A Place To Count Our Pennies That Didn't Cost Very Many

Current home office

Our home office is 8'x6'.  There isn't a lot of room to work with, but this room works hard for our family.  We had to make this compact space functional with lots of storage, display, and counter space. 

 

 

It looked like this when we first moved in:

 

I actually really loved the fun fabric on the original drapes, but years of direct sunlight caused it to fade. 

 

The room slowly got new carpet and paint, but we lived with it like this for awhile until we couldn't take it any longer:

(I'm so embarrassed.)

As you can see, we needed more countertop space.  After scoping out the sheds on our farmyard, I suggested we use an old tabletop covered in chipped paint that I found in one of them.  J agreed, so he cut it to fit wall-to-wall in the office and varnished it.  Cost=$0.

The rustic-looking tabletop is supported by a file cabinet on both ends.  A self-employed farmer and a designer who works part of the time from home need A LOT of file storage!

J assembled the white shelf with plywood and corbels leftover from previous projects.  Cost=$0.  It's coated in Muralo white paint, which wears like an oil-based paint but cleans up with soap and water.  I always keep a gallon on hand, and I would recommend it for any interior shelving, trim and furniture.  Ask your truly for more information. :)

 

 

We replaced the drapes with this:

Just kidding!  This was a custom-made upholstered valance that was doomed for the dumpster at the store where I work.  My heart hurt a little bit when I thought of it being thrown in the trash.  I asked if I could have it, and they were happy to give it away.  Cost=$0.  With $24 worth of new fabric, a staple gun, and a husband-to-hang-it, the new window treatment livens up the room and doesn't make paying bills in there so bad.

The big frame was given to us from the in-laws and the "S" was painted by me.  Cost=$0.

 

Now, spending time in our office doesn't make me mind working from home one bit!

Handy

A bolt on the lawn mower broke off while mowing today (a breakdown I did NOT cause), and afterward the steering did not work properly.  I diagnosed the problem, found the part, and fixed it all by myself, then continued to finish mowing. All while working on my tan.  BOOM!

My summer ride

Lucas Stories

Although his toy box is filled with trucks, tractors, balls and hockey sticks, Lucas still knows how to play with dolls, kitchen stuff and princesses. The one he always points out and calls by name is "Princerella." You know? The one with the glass slipper!







Here he is shaving just like Daddy





 

During the holiday season, we enjoyed listening to Christmas music in the car. One day said, "Mom, let's sing the Spanish Christmas song: 'Pah-lease Mom and Dad....Please Mom and Dad!" (Insert those words as you sing 'Feliz Navidad' in your head, and you'll know where he was coming from!)

 

 

This morning, I said, "Lucas, look at the trees- they're all white and frosty!" He replied, "Oh, like on cake?"  I realized he thought I said 'frosting' and not 'frosty.'

 

 



He loves it when we give him "piggy-bank rides."

 

 

He says "to-yesterday," which actually makes a lot of sense when the alternatives are 'TOday' and 'TOmorrow.'

 

 

If he could watch movies all day, he'd be in heaven. His latest favorite is Wreck-It Ralph, but he used to call it Rock and Roll since the two phrases apparently sound similar.  Another favorite is "Despicable MOMMA" or "Despicable YOU."  I figured he calls it that because when I would say "Lucas, do you want to watch Despicable Me?" he thought I was referring to myself.

 

He had Jason and I rolling on the floor laughing one time when he meant to say "Are they theirs?" but couldn't figure out how to phrase it. Instead, it came out, "Are them thems?  Are them theys?  Is theirs thems?  Are these thems?"

 

My heart melts when he compliments me: "Nice dress, Mom!" and "Cool paint, Mom!"


The other day, he nicely asked, "Mom, can you turn the light on for me? It's too ghosty in there." (It was dark in the bathroom.)



I don’t ever want to forget how he makes me smileJ



 



 

He doesn't like Spiderman at all





 

Mooooooo

Besides adjusting to life with double the amount of children, our winter has been all about "The Ranch."

 

The Ranch:

A place about 30 miles away from our farmyard near a state park in northwest Minnesota.  A place that has been in the family for 30+ years, which we recently acquired.  A place where a couple hundred head of cattle, a few horses, and dogs reside.  A place in rockier soil where farming is a bit trickier than the fertile Red River Valley land.  A place that is managed by a friend that the kids like to call "Cowboy Dan" who lets them help feed the horses and gives them ear tags of their very own.  A place where my man occupies his deer stand after harvest in the fall.  A place that I have a feeling we will be seeing a lot more of in the future.

