Latex and Stripper

Recently, I've had the itch to paint.  I go through these phases every so often and when I do...watch out.  Dave just gets wide eyed, stands back and wonders why I "torture" myself.  It's not torture, it's therapy!  Cheap therapy at that.  He ought to be grateful.

When Dave's mom, Barbara, passed away, we inherited a couple of dressers that were old but still in great shape.  They are made of maple (no crappy press board here) and are made very well, they even have the "dove tail" joints on each drawer to make them stronger.  The only problem was that they stain was wearing and it was the wrong color.  So about ten years ago, I sanded and painted them an off white/cream color.  I loved that color but, time had done what time does and so it was time to re-do them.  Since I just painted our bedroom a soft yellow/cream color, I decided to do a soft gray on the dressers.  I'm not totally convinced that I love the color, so it might change again but here are the photos of the process.

The yellow on the walls

Testing shades of gray

In the middle of snorting sawdust

Finished color.  I'm going to "live with it" for a little while to decide if it stays.

Now here is where the STRIPPER comes in...

I also decided to change the color of our coffee table.  If you've been to our home over the last several years, you probably noticed the "conversation piece" that was our coffee table.  I had DECOUPAGED about 50 photos to the top of the table.  Note to self, don't do this again!  I had many people comment on how fun that table was and how neat it was to see all of the pictures of the kids as they grew up, but the time had come to repaint the table, and I couldn't do that without redoing the paint that was underneath and in between those pictures, which snowballed into scrapping the table, which required stripper, then more stripper, then scrapping, then sanding.  What a nightmare!!  Don't worry, I have copies of all the photos.

This is halfway through the process...

Waiting to use the "fine grade" sandpaper then paint

What would I do without my stripper?  It took 3 coats to break down the glue and photo paper!

I'm planning on painting the table black and then roughing up the edges.  Dave's not sold on the color but we'll see.  Now I'm off the garage...while he's at work!

Home Made Heros

Yesterday was Becca's birthday.  The big 13!  She was born in Valencia California in 1999.  I remember waking up in labor at around 2AM and she was born at around 6:30AM.  What a day!  When we brought her home that afternoon the older kids were amazed at how tiny and cute she was.  They absolutely adored her.  That lasted until she could talk back to them : )  Then it became a love/hate thing.

Since she is 3 1/2 years younger than Jeffrey, there's a large space in between her, him and the older girls that seemed to widen as the years passed.  She just couldn't seem to really fit it with them and their lives no matter how hard she fought to get there.  That has actually been the problem.  She's a fighter/arguer, which will come in handy when she gets older but she hasn't learned how to choose her battles yet.  She's never understood why she can't do what they were doing because in her mind, she is their equal.

Now when I say she's a fighter, that doesn't mean that she fights with everyone all the time.  In fact, she is really quite sweet to those around her.  She is a leader with her friends and is the one in her group who includes people, no matter who they are.  She goes out of her way to invite anyone and everyone to play outdoor games or what ever she's doing.  This just hasn't seemed to translate to her OLDER siblings.  Like I said, she thinks she's one of them (peers) and should have the same rules etc.  When she gets left behind, sometimes she takes it okay and other times, not so much, which I can understand (being the youngest of 5).

If the truth be told, Amanda and Becca have an interesting relationship.  Very similar to the Sarah/Amanda relationship when they were younger.  Becca is like I described above...and Amanda has NO patience for  anyone whom she thinks is "acting stupid to get attention, talking dumb or asking too many questions".   She has the ability to "see right thru people" and tell if they are phoneys or fakes.   She is happy and easy going as long as she is free to do and go as she pleases, and hates to be questioned (which Becca is PRO at doing).   Becca's personality is actually a great combination of Sarah & Amanda with her own personality mixed in there too.    It's like I'm raising all three girls in one person now!  I love it :)!  At least I've been there, done that, so nothing really surprises me, yet. 

