the whole herding of third graders who have the attention span of rabid guinea pigs.

When I picked Caroline up from school on Wednesday, she tried to con me into buying her a new dress for the party. She told me that she was “pretty sure” Miss C. wanted them all to wear white dresses but she underestimated my ability to text and get confirmation. It turned out that Miss C. said they should wear a fun dress, but not a white dress.

Of course Caroline still wanted a new dress but I turned her down because she has somewhere in the neighborhood of WAY TOO MANY dresses that have only been worn once. And I felt validated by my decision to not buy the new dress when she told me on Thursday night that she wanted to wear this brown maxi dress we bought on sale at Target last year. The problem is she’s grown about sixty-four inches and the maxi dress is no longer a maxi dress but more like an awkward length dress. It also looks like something from Little House on the Prairie.

Thankfully she decided on something else and we were both happy with her second choice.

The tea was Friday afternoon and it was just as sweet as I remembered. There was a slideshow and cake and everything was decorated. Caroline had made cards and written a little thing about me that not only said I was athletic but also the best cook in the universe. Which totally validates all the chalupas and sloppy joes and frozen pizzas we’ve eaten over the last few weeks because BEST COOK IN THE UNIVERSE.

Here’s my secret. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Take pizza out of box. Place on rack.

You’re welcome.

She also said that one of my greatest wishes is to see Scotland. I have never expressed a desire to visit Scotland, but I’ve also never been called athletic so I’m just going to go with it.

On Saturday morning we had the last soccer game of the season. Caroline scored two goals and played her little heart out so it ended on a good note. And then we went to the end of the season pool party even though it was only 82 degrees out with a north wind. I realize some of you call this summer but here we call it TOO COLD TO SWIM. Actually, I call it too cold to swim. Caroline and her friends thought it was perfect and they assured us all repeatedly through blue lips that the water was FINE.

Then Sunday morning we went to church and then to lunch with Mimi and Bops for Mother’s Day. Caroline had warned me not to go in her room and when we got home from lunch, I discovered why.

She’d set up a little spa just like she did last year. Her spa is very special because it’s hard to find a place that offers a soaking solution of purple glitter, cucumber antibacterial soap and Tressemme hair mousse.

I soaked my hands in the glitter while my feet soaked in another tub of water that I’m pretty sure was a combination of Curel lotion and more hair mousse. Then she gave me a manicure that can best be described as not subtle. She also believes that if a little polish is good then more is better. Even eight hours later I’m still not sure my nails are dry.

She also offered to give me a pedicure and I agreed but asked if we could not paint my toenails since I just got a fresh pedicure on Friday. I was torn because I didn’t want to hurt her feelings, but I also hated to ruin a brand new pedi. And so she looked my toes over and said, “Is this even a color on your toes right now?”

“Yes. I just wanted a light, natural color.”

“Oh”, she said as she dropped my foot with disdain, “Some people will never learn.”

I think I should have been offended, but instead I just agreed that my pedicure was totally boring compared to my fresh, new manicure. Of course, Cher would be boring compared to my fresh, new manicure.

And life would be boring without Caroline.

Hope you all had a wonderful Mother’s Day.
The end of an era

My grandmother, Nanny, passed away yesterday. She was 93 years old. And so I felt like it was appropriate to re-post something I wrote on her birthday several years ago.

A few days ago, Caroline and I drove to Beaumont to visit my Nanny. She has more energy and enthusiasm than people half her age. All of her friends are at least fifteen to twenty years younger than she is because as she will tell you “I don’t like to spend time with old people”. In fact, the week before we arrived she had hosted a Bunco party at her house, you know for all her young friends in their seventies.

She has always known how to stay young. I remember being in high school and walking down the street to borrow her clothes and her jewelry. I bet not too many grandmothers have a wardrobe that their granddaughters would like to wear. You don’t see a lot of fifteen year olds wearing SAS shoes with a nice paisley polyester blouse. But Nanny has always had style.

She was the first person I knew that owned a video camera, a VCR and an answering machine. In fact, Nanny called me the other day and asked “What is an iPod and do I need to get one?”

When we walked through the door of her house, it was all so warm and familiar. I can’t identify what it smells like, but it’s a part of my life. Even when we got home on Sunday, I could smell it on my clothes and in my hair. It’s the smell of home and comfort, a combination of Sir Walter Raleigh pipe tobacco, fresh cinnamon cake out of the oven and perfume. If I could buy it in a bottle, I would.

Caroline was in complete awe of Nanny’s house. There are more things to look at than you could possibly see in just one visit. She still has our old toy closet filled with toys from our childhood and books that bring back so many memories. Caroline walked into that closet, found a huge box full of more jewelry than you can imagine and said “Oh Mama, this is interesting”. It’s like a little piece of heaven on earth for a little girl, and I know because it’s where I spent so much of my childhood.

