My first Blogiversary was January 23, 2013

by jcastles | Feb 5, 2013 | Uncategorized

Well time got away from me and I wasn’t able to post on the actual day but my blog’s been up for a year!!  Actually I was getting my hair cut when I was able to write and totally forgot about it!  Whoops!!!

So let’s see….I don’t write much but I seem to post more on my facebook page.  So if you’d like to see more follow me there!  Seems like everyone’s there more anyways, lol!!

I have a few crafts that i’ve done and will post about them soon.  So don’t go away….stay close!

Here are a few things coming up:

• plaques
• potty training (kid and puppy)
• coffee table re-do
• dresser re-do
• shutter project
• little kid stand project

Hopefully time won’t get away from me since I have a school carnival to help with next month.

Well….if your reading this thanks for sticking around!  And tell your friends all about me!

Here are a few pictures of upcoming posts!

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Craft Table Re-do

by jcastles | Jan 22, 2013 | Uncategorized

So I got this kitchen table off craigslist in March 2012.  I was going to paint it with in a week and well life just got in the way.  Once I put stuff on it and started working on projects I never did anything with it.

This weekend I decided to have the hubbs do a lot of odd things around the house (take Christmas lights down, fix gutter extensions, sweep driveway, etc).  Well I told him while he does all that I want to paint my craft table.  He said well i’ll sand it for you (since I have a bad left hand).  OK!  He took down the Christmas garland first because he didn’t want any of the sand dust getting all over them.  Then he sanded.  When I went to grab him a “Man Lunch” (Dickey’s BBQ) he painted it for me!!  I was in total shock and VERY VERY thankful that he did.

He honestly did a better job than I would have.  I’m cool with that cause I didn’t do it but I definitely wouldn’t have done that good of a job, lol.

So let’s talk about the color.  I wanted to use my favorite teal color I’ve used in the past (Rustoleum’s Satin Lagoon) but it’s been sooooo hard to find it.  Well today was my lucky day.  Home Depot had tons of it!

The top finish is not your normal finish.  I wanted something that I didn’t mind messing up….after all it’s a craft table.  I thought about painting the top black but then decided I’d get all mad the first time I got a drop of paint on it or mod podge, etc.  So I decided to mod podge scrapbook paper to the top.  It’s durable and can be messed up and not that noticeable   Perfect right?!!  Since this was a last minute project I hadn’t bought my paper and the paper I wanted to use was at Hobby Lobby….it’s Sunday, they’re closed!!!  So I take my chances and go to Michaels.  I didn’t find a close enough paper but decided on a black and white pattern.  Once I got it home and laid it next to the table I’m soooooo glad I went with this one.  The one I wanted at Hobby Lobby was way too blue so it wouldn’t have worked anyway (I had a few scraps from previous projects).

The materials you’ll need to do a table like this are listed below.

• sanded table
• spray paint (we used 1.5 cans)
• scrapbook paper
• mod podge (i used an entire 8oz bottle of matte)
• sponge/paint brush to apply mod podge
• ruler/scraper (I highly suggest getting the Mod Podge Brayer.  I did not have it and I do have a few bubbles that I just can’t get out)

Overall I’m VERY VERY pleased with this project!  As you can see in this picture I now need to get some bookshelves/baskets and make my storage stuff look nicer–eek!!

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Happy New Year–sucked

by jcastles | Jan 10, 2013 | Uncategorized

Well our new year started out rough!  We went to a great New Years Eve/Birthday Party and then that night the hubbs became sick and it set in fast!  We never go to parties on NYE but a good friend of ours had the party and we thought what the heck we’ll go.  We had to leave early cause lil Jayson was just exhausted.  By the time we got home my husband started feeling ill.  By morning he was down….and of course we figured it out easily that it had to be the flu.

Two days later lil Jayson started to complain of a stomach ache so I kept him home from school on his first day back just to be safe.  Good thing I did because he still hasn’t been back to school!  He should be good to go back on Friday though.

Then just one day after Jayson fell ill….Kennyth’s school called to tell me he had a fever and a bad cough.  His first day back to school will be tomorrow.

Then when you didn’t think it could get any worse I fell ill the same day Kennyth did (Jan 3rd).  I started feeling fine by Saturday mid-morning then by Saturday evening another wave got me.  I was down for the count again.  Monday I decided I should go to the doctor.  We decided about an hour after I’d done the web checkin at CareNow that we should have made an appt for everyone else so we did.

CareNow is awesome I tell ya!  I was called in about 2 hours before the rest of the family and not only was I able to get the rest of the family pulled in the room with me but I took having the awful task of the flu test taken from each and everyone else in my family that was sick.  Why that is….because I tested positive for Flu B.  And since we all had the same symptoms voila….they had the flu.

So now the 2nd weekend in January is coming up maybe just maybe we can get all this Christmas crap down and put away!!  I’d really like my house back to normal!

Oh!  And of course my new years resolution was to be on local tv with the flu….lol!!!  A local news station asked on facebook to email them if you had the flu.  I did and I was actually shocked when they said they wanted to come interview us.  Well ok then.  So here’s the 2 seconds of our fame..

Piling it on high

by jcastles | Dec 7, 2012 | Uncategorized

Well this last week I was super busy.  Busy with Christmas decor, party planning, and car shopping.  We got the decor done.  The party happened successfully.  But the car shopping was a no go.  I just can’t part with that kind of money right at the holidays.  So we decided to wait until February maybe even May of next year to get me the car I want.  So with all that taking place last week I was just swamped (yah…piled it on high).  We were out and about 3 nights last week and it totally wrecked my kids schedules.  In the end we were frustrated and things fell behind at the house.  I had a Pampered Chef Party happening Friday night and getting things together for that was just time lost.  But I was able to bust through all of it clean the house Thursday night and Friday morning and the party happened w/out issue.  I even got the hubbs to put a few Christmas lights on the house!

