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Hello ☀ We are half way through? the one room challenge! Woo hoo! Welcome to week number 3. In case you’ve missed what’s going on over here I’ve linked our first two weeks to get you all caught up before reading on…you know it just won’t be as magical without the background knowledge ?

Week 1 | Week 2

So here we are in week 3 of this crazy challenge that we’ve decided to take on with two little dudes coming along for the ride. And yes, in case you’ve missed out we did rip out all of the carpet on our entire second floor…I know we’re wild over here ? Let’s talk about some of the setbacks we’ve had so far: flooring, hardware, our built-in & did I mention flooring? because you know one setback just wouldn’t be enough over here. Originally we were planning to show you all how we installed our hardwood flooring but that clearly didn’t happen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpDqcp-PMw8&t=4s

Let’s start from the beginning – once we tore out all of the carpet we discovered our sub-flooring in our master bedroom was a mess. There was a 3/8 inch difference in height from the hallway into our master ?…it may not seem like a lot, but trust me it makes a major difference. And since this room was an addition to the original home there were pieces of the original attic sub-floor mixed in with what the builder had added. It was a mess, a hot hot mess! So Michael cut out all the original sub-flooring and added 2x4s to reinforce the flooring. He then added new sub-floor on top so all of our flooring would be even! ? You know what, I’ll just have him tell you more about what he really did…since I am a little lost over here!

Well D was spot on regarding what was wrong with our subfloor. And she pretty much nailed what I had to do to fix it. Our main concern with the subfloor was safety, and I can now say that our floor is 100% stable, secure and has not a single squeak! Pop quiz for you all – do you know what makes a floor squeak? If you guessed the wood, you are wrong. It is actually the nails. When you step on a certain area of flooring and hear a squeak that is the sound of the wood moving up and down on a nail. Screws are best to reinforce flooring, but in older homes screws did not yet exist. Dropping some common knowledge on y’all.

Once all the sub-flooring was installed we ran into a new problem – only 6 of our 26 boxes of hardwood flooring came in ?. Our flooring was now behind by 2 weeks!!! We had to take a pause on the flooring and move on to the built-in. We both love the look of our built-in but the functionality was just not there. Every time you open one drawer you would have to open another drawer or push the drawer to the side with your hip and some drawers had to have two or three drawers open part way to even get into there. Not to mention it was a serious workout every time you wanted to open a drawer at all. It just wasn’t constructed well at all…but Michael was handling all of that.

Last week we talked about how we prepped all the drawers and painted them. This week we added our new hardware and began the process of putting everything back together. However this didn’t come without its own set of obstacles. All of our hardware is metric and we couldn’t find screws long enough to fit through our drawers! Michael to the rescue with both the hardware and the start of reinstalling the drawers!

Oh the metric system. Or rather, oh America by operating on a completely different system than the rest of the world. It could be worse I suppose. Anyway, Danielle made a run to Home Depot for longer screws and instead found a solution that we thought would work well – and partially did work well. She brought me back a tap set that allowed me to increase the size of the hardware openings to the size of the new screws. It looks easy, but is a very precise process. Then the ?went off…why not counter sink the screws into the drawers and use the screws that were supplied with our hardware?!? So that is exactly what I did. I pre-drilled all of the new holes in the front of the drawer with a 3/8 bit, then on the inside took a 7/16 bit to drill a larger hole – the size of the screw head. And it turned out really nice!  

With all the tedious work this week we also managed to start of our nightstand makeover. We are looking just give these a face lift for something new and fun! Stay tuned next week for more on this one. As always thank you for stopping by! I’m looking forward to showing you more of what we have in store. Make sure to follow along on Instagram and Facebook to see more live updates of this wild one room makeover!

much love-

danielle

xoxo

Well, the time is finally here for us to share just what we have been up to! Michael and I are participating in the One Room Challenge by Calling It Home where for six weeks starting TODAY we will be showcasing our renovation progress through my social channels + of course here with all of you in blog series. Make sure to check in every week from now until May 11th when we do a final master bedroom makeover reveal!!!

As many of you know we bought our very first home just over two years ago and we have been non stop renovating. We have a 1950s bungalow which has an addition on the second floor. Up until this point our focus has been the main floor, as that is where we spend a majority of our time. We are beyond excited to tackle our next challenge starting with our master bedroom! Let’s lay it all out there and talk about what we are actually looking to do in our master bedroom makeover. Since you all know how much I love lists I’ve broken down our makeover into a list format for you to follow along with too!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qn4XvRwSZIk&t=8s

How to create a warm and inviting master bedroom retreat!

