Now that my book-binding supplies are dusted off maybe I’ll use them more. I made this little book for an old friend who was recently married. It served as a sign-in book at the reception. I covered davey board with pretty paper from a local art supply store in the colors of the wedding.

I printed a cover page with their event information and lined inside pages on my home printer, which could be set to print oddly-sized pages. I purchased acid-free sketch paper for the inside pages and then cut them to the size I wanted before I printed on them. I sewed the sheets together with linen thread before gluing them in the cover. It felt nice to supply something small and handmade for the wedding that the couple could use as a keepsake. I was amused when my daughter and nieces all took the guestbook very seriously at the reception and each signed her name individually.

I just keep forgetting to put these photos up. Last month we observed the same spring break as our local public schools. For families who send their kids offsite to school, spring break can be an opportunity for family fun and togetherness. As homeschoolers, I decided the kids and I could use the opportunity to take a break from each other! Each morning I packed them off to one or the other of their grandparents’ homes, where they ate too much dessert and took “field trips” as varied as Chuck-e-Cheese and a train history museum, then came back home at dinner time. While they were gone I spent five solid days painting at home. When I’d gone through the rooms after we moved in, removing wallpaper and adding color, I skipped some of the more time-consuming, lower-impact jobs. Over spring break I went back and did the more thankless jobs, finally finishing up the horrid living room ceiling (it actually looks halfway decent now–I’d photograph it but it just looks like, you know, a ceiling), and painting doors, trim, and window casings. This house already had light painted trim and I unified it by using glossy white on all of it. I know there are differing opinions on trim paint, but I love the look of crisp, white trim and doors. It’s so fresh and offsets the painted walls so well. Plus the glossy surface is easy to clean, which is important with kids and pets.

I had another lingering paint project outside. We’d painted the garage door and the light above it last year, but the decrepit white shutter on the side of the garage was still peeling. I painted it red too and it looks much better. We’ve still got a long way to go on improving the outside of this house (hello crumbling tile on the porch!), but every small project moves us in the right direction. I can see the garage from my family room with the Kiki Pinata curtains, so now the view outside kind of matches.