Family Rules..........

I found a tutorial for a Family Rules Canvas HERE. It is so lovely...i can't wait to make my own.

1. Obey Your Parents

2. Be kind always

3. Sing silly, dance crazy, hug often, snuggle much, say I love you

4. Forgiveness is mandatory

5. Have fun, ask first, no fussing, no whining

6. Always tell the truth

7. Encourage your siblings…share in their joy

8. Husband hug your wife daily & wife always be on his side

9. Never follow an apology with a but…

10. Keep your promises

11. Use your manners – yes, please, thank you

12. Always give to others first

13. Too much TV is bad…too much reading is good

14. Use nice words…ignore dirty ones

15. Bless your food, be grateful, eat together, clean up after yourself

16. There is no such thing as “mine” in this house…it is all God’s

17. Say your prayers…thank God for this family

1. get a huge canvas. nicole's was 30" x 40". mine is a little smaller, but not much. get it on sale please. Paint the canvas (you see the paint on the border and on the sides). its best if the canvas is wrapped all around the edges rather than the exposed wood. just paint it sloppily - no need to be perfect, just make sure all the edges are covered.

2. Spend a whole lot of time at the paper store picking out paper you cannot resist. nicole felt some of her papers, although she loves them, were maybe a bit to dark or had too much contrast in them for the final writing to come out really clear. so remember: less contrast, not too dark. got it?

3. Write your rules. Be careful of what you put. My kids often refer to the canvas. My favorite is…”Daddy, hug mommy”. A rule is a rule, ya know? I should have put HUSBAND- MASSAGE YOUR WIFE’S BACK DAILY. check out the links above to the blogs. they also have a few suggestions for rules. i think i will steal most of mine, but add in things like, "tummy to the table".

4. Now, cut that beautiful paper into strips. I varied the widths, used “torn” scissors, scalloped scissors, and so on. Use glue, mod podge, or spray adhesive to lay it out on the canvas. i would definitely recommend mod podge the most on this.

5. I then went on to the computer and typed all the rules in different fonts. I am a font junky thanks to lindsey’s sister, Jennifer, showing us how to download free fonts. Do it…get hooked! It is easy and wonderful! just google "free fonts" and you'll get more than you'll ever need.

6. I printed them and “eyed” or copied them onto my papers with black and white paint pens.
and here's where all the questions come in: "the canvas is obviously wider than standard 12 x 12 paper. how did she fit this in the printer/get the words on?" she cut her paper in half - it's not actually one long strip. you can kind of see it in the pic below where it says "forgiveness is mandatory". maybe she taped them together in the middle? i've done that a bunch, and if you are really careful it will work and you can still carefully take the tape off when you're done. just make sure to change the settings on your computer for your page layout before you print to allow for a larger paper size. when she says she "eyed" them, she did just that. she'd print out the rule in a font she wanted on plain paper, then look at it and copy it with a paint pen directly onto her fancy paper. most of us can't do that. she's just good. but i would still print it on one long strip of paper and go over it again with a paint pen just to thicken up the font's lines. just a thought - i think that's what she did.

***edited to add!!!: do a layer of mod podge on your canvas, add paper, smooth out, then let dry. then add another layer of mod podge on top to seal. let dry, then add another. it will still probably be a little bubbly.****

7. Cover that baby in mod podge and make your man hang it! do a couple few layers of mod podge. did you know there are different sheens of mod podge? i think nicole prefers matte, but there are also ones with more gloss to them.

ALWAYS TELL THE TRUTH

HAVE FUN, BE KIND, ASK FIRST, NO FUSSING, NO WHINING

BE CREATIVE AT ALL TIMES

ENCOURAGE YOUR SIBLINGS...SHARE IN THEIR JOY

HUSBAND-HUG YOUR WIFE DAILY & WIFE- ALWAYS BE ON HIS SIDE

OBEY YOUR PARENTS

NEVER LEAVE ANGRY

SING SILLY, DANCE CRAZY, HUG OFTEN, SNUGGLE OFTEN, SAY I LOVE YOU

KEEP YOUR PROMISES

USE YOUR MANNERS- YES, PLEASE...NO, THANK YOU

ALWAYS GIVE TO OTHERS FIRST

TOO MUCH TV IS BAD...TOO MUCH READING IS GOOD

USE NICE WORDS...IGNORE DIRTY WORDS

BLESS YOUR FOOD, BE GRATEFUL, EAT TOGETHER, CLEAN UP AFTER YOURSELF

SHARE EVERYTHING EXCEPT BAD IDEAS

SAY YOUR PRAYERS...THANK GOD FOR THIS FAMILY

Isn't this just the sweetest thing.........