• add new flooring (for us that means some serious renovation to our subfloors)
• add character to our already existing closet doors
• built in dresser with updated color and hardware
• bay window seating area with updated color, hardware and textiles
• lighting
• furniture
• accent pieces
• And of course let’s not forget adding new pillows and throws…you can never have to many, right!

To help give you all more of an idea where we are looking to go with this project I’ve created my very first mood board! Michael and I have lived in several homes together over the years and have painted all of our master bedrooms, but this will be a first for us to actually create a customized space for just us two! We are really looking forward to creating a warm and inviting master bedroom retreat with contemporary eclectic and timeless vibes showcasing our style for y’all to see.

I excited, nervous and anxious all at the same time to having you all join us on this next fun adventure! Make sure to tune in on ig stories to see more live updates on the craziness we’ve got going on.

Until next Thursday!

much love-

danielle

xoxo

I’m absolutely in love with this recipe. I got it from my girlfriend who teaches kindergarten. Not only does this playdough take under 5 minutes to make it smells sugary sweet & I know everything that’s in it!  That way when e decides to take a big bite out of it at least I know he pretty much just inhaled lots of salt.  

INGREDIENTS

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• ½ cup salt
• 1/4 cup glitter for the fun factor✨
• 2 cups water
• 2 packets of kool-aid (I used 4 packets for the red!)
• 3 tbsp oil

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large bowl mix 2 1/2 cups of flour and 1/2 cup of salt together.
2. Add 1/4 cup of glitter for the fun factor and stir.
3. In a pot boil water & add 2 packets of kool-aid & 3 tbsp oil.
4. Pour kool-aid mixture onto dry ingredients and stir.
5. Dump onto counter and knead playdough.  Be careful because it’s HOT!
6. Continue to knead until all mixed together. 

***If you want brighter coloring use double the amount of kool-aid!**

 happy playing!

much love-

d
xoxo
 

March is reading month, and with it being right around the corner I felt like this is the perfect time to share some knowledge with all my lovely readers. As some you know I taught just outside of Chicago for several years before moving back to Michigan. I have two degrees – both of which are in education. My undergrad is in early childhood with an emphasis on language arts and my masters is as a reading specialist with an emphasis on special education. So you could say I know a thing or two about how to make your child a reader. And trust me… ALL children can learn to read at some capacity or another! It’s all about how we look at readers.

I think the thing that makes my blood boil the most is when I hear parents say, “my kid just isn’t a reader’ or ‘my kid doesn’t like to read’. WAIT, WHAT! What do you mean your kid is not a reader? What do you mean your kid doesn’t like to read? This is something we can fix and it’s really simple. Not to mention a life skill that is extremely valuable.

Let’s start by thinking about ourselves as readers. Yes, We can all read, clearly, or you wouldn’t be here reading what I’ve got to say! And most of us can read at a college level right?!? But let’s be honest you aren’t going to find me as a reader running around trying to read an encyclopedia. Sure I can read it and if I come to a word I don’t know I’ve got all the skills to figure out an unfamiliar word. But I’ve got absolutely no interest in reading an encyclopedia nor does it sound fun to have to decode or look up the meaning of lots of words while reading!

This is what happens all too often to all non-reading loving kids! Reading becomes hard and just not fun or even boring! All things that we can fix. We can fix this by teaching our kids how to pick a book that is ‘just right’!

HOW TO PICK A ‘JUST RIGHT’ BOOK

Purpose:

Why are you reading this book? Is it for fun? Do you want to learn something new?

Interest:

Am I interested in this book’s topic? (Just because someone else loved a book does not mean it’s going to be the right book for you too. You have to be interested in the same thing!)

Comprehend:

Can I understand the words that I am reading? The easiest way to check this is with a little retelling. What happens in the beginning, middle and end?

Know:

Do I know most of the words that I am reading? This is perfect for the five finger rule.

Here’s how the five finder rule works.

Over time you come to a word you don’t know or is hard for you to read. When you do, you put up a finger. If you get to the end of the page (for a chapter book or a couple of pages for a picture book) then that book is just too hard. I honestly don’t believe in books being too easy. Yes, I think a book can be simple for a child to read but we as parents are focusing on developing the love for reading and no one loves reading when you just don’t know the words. I like to look at books with 4 fingers up as perfect reads for buddy reading.

