It’s that time again! When we take a moment to look back on all that we’ve done in the past month at a glance (and gather all the links in one handy place for ya). And of course we tossed in some never-before-seen stuff, just because we’re over-sharers. This month felt pretty scattered since we did everything from finding secondhand night stands and starting to stencil some walls to building a 13 foot desk, altering a light fixture, framing out a mirror, making free art, and beyond. So let’s take a walk down memory lane, with yearbook-esque superlatives. Why? Because that’s our idea of a good time.
Most Pro-Banquette: Starting off the month with a half-baked idea to add a kitchen banquette.
Most Pro-Banquette (Runner-Up): The continued discussion on the topic in this follow-up post, which included a reader submitted rendering (where I looked a little bit like a receptionist).
Least Pro-Banquette: Ending the month with the exciting revelation that we’re over the banquette idea and happy to our true love: a peninsula.
Weirdest Giant Metal Chicken: This girl (aka Beyoncé) that we spotted on our way to Delaware (if you don’t know how she got her name, you must read this (warning: there’s profanity, but it might be the funniest thing on the interweb).
Best Deal: Our $11 yard sale night stands, which we added to our bedroom (along with a faux gold banding treatment on our bedposts).
Least Appetizing: Our empty fridge after Hurricane Irene, which we refilled with a coupon-tastic trip to the grocery store. (Update on that: we put in a $250 “spoiled food claim” with our electric company, who actually accepts those – so we don’t have to worry about insurance premiums going up or meeting a deductible at all – hooray!)
Most Improved: Our $1 (each) orange secondhand cabinets became slightly-taller, white office built-ins thanks to some wood and paint.
Most Tall, Long, Dark & Handsome: The 13-foot wood tabletop made for our built-in desk out of framing lumber and dark stain (for just 27 beans).
Most Inebriated: The walls in our office, after getting their Moonshine on (see what I did there? Moonshine is the name of the paint color, but also a reference to alcohol…).
The Josh Groban “You Raise Me Up” Award: Our office light fixture, which got hung higher (no more head bumps for me), sprayed indigo, and covered with a discounted drum shade.
Most Grounded: The trim that we added to the bottoms of our desk to give it a more built-in look.
Most Secretive: These never before seen parts of our house that we hadn’t highlighted before now, like our spaceship-like sunroom roof line:
The “You’ll Be Missed… But Not Much” Award: The tree growing on our house that we finally removed (to avoid any risk of foundation damage), along with trimming some overgrown shrubs nearby.
Most Persistent: Not giving up on this bathroom mirror framing project (even after a false start with too-small trim and, oh yeah, the whole thing crashing down after the first attempt).
Most Photogenic: Our television. Yes, we have a weird habit of taking pictures of the TV to document decor inspiration.
Easiest: Making a fast & free food coloring print for the hallway frame gallery.
Easiest (Runner Up): Sherry’s simple faux cross-stitch that she broke out to make a personalized anniversary gift for her brother and his wife.
Most Likely To Result In Claw-Hands: Stenciling the walls of the office, which isn’t exactly a quick project – but should be well worth it in the end (we hope to share final pics on Monday).
Best Sentence Ever Uttered By A Sixteen Month Old: “Iss my hoo hat.” Which was said by Clara after insisting that we help her put on a jacket and a crocheted hat (that looks like an owl) over her pajamas. Such a snappy dresser.
Most Three Dimensional: My take on the pros & cons of three different 3D interior design tools.
Most Intense: All of the Blogiversary posts last week…
… so if you missed any of those – here’s a quick recap of what was covered:
- An hour-by-hour look at a day in the life of us Petersiks
- Pie charts illustrating topics like how we spend our time & how we make money
- A breakdown of interesting (and weird) numerical stats about YHL
- A video response to various personal questions you asked us on Facebook
- A chance to talk about yourselves by answering our reader poll
- Setting goals for year 5, while evaluating how we did on year four’s
- Basic tips and advice on the coding side of blogging
- A play-by-play recap about how a post goes from concept to completion
- Ten lessons we’ve learned over our four years of blogging
So there you have it. September at a glance. What have you guys been up to this month? Have you ever made a list of accomplishments to look back on? It’s nice to take a break from adding things to our to-do list and take a moment to appreciate what we’ve accomplished. Just for a minute. Then it’s back to that $%@**&ing stencil…
Psst- You can check out July’s superlatives here and August’s here.
Pssssst- We’re so excited about the curated collection that we put together for Joss & Main (it comes out this Tuesday!). Click here to sign up and get alerted when the sale goes live!
