Progress

So I finally found the motivation to blog again today....lol, it's been seriously lacking as of late. There just isn't enough time in the day to accomplish everything I'd like to accomplish so...guess we can see what has been not making the cut lately!

On the up side I have been keeping busy. Kids, as always, are enough to completely fill my day ( particularly Piglet, who FINALLY busted out a tooth and has two more showing, btw) and I've been working on those new skills I talked about in my last post. Wanna see a couple teaser pics?

 Yep...that's the stove. :) It's turned out a bit differently then I expected. In the plan the whole piece is a stove but...of course I can't do anything by a plan or pattern ( it's a curse really) and I messed up the inside shelf by putting it up too high, and then I had problems with the door. And the more I was having trouble, the more I looked at the thing and was thinking ' man it really is just too wide to be a stove." So what did I do? Decided to separate it into a stove and a little counter space with a cabinet under neither. Yes my cuts are imperfect, and there will be a TON of sanding and filing and possibly even chiseling  to make it perfect, BUT at least I allotted myself 3 months for this project and I have PLENTY of time left!

Of course because of the alterations to this piece I have to alter the sink now was well. The sink is the same basic pattern except...well, with a sink! I was altering that plan anyway because I want to put in an apron sink. But now I think I'm also going to move it to the side and make a cabinet next to it with counter space so that there is a large stretch of counter space between the sink and stove. And plenty of storage....because even in play kitchens, you can never have too many cabinets!

What else have I been doing?? Well there has been knitting and sewing, and walking and sprinkler parks. I started a couch to 5k program that I am IN LOVE with and I am just generally trying to keep myself occupied so that I don't turn into an angry bitter person...because that would be VERY easy to do with how badly Skunky's job is sucking the big one as of late.

I know what you're thinking...' He just got back from deployment didn't he?'

Yeah. He did.

I'm actually praying for a safety stand down now. At least then he might get to see the kids for more then 30 minutes every 7 days ( if we're lucky).

I think Skunky and my experiences in the military have been very different then most....and perhaps that is another reason why I have avoided this blog like the plague lately. I have nothing good to say about the Navy right now, and I have found that in this tight knit community of blogging military wives/so's a negative opinion of the military is not wanted or appreciated. I'm sorry girls, but I can't keep it up any longer. I love my husband with a passion I don't think will ever fade. And I am behind him 100%. But we...and I stress the term we... hate the Navy. And we are literally counting the days ( 556) until this hell is over.

LOL...on that positive note... :).....I'm out for now!

until next time!

PRO- ductive!

I'll admit it....lately I've gotten a little bit of my crafting bug back! Of course, I wouldn't choose to go back to my old stand by of sewing ( even though I have a quiet book ::cough:: projects I need to finish!) No no...now is the time that I decide to pick up a couple of new hobbies.....as if my plate wasn't already full enough!

I've decided I'm going to teach myself how to write HTML/XHTML/CSS. I know...I'm nuts! I signed myself up for a free online course and bought a "how too" book that I am trying to decipher. It's totally one of those "... For Dummies" books. I know....cliche but, I've had luck with those books in the past, so  I figured, eh, why not? ( BTW.....you should totally check out 7-Day Menu Planning for Dummies!! That book has saved dinner time around here, literally!)

Why the sudden interest in this topic you ask? Well, I know how to 'fiddle' with code that is already established. But you can only do so much when you 'fiddle'. And I want to create a unique site, and I want to do it well. So....you start with the basics! PLUS....I figure this will give me an excellent excuse to nudge Skunky into buying me that new more powerful computer I've been lusting after! And to get those design programs I've wanted but haven't really had an actual reason to get them!

My other new hobby....wood working! I decided in February, before Skunky got home, that I wanted to build a play kitchen for Pollyanna's next birthday. ( Many of you may remember this post.) Well...I started it and I'm really excited about it!! So far Skunky and I have completed this:

It's a toy Pie Hutch!! I am SOOOOO incredibly happy with how it came out, because this is my first time working with wood and power tools ever! I did all of the cutting and most of the gluing and nailing myself. Skunky did have to come help me save it a little after I mistakenly put some of the pieces together in the wrong way ( ummmm...the plans I have TOTALLY did not specify that there was an actual technique to putting joints together! Obviously the plans I have were written for people who are familiar with woodworking!)

Best part of this project? Skunky's comment upon finishing: " Gee, Jen....we're gonna have to put you together a big girl Pie Hutch now." I just about squealed in delight, lol! I freaking love that man!

We still have a stove, sink, and fridge to make so the set is complete! I'm hoping to go to Lowes tonight to pick up the wood for the next part! We're planning to finish and paint all four of the pieces together once we have them all built because I really don't know what colors we're going to paint them yet! Once they're done though I'll post the finished product!

We also refinished our dining room table and the new chairs we bought. Here is before:

And here is after:

The whole table is white...it just looks yellow on top because of the light on.

 Sure wish I had my SIL around to use her fabulous photography skills and take some cool looking finished pictures! I plan on making some seat cushions to go along with them but have decided to put that project on hold...seeing the way that Pollyanna climbs up into, and then wiggles around on the chair makes me realize that they probably wouldn't last long with children of the age I have in my house! However...though the chairs look stiff and hard, they really are pretty comfortable for a dining chair...I'm not even sure they need cushions, except for the aesthetic of it.

