The Girl's Room

This room is shared by Pearl, Grace and Dotty.  (although only Dotty sleeps in there-that's a whole other post)  It originally was mine and Mav's bedroom.  I picked out the wallpaper he hung for me.  But making a family of 6 comfortable in a small home requires sacrifice.   The antique dresser was refinished in this sunny yellow by my dad.  A big basket for stuffed animals (I swear they breed like rabbits) and a small chest for American Girl dolls.

Here is the old iron bed that has been passed down in our family.  Underneath are their Barbies, and no telling what else!  I love the idea of a hope chest at the foot of the bed-although at the moment it is full of my vintage clothing I can't part with.  The pictures are of local treasures, Ft. Vancouver and the Portland bridges.

Here is the closet they share.  On top are boxes filled with polly pockets, calico critters, and etc...

Dotty's clothes are in bins to help her "do it myself!"

You also get a glimpse of her bed.  She is just over 2, and has not yet discovered she can climb out. (fingers crossed)

Pearl's special chair her cousin Solanah painted her while in high school.

Ceiling Maps!

We (Mav) just finished this project which I absolutely love.  Maps on the ceiling.  If you were to look closely you might notice among them is a circle beginning with the world, followed by; our continent, our country, our state and our city.  This helps them recognize their place in the much larger picture.

There's No Place Like Home

We have been home from vacation 10 days.  "Home" is a big word.  A wonderful word.  I enjoyed our time on the road and would do it all again-but right now my heart and mind are focused on home.  Watching our youngest in full melt down for the last 4 days of our trip, it became clear how much security and comfort being home gives.  Up until this time I have lived by the saying "home is in a mother's arms".   I felt as long as we were all together we would be home.   I still believe being together is the most important security factor for children, but I have a new appreciation for the house we live in.  It makes the feeling of home tangible for children, it's familiar, and routine.  Of course not every house is a home.  It makes me sad to think about the children who live in houses without security and stability and how they are often labeled as "difficult children".  Those last few days of traveling I began to wonder if my daughter had been taken over by hostile aliens.  A few times it was like a scene from a horror movie with her tantrums being so intense I thought she may levitate-and her screams were those of a soprano banshee!
Now that we are home my focus has been to provide a home where children are nurtured and nourished.   It's like a nesting instinct.  I have been super busy; cleaning, rearranging, baking, sorting, shopping etc... On the trip I was selfish and I chose to deal with the consequences, after all it isn't everyday I am at Mt. Rushmore.  As parents we make those exceptions.  Seeing the effect it had on the girls made me realize we are all happier when I put mothering first.  Focusing on and meeting their needs- as I am modeling and equipping them to meet their own, actually creates more space for myself.   Time invested in my family creates secure little people who are not misbehaving to get some attention.
I'll be posting soon on some of the projects I have been doing around the house to make it the perfect place for us.

My Love Of Colonial Revival

Am I the only one who loves Colonial Revival?  Maybe it is because I grew up with it that it makes me feel at home.  I also appreciate that it never went completely out of style from the turn of the century through the 70's.  This means it is easier to find, I can mix decades, and keep the look fluid.

If you watch Mad Men you will recognize the Draper's home as Colonial Revival.  Here is a quote that I liked from their set designer.

"Some viewers might be surprised that the Drapers "don't live in Eames-ville and wear Pucci clothes," Wells says. "But we are portraying a very realistic view of a time when we were not such a throwaway society, and buying furniture was a lifetime investment."

I love the contrast between the modern sleek office and comfy colonial home.

P.S.  I tried so hard to get pics from sources other than blogs and then I just noticed I used the same ones as Atomic Ranch House!  So even though I didn't get them there I feel I should give her credit for using them first.

Life In A Small Pink House: Shelves

Knick knack kitchen shelves.  I believe this was originally a window before our mudroom was added on.

Above the fridge shelves

Papa's book shelves

Photo album shelves

Children/homeschool shelves

A most recent photo of the knick knack shelves.  Papa has added a board and made a safe place for me to store canisters.  Like I have said, in a small house one is continually discovering ways to create more space. Any shelves will do because once you fill them up you don't notice the beat up 80's bookcase.  My oldest has set that she decoupaged, a fun project and looks cute. 

We joke that eventually our entire 1100 square feet will be shelves.   Not pictured are the shelves in the girls bedrooms, the mudroom, hallway and our room.  They truly make it possible to live comfortably in a small home.  Of course one might suggest we cut down on the things going on the shelves.  We have!  I also regret all the books we have gotten rid of for the sake of space.  

9:11 a.m. In The Pink House

Breakfast dishes

The Asia bin we made for Dot-big girls love it too!

Papa!

Getting ready for school.

Almost couldn't bring myself to post this one.  Laundry after our morning run.

