Balloons

Ever since Alex celebrated her second or third birthday, we have had a very fun tradition at our house. I got the idea from my very thoughtful friend who would "heart attack" a young woman while she was gone at school - Going to her house and decorating her room with construction paper hearts and then the young woman would come home to this great surprise. I love special thoughtful things like that! So, the plan was to decorate the birthday girl's bedroom while she was asleep and she would wake up to a lovely surprise. She loved it, and so did I! What a great way to wake up on your birthday.

We have done all kinds of decorations throughout the years - times 5 birthday kids per year - Banners, ribbons, hidden candy bars, balloons, die cut-outs, streamers, etc. I love the planning and especially LOVE the sleepy happy birthday face in the morning! I know that the little one is so thrilled to have a birthday, and I like to think that waking up to a festively decorated bedroom adds to the thrill.

One of the most popular decorations among the parents in balloons and streamers. We have about a million yards of different colored curling ribbon and we buy balloons in bulk, so they are always on hand for all kinds of events and projects. And Hero has a VERY large air compressor so we can blow up all the balloons we want in seconds - Genius! (Sometimes the tank empties while we are filling so it will kick on. It is very loud in the middle of the night!) We can fill, tie and ribbon a bunch of balloons in a jiffy.

The real fun of the whole decorating process is sneaking into the birthday child's room in the dark while he or she is asleep. We used to be able to wait up long enough for them to be in a good deep sleep, but not so much anymore. (Now we get up extra early and do it before they get up!) If you have ever touched a balloon, you know how loud they can be. Try tip-toeing into a sleeping child's room with several balloons trailing on ribbons, with tape in one hand and a stool in the other, and you have quite the challenge trying not to awaken anyone! And the big trick is to balance on the stool over the bed taping balloons above the sleeping child - DEFINITELY a challenge! Sometimes we have to excuse ourselves from the room as we are giggling too much. Lots of fun making memories.

One year when Alex was about 12-ish, we didn't wait long enough for her to get into a deep sleep, although she was a trooper and pretended to still be asleep. Have you ever noticed how hard it is to keep your eyes closed when you are pretending to be asleep? She was so excited, too, which made it extra hard. She told us some time later that she woke up when the balloons were crashing around her, but she didn't want to ruin it for us. What a good girl!

Liam recently had his 12th birthday, and yet again we commenced the middle of the night decorating (except it was just me as Hero was at work). Sure enough, the compressor kicked on, the balloons crashed around and I found myself balancing over the bed to tape the ribbons up.

But there was no giggling. It's just not the same without Hero.

So, Happy Birthday to all of my kiddos every year!

Jammin' Out

Isn't he cool?

Last winter on a trip to Target, Hero got lost from me. I found him in the electronics section drooling (a little) over an electronic drum set. He said he had always wanted to learn to play the drums. I never knew that! I thought I knew everything about my best friend, but I didn't know how much he had wished he was a drummer.

Lucky for both of us, his birthday was just around the corner, so I filed this drum idea in the "present idea" section of my brain. (It is important to me to give gifts that are meaningful, that I think the recipient will really love, and if it is a surprise for them, it is even better. Sometimes that is a challenge, so I was grateful for the idea.)

He was surprised and he did love the drum set! He played it for hours, so much so, that after about 3 weeks, it didn't work quite right anymore (not to mention it was getting pretty beat up looking!) So, he returned it, but decided against another one just like it, since obviously it wasn't nearly durable enough.

Hero is a "Craig's List" fan. He has found so many treasures and saved us lots of cash in the process. (Among them - more than one car, car parts, an electric guitar and exercise equipment.) So began the search for a drum set. It took some time, but that did not keep Hero from practicing. Once he had found it, he did not want to let the dream go again. He drummed on pillows, counters, his steering wheel and any other horizontal surface that could withstand the abuse of his drum sticks.

