I think I can ... I think I can!

Hi!  I know you can read a little bit about who I am in the "About Me" section, but for my first official post I wanted to get a little more in depth.  I am a 28 year old Mommy of an amazing little boy who will turn three in March.  I grew up in a small town, and until I became a mommy I worked full time since I was 17.  I stopped working a week before my son was delivered (prematurely).  After he spent 13 days in the NICU, my husband and I decided I would become a stay at home mommy. 

I did go back to work for a short time after my son turned one.  Being a working mommy is HARD.  You miss out on so many things to provide for your family, and you most definitely are not "off duty" when the work day ends!  But being a stay at home mommy isn't a cake walk either.  If has just as many long hours, and you don't get a paycheck :(  Neither way is better than the other. I am a firm believer that there is no "right" way of doing things.  You just have to do what feels right for you! 

I am now a stay at home Mommy and I am venturing into the world of starting my own business!  I craft and create.  That is just a fancy way of saying I make things :-P  I started out by painting my son's room on a small budget shortly after he was born.  Changing over into a one person income AND having a new baby wasn't an easy transition.  To top it off, a month before our son was born we moved into an old family farmhouse that needed a LOT of renovations.  And that costs....money.  The one thing we were short on.  We had to do a LOT of bargain shopping and hard work to get to where we are now.  The hardest thing was being a new Mommy an wanting that picture perfect nursery and not being able to afford it.  So I strapped on my big girl pants....watched a LOT of youtube videos and read tons of tutorials online and got to work!  This is what I came up with--

Fan Blades Before

My son's ceiling before with the painted fan blades up

Closer look at the fan blades

Ceiling painted

You can see the paneling before it was painted at the top, this is the accent tree I created using leaf vines.

We needed to install new carpet so I had all of my son's stuff in his crib

The valences and brorder put up

You can see the old carpet here and the accents I painted under his window

My son's name is painted on canvas

Blinds installed and crib set up

After we transformed it into a toddler bed

Tree with some extra "touches"

My son's dresser

Giraffe from the border I used to draw his height chart

Height Chart

After that, some of my friends asked me to help paint  their children's rooms and make art for them.  These wonderful friends trusted me (someone who NEVER had an art lesson in her LIFE) to paint their entire nursery.  Now THAT'S a good friend lol.  But I think it turned out nice :)  --

My best friend told me I needed to open an Etsy store to see if I could open my own business.  So I started painting.  I wanted to give up SO many times.  Being brand new at this...I didn't know where to begin!  I showcased the art I made for her an my son, and within a few weeks I was selling!  I got lucky and had a $200 order almost instantly.  Not every sale is like that.  It's not a "get rich quick" business.  It's something I do because I LOVE it.  I do it because I love the idea of my son going to school and saying "My Mommy's an artist".  LOL

But crafting isn't just about a business.  It helps you make your home into something that is uniquely yours.  It helps you be able to create things for the people you love and it is TRULY something that is created from the heart.  AND it helps you pocket book too when it comes to the money you'd normally spend on decorating and gifts and such. 

Let's face it, money does make the world go round, but there is a LOT you can do to stretch your budget.  Not just with couponing (although I do believe in coupons!).  I make a budget and I use spreadsheets that don't take any time to create to help me stick with my budget.  I buy designer brands for everyone in my family and I am not talking from reassignment shops (although I go there too!).  But I buy everything for "Walmart" prices.  You just have to take the time to do it!

Time...yeah...time is the only thing there will NEVER be enough of.  But if you schedule your time wisely, you can make the most of it.  I don;t believe in spending hours on end grocery shopping or cleaning your house.  But I am going to be COMPLETELY honest and say that I HAVE done it.  Especially the cleaning part.  I have/can/will probably continue to clean my house for hours.  I'm a mom, remember? 

Einstein once said that the definition of insanity is doing the same things OVER and OVER again expecting things to change.  Then I guess that means all of us mothers are COMPLETELY insane.  But in all truth, I think we all already know that lol.  But we can control our insanity by having a routine.  Routines help us take control of our lives, our kids, and our husband's hungry bellies.  I have a cleaning routine that helps satisfy my inner OCD but minimizes the time I spend cleaning.  I'll post more abut that later.

I don't have everything figured out.  Far from it...every day is a new learning experience...a new lesson.  But I give you FULL permission to learn from my mistakes life lessons.  I'm hoping I can help someone ANYONE out there in some small way.  But no matter WHAT...always remember....nothing is so bad that it can't be cured with a glass of wine and a bubble bath ;-P