This is our first real summer as a family of four. You know – experiencing summer as a 2 1/2 month break from a five-full-day-a-week school schedule. I find that I waffle between wanting to give my kids the kind of summer memories they will cherish for the rest of their lives and really looking forward to things getting back to “normal” when school starts again. When the latter is becoming too predominate in my thinking, I remind myself that I only have a limited amount of summers with them and I will regret spending them wishing for the next school year. So, lest you think it’s all-work-and-no-play at the Mustard Seed household, here are a few things about summer 2013 so far…
- My six year old son jumped on the diving board for the very first time ever today.
- My four year old swam all the way across the width of the pool without touching AND put his head underwater.
- The fireflies have been amazingly beautiful the last few nights. There is a field across the street from our house and it has been twinkling with them. I can’t wait to take the boys out with a jar to catch some.
- I have found my summer treat – all natural vanilla ice cream with chopped fresh cherries and all-natural chocolate chips. I know it’s not on the P90x/Insanity meal plans, but I just have a small bowl once a week. It is my mission to eat as many cherries as I can while they are in season.
- Until it started raining every night, our family went out on walks at the local high school. The boys wrestle on the football field and climb the bleachers and Jeff and I walk the track, talking about the future.
- I got my first (and hopefully last) summer sunburn today. Why, oh why, didn’t I wear sunscreen on my shoulders!?
- I am loving not having anywhere to go in the mornings. We stay up a little later, sleep in a little later. It’s nice.
- It’s the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg, so the town is abuzz with activity and reenactments. It’s not everyday you hear cannon fire while you’re hanging out in the pool.
We’re having some really sweet times with tired, dirty boys at the end of a long day and I know I’ll never regret that.
Thanks so much to everyone who was helping with my search for the perfect blue & white toile fabric. I even had a reader offer to sell me some old curtain panels she had! It was a beautiful toile, but I was afraid the blue might be a little bit bright. Well, I finally found the perfect fabric. It’s not a toile, but it has the European/vintage feel I was going for and the blue is just right.
Of course, I had to put the swatch on everything in the room…
…and my rug from Joss & Main came lightning fast and, of course, I had to put the swatch on that, too.
When the rug arrived Jeff and one of his friends from college were hanging out in the family room…right where I wanted to put the rug. As soon as possible. So, I unwrapped it, dragged it into the room and partially rolled it out. You know…just to see. Jeff looked at me, then looked at the rug.
“Where is that going?”
I indicated right in the middle of the room they were relaxing in.
“You want it in here right now, don’t you?”
“No, no. Just whenever you’re ready to get up. No rush.”
“You really want it in here right now, don’t you?”
“Yes, of course I do, but I’ll wait.”
He knows how impatient I am when it comes to decorating, so they got up, moved the furniture around and helped me put it in place. Aww.
Oh, I love it. When I get the cream linen curtains, this is going to provide just the right pop of pattern.
I really wish I had ordered a smaller size, too. I’ll have to keep an eye out for it.
Anyway, I’ll be moving my Dash & Albert rug to the living room when there’s no longer a toilet, tile and a skylight sitting in there…
Speaking of the bathroom, we’re making nice progress. Deadlines can sometimes be stressful, but they are also a very nice way to make sure projects don’t drag on for weeks on end. When I say, “We have to get this done this week….”, it’s not just some arbitrary deadline I’m setting out of impatience. In that way, I love deadlines.
So, we finished demoing the bathroom today and there is, once again, a toilet sitting outside my house (along with a vanity, old linoleum, broken tile, etc.) Yes. I know you want to live next door to me.
We’ve made some progress on the antique dresser-turned-vanity…
Oh my. Loving it.
The tile work starts tomorrow, which I’m very excited about. First, I’m not enjoying the marble and other stuff sitting in my living room…
…and I can’t wait to have a good soak in our new bath. We have been using it, but I have to use a work glove to turn the water on and I’m surrounded by studs and insulation. Hey…it’s a bath at the end of the day and that’s still a good thing. Marble is just better.
We’re having the tile done professionally by the same guys who did the kitchen floor and half-bath. I did the tile back splash in my kitchen and had just about enough of tiling. I could do it if I had to, but it involves precision and I just like to work on the fly, which isn’t usually precise! We’re doing everything else ourselves, except for the electrical work, so I’m okay with that.
