diy mama

lifestyle blog sharing diy, family, travel, organization & disney tips

Shelly

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What’s Going On?

Currently, I’m in the middle of 4 projects, so I don’t have a weekly DiY post for you all this week. I’ve also been really focusing on enjoying nature, my baby and myself this week. I’ve unplugged and it’s going way better than expected! I’ve really taken advantage of this nice weather to show Sophie the birds, bugs and flowers and watch all the kids skateboarding, playing tennis and basketball at the park. My brain is still going 100 miles/minute at the end of the night though. It helps me to just write a ton of it down (even if it’s silly stuff that I already know like ‘clean kitchen tomorrow, throw in load of laundry’).

Last night’s ramblings encouraged me to post about ‘what’s going on’ in my life right now. I am excited about doing these kinda posts every few months to let you guys in on the cool happenings I find on the internets, let my family know what I’m doing while the lil bean naps and also for myself. I know I’ll be a big blog some day in the (hopefully not so) far future and I am making a promise to always share these kind of posts. I feel it helps us relate to one another and hopefully makes communication easier for us!

what's going on

First up, A Beautiful Mess launched their Blog Life e-course, of which, I just bought last night as my Mother’s Day Gift and will be starting on as soon as I post this! I also took their Use Your Stash $8 quick course on using scrap booking supplies. I have SO many and it’s my lease favorite thing to organize so I’ve decided to use at least half of it and keep my stash at that amount from now on. Some of the items that she discussed made me actually want to go out and buy them though b/c I’d never heard of them (3×4 cards and small embellishments like wood veneer shapes and buttons!) I’d say it was a great $8 spent because it motivated me to get 5 more pages done in Soph’s smash book!

smash

I’ve also been attempting to get through a 5k program at the Y. Thankfully, I have some neighbor girlies that help motivate me to go at 5a, otherwise, no lbs would be lost. I just want to get to a point where I don’t feel achy from everyday movement. I also don’t want to feel bad about my body when I’m pushing Soph in public saying ‘here’s why I’m big…this isn’t the real me.’ That’s just an excuse and I know she’s not the reason I’m not in the body I’m comfortable with. ‘People’ (who are these ‘people’?) say that it takes 9mo to make a baby so it will take 9mo to get back to your normal body. For some, it takes less, I feel for most, it takes more and I’m learning to be ok with that.

girls on walk

I’m also very excited for this weekend because it will be my first Mother’s Day! I’m not sure what my daughter (husband) has planned for me but we have the entire weekend to ourselves to do (or not do) as we please! Fingers crossed for breakfast in bed! We’re supposed to get nice weather, so I’m thinking some good park & deck time will be logged. Hopefully at least nicer than last weekend when we had a tree planted in our park for Soph. She was not happy.

tree planting

Yes, I’m the dork that gets this excited about planting trees (especially when they’re free!) Our park district lets you choose where and what type of tree will be planted and watch it grow along with your little ones. We chose a Fiesta Red Maple tree and had it planted in the neighborhood park in hopes it’ll provide a ton of shade for future picnics.

So that’s about all I’m up to in my little area of the universe! Oh, I also helped my sister move into their new house and I’m super excited for their new life there! Who else got the Blog Life course?! What’s your favorite thing to do for Mother’s Day? I’m pretty excited about keeping it chill and enjoying time with my family. I hope that never changes.

Shelly

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Tomorrow

tomorrow

I’ve really been working on focusing on myself and my family lately. Not worrying. Not scheduling. Not stressing. It’s definitely a work in progress for me but it’s going well. I am trying to streamline my planning but not be wrapped up in the fact that things don’t always go according to said plan. I wrote a post yesterday regarding unplugging from social medias to be in the present. I think this has already helped me see the beauty and happiness in everyday life…not having my nose glued to a screen. Next step is routinely meditating in hopes to not have stress headaches. So far today, no headache! What do you guys do to ‘Let tomorrow worry about itself’? Any tips on streamlining your planning? I have a feeling this is a life-long project but I’m willing to keep working on it!

Shelly

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Look Up

I saw an awesome video last night, as my husband and I lay, side by side in bed, looking at our phones. It’s the norm for us. To wind down at the end of the night, sometimes reading a book, but mostly catching up on social media. What is ‘catching up on social media’ anyways? ‘Social media’ is utterly endless. We could literally spend our whole lives only reading social media sites. Today, I chose not to. I am stepping away from my phone and Looking Up. Since I am a blogger, I will still be in the know, but I will reserve my social media and blogging time to my computer only. I’ve deleted all social media apps, other than Instagram, in order to keep myself from looking at my phone while I’m bored. I left Instagram because it inspires me to get out and see the world. Take photos. Be a living person.

