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At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

Where Ideas for your Home Meet Inspiration for your Heart

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May 28, 2012

Perfectly Patriotic Memorial Day Features




Happy Memorial Day from the gals At The Picket Fence!  We thought it would be fun to share some of the perfectly patriotic posts (say that three times fast…grin!) that were linked up to this past Inspiration Friday! They are perfect ideas to inspire you for the 4th of July as well! We are always so amazed at the talent that stops by here at the fence each week…come take a peek. features 


Paula of Sweet Pea created this darling Memorial Wreath…out of a tennis racket! 




Sharla of The House at Bluebird Lane created this Betsy Ross inspired dresser makeover! If this doesn’t say “all american” we don’t know what does!



Maggie of Little Miss Maggie created this darling Liberty Garden Bucket.  It has the perfect vintage feel and could be used all summer long! 



Jennifer of Hey Little Mother shared a Perfectly Patriotic Dessert: A Red White and Blue Trifle. Perfect for a hot summer holiday!




Mary of  Home is Where the Boat is is giving us a “stem to stern” tour of her house boat all decked out for Memorial Day! You will not believe the attention to details and her photos are pure gorgeous! Pay her a visit to get tons of amazing patriotic ideas! 




and of course Susan of Munchkin Munchies never, ever, ever ceases to amaze us with her mad confectionery skills! Check out these Double Decker Flag Cookies she created.



And let us not forget “why” we celebrate Memorial Day.  While we are enjoying our cook-outs, concerts and boating excursions…there are real men and women sacrificing their lives for these freedoms! We honor our troops and say…thank you to those who stand on that line faithfully everyday!



And….this year, Memorial Day is not just a day for remembering. It is also a day for celebrating! Vanessa’s son Ian turns 9 today and we want to wish him a very Happy Birthday! What can we say about this boy? 


He is a wonderfully curious, Lego builder extraordinaire, first place high-jump winner, who protects his little sister while also teaching her to make tooting sounds on her arm. He is fascinated about how things work and is on a constant fact finding mission. He is hilariously funny and he keeps everyone on their toes. He loves God and his friends and cries when others cry. He made Robb and Vanessa a mommy and daddy and has been a source of unending joy to his entire family. Every day with Ian is like getting to open up a present, never knowing what surprise awaits you!

We love you Ian!


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16 Comments Filed Under: Features, Fourth of July, Good Ideas, Holidays, Inspiration Friday, Kids

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Comments

  1. Jennifer@heylittlemother.com says

    May 28, 2012 at 2:03 PM

    Thank you so much for featuring my patriotic trifle! This just made a wonderful holiday weekend even better!

    Reply
  2. Michele @ The Nest at Finch Rest says

    May 28, 2012 at 2:39 PM

    Great choices, important reminders and Happy Birthday to a very sweet boy!

    Happy Memorial to you and yours!

    Reply
  3. Sue says

    May 28, 2012 at 2:48 PM

    Thanks so much for the shout out, you two! You are both so awesome! Thanks also for the reminder to remember what this day is all about<3 We are going to a Memorial Day ceremony this afternoon.

    Happy 9th Birthday to Ian!

    Now…time to check out that dresser:)

    Reply
  4. Vicki Shead says

    May 28, 2012 at 2:54 PM

    Happy Birthday Ian! You are God’s treasure and you’re parents gift! Enjoy your extra special day!!

    Reply
  5. thistlewoodfarm says

    May 28, 2012 at 5:01 PM

    Vanessa and Harather,

    Okay…you had me at the Betsy Ross dresser! Seriously? What amazing freatures and such a wonderful post as a tribute to our heroes!

    Thanks for sharing your heart!

    blessings,
    karianne

    Reply
  6. Madge Bloom says

    May 28, 2012 at 5:50 PM

    Thank you for remembering and honoring veterans today! Love your series of shots!

    Reply
  7. Hi! I'm Shannon says

    May 28, 2012 at 6:22 PM

    Thanks for the patriotic post girls! Yep, that dresser is fabulous isn’t it?

    Happy Birthday to your little man =) And Happy Memorial Day too.