Here's the HERO part!  On Tuesday nights the high school has "Open Gym" for volleyball girls who want to play next year.  More than anything, it's time to hang out, scope out your competition, have fun, and perhaps learn a thing of two.  Last week several of the girls that will be returning next year called Amanda and begged her to come play, so she did.  Then this week one of Becca's friends told her she could go too.  I assumed that Amanda would take Becca and they would have a good time, but Amanda said she wasn't going because she felt too much like a "super senior" (someone who doesn't know when to leave and continues coming back after they've graduated).  Amanda is clearly ready to move on!!

So Becca went with a friend, and as soon as she walked in...Que the heavenly choir...she was welcomed in and automatically fit in...because of the good reputation that Amanda had left behind!  The girls kept saying "you look and sound just like Amanda",  ''you are so funny, just like Amanda",  "we like you", "you're pretty cool", etc. etc etc.

She basically felt like a rock star, or at least like a rock stars' kid sister.  See, it was the older girls (Amanda's friends) who were talking and joking around with her, plus she's already friends with the younger girls, so it was, magic.  It was the best birthday present anyone could have given her (they even sang to her).  She came home practically floating! 

Earlier that day I saw Amanda and she was on her way to get balloons and candy to take to Becca's school for her birthday.  She delivered the balloons to the front office and then left.  Becca came home feeling loved by her sister, whom she thought couldn't care less about her.  Sometimes Amanda surprises me!  She is very aware of her actions and really attempts to fine tune the rough spots, but she has to do it, on her own terms.  The independent little cus!  Twice in one day, Amanda was a real hero to her little sister.

Holding out!

Dave and I have been married for over 22 years now, and in that time I can count the number of times he has made dinner using nothing but my fingers and perhaps a couple of toes. Okay, that might be a slight exaggeration but not by much. One thing that isn't an exaggeration is the menu, or lack thereof. He is a professional tater tot casserole maker, BBQer, and breakfast food maker but that is about it. But tonight...

He made CHICKEN CACCIATORI!! Seriously? Twenty Two years and he pulls this out of his hat? He's been holding out on me! I didn't see this coming. Ya, he casually walked into the kitchen and within 1 hour, he'd created a masterpiece! All the while he's reminiscing about how his dad used to cook the meals and how good he was at it. I knew this, but I assumed it was just the normal everyday "dad kind of food" NOT a restaurant quality meal. It was. Amazing! The kids and I voted that he cook this on a regular basis.

So there you have it. I obviously should have asked more questions...twenty two years ago!

Painting

I've haven't been blogging because I've been painting!  The basement to be exact.  Next will be our bedroom.  All serious, color suggestions will be accepted but not necessarily used,  : )  I'm leaning toward a pale, sunny yellow because I'm going to make a large white headboard out of an old door and I like yellow and white, almost as much as I like blue and white.

The basement is now a lovely shade of pale blue/gray called Barely Jade.  With the white trim, dark picture frames and black furniture...I love it!

It's hard to take a good photo but here are some anyway.

Gotta love Becca's note of her door.  Announcing that that is HER room.

The candles that are suppose to be there melted in our our move.  Still haven't replaced them.

The bathroom got a face lift too.  Same color.

Hearts and Love

I saw a cute idea on Pinterest and decided to modify it a little to make my own.  I love wreaths for every season but with all the WIND around here, our door is getting hammered!  One day I'll have to repaint it but for now I needed an idea that would be more gentle on what paint I have left.

Instead of using a metal, wood, or twig base, I found some really cheap cardboard cake foundations at "The Walmart" and decided that it wouldn't take much effort to cut whatever shape I needed out of them.

I drew (freehand) the shape of the heart, then cut it with a x-acto knife.  Pretty simple.
Then I dyed some coffee filters using pink and red and a little brown paint diluted with water, squeezed them and set them out to dry overnight. 

Then one at a time I bunched them up, snipped the ends off and glued them to the heart shape, mixing up the red and pink so that it looked variegated.  Easy Easy!  And it is very kind to my door.

Next I'll try a shamrock and then I've got a slightly different idea for Easter.