And then he found it. The drum set he must have known in the pre-existence. Sadly, it was a little out of our price range. But with nothing to loose, Hero made an offer. After a few weeks, while continuing his search, the seller accepted the offer. Horray! We drove right over to pick them up. The seller was a teenager, who's father (politely, I'm sure) asked him to get the drums out of the house. We found them in their garage (one to be envied, with a hoist and a few very cool cars, not that Hero noticed). Money and drums exchanged hands, and we were soon home setting these babies up.

They are loud! (I'm sure I can understand a frustrated father's desire to dispose of them!) Hero is pretty diligent about practicing, although not as much now as school is back in session. He gets lessons on-line, and practices the same beat patterns over and over. And his left hand is getting the hang of cooperating, too (that one is a little uncontrollable sometimes!) I hear some great rhythms coming from those drums!

One of the only things I asked Hero when he wanted to get a drum set was that he share. I knew once we adopted the drums, everyone would want to have their moments of rocking glory. I was right - they are just too irresistible! We have lots of musicians here, so they all sound pretty good on them.

But no one loves them like Hero. He has embraced the dream, is dedicated to improving and drums away.

So cool.

Crafty Area

I just moved!

When we first moved to this house, I was able to have a "Crafty Area" in the basement, which was great. I set up two tables to work at, had cute stools and a re-done chair, an accessory rack that kept all my little crafty things easy to see and get to, but neat and orderly. I had a bookshelf, a rubber stamp cabinet, a paper shelf, a dresser to hold odds and ends and a drawer unit (from IKEA) for fabric. It was so easy to work there and I really felt inspired.

Then Darren got a drum set.

It was my idea to relocate the crafty area around the corner from that spot, to make room for the exercise equipment, so that the drum set could have a home, too. In the move, the bookshelf was extracted and one table (a very cool old drafting table that I hated having in the basement anyway) found a new home in our front room (and the stool, too. They look great in there!) I did some editing, and made the new space work quite nicely. Hero is so good about running with my ideas, so we were done in no time, and all was well.

Until I got the idea to move it all up to the loft. Once I had the idea, it was hard to let it go. All the natural light, being closer to the rest of the family while I was crafting and just the idea of a little change were hard to resist. So, Hero once again agreed to move the heavy stuff, and we hauled it all up two flights of stairs (And a loveseat, antique sewing machine and victrola down!)

Here is how it looks now:

I love it!

This is the closet in Lauren's room that I took over (Don't feel too bad, she has a very large walk-in for herself!) It is so nice to have a closet to put everything in, and then close the doors. The top shelf has boxes of stamp supplies, tissue, old music and paints. (Did not make the picture!)

This table is Hero and I's first kitchen table that we found in a really cute consignment shop in downtown Northville a million years ago. It has a pretty indestructable (fake) leather top. The bowl holding the markers was found at a garage sale. Alex and I went out one day and promised that we would buy at least one thing from evey sale we stopped at. At the time, it was a desperate purchase to fulfill the promise, but I love it. It reminds me of that special day with her. The accessories rack made it up from the basement, but got edited. It is about 1/2 the length it used to be. And the "create" letters - motivation from my good freind Ellen (who is exceptionally clever and creative herself!)

Hero made the ribbon rack for me which is so terrific - How can a person not want to use all these fun colors and patterns? The button jar is FULL and a lot of projects sport one or two. The magnet board was the first project done in the new area. It was Brenden's old board, but was a little too plain for this location. I mod-podged old sheet music all over, put typewriter key stickers on the magnets (too bad you cannot see how cute those are) and ta-da! It belongs!

The best thing about my crafty area are the little things that inspire, and lots of those things came from or remind me of the great people in my life. The dresser from my mom, the paper shelf from my friend Terry, the cute little striped bag from my friend Melissa, the sewing basket from Hero, and the yellow stool from an estate sale (only $3!). There are pictures of family and friends.

And when I am crafting, it is almost always for someone I love. I feel so connected to people when I am creating something for them, and the thoughts and memories I have while working are so motivating. It seems like everyone has visited me in my crafty area.

I love that.

Guest blogger...

Many of you have read about me. It is now my turn to tell a story...


Once upon a time (yeah it's corny, but applicable) there was a boy and a girl. Yeah, I know you read how we met and fell in love, but now let me tell you how we are still in love after all these years.