    Reply
  8. NanaDiana says

    May 28, 2012 at 6:48 PM

    First off- Happy, Happy birthday to Ian. We thought we might have a baby grandson born today but it looks like he is in a hold pattern still-lol

    I love this beautiful, patriotic post you girls did for today. Those cookies are about the cutest red/white/blue dessert I have seen anywhere. xo Diana

    Reply
  9. Paula says

    May 28, 2012 at 10:13 PM

    Thanks so much for featuring my patriotic wreath.

    Reply
  10. Kelly @ Here Comes the Sun says

    May 29, 2012 at 12:35 AM

    Great features! I’m a new follower from the Networking Blog Hop. Excited to check out your cute blog.

    https://www.herecomesthesun-kelly.blogspot.com/

    Reply
  11. Mary says

    May 29, 2012 at 12:58 AM

    Thanks so much for sharing my Stem to Stern boating post! I’m honored to be included among all these creative features! Happy Memorial Day and Happy Birthday Ian 🙂

    Reply
  12. Erica {let why lead} says

    May 29, 2012 at 3:34 AM

    Wow, that dresser is impressive! And it really is ironic how most of us (me included!) celebrate a day that commemorates people who gave everything for our country. Thanks for the reminder of what it is really about!

    Reply
  13. The House at Bluebird Lane says

    May 29, 2012 at 3:54 AM

    Thank you for the beautiful reminder about what this day is really about. I’m honored that you including my dresser in your patriotic post. Hope you had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend and very special birthday wishes to Ian! 🙂
    Sharla

    Reply
  14. Julie Taylor and Danni Greenwalt says

    May 29, 2012 at 4:01 AM

    Happy birthday Ian! I am going to have to check out these wonderful posts. Thanks

    Reply
  15. Linda Young says

    May 29, 2012 at 1:24 PM

    Love your patriotic dresser, pretty door and home decor and beautiful cookies and trifle! Happy Birthday to your fine young man!
    Blessings! Linda

    Reply
  16. ekskurzia dubai says

    June 21, 2012 at 10:27 AM

    The Patriotic Wreath is awesome! So beautiful…

    Reply

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Happy Friday!! I’m working on a blog post to sha Happy Friday!! I’m working on a blog post to share all of the details of our family room shelving makeover but I’m super impatient and just had to give you all a sneak peek!! We are SO happy with how they turned out and it finally looks like I’ve always envisioned. Our quick fix years ago (scroll to see the before photo) never felt quite right but now? Soooo much better!! 🙌🏻 Big shoutout to our amazingly talented friend Matt @redemptive_woodworx for bringing our vision to life and doing such impeccable work.

I hope you all have a great start to the 4th of July weekend and make sure to check my stories later for Friday Funnies!
The month of June is coming to a close and it has The month of June is coming to a close and it has been JAM packed! The highlight by far though was my son's graduation from high school. When I started blogging, he was only 6 years old and some of you have been apart of my community here for that entire time. Now, he's 19 and there is a reason parents are told not to blink because the years truly do go faster than I ever could have imagined. He has become such an incredible young man we are so excited to see how God is going to unfold the next chapter of his life. We celebrated with parties galore (SO many open houses to attend!) and made memories we'll forever cherish. My mama heart was filled to bursting with the joy of it all! Now we're taking some time to just enjoy these warm, summer days making even more memories because, when you’re at this stage of parenting, you know all too well how much you need to grasp every opportunity to spend time together.

I hope your summer is off to a great start too dear friends! 🪴
“And so with the sunshine and the great bursts o “And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.” F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Happy first day of summer dear friends!! I can’t believe it’s been so long since I posted something new here but life has been crazy. I’ll have some new photos of house projects and life events to share with you soon but, got now, I’m just going to enjoy this gorgeous first day of summer after our ridiculously long, wet spring. ☀️
“It was June, and the world smelled of roses. Th “It was June, and the world smelled of roses. The sunshine was like powdered gold over the grassy hillside.” (Maud Hart Lovelace) 

Welcome June!
“No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom “No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom unless he be vigilant in its preservation.”
General Douglas MacArthur

Grateful today and every day for those who were vigilant to the point of death in the preservation of our freedom. May we honor their sacrifice by being vigilant too. #memorialday
“Those who know your name trust in you, for you, “Those who know your name trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.” Psalm 9:10
This is one of my most favorite projects from my b This is one of my most favorite projects from my book Life in Season! 