Barb says
Productive month!
John@ Our Home from Scratch says
Extremely productive month ay? The epic office desk was my favorite!
Valerie says
Hoo Hat made me smile! =)
Lucy S says
I’m with Valerie about Clara. She is just so cute! And, I loved that from when my own kids were in the “language acquisition” stage…you can really see how their minds work! Hoo hat, indeed!
Holly says
most inspiring: YHL
thanks for all of the great ideas, posts & follow up. you guys are great!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Holly. You’re sweet.
xo,
s
my honest answer says
I love this monthly post! It reminds me of all the little things you do in a month to make your blog so great – as well as all of the big things I tend to remember. I don’t know where you find the time. Blogging is hard work.
My favourite thing this month was all the pie charts. Geek heaven.
Caity says
Clara=adorbs :)
Jenelle says
I rarely actually laugh out loud at things on the internet, but “Iss my hoo hat” got me. Hilarious.
My daughter has an owl hat, too, but she’s too young to realize it or name it.
Jess @ Little House. Big Heart. says
Holy chihuahuas. Didn’t you just do August Superlatives, like, yesterday? Where has this month gone? I mean, there’s only 85 days until Christmas, not that I’m counting.
YoungHouseLove says
I know, right?! We’re going to blink our eyes and it’ll be 2012!
xo,
s
seriouslysassymama says
Love the owl hat. Yesterday my 5 year old had green pants with clover on them, yellow and white striped shorts, and a black tshirt with glitter designs.
Amy @ TrangleHoneymoon says
Love the hoo hat! Sweet girlie.
Kristen @ Popcorn on the Stove says
Hahah I love the Beyoncé story. I couldn’t stop laughing at work!
Sherry – you’ll be able to get through the stenciling, I promise! It took me three days to do a single wall at our old place (granted, I had a paper cut out I traced and painted in but still). It’ll look wonderful at the end and you’ll be so glad you did it.
PS – Clara looks adorable with her hoo hat on!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Kristen! You guys are keeping me going. Can’t wait to be done!
xo,
s
Julia @ Chris loves Julia says
“The Josh Groban “You Raise Me Up” Award” takes the cake for the best title. Who wouldn’t want to win THAT award. Sherry, are you feelin’ the carpal tunnel creeping in? I remember after I tackled our stenciling project, My right wrist was AACCCHHHIINNNNGGG.
YoungHouseLove says
Weirdly enough my sorest part is my lower back and my forearms. The underside of my forearms actually. I think from holding the stencil flat and the whole dabbing motion. So strange.
xo,
s
Pasc says
So regarding your giant metal chicken, I thought I would give you guys a taste of Manitoba, Canada by directing you to this site that has a list (and pictures) of giant (sometimes quite bizarre statues, that are features in towns across Manitoba.
It’s worth a click!
http://www.manitobaphotos.com/statues.htm
My husband’s parents live in Glenboro, I never get sick of this giant camel!
Cheers!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, too funny!
xo,
s
Blair says
Love the list and my favorite of yours was the bloggiversary week, mine own month was filled with the retaliation that you can make your own applesauce in the microwave! http://thefirstapartment.blogspot.com/2011/09/homemade-applesauce.html hello, week of applesauce for breakfast!
~Blair
YoungHouseLove says
Applesauce in the microwave? Who knew?!
xo,
s
Stefani @ Try to Enjoy says
You guys are amazing. You are so productive! All that in one month. Wow.
I can’t wait to see how the stencil wall turns out… I know it must be bad if YOU are complaining about it because you guys are usually the sunniest most positive people about everything. It makes me feel in pain just thinking about how difficult and tedious all that stenciling must be. But I’m sure the finished product will be worth it :-)
JennyB says
So many exciting things happening this month! I recommend your site to people CONSTANTLY and have hooked many friends. The Beyonce chicken thing slayed me. I also forwarded that to a lot of people.
“Iss my hoo hat.” Classic. She’s going to be fashionista, I can tell!
Maureen @This (Kinda) Old House says
Thanks for the recap! I am really looking forward to having some more meaty posts on my blog like you guys have. At the moment, I am doing lots of little projects, but even those are so satisfying when you see your hard work pay off. A list of accomplishments is a great idea. I am a HUGE list maker. I am a bit OCD about it, really. Why not make a list that can make me feel accomplished? :) But, really guys, thanks again for all your inspiration!
Tanya @ Lovely Greens says
HAHAHAHAHAHA! Love the chicken story link :)
Dana Jones says
You have been upstaged by the Hoo hat, the best part of your month by a long shot! So cute!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, amen.
xo,
s
Kate says
Awww, hoo hat!