My guy never forgets me on special days and for this last Valentines day he didnt disapoint.   When I got home from Rexburg I was greeted with the LARGEST CARD I've ever seen.  I have a box of cards he's given me over the years.  I'm not sure where I'm going to put this one :)

We have a running joke about who loves who MORE, so much so that about 10 years ago, I swiped his wedding band and took it to a jeweler to have the words "I love you...More" engraved on the inside.  He thought he had misplaced it for a couple of days and didn't have the heart to tell me.  By the time I confessed, he hadn't reached the panic mode yet and we had a good laugh about it.  I love my guy!

Missionary, Marriage and Mothering Advise

So this last weekend, a few of us traveled down to our old hometown (Mesquite).  I had to clarify which one because we've had so many over the years. One of our dearest friends' son is leaving on his mission soon and was speaking in church.  He will be serving in Mexico City, Mexico.  We love this family so much that while we lived there, my kids spent much of their time at their house and when they weren't over there, Colton was at our home.  The summers were spent playing night games, going to the golf course (even in 105*), riding ATV's, swimming, jumping on the trampoline, exploring the mountains, feeding cattle, and one time Jeffrey got to go with Colton and his dad to castrate some calves.  I don't think he will EVER forget that day!

We've had BBQ's together and rejoiced every time a new grand baby was born (they have 8 kids, 7 of them living, so that makes for a LOT of grand babies).  I could spend hours talking with Chris (the mom) about everything.  These are the kinds of people that I really admire.  Theron, the dad, is the Stake President, a rancher, a realtor, a businessman, and is as down to earth as any human can get.  No pretenses there.  They don't care what you look like, how much money you have, what your hair looks like, and family is EVERYTHING to them.  They are very hard working people who love that community. 

When Colton got up to speak, he said "Oh man, I forgot my scriptures".  Then said "I'll just use my dad's"  (Remember, his dad is the Stake President.)  Then he proceeded to bend down and grab a set of scriptures, open them up and gently blew on them at which time a puff of white "dust" flies out.  He then said "Dad, you should read these more often".  I laughed so hard!  Everyone was laughing.  Theron was laughing too but it took a second for him to figure it out because he was sitting behind Colton. 

Colton gave a wonderful talk about why he will be serving a mission and who has inspired him over his lifetime.  I have not doubt that he will be loved down in Mexico.

Now to the advise part:

On Friday our ward had a Valentines dinner with a couple of speakers taking about marriage.  Dave, Sarah and I went.  The speakers were the Hunts, a couple in our ward who just celebrated their 50th anniversary.   They were awesome!  They know how to laugh, have fun, support, and encourage each other which would explain how they've managed to last this long.  A couple things that they said stuck with me.

First, don't put your kids before your spouse.  She said if you are doing this, reevaluate it!  We all know there will be times when the kids need first attention (when they're sick, hurt etc) but don't make it a habit to put them first.  They are NOT part of your marriage and should not be treated as though they are.  I still tell people I have a "boyfriend", because I do!  My kids know it.  My friends know it.  And HE knows it!

Second. she said that they've never been the kind of couple that "needed" their own separate escape such as "night with the boys or girls night out".  They spent time together.  Not 24/7 but they invested more time in their marriage than with friends, sports, hobbies etc.  Good counsel, I think.

Personal side note:  We've always made it a priority to go on dates.  We don't take the kids along.  We have paid out thousands of dollars for baby sitters but it has been worth every penny!   The kids learned early on that they could survive a few of hours without us and that we would return.  When Sarah was about 9 we let her baby sit for short periods of time.  One of my best friends and I used to laugh about giving our older girls the "talk" about unrighteous dominion and how they both needed to understand that if they chose that path with their younger siblings, we would hear about it, and there would be swift justice.  Oldest daughters tend to do that.  They think that are in charge starting at a young age.  Most boys, on the other hand, would let the house burn down :)

This also brings up another point of parenting.  I have had a few friends (not the same friend referred to above) over the years that are absolutely wonderful people but when we are talking, either face to face or on the phone, it is really hard to tell if they are having a conversation with me or their kids.  My theory is, once or twice, I'll ignore it.  After that, I'll say something like "it sounds like you are busy so just call me when you can talk."   What they are telling me is, that they either don't care to have a conversation, or that they don't have time at the moment, or that they can't or won't correct their kids  Either way is fine, but why waste my time waiting for them to pay attention?

