I'm a sucker for cane...

Caneback chairs..I love them.

When I saw this one for a whole $6 at Goodwill, I had to snatch it up.

Take look at the before photo...not a fan of pea green crushed velvet.

 So I busted out the spray paint, picked up some fabric from JoAnn's, and gave her a makeover!

I'm digging it.  I'm now on the hunt for some more cane!  ;)

Xoxo,

a bit from my garden and other things...

Well it's official.  

My garden is humongous!!  I love it and am definitely not complaining at all! I have had a few squash plants die due to the horrendous heat but my tomato plants are going crazy. 

And would you look at that squash?  I found it hiding under some plants- and unfortunately it didn't taste too great because of its size.. but it was still fun to see. :)

Perhaps my favorite part is my flower garden of zinnias.  I planted these from seed in the spring and they are blooming like crazy.  I love these things and they last so long in a vase!  Practically the best flower God ever made, if you ask me! :)

 Now on to some exciting new happening in the Jones household:

I got a promotion! I am very thankful for this new opportunity and I start a week from this Monday!  I am nervous but excited.  This was my "interview outfit."  (All from TJ Maxx)

 Want to know some more exciting news?


Hubby and I are in the process of buying a house!  We've been looking for a couple weeks now and let me tell you, it's fun but stressful.  I never thought of all the things you have to think about when you buy a home!  But so far, it's been fun and I can't wait to share our progress. 

Lastly,  I found this beauty at Goodwill for $5 and am in the middle of a re-do.  Want a sneak peek?

That's all you're getting! I'll post the before/after pics next week!

Happy Friday, y'all! Hope you have a great weekend!

Xoxo,

Kait

And it was all yellow...

I have a fun DIY to share today!  I got an adorable nightstand from Goodwill the other day for $8 and just couldn't turn it down.  I have been looking for some new ones in our bedroom that have storage and when I saw this, I knew it was perfect.  I am still on the hunt for another one that is similar, but I have improvised until that time comes.

 You like?  So here is the before photo of our bedroom with some nightstands that I painted a couple years back.  They are nice, but with no storage, I couldn't do much with them.

 

And here is the after photo!  I painted the nightstands a nice soft yellow from Sherwin Williams (I will get the color on here once I can find the darn paint can!)  Once that was dry, I rubbed a little antique walnut stain on them to give them a distressed/not so yellow look.

And there you have it! I love the yellow contrast that it gives the room...it needed a little more color other than blue and gray. 

What's next?  I picked up a beautiful caneback chair...for $4...we will see what I have up my sleeve!

-Kait

Do you Shutterfly?

So tell me,  when it comes time to purchase cards, christmas cards, invitations, announcements, or photos..who do you use? 

Shutterfly?  I sure hope so.  I've been using them for a long time and have always been very satisfied with their products and customer service. 

Well, right now they are doing a sweepstakes on their facebook page where you can win some great prizes..including a trip to the BAHAMAS!  Who wouldn't want to win that!?!?

You can win lots of other prizes just for uploading your photo on the page..there will be different themes each week with new winners daily.

Go here to check it out:

http://bit.ly/sweepS


Xoxo,


Kait

Homemade Dishwasher Detergant

Remember about four months ago when I made Homemade Laundry Soap?

I love that stuff.
and I will never go back.

So..while on Pinterest one day, I came across a recipe for homemade dishwasher detergent.  And I made it.

And I will never go back.
 Super easy and cheap and all you need are these ingredients!


Go here for the tutorial.

Xoxo,

Kait

God is able.

Husband and I celebrated our two year anniversary this past May and while it was a low key event (we didn't travel anywhere but instead had a nice dinner at home), it was still very enjoyable time and more importantly, I am so blessed to have such a wonderful and patient man in my life. 


Perhaps the biggest thing I have learned from being married, though, is this:

It's not all about me.

And you know what?

It's not all about him either.

It's about God.

It's sometimes hard for me to remember that whenever we are in disagreement and I say something that hurts.  Or even when something great happens and I  think "Dang, I really deserved that!"

Nope.  That ain't true.  We deserve nothing.  But because of God's grace and compassion, we get to experience blessings upon blessings.

"The Lord is compassionate and gracious, 

slow to anger, 

and abounding in love." 

 -Psalm 103:8

For me, blessings are often time in disguise.  Some of that is because I don't look for them.  I can be easily discouraged and quick to worry.  Back in January, instead of doing New Years Resolutions, my father-in-law encouraged me to choose one word that I could focus on this year.  Instead of making lists of things that more than likely include physical appearance, my one word encompasses a change in my character and vision for my life.  I chose "trust".  

Man, that's hard to do for a worrier like me, right?  Well since 2012 is already halfway over (Crazy!!)  I can confidently say that through the challenges, I have learned to trust more.  Not only God, but my husband, others, and myself.

God is able to change my heart.  To get rid of the yucky and replace it with beautiful things such a trust, patience, goodness, kindness...etc.

