Sliding Barn Door

Saturday, June 20, 2015

So, I have been drooling over sliding barn doors for a very long time! However, it was not a DIY project that I was willing to tackle on my own. I knew I was going to have to call in the big guns for this one. (Big guns = Dane and my dad) Needless to say, those busy guys weren't willing to drop everything they were working on to help me live my dream of having a sliding barn door. So, I waited kind of patiently for them to help me.

And...

We have a beautiful barn door in the living room!


I fell in love with barn doors (thank you, Pinterest) when I was looking at ideas for the front porch, and I was thrilled when Dane agreed that it would be the perfect solution for the nursery.

Luckily, we had a track and some old barn wood on hand. My dad and I (mostly my dad) cut the boards to size and built a door. Then, I stained the door. (Hint: If you are staining older wood, it will be a lot darker than fresh, treated lumber.) Dane and I just had to buy some rollers and other hardware to complete the door.


I absolutely love the final look! I did have to find some flat vinyl art for the wall behind the door...it looked very empty when the door was closed.

Do you have a space that would be perfect for a sliding barn door? I am so glad we decided to add this fun touch to our house!

Pancake Squares

Friday, June 19, 2015

I am usually rushing out the door in the morning, and I don't really have time to make breakfast in between changing diapers and getting myself together! So, I am always on the lookout for some simple breakfasts that I can grab at the last minute. 

I found this recipe on Pinterest, and knew that I was going to have to try them. I love pancakes, but you have to watch over them, and flip them, and it just takes a lot of time. These pancake squares were super simple, and didn't take more than 10 minutes to prepare! 



Ingredients:
2 cups of pancake mix (I use Bisquick)
2/3 cup of milk
2 eggs (I used flaxseed as a substitute)
1/2 cup of maple syrup

Extra goodies: (optional)
Blueberries
Chocolate Chips
Cinnamon & Sugar

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350º. Mix pancake mix, milk, eggs, and syrup together. Pour mixture into nonstick brownie pan (you could also use a muffin pan...pancake muffins sound yummier anyway!) Add your desired goodies. Bake for 15 minutes.

See, I told you it was easy! Plus they taste amazing, and make your whole house smell like pancakes! YUM! 

Grandma's Little Quilters

Wednesday, June 03, 2015

Quilts, quilts, and more quilts! For the past several months my grandma has been teaching some of the girls how to quilt. Grandma has helped me with a couple other blankets (you can check them out here and here). Now it is a quilting party, and it is oh so fun! There are usually 4 or 5 sewing machines going at once, scraps are flying all over the place, and quilt pieces are laid out on every flat surface available. Grandpa will tell you that it noisy...but that is probably due to the chit chat and laughter. 



So, what have I been working on? I purchased an ombre jelly roll from Moda a long time ago, and I have been slowly (I mean REALLY slowly) sewing together a paint chip quilt. 



Don't those strips look like paint chips?! I love the colors, and the overall look of this quilt! There aren't really quilt blocks, but I plan doing some sort of block next time. 

Hopefully, we can continue to get together and sew multiple quilts. Grandma has so much to teach us, and I can't wait to learn and see what everyone else comes up with.

Oh, and...

this boy usually crashes...and does way more pooping than quilting!