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DIY BBQ Cart for Father’s Day

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BBQ cart DIY

I can’t even begin to tell you how excited I was to give my hubby this DIY BBQ Prep and Serve Cart for Father’s Day.  Pinterest has been calling my name since I had surgery, a few weeks ago.  I couldn’t really focus on reading because my brain felt like mush, so I turned to Pinterest to just look at pretty pictures and feel like I’m doing something productive.  I saw a picture of a DIY BBQ cart from Home Depot and thought this would be a perfect gift.

As I mentioned, I am still recovering from back surgery so I knew I wouldn’t be much help in the thinking department or the lifting department.  I sent the picture to my friend Diane, who is my partner in the blogging world, mom-life, and is a wanna-be farmer like me.  I told her that we should build these for Father’s Day and she was all for the idea!

We took the little girls to Lowe’s and had them do the heavy lifting of the lumber.  Diane did the thinking and I took my medicated self along for the ride.

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There were nail guns and chop saws involved, so I stayed back.  (I’m telling you, there is no telling what could have happened if I had my hands on these.  My brain is mush.)

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Diane taught the girls how to use the tools and insisted on safety goggles.  (Don’t you just love it when other people insist on safety? It makes me feel like shouting to my kids, “See!  I told you I’m not the only mom who is cautious!”

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My son lives on the basketball court so he had to jump in and help whenever I could grab him.  He helped quite a bit and I was thankful for his muscles.  My main roll was “drill supervisor” as we were putting the frames together, and I also helped with staining and weather-coating.  I can’t even tell you how much I love this piece and how thankful I am that I have a fun neighbor who enjoys woodworking and can be the brains behind the operation.

 

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We put the BBQ cart over by the smoker, so my hubby would have a place to set his things when he is out grilling.  It’s on wheels, so it’s easy to move if he doesn’t want to keep it on the deck.  My kids did the styling and tried to make it just like the picture I found on Pinterest. Here is the link to the DIY Prep and Serve Cart on the Home Depot website, if you are interested in building one.

Happy Building and Happy Father’s Day!

A Few Favorite Teacher Gifts

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I’d like to say that I took the time to have my kids make gifts for their teachers.  The reality is, that I barely got the gift cards stuffed into envelopes and delivered on the right day.  My students and their parents, on the other hand, made some pretty cute creations for their kindergarten teacher.

First up, the melted snowman ornament.  LOVE!

These little candies were delicious.  I wish I could show you what the peanut butter meteorites look like.  They didn’t make it to the end of the school day.  They were very tasty.

One of my girls described how she made soap with her mom and sisters. I’ve never made soap before, but it sounds like fun.

How cute are these little elf shoes?  

In addition to these cute little creations, several parents went in together on a gift, and I also received many cards, treats, and gift cards to a few of my favorite stores. Oh, and my favorite gift of all was an email I received from our assistant superintendent.  She had been sent an email from one of my parents, who just wanted to share a few things about my teaching and our classroom.  I can’t tell you how much it brightened my day teaching career! I have fabulous students and parents! I feel truly blessed.

Happy Holidays! 

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New/Old Milk Bottles

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Every week we make a fruit and veggie run down the hill. Stocker Farms is one of my favorite spots of the Summer. Well, this week, I spotted a huge stack of milk bottle crates. There was a sign that said $14.99, but then crossed out. They were marked down to $9.99! I was kind of thinking that the price was for the crate only. To my surprise, ALL of the milk bottles were included! If you’ve ever seen milk bottles and crates like these at the antique stores, you know that this is a GREAT deal!

I love the way this looks on my front porch. I picked a crate with a little rustic red paint, to match my door. Sooner or later, I’ll probably use these bottles as gifts with fresh cut flowers in them. If you live close to me, you should probably run yourself right down to Stocker and pick up a few crates!
Happy shopping, decorating, and gift giving!
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Great Gift or Totally Lame

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Ok, Friends.  I need your honest opinion.  This was a Christmas gift for my brother-in-law.  I think it’s a great idea for a hard-to-buy-for guy.  Let me explain.  This is a car care kit.  We are expected to have a colder than normal Winter in the Pacific Northwest. One bin holds all sorts of supplies; water, granola bars, umbrella, gloves, etc.  The other bin holds the softest blanket EVER.  It is from Eddie Bauer.  It is fleece on one side and waterproof on the other.  It is down filled and PERFECT for sitting outside watching soccer games. I even bought bins from the dollar store to hold the car care kit.  I think it’s a great idea.  My hubby thinks I need a little help in the gift giving department.

What do you think?  Great gift or totally lame?  Be honest.  I can take it.

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Homemade Gifts and Home and Family Friday

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What do you do when you have many, many gifts to give? Homemade is the only way to go.


Embroidered dish towels.


Jam, made last summer, tied with a gingham ribbon.


Scone mix with a recipe card.

Enjoy!

We’re ready for Home and Family Friday… my headache got the best of me last week, which is why there was no party.  Thanks for understanding and coming back this week. I’m trying Linky Tools for the first time.  I hope it works well for you! 

We’d love to see anything you have done around your home or with your family. I’d love it if you’d become a follower and grab my button. 

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Handmade (not really) Redwork Dish Towels

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I’ve been busy making gifts!  I love the way these towels turned out.  Looking at how beautiful these are, you’d think I was really talented at embroidery work.  Well, not so much.  It’s all about the machine! I hardly did anything.


This is my beloved sewing machine. My first sewing machine was my aunt’s old machine from the 60’s. I replaced it with a very basic sewing machine from Sears, about 15 years ago. Four years ago, when my Sears basic machine died, I bought this one from Costco. It has some basic embroidery features. Nothing fancy, but it does a little. I have the redwork embroidery card, so making dish towels is one of my favorite embroidery projects.


It’s not a whole lot of work, once you figure out how the machine works. Push a few buttons and watch the machine do its thing.


I usually buy packs of flour sack towels from Target. Last summer, I found these basic towels for .49 each at IKEA. The red stripe down the side make them perfect for the redwork design. I have a whole stack of these ready to go. I can’t wait to show you everything else going into the gift bags!

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