More About 80s Cabinets!

You're still reading? Good! That must mean you are really looking forward to a post about 80s cabinets! 

I could hear you chanting it... 80s CABS 80s CABS. Well, your wish is my command. 80s cabinets is what we will be talking about today.

In case you forgot... this is not the first post I have written about 80s cabinets. That is why this one is MOOOOOREEEE About 80s Cabinets!

Yep... this is what I do with my time. I take a photo of cabinets from the 80s and attach it to a super cool 80s girl (wearing  jellys, a SBTB cut-off sweatshirt, an Anaconda flap cap, smiley faced earrings, slap bracelets, and a mullet). I am normal.

A few weeks ago, I talked about painting the 80s cabinets in the lake house we thought we were going to move into.
Then, I mentioned painting an oak wet bar black.
Later, I showed you my first try at cabinet painting when I had no idea what I was doing.
And don't you worry your pretty, little heads because in the future I am going to show you some bathroom cabinets that I painted.

I get a lot of questions about how to paint cabinets. You could say that painting cabinets is my specialty. You really shouldn't say that though.

Well let's get this party started! I am going to show you some before and afters of 80s cabinet transformations!

I ran into a lot of really impressive cabinet redos when I looked into how to make cabinets like these:

from the Rustoleum Transformations website

look a little more like these:

Photo from here

So, without further ado here are the before and afters that impressed me most:

Before:

Photo from Rustoleum Transformations. I have never used the product Rustoleum Transformations but they have a great gallery of before and after photos that people have submitted. People seem pretty happy with them. 

After:

Photo from Rustoleum Transformations

Before:

Photo from Rustoleum Transformations

After:

Photo from Rustoleum Transformations

Before:

Photo from Rustoleum Transformations

After:

Photo from Rustoleum Transformations

Are these makeovers TOTALLY BLOWING YOUR MIND OR WHAT?

I know they aren't the most amazing thing you have ever seen. But for the cost of a gallon of paint and a weekend of your time... WHAT A DIFFERENCE!

Before:

This not so attractive kitchen was found here.

After:

The impressive after photo can be found here.

My father-in-law suggested adding bead board and trim to the cabinets we were planning to redo. It sounded like a great idea to me. So I did my research and found someone who had already done it.

The blog In Between Laundry has some wonderful photos and advice about how to take ugly cabinets, add bead board and trim and make them beautiful! Her father-in-law seems to be involved in her cabinet redo too!

Here is the kitchen when they moved in:

This is what they did to each cabinet front.

And this is what they came out with! This is the best after photo I could find. I think they are still working on the kitchen.

So, there you have it! 

Life lesson of the day: Ugly kitchen cabinets can be transformed. 

And, last but certainly not least... A HAPPY BIRTHDAY PHOTO OF MY BFF ANGUS!

Here is a photo of the birthday girl enjoying Thanksgiving dinner on the beach in '05!

More Would You Rather

Seven posts per week is a lot of work!

Sundays, you get an easy one... a few more Would You Rather (WYR) questions.
On Thursday, I celebrated Scott's birthday by giving him and you all a few WYRs.

The winning answers...
People would rather:

• be a little hungry rather than a little too full

• always have on two very obviously different shoes rather than always have the sniffles

• always have to wear the same outfit rather than  go everywhere by either walking, running or riding a bike

The other two questions had divided answers.

Here is a photo of the birthday boy running through the banner this year.

Now here come the WYRs:

WYR... Live in a world that has real unicorns

Or 

Live in a world where there is a rainbow every other day

WYR... Have to drink 3 cups of pickle juice every day

Or

Have to wear a huge pink tutu everyday

WYR... Never be allowed to sing again (even when you are alone)

Or

The only thing you can watch on TV (or stream online) is sports

WYR... That you always smelled a good bit like cat pee

Or

That you could only leave the house when it was dark out

Come on you NL readers get your question-answering selves in high gear and get to it!

And... just because it makes me happy here is a photo of my cute, messy-haired little babytoddler:

OK- I didn't know it at the time but I lied yesterday when I said that today's post would not be Cora-filled. I just saw these photos of her "sweeping" the deck, being cute, and doing some hand examinations. They must be shared.

I hope to see you tomorrow! Enjoy the last 20ish hours of your weekend!