Cori says
Wow! This was one of your best blog months ever! Can’t wait to see the finished(?) office on Monday!
Linda says
What a month! So inspiring. Clara is really adorable, I looked at her monthly photos yesterday and can see she is really starting to grow and change. Love her newest fabric background, the dining room drapes.
Jennifer says
Great post! I have to ask about this “spoiled food” claim with the electric company. My husband and I are local and lost power for 5 days. How does one go about submitting a claim with Dominion Power? I would love to do that if possible! I suppose it might be too late though.
YoungHouseLove says
We just gave them a call and did it over the phone (I think we left a number and the right person called us back so we could enter that claim). Then we got a letter a few days later saying it was logged and processing! Hope it works for ya!
xo
s
Jennifer says
I will look into this – thanks so much!
Ashley Taylor says
Uh, yeah, I’m totally caling them! I have a feeling they will get A LOT of phone calls after this post!
Robin @ our semi organic life says
did you have to prove that you lost food or bought replacement food with receipts or anything? I wonder what the minimum days with out power is to get this…
YoungHouseLove says
We had the receipt to provide for the food. But I think they could prove how long we had lost power on their end, so they knew that three days meant nothing made it. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
melissa says
WOW, busy month and I thought we were productive bc we managed to sand a prime a craigslist dresser for the new baby’s nursery.
After seeing the food color paint drop post this week and it hanging as part of the gallery – it got me thinking, have you ever done a post on ALL of the art in the gallery – where it came from, or how you made it? It’s such a fantastic collection of art, I’d love to see each item and how it got there as one collective post (if you haven’t done that already and I missed it). I have a plan for an up the stairs gallery and this could be great inspiration – especially if you are a budget friendly decorator. As you can see, this thought process is purely self motivated.
Thanks for helping me pass the morning at work!
YoungHouseLove says
I actually was thinking of that! Just posting a few pics and numbering things in the photo (with photoshop) and writing a big description!
xo,
s
melissa says
LOL, thanks for changing “busy week” to “busy month” for me – I noticed it as soon as I hit submit!
That would be awesome if you did a post on the art – I will wait patiently!
YoungHouseLove says
You’re welcome! Haha, I’m so weird.
xo,
s
melissa says
no you’re not – it was bugging me too! I would have done the same thing!
Nancy says
I love the owl hat! But now she needs a Hoo hat like her dad.
YoungHouseLove says
Haha- it’s true!
xo,
s
Rachel says
LOL the hoo hat pic is killing me! Too cute:)
I can’t wait to see the stencil reveal! Hopefully it won’t give you claw hands this weekend!
Rachel’s Nest
Elisabeth says
That picture of you “sitting” at the kitchen table/imaginary banquette cracks me up every time, and the picture of Clara in her owl hat might be the cutest thing ever.
SO in love with the stenciling project thus far. Can’t wait to see the final pics!
Allyn says
I love that you have the old library drawers in your office! I have some too and they make me sooooo happy!
And whoa, how on earth is Clara old enough to speak in complete sentences?!
Holy ovaries Batman! That kid is adorable!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, it’s all very jumbled but sometimes we can make things out and it’s amazing! The other day I was changing her diaper and she looked up at me and said “no poo- just pee” very seriously. It was hilarious!
xo,
s
Amanda @ Our Humble A{Bowe}d says
Wow, that’s quite the list of accomplishments! Everything looks great!
Briel K. says
I love Clara’s hat! Does it come in adult sizes? haha
I can’t believe we are at the end of September already. It feels like you guys just did the August Superlatives!
GreenInOC says
Maybe for next year’s anniversary posts you can include the weirdest search terms used to end up on your site. Those are always fun because they’re so weird!
Seems like the bathroom mirror project was ages ago! You guys did a tremendous amount – have a great weekend!!
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes I love those! We’ll have to include those next time for sure!
xo,
s
Jessica Lynette says
I love this monthly round up as I always seem to miss posts throughout the month!!
I went and read the coupon one – did you know you can make your own yogurt?? And it’s really not very hard – just a matter of being home most of the day you’re making it.
I use this recipe – http://www.jessicalynette.com/food/247/ – and then top with favorite toppings. We make it weekly in our house!
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks so much!
xo,
s
annabelvita says
I can never believe how much you guys achieve in a month! Did you know that writing a list of your achievements is scientifically shown to help motivation? Lookie: http://annabelvita.com/love-to-do-lists-youll-love-a-done-list
YoungHouseLove says
Wahoooo! That’s so nice to hear. Hopefully it’ll help us get started on the kitchen!
xo,
s
Kristin says
LOVE the office redo! Can’t wait to see it completed!