In addition to the bathroom and everything else, I’ve been working on some curtain projects for freelance tutorials. I spent hours on a curtain panel last week and it was an epic sewing fail. I was trying to do something different and it didn’t turn out well, so I had to start over with what I had originally planned. It was so bad that I balled it up and carried it out to the trash can about 11:00 last night. That thing could not see the light of day. Well, it’s not the first ugly thing I’ve made and it certainly won’t be the last.
As I’ve been working, I’ve been listening to some new music I just got from iTunes. I love the Standards and just found a version of “I’ll be Seeing You” by Nataly Dawn that’s so simple and pretty.
I
All of this craziness seems more manageable when I can sing while I work…
59 Responses
You make me smile, have a wonderful week and “Happy 4th”.
I love listening to her sing…..
YOU ROCK! (figuratively…and literally). Love your new rug…and the sink…and I can’t WAIT to see the tile! xo
Oh – THANK YOU for being transparent with us! I NEEDED to hear about your epic sewing FAIL – because, I had one myself, this week, & just haven’t been able to bring myself to try again with it! But, after hearing that EVEN Miss Mustard Seed, whose home & furniture transformations have inspired me to “get to work” on my OWN home & projects, can have a mess-up every now & then – I, again am INSPIRED to try, try again!! THANK YOU!!
Really nice to hear about your family. Praise God for fabulous summer memories. All the material things are just that….material. Family memories are cherished forever 😉
I always love hearing updates about bloggers families! It reminds me we really are all human and do this crazy blog thing AND have a life! I know your boys will look back on summers where you put projects aside and spent time with them. See you at Haven in a few weeks!
I love your new rug! And the vanity! I have a new bathroom that I’m going to be designing soon and I’m in the process of deciding which way I’m going to go with it. Isn’t designing fun! Thank you for your blog! You were the second blog I ever found and you inspired me to Finally start mine! Sincerely…
hi marian – we call them “lightning bugs” in the good ole south. don’t forget to punch holes in the top of the jar lid 🙂 happy memories!
Love your new rug!!! Gorgeous!! And the vanity—gorgeous already–can’t wait to see it when you have completed it…
Ooh la la, love the rug and the vanity!! Fire flies are the best, we don’t have them in CO, but my kids think they’re the coolest when we get back to Minnesota in the summer!
Love the rug. Where did you find it?
I got it from Joss & Main. It’s actually available in a collection right now… https://www.jossandmain.com/Artisan-Accents-Florino-Rug-in-Navy-Blue~FV31771~E5428.html
darn! must have just missed it. the event is closed.
It’s back! They are calling it Brighton Rug in Navy Blue. I compared it against the Florino Rug and I believe it’s the same rug! Happy dance 🙂
swimming for the first time without touching — what a great memory from childhood!!
Love the new rug…even more love the heart of a husband who so knows his wife’s heart
& loves her enough to get up (along with his friend!) to move furniture and install that rug.
You married well! So did he!
God bless you & your ‘darling man collection.’
LOVE your new fabric and rug! They compliment one another beautifully! Really anxious to see the completed vanity. I would love to find a dresser to do that with for my guest bath! Have a great week!
Marian, you are putting together an awesome home – I love all your blue patterns. I have no blue in my home but always gravitate toward it!
I just love the sink and faucet in the new bath vanity. Very pretty. Great shape to the sink. I am a curvey vs straight lines kinda gal.
looking forward to seeing the bathroom finished with that old dresser and sink. And, love the new fabric. You could come decorate my house any time, but since that’s not likely, I’ll just get out your book again and drool over the pictures.
That rug is SO beautiful. Just the right shades of blue and cream, and the pattern is modern and understated and classic all at once. Well done! Such a great find.
I’ve always loved summer. I was always sad when my kids had to go back to school. I’m even sad that my grandson has to go back to school soon! By the way you are not the only woman to take their swatches and place them against everything else in the room. I currently have a piece of flooring resting against the new counter top! Perfectly normal! Enjoy the fireflys!
Marion, will you pretty please share a tutorial on the bath vanity? My husbie and I (well, I) reallllly want to do that with two bathrooms we will eventually redo -one, we hope- will be this fall!
Thank you! Enjoy the precious memories!