My Favorite Cora Photos! 1 Month Old to 2 Months Old

A new weekend tradition... My favorite Cora photos. It's a little something for Grandmama, Grandad, and Aunt Kelly.

Here you will find The Best of Cora's First Month
Now, let's take a look at Cora transition from 1 month old to 2 months old.

Can't say it enough... Thank you Moby!

Scott sung and danced her to sleep! It was amazing (and a very sweet moment to get to catch a glimpse of).

Sweet, little baby and her mama

Sorry 14 year old Cora- Your mom never put clothes on you.

Cora is a referee.

Peek-a-boo Moby.

She dresses up in fancy clothes every once in a while.

Sweet!

Come on Grandad, Wake Up!

Aunt Kelly and the naked baby. I promise... when the colder weather comes so do the clothes.

She thinks her dad is pretty funny!

She's trying to act dainty here.


I hope you are all having a fabulous Saturday! I will be back tomorrow with another easy weekend post! Sorry, mom- it is not as Cora-filled.

Words Of Wisdom... Honest Toddler Style

If you are immersed in the toddler/baby world and you find yourself not appreciating it you need to check The Honest Toddler's Tweets out! Even if you aren't in any way immersed in the world of drool or potty training I think you will find these little tweetings funny.

"You don't have time," you say? Well consider yourself one lucky son of a gun! Because I am going to do it for you. Yes, sir-y-bob, it looks like you have just hired me as your Honest Toddler Tweet reader. Below I am going to give you my favorite HT Tweets of the week.
The Honest Toddler has a blog, a Twitter account, and a Facebook page. I have only read some of the Tweets and they are hilarious. I am not a Twitter person. In fact, The Honest Toddler is my first experience with it all together. 

Photo of The Honest Toddler

BEST OF THE HONEST TODDLER TWEETS: 9-10-12 to 9-17-12: 

• Grandpa came by and dropped off some flashcards. Ate half of one right off the bat gonna save the rest for a special occasion.

• One year old at the park used me to steady himself. Do I look like a walking stick, big infant?

• Toddler Tip: If being a winner means anything to you, start running on "Get Set."

• Don't try to cancel a game of Under the Blanket just because your toddler gently farts a few times. PLAY THROUGH.

• In time out because haters gonna hate. Period.

• Recipe: Take two tablespoons of mayonnaise. Gently mix with 1 teaspoon of mustard. Add in a box of cereal. RUN FOR YO LIFE LOL

• Was on the phone trying to order pizza for 25 minutes. Turns out I was talking into a scrunchie. :(

• Grandma called just to tell me I'm a beautiful child. If not for her love I don't know what I'd do.

• Hope Santa knows the difference between facts and heresy that's all I'm going to say.

• She started tickling me. Can't stay mad at her. In other news, I peed in the big bed. LOL

I can't believe that this messy, little thing is now an Honest Toddler and no longer an honest baby!
She's not quite as witty as the real Honest Toddler but she can say mom, dad, hi, bye, duck, cheese, juice, and dog!

The Huffington Post did a great article about the 50 best tweets of all time from "Honest Toddler." I had trouble but I managed to pare them down to my favorite 18 for you:

• I won't be eating much dinner tonight. Thanks for cooking though.

• Daddy really needs to back off. Mommy + baby = love forever. I've heard her heartbeat from the inside, dude. THE INSIDE. Top THAT. 

• Can you stop looking at the clock? My bedtime will come when it comes. Rude. 

• In time out. I regret nothing. 

• Skipped my nap today. Exhausted. Will go right to bed. LOL. NOT. FEEL LIKE ADRENALINE & RED BULL ARE PUMPING THROUGH MY BABY VEINS. 

• Woke up at 5AM crying. Appeared ill and confused. Mom let me get up out of sheer concern. PSYCH!! I'm fine! Running around yelling. 

• Woke up from my nap happy and refreshed! Just kidding I hate everything and will need to be held until bedtime. 

• Mommy saw a spider and almost cried. LOL I've eaten like four of those this week. 

• Going to be an angel while grandma is here. Operation Discredit Mommy is in full force ya'll! 

• Barista just asked me not to touch the pastry display glass. Licked it. In yo face. 

• The awkward moment when mommy hugs you way too tight for way too long and whispers something creepy like "Don't grow." Get a grip. 

• Jumped off the kitchen table. Turns out believing you can fly isn't enough. Thanks for the lies R Kelly. 

