Friday Favorites ~ 6/10/16

My dream backyard!




Our house sits on a 10,000 square foot lot.  For the area that I live in that's a pretty decent sized lot.

Right now my backyard is pretty basic.  It's just grass with a stamped concrete patio.

 

We have big plans for the space but little to no budget at the moment! (sigh)

 

Today's favorites are all based on some of the beautiful inspiration I've collected over time for my backyard.

 

We want 4 zones in the backyard...

 

1. Patio/Lounge/Dining Area

We really don't need an overhang because there's shade in the backyard for most of the afternoon into the evening.  I love the openness of this picture above.



A large table providing lots of seating is important to me.  We love to entertain and once the backyard is done we hope to have lots of friends and family over.

2. Hot Tub Area

We thought about putting in a pool but then vetoed that idea!  We do believe that we would use the pool but it's a budget killer. We decided a hot tub is something that won't break the bank and will be something we use often.

 

I love the idea of this camouflaged hot tub!  Most hot tubs that I've seen are eye sores!

3. Outdoor Kitchen/TV/Bar Area

An outdoor kitchen/bar area is something we'll do in the last phase of our backyard makeover as it will be the most costly.  I love, love, love the above picture.  I'm not sure there's anything I would change about that space.
 

4. Fire Pit/Seating Area

 

 
Fire pits are all the rage right now and I love the warmth (pun intended) they add to a space!  Nothing like a hot, cozy fire on a cool evening.


There are so many fire pit options.  We'll see where our budget takes us!

And then there are the Accessories...

 

 

No backyard is complete without the Flowers & Landscaping!

I've always loved flowers but now more so than ever.  Is that a sign of maturity?  :)

I don't have a green thumb but I'm hoping to plant (and not kill) lots of beautiful flowers in our backyard.


I want the bougainvillea's, my kids want the dog!  lol

 



Hydrangeas are my favorite!  And how cool are these tall purple flowers!


Some other finishes and accessories I love...


Love how beautiful this storage cabinet is.  I envision all of my gardening tools in this beauty!


I want to incorporate lots of green materials.  I'm hoping to incorporate a walkway made out of pallets somewhere in the space.


How fun is this for all the snacks/drinks at a party?!


Love this curvy walkway.



This bird bath filled with candles is gorgeous!


Large farmhouse table and chairs are a must!


Rocking chairs are on my wish list...


I'm loving the copper accessories.


For sources to all of the above pictures please click here!

That's all for today!  Thanks for coming by for a visit.
Have a Fab weekend!

xoxo
Delilah


Transformation Tuesday ~ The Wall

I'm pretty sure my friends are better than yours!

 

 

 

Haha, I'm totally kidding but I do have some pretty AMAZING friends!

One of my sweet friends called me one day and said, "I have some extra fence boards sitting in my garage, do you want them?"

 

Um, is the sky blue?

 

Yes, yes and yes!!!

But wait!  It gets even better...

 

My friend Patti and her husband Kevin knew that I wanted a planked wall and so she asked me if I needed help putting it up?

 

Yes people!  They not only gave me FREE fence boards, but they also installed them for me!!!

 

 

Pretty amazing, hugh?!

 

Here's the before...

 

 

pretty boring!

 

 

And now....

 

 

I'm in LOVE!! (insert heart eyes)

 

I'm not savvy enough to give you the directions on how to do it but the Internet is full of tutorials.

Kevin basically used a level and a nail gun to install the planked wall.

 

 

He also had his table saw to cut the pieces to fit.  I chose to have the fence boards go vertically to add height to the room.

 

 

They installed the wall in a couple of hours.

 

 

A wonderful and simple project with lots of

bang for the buck!

In my case ZERO bucks!

 

I love all the character of the wood!  It's just delicious!

When my amazing friends offered to install the wood I asked them if they worked for food lol~ I fed them dinner!  :)

Thanks again Kevin and Patti!!  Love you guys!

Have a wonderful and blessed day! 

 

Linking up to:

Making it in the Mountains 

Worthing Court

French Country Cottage

Little Farmstead

 

xoxo

Delilah

 

 

 

Motivational Monday ~ When things don't go as planned

I love being a mom.

 

 
 

I feel like it has always come easy for me.

Breastfeeding was a breeze...
My kids slept through the night early on...

They were always pretty well behaved as young children.

They both excel in school and their teachers almost always have positive things to say about them.

They're kind-hearted and compassionate towards others, yada, yada, yada...

 

 

 

 

Don't get me wrong we have our moments but for the most part, I've been pretty blessed.

 

Until now...

Now, my daughter is 15.  She's a freshman in high school.  She's still a good girl but parenting has gotten HARD!

 

 

 

 

Last week my daughter received a letter from the Leadership teacher at her high school informing her that she didn't make it into the Leadership program.  She had decided to not try out for cheer this upcoming school year and focus on leadership instead.  We knew that would be a gamble since not everyone makes it into leadership.  As you can imagine, the news was heartbreaking.

 

She was devastated.

 

 

Many of her friends made it into the program and that made it even harder for her. 

 

I got home from work and found her eating Ben and Jerry's ice cream out of the carton with a bag of Doritos sitting next to her.  Um, yes, it was that kind of bad.

 

I tried to console her and give her my best pep talk possible.

 

"Sometimes things don't work out how we'd like them to but we have to trust that God is still in control.  He has something better for us.  It doesn't make sense right now but someday it will." I said.

 

I'm pretty sure she wanted to throw something at me!  And I don't blame her.

She didn't need me to try and explain why it happened.
She just needed me to be present.
She needed me to feel sorry for her.
She needed me to comfort her.
She needed me to tell her that life sucks sometimes... I know I'm being mellow dramatic but to a teenager these things are very important!

 

 

 

And I failed.
  At saying or doing any of those things.
And that is why being a mother is now hard!

I need a manual!!!



So the next day I thought about her all day and prayed about it and really, honestly felt sad and sorry for her.  I wanted to email the Leadership teacher and tell her how dumb she was for not accepting probably the best leadership student on the planet, but I didn't.  (Big pat on the back to me!)



Instead, I texted my daughter while I was at work.  I flooded her phone with all these cute little motivational quotes that I've posted here and said, "I think a day of shopping and ice cream needs to happen ASAP!"
To which she responded,
YEEEEEESSSSSS!!



It's just a win-win the way I see it.  We needed to go summer shopping anyway and well, who needs an excuse for ice cream?

I don't know what kind of day/week/month or even year you're having but if it has been filled with disappointments or closed doors, hang in there.  We don't always understand why we get to walk through the challenges or hardships in life....
Is there a lesson to be learned from them?
Perhaps there is.

Whatever the case may be I hope you find something to bring you a little sunshine on this journey.




In other news, I know I've been MIA on this blog the last couple of months, but after losing my grandmother earlier this year, I just really needed a break from all the pressures of life.
Life is too short.
I'm trying to focus on the things that really matter.
My life is crazy busy but I do love this blog thing and have a whole bunch of posts ready to go!  I've been taking care of ME and I can't wait to share how I'm doing that!

Thanks for your patience!

xoxo
Delilah