Mississippi Mud Giveaway!

Happy Thursday, friends! My twenty-fauxth birthday was lovely, thank you...more about that another time.

I introduced you to Sarah from the Mississippi Mud Etsy shop recently.

Sarah had so much fun that she wanted to come back and offer a fabulous and very generous Giveaway to Serenity Now readers!

Now through Sunday (April 25th) at 5 pm, you can enter to win your choice of:

A Baby Momma Necklace (in your color choice) and any pair of Earrings listed at $15 or less
OR a $30 credit to the Mississippi Mud shop!

The great thing about the Baby Momma necklace is that it is so versatile. You don't have to be a "Baby Momma" to wear one...just a chic chick of any age or stage in life who likes to look cute. *Real* people can wear this necklace. See?

There are several ways you can enter.
You must leave me a separate comment for each entry in order for it to count:

1. (Mandatory) Visit Mississippi Mud and leave me a comment here with the name of your favorite item (no cheating and just saying "Baby Momma Necklace" please. wink.)
2. Follow the Mississippi Mud Blog
3. Become a Fan of Mississippi Mud on the Facebook Page
4. Blog about this Giveaway and leave me a link here in the comments section
5. Tweet about it. (Copy and paste a link to this post into your Tweet.)

If you linked up to my latest Decorating Dilemmas Party, you automatically have an extra entry!

If you are just too excited about these beautiful pieces to wait for the winner to be announced, the Baby Momma Necklaces are on sale for $15.95 until May 1st. Head over to Mississippi Mud to get yours today! Mother's Day is coming up soon and if your husband is a terrible gift giver needs some helpful hints, you could email him a link to your favorite item.

Is it wrong of me to want to enter my own Giveaway??

Good luck!

Decorating Dilemmas Party...Round 7!

Welcome to the 7th "edition" of my Decorating Dilemmas Party! 


This party is a spot for bloggers to link up a post sharing a design problem area OR a Solution and to exchange ideas with other participants. This isn't a "link and leave" party...I hope you're here because you'd like to participate in discussion.


Wednesday is my birthday. I will be twenty-faux. Again. As a birthday gift to me, PLEASE read my rules before you link to my party. It will save both of us time!

1. When you enter your link, please enter the permalink to your specific party post, not your blog's homepage.

(You can do this by opening your blog, clicking on the title of the post that you want to link to, and then highlighting it to copy and paste here with the inlinkz system. If readers can't find the correct post on your blog, then you won't receive any feedback.)

2. *Please leave me a comment with a link to your post.*

This way, if the inlinkz system hates me, dumps me, and ignores me, we can still all visit each other through the comments! 
Also, I like nice comments, and I could use some help too!

3. Please include a link in your post to this party (again, not my blog's homepage!) when you join.

Just add it in somewhere within your blog's party post before you link up. That way your readers can join in the fun later if they want to. If I don't see a link to THIS post, I'll have to delete your link.

4. It won't be a party if we don't mingle!

This is where I jump on my blog party soapbox for a moment:

Please try to visit at least one other link on the list.

This party isn't about promoting your blog by sticking your link up and then waiting for comments and visits to come rolling in. It's about offering genuine, thoughtful feedback to others, and receiving the same in turn. Read my Manifesto on Blog Parties if you want to know what I'm talking about.

If you can't get around to visiting right away, that's okay (really!), but please make an effort to stop by a blog or two by the end of the week. I'm not asking you to write an essay-comment for the blogs you visit, but please leave a helpful thought or two. You'd be surprised at how easy it is to see someone else's Dilemma and come up with all sorts of ideas.

If you notice you haven't received any comments, take a few minutes to comment on the other partygoers' posts, and be sure to tell them you are visiting from my party so they know to return the favor. That makes a successful blog party. Otherwise, I'm just hosting a big list of people's links, and that's no fun for anyone.

Okay...got that out of the way....


Bloggers who link up with a (valid!) link to this party will be entered to win a copy of this fabulous mag 

AND will receive an extra entry in Thursday's Sponsor Giveaway from Mississippi Mud. 

Have fun, everyone! Link Up Here, and please be sure to scroll down to help me with my Dilemma! (Occasionally, the inlinkz system goes screwy, and you might need to try pasting your link in a couple of times if it won't "take." Email me if you're having problems and I can help you out)






My Dilemma this month is simple. 


We built our deck last summer and it's still pretty bare, save the grill, fire pit, and the dining set we borrowed from T's parents. 


