Fighting the Flu

Sorry I have been M.I.A.  We have been working so hard at the house, and in the midst of it all I caught a little bug.  I was in bed all day on Saturday, and I'm still trying to get over some congestion.  Since everyone seems to be getting sick I wanted to share a little remedy that I was introduced to a few days ago by my mom's homeopathic doctor.

The first product is made by Sovereign Silver, and it is a nasal spray.  This could be used on a daily basis, but at the onset of a cold or flu spray this once in each nostril every hour until your sickness is gone.  I end up with a sinus infection every time I am sick am VERY prone to sinus infections, and this has kept everything moving, and killed all of the infection that settles in your nose.  It has no smell, so its just like putting a little water up your nose.

Sovereign Silver Immune Support

The second product can be found at CVS, and is a homeopathic remedy for flu relief.   You allow the little "sugar drops" to dissolve in your mouth every 6-8 hours, and if you begin this at the onset of a cold or flu you should only need about 3 doses.  I began this once it had already hit me, but I did notice that my aches and sore throat subsided enough for me to rest while I was taking this.

You can also purchase the name brand version if you cannot get to CVS.

Oscillococcinum

Hope these help you fight off the sicknesses that are going around.

**This is all my personal opinion.

The Chaos of Our First Home

We are officially living in our house!!! It is a little bit of a disaster as we are cleaning, unpacking, and finishing up several things.  We still don’t have a functioning kitchen sink or stove, so we are pretty much eating out every meal, and the meals we eat at home are leftovers from the night before.  I told Michael I needed to document more of the chaos, because it seems very fitting for first time homeowners.  So, while many things are going wonderfully, and the house is turning out beautiful there have been several mishaps that I now laugh at, (but weren’t funny at the time). 

Our Master bathroom has been one of the biggest transformations.  It has more than doubled in size, and everything from top to bottom has been rebuilt.  We began tiling last week & in the master I chose white herringbone.  This is what I came home to…

{way to geometric}

Not what I was expecting at all.  I’ve never seen herringbone done this way, and it was WAY too geometric for the style of the bathroom.  We had a 30 minute conversation about all the ways you can do herringbone(which were all new to me) and I explain that we want the arrows pointing up.  Here is what we cam home to the next day…

{the tile is actually white, but looks creamy here}

We framed out each wall with 1x3’s and I love that effect, but the arrows are pointing sideways.  At first I was frustrated and just about screamed but, all I could do was laugh.  It is not exactly what I pictured, but it has grown on me, and is definitely more classic than the first look. 

Our second mishap this week happened just after our B-E-A-U-TIFUL bianco carrera countertops were installed.  I am happily putting away all of my dishes, silverware, glasses, etc. in my kitchen.  It feels like Christmas morning since I have not seen any of it in 5 months when it was all packed away into storage.  I am just finishing up, and I open my cabinet to put away my baking sheets/cutting boards and this is what I find….

{stain stuck in the cabinet}

An almost FULL can of stain.  It was placed down in the cabinet before the countertop was installed.  It is obviously too large to fit through the door, so we are going to attempt siphoning the stain, and cutting the can into smaller pieces.  And again, all I can do is laugh.

Those are just two of the MANY things that have not gone so perfect.  When I do a detailed description of everything I'm sure I will share the rest.  On a better note here is my beautiful farm sink and a sneak peek of the amazing countertops.

{Isn't she a beauty?}

Happy Friday yall!

House Progress: Curtains & Lamps

It has been an eventful week at the house.  Bathroom tile has been going up & we actually have all of our furniture moved in.  Most of it is being stored in the "round room" but we are looking forward to arranging it this week and MOVING IN!!! Michael always gives me a hard time about my love for lamps and curtains.  When we first got married I brought home a new pair of lamps almost every week, and we used our registry money for potterbarn curtains.  I think it is only fitting that the first pieces to be unpacked and installed are lamps and curtains. :)

{Curtains are up...don't mind the hideous chandelier}

{Just a small part of my lamp collection}

{Subway tile in the guest bath...just a tiny bit of pink left}

Thank Goodness for the Flashlight App

I have a love/hate relationship with my beautiful hardwood floors, and last night at 10:00 I was hating them more than I was loving them.  As we moved through the house putting on the second coat of polyurethane the flashlight app on the iPhone became my new favorite app.  We did not want to leave all of the lights on in the house, so once we got towards the end it was the only way to tell whether or not we were putting on a nice even coat.
At 1:30 today after our THIRD AND FINAL coat of poly I am in love with my floors again....

