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27 November 2013

Oh the holiday hustle and bustle .... don't hate me but ... I don't love it.

I'm dreaming of a night float filled January. Or dreading.

Sometimes it just feels like an ever present and lurking cloud of reminder that I still have done zero shopping for zero people and done no festive things and Simon's schedule's about to get riddy riddy shiddy and oh, yes ... the reason for the season!! Let's not forget to keep that at the forefront of our thoughts and stress. I'm not being a grinch .... just a Grace. Don't doubt for a second that it's a real pleasure to know me in real life. No, I'll get on the cheer train soon enough ... fear not. Just as soon as this call weekend comes to a blessed end and we are one Thanksgiving closer to the prospect of the holiday being spent with familia.

Okay, that's not totally fair because my little brother Paul is driving up from college as I type. I do hope he's cool with a spread of lots of mashed potatoes, this stellar looking recipe, lots more mashed potatoes, rotisserie of chicken sandwiches, and apple (not pumpkin ... nocanlikeever) pie because that's what's going down manana.

Anyway - on days like today when I wake up and start to give myself a little lecture about maybe being more on top of the baking and the shopping and the Adventing all three kids greet me from their crib posts (I'm working on getting a bed for Julia ... the Craigslist gods just need to crack a smile in my direction as I refuse to buy one of the 99 toddler beds in the shape of a plastic car for sale but I know my time will come soon. It will.) with urine soaked sheets and the better part of the morning is immediately spoken for by some serious loads of laundry and crib sheet changing (the worst) and crib sheet cursing (the most helpful, trust me) ... I decide to throw the half-hearted lecture on the shelf for next year, maybe.

So. Holiday spirit alive and vibrant is what you've gotten so far ... I hope.

Let's shift gears ...


to our living room.
(This is from last year before the Advent po start getting their smug and judge on for the tree.)

When we first moved in I really thought the tan walls were totally great. Or fine, at the very least. Now I hate them. I blame Pinterest and blog reading and a really nasty case of nesting but they drive me really crazy. At first I thought we should paint them white but then mmmm there are so many different shades of white (ridiculous) and so what if the white I pick clashes terribly with the floorboards and the trim? Disaster, I know. So now I'm running with the idea of a very light grey. The only problem with that is that if you think there are a million shades of white ... you better be prepared to do your homework over all 50 million shades of grey out there. All I know is that I want to steer VERY clear of any shade in the family of, "greige" .... what a great name for a color.


Greige. 

Since Simon's working this weekend I'm enlisting the help of Paul to make my dream a reality and Simon keeps (smartly) telling me that the color of the living room is not going to change how clean the house never stays and I keep reminding myself that one of my many talents is not having an eye for interior decor and the walls will always look a little bare or a little off or a little too crowded but I still think that a tanless wall existence is really going to do wonders for my spirit.

Let me dream. And wish me and Paul the luckiest of lucks. Thanks.

And a very Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours - all 2.3 of you that are reading blogs instead of getting your bake and shake ON.

xo - just for fun.


47 comments:

  1. No bake n' shake here . . . we celebrated Thanksgiving in October, as one does in Canada. :o) I hope you have a lovely Thanksgiving, complete with freshly painted walls and visits from family - could there be anything better?

    (We had our whole house painted taupe (isn't that just a fancy word for beige?!) before we moved in three years ago and I am SO sick of it. So feel free to send your bro our way if he doesn't get enough of a painting fix at your place.)

    Oh, and I'd be at your place in a heartbeat for Thanksgiving because you said the magic word - mashed potatoes. Me and the littlest can eat them until they're coming out our ears. And then we'd just eat some more. Mmm!

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  2. We painted our bedroom grey this year and I love it. You won't regret it. And a freshly painted wall (no matter what color) always makes a room looks cleaner...at least until the little ones get their grubby paws all over it.

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  3. Love it...good luck with paint color choice. Just thinking about making such a life commitment gives me the shakes. Now I'm off to drink some wine for you...happy Thanksgiving, sunshine!

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  4. We just painted our baby nursery "San Antonio grey" by Behr from Home Depot. I couldn't begin to tell you how many samples we went through trying to avoid greige, and colors with purple, blue, and green undertones! All I wanted was true grey...sigh. But find it we did! Good Luck, picking paint colors is the worst!

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    1. awesome. I just looked that one up --- I think that might be perfect. Is it pretty light? This room is SUPER dark ... with little natural light.

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    2. Our room is pretty dark too but I think it looks nice. I'm hesitant to recommend it only because we have bright white beadboard around the bottom of the room to lighten it up. It's a medium grey, not white with a little grey mixed in but a heather grey. So if you are looking for a tinted white this is probably too dark for you but if you want a grey that's not charcoal then you are good. Make sense?

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    3. If you try a sample of it wait until it is dry to judge, the color came out way different then what the sample looks like in the jar and when wet on the wall, plus side we only needed one coat ;-)

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  5. Oh my gosh. Tan walls. My entire house. Total nightmare. It's like the most off-color of coffee-with-not-enough-or-a-little-too-much-creamer.

