Make-A-Wish Trip (Part Two)

We were picked up for our trip bright and early the morning of our Make-A-Wish trip.  We were all ready and excited, and to make it even more exciting we were picked up in a Limo to take us to the airport.  It was all of our first time except for Jason's.  Of course, it was pretty cool and exciting for the kids.

Here we are at the airport, where Mark met us and helped us get checked in.  We flew on Southwest Airlines, who gave our family star treatment.  We had a Southwest employee escort us to the front of all the lines and did everything for us, she was great.

Another perk was getting on the plane first.  The pilot let the kids check out the cabin and even gave Spencer a lesson on how to fly the plane.

Only two of our kids have been on a plane before, but they were babies, so technically this was their real first time flying.  Some were a little unsure, but after take-off they all thought it was so awesome.

Our flight was delayed a couple hours because of avoiding storms in the Midwest, but we made it to our hotel in Philadelphia about 9 pm in Eastern Time.  We ate at the hotel restaurant and got some rest for our big day the next morning.

Make-a-Wish (Part One)

Our oldest son was born with Congenital Heart Disease called Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome a very serious heart defect. It was very scary for us expecting our first child and hearing that he may not live. Fortunately, the heart surgeons had a plan to save his little life and less than one day old he had his first open-heart surgery and a pacemaker put in. After many more surgeries mostly before the age of two, he only improved and is still with us today. We know he's a miracle, especially after losing our youngest, Alaina who also was born with a heart defect, but less serious, and sadly surgery didn't go so well for her.

Last year Spencer's nurse in Portland asked if Spencer would be interested in Make-a-Wish, where children with a life-threatening disease are granted a wish.  At first, I was worried that she thought he was going to die in the near future, but I soon learned after looking up Make-a-Wish that's not what it means.  Of course Spencer would love to have a wish granted!  When I told him about it, only a few minutes of thinking about it he knew what he wanted and since he has never even second guessed himself.  Then we moved to Phoenix and Make-a-Wish contacted us there and began the process of granting him his wish.

Spencer's wish:  He wanted to go to New York City and meet Stan Lee who is the creator of Marvel Comics and heroes like Spider-Man. 

Mark and Erika, two volunteers were assigned to Spencer to make sure everything goes well during the wish granting process.  We got a call from Mark that Spencer's wish was going to be granted.  Stan Lee was going to Comic Con in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and they were going to fly our whole family there to meet him.  When meeting a celebrity it depends on their schedule of when and where they are able to meet you.  Spencer was excited and after we realized that Philadelphia was only a 2 hour bus ride to New York City, we decided to do that too, which is what Spencer was hoping for in the beginning.

 

The weekend before our big trip Mark and Erika threw a send off party for us at a fun pizza place and Erica brought yummy cupcakes from Sprinkles.  Mark and Erika are really nice Make-a-Wish volunteers, who do this on their own time and they really enjoy it.

to be continued...

Kitchen Island Project

I'm currently working on my kitchen island.  You can see my before picture above, that the butcher block top doesn't look right with the base cabinets.  So I have finally started on this kitchen island project.  It's taking me longer to finish because of problems with finding the right supplies or tools that I need.  But I wanted to show you what I've done so far so you don't think I'm not doing anything around here.

Okay, most people empty out all of their cupboards, me, I emptied out one side and left the rest.  A little lazy, but I can work around it.

I sanded the cabinet doors and island then used a deglosser on them.  Next, I used a wood grain filler on them to fill in the oak grain.  I wasn't sure if the wood grain would bother me, so I decided to experiment with the island before painting the rest of my cabinets using a wood grain filler.  It's an extra step, but it might be worth it in the end.

I used Timbermate wood grain filler.  First I thinned it a little with water and used a putty knife or rag to apply it into the woodgrain and let it dry.  Then I sanded the heck out of it.  It was hard to get it out of the grooves.  I think next time around I won't put it into the grooves, but just do the flat parts.

(After I sanded, below)

Now on the island we used poplar 1" x 4"boards for the top and sides and 1" x 8" for the bottom.  I also replaced the backboard.

Here it is with some primer.  I still have more to come.  I have a coat of primer on the cabinet doors and one coat of paint.  I'll show you more when I'm finished, hopefully sooner than later!



Fun Adventures

Since we've moved to AZ we've been exploring new places.  There are a couple nice lakes close by.  Perfect for boating or wave runners.

 

More desert.

My brother moved in with us and will be staying with us for a little while.

Have you ever seen an amphibious car?  We'll here you go!  I think it would be fun cruzin around the lake in your convertible.

We went to California for the second time in the last 5 months.  One great perk to living only 6 hours to the CA coast.  We love the beach!

 

We explored Newport Beach.

We met up with some good friends and did a boat tour in the Newport Bay.  Pretty nice homes!  Oh yeah and very expensive!

 

In Carlsbad, Spencer flew a kite while the other three boys played in the ocean.  More beautiful homes.

Beautiful Day!

Jason's parents came down to visit.  We rented some big boy toys and got muddy and had a lot of fun.  It was cold so I didn't go out on them much, but there are some really great trails.

That's some of our recent adventures.  I'm sure there will be plenty more to come.

Quilting for Babies

Recently I made a quilt for a friend who had a baby boy back in October.  I used Riley Blake's Peak Hour Jelly Roll.  I cut each strip into various lengths and sewed them together, easy peasy.  On the back I used chenille, which makes it nice and soft.

I made a couple baby bibs for another friend who had a baby girl.  I used a mini charm pack in Marmalade, I just love this fabric.  My inspiration came from Nana & Company, she makes the most adorable things.

Merry Christmas!

We have had a busy December!  The kids had a couple school concerts, we've been exploring new areas, and making new and old traditions.  We went to the LDS Mesa Temple to see the lights and hear live Christmas music.

Preston is so excited for Christmas!  He just loves Santa and the magic of Christmas.  He's a first grader, which has really made me so sad for the families in Connecticut who lost a child and won't be with them for Christmas this year.

Logan is excited of course too.

Tanner still doesn't mind talking with Santa, but not too close.

The kids decorated the tree.  I think about 90% of our decorations are handmade by me or the boys.  Every year we talk about getting new decorations, but it doesn't seem to happen...maybe next year.

Preston turned 7.  I can't believe my youngest is that old now.

Tanner and Preston had school concerts.  Preston sang songs with the first grade class, so adorable.  Tanner played his sax and had a speaking part.

We are fans of The Piano Guys (if you've never seen them look them up on YouTube).  We surprised the kids with an early Christmas gift, a concert last Friday to The Piano Guys.  It was a lot of fun and entertaining.  Tanner was even able to get Jon Schmidt's autograph.  They will be performing for the big PBS fundraiser on TV, they are becoming very popular.  We were lucky to get tickets to one of their last smaller concerts before they get too big for us little people.





I'm so excited for my Christmas present that will be coming after Christmas, a new camera.  About half of the pictures I take with the camera I have now come out blurry.  Anyways, hopefully soon I will have clear quality pictures.  I can't wait.