{Aren't they pretty? Not too light, not too dark...just perfect}

{Just a peek at my pretty farm sink...minus a cabinet door}

House Renovation Update....Kitchen

Everything is moving right along and we are finally seeing an end in sight, but we had a huge unfair little hiccup yesterday.  We had removed everything from the house to refinish the floors and placed it in a trailer out front of our house.  It was full of stuff for the house (including my brand new GAS RANGE that I splurged on) and a bunch of tools.  I am telling you all of this, so that if you live in the Jacksonville area you can be on the lookout for the trailer.  It is a pewter trailer that has a black Harley Davidson symbol on the front & says "Caution: Iron Horses" on the back.  If you by chance see it please call the police.

Now on to the kitchen...

The kitchen is one of the largest transformations in our home, and after lots of hard work it is finally coming together.  Originally it was VERY small and only two or three people could be standing inside the kitchen.  As an event planner I think of everything in terms of "when we have people over."  I did not want to be stuck in the kitchen cooking by myself, so we opened up the wall for an open floor plan.
 

{The wall before}

{Our demo "X"}

{The old kitchen}

{Wall is gone...next was the electrical panel}

{Beam got put in & can lights were added}

{The ceiling goes in}

{The cabinets are in!!!! They look a little bit yellow here, but the sink cabinet is the true color}

{Left Side of the kitchen}

We still are not completely there yet, but it is getting very close!  End panels & crown moulding still need to go up, but I love, love, love my new shaker style cabinets.

Home Renovation Update...Paint & Floors

We have been super busy this past week finishing all of the painting & prepping our floors to be refinished.  After pricing out several floor companies we decided that we would save a TON of money if we did it ourselves.  We are not pros, but I did a lot of research and will share all of the steps once we get moved in.  Since I am exhausted and headed to work on the house don't have much time to put this post together here are a few pictures of the progress.  You may or may not notice, but we have added trim to all of the windows & it make such a difference!

{Before}

{BM Revere Pewter at 50%.  All trim & ceiling are BM White Dove }

{Before Guest Bedroom}

{BM Wickham Gray}

{Before Master Bedroom}

{BM Potterybarn colors Cumulous Cloud at 75%}

{Guest Bath Before}

{BM Coventry Gray on bottom. BM White Dove on top}

{Hall Before...Now Laundry Room}

{New Laundry Room. BM Revere Pewter at 75%} 

{Round Room Before} 

{BM Revere Pewter at 75% with the NEW FLOORS}

{This color is a little more accurate}

{The kitchen cabinets are in, but that deserves a post of its own tomorrow}

My Dad & A House Update

Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend celebrating their dads.  I have the most amazing dad and I am truly blessed to have such a great example of a husband and father in my life.  He has been a rock for our family during my mom's battle with cancer, and I love him dearly.

{I love you dad}

As far as the house goes, things are coming along.  We have painted everything but the bathrooms, and it looks like a new place.  A fresh coat of paint does wonders and makes it feel so clean even though it is still a mess.  If you are looking for a quick and easy update to a room try a new color.  It can give your space a whole new feel. 

{A fresh coat of paint in the living room.  Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter at 50%}

 A lot of our finishes for the bathrooms and kitchen have been purchased, and are arriving.  Amazon & ebay might be my new best friends.  I never thought I would be so happy about plumbing fixtures, but I'll admit I did a happy dance when our Shaws farm sink arrived.  We are planning to have the bathrooms installed this week...I'm so excited that it is all coming together.

{Master shower controls}

{Shaws farm sink}

The kitchen floors have been partially laid and the "round room" floors will be next.  I am happy to say that I actually helped with part of these, but my back and legs are paying for it now.  A massage is in my near future. :) Here is a sneak peek...

{Kitchen floors being laid}

I promise I will be back soon with more progress...