5 on Friday!

    Yayyyy! It's the best day of the week and my favorite post of the week! Here's my 5 obsessions this week :)


1) Obviously I love my new Entry Table!! You can find the tutorial here: http://find-the-silverlining.blogspot.com/2013/07/diy-rustic-entry-table.html

Even though it's still not quite done yet the post is up!!

2) I'm from Iowa and since it's July that means it's time for some good sweet corn! Anyone who hasn't had sweet corn from Iowa in July, specifically Fincel's sweet corn is missing out on the best food on this planet!

I added bacon to this corn but usually I just eat it with butter, salt, and some pepper. I could eat this everyday!

3) I found this saying as I was going through treatments last summer. It sums up how I was feeling and what everyone else thought about is as well. With another appointment approaching in a few weeks with my Neurosurgeon I remembered this quote. Love it!

4) I got a pedicure yesterday from one of my very best friends, Allison! She did an amazing job and my toes will look awesome on the beach :) 

I swear my toes are this ugly because I did ballet for 10 years...it's like they are permanently swollen :) 

5) Finally, I can't wait to show you guys how to make this awesome DIY Canvas! Come back next week to find out how to make these!

Have an amazing weekend everyone!! Don't forget to follow me with Google or bloglovin to see my upcoming posts!! PS next week I will officially be changing my posting schedule! From now on I will be posting my DIY tutorials on Wednesday instead of Mondays and Mondays will be a weekend recap! Of course Fridays will still be the 5 on Friday:) Also, I am planning on posting while I am in Florida, but if the hotel doesn't have WiFi I will catch up when I'm home :) 

Packing for a Beach Vacayy!

     I've been talking about my trip to Florida for awhile now, and now it's finally time to pack! We leave Friday morning on a plane so it's time to get to it! We will be gone for 11 days so I need to have quite a few things...however, I can't stand when people over pack. That's a pet peeve of mine and I'm not really sure why. Don't get me wrong I love to pack many options, but I give myself a limit :) So here are my tips on how to pack appropriately for a Beach Vacation (one that includes lounging, laying out, eating, drinking, and some fun nights out!) Here we gooo!

1) Start and try to finish as much of your packing that you can 2 nights before you leave (this gives you time to run out if you realize you need anything)

2) Do ALL your laundry and errands the night before you pack

3) ORGANIZE! lay out your suitcase and go through your closet to pick out some options

yes, my closet is color coordinated. Jude and I are psycho organizers :) 

4) Once you have your options laid out you can narrow down your options and think about what you're actually going to need and wear when you are on your trip

If I brought all these clothes I would never be able to fit them into a suitcase...time to narrow it down! 

5) Put everything in your suitcase. I put my favorite things in the carry on just in case the checked bag gets lost (AKA Meet the Parents movie). My Mom and I are splitting a checked bag and a carry on so that's why they are both only half full

I know it looks like a lot, but remember we'll be gone for 11 days :)

6) Pack your makeup and other daily essentials, try to keep them as organized as possible

Remember, any liquids over 3 oz. can't be put on a carry on and any liquids under 3 oz. must fit in a quart size zip lock bag on your carry on :)

7) Make a list of things you still need to pack. There are obviously some things that can't be added until the morning of. To ensure you don't forget anything make sure you really think about it and cross of things as you add them to your suitcase!

8) Also, just because I'm so crazy I lay out exactly what I'm going to wear on the plane, even down to my jewelry :)



Happy Thursday Everyone!!

Who Doesn't Love Friday's?

     Hey guys! I was going to post this last Friday but since I ended up doing the 5 on Friday.. which I love, I didn't ever post this!
     So, I babysit my nephews 9 hours a day, 5 days a week. And, although they may be adorable they are CRAZY! By the time Friday comes I am so ready to just kick back and relax. Jude doesn't work on Fridays so every Friday night we make it a point to sit on my patio, listen to music, and drink away our stress from the week :) It is by far my favorite part of the week..I recommend it to everyone! This Friday I wanted to make it extra fun and surprise Jude with a fun dinner featuring his favorite things. Men are such simple creatures...all's you have to do is show them you appreciate them every once and awhile and they are ecstatic!

