Tupelo Honey

it was bound to happen. after three separate christmases and 9 days in NC, our house turned into a full blown disaster area overnight. at one point during the unpacking process i got so overwhelmed that i took everything the kids owned, tossed it in their room and shut the door. for once i figured out of sight, out of mind, right?? stuff was EVERYWHERE. i woke up on new year’s day stressed out but determined to get started on one of my yearly resolutions- simplify ALL THE THINGS. 

i decided to spend the first day of 2012 organizing and de-cluttering madeline and charlie’s room. i also wanted to continue working on making their shared nursery a little more gender neutral. charlie sleeps next to us in our room but we keep all of his clothes, blankets, and toys in their room.

i love a good before & after photo set, so here are a few that i took on my cell phone that day:

have you ever heard of eloise wilkin? i gave madeline a collection of eloise wilkin stories for christmas and we haven’t put the book down since. the stories are simple and endearing, reminiscent of the books my parents read to me as a child. i adore the artwork too and i’m hoping to purchase some of her prints for the nursery soon.

we also cherish our PK Hallinan collection. i know i’ve mentioned these books on here before- tj maxx and marshalls always have a few of his books in stock at a great discount. be sure to check ‘em out if you haven’t already. 

hey buddy! this little cutie woke up from his nap and decided to join us on the nursery tour.

my very helpful assistants and i took a break for a bit to play with the abby & emma magnetic dress up set madeline recently received from her aunt deb & cousin jack. i wasn’t sure how well she would do with these and thought i would have to put this gift away until later this year, but she knows exactly what to do! she’s such a fantastic little stylist and very opinionated- “no mommy, SHOES! no boots. shoes with knee socks!”. she’ll totally call me out if something doesn’t look good. hilarious. 

i love this activity because it’s something we can do together and it keeps her entertained for more than 15 min. ((that’s like, 3 hrs in toddler time))

madeline’s first authentic pair of cowboy boots purchased in austin, tx; a french children’s album; custom made wooden blocks that were gifted to us just after charlie was born. 

these blocks are really cool- you can order them for your loved one here.

by the time i was done with the room re-do, i had thrown away 3 bags of trash and set aside 5 huge bags to donate (part of our 1 good deed a week resolution, but that’s a topic for another post). and as for the stuff i decided to keep? let me introduce you to what i like to call my monica geller closets: 

hot mess, right?!?! there’s a method to my madness, i swear! i even designated the bottom half of one of the closets to new toys. whenever we’re bored and stuck inside, we’ll head over to the closet and pull out something new and fun to play with. fingers crossed this works- it’s been really cold and windy these past few days and i have a feeling this winter is going to be brutal.  

a mother’s work is never done though! i’m now logging off to tackle the laundry room- madeline’s been sick for the past 4 days and there isn’t a clean bed sheet or blanket in sight… wish me luck!

xo

lindsay