Free Shutterfly cards for Bloggers!!

Well, I've been MIA once again. Hopefully I can catch up on a lot of posts over winter break! A full 2 weeks off! I can't wait!

I've just started to pull out my Christmas decorations and get things organized. I stumbled upon an awesome free giveaway from Shutterfly which is going to make my life so much easier! I love sending out Christmas cards but sometimes I just can't find the right ones to fit our style. Not to worry this year b/c Shutterfly is giving Bloggers 50 free Christmas cards! Their products are always so cute so I can't wait to get ours ordered! Be on the lookout in the mail!


Oh, and HAPPY THANKSGIVING! I'm thankful for so many things this year. God has truly blessed me!!!

House Updates

I'm ashamed at how infrequently I've blogged recently. June-August are the busiest times of the year for me at work so that coupled with life in general may be the reason!!

Brooks and I have been VERY busy making improvements to our house. I'm proud of our work so I want to show it off! Hah!


I found this coat rack at a yard sale for only $8! It's something we really needed!

The original appliances in our house were a yucky almond color. We've been replacing them piece by piece and finally completed the job... Thanks to an early Christmas present from my parents!

Our "brilliant" previous homeowner decided it would be a great idea to paint over wallpaper in our downstairs bathroom. They didn't do a very good job because you could see the seams from the paper and the border! It had to go! It was a much more tedious job than either Brooks or I expected but it's finally done! I'm an avid HGTV watcher so I had to try using scrapbook paper as artwork. I think it turned out pretty good! And very cheap!

The mirror and light fixture in the bathroom before were very 1980's. I'll spare you from the pictures! I got our new light fixture at a yard sale for $8 and the mirror for $3!

We got this shower curtain a while ago and I'm still having a hard time deciding on a paint color to coordinate. This bathroom is our next project... any suggestions??

I know there will be many more projects to come and I promise to be a better blogger! :)

Stay tuned because we're FINALLY going to Boone this weekend!!! I'm so excited!

A wreck & a new car

About 3 weeks ago, Brooks did this to his car...

We had just paid over $1,000 on repairs for my car and in the same day as picking up my car from the shop, the above happened. We found out the infamous red bullet was totaled and the new car search began. We shuttled each other back & forth to work for a week or so until we finally found a new car last weekend! A LEXUS! Never thought we could afford that but we can! It's an older model but in great condition... as you can tell, Brooks loves it! :)

Here's to hoping we have no more accidents. This car needs to last us for a long time!

Happy Social Work Month!

The month of March is dedicated to celebrating social work! Specifically this week, I'm celebrated as a school social worker! It's so wonderful to be recognized & appreciated! I absolutely LOVE my job and I'm really proud of the work I do.
Here's to all the social workers out there! I admire all of you!!

Snow!

We FINALLY got a decent snow here in NC! We measured about 5 inches at our house. We have no sled... and no children... so it was pretty uneventful. We just slept in, watched TV and enjoyed each other's company! Here are a few pics of our precious puppy! She LOVED the snow!!!

Projects around the house

Slowly but surely we're getting some things done around the house. We're still waiting on our tax money to do most of the work but we're getting there! Here are a few recent projects...


Our fireplace used to be a dark, dark wood. I think it looks much better! That gold has got to go though!

This is the 1st room we painted. The color is "soothing green tea." I love it! Be aware... kitchens are HARD to paint-- so many nooks & crannies!!

Stay tuned for more projects! Next up on the list: changing out our kitchen & bathroom faucets! Then when the tax money comes, it's new fridge & microwave, counter tops & floors!

A few favorite Christmas gifts

I know Christmas is more than a week gone by, but I'm just now getting a chance to post some things! Since this was our first Christmas in our new house, a lot of our gifts were items for improvements or just to make the house cuter! :) It's true that your priorities change when you own a house. I only asked for a few things for myself- the rest was for the house!


Brock & Julia got us this awesome door knocker. It says "The Bagley Family, Est. 2008" Love it!

We also got this stepping stone for our backyard. We're definitely not divided b/c we both love both these teams-- I think this is just too cool. The lady who made it is very talented. The "A" and "S" are made out of stained glass!

And last but not least, my aunt made this frame for us. She dried out my wedding bouquet for over a year and added a few other things too. This was so special- I almost cried!

I can't wait for future holidays to see what else we get for our house! It's so fun to make it our own!