MARVELS & wonders

How amazing are the illustrations paired with Anthropologie's gift products in their Marvels and Wonders collection right now? They sure know how to catch my attention..... like they ever lost it...

crooked BATHROOM update

Happy Friday! Lord willing we will be back in our crooked little house next month... or at least before Christmas. I am pushing for it to be finished in time for hubby and I to have our last Christmas without a little one in our own home. Rooms are being painted, the bathroom is almost done and everything is looking great! Here's a peak into the bathroom.

The new and improved tub/shower with subway tiles. We are loving it. No more mildew, crumbling shower wall, or pipes poking up under the tub floor.

The new flooring. Yay! The bathroom has also been painted a pale gray that we love. I'll have photos of that in the near future when the toilet and pedestal sink are in.

And some more inspiration:

anyone know of a source?

I collect jadeite and milk glass and this photo has made me realize the bathroom might be the perfect place to stick some of my pieces. I love the pop of the jade against all the white.

via absolutely beautiful things

We still need to figure out some storage spaces for the bathroom and this is definitely speaking to me. I love the idea of open shelving in a bathroom. It is perfect to display towels, glass jars filled with cotton balls and bath things, and even stick wicker baskets in to hide the ugly necessities like all of my hair products.

It's all starting to come together, friends! I am so, so, so excited that the end of this never-ending remodel is near!

NURSERY plans

I know I just told you the news, but I'm going to throw you right into the midst of the baby planning with my plans for the nursery so far. As we just found out about this family addition during our remodel, what was going to be our walk-in closet is now going to be a nursery- a teeny, tiny nursery. I was planning to hold off all nursery window shopping until we find out if we will be having a Hubby Jr. or a Heidi Jr., but both hubby and dad said-- you need to pick a paint color now before the flooring goes in. So the planner in me wilted a little bit knowing that I'd just have to pick bedding and then a color and forget about an all pink room if we have a girl. I have bounced back a bit because I actually like the bedding that was chosen, regardless of gender... and the blue wall, yes blue, was chosen to be sky, not because we are thinking this baby is a boy. I wouldn't tempt fate like that. So without further ado, and without making you read anymore jumbled thoughts from this pregnant woman's brain, I will share the plans- so far.

The bedding:

from The Land of Nod

The inspiration:

didn't record sources- let me know if you recognize them

One of the first nursery images I grabbed upon finding out I'm pregnant was the cloud shelf. I love the idea of a sky blue wall with a couple of cloud shelves on it. We may or may not paint a few clouds as in the photo above. The sunrise bedding plus the sky wall has turned the nursery into a sort of sky theme. I don't want to make anything too matchy-matchy and I am not planning to make sure that everything that enters the room is related to the sky, but I think it is a nice backdrop for anything else. 

A couple of accents:I am a Katie Daisy fan as I mentioned in the giveaway post. Katie donated this print and two others to the giveaway and then I saw it in a nursery on ohdeedoh. I really liked the idea but it wasn't until this morning when I was looking at the bedding that I realized it is perfect for my own nursery! Yes, this print will definitely be making an appearance in the room.

I also posted on one of these little rain mobiles recently. I am in love with them, but my budget is limited (yes, so much so that I don't have $20 laying around to buy one), so I am thinking I will either make a mobile inspired by this- maybe one with more clouds to go above the crib- or enlist my crafty sister to make one for my shower gift. 

Those are all of the definite plans I have so far. We haven't even started thinking about furniture yet. The room is big enough for a crib, a dresser, and a rocker. I may be able to squeeze a storage cubby or something in there since there is no closet (as it was supposed to BE a closet), but we'll see. I am happy with the plans so far, and I know the colors lean towards a boy, but if we are having a girl, I have plans to add pops of pink and other girly colors. Oh goodness... who knew that when we started the remodel almost a year ago that we would be adding a nursery when we ended it? Surprise, surprise...

crooked shmooked NEWS

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Hi friends! I sort of dropped off the face of the earth there for a couple of weeks! Well, my disappearing act has not quite ended, but I want to update you on my crooked shmooked life. Life keeps throwing hubby and I curve balls and although I don't like to talk about everything going on, I figure this is some news you need to know. Hubby and I will be expecting a little addition to our family on April 17th. I'm still in shock when I think about the reality of it as it wasn't planned, but it's true! I am pregnant and have just started my second trimester which is hard to believe. Due to my health issues from the last year, this pregnancy isn't exactly taking it easy on my body, so I am just focusing on resting and getting the nourishment the baby and I need. I don't know if the pregnancy will start getting better anytime soon or if, as my mom confessed was her experience, I won't feel better until labor. Just know that I am thinking of you all and wishing I could be more present on here, but I'm thinking of this little person growing inside me more. Blessings to all of you!

and the WINNER is....