Look Up

I noticed myself looking at my phone while I waited for a bottle to warm, feeding my baby, as a distraction from writing, sitting down to dinner with my husband and even when out, surrounded by friends. Unacceptable. It is the norm for so many people and I encourage, if this is you, to step away and look up. Try it for one week and see what you’ve been missing. You’re unlikely to go back.

This is the video that I saw last night, that really hammered this common sense into my head. It’s called Look Up by Gary Turk. If you haven’t seen it, please give yourself a break and listen to his words.

The part that made me tear up was in reference to my daughter. I don’t want to miss out on any single chance to participate in her life because of my phone. I want her to have the same attention and outdoor playing that I had growing up. That’s not to say we’re going to exclude her or us from all technology but there’s a time and place to be plugged in.

 

‘We’re surrounded by children who, since they were born, have watched us living like robots, think it’s the norm.
It’s not very likely, you’ll make ‘World’s Greatest Dad’, if you can’t entertain a child without using an iPad.
When I was a child, I’d never be home. I’d be out with my friends, on our bikes we would roam. I’d wear holes in my trainers, and graze up my knees, building a clubhouse high in the trees.
Now the park’s so quiet, it gives me a chill.
I see no children outside and the swing’s hanging still.
There’s no skipping and hopscotch, no church and no steeple, we’re a generation of idiots, smart phones and dumb people.’
Thoughts?
Shelly

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Disney Attractions for Adults-EPCOT

EPCOT is my second favorite place to hang out when we go to Disney. It’s the first place I recommend other people to go if they don’t have small children. It’s AMAZING and you can easily spend open to close there and still not see everything (especially if it’s busy season.) The main reason I recommend EPCOT is for the World Showcase but I’m going to go over my favorite attractions in all of EPCOT.

Adults-EPCOT

If you need some music to get you in the mood, here ya go! 47 minutes of the wonderful sounds of EPCOT! Just a warning…it gets pretty…interesting at minute 20.

Now I’m ready to sprint through the gates! I don’t know about you, but I always feel like running once I get through the gates of the parks. No? Ok, just me then. First stop, once we get to EPCOT, is Spaceship Earth! I like it more since they did the update a few years back. It’s a classic that sets the tone and gets us excited to be in this park!

Spaceship Earth

Next, we head to The Land to get a Fastpass for Soarin’. They can sell out and we don’t want to be forced into waiting in that line but it’s so worth it to smell those orange groves! I always have to go on Living with the Land. It’s different every time we go because they’re always growing a variety of  fruits and vegetables. I’d love to go on the behind the scenes tour of their facility someday. After getting inspired to grow a garden, we head to chat it up with Crush at Turtle Talk in The Seas with Nemo and Friends. We also always stop there to learn about sharks with Bruce and feed the manatees. Now is a good time to remind you that I never go with kids. This is fun as an adult!

seas

We stop at Soarin’ before we head over to Test Track. Test Track is the only other ride that you’d really need to get a Fastpass for in EPCOT if you wanted to plan ahead. At this point I’d recommend to go to Mission: SPACE but I got motion sickness from it so I don’t go on it anymore. I know a lot of people that like it though! We usually walk through one of the Innovations buildings just to see if anything is new but it’s mostly for kids. Every few years we’ll go to the Smart Home that they have to show the latest technology for your home. If you’re a Michael Jackson fan or had gone to Disney growing up, you have to stop at Captain EO!

test track

NOW for my second favorite part of Disney World (after the Castle). World Showcase!!! I can, and do, spend an entire day just at the showcase. Every single country has something interesting to do, see or eat and it’s nice to take it slow to take it all in. We usually start in Mexico and work our way around the world watching shows and eating…everything. 😉 I’ll save the food suggestions for another post. This area is also where you can meet some of the Prince and Princesses who aren’t in Magic Kingdom.

