30x30 continues!

Ok peoples!  So far I’m doing great with my 30x30 outfit challenge!  You can see day 1 here and the items that I’ve chosen.  Up next is Day 2, 3, and 4.  Right now the outfits are pretty easy because I’m starting off with the most obvious…pair a bottom with a top.  Boom.  But believe it or not I’ve never worn any of these combos in my closet before…so it’s fun to get out of the rut!  Don’t mind the faces….I was clearly going through something….like a case of permanent awkwardness and the inability to not ham it up when a camera is on me.

 

DAY 2

{Items 17, 25, 24}

 

DAY 3

So even though it’s OCTOBER and I planned every outfit to be for FALL…New Jersey delivers in wacky weather and gives me 85 degree temps.  So although this could technically be 2 outfits…let’s label it as one as I did wear the cardigan out to lunch with a friend, but then took it off midday because it was so stinkin hot. (PS: I really liked my makeup this day. It’s too bad I have no idea what I did).

{Items 15, 18, 23, 26}

 

DAY 4

SUPER casual day!!  Totally glad I remembered to toss in a non work top or two for days when I’m running errands.  Now to be fair I was painting some trim and doing other miscellaneous housework…so this outfit was just to pick up the kids and get dinner.  Still!  Got the job done!

{Items 13, 22, 27}

 

And just realize I’ve worn all my pants.  Guess it’s skirt or dress time tomorrow!  Haha!

DIeting makes me ill…

I wish I could say that I was doing a legit food diet and that that was making me ill….but no I’m talking about a spending diet.  A crappy crappy oh so extremely crappy spending diet. 

About a month ago I decided that I needed to go on a diet (again, not a food diet, although I think I could stand to start one of those too).  Our credit card bills weren’t budging much and we were still putting some money on them every month so nothing was really getting paid down.  So I put together a list of needs and a list of wants and allowed myself some flexibility for special items….namely clothes.  When I saw some…I mean like almost none.  Again…crappy crappy.

I’m sure you all have heard about the 3.1 Phillip Lim for Target collection that came out yesterday, right?  Well if you hadn’t….3.1 Phillip Lim made a collection for Target that came out yesterday.  And I won’t be ashamed to say that I was in line.  I had saved up to buy one thing from that line, even researched the collection before hand so I knew what I wanted, and vowed to get that one and only thing.  This is what I decided on:

 

But as I waited in line (yes I got up and waited in line) I felt the anticipation of shopping and I said to myself “well, self, if you see other things you like just grab them because others are just going to be grabbing things and there’s no saying you have to buy them but just see what happens.”  I got all caught up in the frenzy of everything that the next thing you know I had all this in my cart:

 

OMG if I wasn’t dying about how cute everything looked on me.  Yes I’m being vain but speaking the truth.  This is really the first designer-for-Target line that I feel like fit me true to size, and I would TOTALLY wear all of this repeatedly.  The only problem is….I am on a diet.  I cannot afford to spend all these calories on these delicious items.  No joke, I went and found a corner of the store and calculated how much all these things would cost now, calculated a “cost per wear”, how much went with items already in my closet, the total combinations I could come up with…..basically anything to justify spending almost $200 on clothes.  I thought to myself “there’s no way I can come back later because these items just won’t be here,”…”This is a limited collection” and “I’ll never be able to find it on clearance in my size”…”this looks so cute on me and I’ll wear it a million times”…….

Then, without thinking I grabbed everything in my cart, tossed it on a shelf, and ran up to the cash register with the item I initially came for, paid, and literally ran out of the store.  And to be honest, I was almost crying.  I have been non stop thinking about those items all day and have had anxiety and sweats every time I think of that sweater with the sparkly collar or the way that leopard skirt and shirt would have looked so chic.  You think I have issues?  Oh yes…I definitely have issues.  And I should be proud of myself that I was able to walk away from everything but the exact item I went in for….but I’ll be honest and say that I’m more disappointed that I didn’t get those things.  I know it sounds crazy…but that’s because I am.  I never ever admitted to sanity.

