2012 In a Nutshell

 

Every year when January rolls around, I find myself thinking back on the past year and feeling like it went so fast and wondering what I did during the year. I started this little blog back in April last year and am now sitting back, looking at all I have accomplished outside of being a mom and a wife and it feels good! I love to be able to see all of the fun things that I got to do and love having Navy Bean Lane as a sort of scrapbook to remember it all with.

Honestly, looking back at what I have accomplished makes me feel a smidge less bad about all the many things that have sat on my to do list for, um … months!

Although I don’t have a picture for it, starting the blog back in April was the biggest accomplishment and the gateway for the rest of my list!

Then in May we did a fun table redo for my cousin. It was my first major project for someone other than myself and I learned a lot along the way. It’s still one of my all time favs … and I wish it was mine!

 

We also refinished by parents old bedroom set in May. They have never had “new” furniture in their room so I was happy to at least make what they had feel and look new!

 

We rounded out the month of May by celebrating Mason’s big day with a football themed party complete with a football cake. I always have a lot of fun making my kids birthday cakes … I wonder what he will want this year?

 

Later that summer we redid the little boys dressers and gave them a high gloss, lacquered look with bright orange car paint (the perks of having a painter for a hubby!) and haven’t looked back since! I still LOVE their dressers. They are super durable and perfect for two little boys that love swords and guns!

 

We try to pick one major thing to work on in the yard each summer, and this summer it was the side yard. For a lot of work and not to much money it went from being a dirt pile and place for dump trucks and mud fights to a lush green lawn. (Yea for no more dirt … and weeds!)

It went from this …

 

To this! There is still work to be done, but I am ecstatic with the addition of grass!

 

We celebrated Griffin’s sixth birthday with a snake theme. I scoured pinterest and went all out for this one! It was a six year old boys dream and Griff and all his buddies had a blast!

 

I redid a free chair that I found on the side of the road! It was a pretty simple update … new paint and fabric, with an awesome result!

 

Did our first ever kitchen cabinet redo for my parents! What an impact new paint can make (they are still getting compliments), and now we have two more kitchens under our belts that I will be showing you guys in the near future!

 

With a basically new kitchen my parents great room was looking pretty sad, so my Mom and I went on a two day shopping spree and surprised my Dad with a great room makeover! I had a blast and am in love with the new room!

 

My high school bestie got married in the fall and I redid her entry table for her wedding gift. I love that she pretty much said to do what I wanted with it and I became a fast fan of Tropical Bay by Valspar. Hmm … what else can I paint this color?

 

I started a segment on the blog called Adventures in Pinland. It was my way of getting my rear in gear and actually completing a few of my pins. One of my favs is this cardboard box turned super cute new so fabric covered bin for Navi’s closet.

The verdict is still out on whether I will be continuing this segment in 2013. I like the idea but felt like it was taking me away from working on bigger and more furniture related things, which is what I really enjoy. So, we will see … maybe doing it once a month instead of once a week is the trick!

 

Another pin that I was happy with the outcome were these school paper organization bins. I have loved having these and they actually get a lot of use. They are perfect for storing a few of our most favorite things from each school year. The kids have even enjoyed peeking through them and going down memory lane.

 

So there you go! 2012 in a nutshell! It’s been a crazy year with personal things happening that I never would have expected, but I have only learned and grown from those things and can’t wait to see what 2013 has to offer! I am hopeful and excited and basically can’t wait to get going on some fun things for both clients homes and my own!

 

Thanks for taking the time out of your day to stop by the Lane!

 

Kristin