Last Day in Texas

The last day of our trip to Texas was packed full of fun stuff.  We had lunch at the Blaschke's where John and Gus were able to show off some of their new moves learned from swim lessons.  We always have a good time with the Blaschkes.

 That evening we had a little party for John since his birthday was only days away.

 Gus and Anders had to be the first to see the gifts and cards.

 John got a cool new helmet to match his cool new bike.

 Over the years I have discovered that John is not much of a cake person.  Just like his momma.  So my mom got him an ice cream cake.

 Then the boys enjoyed some quiet time watching a show with Grandma.  Can you see she is trying to soak in every second with these kids?

Of course we had to try to get a group shot.

 Gus isn't interested...

 Now he is even less interested and Anders is wavering...

 Gus is at least trying.  He wants to get this over with.

 I think Anders is trying to tell me this is taking too long.

 Gus was not interested in taking pictures with Uncle Mark either.  What a goof!

It's Only a Bee Sting

The wasps were pretty bad in Texas this year.  My dad was outside all the time killing newly started nests.  We found that wasps pick some sneaky places to build nests.  We were all going to have dinner outside one night.  Hans had been sitting on two stacked chairs and, when he went to separate them, he unknowingly disturbed a nest.  Well, I shouldn't say he disturbed the nest at that point.  These lovely wasps waited until my husband sat down before they unleashed  their furry.   I wasn't outside at the time and just heard all of the yelling and screaming.  I thought Fritz had eaten stuff off of the table.  If only...

Hans was able to make it inside and ran to the bathroom to wash his legs.  Meanwhile the boys and my parents were stuck in the yard had to go around to the front door to come back in.  They had never seen so many wasps.  I'm sorry I missed that part.  I just got this part.

 That is so insensitive, I know.  I felt very bad for him.  However a paste made of baking soda and water did wonders.

This was the nest that was attached under the chair.  So, when in Texas during the summer, look under your chair before you sit down.  I know Hans will from now on.

Chickens!

Our good friends Mr. and Mrs. Main invited us over to their log cabin for dinner.  They have a little chicken coop and the boys loved being in there with the chickens.  Makes me want to build a Fiene boy coop and lock them in!

 They had fun feeding the chickens the watermelon rinds.

 Gus was concerned that some of them weren't eating so he tried to hand feed them.

Anders challenged one to a staring contest.  It was a draw.

The boys had a ton of fun and we got to visit with some dear friends.

Dining Room: Before, Middle, and After

My dining room has been needing a change.  It was just too crowded.  The problem was I have a ton of dishes and serving platters.

Here was my dining room before.  I never intended on having two buffets.  The room is not big enough for this.  This, along with the fact that I bought these two pieces off of Craigslist in order to rehabilitate them, but hadn't had the chance yet, made this my least favorite room in the house.

So my mom convinced me a trip to Ikea was in order.  Those who know me know it doesn't take that much convincing to go to Ikea.

$80 for the two tower shelves and it looks like a whole new room.  It is much more open and way more usable.

BUT I couldn't leave it like this.  This wonderful change was the kick I needed to refurbish the table and chairs and buffet.

 Now this is my dining room.

Who wants to come over and have dinner?

Dining Room Buffet

This is a piece I bought a few months before we moved into this house.  So I purchased this bad boy 3 years ago with every intention of refurbishing it 3 years ago.  Then life happened.

BEFORE

AFTER

 Since this is in my dining room I decided to make it match the table I just finished. 

I painted and glazed the bottom and sanded and stained the top.

Debbie and Pam took me to Anthropology right after my birthday and gave me a gift certificate.  Between their sweet gift and my Aunt Diane sending me money for my birthday, I was able to score these beautiful knobs and drawer pulls!

I'll post picks of my "new" dining room soon!

Refurbished Table and Chairs

After my latest paint projects I decided to tackle my dining room table.  The table and chairs were given to us when we got married, so they were starting to look a little dated.

BEFORE

 The chairs were a pale green with embroidered stars on them when we were given the table.  I had the chairs reupholstered about a year after we got the table.

 I tackled the table first.

 I painted and glazed the legs.

And I sanded and stained the top.

 This is darker than I had envisioned, but I actually really like it.

DONE...with the table.  Now for the chairs.

 The chairs were very time consuming.  But I think the paint and glaze make the details stand out.

ALL DONE!!

Next I tackled the buffet.  I'll post about that next.

Texas Farm Animals

As soon as the boys knew we were going to Texas, John asked if Grandpa was going to have the animals with no faces that Grandpa made to go with his farm.  The boys were happy to see the faceless animals waiting for our arrival.

 It didn't take the boys long to try them out and start making noise.

They even got Fritz to give it a try.

Park Fun

What should you do when faced with 100+ degree heat?  Hit the park, of course!  But we didn't stay long so I told the boys to make it count.  Boy did they.  By the way, I could really use some of this heat right about now.

 Gus is getting a little more brave with climbing.

 He still hasn't mastered it yet.  And, yes, I'm the mom who takes a picture of the fall.  He was okay...no tears.

I was proud he wasn't deterred by the fall and tried to make his way up the wall again.  This time he succeeded.  Too bad I didn't get a picture of that.

 Anders wasn't as adventurous for a change and needed Grandma to carry him around.

 Swings are always a big hit.

 I wanted to get on the swings too.  At least there would have been a breeze.

 They had a wonderfully sweaty time.

Thanksgiving

Since Christmas day has come and gone I feel it is about time to let you all in on our Thanksgiving festivities.  I'm sure you were all dying to know what we did.

 This year we had a low-key day with my in-laws.  Well, as low-key as you can get with my three little goofballs.

 Grandpa had to suffer through the dinner sitting in between these two boys.  I'm not sure how much of the adult conversation he heard. 

 Grandma sat next to the kid who interrupted her every 5 minutes to ask for more mashed potatoes.

 Real men drink pink champagne. 

Actually, real men drink pink champagne ONLY to toast the arrival of the newest Fiene born to Jake and Ashley.

The boys dressed in a variety of costumes, as usual.  In case you are not aware, this is Larry Boy.  He is the superhero of Veggie Tales.

 After dinner we played games.

 I think Grandpa and Gus were trying to cheat.  Although is it really cheating when an unnamed seven year old holds his cards for all to see?

The next morning the boys curled up with Grandma to watch Charlie Brown's Christmas.

 Even Beauty and the Beast were getting along.

 It was a wonderful day.

Here's to many more low-key Thanksgivings!!