My kids learned that when I was having a conversation, it was rude to interrupt, unless they were "on fire" (a nod to Dave's career) or really in trouble.  This is not to say that I didn't keep my eyes on them to make sure they weren't hurt.  They got clever and occasionally wrote me short notes and slipped them to me, mid conversation.  These were not life threatening situations!  They were things like "Can I go to so and so's house?" kind of questions.  

If you want to build self esteem in your kids, don't "fight" their battles for them.  When the kids were younger and would have a problem with someone, they did what all kids do.  They came to tattle on the "offender", to me.  They learned very quickly that my first question to THEM would be, what did YOU do?  If I discovered that both parties were wrong, which was usually the case,  I would teach them the words and phrases to use and then send them on their way.  Most times things came to a peaceful conclusion and that was that.  This also forces them to evaluate if this is a worth while fight?  Is this worth telling mom about and having her find out what I did?  Sometimes things didn't work out nicely, in which case they also learned that life isn't fair and that they really could go on living even if  "johnny" wasn't being nice.  Some kids are just mean, which is another great lesson to be learned in this life. Deal with it, move on and find another friend to play with.  If, however, they are going through friends like crazy, that might be a red flag that your child is way too sensitive and might need to toughen up a bit.

As they got older and things got a little messier and sometimes they'd have to deal with adults (teachers etc.), I would do the same thing by teaching them how to talk to adults, how to listen, how to communicate clearly and how to stand up for themselves.  I can only think of a couple of times when I needed to step in, as another adult, but for the most part they could handle it.  I always followed up on things by asking them questions.

Just my two cents and passing thoughts...

Names

Whats in a name? Sometimes a lot, sometimes nothing. I was named after my mother, Sharon. She tells me that that was not her wish, but my fathers wish. She never really liked her name but dad said, "I'm the one blessing her so I think I'll name her Sharon." How do you argue with that flattery? And so it was. That's where my name was born. Funny thing is, is that I am never called Sharon, except by people who don't know me, which comes in handy when it comes to telemarketers. If I answer the phone and the person says "May I speak to Sharon", I know right away that they are not a " friendly".

Sharie

I don't remember being called anything other than Sharie.  Why?  Because when you have two people in the same house with the same name, it gets confusing.  So from the time I was able the communicate with the world, they called me Sharie.  When people would call our house and say, "Is Sharon the there?",  the next thing out of the mouth of whoever answered was, "do you want BIG Sharon or little Sharon?"  No, this was NOT a fat joke.  So I would highly suggest that you don't name your kids with your exact name, or if you do, call them by their middle name.  It will save much confusion and hassle.

I've often been asked how I got the spelling of my "name".  Well, I guess dad and mom decided to just take off the "on" and add an "ie" and call me Sharie.  Strange, I know, but it works.  I've been temped, many times, to have it legally changed but that is such a hassle.  Such a hassle in fact, that it took me 10 years just to change the "o" to and "e" for Peterson/Petersen on my drivers license and it would probably still be "o" if the lady and the DMV in Las Vegas didn't catch it, dang her!  I had to get a new SS card which meant I had to go to the scary side of town to the Social Security Office (they're always in the hood) and apply to get a new one with the correct spelling.  Then I had to return to that DMV office and get my renewal.  What a Pain!!

Oh well, it's done.  I might still need a little therapy to get over it.  haha  My name has only come in handy once or twice when I could sign our name (with her permission, of course) and it was not forgery. 

Why do I bring up names, you ask?  Oh, I just don't want my new little, dare I say it... I'm too young... grand baby to have to put up with the same name shenanigans that I've had to deal with.  

So, what's in a name?  A lot.

As a side note...my mom told me once that my "back up" name was going to be Penny.  Can you imagine a copper haired girl named PENNY?  Not funny!  But the ironic thing is is that we had a DOG named Penny.  Good call parents!  I'll stick with Sharon!