Jenny Garland

I'm Moving!

My hubby hub hub set me up with a new website. I will no longer use typepad, so please head on over to JennyGarland.com! All archives are there and that's where I'll be posting from now on.

Thanks :)

Antique Desk Rehab

My fabulous mother-in-law (I know, I'm super lucky to have a fabulous mother-in-law) gave me this antique desk. She thinks it's from England and we have no idea how old it is. It's solid wood and very sturdy though.

This is what it looked like before .... Nice bones but icky finish.

It had a deep crack on the top right...

And here is my lovely desk after I had my way with her :)  ...

I forgot to take a picture of the crack after I filled it with wood filler and sanded it down. You can hardly tell it was ever there. Yay for wood filler!

PS - I am *almost* done with the dining room!! I cannot wait to show you pictures early in the week :) Stay tuned.

In Progress...

I have no patience. I want things done yesterday! You can see why this dining room rehab is the bane of my existence right now :) Where are those magical DIY fairies that pop in and do everything while I sleep?

Here's where I'm at tonight:

* All 8 chairs are sanded, primed, and painted (Whew! I just have to wipe a poly sealer on 'em):

* Corner cabinet and two bases of table are sanded and primed. Um, I also decided to refinish an antique desk (you'll see that's primed in the picture). Why, oh why can't I just finish what I start instead of adding more to do?

* Still have to paint the darn things. Seal them. And then sand, prime, and paint the table top and cabinet doors (back right). Oh, and recover the cushions. Wait until you see how cute the fabric is.

I'm tired just thinking about this! Night, friends :)

Raccoons and Ducky Jesus... Thoughts From a 3 Year Old

These are just two of the amusing conversations I've had with Kate (age 3) over the last two days...

Conversation #1:

Kate: "Mom, did you know caterpillars turn into raccoons?"

Me: "No, honey. They don't. Caterpillars turn into beautiful butterflies."

Kate: "No. No. No. Mom, caterpillars DO turn into raccoons."

Me: "Sorry, babe. They don't. They turn into butterflies."

Kate: "Nope. They turn into raccoons."

Me: "No."

Kate: "Yes."

Me: "Kate, sweetie. I'm not sure where you got that from, but caterpillars really do not turn into raccoons."

Kate: (Big sigh) "Okay, Mom. First caterpillars turn into raccoons, and then they turn into butterflies."

Me: (totally schooled by my 3 year old) Oh! You mean cocoons. You're right!

Conversation #2:

Me: Kate, are you excited about Cade's birthday party tonight?

Kate: Oh, yeah. I can't wait!

Me: You'll get to play games and eat pizza too.

Kate: Uh huh, Ducky Jesus is the best!

Me: (as I spit out my Diet Coke laughing) "Honey, it's Chucky Cheese."

We're in Angel Fire, NM for a couple days visiting Brad's parents. It's so beautiful here and I love the cool, crisp air. We are about to take Kate fishing (with her snazzy Dora pole, thank you very much)! We'll see what Sara Paige thinks :)

You guys have to go back and read the comments in the last post; they're great! Thank you so much for leaving them, as it's nice to know who reads this silly blog.

You all are some seriously talented people. Plus, you have super cute blogs and sites:

Claire in OK
Lisa in TX
Lindsey in GA
Katherine in SC
Jennifer in BC, Canada
Nancy in TX
Heather in MI
Heather in Ontario, Canada
Gwen in CA
Rebecca in Iowa
Tracy in TX
Laurel in CO
Jennifer in AL

PS - Kris and Heather, thank you for letting me know I'm not the only one with the toenail issue!

Are Ya'll Trying to Tell Me Sumthin'?

This summer my blogging has definitely dissipated. Well, aside from tonight that is. This is my 3rd post. I'm feeling chatty and my husband has glazed eyes and is now just nodding his head when I say anything.  He says I give him tired head sometimes :) Somehow I don't think that's a compliment? But that's another issue for another time.

