The Hutch

I have been planning and scheming for over a month.  I've been thinking about my hutch and how I wanted to change it.

   

Grandma gave me this hutch when I moved into my new apartment and I love it.  Though it did have some drawbacks.  The stain wasn't very nice and you couldn't see what was inside the cabinets with the glass doors.  Also, it wasn't really my style.

So the planning began.  It took a surprising amount of steps to get this done:

1. Set up iPad (my lifesaver and boredom buster)
2. Take off the hardware.
3. Take out the glass (now I'm wishing I wouldn't have spent so much time on this step)
4. Sand down every inch
5. Buy new hardware and hinges
6. Fill in old holes that will no longer be used
7. Paint on primer
8. Paint the inside of the cabinets white.
9. Paint the inside of the cabinets white....again.
10. More white
11. Paint the outside brown (Finally! A change!)
12. More brown
13. Drill new holes. 
14. Repaint brown
15. Cut new dowels
16. Paint new dowels 
17. Put in new glass panels (the old ones were tinted...no wonder you couldn't see inside!)
18. Put on new hinges
19. Transport to York 
20. Put in new hardware.
21. Breath a sigh of release and ready, set, DECORATE!

I told you!  Lots of steps and if you count potty breaks for the pooch, you could add in about 10 more steps! Dad even made me do number 13 myself (with close supervision of course).  It made my head hurt.  But it was all worth it!  All in all, only 3 trips to Lowe's and 2 to Target.

I love the new look. The paint was/is still tacky so we put a piece of white fabric between the two pieces to avoid scratching the paint.

If you look at the first two pictures I posted, you can see the old bee hives that held up this little gate.  Dad cut me new dowels.  I think it really helped to update the look.

This is, by far, my favorite part.  I love the hardware.  I have been eying it up at Target for years (not kidding).  I have seen it there almost every time I go.  When Lowe's didn't have the stylish look I wanted, I headed to Target.

The flash always makes things look horrible, but I love that this shows how different this color can look.  It's called Safari Beige.  Me likey.  I found it in the gray section of the paint chips.

I need to thank two very important people.  First, my dad, who took me through this project step by step and spent as much time in the shop as I did.  He cut, glued, sanded and nailed this hutch together.  Thanks Dad!

Second, my mom, who kept taking the pooch out for me and helped me get this sucker to York.  We moved almost everything into my current apartment, but I don't think we've ever moved something so carefully.

Also, just click on the pictures to see them blown up.

The best thing I've ever done

My old morning routine was get up, take a sleepy shower, get dressed, dig out money for lunch and head to school.  It wasn't a horrible routine, but it wasn't great either.  I used to wake up at 5:40 and leave at 6:40. 

I've turned over a new leaf.  Now I do almost everything the night before.  I pack lunch, pick out clothes for the next day and shower.  From the time I roll out of bed until the time I start the car, it now takes 25 minutes to get ready.  And that includes taking Charlie out.

All the credit goes to Charlie.  When she started treating my carpet like grass, I had to crate her again.  Her crate became the perfect place to put my clothes for the next day.  

Actually, this picture is pretty old.  I now lay out two days worth of clothes at once.  It only takes me 3 minutes to pick out clothes the night before, but in the morning it takes about 10.  At first I thought it wouldn't work because I'm a girl and girls are indecisive about clothing.  I figured I would wake up and hate what I had picked the night before.  But I am proud to report that has only happened a few times.

By the way, you like my shoes?  Yeah, me too.  I got them for school this year.  They are sweet and I am in love with them.  They are also so very comfortable.

In a completely unrelated topic, I love kids.  One of my first graders came up to me in the middle of the tag game and said "Your glasses are pretty."  I don't know what possessed him to say it today, I've been wearing these since the first day of school.  Whatever the reason, it was a very nice thing to say.

BFFs

Cameron is in love with Charlie.  He follows her with his eyes the entire time she is in the room.  He giggles and shrieks when he sees Charlie.

Charlie, on the other hand, is completely unimpressed.  I think the problem is that Cam can't actually do anything yet.  Charlie will sometimes bring Cam a toy, drop it at his feet and expect him to throw it.  So far, their relationship goes no further than shrieks, giggles and the occasional face licking; I have a feeling that once Cam starts to become more mobile, they will be best friends.

Possessions

After almost five years, I have found that the best way for remembering my brother is not through pictures, but through his possessions.

This is a picture of the wall above my tv.  This is how I remember Zack.

The shelf is from his room.  Whenever I would be at the table doing homework, I had to constantly yell at him to shut his door.  He would be listening to Live or Pearl Jam and dancing around his room.  I like having something from his room in my apartment.

The clown nose is from a day I had spent in the hospital with him.  We were sitting in his room and a clown knocks on the door and asks to come in.  We looked at each other skeptically and Zack, being the polite guy that he was, said yes.  The clown comes in, goes through a skit about nose surgery, and places the clown nose on Zack.  Let's just say that Zack was non too thrilled, but he just sat patiently and waited for the clown to leave.  We laughed more when the clown was gone than when he was entertaining us.  Zack was 22, did the guy really think he needed a clown to cheer him up? 

The cleats are some that Zack had displayed in his room.  Soccer was a big part of life in our family and I like having his cleats hanging there.  He used to treat them like they were golden; washing, oiling and protecting them.  

The same goes for the LeTourneau soccer shirt.  It's a nice reminder of what Zack loved to do. 

The tie was a Christmas gift from me to him.  He opened that present early so that he would have something to wear to the Christmas Eve service at church.  It looked very nice on him. 