I mostly copy and pasted the tutorial.....word for word. Just wanted to put that out there since i hate it when people try to say they made something when they just copied other people. I try to let everyone know when i copy something.

Can't wait to make my own....and when i do i will be sure to post! :)

M.I.A.

I know that i have been M.I.A. for awhile now. Well over a month...almost 2 months. I took a break from the computer all together to focus on my family. My new son...he is such a blessing! What a joy it is to have him in our life. His sister loves him so. Every morning for the past week she gets up and comes in the room he is in and waives at him and says "Hi Brother"...and gives him a kiss. My heart melts!

I have also been getting ready for christmas. Shopping for gifts, wrapping paper and new ornaments. Hobby Lobby has the best wrapping paper this year! Of course i bought mine when it was 50% off. I not only found cute christmas paper...i found this black and white Damask print paper for other gifts through out the year. CUTE!! Can't wait to start wrapping.

I have also been working on sewing projects/gifts for various family members. Can't wait to have those completed. Lots of work and love is going into those.

And I have also been working on the house. Still lots to do. But yesterday i finally picked out paint color for the kids rooms. I knew what color....but picking out the right shade of those colors was difficult for me. Baby girl got a new bedroom suite...and pink walls. :) So very girly! I love it. Baby boy's room is on the vintage side. I made his bedding and now i'm in the market for vintage airplanes to finish his room.

I can't believe the Holidays are here. I can't wait to see baby girl dive in a rip open her gifts this year. She is old enough now to really get into it. On Santa's List: Play Kitchen, Pots and Pans, Dolls and an Inch worm riding toy. And lets just say mommy bought way to much other things...hehe!!! I just couldn't help myself this year.

Don't have the tree up yet....but that will happen hopefully VERY soon.

This & That ......

Has anyone out there used the "Bumpits" and liked the results?? I really want to try it but i wonder if it really works. Target now carries them and i'm tempted to go get one. hehe!!

I have been keeping an eye out on all the consignment sales flyer's for this fall. I can't wait. Consignment sale shopping has become my favorite twice a year stock up time for my little girl and now my little guy. It is such a money saver for thrifty moms. You get like new items for a fraction of the price new. So much fun seeking out those boutique items you have been eyeing but don't want to spend $50+ for. Then i have a little extra to spend on accessories. Bows, shoes or even monogramming. I resale my daughters clothing aswell. But sometimes i have a hard time letting go of some things. They just are so darn cute!

I was watching the news and yet again the "Jon and Kate" issue came up. I so loved watching that show. But now i can't even stomach it. It is so sad. It needs to be took off the air. For the kids sake!!! Actually it should have been of the air 2 seasons ago..... I guess that is all i have to say on that.

We are still working on trying to fix the wall paper disaster!!! It is such a mess! We just want to scream and bop someone over the head for putting it up in almost every room in the house. HA! Slowly but surely the house is coming along though. I had a friend over a few days ago and she couldn't understand why we bought a house that needed updating. I said it is a diamond in the rough....it will be nice and we will be able to sit back and look around and say "look what we did"! :) And enjoy our house and yard that we worked for. But as for now i guess people think we are crazy. I happen to enjoy personalizing a home. Nothing like new paint and new flooring and some updating to make you feel good about doing something yourself. But that is just me. I'm a DIY'r! Well when i'm not hugely pregnant anyway. hehe!!

Well that is enough rambling today i guess. More on the house updates later.

Paint, Flooring, Kitchens...OH MY!!!!!!!!!

Me and my sweet little girl went to Lowe's today to look at Paint colors for the new house. She is getting a sweet PINK in her room while baby brother is getting a dark beige. Livingroom, Kitchen, Hall, Entryway, Diningroom will be getting a neutral "Kacky" color. And the Master suit and Bath is going to be a steel/blue/grey shade (if you can imagine that)...hehe! As for the Guest Bath...still not to sure. Went on over to the flooring department and picked out the carpet for the kids rooms. And looked at some Travertine for the Kitchen. Then on to Cabinets, and granite....that is still being discussed. WOW!!! Way to many decisions to make in a short amount of time. But i still can't wait to close on the house and start on the demo!