Here's my question... over the last month my number of blog subscribers has gone way up but my posts have dwindled. Are you guys encouraging me not to blog? Subscribing to get me to be quiet? Haha. Don't tell me I give you tired head too!

Do me a favor and leave a comment answering these questions so I can get to know you! :) Lurkers, stop lurking and get talking!

1. What's your name (first is fine if you are super secret)
2. Where do you live?
3. What do you like to do in your free time?
4. If you are crafty, what do you like to craft the best?
5. Do you have a blog? Leave a link if you do! I want to come visit you.
6. What do you suck at?
7. What do you rock at?

Here are my answers:
1. Jenny
2. Dallas area
3. Read and sleep. God, I love to sleep.
4. Quilts, even though I don't usually make them because my favorites take forever.
5. Well, you know my blog if you are here.
6. I suck at growing out my toe nails. I can't STAND feeling them when I rub my feet together. Anytime I get a pedicure, they always lecture me about cutting them too short. They're seriously the shortest toe nails on the planet.
7. I totally rock at squeegeeing the shower. Did you know that's a real word? It is; I checked. I have a sparkly shower with no streaks or soap spots because I squeegee every time I get out. Takes 10 seconds but makes a huge difference.

Looking forward to hearing from you :)

Birthday Books, a Great Way to Organize Digital Photos :)

Brad and I have over 6,000 pictures on our flickr site. Even so, it's nice to have favorites printed.

Every year after Kate's birthday, I make a photo book that includes my favorite pictures of her from the past year. I write a letter to her in the beginning of the book documenting her milestones, personality, friends, trips, events, etc. Oh, and I gush over how wonderful she is. I will do one each year until she is 18. I think it will be a great keepsake for her someday. For now, I love curling up on the couch and flipping through the pages of her life. My what a beauty I have! I'm already making notes for Sara Paige's first book.

I've used mypublisher to make Kate's first two books but this time I used blurb and couldn't have been more pleased! I know I can create a similar book in iphoto so maybe I'll do that next year. Anyway, I thought you might want to take a peek at Kate's books. Each is about 60 pages.

Kate's Book (0-1 year):

Kate's Book (1-2 year):

Kate's Book (2-3 year):

 

Letters in each book:

 

Super Simple and Cuddly Baby Boy Quilt

Hi there. I'm getting started on crafts for the Heart of Texas show in October in Plano. I'm going to make a couple of these cuddly, rag quilts for babies/toddlers. I wish you could feel them, they are sooo soft. I love the blue flannel print! It's hard to find stuff for boys :)

A Sassy New Bag

My friend, Kristin, and I have been working on the ultimate diaper bag. These babies are LARGE and IN CHARGE! There's nothing quaint about them; they're loud and busy. We did patchwork on the exterior and popped the seams out so it frayed. On the outside there are two large side pockets (perfect for keys, a cell phone, and a small notebook). On the inside there is a very firm divider and four large elastic pockets (perfect for dipes, wipes, bottles, and snacks).

We made a silly video showing off the bag's features but we (okay, me) are super delirious because we finished it late last night so I'm going to refrain from posting it, for fear you all will think I've completely lost my mind! Anyway, thanks for looking :)

Whoops! Sorry About the Hiatus :)

Hi friends. I would like to sincerely apologize to all those affected by my lack of blogging as of late. I am sure you all have been stressed out, unable to eat, and incapable of functioning at work. Be sad no longer, my dears. Here I am :)

We went to Myrtle Beach with family for a week and had a fantastic time. Lots of sun, warm ocean swims, and tasty seafood. Here are a couple pictures from our trip... (Sara Paige is modeling the Bjorn cover I made for her)  

 

 

   

Other than that, I signed up for a couple craft shows this fall (yippee!). More info about that soon :)

I am still working on refinishing the dining room furniture. I bit off a bit more than I was planning to chew on this project. I've almost got everything primed (gray color) and think I'll be able to start painting it black this evening. Here are some pictures of progress so far...

 

 

What have you all been up to?