And if your child desperately wants to read a book that is just too difficult, please don’t discourage them. This is the perfect time for you to read together. Take turns reading or read aloud to them. They can echo read with you. That’s where they are reading the words right after you just like an eco????

happy reading!

much love,

xoxo

There is something so magical about a big city during the holidays. As many of you know we spent a decade in the windy city. It’s where Michael and I met, feel in love, got our first jobs, got married, and had a baby! Wow talk about lots of big moments we’ve had in Chicago. So naturally Chicago holds a special place in our hearts. With the drive being around 4 hours (sometimes 5 with these guys) from Detroit we like to make the trip back as much a possible. The holidays and winter time still has lots of fun things to do in the city. Here’s our speedy weekend broken down for you!

where to stay

We’re all about living local. So naturally VRBO & Airbnb speak to us! Staying just outside the heart of downtown (literally 1 – 2 miles) also drops the price. Plus Chicago neighborhoods are amazing.

what to eat

Authentic food. This is something I totally miss about this city. You can get real authentic food in every part of the city. This trip we decided on Greek, Spanish tapas, and Italian (of course)!

GREEK
Where: Athenian Room. I seriously dream about this little gem in the heart of Lincoln Park.

What we had: Taramosalata (greek caviar), Chicken kalamata style with a greek salad and greek fries, and gyros. Kids had: everything we did. Zo loved the gyro meat & pita. Zig loved all the carbs & a few pieces of chicken!

TAPAS TIME
Where: Bulerias Tapas Bar. This place is legit. Every time we go here it’s like walking back through the streets of Spain. Plus it’s located off Ashland for easier parking and it’s got a great vibe for kids.

What we had: Pan con tomatoes, patatas bravas, empanadas de queso, chorizo espanol, empandas con chorizo, datiles, salmon ahumado, gambas al ajilo. kids had: what we did but the patatas bravas needs the sauce on the side because it’s ????????????

ITALIAN
Where: PR Italian Bistro. Formally known as pizza rustica and seriously good Italian food! 

What we had: First for the antipasti: polenta and charcuterie. On to the insalate: rustica and caesare. Last risooto ai porcini, raviolacci costexine, angnolotti aragosta and tutta pizza. kids had: pepperoni pizza

HOLIDAY DINING

Where: Walnut Room. Talk about magical, especially during the holiday season. The tree is amazing and you get to look out at State street. The one down fall is you can’t make reservations, but Michael always gets us in quickly. He seriously has a gift.

What we had: Wisconsin Cheese Platter, Lobster Bisque, Walnut Room Salad, Oven-Baked Meatloaf and Caramelized Salmon. kids had: butter noddles and grilled cheese.

SWEET TREATS

Where: Sweet Mandy B’s. This is by far my absolutely favorite sweet place in Chicago.

What we had: Cupcakes! We love their classic yellow cake with buttercream frosting, although all the cupcakes there are amazing. kids had: Cupcakes too!

what to do

SHOP TILL YOU DROP

Where: Southport Corridor

What to do: Chicago is full of shopping options. But the local boutiques are always my favorite????

Where: Michigan Ave

What to do: I’m sure you know there are lots of shops on Michigan Ave. But I like to hit up the ones I can’t find in Detroit (Zara, Uniqlo, Crate & Barrel – ok yes we’ve got one of these but this store is just amazing)

STOP & PLAY

Where: Any Chicago Park
Chicago is full of amazing parks & let’s be honest with kids they are fun any time. We stopped by Oz Park for all kinds of fun.

What to do: Bundle up and get out. Fresh air and play time is always a good idea.

HOLIDAY FUN

Where: Lincoln Park Zoo  

What to do: Zoo Lights. Walking though the zoo is truly amazing with lights, music and all kinds of goodies to keep you warm and full! Once you’ve seen this light show you won’t want to miss it! Dress warm and head there early as parking by the zoo is difficult and you want your little to be able to enjoy the lights. Good thing Chicago gets dark around 4:00.

Where: Holiday Market 

What to do: This is a traditional German American Holiday Market. It takes you right to the streets of Germany, but the only problem is on the weekend it is absolutely packed! We could barely move with our kids there. I recommend going during the week.

Where: Macys on State Street

What to do: Head downtown and check out the windows & sights inside the store including santa!

Hope you have as much fun in Chicago as we do!

much love-

danielle

xoxo