At the end of every school year, I start the summer with a to do list of all the house projects I want to complete before the next school year begins. These projects usually involve deep cleaning, errand running, and decorating…things I usually need time to sit down and think about.

Last summer, I only completed one of the projects on my to do list: deep cleaning the entryway. This involved taking my area rug to be cleaned (this took 4 weeks…long story), vacuuming out the entryway closet, thoroughly cleaning the baseboards and banisters, and repairing cracks and repainting the wall going upstairs. I intended to get the area above the closet decorated, but I am still working on this.

If my summer to do list remains undone, it usually waits for the next summer. But this year, I have actually been motivated to continue some of my projects. I deep cleaned our laundry/utility room and re-organized one of the downstairs linen closets.

Another project on my list is photo albums. My mother-in-law always prints out pictures from each year and puts them together into an album. I enjoy computers, but it is nice to look at photos in an album or photo book, and it is so much easier to share those photos with other people. For one of our anniversaries, I started this project for Jesse and I but never continued it. This winter I began again. I am now current through 2009 including some of our big vacations.

But, of course, every project has multiple steps. Every time I look at the photo albums, I have to take them off the shelf to determine what year I am looking at, so I have also always wanted to label them in a cute way. On President’s Day, I enjoyed a day off making labels for my photo albums. If only I didn’t have two more years to finish before I can check this item off of my to do list…

A few weeks ago, I joined Pinterest and began pinning with the rest of the women my age in the Midwest. I read a Star Tribune article about the growing popularity of Pinterest about a week after I joined.

My co-worker, Anna, is also a huge fan. She and I decided to set aside a Saturday afternoon for crafting. We began by spray painting a Christmas star my parents gave me (it was gold and my Christmas color is silver). We also fixed the ties on my guest room curtains. Lastly, we decided to reuse a teacher gift we both received.

As a Christmas gift, we both received this bear.

The bear was a little awkward and plain. We decided to repurpose the bear as a Valentine’s bear. I think it turned out very cute in the end.

Maybe my cute bear will one day show up on Pinterest???

You may remember my post from two years ago about the kitchen remodel. If you weren’t traveling the Sutherland Road at that time, you may read about it here.

At the end of our project, I wanted a new microwave, but we were unable to afford it. At the end of last year, we decided to use our credit card reward points to purchase a new microwave. Jesse and a friend went through the process of installing it (I didn’t want to stand there holding something heavy for any period of time), and we gave our old one away on Craigslist. It may take awhile, but we always finish our projects eventually!

I tend to not be the most creative person. I always like things to look cool, but I never quite have the right vision or materials to complete crafty projects.

I have recently been inspired by a few of my co-workers to try some outdoor holiday projects. It began when I attended a workshop on making a kissing ball.

You begin with a foam ball and attach ribbon. You soak the ball in water and begin filling it with evergreen pieces that are all the same size. One of my co-workers donated all of the evergreen from her outdoor trees.

Next you fill in the gaps with two different kinds of greens. I purchased these in bundles at a local Home Depot.

The next step is fun add-ins. I added mini red ornaments, silver sparkly pinecones, and thin silver wire.

When it is all done, you hang it as a decoration. I opted to hang mine outside because it should last longer.

I’ve always seen kissing balls and admired them at the store before but thought they were too expensive. After the cost of materials, the time spent on the project, and the mess, I now know why they are so pricey.

After finishing the kissing ball, I decided to add spruce tips to my outdoor pots. I am very pleased with this year’s outdoor Christmas decorations!