So although I am deeply saddened by my loss of my beautiful Phillip Lim pieces…I shall keep an eye out for returns and clearances and hope that I can score something with next months budget for less.  In the meantime…I’m going to be paying down my credit card with the money I saved from NOT buying those other pieces, I’m going to be loving the heck out of the sweatshirt I got, and using my existing closet to it’s fullest potential.

BOOM.

(And I’ll be praying every night that I’ll be getting a few of those pieces on clearance…yes still obsessing.)

Yeah...So...Some Stuff's Happened...

Hello all, How have you been?  Oh that's good...good to hear it.  Oh how are we?  We're good...let me fill you in a bit on what's been going on in my life and I'll let Heather share hers at a later date.

Obviously I haven't been around for awhile.  Things have been NUTS in my life.  First, my life's been rocky.  I won't go into exact details about it, but let me just say that marriage takes WORK.  A lot of WORK.  And it's easy to give up....but in my family there are no quitters.  So that's been going on.

Another is my husband's work went through a major management restructure and they decided that his position wasn't needed anymore.  Um, Ouch.  So in the midst of it all, Craig was let go from his job.  This was hard...IS hard...but we are also getting through it.  We just have to buckle down and make it work.  Isn't that the D&D motto all along...work what you got?  Well, we are working it to the bone, baby.

Also, I was looking into another job...within my current company...but it would definitely be a promotion.  Which is GREAT, but with every promotion comes more responsibility, more time, YES more money....but right now money was the only appealing aspect.  It would take away time with my family, time to do my Etsy shop (which I love), time to read/garden/play/run/eat/drink and I could go on.  It's most definitely an opportunity that will eventually present itself again in the future and that I would love to take...but after much decision making and self reflecting...it's not something that's good for me now.  With all the change that is going on in the rest of my life, this wasn't the move for me.  So there was that too.

So, all that being said, these changes have provided me with a little bit of new insight into life, one that I personally want to bring to this blog as we bring BACK the blog.  My husband and I have realized that our house has not been a home for awhile, it's just been a place to rest our heads.  And we definitely want to make it a HOME.  We realized that we need to buckle down because of our current job situations and start really being frugal, making meals at home, and cutting back on alot of things (yes my shopping addiction must cease).  Also, we realize that family is more important than ever...and we want to do more as a family and create wonderful new memories for us and our kids.  These topics aren't foreign to the world of Diapers & Divas, but right now I have a whole new light on them and I want to bring them back with a passion.  I hope you all enjoy the little mini re-birth of our blog, and I can't wait to share all the good things that I see happening in my life!

Vroom Room

This is just a little quickie quick update to what I've been doing in the boys room.  The last time I talked about this we were moving Hunter into Jagger's room and converting everyone into a toddler bed.  Well after a spontaneous trip to home goods, I walked out with a theme and a better understanding of what I want going on in there.  It all started with this beauty I found

If you at all know me, you know I'm terrified of hanging things on the wall.  TERRIFIED.  So actually buying a piece of "art" and hanging it was a big step.  I have a feeling once more things start happening in this room this canvas might get moved to the striped wall...but for now it's amazing that it's just UP.

I also decided to bring the boys car rug and bean bag chairs up into their room, regardless of the protests of my husband.  I TOTALLY get that we have a big ol' basement that they can use for their playroom so why clutter their room with toys and such.  The answer is simple....because we adults also deserve some space in this house.  I find it unfair that we have a teeny space for our computer, I sew at the kitchen table, and we use the ENTIRE basement purely for mass amounts of toys.  NO MORE!!  Time to SHARE the house....after all....we stress sharing all the time.  Why not start with us.  So bean bags UPSTAIRS.  Besides, it really does make a nice little reading nook and it's great to be able for them to play while I do the laundry or whatever and not have to worry about being 2 floors away from them, fearing that one is poking the other's eye out.  It has happened.  The poking of the eye...not the actually "out" part....