I know there is a lot we can do to fluff the space up, but give me some wiggle room because the pollen is bad right now, and it's still a little chilly. For now I'd like to focus on just one area. I bet you can't guess what it is. 

Any ideas for ways to camouflage this awful part of the back wall? 


It needs to be something removable so that the power/water/cable people can access that area when they need to. I'm thinking something prettier than "move the grill in front of it." And preferably something not too costly, like "buy a new house." Here are a few more views:

Virginia is still a bit breezy, so we won't be entertaining anyone in the next few weeks, save these guys:

This gives me some time to work (or have T work) and get something completed in time for the next Show Me the Progress party.


Thanks for stopping by. Please be sure to visit the other people who have linked up, and come back tomorrow to enter Mississippi Mud's very generous Giveaway! 


*This party will be open for new links until 10 pm (ET) on Wednesday, April 21st!

Born to Be Wild...

"Get your motor runnin,'

Head out on the highway.

Lookin' for adventure,

And whatever comes our way....

Born to be wild!"

I feel like this month has been a little bit crazy with trips out of town, wonderful new sponsors, and bigger than normal (for me) blog parties. I thought it would be fun today to just share something little from our life as of late.

We are lucky enough to live about half a block from our local elementary school, which boasts not only two big open playgrounds, but a nice flat parking lot...perfect for two little Evel Knievels in training.

Some are more cautious, and prefer to keep both tiny feet on the ground...

...while others whiz by at the speed of light, so quickly that their mothers can barely snap the shutter.

What?! Don't you wear pearls when you go bike riding?

(P.S. She insisted on wearing a helmet like her sister.)

Only T would be trying to teach a 2 year old how to pop a wheelie on a tricycle.

Poor Emma got roped into coming along. Literally. She's lucky we drove (It would have taken Michaela Byrd 3 days to "ride" the trike down the parking lot), because she hates going for walks that don't involve a ride in the jogging stroller.

We ended the spontaneous afternoon by picking "flowers" and possibly a tantrum in the parking lot.

{Have you done anything spontaneous lately?}

Hope to see you tonight or tomorrow for the Decorating Dilemmas party!

You're Invited!

This is your official reminder that I'm hosting Decorating Dilemmas again tomorrow (Wednesday), which is also my birthday. This is a party for bloggers who like to MINGLE!

Do you have an empty space over your buffet that you're just not sure how to fill? Is your bedding boring? Have pictures of your empty patio from last summer and you want some ideas for how to make it a livable space? 

Take a photo or two, write up a quick post detailing what you'd like some help with, and add a link to my blog within your post. Then link up your post here at Serenity Now on Wednesday and party! Make some visits and leave a suggestion or two for a few bloggy friends, and you should receive the same in turn. 

You can go here to view the last party if you are new to this blog and want to see how it works.

Don't have a Dilemma? Then I'll bet you have a Solution to share! Have you found a way around a pesky design problem? Please feel free to link that up as well.

The party will go live after 10 pm (ET) tonight, Tuesday, April 20th; and the link system will stay open all day on Wednesday. That's one whole day of partying! Partygoers are encouraged to visit other links.

Note: The party will only be open for a day. I found that people who link up earlier tend to receive more comments, and after about a day bloggers move on to the next party. This will be short and SWEET! If you can't make it this time, plan on coming to party for the next round.

Need more encouragement to join? I'll host a small Giveaway for participants, and anyone who joins with a (valid!) link will get an extra entry in Thursday's Sponsor Giveaway! That's two Giveaway opportunities in one party.

Please feel free to email me if you have any questions!

A Little Nesting Project

I wanted to share a little Spring spruce-up project with you today. Nothing ground breaking or earth shattering. Just a quick pick-me-up for my Dining room, which sported pine cones and glittered snowflakes this year for longer than I care to admit.

Like my Spring Bunny Frame , my Newspaper Easter Eggs, and the old Easter Bunny Makeover, most of my projects as of late have been completed using only items I had on hand in my house.

I found a tea cup display stand in my Spring decorations storage box. It used to sit in my Kitchen until I got tired of dusting it constantly and decided that maybe tea cups on display weren't my thing anymore. It was a nice surprise to open the box and see it. Kind of like when you change purses and discover your favorite lip gloss, long forgotten.

Anyways, I thought it might be fun to relocate the tea cup display to the Dining room, which was feeling neglected. I moved all the sewing stuff I'd been busy with and got to work fluffing, using items I found in the storage box. Luckily, I like birds.

