Bursting!!!

That is just about how I feel right now...except for not about bacon. I am so excited right now for two spectacular reasons. So excited, I have almost forgotten to eat dinner!

1. We found out today that this is Ben's LAST WEEK in Louisiana!! That means he will be home all week from now on. Praise the Lord!

2. We booked plane tickets tonight to visit the Herringtons in early August! Oh how I miss them. They live in Missouri and it has been about a year since we have seen them. Such sweet friends.

Oh! And we can add this one to the list - Twilight Eclipse in 3 DAYS! Wow, good night ya'll.

Finished...almost

I loved doing this project! It wasn't very hard or very expensive and I love the way it turned out. I may try this again. All the painting is done, I just need the knobs. I ordered some glass vintage looking knobs from Amazon and so I'll have to wait a little bit for those to come in. But for now, its a great addition of color into my kitchen.

AFTER (See two posts below for the before)

The knobs to come...

Funky fun furniture!

So, in my quest to add a little style to my house, as I mentioned below, I've been on Craig's List a lot. I found a really neat little company called Altar'd. From reading their website, I found out that it is a Christian family that restores and paints older furniture and they also do workshops to teach you how to do it yourself. They have an interesting name but I love the reason behind it. And it gave me a little inspiration. Check it out!

Summer Project #1

One of my favorite things about summer (among many) is having the extra time to do some creative projects. Last year, I learned how to write in Calligraphy and have enjoyed that skill throughout the year. Well, a couple days ago, I started this year's first big summer project.

To give you some background...I've been looking for some things for my house to give it a little more style and character. We got our new furniture in, and I love it, so that has been fun, but I wanted some decorative items. I've been looking around on Craig's List for anything "Shabby Chic", "Distressed", or "Vintage" because I like the way that style looks. Now, I've realized that my house is not Shabby Chic style; although I love the look, my house does not fit that. But I do like the distressed look. I found a few pieces on Craig's List, one really cool couple in particular that own a company called Altard, but they were still in the couple hundred dollar range and I was looking for cheap.

Then I stumbled on a $35 small, solid wood dresser. And I thought...Hey, this might be crazy, but I bet I can make my own distressed dresser. So now, the dresser is in my garage waiting to be worked on. I've already sanded down all the stained surfaces and have put on the primer color and I'm just waiting for it to dry. We'll see how this turns out....

BEFORE

Seattle 2010

Last Wednesday, we returned from an 8 night/9 day vacation to Seattle, Washington, Olympic National Park, and Victoria. Loved it! I would recommend the area for vacation to anyone. First of all, it was gorgeous, second of all, it was cool, and third, it was much different from anything in Texas. A blessing from the Lord. We had a lot of sweet time together with fun, relaxation, and good conversations. I have a lot of pictures here and even more on facebook if you want more.

270 foot tall tree, 500 years old, HUGE

The Hoh Rain forest. Isn't it gorgeous! And amazingly sunny. Except for the narrow little trail we followed, there wasn't an inch of ground that didn't have a plant on it. Just amazing.

Marymere Falls - it took a little bit of a hike but such a reward at the end.

This is at the B&B we went to called Collette's. Oh. My. If you ever go to Olympic National Park, you HAVE TO go to this place. It had an overwhelmingly gorgeous garden with a view of the ocean and, get this, a bald eagle's nest you could see from our window. Very cool.

One of the many ferry rides...don't we look relaxed! Ahhh vacation :).

Lynn, you went to space??? I know you must be thinking that. Actually these were the suits we wore to go whale watching in Victoria, Canada. It was COLD on the water and wet. They looked even cooler in person, I promise.

That's an Orca (killer) whale!! It of course looked a lot closer in person but it was awesome. We saw a lot more and it was so worth the trip out.

Blake and Julie if you read this, this photo is for you! That's the space needle above my head.

The Fremont troll under the bridge. The Fremont area was recommended by Holly along with a lot of other great places. We ate at this delicious, very green, place called Homegrown. Very much the culture of Seattle.

Home of Bella. Yes we drove through it and made a few stops. Or, we could have taken the $40/person tour around Forks and La Push. Somebody is banking!

Can't wait for the 3rd movie!! Who's with me???

What would a Benjamin Cooper vacation be without golf? I rode around in the cart and took pictures, played on my iphone, and watched my Ben. It was a beautiful course nestled in the woods and rolling hills.

First Starbucks!!

Probably my favorite part of Seattle - the Pikes Place Market - amazing fruit, donuts, and other yummy goodies, even Organic Wednesdays!

Hooray for a wonderful trip!

School's Out for Summer!!l

Last days make me sad. I have always been this way. I get really sentimental and start to point out the last time we do each thing. Last recess, last cafeteria fake hamburger lunch with potato smiles, last pack-up to go, last hugs. I loved my class this year. Three of my kids are moving schools so I won't get to see them grow up to be 5th graders which is so fun. On the last day of school, all the graduating 5th graders walked through the school as we did a "Clap-Out". I got to see my first group of 3rd graders at my current school walk through as proud almost junior-highers. It was precious.

Anyways, today was the last day for teachers, yesterday the last day for students. And today I moved ALLLL my stuff I have accumulated over the past 3 years in room 32 and moved it to 2nd grade room 45. Next year I will be a 2nd grade teacher!!! Those sweet little former 1st graders who can't even play bingo will be mine!

But another thing about me is that once the last day is over....I'm ready for the next adventure! Bring on the summer and bring on 2nd grade!!