 

And so begins a whole new set of adventures.

 

The fact that my husband knows more about artificial insemination, labor/birth, nursing, and all the terminology that goes along with it than I ever will is not news to me.  These are all things he learned while working at The Ranch when he was growing up.

 

It is also not news to me that just like us, the cows have to eat every day, too.  So, I will not protest when Jason is spending his days at The Ranch during farming's off-season.

 

What will be new to me is getting up-close-and-personal with farm animals as I have never done in my life.  And soon a season called "Calving" will be added to our calendar.  I am not quite sure how long those days and nights will be, but ask me in a couple months when we are in the thick of it.

 

How is it being a rancher's wife so far?

 

So far, it has been fun, because I have gotten to assist in re-doing the bunkhouse!

When I say "assist" I mean:

· selecting all of the interior finishes and fixtures including cabinetry, flooring, wainscoting, paint, lighting, faucets

· accompany my husband on numerous trips to "Bee-nards" (as Lucas calls it)

· acheiving a feeling of 'rustic elegance' (Think antler chandeliers.) You know, a place where even us women wouldn't mind resting our heads if absolutely necessary

· being frugal as much as my champagne-taste-on-a-beer-budget-orientated mind will allow

That is such a typical designer-turned-farmwife response, isn't it?!  I am not doing any of that demolition, installation, electrical, plumbing, or messy work.  Just the decorating part.

 

The goal is that after this winter, the bunkhouse at The Ranch will be a cozy, little cabin where the guys can stay during calving and hunting season.  I am already daydreaming about my boys staying out there when they go hunting with Daddy.  I can hardly wait to show you before-and-after photos!

So God Made a Farmer

Two

I am the mother of two.  Two beautiful boys.  One blonde and one brunette.  One born during a minor spring flood two years ago, and the other born during a rare early-autumn blizzard.  Two.

 

 

On October 5th, we welcomed Reed James into our family.

He was 7 pounds 1.7 ounces of perfection.

 

 

 

 



I cannot help but compare my two boys- their features, their dispositions, their size...

L after his first bath at home.



R after his first bath at home.





L one couch cushion long.

 

R one couch cushion long.

 

Immediately after Reed was born, J got to proudly announce to me, “It’s a boy!”  After the tears of joy, my mind turned to pictures of our future:



 

Two little boys in matching outfits.

Two little boys playing in our yard.

Two bigger boys helping with yardWORK.

Two brothers on the same sports team.

Two young men farming together.

Two grown men standing up at each other’s weddings.

 

 

But for now, there is not enough room in their baby books to record every little memory that I don’t want to lose.  Like Lucas’s excitement and comprehension as we prepared for the arrival of the baby...

As my midsection grew, he understood that there was a baby in there.  We would ask him, “Lucas, do YOU have a baby in YOUR belly?”  He would respond, “Noooo!  I have Jesus in my heart.” 

When I felt the baby moving around, kicking, or when it had hiccups, I would take L’s hand so he could feel it.  Then, one night as J was putting Lucas’s jammies on, Lucas exclaimed, “Look!  Jesus has the hiccucks!” as he rolled his bare belly in and out as if to imitate Mommy’s.

 

 

 

Now that precious, little Reed has arrived, Lucas is really the best big brother a baby could ask for.  When the two first met, Lucas was excited to hold Reed and kiss and hug him.  And lucky for us, he still cannot get enough of him.  Neither can we, Big Brother!

 

 

Get 'em while they're hot!



Now available from Jill Sobolik Designs...

Red wooden letters - $5 each plus shipping (6"x8")

Aqua Blue or Spring Green trays - $25 each plus shipping (21"x15"x4")

 Here's a gift idea using a tray:

(Sorry, this orange tray is no longer available, but let me know if you love the color and I can create something for you!)

Wire shelves - $30 each plus shipping 

Sunny Yellow (10"x12"x27" high)

Gloss White (12"x19"x28" high)

Check out this cute starburst detail:

Please feel free to contact me via this blog or email jillsobolik@gmail.com for more information or if you want to snag up any of these items!