The Gran Fiesta Tour in Mexico is pretty cute but I’d recommend just going into the pyramid. It’s set up like a bazaar and they often have a mariachi band playing inside. Norway is next where you HAVE to go on the Maelstrom. It still scares me and I don’t think it’s supposed to be scary. China is next where we always watch the Jeweled Dragon Acrobats.

mexico

The Biergarten restaurant in Germany has a very fun Oktoberfest Musikantan but you have to eat in the restaurant to see the show (which we do every time we go). Italy has a super awesome juggler named Sergio who is super talented and funny! Italy also has some great shopping. If you like a cappella singing, you should definitely stop in America to see Voices of Liberty. The acoustics in the room they sing in are amazing.

germitalymerica

Japan has super huge, loud Taiko drummers that are a must see! They also have a fun store where you can choose a clam and buy the pearl to be put into jewelry! My favorite part of Japan is Miyuki who molds liquid candy into animals. We dance into Morocco to see MoRockin and the belly dancer. She actually encouraged me to take two belly dancing courses in town because I loved watching her dance and I wanted to get a skirt like hers (as well as her stomach). 😉 We head over to France for some fragrance and jewelry shopping.

japan morocco

I really enjoy the UK and Canada, which is why I leave them for last. I’ve always loved the bands in the UK. Brittish Invasion first and now Brittish Revolution. The music is always so happy and I usually know all the songs. They encourage singing and dancing and it’s always a good time. This last time we were there it started pouring so we stepped into the Rose & Crown for a drink. The Hat Lady was performing and was hilarious. Unfortunately, she stopped performing there last year and I’m not sure what is there now. Off Kilter is in Canada and they’re my very favorite thing to see in the World Showcase. I even have their CDs. They’ve been performing there since I worked there in 06′ and are super nice guys and great performers.

UK canada

Last, but certainly not least, you must stay for Illuminations: Reflections of Earth. It’s an awesome nighttime show with fireworks, great music and lasers! You can see it from any country but will want to get a spot against the lake early if you’ve never seen it. Everything at EPCOT is worth seeing if you have enough time. The things I’ve mentioned are my favorite things to see and do! What’s your favorite attraction at EPCOT? Anything you love that I left out? Have you seen the show that’s replaced The Hat Lady? I’m going to go watch Illuminations on YouTube now… who’s with me?!

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Outdoor Living

Sprucing up our outdoor living areas has been on my brain every day since the snow started melting. Before the new year started, we said ‘this is the year we’re going to relax and take advantage of all the hard work we’ve my husband has done building the deck and pergola.’ My job is decorating an area once it’s been built by him. Unfortunately, outdoor decor seems to be REALLY expensive! Especially once you factor in that there’s really only a few months where the weather is bearable enough to sit outside!

outdoor living

Here is what our deck currently looks like. This is before the table and chairs (that are in the mail!) It’s also before it’s new stain job that we’ll be getting in a few weeks.

deck

Sad, right? No pretty flowers adding color. No rug, umbrella or curtains to make the space more comfortable. We did buy an outdoor table and chairs this year to add to our collection but out of everything I’d LIKE to add to our front porch, back porch and deck, we’ve got a long way to go. In the mean time I decided to swoon over what I’d like to be able to purchase for our deck area.

Outdoor Fun
We’re more in the price range of Target, which is why these items from Crate and Barrel and Pottery Barn are wishes. 😉 I think all of these things would make for a comfortable, practical and fun area to hang out with friends on summer nights.
  1. Number one most important item to have a comfortable outdoor area is a big sectional. Sectionals are outrageously expensive, no matter where you get them from. This one looked particularly good for reading a book or napping. 😉
  2. Bright yellow pouf for extra seating or a place to put your feet up.
  3. Garden stool for putting your drinks down or a place to prop your feet.
  4. Bright, happy, colorful pillows that can stand being out in the sun and rain.
  5. String lights to add to the evening’s good vibes.
  6. Wall O’ Flowers to add tons of color and hide the giant wall of siding.
  7. This bar-work station would be an awesome multitasking piece for our deck. I could use it to re-pot plants, display plants and use as a bar cart for BBQs.
  8. Modular nesting tables that would be easy to move around for convenience.
  9. Bold rug because I don’t like wearing shoes and to ground the sitting area.
  10. Outdoor pendant for the pergola that would blend into it’s environment but add lighting for meals and games at night.
  11. Lanterns to stage around the deck for ambiance lighting.

*swoon* I think after 5 years we could afford all of this for the deck, but by then my tastes will change, and I’ll be dreaming of something different! Also, it’s kinda outrageous to spend this much on one area of our house.

Wanna know the total? The total is with ONE of everything…not a whole wall of planters (including flowers), not several pillows, strings of lights or lanterns…just one of everything pictured above. Drum roll please. $5,838 +tax. Easily a week in Paris! I’ll keep dreaming for now. What about you guys? Have you done any outdoor decor shopping lately? Where do you shop? I could use to cut this number back by…way over half! Anyone lucky enough to have more than a few months worth of awesome outdoor weather? Jeal.

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