We have always been open with each other. We spend time together and make time for each other, and take time to just talk. Our relationship has always been the best! I know that other people have said that they wish they were as happy and in love as Favorite and me. We have had our ups and they seemed as if we would just keep going up (kind of like the stock market or house prices). Well, just like we have all seen those things that we thought would never come crashing down did, and so it seemed with our relationship. Although there was no real danger the voices in my head caused me to doubt that which I had never doubted before. I struggled with the thought that Favorite did not love me anymore and that I might not be good enough for her. I questioned if I really made her happy. Did she really still want to be with me after all these years or would she be happier with someone else. Why would I think that you ask. Well God has blessed me with many things and an over-active imagination is definitely high on the list of things I have. This is a good thing when you tell stories or watch a scary movie, but not always good when you try to live in the real world. I imagined all the bad things that could be happening in my life - I mean the worst things that my imagination could conger up. I latched onto words and dreams that really were due to my over-active imagination. Why would I do this? Partly because I don't lead a normal life...er, what I mean is that I work midnights and my life doesn't revolve the same as most. I am awake all night (sometimes night and day) and I sleep (a little) during the day. When someone is sleep deprived they are not always in their right mind, and I was not in mine. Not by a long shot. The things that were threatening me were in part to my insecurities and part real. The real part I dealt with directly and without remorse, and I slayed the dragon (so to speak). Thus I was able to fight for and protect that which I hold most high, even my favorite. She was in danger, I was in danger, we were in danger. That scared me more than I ever thought possible. The danger was there, it was real, and could easily have become out of control.


I know that Favorite loves me, and she has never said anything that would make me doubt her, or her love for me. So why all the worry you ask? Well Satan is a sneaky little devil. Yeah, he clues in on little things. He works his way into the tiniest of cracks and wiggles and worms his way in. All the while making that tiny crack into a large hole. Sometimes too big to fix. Lucky for me I saw that little devil. I saw him wiggling about, looking for a crack in our armor. He slithered around, but denied that it was anything at all. He snooped and prodded. Made you question what was good in your life. Even made it a little exciting along the way, just to entice you a little more. Reassuring you that what he was doing was OK and there was nothing to worry about, even though you felt in your heart that something wasn't quite right. That's how Satan works.


Now, Heavenly Father sees all. Even before it's going to happen. Sometimes long before. There are things in my life that I am not proud of and made me struggle over time. Those things have made me question my own worthiness. That is another way Satan tries to trick us. Another one of his tactics. He is so jealous that he can't have a body and since we do, he does his best to make us miserable like he is. Yeah he gets jealous and tries to drag us down where he is. Heavenly Father will never take away our agency, and I am grateful for that. He does, on the other hand, place before us options. What we do with them is our choice.

It's been a while since all this excitement began and yet there is the craziness that my mind can create. I worry. I REALLY worry (too much). What about you ask? Well think of something and I probably worry about it. Will it make any difference if I worry or not? Not usually, but I still worry. I used to be care free. I drove fast cars, and I drove them fast. (Really fast - I had the points to prove it.) I did daredevil stunts. Pretty foolish now that I look back, but back then I had nothing to be afraid of. No reason to fear loss. So I pushed the limits. I tried to out-do my friends. I sometimes put others at risk. I used to say "there are no 'what ifs'." I didn't think of the "what ifs" and just pushed forward without regard for the consequences. Now I'm older, and maybe a little wiser, and I worry about the "what ifs". The "what ifs" can take hold of you and make you a slave to them. Pretty soon they rule your way of thought. You constantly worry "what if...." Yeah, and then you loose it. You loose the daredevil inside of you. You loose the thoughts that you're a pretty good guy with a lot that people like and you feel insecure about most everything. You wonder "what if she doesn't love me anymore, what if she would be happier with someone else, what if I don't make her as happy as I once did, what if..." They creep in all around you, and you question everything. But I found something. I found out that I'm OK. I can be fun to be around, I can make Favorite happy, laugh, love, and be glad that she chose me. I don't need to be insecure, because even though I'm a pretty average guy, I'm helpful, loving, handy, willing to talk, willing (and really like) to watch "chick flicks", can make Favorite laugh, and I'm in pretty good shape for being forty-four years old. Favorite loves me. I am the luckiest guy around!

