Family Made Arbor

We've been talking for a short time about putting an arbor up in our garden. Not really for anything more than to grow some vines on, and make it even more butterfly friendly. After searching around, we didn't see much that we liked. Or, things seemed to cost a lot for no apparent reason.

My husband and son made an arbor on Monday. They bought the wood, painted it, and put it all together. It was finally in it's resting spot last night. I cannot say how much I love this. All I can see is how beautiful it will be with tons of flowering vines. I also am loving how proud my son is of his building skills. Here are some pictures. Once I pick up the vines I am looking for(I have a specific vine in mind), I'll add more pictures.

Thankful for my Husband

Over the past weekend, my Husband built me a raised bed for planting. It is exactly what I wanted, and looks even better than I imagined. The Boy was a huge help, and loved helping. The first and only plant thus far is a Desert Rose. I'm sure more will be planted soon!

Handmade from Cuba

A woman that my husband works with recently went back to Cuba to visit her family for a couple of weeks. She returned with a small gift that was handmade in Cuba. Her son is the same age as the Boy, which prompted her to pick this out. The best part is the wheels work, so the Boy can play with it.

Valentine's Party

I'm not really crafty in the sense that people "ooh and ahh" over what I make. But, I do make an effort with the Boy because I think crafts are great for kids. Plus, we had a Valentine's Party to go to. And, when the Boy and I decided to make our own Valentine's cards.......there were only about 15 people going to the party. We made a huge mess for a couple days, and had a great time coming up with ways to decorate the card stock paper. Our cat Doodle even decided to become a part of it.

That last photo was when I thought we had made more than enough cards. That is twenty cards. Until I checked my email and found more people were coming. We ended up making forty cards and finished in time for the party which was Friday. I believe there were over thirty kids there. It was a great time, and we are looking forward to meeting up with them again.

Handmade

I added a new badge link on the side. After years of thinking about how commercialized the holidays are, I decided to actually make a change. I decided instead of complaining about it; I'm going to act.

My extended family has had a wonderful tradition for many years now. They all gather together and exchange gifts. Only, these gifts must be homemade. They all pick a name each Christmas, and have the entire year to come up with something. While my Gram was alive, I used to watch her think about what she would create. Sometimes a beautiful crocheted doilie, an afghan, dish cloths, towels, her famous peanut butter fudge would be made for the lucky recipient. She would always come home with something handmade especially for her. She would cherish them. It wasn't just the adults involved, the children were just as excited.

So, this year my husband, son and I have decided to participate in the handmade pledge. We are really looking forward to this. It will be a bit of a challenge I think, but the type of challenge we'll enjoy.