• Just saw my newborn photos. I looked like Gollum in a onesie. 

• Toddler Tip: When your parents hug, get between them and make that baby sandwich complete. 

• Mommy ran into a friend on the street. "I've been meaning to call you!" Stop lying. You've been meaning to buy M&Ms. 

• What is a bathroom door, really. Other than a love barrier. 

• Accidentally said I wanted an Awful for breakfast. Meant Waffle. She laughed in my face and told Facebook. :( 

• Dear Toddler Clothing Manufacturers, WE HAVE BIG HEADS. 

HAPPY WEEKEND TO YOU! 

If you don't have plans I invite you to come on down to Charlotte and get my baby toddler to sleep please.

Would You Rather

If you know my husband, Scott, you probably know that this post is about him.

Today is Scott's 31st birthday! Happy Birthday, SCOTT!!!!

Here is a photo of Scott and Cora:

OKKKKKK... maybe Scott really isn't in this photo but Cora sure thinks he is. She has been carrying that book around with her every opportunity she gets. Yesterday morning I found out why. She started pointing to the photo on the cover and saying "Dad" over and over. I said, "Cora, that isn't Dad." But she insisted it was. Soon Scott came downstairs and she showed him and said "Dad." I even told her to give Dad a kiss. Who do you think her smackers went straight for... Yep, it was creepy, old man, black and white Dad.


Here is a really blurry photo from last year of Scott running top speed through his birthday banner (I will get to the birthday banner soon).

To celebrate the big 3-1 we will do some of the things that I have done my whole life to celebrate birthdays:

• There will be a decorative wooden cake
• Scott will run through a toilet paper banner that says "Happy Birthday, Scott"
• I will play Beatles- Birthday when he wakes up
• I will make Scott a coupon book of things like, "one day of no diaper changes," "one day that I will watch football with you." This one is slightly different than growing up. I used to make coupon books for my dad that had things like, "5 car cleans," "10 hair pulls" (hair pulls basically equal head massage," and "10 back walks."
• I will call the radio station and have them say happy birthday to him on the radio. Actually, that tradition stopped when I was about 10 years old. We may just keep it that way
• A few other traditions that might not make the cut are: Twizzler straws, a gum-drop tree, a Slip 'n' Slide, and chocolate pizza.

Here I am back in 1984 with #1 on the list- the wooden cake

Scott LOVES to ask would you rather questions. Most of them are something like, "would you rather wake up and I was me but had a squirrel head or I had 6 arms?" Answer is obviously six arms so he could make a good living in the carnival circuit.

So in honor of ScottPant's 31st birthday I am going to pose a few would you rather questions!
Everyone, feel free to answer them. I would love to hear some of your own WYRs too!

1. WYR... Always be a little hungry
OR
Always be a little too full

2. WYR... Always have the sniffles 
OR
Always have on two very obviously different shoes

3. WYR... As an adult have to go back to high school right now. Grades 9-12 and you are the big weirdo who is creeping around like it's normal. (You can come home at night and you only have to work 20 hours/week of your normal job). 
OR
Have to spend the next 4 years in charge of whatever happens to the sewer stuff on a cruise ship. (You do not get to leave the cruise ship for 4 years but your family or friends can come with you).
... Sorry, I know this is a stupid one (UNLIKE THE OTHER FANTASTIC QUESTIONS).

4. WYR... You have to start every morning by randomly singing the national anthem to your next door neighbor. (They have no idea why and most likely stop answering the door after a week but you still have to keep singing)
OR
Have to commute to and from work every single day on a horse. (You have to clean up the poop too but you don't have to worry about where the horse stays while you're at work).

5. WYR... Always have to wear the same outfit no matter what. (You can decide what outfit it is but you are stuck with it for the rest of your life... better not lose or gain too much weight).
OR
Have to go everywhere by either walking, running or riding a bike. No exceptions.


Think carefully. These are important questions!

Here is a photo of my very lovely birthday-boy husband having fun with my little sweetie baby!

Happy happy happy birthday to the best husband in the whole world! I LOVE YOU!!!
and a very happy birthday tomorrow to one of my best Aussie pals, Lizzie!!!

The Bonus Room Chronicles

More Chronicles! 

People kept saying, "Laura, The Nursery Chronicles and The Master Bedroom Chronicles aren't enough. WE NEED MORE." Well, fictional people, I tell you HERE IT IS! 