Perhaps the biggest challenge I've had this year is a decision my husband made this past month.

To not continue studying law. 

Now, I won't really share EVERY single detail as to how this decision came about because really it's just too much to write...but the summary is this:

He didn't feel like that's where he wanted his career/life to go.  

So he decided not to go back in the fall.

And at first,  it hurt.  It hurt because I had this GRAND life plan.

Three years of school

Then buy a house

Then have a baby

then have another

and another

and another

and another....

and we would have a white picket fence on a farm and live happily ever after.

But God has other plans for us.  And I am fully trusting in Him that our life is going to be BETTER than I had planned it.

I bet He was laughing at me in heaven thinking "Oh Kait, why must you waste your time planning out this big fancy life when I am the most important thing? Consume your thoughts with me, dear."

(Okay, maybe he didn't sound like that but you get it.)

Well, what are your plans now, you ask?

Good question!  All I know is that I am trying my darndest to live by this verse:

"So be content with who you are, and don't put on airs.

 God's strong hand is on you; he'll promote you at the right time. 

Live carefree before God; he is most careful with you."

-1 Peter 5:7  (The Message)

 

And I love him more today than I did yesterday.  

 

Our Trip to Texas Part II

The last half of our trip was spent in Austin, Texas.  We drove from the lake in Oklahoma to Austin with my brother. 

I'm telling you, If someone told me today that I had to pack up and move in 24 hours, my destination would be Austin, Texas.

That city is so full of fun things, great food, and wonderful experiences.  There is always something to do, and more importantly I have some wonderful family who live there.

We got to spend most of our time with my sweet cousin, Halley and her little family.  She is expecting her second baby boy in October and they are also in the middle of a BIG reno (that may or may not be on TV in the fall!) and it was fun to see the progress.

 

We spent the day at Lake Austin with them and I got up on the wake board on my first try! I was excited. :)

 

Perhaps the highlight of my day was when we ran out of gas and the boys pulled our boat with a rope to shore.  No joke...it was so funny!  Thankfully after a few minutes of swimming, another boat towed us the rest of the way. 

We also went the Barton Springs pool and it was freezing cold.  Refreshing in a way, though.

We finished up our time going to a few places on sixth street/downtown Austin and then flew back..It was not near enough time to spend in Austin.  Maybe one day we can retire on a 15 million dollar home on the lake there...  I can dream. :)

In other news,  remember the garden that Penny dug up?

 

 It's doing quite well now.

I think it's safe to say I have a green thumb! YAY!

 

 I made some homemade bruschetta with the tomatoes, basil, parsley, and oregano from my garden.  You just can't beat fresh veggies like that.

And lastly, I am going to have a line up of some DIY projects/furniture makeovers I've recently done..so don't go far.  They're gonna be fun!  :)  

Xoxo,

Kait

Our Vacation to Texas.

Last week, the hubby and I traveled to Texas for a week long vacation.  It really couldn't have come at a better time, for one, the weather was actually cooler in Texas than in NC..which NEVER happens and I was so ready for a break from work.

We spent the first half of our trip in my hometown of northeast Texas.  We got to visit my best friend since 4th grade and her sweet little baby girl, Brinkli. She is ADORABLE and definitely gave me baby fever. ;)

We trekked up to Oklahoma with my dad and brother to beautiful Broken Bow Lake for a couple days...we had a wonderful time water skiing, tubing, and enjoying the beautiful weather.  I got some sun though.. even on my knuckles!  Ha!

 I also got stung  by a bee for the first time in like 15 years!  It was in my beach towel and when I got out of the pool, I felt the sucker sting me right on my bottom!  That was right after he got me...fast forward 3 hours and the sting was RED and swollen to the size of a potato!

 Only in Texas would you see a construction crew man wearing (in 100 degree weather) a cowboy hat, wranglers, long sleeves and carrying (what we thought) was a gun in his belt!

 My sweet cat, Waldo.  I've had him for about ten years.

 Stay tuned for the second half of our trip...Austin!


xoxo,

Kait

I hope you didn't hold your breath while I was gone...

Well well well...

I have returned!  Man, I didn't plan on taking that long of a break from the good ol blog, but I guess life has just been busy!

Lots has happened since the last time I posted.  Let's see if I can even remember it all!  (That's the worst part about not blogging...I don't want to forget any big events/memories that I need to document on here!)

We just returned from a week long vacation to Texas.  We split up our time between Northeast Texas and Austin.  It was wonderful.  I'll have to post some photos later about our time.

Today we celebrated July Forth with my in-laws and then went to downtown Raleigh for the fireworks display show.  Didn't see much because some tall buildings were blocking the view, but that's okay.  We enjoyed time with our friends.  :)

I promise to update about what's been going in the Jones' household...don't forget about me!

We have had some big changes in our little life over the past few weeks..i'm excited to share them soon.

Stay tuned!

Kait