take one whiteboard...

(this one came from wal-mart)

paint it with chalkboard paint (i used a spray can after this - better results)...

add a piece of toile fabric left over from another project...

(never throw small scraps away!)

and it will equal this!

ain't she lovely?!

- instructions -

- lightly sand the whiteboard

- spray paint it with chalkboard paint (gives a smoother finish)

- take your choice of fabric and tuck under the frame (i used a flathead screw driver)

- ease around corners, distributing as evenly as possible

- to finish it off at the end, fold fabric, so when it's flipped over the fold is topside

- be sure fabric is even all around and corners nicely rounded

- trim if needed, flip fabric over and glue in place in the back

ta-da!

...gotta love it!

- tips -

this is my first time working with chalk board paint

 and i didn't like the end result of painting it on with a sponge brush...

i liked the spray paint better.

the chalkboard needs to be 'seasoned'

 use chalk and chalk all of it, then wipe it off with a soft cloth.

because the whiteboard is backed by cardboard

it was easy tucking the fabric under the origional frame.

this frame needed a three inch wide fabric piece.

the glue is quick drying, purchased at wal-mart.

...blessedness!

ox

ps. i'm linking to funky junk

Kira Mary

Twelves months ago, little three year old Kira Mary

went home to be with Jesus.

Her mother, Mary Lou, was in the first Home Ec class I taught...

she was also the first of  'my girls' to get married.

Never, ever, did we know in such a short time

that death would be another 'first.'

Death was not taught in Home Ec.

Death came so sudden, so quick - it was like a bad dream.

Lying in her tiny coffin with her favorite stuffed toy snug against her face,

in a lovely dress and wrapped in a soft blanket,

it was though if you'd called her name, she'd wake up.

The past year has been a long, hard journey...

we all wanted to heal the pain for Merlin and Mary Lou,
 but no one could...
no one but God.

In June, Mary Lou and the two girls came to my house for a tea.
At first  reluctant, Marlea quickly found the playhouse to eat her ice cream cone...

and to play dress-up.

Anna played at our feet while Mary Lou and I talked about life...

and ate our dessert.

Life and death are complicated, filled with questions.

Was Kira's life wasted? Is her death wasted?

NO!

Both are a celebration...a celebration that will be complete in heaven.

A favorite bedtime song of Kira's was

'Swing Low, Sweet Chariot'.

Mary Lou, by the grace of God,

sang this song at Kira's funeral service.

She sang with grace and pain and power...

it was filled with the presence of God!

Mary Lou, I know this past year has been really, really hard,

filled with pain...

But I see God in you every time you share pieces of this pain in your blog.

You bless me with your honesty,

challenging me to honesty,

thus exalting God - be it in life or be it in death!

...blessedness!

ox

house tour/ office

lest you think every room is white, pretty and perfect organized in a casual, liveable way

it's not...

this room is hubs' office,

the only room left in it's origional state. 

it's a ten x ten foot room but holds a lot of stuff.

it's the place to cram the 'junk-before-company-comes' room.

and it's the room where the grandkids visit everytime they come

because of this...

yep...these have a huge pull!

(hubs is also the 'smarty man' at church so he buys in bulk)

he's a hero in letting me have my corner that looks like this...

with my mess on the floor

where my very small collection of craft stuff is.

this is the 'before' look...my, my!

it now looks like this...

yeah, another 'my, my'...

some of it mine.

the exercise ball is an experiment to use as a seat

when i use the 'puter but it's too low,

and the chair is going to get a re-do soon sometime.

hubs is an avid hunter,

but loves his wife more.

he's a volunteer fire police.

his space only looks disorganized, but he knows where everything is.

i only dust it, very occasionally!

when the door is closed,

it looks like this...

yeah...sick!

ALL the doors and ALL the woodwork looked like this throughout the house...

no longer!

on a 'sometime post' i'll show you what i did to get the same doors like this...

ta-da!

...blessedness!

ox