Yes, that’s actually a tutorial we’re doing for HGTV.com, so it will be available.
Hey Marian –
I’m a huge fan of the standards, too – and was a Voice/Theory major in college until I decided that it wasn’t going to allow me to maintain the lifestyle I wanted (I ended up majoring in Economics, which I also loved!)
At any rate – if you haven’t heard Caro Emerald, check her out. You can sample her music on her site – http://www.caroemerald.com. She’s a Dutch-born jazz singer who sings originals rather than standards, but takes much of her inspiration from the crooners of the ’30’s, ’40’s and 50’s, adding in her own modern vibe. I love her music – lots of fun. I dare you to stand still (or not join in, once you know the words) when listening to her songs! 🙂 Great videos, too!
I love the fabric you picked (swatch above). It’s just gorgeous, but Isn’t it an awful lot like the curtains you have in your LR, DR and even those in your MBR?
Yep. That’s the look I really love, so it’s what I keep going back to. And I have had those curtains in my LR & DR for almost four years, which is big for me!
“Yes. I know you want to live next door to me.” My husband & I have a running joke about that exact same thing. We have been building a shed/barn…for…wait for it…3 years! It’s over 1200 square feet & we’re paying cash for the materials as we go. And me? Well kiddies, I made the comment that if we’re building somehting THAT big, it has to match the house. Um yah, that was me. So it’s got (faux) brick footers & vinyl siding & architectural shingles. To match the house. And last month we installed a spinkler system & sod. On a half acre. My neighbors don’t even look our way anymore. (You can add 110 pound German Shepherd ~ champion barker to the mix too)
I am adding that carpet to my wish list for Christmas!
Sam
Love your new rug and soon-to-be vanity!
Hey Marian..love what you are doing! I especially am touched by you and the boys and fireflies! (Lightning bugs) I grew up in Connecticut..we had lightning bugs, I left home at 19, I have never seen one since. But they are a childhood memory, one of the best. and I can still smell fragrances in my mind from humid summer nights and no a/c. Now all one smells are fabric softeners, and because of a/c no fragrances at night. Your boys will remember fireflies…forever! Good for you ..and them.♥
Nothing like dirty little boys in the summer-time! Enjoy, my 3 boys are grown with 3 little ones each of their own – Memories galore –
I wish upon a star that HGTV would send Miss Mustard Seed to my home – Armed and ready of course!! Love the new rug and sink/vanity–
Happy 4th – Don’t forget to thank a Veteran!! My little boys grew up to be just that!!!
LOVE the fabric you found to upholster the “new” daybed. The room will be beautiful !
Enjoy every minute with your little boys…it just goes way toooo fast 🙁
I don’t think a rug can Ever be Too Big. You can always fold it under on the wall side. Most people make the mistake of buying rugs too small. I’m kind of laughing while you get all these new things, wondering what is the next room you will be changing. I’m thinking the living room. Then the guest room. Ann
Yep, it’s just sort of a season for change right now, but it’s just the bathroom and family room. I’m doing my usual shuffling, but nothing major.
Thanks for such an informative email with so many pictures! I am curious about the navy and white quilt in the second picture. It looks so much like one of mine from my family in Ohio, probably over 150 years old now. The dots and triangles are the same. Is their a name for the pattern? Enjoy your family summer. . .new rug and bath!
I actually just acquired that quilt from an antique fair and I don’t know anything about it. The woman I bought it from told me the name of the pattern, but I forgot it. I should’ve written it down!
I know that someday your boys will look back on this summer and “remember when”. Making those memories is just as important as a healthy meal. You go Girl.
And, in Missouri and Kansas, we call them lightening bugs, also…it’s always such fun to see the reaction of a little one the first time they see one and realize what they’re doing!
I DO wish you lived next door to ME…..I’d raid your trash can and grab that “failed curtain” project and repurpose the fabric~
Sharon, my thoughts exactly on the trash can raid. After seeing MMM’s many many beautiful fabrics that she has worked with I would have rescued that ‘fail’!!
Our lightening bugs must have migrated to the north east because it is are a rare thrill to see them in our back yard now. So glad they were plentiful here in our area of Oklahoma when my son was little and could enjoy them!
The way you described your summer is just beautiful! French General is an amazing L.A. store. I got my first set of vintage linen towels there they just happened to have my and my husbands intials. I haven’t visited in awhile who knew they were doing fabric. I need to make a trip.
