DIY Book Display Shelves

We have so many books in this house it is unbelievable. Brayden absolutely loves books. It makes my heart melt when I see him choose to sit down with a book over playing with any of his toys, and he chooses to do so fairly often. I mean, the kid is ALL boy; he definitely does his fair share of running around like a wild man and playing with trucks, but he loves to sit down and look at books just as much as he likes playing with toys. As a Mama, of course this makes me very, very happy!

But- with so many books floating around and no where to put them, our house was quickly becoming a book graveyard. They were EV-ER-Y-WHERE! We had an extra bookshelf, just the standard shelf with three shelves and it just seemed generic. I wanted something that showcased the books so Brayden would continue to be drawn to them. I wanted him to see the FRONT of the book, not the spine. I also wanted him to be able to help put them away. Plus, being an interior design major, of course I wanted them to be cute!

I started scouring Pinterest for fun ideas for DIY bookshelves.



Rain gutter bookshelves were my first decision, but aluminum gutter I didn’t think was safe, and I wasn’t sure how I’d be able to paint vinyl gutter so I started searching again. I found a tutorial for some do-it-yourself picture display shelves, looked simple enough so off to Lowe’s I went for lumber. I ended up having to make a couple trips back but in the end my supplies were:

8 pieces of 1 x 4 x 4
4 pieces of 1 x 2 x 4
2 cans white primer spray paint
2 cans bright blue Valspar spray paint
2 cans bright green Valspar spray paint
1 can clear glossy sealant spray
1 box of 2 inch screws



I could have been tedious and OCD but pretty much it was my first ever DIY that involved any sort of “wood-working” so I just wanted to do the minimum and hope it turned out good enough (so unlike me..!). I started by priming all the wood, then painting the wood for 2 shelves green and the other 2 shelves blue.



At this point my trigger finger had turned in to jell-o and my feet were sprayed blue and green.



I predrilled the holes and then screwed the pieces together; 4 screws for each board I was putting together which was 8 screws per shelf. Once they were all put together, I did a coat of touch up paint and sealed them.



When I was screwing them into the wall, I didn’t really measure exactly perfect, but put the first one as low as I could put it, right above the outlet. Then I measured 9 inches from the top of one shelf to the bottom of the next for each of the remaining shelves. Originally I had measured 12 inches but when I stepped back it looked really weird so I put them closer together, 9 inches ended up looking really good and still fit a lot of his bigger books. I used a stud-finder to make sure the screws were anchored into the studs and used three 2-inch screws per shelf.



Eventually I would like to pull them down and re-paint them with real paint instead of spray paint, the spray paint looks fine but I think it would look better brushed on. I also plan to sand down the rough parts and round off the exposed corners. Eventually…

Lately...

Lately, I’ve been working on growing out my mustache…



Okay so not really, but lately, lots of changes have been happening around here! Thus the reason for my MIA status. But alas, things are slowing down and we’re starting to get back into somewhat of a routine; thank goodness because my must-plan-everything-and-be-organized-all-the-time-OCD personality was struggling there for a minute. The beginning of last month we loaded our ridiculous amount of stuff into a HUUUGE U-haul and trekked down to Ogden, finally!! This included a very-very late night drive, followed by some moving induced bruises and a no hot-water induced sink bath. But it also led to a cute little boy who was pretty excited to have a real bed again.




Brayden had his first stab at an ice cream cone. He thoroughly enjoyed sucking the crap out of it and smushing it all over his face. Yummy!


Just over a week after getting here, it was time to head back to Casper for my friend Ashley’s wedding! Had such a good time getting all fancied up, chatting with the bridesmaids, and basking in the sunshine that was Ashley on her wedding day. Congrats again, Ashley & Eric! (Ah, I just realized we were so busy all day preparing that I have NO pictures on my phone, oops!)

Got back home and killed this nasty guy:



So nobody faint or anything, but this Mama’s got a “job.” Whoa, I know. I thought the extra money would be nice to take a little pressure off of Jesse financially but I really didn’t want Brayden to have to go to daycare in order for me to work (for financial and crazy-mama reasons of course). I scoured care.com every day and finally found a family that was looking for something I could provide. Brayden and I are spending our mornings with a sweet 2-year-old boy and it’s so much fun! No pictures of course because I don’t have his parent’s permission, but trust me, he’s a cutie! I’m so glad Brayden has someone close to his age that he can play with, especially because we miss Addy so much!