Because, if heaven has a fragrance, I’m fairly certain it smells like lilacs.

I think that somewhere along the way the verse in the Bible that said, ‘heaven will smell like lilacs’ just got lost in translation. But it HAD to have been in there at some point, right?

When I bury my head in the blossoms (which I absolutely MUST do every single time I walk past them), I immediately feel a stirring in my soul.

It seems like I wait forever for my lilac tree to bloom. Every year I anxiously watch as the buds begin to form on the branches and then when the blossoms finally burst forth I begin that agonizing process of deciding the absolute perfect moment to snip them and bring them inside.

And then, after all of that waiting and watching it’s just over…done. Because, unlike heaven, lilacs don’t last for an eternity. So, making my own lilac room spray seemed like the perfect way to enjoy their fragrance long after the blossoms have faded.

Here’s how to make it! Ingredients: Water, Vodka, Lilac fragrance oil. Directions: Fill spray bottle with 50/50 ratio of water to vodka. Add 12 drops of lilac oil. Give it a shake, spray and if the scent isn’t strong enough, simply add a few more drops of lilac oil.

Once you’ve made this lilac scented room spray you will be very tempted to spray it in every room in your house. And someone may want to use it in the bathroom to cover up other less…ummmm….pleasing aromas.

But, do not, I repeat do NOT, let them.

You’ve captured the fragrance of heaven in a bottle and you wouldn’t want to go and tarnish it now would you? 😉
We had two back to back days of sunshine (the most We had two back to back days of sunshine (the most we’ve had in a LONG time) and now we are back to pouring rain. This has officially confirmed what I’ve know to be true for awhile now.

I’m a MUCH better version of myself when the sun is shining! 🤪 So I’ll just be over here today plotting and planning how my husband and I can be snowbirds someday when the kids are out of the house.

If you could spend your winters (and apparently most of spring too!) in any part of the country, where would it be?
Happy weekend sweet friends!! We’ve had a LOT of Happy weekend sweet friends!! We’ve had a LOT of rain lately (which is saying something when you live in Oregon) and I’ll admit that it’s affecting my moods a bit. I feel like I’m dragging and struggling to find the energy to get stuff done. So don’t mind me if I’m over here looking at photos of my garden in the summertime and finding that it keeps me hopeful about those days to come. They will come, right?! 🤪. 

What are your favorite plants that you look forward to seeing in the summer?
We’re going to be giving our laundry room a make We’re going to be giving our laundry room a makeover soon. It’s LONG overdue! In fact, the folks from the counter company were just here taking measurements. While we have made some simple, inexpensive updates over the years, it still has many of the original elements from when the house was built in 1992.

Two of our bathrooms are also in need of major makeovers. And we’ve saved up enough money over the years to tackle those projects. But, for the most part, we made the decision to use the bulk of that money in another way. While we knew that it was financially wise to invest in our house, we also knew that the greatest investment we could make was in our children. 

I’ll admit, there are times where I see other people doing massive overhauls of their entire home in a matter of months and I feel a prick of envy. But, we decided that if our choice was between waiting a bit longer to enjoy a renovated bathroom or going on adventures as a family, we would choose adventures every time. And we don’t regret that decision for a single second. It’s not that we haven’t tackled home projects (we’ve done a lot!). It’s just that it’s been a slow and steady process. 

Most recently, we let our son pick where we would travel for spring break since this is his senior year of high school and we are trying to make up for lost time. With so much of life ‘paused’ for two years, we have appreciated these moments more than ever. And, since he’ll be heading to college in the fall, we are very aware of how important it is to spend this time together while we still have a modicum of control over everyone’s schedules.

We have many years left to remodel our home but only so much time left to make memories with our children.

And, while I’m always happy to look around my home and see rooms that are updated and more reflecting of our style, it doesn’t compare to the joy I feel when I look around my home and see the people I love the most who have been shaped by the many adventures we’ve experienced together.
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