Thanks to all who entered my Blogiversary Giveaway. I wish you could all win, but alas, random. org can only choose one winner. According to random.org, the winner of Crooked Shmooked's first ever giveaway is....

and the 44th comment happens to belong to.......drumroll please....

Lindsay of Shrimp Salad Circus!

Congratulations, Lindsay! We are all very jealous.

Thanks again to everyone who donated and everyone who entered the giveaway. Hugs to you all!

& i'm LOVING &

I am love-love-loving this photo by Jill Thomas (seen on 100 Layer Cake).

whimsical WEDNESDAY: $20 and under

1.) $10 Scallop Coinpurse Orange : I think I currently have 3 coin purses in my massive "Mary Poppins-esque, can fit my whole life in it" purse... strangely enough- none of them are filled with coins... I think I should introduce this cutesy coin purse to my collection and maybe, I don't know, fill it with COINS.

2.) $16 Paper Circus with Dancing Hares : I love this little carousel. It's paper and comes to you all cut out and then you put it together. Sure, it's probably not going to last forever, but don't we all need something so sweet to sit on a shelf somewhere in our lives?

3.) $20 Mobile Rain of Colors : I can't stop myself from looking at all the cloud mobiles in this shop. I just love them. Don't you wish rain was as colorful as on these mobiles?

4.) $19.99 Telephones Knit Pillow : I don't even know why, but I love this quirky little pillow. Ummm- everyone needs a pillow with phones on it.... right?...

Hey! Don't forget to enter my massive blogiversary giveaway. You only have 2 days left!

life is FRAGILE

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Yesterday a beautiful 14-year old girl that used to be in our youth group at church died of an allergic reaction to iodine during a minor routine surgery. It has hit her family and young friends especially hard, and for good reason. For many of her friends this will be their first time dealing with death. For her family, how can one ever prepare to lose a child so young if given time to prepare... and with no warning? For hubby and I, it forced us to reflect on life. In the case of what seems like such a ridiculous and unexpected loss, it made me immediately fear that something like that could happen to someone I love dearly. Hubby reminded me that we can't focus on the possible pain and hurt of life. It would make us want to dig a hole, jump in, and "protect" ourselves from heartache for the remainder of life. The pain and hurt are inevitable, and we can't live life fearfully peeking around each corner to see if it they are coming. A tragic thing such as this should cause us to reflect on our own lives. We are not promised a single day in this life. Even today- we don't own the hours ahead. All we can do is live a life of purpose and think on how we want to be remembered and how we want to impact others while we have the chance, then live towards those thoughts. I am blessed that there is purpose to this life and I can hope in seeing this sweet girl's face again. I am blessed that life is not only pain, but is also full of happiness and joy and love- such things that this girl brought to many lives.

Something to think about today: What is your purpose? Are you living purposefully?

give me a REASON

I need a reason to wear this dress. Unfortunately, hubby and I have no reason to be invited to black tie events... and this is obviously not wedding guest appropriate. It's probably better I have no reason to wear it... because that leaves me with no reason to buy it. 

Head over to Net-a-Porter for the Win Your Wishlist Contest. I have to admit that this dress may end up on my wishlist, and if I happen to win, I will FIND a reason to wear it.

FALL: a season to love

Fall is coming! I simply can't wait! Fall is my favorite season... and these are only a few reasons why...

Anthropologie's Fall Line.

I love Anthropologie all year long, but my love for Anthropologie grows in the cold seasons. Anthropologie just does fall and winter right.

(1.)  (2.)  (3.)

Butternut squash.

I was only introduced to the amazing butternut squash this last winter. Now I can't seem to get it off my mind and am looking forward to soups, muffins, and oven-roasted versions all fall long.

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Layers.

A good fall outfit consists of at least 3 top layers, 2 bottom layers, and 2 or 3 feet layers... and about 5 accessory layers of course... oh, and we can't forget the 2 or more knit accessory layers. Yeah... I have no cold tolerance.

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Wrapping up in grandma-made afghans.

Everyone in my family has a collection of grandma's afghans. There are big afghans, medium afghans, and my favorites- the lap afghans. They were always made of the most random color combinations and never quite matched my room, but I cherish every one and can't wait for a cold fall night that allows me to bundle up in 3 or 4 of them.

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Boots, boots, and more boots.

Nearly all my feet wear during fall and winter are boots- boots with dresses, boots with jeans, boots with pjs (my Uggs... it gets cold in our house!)... I like to get a new pair of boots a year and my birthday is coming up, so it's time to go boot shopping!

(1.) (2.) (3.)

5 more days....