New Year, New beginnings , a wrap up of 2011

I love New Years day. Love it. It's my favorite "holiday." I feel like any mistakes I've made in the previous year are wiped away , leaving a fresh slate. Do you agree?

I really take New years resolutions to heart and try really hard to make them happen. Coming into 2011 I resolved to lose weight, I know....cliche . But, a year after having my little one I still had all of my "baby weight" and it was making me a lazy , cranky person.

my heaviest weight ...sigh. early 2011

summer 2011

After lots of work and determination I feel so much more comfortable with my weight. My secret? Setting short term daily goals and Livestrong.com 's 'my plate.' Tracking your every bite really makes you realize how much you are eating and lets you know when you can eat a little more!

What's your goal this year?

At the beginning of each year I love looking back at what all I've accomplished the previous year.

I've been pretty busy!

Some of my favorite projects:

Starting the year off being a finalist in MissMustardSeed's Copy-Me challenge

Mr&Mrs pillows:

The reveal: I live in a mobile home!

Outdoor fireplace:

Door makeover:

Coffee bar:

Bathroom make-over for $0:

Bedroom gallery wall:

Vintage style pink play kitchen :

I feel like since I've been writing this blog it's been all over the place and hasn't really had a niche , until now. I've noticed a low cost , high style pattern lately. Now that I think about it, My whole adult life I have strived for a high style home . But, never having the funds to achieve it I've used my creativity to the max to make sure I achieve something pretty darn close.

In the upcoming year I hope to focus on helping you realize the potential of your home and help you achieve high style on a budget too!

MommaHen's Fancy Frugal life? I hope you all keep up with me in the following year by visiting me every Tuesday on Facebook for 'What's she going to do with ...THAT?!'
and here on the blog every Wednesday for WhateverWendesday link party .

See ya next year!! 

Linked to these fun places:

Merry Christmas!!

What she DID with...THAT!

This weeks 'What's she going to do with...THAT?!' is one of my favorites so far. For a special little gal, I knew what I wanted to give her for her first birthday. I found this little cabinet to make it all come together perfectly.

With a little paint and a few accessories it became a perfect pretend kitchen...

I think she will grow to love it. I had a little play kitchen when I was young and it was my favorite toy. My boys love them too. This , I hope, will be a special piece that will grow with her . For her to enjoy for years to come. 

I wont be posting any more until after the new year, to spend precious time with my family. I hope you all have an amazing Christmas ! See you next year!!

Until then, I will leave you all with some links to enjoy:

If you haven't crossed everyone off your Christmas list (GET busy!) Here are some last minute , homemade gift ideas

Salt-dough recipe - Great project for the kiddos while on winter break

Craft project- again, good for keeping the kiddos busy- repurposed shutter into Christmas card holder

Christmas decor inspiration

WhateverWednesday link party

10 last minute homemade gift ideas you can do today!

Looking for my own last minute homemade gift ideas , for my family, I looked no further than right here : On my blog.

Every week on Whatever Wednesday I have the best linkers , that link up amazing projects every week.

I went through and selected some of my favorite super quick and easy projects that you can create for your loved ones this Holiday Season. (In no particular order)

I was sure to select homemade gifts that have links with tutorials or small how-to's, so start clickin' and creating! 

FOR EVERYONE: Avery&Anderson - personalized decor

FOR EVERYONE: Take Six: lotion

FOR SISTERS OR FRIENDS : Space 46-personalized photo frame 

FOR MOM: Shabby Love- shutter art/photo display

FOR THE GALS: PattyTrend's jewelry

FOR THE TEENS OR SPORTS FANS :Crafty Mischief's ribbon Christmas ornament (You could also use someone's favorite sports team colors!)

FOR THE TEACHERS: My Sister's Suitcase's teacher holiday gift (with printable tags!)

FOR THE KIDS: Craptastic's T-shirt

FOR THE MEN: Boxerscleatsandme's ManCave sign

Lastly, I wanted to tell you about one of my favorite gift ideas. Giving gifts for someone with kids, you can never go wrong with giving a gift involving their favorite people: their kids!

I always go to SnapFish for photo storage and personalized gifts. They have a large selection of designs and styles to choose from and it's super easy to use. But, it can be time consuming. SnapFish contacted me and told me about their new design service and I LOVE IT!

*submit your photos

That's it! The design team will do the rest! After they are done , the entire book will be sent to you to review. Don't like it? Submit your changes and you don't pay until it's exactly what you want!

*insert made face here*

My internet service has been down for two days.

no answer.

no fix.

I finally got through to someone last night after being on the phone for....two hours!!

After fiddling for an hour ...nothing. She says, " Turn off your router and I will call you back in ten minutes to see if that worked."

no call.

Somehow it started working this morning. But, now my wireless router won't work. So, I'm squished back here plugged directly into my modem.......

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.....now writing a day later.....

As I was typing the beginning on this post, a virus pops up on my computer!! Totally crashing it. 

Wow, what an eventful week. My phone company provider, being absolutely swamped with calls due to the network outage, has kept the phone next to my ear for hours upon hours on hold, then even more hours upon days with tech support. I think now, after 4 days of being on hold, on the phone with numerous disgruntled-overworked-underpaid operators , being disconnected "accidentally" over and over. I think....think.....  my computer is back, up and running. 

phew. 

