little citizens of the world: one mom's world...meet lisa siebert

my name is lisa marie siebert. i will be 45 this may. i am married for 22 years to a very supportive husband {paul} that is also a creative...this helps me move forward in my business!

we have 3 children born in 3 different states.
morgan is 20 in august...born in chicago, ill...goes to xavier university in cincinnati ohio.
erica is 17 in april...born in grand rapids, mi...is a junior at catholic central high school.
troy is 14 in april...born in san francisco, ca...will be in high school next year...yikes!

we live in a 100+ year old cape cod style home 2 blocks from reeds lake in east grand rapids, michigan...we located here for the walking community...restaurants, shops, library, yacht club + walking trails around the lake yet we are less than 10 minutes from downtown grand rapids.

grand rapids is a perfect city to raise a family...we also have a cottage on beaver island...makes for the perfect summer! i love shopping at small one-of-a-kind retailers local to my area. if i shop at a big name store it is j crew, urban outfitters, anthropology and i love t shirts from american apparel!

i am happily beyond where i thought i would be...i always figured i would work for someone else ‘when i grew up’! i have been a stay-at-home-mom since the birth of morgan doing ‘hobbies’

on the side along the way...my latest, repurposed fiber arts, loop loft started in 2008 + grew into a business in 2009...perfect timing because before i know it paul + i will be feathering an ‘empty nest’

i am blessed with a medium sized home...4 tiny bedrooms + 2 full baths...but the best part is that i am able to have my very own super awesome studio space above our detached garage...i can be in the middle of a huge order, leave the mess, shut the door and walk 30 feet to my clean {usually}home!

our catholic elementary school had the best art teacher, until she retired last year...she did the most amazing projects with the kids...she had specific projects for each grade so i have wonderful ceramic doves from each of my kids from the 5 grade that i affixed into shadow box frames from target.

when we lived in california almost 10 years ago i turned our garage into a play/art room for the kids. i draped yards + yards of bright pink cotton fabric on the walls, put down sisal area rugs, added a giant chalk board, easel, and lots of pretend and dress up boxes...i also carved out a tiny niche for myself so that we could all hang out together doing our thing...it was the best time ever! the side door to the garage entered our enclosed yard and you could enter the kitchen from the yard...they could get a snack + ride a cozy coupe + paint all in one contained area. we needed that because our family of 4 + a newborn baby lived in a 900 sq ft home at the time! our bedroom was so small that when i needed to add the crib it would not fit so we came up with the idea of buying a really nice radio flyer wagon with the wooden sides, had a custom mattress made and i made custom bumpers and bedding and viola...troy's first bed :)

i LOVE reading blogs...especially party related blogs more than fashion or home blogs. i LOVE making desserts...i made the ‘cupcakes in a jar’

diy: cupcakes in a jar

for valentines day and i just saw a recipe for ‘cake suckers on a stick’ that i am going to try next...you would think i still have toddlers :) i go all out for birthdays...we dont buy our kids things whenever they want them...we pretty much save the wants for birthdays + christmas. i also decorate and make a cake or fun dessert + we go to their favorite restaurant...i used to do ‘birthday dresses’ or ‘birthday t-shirts’ and crowns..those days are long gone!