Tonya Staab

Divine Lifestyle: Pineapple Planter

I know that fall is on the horizon ... it is, isn't it? I mean it's going to be 101 degrees here on Saturday, so I'm beginning to think mother nature has other plans, but I did see a red leaf on the sidewalk this morning as I walked out to the car to take the kids to school.

But anyway, while we are still in summer mode, here's another fun summer craft project for you. I had this little container in my 'upcycle' pile for some time. It was a candle holder at some point... I think. But now it's a pineapple succulent planter.  

All the details are over at Divine Lifestyle blog. So head on over and do something crafty this week.

 

Make and Takes: Repurposed Jar for Flower Arranging

Flowers are the one thing I keep in my home on a regular bases. Nothing makes me happier than popping down to the weekend farmers market, selecting bunches of flowers, and then seeing a vase of flowers on the kitchen counter as I wander past each day. It just seems to brighten up the space ... and my mood.

With the holiday season almost here, I can see there'll be more and more flowers filling the house as I use them for seasonal decorating too.

So, I'm over at Make and Takes this week showing you how to turn a vintage canning jar into a vase. If you've ever popped a bouquet of flowers into a vase and had the pretty stems fall every which way, then you will want to give this DIY a go. Grab your drill and head on over ...

How To Make A Fairy Garden in a Box

If you are renting (like we are), then you have to think outside the box when it comes to making your outdoor space look pretty, and do those things that the kids really want. Marisol had been asking for THE LONGEST time for a fairy garden, but keeping in mind that moving house is on the horizon, Mike and I decided to make something that could move with us.

So, while the kids' were visiting their dad one weekend, we set about building Marisol a fairy garden. Because that's apparently what one does on their kid-free weekends. We had already taken her shopping for a few trinkets to put into the garden so she knew that it would be happening ... eventually. We found some very sweet pieces one day when we were hanging out in Old Town Temecula at The Gardener's Cottage and then found even more pieces at Michael's where they have a whole section for fairy gardens, even for holiday's.

How to Organize a Styling Station for Girls

Disclosure: This post and DIY are sponsored by Nickelodeon.

Marisol has a small desk in her bedroom. Problem is she's never really used it as a desk, instead preferring to spread everything out over her bed to do her artwork or homework. So she would organize tubs and things on it, but it was becoming more of a catch-all. She has been asking me for a while to do something with that space, and knowing she has a love for doing her nails, being treated to time at a salon, and is experimenting with makeup, I thought I'd turn that space into a styling table. We gathered a little inspiration from the new Nick Jr series Sunny Day to create our salon-worthy styling station. Watch Sunny Day weekdays on Nickelodeon!

In this new series, 10-year-old Sunny Day is a master hairstylist and salon owner.  With her friends Rox and Blair and a can-do attitude, Sunny is ready to save the day – one hairdo at a time!

5 Minutes For Mom: a Holiday Hot Chocolate Station

Hot chocolate, warm fire, and Christmas movies seem to just go together all holiday season long.

Yesterday I showed you some simple upcycling projects for our fireplace thanks to Goodwill. Today I'm over at 5 Minutes for Mom sharing this DIY food stand and hot chocolate station (also thanks to Goodwill). Thrifting is life!

Holiday Decorating On A Budget

Disclosure: This post has been sponsored by Goodwill®

The holiday's can be stressful and costly, between the gifts, the celebrations, and the decorating. We all want to give our children the best, and make the season as festive and fun as we possibly can, but it's hard. I'm a single mother of three, and my budget each month is so tight it squeaks, so I find this time of year particularly difficult.

Thankfully I do have an amazing man in my life who helps out to no end with the 'fun' things. And my kids adore him. Just last weekend we met him in Nashville so we could spend time with his family and celebrate Christmas (albeit a little early). We took the kids to Gaylord Opryland one evening to see all of the festive decorations and go on a boat road, and the following day we took my kids back to ICE, which is an amazing exhibit of ice sculptures (Snoopy themed) that you walk through. It's only 9 degrees inside, but they give you big coats to wear, and the kids loved going down a slide made entirely of ice.

If everyone can get over their head colds we'll be heading to the Christmas tree farm to cut down our own Christmas tree later this week. This is one of the highlights of the holiday season for me. I've found having traditions makes the holiday's that much more special. My daughter picks out a tree, and her brother cuts it down. We load it up on top of the car, bring it home, turn on Christmas movies, make hot chocolate, and put out a few festive treats while the kids decorate the tree.

Each year we've built on our Christmas decoration collection. We pick out a couple of new things before decorating and then a couple more at the sales after Christmas. Or sometimes we just make our own decorations. This year things are a little tighter than normal so we are relying on a lot of DIY.

I see a lot of people impulse buying at big name stores, but did you know that stores such as Goodwill have a lot of options at this time of year too? There are so many treasures that can be crafted from Goodwill finds and I'm going to share a couple with you that I did this week for decorating the mantel above our fireplace.