I also got them some little auto and train throw pillows for their beds.  I'm DYING to get 2 twin size big boy beds in here...but see those cribs?  Yes they are the convertible kind that you can use as a headboard and foot board and all that jazz.  Which is FANTASTIC...but not for someone like me who changes their mind every 2 years.  So husband is determined to use them...and I keep stressing that we will store them and in the next house, when they have their own rooms, we will upgrade those twins that I want to full size for them and all will be good so peace be with you.  That man takes alot of convincing, and I'm still not there.  Not to mention, 2 full size beds will NOT fit in this room.  Anyway...I also have to figure out what to do with that center curtain in the car pattern...nix it? Add a panel to the bottom? Maybe switch it with the panels that are above the bean bags? Who knows....but you know it will be 8 months before I get to it.  #lazytiredmom.

Happy Thursday y'all!

chuRROS

Odd looking, but still totally delicious!

One of our neighbors and good friends threw a Mexican fiesta over the holidays, and I was charged with bringing dessert.  There is almost nothing that I would rather have for a Mexican desert than churros….trust me that’s where my money goes when I’m at Disneyland!  But since the Magic Kingdom is nowhere near New Jersey and I’m not totally willing to spend $3.50 a pop to feed a crowd (myself maybe…but not others.  I need to work on sharing…), I thought I’d try my hand at making them.  I used this recipe here and it was so simple and SO easy.  The only thing I might change is to get a larger star tip, as mine was a bit wimpy and they came out looking a little wormy.  Still, these were so worth the effort and are definitely going to be a staple in my quick comfort food arsenal!

 

Nate Berkus Knows Best

With all the Holiday hubbub (bub) I have failed to post the progress on my master bath.  Yes, yes, yes....extremely SLOW progress....but progress none the less.  Remember, we are a budget fearing family here, and I gots to do it at a certain pace!

SO here was our window before.  We've had a paper shade on it since we moved in, and after removing said shade we realized that we are basically flashing the world with a now naked window.  I took the initiative to frost that sucker and it worked out beyond swimmingly!! Of course in true Lani fashion I took no pics of the process. You know, it's really hard to get pics of you doing something when you are doing it on the fly, and all by your lonesome.  Lucky ladies out there that have husbands that enjoy DIY.....

Anyway, so window treatments were definitely in order.  I ordered this fabric which I thought would tie in all the colors I eventually want for this bathroom (I plan for the cabinets to go gray at some point...maybe new countertop too).  Unfortunately, I am REALLY not good at math and ordered too little, so the curtain came up short.  Oh, and BTW, all I did was cut to fit the window, and hem the 4 sides.  I could have no sewed hem taped them as I've done before with other curtains...but the sewing machine was out and I may as well and yada yada Lani likes to do things the hard way.

Because I wanted to use what I had already purchased, I (and Heather after many text pictures) decided that doing some sort of faux roman shade look would be best.  After debating how to go about this....we both thought that going the route of the all mighty design god, Nate Berkus, would be our best bet and add some grosgrain ribbon. 

Ok wait let's get serious here. Why did they cancel his show??  I mean, he seriously had the best set on TV, he totally recognized us everyday designers and the blogging community, and yeah he was kinda annoying and his smile is cheesy, and he says "I love that, don't you love that, I love that!" a whole lot....but he was GOOOOOD. I mean...to replace him with Steve Harvey? Really?  Even if I was a stay at home mom still....I don't think I would watch that show.  I'm just not interested in what Steve has to say.....I'm far more interested in grosgrain.

SO I DIGRESS...and in doing so I say that NB was spot on.  All I did was loop the ribbon up and around the curtain to create a faux swaggish look.  Yes I said swaggish.  It's a word.  Then I just tucked the knot on the other side of the fabric so it looks like its all cohesive.  No one will be the wiser!  Shhhhh....

Heather and I also decided that the 3 ribbon approach looked better than the 2.  As you can see....I really can't make solid decisions without a second opinion from my girl.  That's just the way the faux roman swags....

So there's my little quicky fixy for a cute shade for your bathroom!  It's so cute I cant stand it.  I get all verklempt.  Next up is a fun little storage idea for over the toilette (it sounds fancier like that....toilette) which I have all the supplies for, it's just a matter of DOING. 


Peace on earth and good will towards men,

Hot chocolate bar

Being that we don’t have a mantle in our house I always like to dress up our little areas with something a little different and fun. Last year I did a drink station in our dining room (you can read more on that here)

 

This year I decided to do the same-ish concept but make it a little more kid friendly. We are still having our annual Santa Party and this little Hot Chocolate Bar will be awesome for kids and grownups alike!

