Decorating Inspiration from the Parade of Homes

Sexy Nerd and I spent last weekend gallivanting all over Colorado Springs. Seriously all over. I may not have planned the most efficient Parade of Homes route. Who knew Colorado Springs was such a big place? I just expected it to be similar to driving around here in Albuquerque!

With many homes priced above 1 million dollars, there were so many great decorating ideas. Here are a few of my favorites:

Everyone loves a square dining nook.

I'm still not certain what the material on the fireplace was. It looked similar to wood, but I think it was tile. Perhaps it was wood tile.

From the doorway, all you could see was a beautiful, tidy window seat. With the bookcase tucked to the side, only the bedroom inhabitant sees if the shelves are a disaster. Genius!

This was one of our favorite home exteriors.

I love the idea of building a home that frames a great view right from the moment you walk in.

I need a bright yellow front door! Mine will be lacquered.

Inside the foyer of the Colorado Springs beach bungalow were mason jars on hooks. Cute idea, right? Battery powered tea lights might look good too.

Come to think of it, I'm not sure the homeowner has a good grasp on their geography.

Even small master bedrooms had sitting areas tucked into the corners.

We actually weren't fans of this sunroom, which was directly in front of you when you step through the front door. It gave us a scare - this is essentially the concept we're planning our house around! However, with a few design tweaks (example: in the home we're building, the exterior wall will fold away to turn it into a true outdoor space,) I think it will work.

Not a bad use of an otherwise empty wall.

This house wasn't actually on the Parade of Homes, but it's the exterior we have in mind for our house, but as a single story with larger windows. Doesn't my Volt look happy there? She's home!

I love the tile around the window. I'd paint the frames red to match the roof.

Sexy Nerd pointed out that you're really not supposed to touch the walls during the Parade of Homes. Whoops.

At least I wasn't the worst visitor. It looks like someone snuck in a nap!

These windows are super cute! I wonder if I'd still feel that way when trying to sleep in though.

Wood accents seemed to be a common decorating theme. They sure beat having a plain wall or ceiling and you could probably pull off something similar as an inexpensive DIY project.

Bam! Take that, boring stairwell!

Cake Mix Pancakes

This reader-favorite recipe is *almost* as popular as my Cake Mix Cookie Bars recipe . When making Cake Mix pancakes , the scrumptious possibilities are endless. Red Velvet cake mix pancakes. Chocolate cake mix pancakes. Butter Pecan cake mix pancakes. Funfetti cake mix pancakes. (Yes, Funfetti cake mix pancakes!) With this 2-ingredient recipe, you can turn your favorite cake mix into your favorite pancakes. Pancake making at its finest. Cake Mix Pancakes Personally, I think my funny napkin is the icing on the (pan)cake. It's Sunday morning and you're planning to do all the things today - scrub those grody baseboards, polish your quartz countertop that was supposed to be low maintenance but actually isn't at all, sort through the disaster that is the freezer. While on your superhuman kick, you think I'm going to make my family pancakes for breakfast. Not just any pancakes - the best pancakes ever. I may even serve them as breakfast in bed! You pu

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I could totally see Sexy Nerd doing this if we had a baby. Honestly though, I would probably be cheering him on. Also, I've read online that some folks are outraged by this photo, thinking the baby is being abused. To me though, the baby looks well supported, as if it is in a bouncy chair, and none of the duct tape is touching bare skin. I honestly think this was just intended to be a funny photo. It's not like the parents taped their baby to the wall so they could go out drinking and partying in a cocaine-fueled hysteria. I doubt anyone on cocaine could even achieve this. This photo is from 2010, maybe earlier. Wouldn't it be great to interview this older child one day? It's time to get on that, People Magazine. The internet wants to know what happened to the duct tape baby! Baby Taped to Wall Poor ducky. Enjoy this post? Please be sure to check out my Amerisleep Mattress Reviews page as well, which is my most popular blog post of all time.

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Kitty Deschanel

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