Each tier holds a different nest. The second tier has malted milk balls from Natalie's Easter basket. I may or may not have eaten three of them before putting the rest in the nest. And I may or may not have told Natalie that those were not good to eat and she should not touch Mommy's bird nest eggs or she might choke.

So there you have it. A nice, fresh look for my Dining room that cost me nothing. But maybe I should go buy Natalie some more malted milk eggs.

Linking to DIY Day and The CSI Project.

{Have you shopped your house lately to come up with some Decorating Solutions?}

Thrifty Treasures: Good Housewife Edition

It's Thrifty Treasures Day! If you love to read about good bargains and thrifty treasures, then head over to see Rhoda at Southern Hospitality today for her fun "Thrifty Treasures" party. It's like a big virtual yard sale of eye candy.


Last week, I wrote about a great estate sale that I took the girls to (a great peril with all of those breakables!). When we checked out, the sale manager gave each girl a miniature US flag and passed on the tip that the next day would be 50% day.


I forgot about it until we were on our way home from church and saw the sign. Natalie remembered the house and asked if we could go back to "the house what has all of the neat decorations." I took her pleasant demeanor as a sign from God that I should go back in and see if there were any good deals left.


While the girls fought over a child-size chair in the laundry room, I dug through a box of books and found two gems and an interesting ceramic, Fall-themed dish. 

I can't decide if I love or hate the little squirrel, but for $1.50 I decided to wrap him up and put him in the attic until September. 


The first book, McCall's Sewing Book, was a real find in my eyes. ($1) I'm a beginning sewer, and I'm always on the lookout for someone or something to show me some new techniques. The bonus was that it has some neat  illustrations.

My favorite find was The Good Housewife's Encyclopedia. ($1)

I feel like homemaking is making a comeback in a big way, and this little book (published in 1963) has chapters dedicated to making a house a home, entertaining, gardening, recipes, and decorating. Shockingly enough, the book offered some timeless decorating advice. I may have to plan a review!


It was interesting for me to think about a housewife in 1963, who may have had to rely on a book like this. I'm blessed to have the ability to call friends with questions or concerns on my cell phone when I'm at the store, and I can log on to the internet and blog hop until I find a post that shares just the right recipe for homemade icing. 


Housewives in 1963 didn't have the benefits of a good Decorating Dilemmas party either! {wink}

 This is your official reminder that I'm hosting again on Wednesday, which is also my birthday. 

Do you have an empty space over your buffet that you're just not sure how to fill? Is your bedding boring? Have pictures of your empty patio from last summer and you want some ideas for how to make it a livable space? 

Take a photo or two, write up a quick post detailing what you'd like some help with, and add a link to my blog within your post. Then link up your post here at Serenity Now on Wednesday and party! Make some visits and leave a suggestion or two for a few bloggy friends, and you should receive the same in turn. 

You can go here to view the last party if you are new to this blog.

Don't have a Dilemma? Then I'll bet you have a Solution to share! Have you found a way around a pesky design problem? Please feel free to link that up as well.

The party will go live after 10 pm (ET) on Tuesday, April 20th, and the link system will stay open all day on Wednesday. That's one day of partying! Partygoers are encouraged to visit other links.

Note: The party will only be open for a day. I found that people who link up earlier tend to receive more comments, and after about a day bloggers move on to the next party. This will be short and SWEET! If you can't make it this time, plan on coming to party for the next round.


Need more encouragement to join? I'll host a small Giveaway for participants, and anyone who joins with a (valid!) link will get an extra entry in Thursday's Sponsor Giveaway! That's two Giveaway opportunities in one party.

Please feel free to email me if you have any questions!


{Have you found any thrifty treasures lately?}

Simple Saturday

Anything exciting going on in your neck of the woods today? 

I braved the pollen in the backyard this morning, tried to take a few pictures for the Decorating Dilemmas blog party I mentioned yesterday, and attempted to sweep the deck clean. Not much luck, but the girls enjoyed a rousing 3 minute long game of golf.

It looked suspiciously more like field hockey, because it involved each girl chasing the ball around with clubs raised over their heads. I cheat at mini golf, so I'm not going to judge them.

There's still time to enter the sweet and very generous GIVEAWAY from Cutie Pants! Click on that Giveaway link and enter yourself to win an adorable prize for yourself or a friend in need.

Hope you're enjoying your weekend!