So this past weekend came and went as fast as it usually does but I swear it was faster.  Saturday we lounged until early afternoon then decided we’d better take the kids to see the ole jolly guy.  While were were out we hit a few stores for some quick Christmas shopping and we were suppose to go to Friday’s for dinner.  After all it was free…..we’d had a bad experience about a month ago and they sent us $30 in vouchers.  Well after having to waste time to see Santa, Best Buy, and Walmart the kids had had it.  We were not getting Friday’s.  So instead we went home (oh it was about 7:00 already) fed the kids, threw them in bed.  We sat down on the couch to watch a movie and we were so exhausted we decided to go to bed within a few minutes of relaxing.

Sunda as we were wrapping presents (that we were suppose to do Saturday) a calendar reminder had gone off for my Wilton class that was to start today!!  I was NOT ready!  I’m not usually unprepared bu this year I have been nothing but unprepared at every turn.  I can’t stand it either.  I think the problem is i’m trying to please everyone and do a little of everything.  So for the next few weeks I’m taking it slow.  I have a puppy and a kid to potty train so my days will be spent at home as much as possible this December.  But to all my friends and family—you can come see me.  😀.

You know your a mom when…..

by jcastles | Nov 18, 2012 | Uncategorized

Well we went to a pizza place for lunch today and let’s say it was a bit messy.

My 4 yr old had breakfast super early and hadn’t snacked so when we finally got around to eating lunch at 1:00 he told my husband that his tummy was hurting.  So my husband said well take a drink of water.  I snapped my head towards him and gave him the big eyed shaking head saying NO!  He was like why, he’s fine.  So he drank water.  We arrived at the pizza place about 15 min later (we’d been in the car all morning btw).

We get in the joint, get our pizza and sit down when he wants his water bottle from the car….not water from there but the car!  So my husband went to retrieve it and I was holding him because he was just fussing.  Then I heard the burp.  I immediately set him down and there it was.  He’d gotten so hungry and car sick that he threw up all that water my hubbs told him to drink.  So how do you know your a mom….well I knew it was about to happen so I grabbed his shirt and used it as a bowl.  Since it was straight water it soaked up nicely.  Strange thing is no one…and I mean no one saw what happened.  The place was as quiet and normal as if it’d never happened.  So I changed him in the bathroom, washed up, and we went back to eat.

Then tonight as he was getting undressed for a bath he tossed his diaper at me (like he normally does along with his clothes–our game to get him in the bath)….and I smelled it.  Yes, he tossed a diaper at me that had poo in it!

What a crazy bodily fluid day it was today..

Family Pictures 2012

by jcastles | Nov 16, 2012 | Uncategorized

We had our family pictures done the other day at The Picture People.  I was so excited…I did all the normal crazy stuff I do to get everyone ready.  I had to make sure everyone had matching clothes, shoes, etc.  So I got to get a little shopping done.

This year we decided to go with a grey, white, black, and teal theme.  And it just so happened that we all wore stripes too.

This is MY FAVORITE pic out of them all.

I was so pleased with this session but I do wish they would have used more of a prop than a Christmas tree and gift boxes.  But I guess they save that for little little kids.

Here are a few others.

And I can’t wait to post the pic of our Christmas Card….we didn’t do a traditional card, lol!!

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Behind the name MessiJessi

by jcastles | Nov 15, 2012 | Uncategorized

Well I figured it’s about time I explained my blog’s name.  When I was little I was a messy kid.  I was always spilling stuff.  So my parents started calling me messy jessi.  It’s funny because now I’m not so messy.  I hate to work in a messy place.  I like clean.  Plain and simple.

I like my house to be in order at ALL TIMES.  Everyone is in the habit (yes even the 3 kids) to clean up after themselves.  Beds are made daily and kids clean up toys before we leave the house/before nap/before bed.  I also have chore charts with daily tasks for the kids.  It’s not hard stuff but it’s what’s expected and they do it.  We do give them a little chump change in return.

I usually vacuum my house twice a week.  I do laundry twice a week.  My bathroom gets cleaned once a week unless its needed sooner.  The boys bathroom is cleaned twice a week.  Dishes are put in the dishwasher immediately, if full it is expected to rinse the dishes off and put in the right side of the sink.

So there you go.  I’m anal about how my house looks and i’m not really messy.  Kinda strange huh!  But what better name to go by than what my family called me by growing up and I craft…kinda fits in a weird way..

Busy Bee…

by jcastles | Nov 14, 2012 | Uncategorized

Well the holidays are upon us and I’ve just been buzzing around.  I’ve gotten a lot done and still have a lot to do!  I’m trying to get several crafts done so that when my crafts start selling I’ll be ready. If you have nothing to do this holiday season, then you may consider fx trading online for France.

I started with ornaments.  I did the mop n glo/glitter technique and WOW…that’s awesome!  Then I added vinyl on them.  Well I tried anyway.  Every time I tried to cut my vinyl the blade would just shred it.  I tried all the cleaning techniques that I found online and nothing worked!  I was livid.  I’ve only had my Silhouette for a few months (out of the box for only a month).

So I tried a new blade and voila!  I was back in business….of course this took me and entire 24 hours to get accomplished.  So after all that I was able to get 4 ornaments done today (in about 3 hours).  So after a day of getting work accomplished, cleaning my house, and having a wonderful pulled pork sandwich dinner I was suppose to get a little more work done.  So instead I cleaned up my work space.  I’m now totally ready to dig in.  I just can not work in a messy space.  Funny, I know…since my site is messijessi.

Here’s a sneak peak of what I’ve been working on lately.  Next up….making more burlap wreaths!!

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