Play group!

Last Wednesday our playgroup headed up to the mountains for some hiking, picnicking, and relief from the heat! Two out of three's not bad, it was still pretty warm. The kids had a good time and enjoyed the nature hike we went on. I can't remember the name of the place, there was a lot to see (bears, snakes, lizards, etc.) and do, we'll be back for sure!



Photo opp on top of a 100 year old stump!




Climbing the boulders.



Sniffing the trees.
Yes, really! They smelled like vanilla, delicious and strange. The kids couldn't stop, they sniffed every other tree we came to!



You get in the hole, no you, no you. . . Ok, Jamie will do it!



Ribbon tree, the bark speaks for itself.


Ooooooo, sticks! Lots and lots of sticks, nope they can't come home with us, sorry boys:)

A little Before and After

Here's the bench in all it's before glory! Wow, our garage is busy(messy) looking. So, it was plain white, filthy and had this mural painted on the back. I got it from Craigslist for $20! It's super heavy and I took one with Damen sitting on it so you could get a sense of how big it is.



So, basically I sanded it a bit, and painted it light blue. Then I got some clear gloss lacquer stuff and sprayed in on to protect it from the elements.




There you have it, Before and After:)

The View

Last night this was my view:







From here, sitting on the bench I refinished, on the bricks I laid.



Ahhh, accomplishment!

OH Pioneers!

On Pioneer day (July 24th) we celebrate the Mormon saints entering the Salt Lake valley for the first time. They struggled, they walked, they sacrificed. Our Stake had a big picnic with fried chicken, watermelon, water balloons, cotton candy, snowcones and this zip line.


When he got to the top of that ladder, my heart started to skip I was SO nervous! Who lets their baby do this??

Well, now that he's four I guess it's ok. He wasn't scared or nervous and did great. And he was older than a lot of kids in line!



The 24th of July always reminds me of the Pioneers in my own family. It's the day that seven years ago my Grandma died. She didn't cross any plains, but she was one of the first. My Grandpa joined the church first, then my parents, then my Grandma. They led our family to the gospel in a different way. My grandma was so much fun, so loving and giving. She spoiled us. We miss her, but because of her faith 40 years ago we can see her again, I know it.

T-Shirt Skirt

Ok, I've seen a lot of repurposing with T-shirts going on out there and just thought I'd give it a try. I wanted to try a skirt, something light and easy, for summer, but something that looked different and trendy. This is what I came up with:

I bought an Xlarge mens T-shirt at a thrift shop for a dollar or two and started by cutting off the top at the armpits. Then I cut out the side seams so it was easier to work with and cut the bottom into 3 inch strips.

My plan was to sew the strips back together and I started measuring and pinning, but that was taking too long so I started sewing one at a time. Beginning just above the bottom hem, which I left intact, I sewed straight up. The pieces that had a little bit of the design from the shirt I flipped around so the inside of the shirt was on the outside of the skirt.

The original T-shirt hem ended up as the skirt hem. It was way too short, so I cut off the arms and the neck hole of the top of the shirt and sewed a tube out of what was left. I had to attach it to the bottom inside out because of the design and take it in a little at the sides. It is very comfortable and cute too.

It was a little time consuming because I wasn't sure how to start, or initially how to make it longer, but in the end it worked out and was worth my $2.


And while I sew, this is what Damen does, entertaining huh?


I'm linking this one too to:

Ahhh, a wedding!

I made a shadow box for our home a few weeks ago like this. Last week our fabulous babysitter (well she's been away at school for two years, but she was fabulous) got MARRIED. So, for her and her new husband I made them a similar one:




I haven't figured out how to take a good photo of my stuff, but you get the idea. To see how, view the link above for the first one I made. Click on the link below to see other crafty ideas!

Free Movies

Damen, like his Mom, really REALLY likes popcorn.