I Told You So!

Every time someone leaves Charlie in the same room as the food they always threaten her. "Don't you dare touch my food, Charlie."  I always tell them that I leave her with food all the time and she doesn't steal it.  Now I have proof.  I was moving things around in the living room and I put the M&M bowl on the couch, not even realizing how easy it was for the pooch to access.  I walked into the living room several minutes later to find this:

My pooch, patiently waiting for permission to attack the bowl.  To all the naysayers out there - I told you so!

My Baby

I've had Dad's camera on loan for awhile now and I have officially fallen in love.  The quality of the picture is just incredible.  Pioneer Woman is having a four-legged photo contest.  I entered this photo in the contest.

And right now, this little girl is driving me crazy.  Time to take her out.

Cupcake love

I have been experimenting with paper crafts and I've had a lot of fun doing it.  My latest paper craft was created out of the need for a tag for a present.  These cupcake tags are what I came up with.

I spend a long time cutting and pasting, but it was worth it in the end.  I really like how they turned out.

My favorite part is the cherry on top.  Those little circles took forever to cut out, but the cupcake wasn't the same without it.

So if you get a gift with a cupcake tag, it is from me. :)

Hey! I'm over here!

The day was crisp and gorgeous, so Charlie and I went for a walk.  I currently have Dad's camera on loan so I thought that today would be a good day for a photo shoot.  Plus, she just got a hair cut so she looks extra cute.  Let's just say that Charlie was not at all interested in me.

Hey Charlie!  Yo!  Charlie Girl! Over here!

Charlie, sit.  Sit.  Charlie!  Sit.   Fine, don't. 

Ok, I give up.

Seriously, I'm done trying.  I should have brought some treats with me.

There are just too many things in this world more interesting than me. 

Now she is just trying to hurt my feelings.  Cows are more interesting than me?  C'mon!  Well, that cow is looking at me Charlie, so there!

I did get a few pictures that I liked.  The whole point of this walk was so get a shot of Charlie that I could blow up and frame.  I think I like this one the best.

That's my girl.  Always interested in the things around her.  She is just barely sitting down and she is just barely doing what I asked her.  Oh well, I guess I'll need to be satisfies with "just barely."

At least I tired her out.  

Insert sobs here

Enough said.

Signs of Loneliness

When I have parent-teacher conferences I sign Charlie up to get groomed, which means she spends two nights with Mom.  It works out perfectly because I have to stay at school until 8pm.  Charlie can't be in the kitchen that long without a potty break, so Mom would come babysit for me.  But getting her groomed has worked out perfectly.  Then when I get her back she is clean and not at all stinky.  There is a downside to all of this, Charlie spends 2 full nights away from me.

Two nights away from me.  Two lonely nights.  Two long, lonely nights.

Don't get me wrong, I relish every minute.  It's like I've got this new energy.  I can make my dinner without stepping on her feet.  I don't have to listen to her chew each individual piece of food from her bowl.  I can clean the place up and not have Charlie dumping toys in every room.

But it makes me sad to see all the toys in their place.   I miss having her at my heels when I walk around.  I miss her begging demanding food.

Seeing her feeder full of food makes me sad.  Who is going to cuddle with me tonight?  Who is going to curl up under the covers with me whether she likes it or not?  At least I know she will be well fed and well loved...maybe too well fed.  Friday afternoon better come quick.

On another note:  who in their right mind picks that color carpet?  Is it pink? Is it beige? Is it a mistake?  I think the actual name for this color is "bleck."

I've got a brand new pair of roller skates

You've got a brand new key

Mom, Char and I were discussing a song that was playing on a commercial.  We were deciding whether the song was old or new.  Mom was telling us that, when she was growing up, you had to have a key to tighten the roller skate onto your shoe (correct me if I'm wrong Mom).  I've been listening to this song for the past few days.  Needless to say, I love the song, but it got me thinking about how much things have changed and I have made a decision.

If I were to chose the decade I grew up in, it would definitely have been the 40's.  Seriously, how can you chose anything else?  Who doesn't want to look as glamorous as Katharine Hepburn?  The cars, the phones, the dresses and the hair, the language, going out dancing and the movies.  I would have loved to go see The Philadelphia Story in theaters and swoon at Cary Grant.

My second choice would have to be the late 50's; which is when my mom and dad grew up.  I love the way the photos looked.  I love hearing about records, roller skate keys and radio shows.  I LOVE the old radio shows.  I have been trying to find some on CD and I have been completely unsuccessful.  Though, I must say, I'll take a pass on the hair.  Look at the face on my mom...and people wonder where I got my attitude from.

If I'm right, this picture was taken at Disneyland, but my second guess would be Knott's Berry Farm.  I very well could be wrong, but that is beside the point, experiencing Disneyland before all the new updates would have been wonderful.  See that little cutie?  That's my mom.  Charlotte looks a lot like my mom is this one.

I just found this photo on my computer today.  How could I have never seen this?  I love this photo of my aunts.  It cracks me up that they are all standing next to each other, but not touching each other.  It must have been a long trip in the car.  It seems that in all the photos I have of the Mayo girls, they are lined up in age order.

Man, what I wouldn't give to do have experienced the 40's and 50's; to have blurry, out of focus pictures, Cary Grant, black and white movies, records, radio shows and roller skate keys.

Ps. Mom, thank you for not putting us in matching outfits.  Not that you would have been successful had you tried, but thank you for not trying.