I was so happy with the Sauder bookcases I decided to use another one in a different room. Instead of multiple short bookcases, this time I picked out a tall bookcase to review. At first I thought I was going to use it in my son’s room to help him organize his many books and his rock collection, but having spent the last 14 weeks training for my first half marathon I decided that where I really needed it was for something very different!

Training for this half marathon has been very enlightening. I learned that I actually love to run and it’s a great mental escape for me. However I also learned that with my husband deployed overseas and two little kids that sometimes scheduling a run can be as exhausting as the multiple miles I was putting on my Mizuno running shoes! My sitter isn’t always available, and the kids sometimes get sick or have rough days where going to the gym isn’t an option. Maybe I needed my own home gym!

How To Create A Home Gym

• Decide on a space
• Find or buy furniture to help keep your space organized and functional
• Decide on equipment. For me I wanted weights, resistance bands, yoga mat, treadmill, and an exercise ball.
• Bring in motivation. Pictures, quotes, music, and even a TV can help you get through your workout!

Finding a space wasn’t hard. Our home has two master bedrooms, and for a long time my sister in law lived in one of them. When she moved out it became a dumping ground or rather an office/storage room/guest room. Eventually we will turn it into a room for our two boys to share when baby D is no longer in a crib, but for now it’s mostly just been an unused space.

Recently while trying to organize it I realized it would be the perfect space for a home gym. It gets a lot of natural light, and it’s on the other side of the house so the motor of a treadmill wouldn’t be too loud for anyone.

So I got to work organizing the kid’s toys that were taking up the space when I wanted to put the bookcase and treadmill. Once it was clean I started to put together the bookcase. I love how easy Sauder furniture is to put together. The price was perfect too! I certainly didn’t have a big budget for this process, and most of what I did have was going towards a new-to-me treadmill. At only $59.99 the cherry bookcase was in my budget, but I’d have to be creative on how I used it to make my home gym idea come to life!

It took me about 40 minutes to assemble this on my own. The directions were really easy to follow so that made the whole process easier. I really wanted the bookcase to function as more than just a bookcase. I needed it to help keep me motivated when the miles started adding up.

I put all my fitness equipment on it, added some books (that previously had no home), and some pictures. I even have a spot for my Surface tablet so I can watch movies or TV if I want to. I plan on buying some motivational quotes to frame and add. So suddenly my “bookcase” is a storage space, bookcase, and entertainment center!

I also added a rock jar to motivate me. For every mile I complete on my treadmill I get to add a rock, and when I get to a certain number I will reward myself!

I’m so happy with how my home gym turned out and it all came together quickly and easily!

Don’t you love finding ways to creatively use furniture to make your visions come to life? I love my new home gym. It’s a space that is mine and doesn’t require a babysitter to use!

I’m so grateful to have found Sauder. It’s affordable, easy to assemble, and looks great no matter how you incorporate it into your home!  Check out my For the Home board on Pinterest for more create ideas!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Sauder. The opinions and text are all mine.

Hey everyone! I am back with another Christmas craft! Can you believe that we only have 60 days until Christmas!!!!!!

With many stores starting to bring out all the Christmas decor, the wheels in my mind start turning on what crafts I can easily make at home for a fraction of the cost of buying the item in the store. As I was browsing, I saw this cute wall or door hanger with a Santa on top and “Ho-Ho-Ho.” I immediately thought “man that would be fun to make at home!” So off to my craft room I went to collect the supplies.

What you will need:

• Red and white felt
• needle and thread (I used black)
• ribbon
• scissors
• letters to trace (I used Arial font size 200 in bold)
• pen
• straight pins to help hold the pieces together

How to:

• Print and cut letters from paper
• trace out onto white felt
• cut letters from felt
• cut red felt into squares (mine are approximately 2.5 x 3)
• pin the letters to the felt squares
• hand sew the letters onto the squares
• At one end of ribbon make a loop to be used as the hanger.
• Sew the ribbon together to secure the loop.
• Now start sewing the squares onto the ribbon making sure to leave a little bit of space between squares. (I tried both sewing across the width of the ribbon, and sewing the length of the square. I like the security of sewing the length of the square.) When sewing onto the ribbon, make sure to only go through about 1/2 of the felt so the thread doesn’t show through on the front side of the squares.
• Once all done, trim all long threads and get ready to find the perfect place to hang up!

This fun project could easily be done with you little ones! Either let them use a blunt tip needle or substitute using the needle and thread for fabric glue!

With my husband overseas and two young children who both need the lion’s share of my attention, taking time out to find someone to fix or clean my home when I need them isn’t exactly high priority.  Normally I’d start asking friends who they used, then I’d hit up the BBB, and then the internet for reviews… very time consuming.  Trust me, I’ve done it lots of times!

Recently I had the opportunity to review a new service that is aimed to save time and deliver all the background information right to your fingertips!

Redbeacon is the one stop shop to find the best rated professionals in your area.  Whether you need a bug guy (we did), or lawn maintenance (we needed that too!), a house keeper (occasionally I need those to, usually when my mother comes to visit), or a simple handyman (only needed when my handy husband isn’t available) Redbeacon can help you find trusted professionals complete with reviews right there!

