DIY and Home Improvement for the lazy

Last week was beautiful in Memphis. Really, I think we had one rainy day and the rest was gorgeous spring weather. We enjoyed it to the fullest. My mood is completely dependent on the weather. Fortunately in the south, that works out well for me. If I lived in Seattle or London or some place where it rained 90% of the time, I would have no friends. Also I would most likely be single and childless because no one could stand to be around me. Or so I have been told. Whatever. I digress....

So because of the excellent weather, I felt motivated to do a few projects that have been hanging over my head.

1. clean, prime, and paint our toddler chairs.
We've had these since Amelia was 2 and they have held up well, but lately have spent lots of time in the tree house and developed a little mildew problem. Nothing a couple hours outside with a paint brush, a can of spray paint, and a happy (and adorable) painting assistant couldn't fix.
I kind of love how they turned out.

My assistant. Painting the fence with water.
In her PJs complete with matching bow. This girl.

I totally love this picture specifically for its "Little Rascals" vibe 

the finished product in pumpkin

2. The great room switch.
My older two have been sharing a room since the birth of little sis, which has been about 3.5 years. While they do love each other, there have been more than enough fights over.... well everything. I know will probably remember these years very fondly, but the time has come to make a change. We have been promising Walt that once Louisa made it out of a crib, he could move back into his room and out of the land of princess and fairies. Which is a pretty accurate description of Amelia's room. When he moved in she "graciously" allowed him to decorate his bed and the 1 foot surrounding space with "boy" paraphernalia. Nothing more. So needless to say he has been extremely patient.

So Tuesday morning Mom came up and we got to work swapping rooms. We managed to get almost all of it done while they were at school. With the exception of a few pictures hanging, new curtains, and the closets. The closets still have not been tackled because mom went home and I can't even. Kids closets are basically a black hole of every single random thing that has ever been given to them. With a few unfolded clothes and unmatched shoes mixed in. Even so, I think the rooms turned out so perfect. As much as I loved and cried over the loss of the nursery, Walt's adorable "boy cave"- as he now calls it - totally makes up for it. You have never seen a boy more happy about having his own room. And a little sister who is so proud to be in the "big girl room". Amelia, while not as pumped as her siblings, is amazingly ok with having a new 3 year old roommate and has welcomed the chance to go "all out girly" with open arms!

Walt's Boy Cave

Amelia's corner of the girl room

Little Lou's Nook

We rounded out the rest of the week with some legit home improvements done by actual skilled carpenters. Nothing dramatic, just a little crown molding in the hallway and the prettiest little semi-functional fence wall. Even The Donald would be proud of this wall, although he was definitely not the inspiration. We needed something to hide the drainage ditch at the end of the driveway that was becoming a little too interesting to our children (out of site, out of mind...hopefully). The Wall's second and more important job is to keep the basketball from rolling down in the ditch and causing an immediate halt to every. single. game.

The. Wall.

I'm so thankful for people who know how to use tools to make things out of wood. I'm even more thankful that God has given us the money and good sense to pay them for their skills.