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  6. You and I, cut from the same cloth, we are. No baking of any kind will be happening. BUT, I did manage to dump cider in a pot and turn it on low, the oven's heating for chicken nuggets, and the whiskey should be in that cider at about 7pm. You hear that? It's me exploding with festive planning.

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    1. I think you have your bases covered: poultry, alcohol and apples. I can get on board with that and it's way less mess than what I've got going on here.

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  7. We just put the crib mattress on the floor. Then when we needed the crib mattress for another baby, we put a twin mattress on the floor. No worries about little monkeys falling off and bumping their heads.

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  8. It doesn't matter whether the house gets cleaner...a new shade of paint does wonders both for the feel of the home and the spirits of the Mama.
    Also, crib sheets S.U.C.K. I keep telling myself I'm just going to make my husband do it and til then the baby can sleep on a towel, but then I forget and do it anyway.

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  9. I happen to be blog reading…and food prepping! All three kids are sleeping, and my husband some how convinced his family that is visiting that it is super fun to shovel snow…so they are doing that! haha. And toddler beds are the worst! We bought one for each boy and neither one would sleep on them, I would find them sleeping on the floor in the morning. We gave in and got them twin beds thinking they needed more room? We have no excuses...

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  10. I thought I hated fitted sheets... And then I started changing crib sheets. The WORST. I have a feeling my shopping this year will be done 99% online. It's already too cold to be worth leaving the house with the littles when it's not necessary. Hope your Thanksgiving is a good one! Maybe with an outfit? Or are we past that?

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  11. Happy almost thanks giving day! thanks for your witty, wonderful blog~ my favorite! Not sure whattcha mean with the Advent po-po and Xmas tree.... one IS to 'prepare their home as best they are able'.... as goes the church hymn.... there is nothing against that in the CCC/ catechism so no worries :)
    and two cents, well, maybe 3 about paint color. Try some on a wall first. Check out the light/window situation with it. Does it make you happy? Yes, sold! get a gallon. No? Try again. I love something that allows light to reflect from it instead of absorbing it, if that makes sense.
    and done-with-this-too-long comment. phew!

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  12. I think I'm with the mattress on the floor group. We have a 2 year old and right now I'm #crib4lyfe BUT if the time ever comes that we need to transition, I think that's our plan. I had never considered it until we visited some friends and that's what they did with their 3 year old, and actually thought it was quite perfect. Good luck!

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  13. I have pale grey walls, with green trim and I love them.

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  14. I can't wait to see what grey you come up with! I'm sure it will look great. YOU may not think you have an eye for décor, but I think most of your readers would disagree. When you've got taste, you've got taste. (And whatever -- who cares as long as you like it.)

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  15. I finally gave in and let my kid paint his room black. He's always wanted a completely blacked out room and since we now live in my parents' basement (I'm such a cliche) and he has a windowless room that is really only good for a storm shelter, we let him paint his walls black. He picked out a really cool shade of purple for the accent color and after years of my bedroom being solidly in the brown and sage range, I went bonkers and painted an accent wall in my bedroom purple. BOLD purple. Let me tell you, it has done wonders for my psyche. Sometimes we just need a change. also, I think there's something psychological about feeling unable to change certain things making you want to change the things you can.

    As far as Christmas/Advent/Thanksgivukkah goes, I will say that every single year of my childrens' childhoods there was always some element that I didn't get done in time but when I think back over those years, I only remember the stuff we did, not the stuff we didn't do. But what's your issue with pumpkin pie? Who doesn't like pumpkin pie?

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  16. Happy Thanksgiving!! I'm reading blogs and not baking since I have to go into work tonight and tomorrow night :( Sometimes working in holidays makes it like any other day for me.

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  17. My husband and I just painted our bedroom "Irish Mist" by Behr. It is a very, very light grey but it has warm tones in it and makes our previously high-gloss-cream-colored walls seem cozy and refreshing at the same time. Happy painting! Can't wait to see your after pictures.

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  18. I'm another Canadian who celebrated Thanksgiving a month and a half ago and keeps getting confused as to why all these blogs are talking about Thanksgiving again...yeah, a little slow. But happy Thanksgiving and happy painting. I think my bedrooms walls are greige, I just never knew the name for it before. I would happily paint but we rent and apparently they don't bother me enough to invest my time and money into someone else's property. Thank you for giving a name to this weird colour though.

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  19. We painted almost our entire house Benjamin Moore's "Edgecomb Gray" and somehow, 3 years later, I still love it. Would definitely recommend that shade! Happy Thanksgiving!

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  20. I saw a super subtle grey that is called "Toasted White" by Glidden. In case you were looking for suggestions. ha!

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  21. We just painted our bedroom Sea Glass... Not grey but more green greyish. It's by Bejamin Moore... The color is really growing on me. Happy painting and baking and washing and cooking and resheeting

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  22. Happy Thanksgiving, my friend! I hope you find the perfect grey - I love freshly painted walls. It's the one home improvement thing I do well.

