Let's get COZI!

Lately I have been longing to be organized. Actually, that's a goal that I always have, and it seems so lofty most of the time. In my quest for order and sanity in my what seems to be "fly by the seat of my capris" life, I have stumbled upon the most AMAZING smartphone app. Cozi. It's a super user friendly online family organizer, and I love love LOVE it! Some of my favorite features include...

-the journal. Wanna capture a funny moment or milestone on the go? You can just snap a pic and jot down your little memory in your cozi journal, and put it online for all you want to see. No more excuses for this girl...


- the to do lists and grocery lists. These are probably MY FAVE. Super easy to add items, reorder, email, group things into categories, etc. They even have starter lists on their site you can build from. Fab.


-The easy access. I can input info from my laptop or my phone and it syncs automatically. Love the seamless transition.

-The calendar is the BOMB. And you can sync with outlook, iCal...whateva you're into. Also, you can add online calendars from external sites, such as your children's school, Flylady, etc. The layout is so easy for me to understand. Each family member has their own color, so you can who who has what, get their info to them easily, etc. I'm telling you. This app is wicked sweet.

Anyway, I encourage anyone and everyone to check this out. Even if you're not a smartphone owner...the site is awesome. I haven't even been able to scratch the surface of it's coolness, I'm too busy organizing my life :)

I'd love to hear if anyone else gets Cozi with me! Hope you'll love at as much as I do. Here's to getting order in your life! 

A BADD Way to do your windows!

Howdy Ya'll! This is my first BADD post from the Lone Star State! I've recently left Hawaii, and are throwing down some roots in Texas while my husband attends PA school. I know...he's rad. :) So while he's away studying his pantelones off, I'm putting some personal touches on our new house! I'm all for some Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel, and Restoration Hardware speaks to my very SOUL... but I also like to "produce" something once in a while. I wanted something clean and crisp for my kitchen windows, and not the run of the mill plaid or gingham valances with apples and sunflowers. No offense to those kitchens, since I do like those things, I was just feeling "Earthy"....or something to that effect. Sooo, off to the Forum I went. And not the one at Caesar's Palace either. I'm talking the MEGA shopping center awesomeness that is just 2 miles away. DANGER I tell you. There's Kirkland's home, Pier 1, World Market, Bed Bath and Beyond, Hobby Lobby, Target, Best Buy, Ross AND TJ Maxx, just to name a few. Yes I said few. Like I said, DANGER to your wallet awaits as you exit the freeway. I could dedicate a blog just to the shopping finds I stumble upon at that place. Anyway, back to the windows :)

At Ross I found some bamboo table runners for $5.99 each. So I snatched those babies up and ran to Lowe's to grab the rest of my supplies....wood, corner brackets, and drywall screws. We had the staple gun already, as well as a drill.

 Naturally I measured my windows and figured out where I wanted my runners to hang, and screwed in the corner brackets like so..

 Here's another view of how they look installed.

Next I took my staple gun and stapled the long edge of the runner to the thin, long side of the wood I had cut. I colored in the staples so you couldn't see the silver finish. Also, if you found runners with an unfinished edge you could staple and finish them afterward with some kind of ribbon, fabric, or trim. Whatever tickles your fancy.

 

Here's a view of the valance flipped upside down and stapled. Notice that this runner was lined, which I recommend. Especially if using bamboo.

The next part is SUPER easy. Just take your valance and set it atop the brackets and center. Voila! You can secure the wood to the brackets if you wish, but since these aren't heavy, I didn't worry about it. 

Cute? I think so. It was just what my casual kitchen needed. It gave me the texture that I crave without going too fancy dancer, which I la la LOVE in other places in my home. If you need a quick facelift to your kitchen window or windows, this is a cheap, quick, and fun fix! Enjoy!

PS- We linked this post up to the Friday Flair Linky Party at Whipperberry!

Linked up at Tip Junkie as well! 

Speckled Eggs

Hi BADD readers! I know, quite the hiatus! Life has been hectic
for some of us, and not so productive for the others... so not
the best mix for projects. We should be back on track though!

So I saw these adorable eggs, on this blog, a few days back. I thought
they were darling, and worth a try!

Every year I buy new Easter eggs... even though I keep the eggs
from the previous year. LOL so basically I'm drowning in eggs!!!

I decided to turn them into something more decorative... give them
a new life. Really, you could use any color scheme and/or any color
paint. It's Easter, there are no rules on egg color{s}! So go crazy :)
I opted for blue and green. I already had the blue spray paint at
home, and green stood out as the perfect match. I was limited on
the texturizing spray paint, so I opted for the lightest {texturizing
spray paint is pretty awesome, by the way}.The tutorial said to use plastic primer. I could not find any, as
options are pretty limited on this island {or I only went to one store...},
so I decided to risk it. I haven't had any problems with the paint coming
off, so I'd say that's an optional step ;)
Also, instead of using paint, I just used spray paint. I laid down my
eggs on some newspaper, and turned on the spray. LOL those little
guys flew every directions! So, I got smart, and grabbed an empty
egg carton. I laid each side on the bumps in the carton, like so....It worked out pretty good. I did have more of an issue with some
eggs not being totally covered. So I had to apply some touch-ups to
some.
I did a round two batch the following day, and this time, had the
idea of filling the eggs with a large rock. Brilliant! Also, since the help
of my two year old was unavoidable... it was a perfect way for him
to help out! He'd collect the rocks, help me fill the eggs... and was
a happy helper! Spraying them this way, both sides got a much more
even coat.
Here's another thing two year old helpers are good for...
making pretty rows of eggs.
So the order I went; light coat of spray paint, once dried - apply
a light {or desired} coat of texturizing spray paint. Once that was
dry, another light coat of the base color spray paint.And the end result... These were the first round of eggs. I
decided I prefer a lighter coat of texturizer.These are from the second batchI found this big vase at Savers, for $3.99. Which is a STEAL
for the Savers by me... I think it's the perfect fit.I then filled this basket {$1.99 at Savers} which some
overflow eggs
It was a pretty fun project! Now I'm thinking I want to add
some light brown, or cream colored eggs in the mix! Yes, please! :]

I think these eggs are perfect for Easter wreaths, sitting in
a nice vase, or decorative basket! A great way to use up those
eggs from last year!