Katrina says
I have a random question about getting rid of the musty smell in those nightstands (because I will be tackling an old dresser this weekend) – did you use diluted bleach on them before going the mild soap followed by vinegar route? Any advice that you have would be much appreciated!
BTW – the hoo hat definitely wins this month’s superlatives!
YoungHouseLove says
We actually don’t have bleach. Just used the soap (did nothing) and then the undiluted vinegar (worked!)! Hope it helps.
xo,
s
Katrina says
Great! I’d actually prefer not to use bleach, so I’ll go straight to the vinegar since we already wiped it down with soap/water (and aired it out in the garage for a month). Thank you for the advice.
Elizabeth says
Yay for superlatives! This post really is a good idea. And that beyonce post had me laughing so hard I cried!! Thanks youngsters!!
Reenie says
OMG….cutest pic ever of Clara…. “Iss my hoo hat.” Too cute!!! =)
Gwenalyn says
Clara is so stinkin’ cute! What a smarty you have on your hands! My 15 month old only has one phrase she uses; “good girl,” and it’s used in place of “thank you.” Her 9 year-old brother becomes slightly upset when he does something nice for her and she says, “Good girl, Keith.” Yeah… time to practice saying “thank you!”
Oh, and the moonshine wall being inebriated made me laugh! Nice.
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, hilarious!
xo,
s
Shelley says
Your idea of a good time matches mine. I love your superlative posts. And that you use the word superlative.
ESBlondie says
Clara is TOO cute!! I think I need a hoo hat now.
Keep up the great work! You guys are so inspiring!
Kati says
Wow, all in one month! You guys amaze me! And to think, I was excited because I ordered a light fixture! The rest probably won’t get done for months! LOL! And Clara with her “hoo hat”…cracks me up!
Jenny says
Your office looks amazing! Can’t wait to see how the stencil looks all done.
Actually, all the superlatives are great – the island, Clara, the big chicken….
heather says
My biggest accomplishment personal accomplishment this month was trying a design style that I have always liked, but wasn’t sure was me. Bright paint. I have this theory that if you’re really drawn to something in design, you need to try it to see if it’s really “you”. I *love* how bright paint in design looks (like the grellow kitchen). I swoon over it so I had to test this theory somewhere small in the house (yay for it being temporary – I never thought I’d love having a house we’d have to renovate SO much. What good testing grounds for style). So, the bathroom it was. The ceiling and upper part is Brittlebush (http://www.sherwin-williams.com/do_it_yourself/paint_colors/ideas/color/SW6684_brittlebush/) I.E. A darker, but bright, yellow. It’s warming, it’s fun, it’s awakening – and as much as I can appreciate it and it makes me smile – it’s just not totally me. I think what it comes down to is that I love vivid for accessorizing, but warmish and comforting more muted tones on the walls. (The gray on our walls I loovee but I’ve realized it’s just too cool for a geographic location that is 3/4 of the year cold).
Our biggest project by far this month though was finishing the foundation wall for our addition!
YoungHouseLove says
I love that trial and error method too! Sometimes it’s the only way to know for sure!
xo,
s
Marla says
by far the best is the picture of Clara in her little get up. Just so lovable! Have a great weekend!
Cheryl says
iss my hoo hat ….. I just rolled with that one!! So darn cute! That Clara is a “hoot” !!
SingleMama says
Oh, I love her hoo hat!!
Alex says
lol i just love clara’s whole ensemble, complete with the sippy cup and what looks like a mouth full of water. So cute. She has the best expressions and is soooo photogenic :)
Donna Jean says
aww…the “hoo hat” pic is too cute! my son as a “hoo hat” that looks like hedwig – i can’t wait until it is cold enough for him to wear it!!! (and maybe by then he’ll actually keep it on his head for more than 3 seconds!)
Alison says
That chicken story is amazing, I laugh every time I read it. The best is the caption under the picture. I die.
marnie says
LOVE your website and LOVE your organization and design skills and abilities. I’m a busy mom of 4 and love your organization ideas – can’t wait to see how your organization methods when there are 2 (or more) kids – it gets hard when little people outnumber big people. Your ideas are sensible and artistic. Appreciate how simple and clean/uncluttered you keep your home. Love the stories when you were recognized in public.
Your birth story brought tears – Your daughter is beautiful and adorable – thank you for sharing!