At one point, I was on the other side of the house and heard a familiar noise that made me laugh out loud. It was the sound of Samba music coming from the electric organ that Nanny has in her sitting room. I knew that it was only a matter of time before Caroline discovered it and once she did, she was hooked. I spent a lot of hours playing that same organ with my sister making up variety shows and musicals that would rival the Sweeney Sisters. We’d put Nanny’s nightgowns on our head for our hair and drape ourselves in anything we could find in her jewelry box.

One Thanksgiving when P and I drove seven hours to get to the lake house, I walked in the door and she said “Oh it makes me so sad that you don’t wear makeup anymore”. She always wants us to look our best even for seven hour car trips through East Texas. I have always thought she’s kind of like a mama cat, she likes to take all her babies and get them cleaned up just right.

The biggest thing (literally) she worries about is everyone’s weight. Gulley said she knew she was officially part of the family when Nanny told her she’d put on a few pounds. But here’s the kicker, anytime you visit she will always have your favorite dessert fresh out of the oven. It’s like she wants you to look good, but she also wants to indulge you in your favorite food. In fact, one of the first things she said after I walked in the door was that she had made my favorite banana pudding. It was so good I could’ve eaten the whole bowl. And her sweet tea is like no other you’ll will ever taste. I’d be willing to bet that the sugar to tea ratio errs high on the side of sugar. It’s like heaven in a glass.

After Caroline finally passed out from the sheer exhaustion of looking through all that jewelry, Nanny and I stayed up talking. This has always been one of my favorite things about Nanny, she’s a night owl like me (or at least like me before I had a three year old that likes to wake up when it’s still “darken” outside). When I was little she always let me stay up late with her to watch The Tonight Show, in fact the night that Johnny Carson did his last show I was off at college, but I had to call Nanny on the phone because the sound of Johnny’s voice will always remind me of those renegade nights at her house where I was allowed to stay up until 11:30.

Nanny always knows how to make you feel like you’re the most important person in the world when you’re with her. She listens to everything you say and even when I was little, never made me feel like my thoughts didn’t matter.

As she used to tell me before bed at night, “Parting is such sweet sorrow, but we will meet again on the morrow.”

I love you, Nanny. So glad you’re home.

Give Big Bob a kiss and a hug for me.
Crawfish de Mayo

I think it was last Monday (it might have been Tuesday) when I noticed that our old dog Scout wasn’t putting any weight on his right front paw. I wasn’t sure what was going on but P and I decided we should probably take him into the vet just to get checked out.

And the vet examined the leg and took some x-rays and called to say we could pick him up and that the diagnosis was arthritis. Well of course he has arthritis. He’s thirteen years old. That’s ninety-one in people years. Honestly, when you factor in that he had heart surgery as a puppy, he’s a medical marvel.

But on Wednesday he was worse. All of a sudden he could barely walk at all. He had no energy and his leg was swollen and hot to the touch. So I took him back to the vet on Thursday morning and they called us to let us know he was running a high fever, needed a full blood work up to check for infection and high doses of antibiotics.

It’s times like this when hindsight tells you pet insurance would have been a great idea.

And also figuring out a way to win the lottery.

Scout spent Thursday night at the vet and wasn’t any better on Friday. The vet called with regular updates and P finally asked the question on both of our minds, “Is Scout going to pull through?”. We were assured that they wouldn’t be doing all this if they didn’t think he could recover and then the doctor made a comment that we’ve been mulling over for the last few days. He said, “He could get through this and probably have a good eight months left.”

Here are my thoughts on this in numerical format:

1. Eight months seems like an arbitrary number. How does he determine it will be eight months?

2. If you’re a person, eight months is significant. If you’re a dog, I’m not sure that eight months really means that much. It’s not like Scout has to get his will and other financial affairs in order. Because, I assure you, Scout is flat broke.

Anyway, Scout spent the entire weekend at the vet. And he’s still there. Caroline and I went to visit him yesterday and they think he’ll be able to come home tomorrow. And I guess we’ll live it up for the next eight months. Maybe we’ll take him to Disney World or the dog equivalent which is to go to the ranch and roll in fresh cow poo.

But in all seriousness, I’m glad he’s going to be okay for now. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye.

In other weekend news, we had a big Cinco de Mayo celebration here. Or as we called it, a Crawfish de Mayo celebration.

Caroline and I even made a sign.

And then she made another sign all by herself on her chalkboard.

We hung both of them up.

A few weeks ago P decided to order a bunch of crawfish from Louisiana and have a big crawfish boil. And then we realized we’d set the date for Cinco de Mayo. And, lo, a tradition and a party theme were born.

A theme where guacamole and crawfish walk hand in hand or claw in claw in peace and harmony. But not together because gag.

Best of all, the entertainment for the kids is built right in. It flies in the face of every time I’ve told Caroline she shouldn’t play with her food.

Of course maybe that apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

That’s actually not a live crawfish I’m holding. That’s a dead one that Gulley’s husband found in our guest bathroom later that night.

Please don’t pay attention to my bathroom trashcan. The bigger issue is how a dead crawfish ended up in my house.

And begs the question, are there more I haven’t discovered?

I guess I’ll know in a few days.

