desk lamp makeover

I upgraded our old office lamp with a new and colorful one.  I must say, making over a lamp is one of my favorite craft projects to do!  It's fun going thrift shopping and finding an old junky looking lamp that with a little spray paint makes it look sooooooooooooooo cool!  

Our office desk with the old brown and boring lamp.

Found this baby at Goodwill.  The key is finding a lamp with beautiful curves like this one.  With spray paint  the curves pop out!

I was first thinking about spray painting it white...and then I decided to go with light blue because the lamp shade I got is gray and the gray looked nice with the light blue.  

I ran into a dilemma when I was spray painting the lamp with the white.  It was sooooooo humid outside today and I know you're not supposed to spray paint in high humidity.  I didn't care...until after I spray painted the first coat of white spray paint.  The spray paint was drying into chalky substance that was rubbing off.   Then I realized why you shouldn't spray paint in high humidity.  But I was still determined to finish the project.  So after each coat of spray painting it outside, I brought it inside to dry off in the air conditioned environment (but I did open a window and have a fan blowing on it).  I know it's not ideal...but I am so impatient that I couldn't wait, I had to finish this!  

This color turned out really nice.  And it shows off the curves and ripples of the lamp base.

With the lamp shade!

Finished product.  

The lamp in its new home.  It goes well with my fabric covered cork board!

recipe recommendation: quinoa chili

Last night I made a new meal that I found off of Pinterest: Quinoa Chili.

You can get the recipe here!

It's a vegetarian meal but it's VERY filling.  This recipe is a keeper for me!

thrifted wooden frame

I really enjoy thrift shopping.  When I was visiting my family this summer my mom and I would go thrift shopping...a lot.  And the theme song I would sing was "I'm gonna pop some tags I only got $20 in my pocket..." and then I'd stop there because that song it not very wholesome.  And I never really did pop any tags...

Anyway...I found an old picture with a frame...and not just some cheap plastic frame, but a real wooden frame.  That's a good find.  I took apart the frame and first I spray painted it white, but I didn't like that.  So I painted the wood with light blue acrylic paint and sealed it with some matte modge podge.  I put in a picture of Rollin and me from our wedding.  I'm not sure I'm completely satisfied with the finish product but it's a start.

This is what it originally looked like.

Finished.

Hanging on the wall.

The End.

song of the week

This is another favorite song of mine right now.  My favorite part is the bridge where he sings:

"There's gonna be a wedding, it's the reason why I'm living, to marry the Lamb."

It moves me to prepare my heart and spirit for the return of Jesus.




What do you think of this song?

upgrade

I spent some time yesterday and today working on my blog and upgrading it.  You can call it "Being Rachy Blog 2.0."  I want to start blogging more anyway.

Let me know what ya think of the changes!

every month (in pictures)

Tonight Rollin and I got in an argument.  But we still like each other.  And, of course, we love each other.  In fact, right now while I'm working on this post he's following the A&M football game while I decided to collect a picture of each other every single month that we've been together. We enjoy just being in the same room together, even if we're doing separate things.  We started dating May of 2009, so this month is our 53rd month together as a couple.  I ALMOST have a picture from every month we were together.  Maybe it's silly that I did this, but I enjoyed looking back on our months together.

Taken June 5th, 2009.  Who knew that a year from this year we'd be getting married.

Taken July 2nd, 2009.

Taken July 16th, 2009.  We got into our first fight on a this hike.  With many more to come!  Hehe.

Taken August 5th, 2009.

Taken September 7th, 2009.

Taken October 20th, 2009.  This is a cute story.  We had a conflict earlier that day and didn't really get to resolve it.  He was at school and was going to be at class in the evening.  So I decided to go on a run to campus and find him before he has his class.  Well, little did I know that he decided to skip class to come home and spend time with me.  We finally found each other.

Taken November 14th, 2009 on Tiki Island.

Taken November 28th, 2009 in Chicago, IL.

Taken January 2nd, 2010.  He flew to Illinois and proposed!

Taken January 21, 2010.

Taken February 13th, 2010.  Celebrating our first Valentine's Day.

Taken March 3rd, 2010.

Taken April 10th, 2010.  I was so eager to take pictures of bluebonnets my first spring in Texas!

Taken May 22nd, 2010.  Just two weeks until our wedding!!

Taken June 5th, 2010.  We got married!  This picture was taken in the limo on the way to the reception.

Taken June 11, 2010.  In Jamaica on our honeymoon.

Taken July 25th, 2010.  Celebrating 50 days of marriage!

Taken August 4th, 2010.  On a hike in Rocky Mountain National Park.

This was taken sometime in September 2010.

Taken October 10th, 2010.  We were visiting the Riverwalk in San Antonio!

Taken November 5th, 2010.

Taken December 5th, 2010.  We celebrated 6 months of marriage!

Taken January 2nd, 2011.

Taken February 11th, 2011.

Taken February 19th, 2011.

Taken March 31st, 2011.  Rollin's birthday!!

Taken April 25th, 2011.

Taken May 22nd, 2011.  This is Pedernales Falls State Park.

Taken June 6th, 2011.  On our FIRST anniversary trip to Austin!

Taken July 19th, 2011.  We were going to take a big hike but our car wouldn't start.  So we just hiked Eagle Cliff!

Taken August 5th, 2011.  We attempted to hike up to Spectacle Lakes...but didn't make it.  We still had a good time.

Taken October 15th, 2011.

Taken October 23rd, 2011.

Taken November 29th, 2011.

Taken December 3rd, 2011.

Taken February 11th, 2012.

Taken March 25th, 2012.  There's always a trip to see the blubonnets.

Taken April 6th, 2012.

Taken June 5th, 2012.  SECOND anniversary trip to Corpus Christi!

Taken July 1st, 2012.

Taken August 3rd, 2012.

Taken October 8th, 2012.

Taken November 18th, 2012.

Taken December 25th, 2012.  Our FOURTH Christmas being together.

Taken January 26th, 2013.

Taken February 16th, 2013.

Taken March 20th, 2013.

Taken March 25th, 2013.  This picture was a timed picture on a tripod.

Taken May 3rd, 2013.

Taken June 5th, 2013.  THREE years!

Taken July 4th, 2013.

Taken September 13th, 2013.

Wow.  We both look so different to me.  We looked so young when we first started dating.  The trials and struggles of marriage have worn on us.  Yet I believe it has made us richer in many ways.  There is a depth that was not there before.  I am a happily married woman.