Each time you fall into the past or jump into the future you miss what is going on right now. Right now you have the opportunity to create a fresh new start. Release the past! Receive your good now.
After all the Christmas decorations were down and our New Years company cancelled on us due to illness I decided to give work on some little projects I had planned to give myself - and the house - a fresh start for 2014.....
I had this old gold croque frame from the 1960's....in the '60's everything was painted gold...now days everything is painted white....weird how trends change....(in the 70's The Rolling Stones wanted us to paint it Black!)
I put a white wash base coat on it....forgot to take a picture of it being spray painted....
....and hung it on the moss green wall in the guest room.....now, I need something for the left of it....hmmmmmm....am I ever content with my projects?....working on that!
The Addie got me this French Drying Rack for Christmas....I have wanted one for so long! I thought many times about what to put on it for the day to day....have some great ideas for dinner parties and other themes, however want to enjoy it every day! I could not come up with just the right thing....
Until I walked into our local Tuesday Morning (which by the way is closing due to the raise of rent - hate it when that happens!) and found these incredible jewel colored set of glasses...exactly the colors in my stained glass piece over my kitchen window and the glass in the apothecary jars! Bonus: 20% off....
They looked nice, but a little lost with only 6 of them...I tried, really tried to live with the simplistic look....just could not do it....my OCDC tendencies kick in huh?
.....so back to Tuesday Morning I went (this time 30% off) and bought another box....Thank goodness they had more! And now I can be at peace with it....I love how the sunlight comes in through the garden window and lights up the glasses......meanwhile due to my personal struggle with project obsessions I said a prayer for the wild of heart kept in cages ;)
After I packed away my snow scene (but not my Horeb!) my living room display cabinet looks so blah...
I thought about doing some bird canvas prints and shopped around a bit for some which I could never find; then I thought of bird cards or calendars and that came up -0- then I found this great fabric at Joanns and thought it would work well....I am trying to bring more light blue/aqua into my living room....a potential clash with the green (scary!)....baby steps....
I recovered the panels I had cut and covered in the burlap....
They looked so fresh and bright.... 
I did not want anything too bold or too 'in your face'....
It's soft, not too overbearing and hints of flowers and birds, enough green to compliment but not shout out a clash....
Kristen loaned me this bird nest which is one of her photography props and I had just the right bird and liner to put in it....I think it turned out pretty cute. On the couch is the Vintage French Bird postcard print pillow that was my inspiration....another gift from The Addie
I hold off until after Christmas to hit the Christmas design shop....they have the greatest theme trees and living close to the beach they always have incredible beach themed ornaments...I had my eye on these hand blown glass pieces, a blowfish and an angel fish....I didn't think they looked to 'Christmasey' and at 70 percent off...they came home with me!
I nestled the blowfish in my huge coral piece.....and the angel fish on the star fish from Bermuda....
Just tiny touches of blue/aqua that brighten up the monochromatic look.....
I am every so happy and humbled to receive this cuckoo clock that belonged to my Grandmother and Grandfather - a Christmas present from him to her in the 1950's. A few remaining pieces are being sent....(clock top and weights)
Once those arrive and it takes a little trip to the clock shop this will be it's new permanent home! It feels good to look at it and think about how much that meant to them!
And all this work could not be done alone by me! Lucky for me Brody had enough room in his pockets for all his tools to assist his GiGi in the little makeover!
A quick stop at the Thrift Store scored me this Fisher Price GeoTrax Christmas Train (these are 90.00 at Toys R Us) for $10.00! Rocky was very interested in the lights and moving actions....all the pieces were there - it is adorable!
And Brody approved....how funny does it look for a little boy in shorts to play with a icy snow Christmas train....So Cal living! The boys share my passion for trains....I have my Lionel Train I got when I was 5 (didn't every little girl want a Lionel Train for Christmas?), The Addie's Mickey Mouse Train I got him when he was 5, another FP train I got the boys and now this one....can one have enough trains....I think not....
My boys were so busy I did not see much of this this week.....however, lucky for Dylan, GiGi's vaulted ceilings proved to be the best place for him fly his remote control helicopter....
I would not want it any other way!