Now I have to go answer hate mail from people who think that I've been ignoring them for a week....sigh....

and try to access all of my sites that no longer have saved passwords. Like I can remember my passwords ! 

I'm done venting, if you are still here...thank you! 

Better late than never? Here's WhateverWendesday and I hope to have everything else running smoothly next week!

Special Christmas gift for my FB fans!

Are you a "fan?"

I'm giving away FREE CUSTOM Christmas ornaments on FaceBook today , as a THANKS for such amazing bloggin' buddies!!

HURRY!

What she did with THAT!

I'm slacking on 'What's she going to do with ...THAT?!' this week. I've been working like a mad woman filling orders for custom Christmas ornaments 

custom carved Christmas ornaments $3

and getting everyone's Christmas present made . So, I decided to show you an old project that I actually made years ago.

I found this really neat clock face at a flea market for a few bucks and turned it back into what it was born to be. 

Using a salvaged piece of wood and a clock kit (found at Hobby Lobby $6) I turned this antique clock face back into a clock. I sold it on Etsy a long time ago. I wish I had kept this one for myself. Maybe I will find another one , one day?

Today I am creating something SUPER-de-DUPER fun for a little someone's birthday this weekend. Next week I'll be able to show you , after she has received her gift. I can't wait for you all to see! 

See you next week! Have a great weekend .

Last week's 'What's she going to do with...THAT?!' 

WhateverWednesday link party is still going on- HOP on over and link up what you've been working on!!

Go no further!

Go no further , for your Christmas inspirations. Because I have all you need right here on my

WhateverWednesday link party!

I have some amazing linkers this week !

Be sure to stop over and visit these great Christmas inspiration links :

I melted over TakeSix's amazing Holiday photos. Beautiful.

(click below each photo for direct link)

TakeSix

Shabby Love linked up this super creative , rustic tree topper. She also included a tutorial. Now you can make your own. I think I may make one of these for next year!

ShabbyLove

Miniatures get me every time. Isn't this darling?! Fishtail Cottage linked this mini "snow globe" and included lots of photos for inspiration to make your own.

FishTailCottage

I really need to make some stockings. Interestosity linked up a stocking how-to. Maybe one day? Hers are really cute though!

Interestosity

Last but not least : One of the most beautiful thing nature has to offer for free. Petites Passion's was able to capture this lil' beauty .

Petites Passions

Thank you all for your links! If you haven't linked up yet, go NOW! Link up anything and everything on WhateverWednesday (Every Wednesday , all week long)Or stop over for LOTS more inspiration on crafts, how-to's , Holiday and home decor (and lots more!)

WhateverWednesday LINK PARTY

Before we get WhateverWednesday started, I wanted to let you guys know I still have some ornaments left.

Be sure to get your orders in time for Christmas!

 completely custom , only $3 !

Also, be sure to stop over and leave your guess on "What's she going to do with ...THAT?!" 

(last week's edition, click HERE)

Stop back by Thursday to see the end result!

Now, onto WW link party!

In first , last week :

Tattered Hydrangeas

Second:

Space 46

Third:

Avery&Anderson

Thank you all for linking up, your projects are amazing!

WhateverWednesday rules:

-link up whatever you want

-use my BUTTON (on sidebar) and link back here.

{{Please use my button or link at the bottom of your post and not in a general "linked to these parties" link. }}

-You must be a follower of MommaHen

Will you be featured? I will feature my favorites on Facebook (MommaHen) and then on the following Wednesday I will feature the most viewed links here on the blog (first and second will have photos and descriptions and third will have a link) Good luck!!

Grab a featured button on the sidebar if you were featured!!

It's all for my boys

I decided to do two projects this week for 'What's she going to do with ...THAT!?' Mostly because one of the projects is just for fun and will eventually be thrown away and the other project isn't finished.

I showed you cardboard boxes

 You guys have some great guesses this week. Made we want to reconsider what I was originally going to make!

When the kiddos are stuck inside, with no where to go and nothing to do, they get a little stir crazy. My kids are super creative and tend to play with just about anything , including a card board box. They have been playing in cardboard boxes (that I had left over from our move) for a while now. I decided to take their "houses" up a notch and create this

source

Oh, wait. It's actually nothing like this!

The crazy kooky boys only house!

After stacking the boxes and lots of tape, the boys absolutely loved it. I'm convinced they loved it more than the (much prettier) ones you can buy at the store for a whole lot more money.

This was a fun , free, project that would be great for the up coming snow days! Not only was it fun to play in, we built it together . I think this is something that they will always remember. 

Although, I wish we had bigger boxes! My oldest son didn't exactly fit. Did it stop him from playing in it? No!

Next up, the three oak planks.

I found these in our storage building . 

I also had some table legs that I found at a yard sale for $5 (for four) 

If you follow my Pin boards on Pinterest , you may have noticed an awful lot of pinning to the board ' boys room.' That's because I've been working on an extra special Christmas gift for my boys. I'm going to recreate their room into a total boy dream land. More on that later. 

Their room is pretty big . But, at the same time  unusable. One of the things I wanted to create for them was a long table where they can create or even do homework. 

So, I grabbed some supplies , my husband, and got to work.

There are two legs. I'm not sure why I didn't get a picture of both of them. But, I'm working on putting together a little how-to on making this style table. Be sure to come back to see how it turns out!

WhateverWednesday link party is still open-hop on over and link up your projects!!