__________________________________________

I loved this post by Kelli called Hope is Slow from the Tanzania Compassion Bloggers’ trip.
I put off today what I can do tomorrow

I had big plans to write a long post about our weekend, but then I sat on the couch and discovered The Blind Side was on T.V.

And that was the end of my writing about the weekend initiative.

But I’ll tell you about it tomorrow.

In the meantime, I did write a post about my favorite baseball movies over at The Pioneer Woman’s blog. You can read it if you want.

More importantly, there are some Compassion bloggers visiting Tanzania right now and I’ve already cried twice while reading their posts. I especially loved Thanks of the Few from Shaun Groves and Well I Didn’t Expect to Meet HER in Tanzania from the Nester.

Have a lovely Monday.
Fashion Friday: Edition the Junk Gypsies are coming and a giveaway

Y’all.

I am so excited.

I mean really I’m kind of tired because it’s late and whatever, but on the inside I am doing cartwheels. You know why?

Because I’d end up in the Emergency Room if I did them for real.

And also because my pretend friends, Amie and Jolie Sikes, otherwise known as the Junk Gypsies, have their own show on HGTV and it premieres tomorrow, Saturday, May 5th at 6:00 p.m. central time.

(That’s 7:00 p.m. for those of you on the east coast.)

(Those of you on the west coast will have to do your own time math. I’m always so confused.)

Anyway, I say they’re my pretend friends because I’ve never met them in real life, but I wish we had so that totally counts. Plus, we’ve emailed back and forth which means we’re practically related.

Amie and Jolie are rebel designers with a spirit of adventure and a knack for finding treasure in what other people see as trash. Their style is whimsical and fun and totally out of the ordinary.

And, y’all, they did all the decor for Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert’s wedding.

In honor of the premiere of their show, Jolie and Amie want one of you to have the chance to win $75 in Junk Bucks.

Then you could use that $75 to buy something great like this if Mama ain’t happy t-shirt.

Or I love this made in Texas tee.

And turquoise lovers (like myself) will adore this el camino cuff.

These silver spangle chandeliers are incredible.

As for me, I’d be tempted to get this Texas necklace.

Here’s what you need to do to enter:

1. Leave a comment on this post.

2. Watch the premiere of the Junk Gypsies show on HGTV Saturday night. (Not really, but you totally should.)

3. I’ll keep comments open until Monday, May 7th at noon and choose one lucky winner that I’ll notify by email.

That’s it.

Now for some great finds this week.

1. chevron stripe tank

I went shopping with my friend Stephanie yesterday and I bought this top. It comes in a bunch of cute colors and is perfect for summer. Long enough to wear with skinny jeans, short enough to wear with shorts.

2. wild patchwork oversize scarf

Steph pointed out this scarf to me and we agreed it would be so cute all summer long with different color tank tops. But then we also agreed that it gets way to hot here to have something around your neck all summer without wanting to kill a person.

3. woven wide brim hat

Every summer I buy a large hat because I like to channel someone’s Great Aunt Maude when I go to the pool. I’m also overcompensating for the sun sins of my youth.

So I bought this hat yesterday. The price was right, it will keep the sun off every inch of my face and it has one of those great adjustable brims so it won’t get too floppy.

4. endpoint skirt

I think this is really cute. Maybe with a bright yellow top? Or a green? Or a hot pink?

5. sanctuary peace shorts

Have we talked about these shorts? If you’re going to wear shorts this summer then I can’t recommend anything better than these Sanctuary shorts. In the words of the saleslady at a local store, they have the ability to make everyone’s rear end look good.

And they can roll up or down depending on your length preference.

(Just to clarify, you have to roll them up or down. They don’t do it on their own. Because that would be weird. And probably uncomfortable.)

6. scalloped lace date top

Oh, this is just lovely.

7. timex originals easy reader

I don’t wear a watch. Yet sometimes I am tempted to buy one because I like the way they look. And then I wonder if I’d ever really wear it.

Right now I’m tempted to buy this one because, OH THE PINK.

8. floating monogram necklace

I am dying for this necklace. Wouldn’t it be the perfect Mother’s Day gift?

(Let’s see if that works.)

I also love the fun acrylic monogram pendant that comes in a bunch of fun colors.

9. voile trapeze slip

I can’t remember if I’ve told you this, but way back in January there was a conference for college kids called Passion. And Christy Nockels was one of the worship leaders. And she had on the cutest long tunic with skinny jeans and a sweater layered over it.

(Not that I was solely focusing on her outfit. I was also worshiping Jesus. I may have even thanked him for giving some clothing designer the creativity to create that tunic.)

And then my friend Paige (who is technically another pretend friend because we’ve never met) emailed me and asked if I could figure out where the tunic originated. It came to me as if in a dream, Free People.

I was right. And here it is.

It would look great on its own or with something layered over it in cooler weather. Perfect with leggings or jeans.

10. leather and gold bracelet

This bracelet is really cute. Love the orange for summer but it also comes in some other great colors.

And that’s it for today.

Don’t forget to leave a comment if you want a chance to win the $75 gift certificate from the Junk Gypsies.

Y’all have a good Friday.