Calling ALL Pinterest people!!

The time has come.

The boxes are put away, we are settling in to our new home and it's time to decorate.

Except, I have NO idea where to start.

I have been in and out of Home Goods, Target, Hobby Lobby and done my fair share of web browsing and CANNOT decide what to do in my home.

The only thing I've bought are curtains for the dinning room, which I love but there are 5 areas of the house I NEED to focus on.

Living Room:

Walls - There are 2 HUGE walls that I just don't know what to do with. 

The couch isn't centered on either wall, because it's a corner couch, so I think that's throwing me off.

Coffee Table - I am looking for a square, low to the ground with rounded edges coffee table but I don't know what color to go with. Our couches are a dark brown with a hint of burgundy. 

TV wall - The TV is tucked in a corner. We originally thought about mounting the TV to the wall but then were worried about cords etc.

However Hunter has started pulling himself up on the stand and we are afraid he is going to pull the TV over. 

We would also like to "hide" all of the consoles and DVDs. 

Suggestions?

Entry Way:

I am definitely thinking a collage wall with a few photos, a mirror, some quotes framed and maybe a giant initial.

I also want to put a table with a lamp and maybe some flowers.

What do you think?

Stairwell:

There is a huge open wall going up the stairs. 

I originally had no plans for the wall since I am going to be decorating the wall under the stairs, but a friend who came by suggested that I put photos along the wall.

 Hmmm. I don't know.

And the ledge? I don't know what to do with at all? 

Flowers? Photos? Another Mirror? Help!!

(I couldn't find ANY photos of ideas for the ledge under the stairwell window)

Dining Room:

My biggest focus for the dining room is a rug.

I bought a rug at Ross that was priced really well and I loved it but once I got it home it just was NOT the one.

Where do I find a good rug?

I would eventually also like to get a bench for one side of the table and two upholstered chairs for the heads of the table. 

All in time! 

Mud Room:

It's really just a small hallway by the garage that leads to the half bathroom and laundry room. 

I would love some hooks for coats and some baskets for shoes 

(since we are going to be a NO SHOES house) 

and maybe a few "important papers" containers, a calendar, and a cork board? 

There are LOTS of cute ideas out there so I just gotta find whats right for me! 

These rooms are definitely my main focus right now.

I still have the laundry room, master, two spare bedrooms, and basement.

Is it normal for me to be feeling this overwhelmed with trying to make my home pretty?

Aw. 

Where is my money tree!?

I am really excited for garage sale season to be right ahead of us! 

I always love finding a one of a kind piece for a great price. 

I'd love to hear suggestions or see photos of ideas or things you've done?

Where are places you found things for you home?

x0.

Kyla.

(I do not own these photos. They were found on Pinterest)

Kyla Asks: Budgeting = Sacrafice to eating well?!!

One of the many things that came along with getting married was combining our incomes, paying bills and BUDGETING.  Luckily for me, Kevin  has been a budgeting fool for years and is a PRO. I, however, have never been good at such a responsibility. When I was single, making the big bucks, I paid bills, bought what I needed and did whatever I wanted with the rest. It just seemed to work out each month... so I thought. 

Kevin and I, in the three months that we have been married, have been working on this budgeting thing. Easy for him and a real struggle for me in some departments. Kevin has come up with an amazing system via Excel where he takes everything that we make in a month and puts it into little "departments". We have departments such as; tithing, food, entertainment, Kevin & Kyla personal, gas, car insurance, cell phones, gifts for others, K2, future savings and many more. 

It seems like every dollar is counted for. I am so grateful that Kevin came up with such a great plan and I can absolutely see (especially in our savings departments) how beneficial our budget has been for us now and for our future.

The greatest struggle/disagreement that has come from this budget is in the food department. We have an amount set and without fail, EVERY month, we have gone over. Given, I am the one who is in charge of the food department because I cook the meals (most of them). I am finding it very challenging to stay within my budget while trying to make sure I have a good home cooked meal on the table every night for my husband when he comes home from a long day of work! What am I doing wrong?? 

The amount we have set for food each month is based on research and asking other people how much they spend. 

I struggle because food is the first thing I want to spend money on. I love to cook and entertain (a trait no doubt I inherited from my mother) and want to be "that" domestic housewife I always imagined I would be. 

"The plan" is to buy food to last two weeks with half the money in the budget, then buy food for the next two weeks to last us until the end of the month with the rest of the money in the budget. FAIL. I have tried so hard to buy only things we NEED for breakfast, lunch and dinners and somehow during that two weeks, I am making a 2 or 3 more trips to the grocery store to get things I forgot, things I ran out of, or things I need for a specific recipe. It so easy in a quick trip to the grocery store to drop another $20-$50 dollars. 

I have tried couponing (a little bit) and feel because of the things we are buying and that we are only buying for two, the saving isn't making a dent in the total at the end of the transaction. Am I doing it wrong?

I have even printed out weekly meal calenders to chart down exactly what we will eat for each meal, on each day to make sure I only buy those things.. It's not working. 

I was raised eating very well. I don't believe I ever had a frozen TV dinner until I moved out to Utah last year. Not that I am making steaks, ribs and other expensive meals every night, but I like to have a good home cooked meal! I like fresh fruits and vegetables in the house and we go through milk, bread, turkey, eggs, cheese, juice and so many other things like we are feeding an army. Are we eating too much??

I know it's possible. My question to you readers is what do you do to keep within your food budget each month? 

How do the groceries you buy last two whole weeks? 

What are your suggestions for a food budget, couponing and meal ideas?  

Part of being "that" wife I always wanted to be; is asking for help when your plan isn't working. I want to prove to Kevin that I am serious about our budget and I want to make it work and still be able to cook good meals! That's why I am asking all of you for your thoughts and ideas.

Thanks Everyone!

Love,

A "cook-aholic" wife :)

PS. Here are some of the things I have been cooking over the months. It's been so fun and I don't want to give up all the good stuff. Bon Appetite!