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."