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  23. For whatever my advice is worth (nothing) don't go the toddler bed route, just get her a twin that will last her until she moves out. And we did our family room in linen white by Benjamin Moore, it's a nice white shade with hints of yellow. Happy Thanksgiving!

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  24. Happy, Happy Painting!! Happy, Happy Thanksgiving!! Happy, Happy Sheet Changing!! That last one I am all to familiar with. It doesn't get any better. Sorry. Wishing you peace and feasting this weekend. You will survive...I just know it. Blessings and Hugs my friend!!

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  25. Bunk bed sheets. The worst. The end.

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  26. I'm on the hunt for a shade of white for my daughter's room and a shade of gray (no crazy undertones!!) for my son's room so I totally feel your pain on the millions of options out there! It's overwhelming. I feel like I always end up picking the wrong shade. Hopefully, you will have better success than I usually do! Can't wait to see the results!

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  27. no shake n bake here either. psychiatric nurse, hospital manana for me....love the christmas tree blocked by the couch. genius!! we put ours 2 baby gates away in the foyer, we never get to see it...you have solved my problem.

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  28. I'm already envious of your not yet grey walls. I've got white all the way around. And we're going with chicken for Thanksgiving too - cheers!

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  29. The tree barricaded by the couch...genius! Now to go stare at my living room and figure out a way to recreate that look in my own casa.

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  30. Just found your blog and adore your writing style! Good luck with the painting!

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  31. with the Christmas shopping/advent stuff I have never loved it either but this year I did 90% of my christmas shopping on Amazon. With free shipping and a month for the stuff to arrive, it beats trying to go shopping with the kids (NOT going to happen) and it was almost fun ... because I love to surf the internet once the kids are asleep. And I kept it super simple (1 gift per kid) since the kids are young and don't know the difference between a $10 and $100 toy. ;)

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  32. In case you want more paint color suggestions, Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter or Sherwin Williams Pewter tankard are great options. Also, if they are too dark for your preference, just ask that they be mixed at 50% or 75% or any % you like.

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  33. I hear ya! My husband is in the ER tonight (thus I am not sleeping!) so the most festive thing the kids and I will be doing tomorrow is "the turkey pokie". That and trying to be quiet so daddy can sleep:)

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  34. Enjoy your time with your brother! Fresh paint always lifts my spirits. :)

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  35. after 6 years in this house we just painted our beige SPONGE PAINTED walls white and I can tell you it has done wonders for the soul and the "who cares what colour the walls are" husband even admits that it was worth the effort.

    I am hoping this comment will give you hope that maybe one day you will get around to painting your walls too.

    AND the first few days after it was done I definitely kept the house cleaner as part of that 'oh man I have such a lovely house, I love looking at it all tidy with the white walls' honeymoon period.

    Happy Thanksgiving!

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  36. I'm still in love with the color of our living room walls: stonington gray. I actually stole it from my friend's house because I loved it on her walls. It's a Benjamin Moore color but we actually got it in el cheapo paint at lowe's (they have Benjamin Moore colors on file and can copy it). Here's a picture of our living room before and after. http://www.moneyhipmamas.com/2013/07/diy-home-makeover-living-room.html?m=0

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  37. We recently painted with BM Grey Mirage and really like it, for what it's worth:

    http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/graymirage

    Good luck!

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  38. i highly recommend buying paint samples! we have painted several rooms in our house grey, and a ton of the greys have blue/purple undertones! we finally found a good one in "vintage grey"... i think it's an eddie bauer color... good luck with the painting! we have a lot of beige in our house in 2 story rooms...so yeah, not painting that ourselves so stay it must. for now.

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  39. Beige walls are the worst! We're stuck with them in both bedrooms in our apartment and I've tried so hard to make the rooms not so overwhelmingly beige. Our bedroom gets tons of natural light, so we've kept the decor pretty spare and that works well. In our baby's room, which gets pretty much zero natural light, everything looks yellowy and washed out, despite our best efforts to brighten it up with primary colors. Good luck with the grey! The den in my parents' house is painted a deep dove grey and it looks like a dusty chocolate brown in certain light. I hated the idea at first, but now I think it looks great! And it's definitely not greige (aka the worst).

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  40. excited to see your results. i totally get ya on the daunting task of picking white paint. i tried four samples for our dining room before i gave up and used the untinted white paint that you buy straight off the shelves, which i really like. now i'm trying to pick a dark gray for our exterior and am frustrated once again. undertones be damned!

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  41. Your meal sounds delicious -- mashed potatoes a meal make for me. And we are totally going with the early decorating this year. I've bee a kind of holder-outer in the past, but I went back to work this Sept. (middle school English teacher-- yes, I knew you'd shudder) and am having all sorts of "I don't have time" anxiety.

    Children are precious as ever, and I kind of like "greige," although the word is horrifying.

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  42. So, I am SUPER late reading this post, but just in case you haven't painted your walls yet... "Essential Gray" by Sherwin Williams is amazing. Seriously. I bought sooooooo many samples, and this was the gray-ist gray I could find. Just google-image it for yourself.

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