And most recently, we went to see TyRea and John and their brand new baby girl Dru! She’s a doll and I’m so happy for them and their new family! We also visited with Grandpa while we were there and went to the parade. Brayden sat in his stroller the whole time occupied by some delicious dum-dum suckers. We missed the beginning of the parade but that’s okay because it was H-O-T!



And we’re starting this:



Yikes! Wish us luck!

Coming soon: some yummy recipes and an easy DIY project!

A home!

Woo! First things first, my mom and I made another trip to Utah last week/end and we both finally found places. I am so relieved. Basically for our budget there were some compromises to be made, as there usually are. It was either lower our (my) standards or settle for a 2 bedroom instead of 3. Since we technically only NEED 2 bedrooms, that was the decision that was made. I really was looking forward to having an office-slash-playroom, but well, you can't have it all. Considering Jesse is the main breadwinner I don't want him to be stressed about money so it is a sacrifice that will hopefully pay off. Plus, it's not like we're buying the house - its just temporary. And I'm not complain' tooooo much because the place is brrrrand new, big and spacious. It's in a nice residential area on a cul-de-sac. Regardless, I'm so excited at the thought of having our own space again and not having to live out of suitcases and boxes!

Moving day is a week away! And does anyone else think the moving truck industry is a flippin' joke? $500 bucks for a truck to move 6 hours away. HO-LY COW! That's of course not including insurance coverage on the truck or the billion gallons worth of gas it will take to get there in a truck that gets roughly 6 miles to the gallon. This is the not-yay part. Unfortunately, no way around this one.



Hanging out with Grandpa :)


Grandpa teaching Brayden how to garden


Hi mom, I'm just gonna sneak in this closet and get out the vacuum, k?


Lazzzy Day


Loving on Abraham


Such a big boy!

Yesterday I finally had my appointment at Bamboo Spa & Salon for the Ultimate Spa Package I got for CHRISTMAS (ha!). Anyway, it was marvelous and such an awesome 3.5 hour break from reality. Mhmm :)





Jesse's 21st birthday is on Sunday. I'm working on a little somethin-somethin' and will share after we celebrate!

Searching. Waiting. Searching. Waiting.

...So goes the process of house hunting. I am trying to remember that being patient usually pays off in the end. When my brother wrecked my car, I was without a vehicle for SIX WEEKS. A full-time college student, a mom, and with no car for a month and a half. But the wait and inconvenience paid off when I found basically THE EXACT car I wanted, at a price I could afford. I keep trying to remind myself but dang it's hard! Searched online again a bit tonight and found a few places to look at. We're in Ogden now so hopefully I'll be able to look at all of them tomorrow and make a decision so we can move down in the next two weeks or so! We'll see, cross your fingers and toes!

We Are Indeed, Alive!

Well gee it's been a while, eh? Wow lots of things have changed since I was blogging last so here's an update:

- I decided to transfer to University of Wyoming in Laramie for the fall semester to finish my Bachelor's Degrees in Mathematics & Statistics with Honors endorsements.
- We were supposed to move to Laramie June 4th.
- On June 1st I saw this on Pinterest:



- I decided I REALLY REALLY did not want to live in Laramie. And even more, I didn't want to study Math. I WANT TO STUDY INTERIOR DESIGN

- June 3rd I applied to Weber State University in Ogden, UT

- June 4th I had to be out of my apartment. Loaded all our stuff into a Uhaul and into a storage unit. We are all presently staying at my mom's house. HOLY CRAP. For those who don't know: my mom's house is a 3 bedroom, 1 bathroom, less than 1000 sq. ft. house that is seriously not big enough for 4 adults and a toddler.

So, now we are looking for a house or townhouse in the Bountiful/Layton/South Ogden area and cannnnotttt wait to move! I will be studying Interior Design at Weber State and I couldn't be more excited. Doing something I love and not to mention a bigger city?!?!