      For dinner I went and grabbed some boneless wings from Buffalo Wild Wings ( I personally don't like wings so we usually never get them. Needless to say, Jude was really excited he got them for dinner!), a basket of french fries, and I made some of his favorite cheese dip. For dessert he got popsicles (his guilty pleasure).

   

Jude and his popsicles... he could probably eat 30 of these in one sitting if I let him :) 

such a beautiful sunset in Iowa. Although I love the beach, I have to say nothing beats an Iowa sunset/star gazing :) 

     And of course we had to listen to music during dinner! I like anything country, and this is pretty embarrassing to say but Jude likes 90's rap. I literally laughed out loud while typing that because it is so embarrassing to admit that I am in love with a man who likes loves Biggie, Tupac, and my least favorite Snoop Dogg. What can I say? Opposites attract! People always laugh when they find that out because just from meeting Jude you would NEVER guess that's his genre of choice. But, I am not kidding...unfortunately. Usually when we're together we listen to oldies, because it's the only thing we can agree on :) But, I guess for tonight I will put on a fake smile while listening to Hypnotize and California Love. I REFUSE, however, to act like I enjoy Aint Nothing but a G Thang, not even for a second.

I honestly think Jude could rap this whole thing....no joke. 

Here's the recipe for the cheese dip we always make, it's really easy and always a favorite!
Ingredients:
Velveeta Cheese
Some ground beef
1/2 can of Rotel Tomatoes (use the whole can if you are making a bigger serving)

Directions: I usually don't measure any of this. I just cut off a block of the cheese and throw it in the crock pot on low, and then throw in a few hand fulls of ground beef. Top it off with some Rotel Tomatoes, stir and let the crock pot melt the ingredients all together! You can turn the crock pot up higher if you need it to melt faster. Eat with tortilla chips. Enjoy!


I know this is a few days late..but I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend!

DIY: Rustic Entry Table

      DIY post #2 here we go! I found something like this entry table at Pier 1 for $600 and we made the whole table for well under $100...whoop whoop!! I can't wait to add this to our apartment and decorate it with bright yellow and plum picture frames and big yellow decorative baskets for the bottom two shelves!

WARNING: this is probably the hardest DIY post I will make. It has some complicated steps...but trust me it is worth it!

Supplies:
For the top- 3 boards that are 2 inches thick, 6 inches wide, and 54 inches long
For the legs- 4 boards that are 2 inches thick, 4 inches wide, and 37 inches long
For the frame around each shelf- 7 boards that are 2 inches thick, 2 inches wide, and 54 inches long
also you will need 4 boards that are 2 inches thick, 4 inches wide, and 15 inches long
For the 2nd and 3rd shelf- you can use plywood for this, make sure it is at least 20 inches wide, and about 4 feet long
For the "X" braces- you will need 4 boards that are 2 inches thick, 2 inches wide, and 6 feet long
You will need plenty of screws (I used black ones), 8 metal bracing brackets, Stain (I used sunbleached) and I also stained after it was all put together!

1) Again, for the rustic look you want to find the oldest wood you can. If not distress it, using hammers, chains, and nails! Be creative.

2) After putting out the Saw Horses, and figuring out how I want to arrange the top shelf we were ready to drill the 2x4's to the top boards!

The top shelf! I am obsessed with this wood...thank you Dad!!

3) Then it was time to add the 2x4's for the legs with more screws...it's finally starting to look like a table! P.S we put the legs in 1 1/2 inch from the top and 1 1/2 inch from the side just for looks :)

It's going to be very wobbly at this point..but don't worry by the end it is so study a sumo wrestler could sit on it!

4) Then they added the front frame and the back frame with some 2x2's. Make sure they are equal with the legs!

You want the frame to fit REALLY tight to make sure it's snug...we had to hammer the frame in to make squeeze it in. It made the table much sturdier!

