
audrey is adoring the ‘makers space’ we created. i love gifts for children that encourage open ended creativity & play and support their natural gifts.
so, this room is across the hall from her bedroom…and people have asked, “how did you keep it a secret?”
truthfully, it really wasn’t all that hard! this room is a bit cooler in the winter (because it’s above our garage) so jason mentioned he was going to shut and lock the door so we didn’t have to heat it…we rarely used it so audrey didn’t think anything of it!
i tried to keep the window open so she wouldn’t smell the fresh paint and we did everything when she was at school or asleep.
there was one evening when we kept coming up with things to do after school so the builder could finish the desk…we went to the bookstore, pet store (to see if any of the dogs were getting haircuts), target…and that was a little comical :)
a few details: the armoire on the right side of the photo has a pull-out shelf that holds her keyboard and a place for her ukulele, making it an ideal music center (brilliant idea thanks to sarah who i asked for advice on setting the room up right from the start). past the armoire there’s a white sofa with a furry throw and a curtain rod with clips mounted to the wall to hold a revolving art collection held with clips.
unpictured is a long closet lined with shelves to hold bins of various things (i wanted her to be a big part of organizing it because she actually loves that!) and a drop-leaf table from jason’s great-grandmother that’s currently holding a lego eco village (no joke, audrey even had the windows open on all the homes, a farmers market and people riding bicycles #loveherheart) with this quote framed above it (my most favorite part of the room). sweet alexa color-matched the paint on the opposite wall and created a new version of the print.
the wall above the desk is painted with chalkboard paint…did you know benjamin moore can make chalkboard paint, any color?? love that!! it’s not visible in the photo but jason and i chalked snowflakes, lollipops and some frames for her to sketch her next creation in :)
we all love hanging out in here!! my one worry was that she wouldn’t ever come out but gratefully, she does!
project notes:
her reaction on christmas morning
we’re pretty simple about christmas – we’ve usually done a variation on “to wear/to read/to play” along with a stocking so when audrey woke up and saw the door wrapped, she said “oh mom, i love the new christmas decoration!” ;) it’s so fun to be a parent. #nothingbetter
wishing you every good thing in 2016, -melanie-
- 012016 Goals
Val organized her 2016 goals so well – i particularly adore how they’re paired with scripture & a vision board. I’ve been writing my goals almost every morning and I can’t believe the difference it’s made!
- 02On Being
love a good podcast…especially on a roadtrip and this one with Jean Vanier on the wisdom of tenderness was so so beautiful! i’m so glad to share the planet with such remarkable people!
- 0321 day complaint free challenge
have you heard about the pastor who challenged his congregation to go complaint/gossip free for 21 days? even tim ferris says it’s life changing! i don’t feel like a complainer but i’m doing the challenge just to make sure!
if you complain, you switch a bracelet and start your day count over (i started wearing one from a sweet friend but found i was taking it off to wash dishes, shower, exercise so now i’m just wearing a rubberband!).
- 04how to decorate without clutter
look at all these amazing articles…i got a fairly good blog post in my inbox with that title but wasn’t a fan of how peppered it was with product mentions (a little ironic) so i went on a hunt and found so many more filled with great ideas!
Wow, wow, wow! Thanks so much for sharing her space and the details! I love that even though it’s a space created for Audrey, your whole family has been enjoying it! I think I’d never leave.
there was something else i mentioned i’d blog about – if it comes to mind, i’ll get on it! xoxo, -m-
This is just great Melanie!
Wow, Audrey’s new space sounds AMAZING. What an incredible, thoughtful, fun gift!
My parents started the complaint-free challenge last year and said it was a game changer. They even got all of management from their business inlvoved!
Happy New Year! xo
how absolutely fantastic, molly – i love that they used it in their business! brilliant! we’ve gotten too casual about complaining about every.little.thing…i think this exercise conditions us to be more aware of our speech and also more *accurate* given how fortunate we are!