Summer Bucket List

I feel like I've been neglecting this blog a little bit over the last few weeks!  We've been so busy around our house & with work (Eli's been gone coaching basketball camps since Grady's birthday).  I feel like I haven't had time to breathe!

What we have done is chip away at our summer bucket list!

In April, we went to a Twins game for my dad's birthday...

Grady took swimming lessons in May to get ready for a summer on the lake...

In June & July, Grady's playing tball at the Y.  He loves it.

Then, last weekend we went to the Shrine Circus in town.  We rode a cute elephant & almost saw a performer plunge to his death.  Grady covered my eyes for me so I wouldn't see...he's sweet like that!

A few weeks ago, we went up north to the cabin & Grady & Eli got some fishing in even though the weather was cold, rainy, & super windy...

If the weather cooperates, we're hoping to take Grady to Valleyfair for the first time next week!  I know he'll love it since he's such an adventurous kid.  :)

Some other things we've checked off the list, but don't have photographic proof of:
Feed the Ducks
Beach
Sidewalk Chalk
Park
Water Fight
Ice Cream Cones
Ride Bikes
Kayak Ride
BBQ

And the adventures we have yet to go on:
Zoo (Henry Doorley Zoo in Omaha in August?)
Valleyfair (Next week?)
Michigan (Last week in July)
Play in the Rain
Fireworks (4th)
Camping (August?)
Sprinklers
Sparklers (4th)
Picnic
Drive in Movie
Bubbles
Bible School (First week in August)
Waterpark (Valleyfair/Michigan?)
Boat Ride
Bowling
Mini Golf
Bonfire
County Fair (August)
Obstacle Course
S'mores (Camping/Bonfire?)
Watermelon
Forest Hike (Camping?)

Happy Summer to All!  Hope all of you MN people are enjoying the weather this week.  'Bout time, right?!  :)

How to: High Flying Horizontal Tire Swing

I've been getting a ton of questions about how we made Grady's tire swing so I thought I'd put together a quick tutorial for those who are curious & want to try something like this in their own backyard!  It's really an easy project.

Supply list:
1 long length of chain or rope (enough to wrap around your tree branch, connect, & still hang approx. 7 feet off the ground)
3 4'-6' lengths of chain (we used one with a 500lb weight limit - better safe than sorry)
3' length of hose
5 quick links
3 eye bolts
6 lock nuts
6 large washers
14"-16" tire (we got ours free from a local tire shop)

First, clean up your tire & make sure there's nothing on the surface that could snag clothing or scratch.  Then drill 3 holes in the top of the tire for the hardware to go through.  Flip the tire over & drill several holes on the bottom for drainage.  You don't want water to sit inside the tire & splash the rider or breed mosquitos - ew.

Take each 4'-6' length of chain & use the quick links to hook them to your eye bolts.  Thread a nut onto your eye bolts & slide one of the large washers on behind it.  Feed the eye bolts through the holes in the top of your tire.

Inside the tire, slide on another large washer & lock nut onto the bolt & screw 'em on tight.

Take your long chain & feed one end through the hose.  (Tip: Ours was a pretty snug fit, so we sprayed some Pam on the chain & it slid right through!)  Hook the end of the chain to the rest of the long chain with another quick link.  Almost there!

Take your last quick link & hook the hanging end of your long chain to the three shorter chains that are connected to your swing.  Everything I read said that 4'-6' length works best.  Make sure all of the quick links are super tight - you don't want your swing detaching mid-air & tossing your kid (or you).  Believe me, after having that happen to me & landing on my neck not once, but twice in my youth (with a rope tire swing), I'm super paranoid about it!  I still have neck problems & totally blame it on the falls from the swings!

I'm a sucker for any type of swing, but this big guy is probably my favorite ever.  It goes SO high & swings FOREVER.  One push & it'll go for 10 minutes.  (Easy babysitter for when you're busy weeding gardens or spray-painting your next project!)

(You can't really tell in the pictures, but the swing hangs around 10' out from the tree trunk.  If you pushed the swing hard enough in a circle you could possibly hit the tree, but it would take a lot.  Use caution & be sure you hang your swing far enough away from obstacles so no one will get hurt!)

Let me know if any of you have attempted, or plan on putting a tire swing up in your yard...or had one when you were a kiddo.  I feel like it's something that Grady will remember forever...

Arrrighty...here's the Pirate Party rundown...

Grady's party was fun...super fun.  He had a blast, & we couldn't have got a more beautiful day.  Especially considering that the days leading up to & following his birthday were crap.  I'm so over rain & cold.  So over it.

Now for some pictures of my little love's Pirate Party!!!

I made the tassels above by tearing strips of red, blue, & black linen & knotting them around the rope.  Grady helped me paint the Jolly Roger flag & the skulls on the bunting.  For the bunting skulls I cut a regular Scotch green dish sponge into a stamp.  I was just kind of making things up as I went & had to be creative with the supplies I had at home!

My parents cut out the skulls on the cake toppers with their jigsaw.  I sprayed them white, drilled holes in the sides, & stuck them on some kebab skewers.  Then I sewed that little bunting & glued it to a couple more skewers.  (For those who are wondering, I found the B&W candles at Walmart!)

We had the blue glasses on hand from my college days, & wrapped a little twine around them to make them more "piratey".  The skull balloon was ordered from Oriental Trading.  I had it filled with helium at our Dollar Store & it didn't float at all.  Disappointing, but what do you do?  Not sure if it was them or the balloon that was faulty!

