Have You Heard About These?

I'm afraid I have a new obsession.  Just a week or so ago our local Big City newspaper ran a feature on these and the seeds of the obsession were sown. 

Then, there was an article in Parade magazine this weekend and that just enough to make the obsession bloom.

(And no, for those of you who still get a daily newspaper and read Parade magazine, my obsession is not Pioneer Woman, although I do like her a lot.)

I began to stalk them. 

And pin them.

And try to figure out how to convince my brother to build one for me.

Or try to figure out why I marred a guy who doesn't really know how to build things.

Or even learn how to build one myself.  After all, I am woman....here me build.

Okay,  I digress....as usual.

I want one of these................

Right in my front yard.

And I even have a good excuse to build it since one of my picket fence posts rotted out and needs to be replaced.  

Wouldn't one of these be just the spiffiest fence post cap? 

I know you're with me people.

So.....now I must plot and plod along. And dream. And start a book collection to put in this when I get it.

Do you think I'm crazy to even consider this?  

After all, we live right across the street from an elementary school.  What better group to serve could we have?

Or do you wish your neighbor would build one too?  

And think of the conversations you might strike up with your neighbors about books.

Or do YOU want to build one for yourself?

This last one is my personal favorite...

there's just something about a stone wall that grabs my heart!

And as for that big announcement?  

Well, it's still coming.....but I think I will wait until things are "set" up a bit more.  

And it is the biggest reason I haven't been able to write the best post ever in long time.

I am SUCH a tease!

P.S. Do you want to find out more about the Little Free Library movement?  Why you can go here and find out tons of information, get plans, or even buy pre made book houses.  

The Big Reveal or How a Little Paint Can Make a Big Difference

If you're here looking for a dramatic change......

well......

I don't think you'll find it here.

However.....

if you want to see how just a few gallons of paint and a little editing of furniture and accessories can really change the look of a room, then this post's for you!

Before......

Yellow walls.....

 Look how intense that yellow looks.  It did look a bit better in person, but......

it didn't make me smile anymore.  It felt really dated.

We painted the walls yellow before we added the skylight.

Dark green paint on the library bookcases.......

It felt cozy, but it was dark.  Really dark.

We moved some furniture too.  You can see that in a bit.

************************

So last week I convinced Worker Bee it was time.  Time to move out all those books, stuff, and furniture.

And this is the result......

C'mon in!

And no, that's not your imagination - our ceilings are blue!   That part's not new.

I love how much more open it feels now.

Love these frames!  But I haven't updated them since Baby Bee was about two years old.  I told her it was time to put in some new pictures and she protested.  I have a sentimental little Baby Bee.

Do you see the fish bowl?

That's Greg, Marcia, Peter, Jan, Bobby, and Cindy.

They are some goldfish that Baby Bee won at the school carnival 

(drum roll please) 

2 1/2 years ago!  

Do we do anything special to keep them alive?

Absolutely NOT!

They are just in one of those huge glass general store type jars.  

They really want to live.  They are survivors. Worker Bee even brought one of them back from the brink.

We call him the Fish Whisperer.

As you continue in we had this open space and it just didn't look quite right. 

Sewing Bee suggested filling it in with the two chairs.  She was right.  (But don't tell her I said that - I don't want it to go to her head.) 

I think I need to look for a little table - some sort of pedestal - to go between the two chairs.  For now, the red boxes will do.  (Yep, that's another "That's Good Enough.")

 Look to your right and there's our piano......

 and game cabinet.  These two guys switched places.  We're still getting used to it, but I think they'll stay exactly where they are. 

 And remember these great aqua floral pictures that I couldn't decide if I should keep?  Well they now have a permanent home.  I love how they look with the red candlesticks, the little aqua bird and the red gingham lined basket that holds some of our music. (Baby Bee and I both play the piano and Worker Bee plays the guitar.)

 And how absolutely perfectly they all go with this adorable summer time banner that Joyce from Scrap for Joy made for a swap we were in.  Don't you love it?  She is uber-talented!  I need to show you some of the other things she made. 

Now.....come sit down - let's chat for a bit.  Let me go and make you an iced latte......

Ahhhh.......better.  Love those vanilla iced lattes.