Notice I still have yet to paint that little dresser of goodness.  Next year.  I swear it.

I want the theme of my house to be a bit modern and a bit rustic.  I paired my burlap trees that I made last year (here) with some shiny red ornaments and one of my felt poinsettias…also crafted last year (here). The bar got filled with all kinds of good fixin’s for hot chocolate like candy canes, peppermint marshmallows, and cookies for dippin’ and stirrin’.

 

I just used whatever I had on hand, and ball jars truly do work for freaking everything don’t they? 

 

And you really can’t have a hot chocolate bar without hot chocolate right?  This is homemade and AWESOME…easy peasy recipe to come soon!

There we have my little bar!  If you’re cold and need a lift, come on over and I’ll have a cup of cocoa all ready for you!  If you’re good…you might get a little Schnapps in there too !

Good Tidying I Bring..

Ever year around this time, I get clean frantic.  It’s like spring cleaning, but mine comes in winter.  Maybe it’s because I’m spending more time in doors since it's below freezing out, or maybe its because when I just want to curl up on the couch it takes me an hour to clear off the books and toys, find a blanket, find my pillows that have been thrown everywhere, and then I’m just tired and want to go to bed.
So, since I have a few days off now without kids (yes I take them to school/daycare on my days off….how else would I get anything done?), I’ve decided to tidy ONE small area of my house at a time.  Not rooms, not whole closets….one, measly thing.  I know it doesn’t sound like much, but with my time, energy, and lack of ability to finish large tasks in one day because I keep getting sidetracked with little details…ONE small area works for me.  So my last day off was the dresser in our master bedroom.  Not the drawers…just the top.  This is what it looked like before I began:

Ugh its so ugly.  And it’s been like this for, well, ever.  Sometimes it gets neat and sometimes its worse than others…but overall it usually look like this.  Love that I have Hunters “sick” cup just sitting there….hasn’t been sick for at least a week…

Ugly alarm clock.  I know Craig doesn’t think it’s that bad, but guess what’s going to be in his stocking for Christmas??  Oh!  Just what I’ve always wanted!!    And then we have random knick knacks that actually have meaning to us but we aren't displaying them like we should.  Bad Lani….
More random crap….
Not random crap…but why aren’t these pics in frames?  Oh…because I am a slacker.  I admit it now.  Hi, my name is Lani, and I’m a design slacker.
And ugly phone.  We never use this phone.  I don’t even know if this phone works.  If anyone were to call us in the middle of the night they would call my cell.  So why do I have this phone in my room….

So, after clearing off the dresser, giving her a good rub down and dusting, shopping my house, arranging and rearranging, and of course, using the power of pix messaging to get Heather’s opinion…It now looks like this!

Hooray!  It’s neat, it’s sort of asymmetrically balanced, it’s not as offensive to the eyes, to say the least!  I plan on adding a mirror above the tray and perhaps some kind of collage effect to the rest.  And I’m sure this will change like every month….but for now I’m really enjoying the neatness.
These vases were a snag at Target!  I think the large was $6 and the medium was $5.  They were part of this whole equestrian themed display and I just fell for the stud detail on them!  Then I placed the “brick” with mine and Craig’s name and anniversary on it front and center.  It was hidden behind the ugly alarm clock.  The brick is one of those places outside Disneyland and this little acrylic piece is a copy of what it looks like.  Craig bought the brick as a wedding present since we were married at the Disneyland Hotel.  And why was this not displayed properly before?  (see slacker note above)

I grabbed this tray from downstairs, and I’ll probably change the fabric that’s below the glass.  I finally framed one of the pics that were laying around, and displayed my new gold bowl and white urchin from the Nate Berkus collection at Target.  Hello Nate Berkus….welcome to my bedroom.
I’m loving how clean and simple it looks and am really just glad that the dresser is clear.  Now that I have a day off today…I’m finding another little thing to clean off before I start my frantic clean-for-Thanksgiving-so-none-of-your-guests-think-you’re-a-hoarder spree!  Yay!