fall front porch

I am still chipping away at projects in the nursery - nothing like waiting until the last 5 1/2 (or less!) weeks!  I will be back in the next week or two to show you a few of those projects.  Until then, I wanted to show you our fall front porch.  A friend made the wreath for me a few years ago and I added the little Autumn Blessings sign to the middle this year.  I also picked up a new door mat at Target for a little over $10.  Isn't it funny how a $10 door mat can spruce things up?

link love: 10.13.2012

We are enjoying the beautiful fall weather around here...and I'm in full nesting mode, trying to get ready for this baby's arrival in about 6 weeks!  Here are a few of my favorite "pins" from this week:

Source: 320sycamoreblog.com via Mary Jo on Pinterest

I love the simple arrangement of this chalkboard, vase of leaves, and owl from 320 Sycamore!

Source: shanty-2-chic.com via Mary Jo on Pinterest

This Door Spice Rack from the girls at Shanty 2 Chic is going on my "projects" list!  I love that it utilizes previously unused space and looks cute, too!

Source: theidearoom.net via Mary Jo on Pinterest

Amy at The Idea Room shares an adorable idea for personalizing hand soap/hand sanitizer for the holidays!  What a great gift idea for your kiddos teacher or neighbors!

Source: crumbsandchaos.net via Mary Jo on Pinterest

I haven't made these Caramel Apple Cinna-minis yet, but they are on the list!  We love cinnamon rolls in this house, so the addition of apples would make them delicious!

Do you have any favorite pins from this week?  Have a fabulous fall weekend!

warm apple cider...

I am popping in quickly to share with you what my house smells like...warm apple cider!  Not the kind that you drink (although it smells just like it!).  This kind...

Warm Apple Cider scented wax cubes from the Better Homes and Gardens line at Walmart!   My warmer is also from the BH&G line at Walmart.  It was a Christmas gift from Scott and Grayson last year and I love it!  The wax melts usually run about $2, but you can often find them on clearance at the end of the season for $1!

Do you have a favorite candle that doesn't have a wax cube companion?  Vanessa over at this & that shares how to make your own wax cubes!

**By the way, Walmart has no earthly idea who I am...just like to pass along my favorite things!**

link love: 10.07.2012

I completely missed Saturday again! We've had a wonderful weekend of COLD fall weather, which has made me crave all things FALL!

Here are some of my favorite "pins" from this week:

Source: landeeseelandeedo.com via Mary Jo on Pinterest

How cute is this Halloween Ribbon Wreath from Landee See, Landee Do? You could easily change up the ribbon colors and patterns to make it work for any season, holiday, or even a birthday!

Source: shanty-2-chic.com via Mary Jo on Pinterest

The ladies over at Shanty 2 Chic have done it again! This fall table centerpiece would be adorable on a table, piano, or mantel, and can be made with simple supplies (that you probably have in your garage!).

Source: kingarthurflour.com via Mary Jo on Pinterest

I love any combination of cinnamon and apples, so these Fresh Apple Cinnamon by King Arthur Flour scones are right up my alley!

Source: thepioneerwoman.com via Mary Jo on Pinterest

I have made LOTS of Pioneer Woman recipes and have yet to be disappointed by one of them...so I'm sure these Moist Pumpkin Spice Muffins with Cream Cheese frosting are sure to be delicious!

Source: worthyoftheprize.blogspot.com via Mary Jo on Pinterest

My friend Erin, over at Worthy of the Prize, is hosting a Hope for the Home series every Monday. I posted about pumpkins galore this past Monday...including a great pumpkin bread recipe and a sweet pumpkin parable that you can read to your kiddos.

Have a wonderful week!

beautiful babies...I need YOU!

Another blogger that I LOVE, Natalie from Johnny in a Dress, had a precious little girl in August and dedicated an entire month to All Things Baby on her blog.  I loved the idea so much!  I found a ton of great tutorials and adorable products throughout that month.  Since our sweet baby girl, Mollie Kate, is scheduled to make her appearance in late November I'd love to play off of Natalie and dedicate a month to beautiful babies..tutorial, giveaways, guest posts, etc.  This will allow me to feature my awesome readers and their projects or products, while giving us some time to soak up time with Mollie Kate.

Do you have a project, tutorial, or guest post that you'd like to submit to have featured during the month of November?



I am also on the look out for handmade shops who create items for babies, mommas, kiddos, etc.
If you own a shop and would like to provide an item for me (or Mollie Kate) to review and one to giveaway to my readers, fill out the form below to let me know!  These reviews and giveaways will probably run more into December since our due date is at the end of November.  But, if Miss MK makes her entrance early, we'll start earlier!



I can't wait to spend a month celebrating Beautiful Babies (including ours!) with you!

laundry basket dresser...

I love Ana White and her fabulous blog!  I have had this laundry basket dresser pinned since the first time I saw it...which was probably before Pinterest was around! :)   The laundry basket dresser seemed so practical and an actual piece of "furniture" in the laundry room.  We started out with one of those fabric laundry sorters, which did it's job, but it was difficult to reach down into all of the fabric bags to get the laundry out.

So, when my parents were here visiting a few months ago, I asked my dad to build me my very own laundry basket dresser to fit the space perfectly.  He actually just looked at a picture and created his own version, but it's similar to the plans that Ana White shares.

My new laundry basket dresser has an open back, to let it "breathe" (according to my dad) and open sides.The dimensions are a little different in order to fit our space perfectly, but it still uses the Sterlite laundry baskets that the other dressers use.

I plan to find a galvanized bucket to sit on top to corral my cleaning supplies and to keep other stuff from piling up there!  I'm also going to add some type of labels to the laundry baskets to separate them - maybe some cute chalkboard labels??

Our laundry room has come a LONG way since we moved in nearly two years ago. Here's an updated look at our laundry room with the laundry basket dresser.  I'm in love!

Have you updated any room in your home lately with a little project?  A big thanks to my dad for helping me cross some projects off of my ever-growing "to do" list!

Linking up to:

30 Handmade Days

Grace at Home No. 29 @ Imparting Grace

It's Overflowing
Fabulously Creative Friday Linky Party