This is the story of how one person's screening room became our "Funky, Retro Bonus Room."

When we were considering buying this house they had set the bonus room up as a media room. There are speakers on the walls and ceilings! They had a projector and a projector screen in place! We loved that but knew it wasn't practical for us.

What was practical?
Cue the Fooseball table, the silly chair and the funky, retro design on the wall.

We set it up as an office with a bunch of extra living space.

It is probably the biggest room in the house.

There was the Wake Forest Fooseball table. There was a bizarre red, corner piece of a sofa without the other 75% of the sofa. Scott loved that red sofa-chair. Well let me let you in on a little secret- that bizarre, red sofa-chair did not make the final cut. Scott was SADDDDD to see that thing go. But as I told you here Scott lost his decorating vote when he bought a grease-stained, wood-paneled, corduroy couch on Craigslist for $100.


Below are some photos of what the bonus room looked like a few months after we moved in

Here is a close-up of the chair. Scott claimed it was comfortable. I still do not understand how. Maybe if you give that pie-shaped seat the ol' 180 it could be tolerable. Either way, Senor Craigslist stepped in to solve the problem for us again.

There were art prints on the wall being held up by sticky tack. There were polka dots like I had when I was little. There were home-made curtains. This funky, retro bonus room has a bit of everything.

I'm going to do things a little different on these chronicles. I am not going to give away the happy ending quite yet. You will have to make it through the following steps to see where we are today:


The Bonus Room Chronicles Introduction Post

Step 1: Move in. Paint the walls. Put up curtains. Put up art. Paint orange design. Paint polka dots.

Step 2: Put up wire display.

Step 3: Put up wall of frames.

Step 4: Move furniture around. Get rid of TV. Add bed.

Step 5: Part 1. Part 2. Part 3: Build window seat and built in bookcases.

Step 6: Change out the bifold doors

Step 7: Part 1.  Part 2. Part 3. Finishing touches

Stay tuned for a special post tomorrow!

An Easy Upgrade: Changing Outside Lights

Well not super duper easy but easy enough that I could watch a few YouTube videos, read a few tutorials and put on my electrician's hat to get it done. Maybe that hat would be one of those cool hats that you could buy at King's Dominion (a theme park in Virginia). The hat had a great purpose- keeping the sun off your neck. In 1993 a hat like the one below with "Anaconda" airbrushed on it was one of the coolest things you could own. 

Photo of the awesome "flap cap" from here

If I were to become an electrician or go back to King's Dominion I would invest in such a hat.


Back to my easy (but not super duper easy upgrade).

The outside of my house had two random light fixtures.  The only thing that matched was that they were both an ugly, gold color.  So, I bought two matching outdoor light fixtures online for $35 each.  Then I used these instructions that detail how to change them out.  It was pretty simple.  The first step and hopefully most obvious step is to turn off the power at the breaker box. 

Also, please realize that this job is best suited for an electrician.  Since, like me, you are probably not an electrician if you decide to change light fixtures on your own, use a ridiculous amount of caution. It would probably help to wear your electrician's hat too.



Number One Switcheroo: I changed this light on the back deck:

to this one:

Number Two Switcheroo: Here is the old light that was on the side of the house:

 The light is also seen in the background here where I am playing hop-scotch on the deck boards back in '07.

 Here is the new light!

Voila! I am an electrician (but once again... I am really not, even when I wear my cool hat). 

There is a theme park just outside of Charlotte, called Carowinds. It is EXACTLY the same as King's Dominion but they call all of the rides the wrong names. Also, King's Dominion has a miniature Eiffel Tower and Carowinds does not. If Carowinds had it they would probably call it something stupid like the The French Shorty. 

A list of my favorite rides at King's Dominion and what they call them at Carowinds:

• Shockwave (Vortex)

Photo of The Shock Wave- the first standing roller coaster at King's Dominion from here

• Anaconda (Carolina Cyclone)
• Rebel Yell (Thunder Road)
• The Hurler (The Hurler). I guess this Wayne's World themed ride was hip enough to keep its name at Carowinds

photo of Wayne and Garth's party time, excellent roller coaster, The Hurler from here

Thank you mom and dad for all of the King's Dominion season passes! Thank you, mom, for driving my friends and I there all the time and then waiting out in the parking lot reading a book.