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I look forward to field trip Friday every week. Today, Field Trip Friday with Barbara from Chase The Star is inspiring, full of creativity and oh, so much fun!  Barbara is a devoted mother and wife.  AND, she has talent coming out everywhere as you will soon see…

Hello everyone! I’m Barbara from Chase the Star, I’m thrilled an so honored that my good buddy Meegan asked me to be here today to share my home tour.

I still consider myself to be a newbie blogger, although my blog is going on 2 years now! Everyday is a learning experience, and I’m loving it every step of the way. I live in the beautiful Southern California suburbs with my family. We bought our home in 2011 and have been updating it one second hand item at a time…

Our home isn’t particularly large, but we have a great sized lot and a killer view of Orange County.

That was enough reason for us to invest in this circa 1980’s home that needed LOTS of love. The house is still a work in progress. I have so many plans, and little by little we’re gettin’ there!

When you walk into my home you will be greeted by a 2 story foyer, where I have a cream shutter style cabinet I bought on Craigslist, and a vintage window.

That entry way spills into a large living area. This is our only living space so I divided it into entry way, sitting room, and family room!

This blue desk is one of my favorite DIY’s ever! It was FREE on Craiglist. The lady who was giving it away happened to live a mile from my house so I ran over and picked it up! It’s a Thomasville and all it needed was a little bit of paint, and a lot of love! It serves as the perfect entry way table’; the boys store their shoes in the drawers, and the baskets hold keys, baseball hats, and all the other things that boys can’t live without.

I like blue, can you tell? What I don’t like is our carpet. I absolutely detest it! It’s great quality don’t get me wrong, but I long for hardwoods in the living area. It’s on my list! The entertainment center is my latest project! Stop by my blog next week for the tutorial and story.

Directly across from the ‘entry way’ is the ‘sitting area’. The brown chair is wearing an inexpensive slip cover, because upholstering it is also on my list! The green chair was also a free Craigslist find (seriously check the ‘free’ section of your local Craigslist!). I repurposed a nightstand to use as a side table, and decoupaged a map onto it.

Beyond the living space is the kitchen. This is also a combo type of room; my dining room is part of it.

My favorite thing on the planet is to update furniture! That buffet is an old desk from Ikea! We’ve had it for ages, but didn’t have a need for it when we moved into this house. It sat in my garage forever, so I decided to repurpose it into a sideboard for my dining space.

The dining room table and chairs was purchased at Goodwill. Solid wood with 6 chairs for just $69.99. Folks, I ain’t messin’ around! We brought it home, sanded it, stained it, and recovered the chairs. We could’ve spent so much more on something of lower quality. Instead we have a dining room set that will last for many, many years beautifully!

The rug is from Mohawk; from now until Thanksgiving day you can enter to win a rug of your choice!

On the opposite side of the buffet is my plate wall. Yup they are all from the thrift store, and most of them are hung with DIY Plate Hangers. Flanking those is some burlap art I made last year. They are very special to me because they have our anniversary date on them. Also good reference for the hubs to remember!

I added some chalkboard paint to the side of my pantry. I usually put up bible verses for the kids to memorize, and on occasion my youngest will doodle on it for fun! My oldest’s art work from school is hung just above that.

When you enter our home, if you turn the opposite direction, you will see our stairway and downstairs hallway.

The mirror is another Craigslist find, the previous owner had painted it that awesome shade of green. It was destiny.

Up the stairs I have a gallery wall. This is where I display the kids school pictures and other family shots.

Down the hallway you’ll find another gallery wall. This one houses a collection of random shots of the kids throughout the years. I enlarged and printed them myself. The frames were painted the same color for uniformity.

So far, that’s what we’ve updated in the last couple of years. We (I) have plans for so much more..the second story and backyard for starters!

When we moved in I did what I could to make my house cheery and bright. I wanted my house to truly be my family’s ‘home’, which means practical design and decor for an active bunch. It also means warm and cozy nights tootsies relaxing by a fire on a cold fall night.

This is the home our kids will reminisce about when they’re adults, so it goes beyond pretty things, and neatly tucked away shoes. It’s lived in, laughed in, loved in. Not the fanciest or biggest, but it’s ours. It’s the family that lives in it that makes this suburban Southern California house, a home.

I’d like to thank my good friend Meegan once again for inviting me to share my home with you! Stop by Chase the Star for more decor, crafts, repurposed stuff, and a few laughs here and there! Also, follow me on social media to keep up with my latest posts!

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Isn’t Barbara amazing??  I hope she has inspired you as much as she has me!!  Thanks so much for the home tour Barbara!

To all of my readers: Thank YOU for coming to Field Trip Friday.  And before you leave, link up with: