Tending the Eclectic Kinder-Garden

If all is going well this week (I’m writing in advance, attempting to fill the queue with blog posts so you won’t forget me), I’m picking up my hopefully-completely-repaired truck today. Good thoughts, good thoughts, good thoughts, good thoughts (seems to be my mantra for every move)…

Before leaving the Bordertown, I wanted to finish up one last craft, a wedding gift.  Alex’s family rented rooms to my husband years ago when he was stationed in Germany, and we met up with her (and met Aaron) quite by accident a few months ago here in Texas.  Alex and Aaron are both soldiers, Alex in the German Army, Aaron in the U.S. Army, and both are into Harleys, like my husband.  Yes, it was the motorcycles that brought us full circle, but we have enjoyed the humor, company, friendship, and German COOKING ever since we were reunited.  Perhaps we can convince them to honeymoon in Oz!

Alex’s bike is black, Aaron’s is burgundy/red.  It was fairly simple to figure out a color scheme for their collage:

Figuring out the layers took a little time, trying this configuration, that arrangement, shaking my head, maneuvering each element into the spot that worked:

A pretty bow, a little heart charm:

Arranging the photos (black and white seemed to work best):

Black velvet ribbon for the trim:

Ta da!

Since I caught Alex and Aaron playing up and down the aisles of Hobby Lobby one weekend (seriously!), I’m thinking they just might like the gift.  If not, they’ll certainly enjoy the gift CARD TO HL!

(By the way, I used a 12X12 chipboard square for the base, decorative papers, a chipboard heart, burgundy Scrabble Tiles, ribbon, a small heart charm, brown photo corners, black brads, black velvet, and lots of hot glue for this project.  Not pictured is the metal stand I purchased to prop the collage against so Alex and Aaron can display it wherever they like.)

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~We’re still packing, I’m sure. By now I might be in need of Five Tips for Tranquility (thanks to WishStudio Blogzine)…

~ So it’s not yet Christmas in July, but Mom, if you need ideas for what we’d like for Christmas in DECEMBER, how about some of this guy’s knitted creatures?  Here’s his products page…

~Candice is making me wish my crafting goodies were unpacked by July 4!

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If all is going according to plan, we’ll watch the movers load up the semi tomorrow, and we’ll be relaxing in the hotel, getting a good night’s rest so we can start the drive to Oz on Saturday morning.  Thanks for any good thoughts you mentally send our way!

I’m not a big fan of the word “yeah,” but it seems to fit right about now:

(Tuesday, Day 1 of the packers in our house)

Wowie, BARE walls!

Nearly-bare china hutch….

Hard to believe that the house used to look like THIS at Thanksgiving…

Dear Daughter’s room hasn’t been THIS clean in quite some time (don’t tell her I told you!)…

And finally, our bed (yeah, it’s king sized!), covered with our traveling gear:

Wednesday will see the office, toddler’s room, my classroom gear, and our storage closets all being packed, Thursday MIGHT see the start of the furniture being prepped with the boxes getting loaded onto the semi…and Friday evening, this home will no longer be ours.

By the way, dear tax paying readers, THANK YOU.  It’s your tax dollars that house my husband and my family so he can do his job and we can all be together for the United States Army.  While I take great pride in keeping each house we live in feeling like a home, we all do our best to take good care of each property out of appreciation and respect for you, our friends and family.

Our cat, Anni, *knows* something is up.

Dear Daughter spending a week with grandparents has created the extra clinginess, the extra pacing, and the extra meowiness from Anni that we’ve come to expect. Yesterday’s increase in visitors (friends came over to help my husband get the garage in order and partially packed), the constant running of the washer, dryer, and dishwasher (I like our things to be packed CLEAN so they can quickly find their new locations when we open up the moving boxes on the other end) and my extended stay in Daughter’s room (wow, teens are amazing packrats!) with a garbage bag in hand pushed Anni past some kitty breaking point. Immediately after we got into bed to get some much needed sleep, Anni jumped on the bed and proceeded to do her best to… trample us. One doesn’t usually associate cats with trampling, but I assure you, trampling is exactly what Anni was doing.

No, she didn’t want to be petted.

No, she didn’t want to be brushed.

No, her litter box didn’t need to be changed.

No, she wasn’t hungry, and her food and water bowls were full.

She *knows.*

She hasn’t seen it in almost a year,  but she knows the cat carrier is around here somewhere, lurking, waiting, ready to pounce on her and bind her back into captivity for the two-day (or more) drive back to Kansas.

I caught her yesterday afternoon, preparing for battle, sharpening her no-longer-there claws:

Oh…boy…

It was a quiet Saturday, nothing but the sound of the blade slicing through the pretty papers, and me muttering not-so-kindergarten-teacherish words under my breath each time I accidentally burned myself with the hot glue:

Now I have both “inspiration” binders finished, full of seasonal/holiday decorating and craft ideas, as well as the regular home decorating inspirations that help me figure out furniture placement and storage solutions each time we move to a new home, new floorplan, and new traffic pattern. The third binder is extra, just for me, though I have no idea what I’ll be saving in it just yet.  Something about the binders matching/coordinating makes me smile.  I’m also assured that their flowery femininity will guarantee that NO ONE will mess with them “on accident.”

The packers arrive next Tuesday, which means tomorrow and Monday will be spent working through the to-do list:
* baking “thank you” and “we’ll miss you” cookies and goodies for friends and neighbors
* cleaning all of my copper decor
* laundering all of the linens, spare blankets, sheets, etc. so they’re clean and closet-ready when we open the boxes in Kansas
* packing our travel suitcases, preparing car activities and snacks for the kids
* getting BOTH trucks back from the repair shops (oh yes, Dear Husband’s truck decided to have brake problems this morning)
* making sure all of our legal documents and necessary paperwork are in our family binder, ready to travel with us
* buying our travel stash of diapers, snacks, toiletries
* loading the iPod up with drivable and motivating music
* making sure the cat carrier is clean and ready for Anni
* TRYING to work ahead, posting blogs in the queue so you all don’t think I’ve abandoned Kindergarten’s 3 R’s while our household goods (and my computer) are in transit
* finding one small craft that I can bring with me to help me wind down each evening in the hotel while the kids take their baths (I’m thinking crocheting)

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~ Country French Antiques continues on with the flower theme (I mean really, did you take a good look at my binders?  I seem to have absorbed a bit too much floral/romantic inspiration  lately), sharing photos from Shoe-Fleur

~ I might just have to subscribe to small, after this Frida-inspired photo shoot (oh yes, more flowers!)…it’s an ONLINE magazine!  Thanks to AllSorts for the link!

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With a name like Rosy Posy Confections, how could I *not* include this blog on my post today?

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I hope you are having a FABULOUS weekend!

Tags: binder

Let’s just jump right in, shall we?

I found out my job placement for the fall:

Whoo hoo! Yipee! Cool beans!

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Shannon sent us goodies as well~ look at the pillowcase and toy bags she made for the toddler:

She said the patch was from JodieFlowers Shop on Etsy.

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Finally…you KNOW you’re a military family when the entire neighborhood is FULL of these:

No silly, not lamp posts! MOVING TRUCKS AND VANS! Our move in late June will be our fourth move in five years. It’s gotten a little…old…but such is the Army life.

Packing up the household and making the drive is made easier with the knowledge that friends and a kindergarten classroom are waiting for us back in Oz!

Tags: friends, military life

… when you have Dillard’s, Monet, Sam and Libby, a set of Swarovski Crossed Pistols, and a handsome Sergeant Major to escort you to the Graduation Ball?

The dress, not a meringue in sight:

The bracelet and earrings (sparkly marcasite):

Did you think I was kidding when I mentioned pistols?

A black lace shawl, though none was needed since the temperature was in the TRIPLE DIGITS yesterday:

My new, most comfortable shoes by Sam and Libby:

Me and my dear husband, who graduates Thursday from the Sergeants’ Major Academy!

Tags: family, fashion, military life

Another reason to look forward to our new post assignment: we’ll live there long enough to make two-year magazine subscriptions worth it!

Here’s what I’ll be subscribing to:

…and the British version as well:

Just makes me all the more eager to find out what our new address will be so I can fill out all the subscription cards/forms necessary to get these treasures started on their monthly/seasonal trek to our mailbox!

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* PhotoJojo posts games you can play with your camera…

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I hope Moms everywhere enjoyed their special day yesterday! I certainly did! I have no clue why the toddler decided to sleep in (and therefore let ME sleep in) two extra hours, but it was the first of many special treats my family had in store for me! Other treats included a stash of peanut m-n-m’s (friends, family, and especially colleagues could tell you a story or two about my fixation on those candies!), a new digital photo frame, new movies (Sweeney Todd, and the new Alien/Predator movie…SPOILER ALERT... I haven’t watched Sweeney Todd but the Alien/Predator movie crossed some lines I didn’t care for, including violence against children, newborns, and mothers-to-be...honestly, THAT was the best script they could come up with? I love Sci-Fi, but am going to find it difficult to see any future films in the “Predalien” franchise thanks to this one.), a new little device for my iPod so I can enjoy tunes in our new-yet-still-old vehicle when we drive back to Oz this summer, and a very good dinner at Outback.

The rest of this month is full of celebrations: the SGM Ball, our toddler’s third birthday (Martha’s Crafts were on sale at Michael’s last week so he’ll have the monkey themed party)

and my husband’s graduation from the SGM Academy.

Whew!

Tags: family, links, military life

The post-wide yard sale was a success yesterday, at least in our neck of the woods. We sold enough functional-but-no-longer-for-us furniture (the bookcases with glass doors, the pink wingback recliner, our daughter’s computer desk, two televisions and vcr’s… a kitchen cabinet, a dryer in need of a new heating element, the toddler’s bed, some area rugs and runners), some kitchen odds and ends (single glasses, mugs, pots with no lids, lids with no pots-heh heh heh, no, they didn’t match!- the toddler’s old plastic Playtex bottles, baby spoons), clothes (toddler, adult, teen), home decor (some of my handmade seasonal wreaths, tchotchkes I didn’t want to try to renew/refurbish), toys, books, and magazines. It was rather funny, all of my British Home and Gardens and Country Living style magazines sold while my husbands biker-type mags didn’t. Yard saling ladies know what to avoid, apparently!

I’m not sure we lightened our load significantly however. For you non-military family readers, soldiers and their families have a weight limit on their household items based on the soldier’s rank. My husband’s promotion in October added a thousand pounds to our allowance, but I’m guessing we’ll still be close. While in the Bordertown, our daughter got a new double bed and two new chests of drawers, the toddler upgraded to a twin bed, I purchased a desk and bookcase set for my cubby, and the family gave me a kitchen cart/island for Christmas. Dear Husband added a bookcase to his study and our kitchen microwave is huge compared to our old one. We’ll see.

It was very easy for me to NOT go yard saling yesterday! Though the weight limit has consistently asserted itself in the back of my mind for the past five years, I also know we’re moving back to the land of antique malls, thrift stores, and hidden treasures this summer! My husband and I have decided that we are willing to spend the next two years searching for just the right pieces for our home: “real” barrister bookcases, complete with leaded glass panes in the doors
,
an overstuffed low-backed leather chair
,
drop leaf tables
,
a new desk for our daughter
,
and various styles of storage furniture~ file drawers
,
map chests
,
card catalog drawers…

Yes, the weight limit will be blown off its doors when my husband retires!

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Of course, I’ll also be on the look-out for “vintage bling” so I can make photo frames like Cupid’s Charm …

Michelle at Scribbit posted a delicious sounding French Onion Soup recipe that just might become my post-furniture-shopping-trip-treat…

…and if I stumble across one of these, I will in fact NOT buy it, though I certainly will try it!

Tags: collections, family, military life

Happy Thursday!

As a little girl, I loved to play dress-up. My mother, being a teacher, allowed me to take lick-and-stick foil stars out of her desk whenever I wanted to be Wonder Woman- after all, bracelets and headband/tiaras weren’t *really* like Wonder Woman’s unless they had stars on them! I loved looking through her high school yearbooks, because they had full-page photos of Homecoming and Prom royalty, decked out in crowns, robes, formal dresses, gloves, and dyed-to-match shoes. Each Christmas I had a new holiday dress, each Easter too. They usually twirled.

My first prom was in an Eskimo village at the top of the world, and surprisingly, I was invited to attend even though I was only in the eighth grade. I attended many more proms throughout high school, and dabbled in pageantry as well, so I had a steady fix of satin, rustley tulle, high heels, and sparkly jewelry to wear.

When I became a kindergarten teacher, it was natural to continue to play dress up! Fairy Tale Dress Up Day was enjoyed annually in my classroom, and I always made sure to wear a twirly dress and sparkly crown. When my husband and I met, I had no idea that my love of taffeta, Gunne Sax, and evening handbags would serve me well as a military “significant other,” a future (and present) military spouse.

No, I’ll never have a reason to archive my favorite gowns, but for now, I just can’t bear to part with these:

My “Zorro” gown was what I wore to my first Military Police Ball in Alaska…it swishes, it rustles, it sparkles, it’s gorgeous…

This is my Gunne Sax treasure- all lace, pearl buttons, ribbons…I wore it to a Christmas/Holiday Ball:

Details, details, details…

of these…

I could have danced…all night…

**As for the gowns that I CAN part with, they’ll be on Ebay this week**

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Even fully decked out in a fancy gown, pretty jewelry, and possibly a tiara, I know I’m only pretending to be a fairy godmother. After listening to last night’s Democratic debate, I agree with Tara: just because a person wears a little flag pin on his or her lapel doesn’t make that person truly patriotic. Patriotism isn’t what you wear, it’s what you do. And yes, could we please stop dumbing down the debate questions?

“I was going to write that patriotism does not require wearing a silly cheap plastic flag pin bought from Wal-Mart and made in China. I don’t care if you drape your front lawn in flags and wear a flag pin every waking moment, if you aren’t doing something to establish a dialogue and change the downwards spiral in America, you’re part of the problem.
Patriotism is questioning what’s happening in your country. Patriotism is being a soldier trying to stay alive amidst terrible conditions in a war fought under false pretenses. Patriotism involves the families who struggle to pay bills while their husband or wife is in Iraq or returning soldiers who have serious injuries, yet must fight to get the proper medical care they need. Patriotism is those who fight for the underdog and try to protect the Constitution and our civil liberties. Patriotism is shining attention on critical issues affecting us all, such as global warming and human rights. Patriotism involves helping insure a better future for our children and their children, by keeping informed about issues that impact our lives. Patriotism is thinking for ourselves. It is not accepting blindly what someone else tells you to do - that’s fascism.”
Tara Bradford, Paris Parfait

Tags: fashion, links, Show and Share