Marian, you are so funny 🙂 I can identify with the impatient part… if I’m working on something I usually want it done tomorrow. The chest that you’re going to use as a vanity is over the moon!! I’m so envious.. Mine came from Home Depot.. pplllphhhhhtttttt
Love the rug and new curtain fabric and am especially in love with the new sink !!! Can’t wait to see the new bath. Have a great 4th. with the family !!!
Your vanity looks GORGEOUS.
…and yeah for your little guys and their swimming accomplishments! It’s a BIG deal jumping off the diving board for the first time!
Hi Miss Mustard Seed!
I recently started following your blog and I have to say you have been such a breath of inspiration! I am head-over-heels in love with your choice of blue in decorating your home and I have to admit I am re-decorating my kitchen in blues and whites because of you. I just saw your recent post in search of finding the perfect fabric and LOVE it! I so want to buy it to make curtains for my kitchen! Thank you for all your amazing ideas and sharing them with the rest of us!
God bless,
Sarah
the rug is fabulous!! and the vanity. swoon! won’t it be nice to relax in your finished (gorgeous) bathroom after those epic sewing fail days! p.s. sewing machines are great aids for teaching patience, perseverance, and frustration management. At least mine is! 😉
Happy 4th of July!! Just love summer and the pool. Fun watching little guys achieve a new goal. Love watching my grandson (almost 4) do all that fun stuff. Don’t miss a minute!—-You sure have a great bathroom project. Love when professionals do them. It takes half as long. Really like your choice in the livingroom. Pretty blue fabric and rug. Can’t wait to se the results.
I just love Kaari’s decorator fabric line. I was at French General in January and took pictures of several of her fabrics. She has a brand new line out, I believe. I love the one you’ve picked. I always gravitate to th blues myself. I think it will be perfect in your house. I also love your bedroom fabric. Can’t wait to watch for the transformation.
Trust me when I say this – DON’T BLINK, your boys will be walking down an aisle for college graduation and then another getting married, literally, in the blink of an eye! Enjoy every moment you can with them, make all the memories you can with them. It will all be gone too soon. I know, I blinked, she walked the aisle in cap & gown, then in a beautiful white dress and now she has a 4year old daughter and a 6 year old son and we are making memories all over again. It will all be gone in the blink of an eye – DON’T BLINK! (I, indeed, did enjoy every single moment!) ~ Bobbie
I loved what you said about your boys getting dirty (as all little boys should). When my now 30 and 25 year old sons were little, I knew that it had been a great play day for them when they were covered with dirt and needed a bath before bedtime. Dirt is a great measurement of success in the life of a little boy!! Good Job!!
love here about life….the way is suppose to be in summer fun and sounds like you are having it….enjoy your trips..In July will they still be doing Gettysburg stuff my husband and I have always wanted to make a trip through this area
Check out Pomplamoose. It’s Nataly Dawn and her partner (can’t think of his name off the top of my head). You really need to watch the videos as well. I love hearing about the noise from Gettysburg. I’ve visited two Civil War battlefields this year. Hopefully some day soon my family can come to your part of the country and visit some more.
Glad to hear you are taking time to enjoy the summer days with your family. I love your rug! The color and pattern is amazing.
I looove you, and I love Joss and Main! I don’t know if you will be happy about this but this rug is sold on Overstock. They also have a lighter shade of blue and different sizes. This may help out wanting a smaller one and those that missed the sale.
Oh, that’s awesome! Some people have been asking, so I’ll let them know.
so neat to hear about some of the fun things your boys are accomplishing and that you are having some summer fun yourself. I absolutely love the look of the new rug. I like the pattern and the color.
Could you please tell me what the fabric on the ottoman is? Love the look of the vanity. Thanks, Linda
hey, how are you? Love your rug,material,vanity and sink! I’m really interested in what company or name of the sink, love it! Thanks for all your inspirations!
i love the vanity im going to remodel my kids bath and im looking for something like that … sooo hard to find it…
That rug is absolutely fabulous, as is your vanity, sink and fixture. Your bathroom is going to be gorgeous and soooo you! Great find on the fabric too! But the best thing you’ll remember from all this summer goodness are the times spent with your husband and boys. That is the real treasure. 🙂