Summer Projects #2 & 3-Wagon Chairs & Pillows

Several years ago, I brought home two old chairs from my grandmother's garage. They belonged to my Great-grandmother and we think they were made by my Great-grandfather. I remember them sitting on her front porch. The chairs have short legs and the chair seats were made of some type of fabric strips that had rotted. I cut off the strips and stored the chairs in Bob's workshop.

I kinda forgot about them.....

Then a few summers ago, I took the boys to our local historical museum. Sitting in one of the rooms was a chair very similar to mine. The chair was called a Wagon Chair because the shorter legs would not tip over as easily in the back of horse-drawn wagon. I came home, dusted off the chairs and thought about refinishing them.

And then I kinda forgot about them....again....

Finally, I brought the chairs into the house, painted them black, and sat them by the piano. I wasn't sure what to do with the chair seats. So for the past year or so, I've had two Wagon Chairs sitting in my living room without any seat bottoms...

...and yes, more than one visitor to my house has given me a strange look as a result..

But I could not figure out what to do with the seat bottoms. I've tried and tried to find someone to cane the chairs for me. It seems that very few people are willing or know how to cane a chair anymore. I did find a gentleman in Kentucky who offered to re-do the chairs, but he's in Kentucky and I don't exactly visit Kentucky on a regular basis.

So the chairs sat neglected and forgotten...

A few weeks ago, I was in the fabric store and I happened to notice a roll of twill tape. Light bulbs went off (which is a very rare event these days), and I remembered my chairs.

I was tired of the black, so I repainted , dug around on the Internet for weaving tutorials, and finished the first chair. Summer project #2 is almost finished...the other chair is still waiting for me to paint it.

I also found some cute summer fabric for pillows. Summer project #3 was a piece of cake....compared to Summer project #1 :)

I think they turned out pretty well and I'm enjoying another piece of my family's history.

The Inaugural Wrestling Season

Bob will be coaching the first Union County Panther Wrestling team next year. He held a camp this past week to introduce the guys to the sport. Around 40 participants attended.

Zach is wearing the black shirt.

If you're the parent of a boy, you know why this sport was invented. Put a group of boys together, give them about 5 minutes of unsupervised time, and I guarantee someone will be wrestling.

I wish I had a dollar for every time I said, "Quit wrestling. Keep your hands to yourself. Stop before someone gets hurt."

*sigh*

Adam is on the bottom in the grey shirt.

I would probably have enough money to pay for the wrestling mat....

20

20 years.

I can't quite wrap my brain around that number.

There have been moments of awkwardness, challenges, and growing pains (for you and your parents). But always...always love.

As you leave your teenage years and look ahead to the future, I hope the happy times, the laughter, the cherished moments are the ones you think of first.

And I hope your heart always brings you back home.

Happy Birthday Clay. We love you.

Summer Project #1-Slipcovers

Last fall I bought a new (new to me) sewing machine off Craigslist. It is an older model Phaff. I did a little research on the Internet and after reading the positive reviews, took the plunge and made my first Craigslist purchase. I brought it home, tried a few stitches, and sat it aside for the rest of the school year.

Because......

.......Day job + Night job + kiddos + a million other things = no time for sewing

We also brought this little "princess" home last fall and decided we were ready for a house dog. It quickly became apparent that I needed something on my sofa that could be easily cleaned.

A little browsing on the Internet and I came across the idea of making slipcovers from painter's drop cloths.

Many hours later, the project is complete. Not exactly a perfect slipcover but it will work. I have miles and miles of thread in this thing. This was a sewing project of EPIC proportions.

I still have a few odds and ends to take care of and I want to reinforce the seams on the cushions because.....if this thing falls apart in the wash, please forward my mail to the local mental hospital.

I'm not sure I could handle the disappointment :)

Your legacy

In a couple of weeks we will celebrate our 25th anniversary. In less than 9 days, we will celebrate 20 years of parenthood.

Remember when we brought him home? Remember how he cried from 11 PM to 2 AM?

Every. Single. Night.One of my fondest memories from those first weeks of parenthood is forever imprinted in my mind. You're stretched out on the couch with Clay across your chest. It was a perfect moment...until the colic hit and we spent another night trying to console the inconsolable.

Thank goodness for those magic drops the doctor prescribed!

You are an amazing dad. You willingly worked two jobs that allowed me to stay home with the boys. You've given up dreams of your own to provide for us. Your faith and quiet strength has been a consistent force in our home. We've been blessed.

As the boys grow up, I've watched them watch you. Now that they are entering adulthood, I see bits and pieces of you in their words and actions. I love that.

While we don't say it nearly enough, we love you. Happy Father's Day!

Weird Fascination

A few weeks ago Bob and I took a Sunday afternoon jeep ride through the National Forest. It's one of my favorite things to do. I wanted to visit a couple of old cemeteries that are tucked away in the mountains.

I love to read old tombstones.

This monument was placed by the family at the entrance to the cemetery. Notice the dates on the tombstone.

The names and dates on these stones have long since disappeared.

I can't imagine what life must have been like for these families. The isolation, the hardships...how did they manage?

I'd love to hear their stories.

Mom's in Rehab

Now that's a title that will get attention :)

My dad and I went this past Friday to admit my mom into a full-time rehabilitation center. While she was receiving excellent care through home health, she wasn't progressing as well as hoped. Her doctor decided to step-up the game plan and pulled a few strings to get her admitted.

I can't say enough about the quality of care she has received from her doctors. Dr. Dixon and Dr. Pruitt are the best.

She would prefer to be at home right now. The beauty of full-time rehab is she won't get a choice. She's there for 10 days. We're hoping those 10 days will result in a marked improvement and once she realizes the benefits of rehab, she'll be more willing to work at home on her recovery.

Instead of pushing her to do for herself, we are guilty of stepping in too soon. It's hard to know when to push and when to step back. Part of her rehab includes family education sessions to help the caretakers make those decisions.

We are leaving in a few minutes to attend worship services at the rehab center. I'm looking forward to it. She hasn't been able to attend church in over 6 weeks. It will be nice to worship together.

P.S. The worship service was really nice. Mom was the only patient that attended but it blessed my heart to see so many nurses attend the service. It was confirmation that she is in good hands. I wrote out this verse and gave it to mom. I told her that next week when the rehab is hard and she feels overwhelmed to remember that she is an overcomer.

I believe I am an overcomer, more than a conquerer, and nothing will keep God from carrying out His plans!

Romans 8: 32-39