Saturday, November 30, 2013

Birth of a Polar Bear Rocker

My amazingly talented brother used his skill to make me a one of a kind Polar Bear Rocker for our Polar Bear themed nursery.  He just finished it yesterday and sent me pictures of the process from start to finish.  I want to share them with all of you. 
Just so you know how talented he truly is, he built this free-hand.  No pattern.  Just his artistic eye and a pinterest picture I had pinned of one someone else had made.


Beginning with all raw materials.
Oh and a rocking horse for perspective
courtesy of a little boy down the block
Pattern. black bear, or jungle cat?



rough cut
perspective
Paint
polyurethane
assembled
Foot brackets

My brother and the Polar Bear Rocker

 Happy Saturday!

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Jasper's Story

Jasper has been so funny lately.  It is true that some days I like him a little bit better than others.  There are sometimes that I wish that he was a little bit more independent and would just go sit by the couch and chew on his bone and let me work in peace.  But then there are times that he just makes me so happy because he can't stand to be away from us. 


To understand his devotion you need to know a little bit about his history before we adopted him.  When he was first separated from his litter he was adopted by a family.  During that time he was sitting in the bed of a stationary truck.  I'm sure he was just your average energetic pup but at some point he evidently tried to jump out of the truck.  (Remember that the truck was not moving, I do not blame his first family at all)  As a result of that jump, he fell and had an open compound fracture of his right leg near the hip. 

Knowing that any treatment would be very expensive this family took him to the vet.  They knew that they could not afford to give him the treatment that he required and so they turned him over to the vet's office to 'either put him down or fix him.'  It was there choice but the family, no longer able to care for him left him there.


Lucky for us a new vet had just joined the practice and was eager to gain more surgery experience, and this dog did not have owners dictating what procedures could be done based on cost.  This vet operated on Jasper's leg, ultimately using rods, wires, screws, and an external fixator to piece it back together.  They let Jasper live at the office while he healed and eventually he would take turns going home for the night with the different members of the staff.  They all loved him.  They trained and socialized him and gave him all the love any dog could every ask for.  He loves them as well.  To this day, he gets so excited when we pull up to the vet's office and they offer him treats and loves the entire visit. 

Anyways, back to our story.  Eventually it came time that he was healed enough that they sought a true home for him.  Through a series of events he ended up with my brother-in-laws brother.  He stayed with D for a few weeks before we learned of him.
Cut from the story,  Nathan had always told me that he wanted a pitt-bull.  I always said no way.  I had heard the stories.  No way was I having a dog with that type of reputation.  I had never been around a pitt-bull, but I thought I knew enough.  That was until I met Jasper.  He was only about 9 months old at the time I first saw him at my brother-in-laws house. Still a pup in so many ways, and yet he had been through so much during his short life.  He walked and played with a slight limp but was so eager and happy to be around everyone.  My conclusions instantly changed.  This puppy was so sweet and happy.  You couldn't help but be happy when you were with him.  I fell in love.

We were able to convince D to sell him to us for a small price and suddenly our little family of just two became three.
It has now been 4 years since we brought Jasper home five days before Christmas and what an adventure it has been.  We found out pretty fast that he does have some separation-anxiety because of moving around so much during the first part of his life.  But he as learned to trust us and that even when we are gone for an extended period of time, that we always return to home to him. 
He love to have he's ears and hind-end scratched, to play with his 'kong' toys, chew on his nylabones, do tricks for treats, and sit on our laps when we let him.  He stands up in the window sill and watches the world go by, he loves going out to get the mail, and is always making funny faces.  He is gentle with kids and is so excited when anyone comes to visit, because they must be here only to play with him. He now runs and plays with no limp or evidence of his injury.  You wouldn't even know except for the small dimple-like scar on his hip. 
He truly has brought so much joy and laughter into our home.  We love you Jasper.


Happy Tuesday!

Saturday, November 23, 2013

Field of Dreams Update #2

Thanks to my wonderful brother and sister driving up to help me, we were able to make a ton of progress on the nursery.  It is so amazing to watch as the vision I have seen in my head for the last few months begin to come to life before my eyes. 






There is still a lot of work left to do.  But today we were able to put a big dent into the project.  The room is really starting to look like a perfect polar bear paradise!

Happy National Adoption Day!

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Our First Big Snow Storm

It has been snowing all day.  The forecast only called for rain in the valleys and so the accumulation of several inches was a great surprise.  From my post a few weeks ago you should know that I love snow.  Winter is my favorite season and I love the look of freshly fallen snow on the ground. 
Today was the perfect day for our first big snow storm, at least is was for me.  The only part of snow that I do not like is driving in it.  That's why today was so perfect.  I was able to stay home all day.  I did laundry, straitened up the house, made dinner and prepped the nursery for painting.  I did not have a single pressing errand to run that would require me to drive during the storm. 
This afternoon I did go out to get the mail, shovel the driveway and even played in the snow with Jasper for a few minutes. 
Now I'm back inside with the smell of my pumpkin spice candle on the warmer and a cup of hot apple cider next to me.  This is why I love the snow.

Happy Thursday!

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Field of Dreams Update #1

For those of you that remember from a post about a month ago (see here) I am doing a little project I call my 'Field of Dreams.'  My fancy title for putting together our nursery in the hopes that someday soon we will require such a room.

Updates on the progress so far:
  • I have chosen a color pallet and room design.  This weekend I will be painting and hopefully hanging the bead board.

  • I have been cleaning out the former office and selling items that we no longer need in order to make room.

  • My mother-in-law made an awesome D.I. find of a gently used changing table/dresser that we are refinishing and painting.  I just added the second coat tonight.

  • My wonderful brother is busy in the workshop building a one-of-a-kind rocking polar bear (think rocking horse).  It was suppose to be a surprise but a little birdy has been keeping me updated on his progress.

I promise that soon I will post pictures and share with you all more of my vision.  I am so excited to be seeing real progress.

P.S.  Wow we just reached 4,000 views to our blog.  Thank you so much for stopping by and checking it out.  We love you.

Happy Wednesday (Again)!!!

Sleepy Puppy

Jasper is such a silly dog. Two weeks ago while Nathan was doing some work in the garage Jasper and I went out so keep him company.  It was late in the evening and evidently Jasper must have had a busy day because he was so tired that he couldn't even keep his eyes open. 
What makes it even funnier is that he HAD to be right next to me. As close as he could get. Only problem is that he has grown a bit too large to fit on only one step.  He spent a lot of time readjusting trying to get it just right. 
Once he was comfortable his eyes kept drooping lower and lower.  He would literally fall asleep with his head up and had to keep catching himself.  He totally could have lain at the bottom of the stairs and curled up to sleep as we talked but he just had to be right next to me.
He makes me laugh. 

 

Happy Wednesday!!!

Sunday, November 3, 2013

Its SNOWING!!!!



It is finally my favorite time of year. It is snowing!  It may have only been about an inch but it has stuck around for the last few hours. 
I love winter.

Happy Snowy Sunday!!!