Anywhoodle....until next time!

Perhaps I'm crazy... :)

I'm really looking forward to getting home. For those of you who don't know...I've been visiting my family in UT for the bulk of my husbands deployment. But the time to go home is now here. I've got just under 3 weeks and we'll be back on the East Coast. I'm excited because there is a lot I'd like to do get ready for Skunky to come home. But once we get passed all of that, I'm also excited because I'm determined to make this for Pollyanna's 3rd birthday:

(Go here to see ALL of the pictures, this girl did an AMAZING job)

And I'm also going to make lot of this stuff to go with it:

( Visit this girl's Etsy shop here . She's pretty amazing...if I don't end up being cool enough to make it you can bet I'll be buying hers!!)

I'm a little ambitions ( possibly crazy!) huh? I've been thinking about doing this for probably the last year...and I really think I'm going to do it this year. I'll keep you posted! Wish me luck!

Knitting. Is. Hard!

I find crochet MUCH easier! I decided that I wanted to tackle trying to make these:


Instead after at least 3 tries, (along with Pollyanna pulling out my work another 4 times because I was silly enough to leave it where she could reach it) this is what I have so far:


Thrilling huh? :) So I've decided I could probably use some practice before I attempt to make something actually useful. And I've started this:


It's going to be an afghan for Pollyanna's dolls ( she's obsessed with carrying around her bed quilt and covering her dolls up for "naps". Which would be fine, except she gets so frustrated when the quilt doesn't lay right, and it's so BIG that it never lays right!) Do you see that ribbed pattern? It's super simple....and also the ONLY knitting pattern I've been able to master with any proficiency. Sad.

Now... why, you ask ( as did my SIL), are you knitting Jen, if you find it hard and frustrating?

And there are two reasons for this. 1) I refuse to believe there is a craft/trade out there I can't master. Heavenly Father has blessed me with both a creative mind, and the ability to pick things up very quickly ( when I set my mind to it!). So...perhaps it's a pride thing. But I really think it's a skill I'd use more often...if I could just learn it. Reason #2) I want to get one of these:


Isn't she a beauty?? I'm DIEING to learn how to spin!!!! However...Skunky, being the frugal man that he is, is probably going to be a hard sell on a 400+ $ piece of equipment ( not to mention what it will cost to buy the wool...or our own sheep {hehe!} in the near future!!) if the only thing I can do with the yarn is make a few crochet hats and a blanket!

So the knitting continues. And I will master you, you blasted knitting needles!!

Here's some joyful pics of Pollyanna from last week:


Her new thing is to rip off her Pj's and run around in nothing but her diaper and a dishcloth! She looks like a little indian!

She loves the Mrs. Potato Head we got her for Christmas! Here she is modeling the glasses. :)

And here is a video of Piglet pulling to a standing position for the first ( well 2nd really cause I didn't have the camera out for try # 1) time!!

Craftin' around...

Recently, Christina over at Married to a Sailor had this really interesting post titled " The best thing about my Husband being deployed." I was fascinated by her openness actually! And I really appreciated her positive attitude, her ability to find the bright side of a crappy situation. I thought to myself..." gee, I wish that I could remain that positive during deployment!" because honestly, I've had a pretty hard time ( at moments!) being able to see deployment as a good thing. Perhaps I can give myself a little bit of slack because this is my first one, and it's a learning curve. And I really do appreciate how hard Skunky is working to keep our family afloat. ( hehehe..cause we're Navy :) okay I'm done! ) And I know that he loves us and misses us terribly. Sometimes though...the separation really does just suck. And no amount of positive thinking can change that.

I have found something that helps A LOT though, to pass the time, to make myself feel good. And that is...crafting. Here are a few things I have made/finished this week:



A garment bag for my Temple dress. It folds up into a shoulder bag for easy transport. I'm super proud of this one because I didn't use a pattern AT ALL! I still have a few cute finishing touches ( like buttons) to add.


My brother's Christmas gift finished!


A "roll" holder for my knitting needles.

Around Christmas time I was a crazy, craftin' momma! My sister-in-law and I made this list:

9 crochet winter hats
1 crochet blanket ( same as my brother's above)
1 set of 3 pencil bags
1 large craft bag
1 large diaper bag
6 therapeutic rice packs
2 wallets
2 travel wallets
1 crochet Barbie dress

There is possibly more that I am not remembering right now. And granted...I have been at my parent's house, so all I've had to worry about are my kids and my crafts. ( no house work!! But don't get me wrong...they're A LOT of work! We're on our 2nd round of ear infections in 4 months! There must be something in the water here!)

I guess the point of all this is...yeah, I know my attitude is pretty crappy sometimes when it comes to deployment. I would hope that people would understand that it's really just coming from my desperate loneliness without Skunky. He is my whole world, and it's so much dimmer here without him. BUT...there are ways to get through it. Mine happens to be working my fingers to the bone. :) But I've acquired some new skills, and expanded talents I had previous to deployment. So, there is something positive to come out of all this. Once I open my eyes to find it!