We didn't change a lot in this area.  We did shift the entertainment armoire and bookcases towards the sunroom window.  This really opened up the area between the piano and the loveseat. 

It still feels warm and cozy to me, but just so much brighter!

Now look at the library!  The only change here was that we repainted the back of the bookcases.  From the original dark green to this gorgeous blue. 

Yes, you can look a little closer.

The blue brightens it up so much.

These READ letters are one of my favorite things.  I picked them up on vacation in Wisconsin - Fond du Lac to be precise - although the vacation was actually at Green Lake.  We were in a Target and I found these.  Worker Bee said, "C'mon.  We can get that back home.  Why do you want to haul that halfway across the country?"  Well I persisted and it flew back with us to California and good thing because (I bet you can guess this one) I never ever found these letters at any Target in my part of California.  Lesson learned - READ is always worth hauling from WI to CA.

Up on top?  Those are the Grandma Bowls.  You can read more about them here.

C'mon - sit down.  Finish that latte now that you've seen most of the changes.  You know how it is - there will be a little bit of tweaking and changes until I'm completely happy with it.   

And now you know why I haven't posted much lately.  Been a bit busy taking my whole living room apart and then putting it back together!  

Well thank you so much for buzzing by!  

Can you believe how much brighter and lighter it all looks now?

I knew it would be better, but I had no idea it would be SO MUCH better.

And if you're curious....the walls are painted Antique White (Behr from Home Depot) and the back of the bookcases are Sunken Pool (Martha Stewart from Home Depot).

And please don't forget to come back for my 500 follower giveaway.  Apparently I'm still being a tease about it......

Yep!  That's another sneak peek of the giveaway!  Yes, I am a terrible tease.  But won't you forgive me?

With lots of honey,

I'm linking this post up to

Met Monday
at Between Naps on the Porch
and

at The House in the Roses.

Thank you ladies for hosting such fun linky parties!

Living with Books and Loving It

I just heard about the party over at Chicory Nits and I couldn't stand it - I had to crash that party!  

I love books!  In fact let me tell you a little story about how much one family loved books . . . . 

Once upon a time there were three Sweet Bees living in a 1951 California cottage that came with a very tiny dining room.  It was very difficult to have a decent sized table, a china cabinet, and walk around the table to enter their sunroom.  This "dining room" measured 8' x 11'.  Microscopic! The Sweet Bees needed a solution.

So one day, the Inspiration Fairy paid a visit to  Worker Bee and Sweet Bee!  She helped them realize that they could turn their sunroom (which they used as a garden/family room/game room) into their dining room.  The Inspiration Fairy was PURE genius!  

Then, another epiphany!  Those busy Sweet Bees could turn the old dining room into a library.  Worker Bee was especially enchanted by the Inspiration Fairy and  he even came up with the idea for the card catalog/CD storage unit (this was in the days before iPods).  Now wasn't he a clever boy?

So they all lived happily ever after in their slipcovered wing chair and they never, ever fought over who got to sit in the library chair!

Wasn't that a sweet story?

Well, now I'd like to share some sweet and inspirational books with you!  

My favorite Louisa May Alcott story!

The book that turned me into a reader - way back in second grade!

My favorite children's author - Kate DiCamillo.  This is my favorite of hers - it even makes my hard-hearted third graders shed a little tear.

The book series that inspired a renewed faith.

The book that helped me define what I love and what I want my home to look like.

I have ALL of Mary Engelbreit's books and ALL the issues of her magazine.  (Can someone hand me a tissue as I think of this magazine's demise?)

Susan Branch never fails to inspire and this was my first book from her.

And here's my favorite recipe - so easy - and so magnificently delicious!  (Did you hear that?  Oh, that was my tummy! I better make this recipe again soon.)

And finally a new little bit of inspiration from my new friend Lynne!  So many ideas - it makes me think I can actually sew!  I will be sharing this with the Sewing Bee and the Fabulous Phyllis to help inspire them (to sew for me - oh dear - did I really type that out loud?)

Well please stop by and see what other books inspire so much in all of us.

Wasn't this a fun party?  I hope I get invited back again soon.

Thank you for hosting this Carey!  What a marvelous idea and what fun! 

Don't forget to stop by and visit the other party-goers over at Chicory Nits.  

And thank you for stopping by.  Love to see you come by and I love your comments!