Joey

Okie Girl Eats: Buttermilk Pie

Buttermilk.  I wonder if the poor lil' Okies acquired a taste for buttermilk due to the fact they rarely had fresh milk.  It is not an easy taste to enjoy, but many of my Okie relatives would beg to differ.  I do enjoy buttermilk as an ingredient, especially in this buttermilk pie.  Think in terms of pancakes, we have regular pancakes and then we have buttermilk pancakes.  The same with pie, we have custard pie and we have buttermilk pie- very similar, yet the buttermilk adds a deeper and richer flavor.  It took me two tries to perfect this pie.  My first attempt was undercooked.  This was embarrassing as I made it to take to a luncheon and didn't realize until I was there and sliced it.  The next one was a little too sugary, and finally number three sliced like a dream and was just sweet enough.

Here is the recipe:

2 c. sugar (I liked 1.5)
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
5 lg. eggs, lightly beaten
2/3 c. buttermilk
1/3 c. butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla
1 unbaked 9" pastry shell

Combine sugar and flour in a large bowl, add eggs and buttermilk, stirring until blended. Stir in butter and vanilla. Pour into unbaked pastry shell. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until set. (give it a shake, if it wiggles give 5 more min.) 

Mav and I stumbled upon this little pie cart Saturday night.  We were full from dinner at our favorite Italian restaurant, but couldn't pass up pie!  I dream of having an airstream to bake and sell pies out of.  I would name it Sweetie Pies.

Life In A Small Pink House

In the 1950's the average American family had 3 children and lived in a home of approximately 983 square feet with a single bathroom.  Today the average family has two children and the average home is 2,329 square feet with 3+ bathrooms.   Our home is 1100 square feet, we have 4 children and one bathroom.
 We get a lot of  "One Bathroom! And Four Daughters??"  Yep.

 Put whatever spin on it you want: sustainable living, simple living, vintage living, etc...  We choose to live in a smaller home.  So how do we do it?   I am still figuring it out, but I'd love to share what I have learned, and what I am learning.

Common sense tells you that if you live in a smaller space you need to have less "stuff"-and boy do we love our "stuff"!   We had to really limit our collecting and many of you know when you love vintage it is hard to pass any up.    We ask ourselves "Do I absolutely LOVE this piece?" if the answer is no, then we don't buy/keep it.   Headvases? Not any more.  Tiki masks? Nope.  Roseville? Stopped-but kept some.  Books? We sold many, this we regret.  Royal Copley? Gone.  Collectible toys? The first to go.   You get the picture.  There are sacrifices to living small.

My biggest weapon in keeping the 'a place for everything and everything in it's place' rule is shelving and storage pieces.  Not your typical Ikea storage solutions, but items that are functional and fit the character of our home.

Built ins are wonderful

Shelving!

A secretary with glass display.  Full of stationary, paper, stamps, envelopes etc...

This buffet houses our school work, photographs, linens and randomness.

A vintage treasure chest of pieces we just can't part with.

Books!  and an old bar that once doubled as our TV cabinet.

Flat files for artwork.

Okie Girl Eats: Homemade Maple Syrup

  I did a couple of different things with our pancakes this morning.  I added crumbled bacon to the batter and I made our syrup.  (I prefer Bisquick for making both pancakes and biscuits.)  I just can't bring myself to buy store bought syrup unless it is 100% pure maple syrup, and at the rate our family of goes through syrup that gets costly.  Then I was reminded by my mother of the syrup she made when I was a child.  Here is the recipe:

• 1 cup water
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 tsp maple flavoring

Boil water, add sugar and flavor.  Serve when smooth and combined. The syrup will be more the consistency of pure maple syrup. 

 It made more than enough for our family with enough leftover for us to have 2 or 3 more times.  

A Gentleman Caller

Today was my third 'at home'.  Guest doubled this week and I had my first gentleman caller, Joshua.  Joshua is my nephew, I am three years older than he is.  Mind you he didn't dress up to visit, this is how he dresses on a regular basis.  He actually had to leave early for an appointment at his tailor.  Dandy!

I have been experimenting with my hair-you might have noticed in my Easter post.  I had to play with the photo a bit to try to give you a good look.  The look I am going for is a matronlyish Gloria Swanson with bangs.  I am nearly 40 years old and have 4 children I want to love my age and wear it with grace.  

Easter In The Pink House

Leg o' lamb.  This was our second year preparing it and I have decided I do not like it.

  You see here a clay tomb the girls made and the nativity.  We tell a little story of how Jesus' birth ties in to his death.

I love this one.  A true photo of our holiday kitchen.

Egg hunt!

Making pita bread

Easter bonnet craft

Part of the Easter gang.  It started pouring about 30 seconds after this was taken.

8:21p.m.