Where is all of this going? Well, don't take things for granted. Make everyday like when you are dating (courting) the one you love. Try to find ways of making your Favorite happy and it will come back to you. Choose to make your life special and look for good all around. Love, trust, make time, and be happy. Oh, and don't worry so much - it really doesn't help at all. In fact you loose touch with reality. Have faith it will all work out - it usually does.

So let me finish the story...

Once upon time there was a boy and a girl that grew up, got married, and they lived happily ever after.....

Cute Table Project

Doesn't this little table have potential? I love it's simple lines, and it is pretty sturdy, so it is a project - Horray! My mom gave this to me for my front room, formerly Alex's bedroom. The finish on it is pretty bad, and I do not like the dark color so much anyway, so it is off to the driveway to get to work.

Perfect weather for painting! A light breeze, not too hot or humid, and nice sunshine. I did a light sanding, but not too much. (I knew I wanted a distressed look.) It took 2 coats of white (latex interior) paint as a primer to cover the dark color. But I could see it coming together.

A closer up of the top with just the white paint. Glad I invested the time to give it a few coats.


How cute is this? I have this perfect color of paint that I got on clearance at Lowe's for a dollar, a light grayish blue - Love it! I knew it would go really well with the mustard color walls and the red accents in the room, complimenting without disappearing or taking over. After it was dry, I did sand the edges for the distressed look that I really like. (See it on the top left corner?) The picnic basket fits perfectly underneath and a few cute old books on top (one is called "Phunology", ways to have good wholesome fun in mixed company, written in the early 1900s by a pastor!) The table is just what I wanted in there!

I'm not sure, but I may stencil "murphy" on the top just for something to talk about.

My mom gave me a shadow box (in pieces) that I just might tackle this weekend. I love making our house a home!

A New Post

Ok, so I put up a new post that I started in May, and just finished up today. I did not realize it would jump down in chronological order.

So, for a new post, check out May 19, 2009!

Fun Friday

I just told my two younger boys that we are going to have a great day on Friday for two reasons: One, we are going to go see "Surf's Up" at Canton Cinema (Can't beat it for a dollar!), and two, we are going to clean their room.

I am really excited about the "clean their room" plan.

Colin and Liam have a large desk in their room that is covered with stuff (I will try really hard not to call any of their belongings "junk"), under their beds there is stuff, in their closet there is stuff, on top of dressers and books shelves there is stuff and there is stuff generally all over their floor. I do admit, it could be much worse - I don't think there are any food pieces or food wrappers - which is good. And most of their laundry is where it belongs. I try to help them do this super cleaning at least 2-3 times a year, but it is amazing how much can accumulate in such a short time.

There is nothing like walking into this kind of environment with black trash bags in hand, music playing, anxious expressions on the boys' faces. (I have the determined expression.) I just love this kind of project!

The big reason for this task is determining what they have in the way of clothes for fall and what we need to purchase. This is the incentive for Colin and Liam to cooperate in this adventure. When we have wrapped up this herculean project, we get to shop!

I anticipate that it may take 3-4 hours to complete. Colin and Liam are aware of the plan, and are (I'm sure) just as excited as I am. Maybe. But they really do love it when we are done. They keep everything so neat, put everything away right away, and inform all of their friends that it needs to stay that way. And this will last for at least a week.

And they thank me. Really. It is so good to know that even if they don't, at this age, have the continued motivation to keep it clean forever (or at least take on the task of overhauling by themselves) they do appreciate how good it feels to be clutter-free, knowing things are where they belong, and the place looking fabulous. It makes my heart happy.

Perhaps when they are all grown up, they will be the ones with the determined expressions and black trash bags, with their own little sweeties with anxious expressions, bravely embarking on the "clean their room" plan.