Check out how Redbeacon works!

Recently I tried to move Baby D in to his nursery.  However, in that small room it became apparent I needed to get a fan installed pretty quickly.  While I was at the fan store, I saw a great deal on two light fixtures that I have been wanting to replace in my living room and the playroom formerly known as a dining room.  We have brushed nickle light fixtures everywhere our home except those two rooms where the builders gave this home gold fixtures.  This sale was the perfect excuse to have them replaced.  Now I had a fan and two light fixtures that needed to be installed, but no electrician!

I headed over to Redbeacon and put in my request.  Creating a profile and putting in my request took less than 10 minutes!  Within the day I had 4 professional responses bidding for my service.  After going over the four pro’s profiles I was able to pick one that I liked with a good price and great reviews.  A few days later I had new light fixtures and a new ceiling fan! (See ya later 80s style gold lights!)  If I had been doing all the leg work by hand I may have still be looking over reviews online!

Next time I need something I’m forgetting the idea of DIY and I’m turning to Redbeacon to DIFM or “do it for me”!

Redbeacon is currently available online at www.redbeacon.com and in the aisles of Home Depot stores in Atlanta, Dallas, Austin, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Diego, Hawaii, and the San Francisco Bay area. Visit Redbeacon.com to find out more, or follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

Redbeacon partners with bloggers such as me to help promote their services. As part of this promotion, I received compensation; however, Redbeacon did not tell me what to purchase or what to say about the products. Redbeacon believes that consumers and bloggers are free to form their own opinions and share them in their own words. Redbeacon’s policies align with WOMMA Ethics Code, FTC guidelines, and social media engagement recommendations.

I’d really love to start with my master bath and our sons’ bathroom.  While our fixtures are nice, they don’t quite meet the modern bathroom look that I would like to have.

You can’t see it here but I would really love to have our light fixture match our faucet hardware.  I would also really love to add some paint to both bathrooms as well.  I think the boys bathroom would look great in a blue, and ours would be nice in a grey.

Once I finish our baths I’d really like to focus on the living room.  Of course the first thing I have to do before any of this would be to finish the nursery!  Baby D will be 4 weeks this week, and his nursery still looks like a storage space.  A storage space with furniture.

Have you ever re-done your bathrooms?

Any tips or advice?

Disclosure: This post has been sponsored by ModernBathroom.com.  All thoughts and opinions are 100% honest and my own.

I am pretty excited about this, as doing laundry is probably my least favorite chore.  But now, I have a reason to look forward to it! (Hey it’s the little things…)

Have you heard of Purex’s newest product?  Purex Complete Crystals Softener is completely unique; Softener Reinvented! Made up of Products, Purex Complete Crystals Softener is a purer way to get laundry that smells clean and fresh for weeks!

Simply add the Purex Complete Crystals Softener directly to your wash,YES! Directly to your wash! and you will have fresh smelling soft laundry for weeks.  Unlike traditional softeners which build up with oils over time, Purex Complete Crystals Softener penetrates the fabric, untangling as it freshens, leaving your laundry soft!

What I enjoyed about the Crystals:

• The Scent is so yummy.  Soft Lavender makes me happy!
• No More Messy Gunk in your washing machine.  (And with a front loader, this really makes me happy!!)
• You can use it on ALL of your laundry – YES!  ALL!

According the Purex Complete webpage Crystals WILL:

• Preserve the flame retardant benefits of your children’s clothes
• Retain your athletic wear’s wicking ability which draws sweat away from your body
• Maintain your towels’ built-in ability to absorb water
• Keep your white clothing from yellowing and graying vs. using traditional softeners”

Crystals comes in 3 fun scents – Lavender Blossom, Fresh Spring Waters, and Tropical Breeze, and range in price from $3.99-$5.99.  You can now find Purex Complete Crystals Softener at all food, drug, and major retailers.

The Giveaway
Want to Try it for FREE??  I have 3 coupons for 3 Lucky Family and Life in Las Vegas readers to check out Purex Complete Crystals Softners for Free!!
How to Win
Entering is easy – all you have to do is the mandatory entry. Extra entries are available but not mandatory. (Open to US only) I will be checking each entry to the best of my ability, so honesty is appreciated!
Mandatory Entry
Leave me a comment telling me why you would like to try Purex Complete Crystals Softener.  You must also be a follower of Family and Life in Las Vegas via GFC.
Bonus Entries

1. Follow me on Twitter Like me on Facebook. (1 entry each)
2. Like Purex on Facebook. (If you would like – tell them Family and Life in Las Vegas sent you!)
3. Subscribe to my blog by email and RSS. (2 entries each)
4. Grab my Button and comment with a link to where I can find it.
5. Enter this giveaway into a Giveaway Linky – and leave a comment with where I can find it (4 entries)
6. Tweet/Facebook/Stumble this giveaway (RT 1x per day).

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This Giveaway is open to US entrants only and ends on 3/3 at 11:59 pm PST. The winner will be chosen and notified via email. The winner has 48 hours to respond or another winner will be picked.

Good Luck!