Frugal Decorating!

Okay, so I am an organized person. Really. Oh....you've seen the inside of my van.....you've opened one of my drawers? Well, in my defense, you try to keep your van and drawers perfectly organized with 4 kids and a business where other people declutter into your house! Anyways, back to what I was saying....I am an organized person. It just doesn't always get done the way I'd like it to. But here is a pic of a recently finished project:

When Frank built our bookshelf, I wanted to organize my manuals, magazines and stationary in nifty magazine holders. Then I priced them. Most were around $5.99/ea and some up to $14.95! Yikes! I wanted some for homeschooling too, so I estimated 15-20 would be needed, that would be a minimum of $100 and up to $200! Organized I am, but rich I am not:) So, I did a little eBay surfing, kinda a given 'round here, and found these. The ones on now are actually a little more than I paid, but still a great deal. When they arrived, I was not so impressed with the cardboard look, so I dug through my scrap pile and started gluing! Voila! Fancy huh?! It's just a little bit of pretty that makes me a happy girl!

Things that kept us busy in Tampa- SWIMMING!

We swam for our cousin Noah's Birthday party:

and for our friend Dylan's birthday party:

My Garden grew while we were gone!

This is the view of the garden now:

My pepper blossom!

Straight Neck Squash blossom

Yummy lettuce! And lots of honeydew blossoms on the vine:

More things that kept us busy in Tampa

Skee Ball with the friendliest:

Video Games at Chuck E. Cheese:

Ice Cream at the Lodge with Lily, Asher, Summit and Sage:

Movies at the Lodge:

And deep philosophical conversations with Lily:

Things that kept us busy in Tampa-Papa's House

This is the before pic of the room infamously known as the "card room". You'd imagine with such a name that guys got together and played poker together here.

Well, you'd be wrong! This is where 25 years of flea market and vending "stuff" got thrown. When you couldn't find it, more was purchased and thrown on top. Did you know that there was a couch, a chair, a dresser, a cabinet, and several bookshelves that you can't see in this picture? I honestly cannot even describe the massiveness of the mess. My sis in law Angie and I set out to tackle the project, which included sorting through the mess to salvage the sellable for ebay. This is in the process:

And this is what it finally looked like when we were done:

This is a gorgeous room, that is hard to photograph. There are two french doors that lead into the room, and lovely built ins. John is an avid trumpet player, and is utilizing this room for all of his music equipment that used to be in the living room! I bought this gorgeous couch at the thrift store in Tampa, it is made by Pottery Barn and was only $250! How I miss thrifting in the big city!
Anyways, a week of hard labor turned out the nicest room in the house. Next time we'll try to tackle the living room!

Trip to Shriner's Tampa, FL

So, we've been gone for a very long time! Toby had an appointment with the Shriner's hospital down in Tampa to get fitted for a prosthesis. For any of you who don't know, Toby was born as a congenital amputee, LBE, or missing left arm below elbow. Nothing stops the kid, and he can maneuver his "little arm" precisely enough to be a master Game Boy player! But he decided he would like a prosthesis to help with bike riding balance. For now, that's all his interested in using it for, although he likes to put it on and show people. We arrived to Shriner's on June 4th, and kept ourselves busy playing Pokemon cards and making friends with the pet therapy people!
Next, Mr. Danny made a cast on Toby's little arm to begin the prosthesis mold.




He had to bend it and hold it just so while it was drying for the correct angle of the elbow bend in the prosthesis. Mr. Danny was amazing, and made us all feel like family! About 2 wks later, we got to pick up the finished product.

The prosthesis has a harness system that is secured around his other arm and on his back. It is adjusted to pinch together when he pulls the prosthesis forward. For Toby it will be a great tool, and we are so blessed to have the opportunity to go to the Shriner's Hospital. When you see your Shriner's with their fez hats asking for donations, pull out your money! They treat everyone for FREE, up until age 21! This is such a blessing for us, and I know other parents who would otherwise have a worry of money, or insurance claims, on top of the worry of getting the right treatment for your child. Hopefully we'll have pics this weekend of Toby riding his bike!