Before and After Kids- A Mother's Reflection

There's a picture I have on my bookshelf with me and my friends from a party circa 2004. My hair was a little bit shorter, my nails were done and I was probably a size or two smaller. I don't remember much about that night and if it weren't for the picture I probably wouldn't even have thought twice about it. It just made me think about how life BK (before kids) was and how it seems like such a distant memory. The picture was a year before I got the title of "mommy", but I just wanted to share some ways my life has changed since then.

Y'all know about that club pose, don't front.- 2004

College Graduation- Dec. 2003

My baby shower Oct. 2005

Before Kids:
- My girl would call me up, last minute, sometimes after midnight to go hang out and I would be up and out the door. Now- there are no calls after midnight. There are no calls after 10 for that matter.

-I would hang out/ party at least once a month. Now- I still party, but it's usually in the company of babies and grade schoolers- a lot of them.

-Sleeping in meant getting up around 10 or 11. Now- sleeping in doesn't exist, these kids are up at 7:30 every morning.

-I would go the restroom alone. Now-  they want to hold family meetings when I'm on the porcelain throne.

-Going out to eat was a normal, everyday thing. Now- there has to be a budget/ coupon/ 2 for 1 special to feed my family of 4.

- I felt cute and sexy 80% of the time. Now- I find it hard to come out of "mommy mode" for some grown and sexy time. (Sorry hubby).

- I didn't even like kids. Now- I still don't. I love my children dearly.

- If I was sick, I would lay down and sleep it off. Now- moms don't get sick.

- On my days off, you could find me at the mall, at a restaurant or at the movies. Now- A day off from work just means a day on for housework and errands. In other words, moms don't get off days either.

- Date night was nothing but fun. Now- date night can be stressful when you have to find a babysitter, spend money you don't have on a movie that you may or may not like or fall asleep on.

- I could finish a meal with no interruptions. Now- yeah right.

I never knew that these little people could control my life in this way. Now- I can't imagine my life without them.

July 4th, 2014

Forever loving my B.A.D.D. kids,
Rhonda

Diva on a Dime- Patio Chair Re-do

So my family and I moved recently and one of my favorite places in my house is the deck. The only thing is that I don't have any deck furniture, except a swing that came with the house and 2 weathered patio chairs I brought from my old place.

I had been looking for budget friendly ways to add some color and personality to our home and I decided on using turquoise as an accent color. Bring in 2 cans of gloss Valspar spray paint in Exotic Sea and a plastic table cloth to cover the working area and I now have the cutest patio chairs.

Valspar Gloss Spray Paint
Prime and Paint in Exotic Blue

Before

After

The pros of this project is that it only cost me the price of the spray paint which was $8 for both and It only took me about 20 minutes. The con would be that it was a little windy and my impatience and excitement took over and against my better judgment I sprayed anyway, which resulted in part of the porch and my toes turning blue (I also chose to wear flip flops).

My next project, inspiration curtesy of Pinterest is pallette furniture: first up is a bench. Here's a sneak peak.

What DIY projects are you working on?

And advise for me and my pallette furniture?

Forever loving my B.A.D.D. Kids,

Rhonda