Layton, Utah

P90X: Week 2 Recap

Week 2:
Your weight {if you don't feel comfortable sharing this, you don't have to}: Not sure, I'll have to update this in the morning!

Your fitness challenge(s) for the week: P90X routine Saturday thru Thursday + CardioX on Friday

Your food challenge for the week: MORE WATER. WATER! WATER! WATER!

How well did last week go: Went pretty good. I still ate out too much but not as much as the week before. Stayed within my calorie window and went on a couple extra runs. Ran 2 1/2 miles on Saturday by myself and Brayden and I went on a 2 1/2 mile run yesterday. I will also add that I hate YogaX and think it's way too long, so again this week I only did 60 out of 90 minutes.

Failures and slip-ups: Not enough water! Not doing the whole yoga video.

Weekly challenge wisdom: "Strive for progress, not perfection."

Advice to fellow GET FIT members: Set a goal and STICK TO IT. Start small, and build up from there.

Your Beautiful Selfie ( optional but strongly encouraged): I think I'm just gonna do these every 3 weeks.. so.. next week.

P90X: Week 1 Recap

Whew! Week one of P90X is in the bag. Only 12 more to go :) But I just have to rant here for a minute because a conversation that came up in my statistics class this week really just IRKED me. Somehow we got on the topic of weight loss/weight gain and it basically came down to one girl [who is not obese or anything, but a little overweight- she is also very tall, if i had to guess i'd say close to 6 foot].. anyway, she says "some people are just overweight genetically." At this point I literally had to FORCE myself to keep my mouth shut because I didn't want to say what I wanted to say and have it be offensive. BUT, that is the biggest crock of crap I have ever heard. YES some people's "genes" tend to I guess be more overweight. However, every single person can achieve a HEALTHY and FIT weight with some hard work.

This same girl then claimed that she "counts calories" but still will "never ever ever in a million years weigh 175" (which she said was the suggested weight for her height based on a BMI). Umm, well no, she won't, so long as she thinks simply counting calories will make pounds shed off. Diet and exercise go hand in hand. If you want BIG results then you have to make BIG changes and BIG sacrifices. Losing weight is HARD. Really hard! I know because I'm doing it. If you just buckle down, make the sacrifices, dedicate the time, put in the hard work and sweat, it WILL pay off and you WILL see results. And pshh, once you get to a healthy weight, staying there is a piece of cake.

The final point is that you can't run, run, run, lift, lift, lift, and cut calories -- get to your goal weight, and then go back to your old habits. No, you don't have to be as strict about your diet, and no you don't have to work out for an hour every day - maintaining a weight is much easier and simpler then losing weight. But to stay healthy you have to keep practicing healthy habits. You have to lose the love/love relationship with food and look at food as a source of energy, not a source of pleasure. You have to make healthy, smart decisions about what you eat, and you HAVE to continue to workout regularly. Even if it's going for a 30 minute walk every day, do SOMETHING. Your body will thank you later. :)

Okay so now for this weeks recap:


Week 1:
Your weight {if you don't feel comfortable sharing this, you don't have to}: Um well this morning I was 149 [down 0.6 from last week]

Your fitness challenge(s) for the week: Keep doing P90X every day, + CardioX on "rest day"

Your food challenge for the week: MORE water. LESS eating out. Continue to eat 1400-1500 calories per day

How well did last week go: As far as exercise it went really well. I need to get heavier weights for the weight lifting days, especially Shoulders & Arms, I definitely didn't feel like I worked out has hard as I could have with heavier weights. Other than that did good, really liked KenpoX and CardioX was definitely a good workout today. Also walked about 4 miles with Julia and the kiddos this afternoon. Eating on the other hand was not so good. I ate the correct number of calories, BUT I literally ate out like almost every single night this week.. Ooops

Failures and slip-ups: Eating out too much, not drinking enough water

Weekly challenge wisdom: "There are no shortcuts to any place worth going." [There is NO short cut to getting healthy and fit, but the hard work will pay off!

Advice to fellow GET FIT members: Stick to your goals. Start your workout and make it part of your routine. You can never finish if you don't start!

Your Beautiful Selfie ( optional but strongly encouraged): Eh not this week.