party and pretzel making

Thursday Owen's class had a Birthday Party for Jesus at "church school". 

They decorated cookies at snack time and listened to Christmas music. 

We are so grateful for his teachers and class. Owen is always happy to go and his teachers are big fans of Owen. They brag on what a sweet, funny and smart kid he is. 

We also made our own sweet treats for Daddy's nurses and some of the office staff at the clinic.

We made a good team, I would dip the pretzels and Owen was in charge of sprinkles and toppings.

Fun and easy treat to make and we might have sampled a few in the process ; )

a little lady shower

We hosted a  baby shower for some friends in residency with us this weekend who are expecting a sweet baby girl in about a month. 

My friend, Crystal gave me the idea for the door decoration above. It is made from foam board from Hobby Lobby. While my mom was here, she drew the cross (which I never could have done) and cut it out with one of David's very sharp knives. I painted it and used a cup to make a stencil for the polka dots...which was a great tip from Crystal!). 

We made a simple ribbon banner to go above the food table.

Found this free printable here.

We used zinnias from our yards in old mason jars.

As well as a teapot ; )

Added in some fresh rosemary and basil that had begun to flower to some of the arrangements as well.

Stephanie made an ombre strawberry cake and we plated it on a cake stand that my Aunt Lynda hand-painted.

The menu included oven baked polenta, smoky dry rub chicken, three bean salad, watermelon tomato feta salad, roasted tomatillo salsa, corn and avocado dip, chocolate cookies and Pink Lady Cake.

Pink Lemonade was served.

Some of the girls celebrating Amanda and Baby Leisel.

And the guys.

Sweet Amanda left all the hostesses with this cute gift of cowgirl cookies.

We had a great night celebrating a little lady that will soon be joining our residency family. She will be the only girl among 7 little boys. Bless her!

chalkboard paint

After seeing several ideas on Pinterest and some blog posts, I decided to try my hand at painting with chalkboard paint.

We had this old cheap mirror lying around, so it seemed like a good piece to update.

I taped the sides of the mirror with painter's tape and applied 3 coats of chalkboard paint directly to the mirror letting it dry the recommended time between coats. You can also turn a piece of chalk on its side and give a chalky first coat to your board so it will erase easily in the future.

This was our end result.

We are ready for football season, but it can serve as a message board or just for writing notes or verses on later in the year.

My next project was inspired by this post. We opted for a 4 by 4 instead of the 4 by 8 sheet of plywood recommended for outdoor use. I painted the front and back with primer. We sanded any rough spots on the board after this step. I then gave one side of the board 3 coats of chalkboard paint letting it dry 3 to 4 hours between coats.

And this was our end result.

One tip: you have to wait 3 days after it is painted before you can write on it. Also, it can not get wet for 7 days after it is newly painted. So just keep this in mind if you have a deadline.

David used carriage bolts to secure the board in the corners and wood screws along the sides. I don't think our chalkboard is going anywhere.

 We also drilled some holes in the bottom of the bucket to let water drain...dare it rains! 

I have to say, the chalkboard was a hit with Owen.

And yes, that is a tractor in the background...I never said I was an artist. 

But luckily Meme is, did we mention we are so glad she is here having fun with us?

We really like how the chalkboard came out, it gives new life to our backyard.