JustJessie

WW #7

Home Improvin'

 

Can I tell you, I am just loving these kid's workshops at the home improvement stores.  They are Grayson and Daddy's new thing to do together on Saturdays, and they enjoy them so much.  Grayson feels so big when he comes home with something he made with his own hands.   

This weekend they made a little wooden toolbox, and Jeff promised Grayson they would use it when he got home to do some work around the house.  So all the boys got their tools out and got to work!  They repaired a ceiling fan, hung a new light in the kitchen, hung a shelf, and helped me set up a sewing space in the playroom.  That's my kind of weekend!  I loathe yardwork with all my heart, but I love doing things to improve the inside of the house.  I guess because this house is where I am practically all the time, and when we do something to make it look nice I really get to enjoy it.  When you do junk out in the yard, it just undoes itself in about a week, ya know?  Those weeds pop up, or you forget to water stuff, and then all your hard work is down the drain.

A few more light fixtures, a couple of coats of paint, some new curtains and we'll be done and ready to enjoy this place for a few more years!

Puddle Jumpers!

We had one of those nice summer rains the other day that don't involve any thunder or lightning, so as soon as the rain was over, the boys and I went puddle jumping!  Grant had never been, and Grayson hasn't been in a looong time, so off we went!  Unfortunately, our neighborhood has no sidewalks, so we had to find our puddles in the street (kinda scary).  No one got smooshed by a car, though.  The most serious injuries involved blisters from wearing crocs instead of rainboots. It was so humid my camera lens kept fogging up, so about half my pictures look like I used a soft focus filter, but, nope!  Just good ol' Alabama humidity.

On a side note, the lack of rainboots combined with really old tennis shoes and back to school sales led us to the shoe store yesterday.  Grayson got size 3.5 tennis shoes.  His old ones (which he still wore) were size 1.5.  And Grant?  He went from a 6.5 to an 8.5.  My poor kids.  They didn't even complain that their feet were being squooshed beyond belief.  It never even occured to me that their shoes were too small.  Sometimes I think I'm altogether too airheaded to be a mom.

Lillian McClure Compton, 1924-2007

Today we mourn.  Not for the wispy, barely there MaMaw who suffered so much, but for Lil, the brave young woman who came down from the mountain and joined the Navy when her country was in need. The same young woman whose heart was captured, and who captured a heart in return.  She who didn't say no when a dashing young man whisked her to Mississippi to be married, but who smiled brightly for the camera and clasped his hand so tight. We mourn the mother of three sons and one daughter, who nurtured and loved, who did her very best.   She who laughed as her oldest ran around singing "Rag-mop", and was surrounded everyday by the music, laughter, and noise of four young ones. We mourn mostly on behalf of the two sons who remain, for we have to rejoice for MaMaw.  She who is once again young Lil, running freely and happily to the husband who left her 14 years too soon, embracing the son and daughter who have waited for her so long.  Exploring the wonders of a whole new world while waiting for her family to one day join her there.

Breaking in a new table

This weekend when Jeff and I were on a date, we saw the cutest craft table.  It's much taller than our rinky-dink one we've had forever, and I've been looking for one to be our "school" table when we start homeschooling this fall.  This one has chairs that are actually tall enough for Grayson to sit in with storage trays in the bottom of each one.  It also has a built in place for a roll of craft paper on the end, and whatever they finished it with allows crayon to just wipe right off.  When Jeff saw me drooling on it that I was interested in it, he just popped right out with, "Well, let's get it!"

Honey, you woulda thought they were giving out free brownies, I got so excited.  I was all, "Really?!  Do ya' mean it?  I can get it?  Yayeeee!"  And clapping my hands, looking the fool in the middle of Costco.  (and yes, we were at Costco at the beginning of our date, but it was just so I could buy the new Harry Potter.  we went to dinner after).  I was going to link to a picture of the table on the Costco website, but there isn't one on there, so I'll just show you a picture of us breaking it in today.

These were the supplies needed for the stormtrooper gun and this creation by Grant:

I'm not entirely sure what it is, but he sure had fun making it.  He and the table were both glitter glued from stem to stearn, and guess what?  The table cleaned up much more easily than Grant did!

Stormtrooping Grayson style

Grayson, like all good American boys, has a healthy love for Star Wars.  It's cool cause his daddy liked it when he was a kid; it's cool cause they have guns and lightsabers (though thankfully they never bleed); it's cool cause there are robots and aliens involved.  So ever since playing with his cousins yesterday, all I have heard about is how Grayson really needs  a stormtrooper gun, but he doesn't have one.  One of the many things that I love about Grayson is that he doesn't always expect us to run out and buy him new toys all the time.  He is much more likely to ask us to make  him a new toy rather than buy him one.  On this one I started to just blow him off, ya' know?  Make a stormtrooper gun?  Get serious.  But, being Grayson, he couldn't let it drop, and I started trying to remember the last time I made something with him that took a little thought and effort on my part, and I couldn't remember.  So I started scrounging around in cabinets and closets, hoping inspiration would hit me, and guess what?  It did!  Here's what we came up with:

We covered a spaghetti box with white craft foam, then rolled up some cardboard for a handle, which we attached through slots on the bottom of the box.  We covered the handle in black tape, added some black tape to the sides to make it more authentic, and voila!  Stormtrooper gun a'la Grayson.

100th! WOOT! HOLLA!

If I'm being totally honest, I have to tell you that yesterday was my 100th post, and I didn't realize it until I had already done my WW.  Just for fun, though, let's pretend I'm not so honest, and you all think this is my real 100th, ok?  So... What in the heck do people do for this grand occasion anyway?  I haven't a clue, but I thought I'd do a list.  100 things you may not know about me...

Um, maybe not.  That was really hard.  I kept at it for about 45 minutes, and I still just had 43 things, so I quit.  Some of them were good, too.  Too bad.  How about this instead.  Everyone who reads this can leave a comment, then I'll let Grayson draw a name out of a hat, and whoever wins I will sew them a bag?  Will that work?  I'll contact the winner by email if they aren't someone I know, and get shipping information.  Yeah, that sounds like fun to me!  So leave your comments and in a couple of days, we'll draw a name.  Good luck!

WW #6

Sewing my pillow, by Grayson

I learned to sew at five years old, and this is where I'm learning.  I'm sewing an Eragon pillow.  Eragon is my pet dragon.  My pillow is almost just like what he looks like.  I thought that it looked just like him when my mommy needled the picture through on a blue piece of fabric.  I painted it first.  And this is me sewing it.  I learned to sew at my Grandma's house

.

It is very soft, and this is what it looks like when it's finished.

*This blog is in Grayson's own words, typed unabridged by his mommy.  Your comments for him would be appreciated!*

Ladybugs for my Kayla-bug

My niece was born when I was fifteen years old, and from the moment I laid eyes on her, she became my "Kayla-bug."  When she wassmall, she was my substitute baby (cause I've always loved to mother things) and her mom was sweet enough to let me dote on her and have her over often.  We did all the things I do with my boys now.  We crafted, cooked, played, and imagined.  She's thirteen now, and she still loves to come over and make things with me and the boys.  So since I am having so much fun sewing, I thought she might like to try it too, and boy did she!  She was so excited when I told her what we were doing.  I took her to let her pick her fabric, and then we took my  machine over to my mom's and made her purse. She was a natural on the sewing machine, and her bag turned out so cute!

She enjoyed it so much, she asked for a sewing machine for Christmas!