My BFF Angie brought her hubby (Captain Morgan up there) & her three beautiful kids over to help us celebrate.  Angie & I played volleyball together in college & her husband played basketball with Eli.  They're the best!  Julia & Grady might get married someday...  ;)

One of our gifts to Grady was a super rad tire swing.  My dad was the lucky one who got to hang it from our giant oak.  Sidenote: It was not my idea to make Eli's grandparents hold the ladder...I was in there with my mom & Marlene practically pushed me out of there to go take some pictures.  I kid you not.  They're super cool great-grandparents!  (Maybe the best ever.)

Grady & Greyson on the dune buggy...& Grady holding Angie's youngest, Jude.  They were all smiles, all day.  Easy-going boys!

 
That last picture above & to the right kills me.  It's so him.  Sweet, always happy, a little shy, & oh so adorable.  I love him.

I drew a treasure map on Grady's shirt with black & blue Sharpie & embellished it with some red thread in a few places.  It was inspired by a J.Crew/Crewcuts shirt I saw a long time ago.  Unfortunately they don't sell it anymore.  FYI, even though I "heat set" the Sharpie by ironing it, it did bleed some after I washed it.  I'd suggest using permanent fabric markers if you want to be sure it'll last through the wash.  The blue marker was the one that bled the most for whatever reason.

Happy Birthday little man!

We pretty much think you’re the best thing ever.  You’re the most thoughtful, bright, imaginative, & fun little boy we’ve ever been around.  You brighten every room you enter with your beautiful smile, cute little voice, & curly head of hair.  You make us laugh, you make us want to pull our hair out sometimes, & you make us remember to make time for fun.  I remember telling dad when you were a baby that I wanted you to be creative - I think that wish came true!  Your imagination is insane!

You’re smart.
You’re sweet.
You’re beautiful inside & out.
You’re energetic.
You’re perceptive.
You’re helpful.
you’re thoughtful.
You’re hilarious.
You’re confident.
You’re loving.
You’re you.
And you’re ours.

XOXO,
Mom & Dad

A Pirate Paarrghty!

Around our place, Memorial Day weekend was spent getting the yard & house in gear, & crafting for Grady's birthday party this coming weekend.  This spring was short, & our list was LONG, so we're really scrambling to get everything done!

It's hard to believe our little pirate is turning 4 this week!

A little pirate-y preview: 

Last week, we headed out to my parents' house on the lake for a little photo shoot.  Yes, there was bribery involved!  A trip to Target for a toy in exchange for a few smiles & cooperation.  You gotta do what you gotta do!  :)

He's probably the cutest little swashbuckler I've ever seen...although I may be a little biased!

I'll be sure to post some party pictures next week...until then I'll be flying around the house like a crazy person trying to get everything done in time!

PS, my dad made the wooden sword for Grady's Peter Pan Halloween costume a couple of years ago - I love it!  Grady & I made the telescope out of some PVC pipe & metallic spray paint last weekend!

Painted Pattern Window Boxes

Last spring/summer when we remodeled (er, rebuilt) & screened in our back porch, my dad also rebuilt the old window boxes.  Last summer they remained unpainted or stained mainly because I just couldn't decide what I wanted to do with them.  Color, no color...just stain them...paint a pattern?  I could NOT commit to anything.

They were pretty sad...

Anywho...we're having a birthday party in a couple of weeks for Grady (4 years - how is that possible?!), & I really wanted the porch to be "completely" done by then.  That meant I had to figure out what the hay to do with those darn window boxes.

First, I decided that I wanted a fun pattern in white paint & walnut stain.  Happy, but not brightly colored which I felt would compete with any flowers I would plant in them.  I needed a super simple pattern since the wood on the planters is super rough.  On a whim I chose a scallop or fish scale pattern.

I started by removing the metal box from the wood planter, cleaned it up a little bit, & stained the four sides and top edges.  then I took a styrofoam cup, cut the round bottom in half, & used that as a template for the scallops/scales.  Pretty high-tech - haha!  A little bit of white paint & some spray spar finish & we were in business!

With a little assistance from my favorite helper between rain storms, we got the boxes planted & hung this weekend.  Gosh I love the spring after things start to grow again!

I finally got a couple of minutes where it was "dry" enough outside to take a couple of shots this morning.  I think they turned out pretty durn cute!  I can't wait until the flowers fill in a bit & the surrounding landscaping starts to green up some more.

Has anyone else been planting?  How about working on any fun outdoor projects?  We're scrambling like crazy to get our yard in order for the party - I feel like we're really far behind due to our LATE spring here in Minnesota!

Squint like Clint

We're slowly making progress on the attic...slowly.  :)

May is a busy month for us with Eli wrapping up his tennis season, lots of birthdays, & Mother's Day.  Not to mention the crazy amount of yard clean-up that we are stuck with every spring.  Two giant oaks + garden beds galore = time.

In the attic we've been putting up "nailers" (extra boards to screw sheetrock into), building a door frame for the future French doors, & hanging foam board insulation on the ceiling & sloped walls for an added layer of protection to keep the warm & cool air in the house.  It's not fun work, but it's laying the foundation.  Soon we'll be hanging drywall!

If you squint hard enough you can kindof envision what it'll look like!

PS, I've got a couple of fun outdoor projects that I'll share later this week or early next week.  (Think outdoor dining & window boxes!)  It's so nice outside that it's hard to work indoors!