5) Now the hard part. Making the frame for the next shelf... First you want to do the front and back frame, again make sure they fit snugly. Make sure they are LEVEL the whole way across the table, otherwise you will have an uneven shelf. I put each shelf about 15 inches apart but you can do what you prefer! We used 2x2's for the front and back frame and the side frame as well

Put the screw in at an angle so it attaches to the leg!

My boo boo, Tayte decided to stop over right before bed to check in on the work! Check out that cheesy smile :D

6) Now you add the plywood shelf, and screw it into the frame. We put the plywood on top of the frame but you can put it next to it if you like that better. 

Don't forget to cut out space for the legs!

It has to fit tight!

The plywood sits on top (once it's stained you can't tell its plywood) and the medal brace is beneath it. This made the whole table 100 times sturdier!

7) Repeat steps 5&6 for the bottom shelf except this time you want to use a 2x4 for the side frame and you only want the plywood to go halfway across the 2x4 so you will be able to attach the "X" bracing when you're done! 

 8) The table is now almost finished! Now all's we have to do is add the "X's" and stain!

I know it looks like a work bench now...but just wait and see!!

9) Adding the x's to the side of the table was a lot harder than I thought...getting the angle just right is nearly impossible but my Dad and Jude's Dad promise they will not give up! In the mean time here is a picture of the table with stain on it! 

I will update as soon as we get the 2x2's added on for the "x's" on each side :) This step isn't necessary it's just for looks!

The table with stain on it! Don't you love it? Just picture it with big yellow and purple frames on top of it and big yellow baskets on the shelves! Can't wait! PS this picture makes it look more purple/blue but in reality its more of a light gray!

And here is the stain we used! Sunbleached! 

5 on Friday link-up!

     So I am going to try this link-up thing from one of my favorite blogs, The Good Life Blog! Here are the 5 things I'm obsessed with this week :)

1) My DIY Rustic Signs 

Although these are just sitting in my bedroom right now I cannot wait to hang them up in our new apartment! Find my tutorial here: http://find-the-silverlining.blogspot.com/2013/07/diy-rustic-signs.html

2) My upcoming trip to Florida! 
     Just one more week until Jude, my mom, and I are off to Florida for 10 days to soak up the sun with some of my family on the beach! We might even have to stop at Disney on our way through Orlando ;) Can't wait!! More blogs to come!

3) My Date Night with Jude Tonight! 
       Well.... it's not exactly a date but we will be sitting on the back porch with drinks in hand and I'm surprising him with his favorite foods! Since I always go wayyy overboard on surprises and get way more excited than I should this is one of my top 5's.

I am in love with Jack Daniels Downhome Punch!!

4) This picture of Tayte (no words needed)

5) My DIY blog post for next week! DIY Rustic Entry Table! 
     It's not done yet but we will be finishing it this weekend! Post to come on Monday!

This picture was taken before we stained it and before we added the finishing touches...I promise it looks soo much better than this now! Come back on Monday to see the final product and to see the tutorial on it! :)

Have a great Friday y'all! xoxo

Lions & Tigers & Bears!

     My Family loves to do things together that not only the babies enjoy but also the adults. One of our go-to activities is the Zoo. There is one that is about an hour away and it's the perfect size for little kids and it's free, which is always good! A lot of Zoo's are free or extremely cheap so it makes for a fun family activity. The babies loved seeing all the animals and eating picnic style right before we went in! Since there were kids involved the pictures kind of suck...but I tried!

The babies riding in their wagon after our picnic! 

Surprisingly, Brendyn enjoyed the Zoo the most! 

Brendyn and Bryn enjoying the carousel 

My boo boo and I in front of my favorite animal...the Giraffe! 

My favorite picture from the day! Brendo and Jude feeding the goats :)

      After the Zoo we stayed at a hotel with a water park that was the perfect size for kids. If you're ever in the Madison area and have kids who love water you should definitely stay at the Madison West Holiday Inn. Not only did the kids like it, but there was a Starbucks and a Chipotle in walking distance...so we were all pretty happy too :) Here are some pictures from the hotel's website:

Website: http://www.ihg.com/holidayinn/hotels/us/en/madison/msnbh/hoteldetail/photos-tours