Around the tudor...

We are entering week 8 of this bloody strike.  Travis is going to test and hopefully interview with another company this week.  Fingers crossed that something will happen, because Travis doesn't do idle time very well.  In saying that he has not been idle at all since this whole thing started.  Thankfully he has had a steady stream of small woodworking jobs.  He is happiest in his workshop, so along with making a little money his mind is occupied.

The laundry room is finished except for the tile on the opposite wall above the sink and washer...

Travis is usually here in the garage working on something...

Hunter celebrated his 14th birthday...

  It's amazing to me that just 13 years ago he looked like this...

like father, like son...

We have kept up with our traditional Tuesday night date night with these two...

Rodeo and Blake Shelton

 We celebrated World Down Syndrome Day...

at our GHFEDS party...

Created a new joke in the family about what it feels like to kiss my husband...

wokka, wokka, wokka...

Spring has sprung in Texas...

Back in February I was elected to our HOA board.  I was elected as VP, so my neighbor gave me this comic...

Hopefully this next week will bring an end to the strike or a new opportunity for Travis.   Good juju...

Keeping busy...

This strike time has been interesting to say the least.  I have been given a glimpse into what life may look like when Travis retires, and all I can say is that we are going to need a Reader's Digest sized calender and a clock.  We go to bed when we are tired and wake up when the light comes into our room each morning.  We yawn, kiss good morning and then inevitably one of us asks the other what day/date it is.  It's very surreal not living on a real work schedule.  It's also weird not keeping track of what time it is as the day goes on.  We eat when we are hungry, not when our "lunch" time is, and the result is that we have both lost weight.

Travis and I are keeping busy with a steady stream of handyman and woodworking projects.  I do the design consult/painting and then Travis does his woodworking magic.  It's not our usual paycheck, but it's enough for us to get by.  We are very lucky to have some skills to fall back on, not everyone affected by this strike can say the same.

This is one of our neighbor's kitchens- they had a HUGE microwave over the stove, but wanted a shelf for spices...

Painted this piece for a client in ASCP Coco...

Client piece painted in ASCP Paris Grey and Graphite...

Stair rails in ASCP Graphite- I love these painted!

 Travis is also working on our laundry room build.  He finished up all of the trim this morning, so now it's time to pooky, sand and paint...

It is nice having Travis around to work on math with Hunter.  He is neck deep into fractions and Travis is using his woodworking projects to let Hunter use his fraction knowledge in a real life way...

We live in home improvement stores...

Hunter is doing okay- if he's worried about his upcoming GI tests he doesn't let on.  He will turn 14 next Thursday and I keep thinking that at any moment he will outgrow the "I love you mom"'s and the "Your the best mom ever"'s, but he's not.  This guy is such a love bug...

 Gets it from his dad...

Yes, that is a five week strike beard.  I am married to a mountain man.  Or a Yeti...

This is one of his best friends, Dustin.  Also sporting the strike beard...

My older sister, Beverly, and her husband Mike came down from NJ to visit.   They brought their 7 month old puppy, Millie.  I fell in love with that dog on my last trip to NJ.  She is such a sweet heart...

We also had a lengthy discussion about the science behind this dress...

I'm kidding.  We all pretty much agreed it was ugly.


SO proud of our Anne, she was hired on by a high end salon and is headed to State Cosmetology competition at the end of the month.  Goal driven and very passionate about what she does...

So that has been our past few weeks.  Staying busy and trying to stay positive.  It is so true about the "when it rains it pours" saying.  My bank account was hacked into and Travis' truck is having issues- but we are going to be okay.  The sun is going to peek out soon and we will be better for it.

Have a great weekend!

Strike...

My husband's company is on strike.  You may have heard a bit about it in the news.  We got the call last Saturday at midnight.  I'm not going to lie- it's been stressful and my head is a bit foggy.

We have spent the week staying busy- me with homeschooling and Travis has been playing handyman for one of my dear friends.  This woman was so sweet to message me on FB and ask if Travis wanted to earn a little extra money.  Honestly, I value the fact that his hands and mind are busy over any money he could earn right now.  He is pretty emotional about all of this, and strangely enough I am playing the part of the calm one.  (don't ask me how!)

I just checked my comments a while ago and someone, anonymously of course, was kind enough to point out that I had misspelled a word in my last post.  Thank you for that.  I think it's good to remind myself that I'm not perfect, because I'm not.  (i before e, except after c!) 

Travis has been working his shift on the picket line, and we both participated in our first rally yesterday.  I gotta tell you,  I was never in a sorority or group in college, but this feeling of solidarity and rooting for something bigger than yourself?  Well, that was just plain cool.

I've had a week to put in the books.  A few "friends" spouted off their opinions of unions to me (which really, fine- have an opinion, just don't voice it to the girl whose husband is out of work due to a strike!), we do not have health insurance right now which means I will probably get the worst sinus infection of my life (kidding, sort of), and I have receieved a few hate comments on various social media sites.  Nothing like kicking someone when they are down, right?

But it's all good.   On the flip side, the week also brought me laughter with one of my best friends when I really needed it, a part time job offer for me that would be flexible and still allow me to homeschool,  lazy mornings with my husband and conversation over coffee, and so many supportive and lovely messages from IG and FB friends.

We may go ahead and start our laundry room build- may as well get a few to-do's knocked off the list since Travis is home.   Do me a favor- go out today and build someone up- we have enough tearing down going on right now.

Super suit...

The kids and I watched The Incredibles the other day.  I love that scene where Frozone calls out to his wife, "Woman, where is my super suit?"  Cracks me up every time.

My husband has a super suit...

These are what's known in the oil refinery industry as "FRC's"  Or Fire Resistant Clothing.  Because folks, working in refineries- that is some dangerous work and fires are always a threat.

Years ago my husband lost his job.  It was his first and only "real" job out of high school.  No college, or trade school- just a city job and a hardworking guy.  He never went to college because being dyslexic and graduating high school in the 80's was not much for boosting his confidence academically.   Also, sitting in a classroom for hours a day with intensive reading?  No thanks.  He is an outdoorsy guy who is crazy talented at taking things apart, trouble shooting the problem, and putting them back together again in a way where they work better than they did originally.  He is the fix-it whisperer  of mechanical stuff.  I will hear him fussing about how "it's impossible" or "it can't be done", but like Macgyver, the man manages to make it all work.  Paperclip, chewing gum, and all.

Eventually it became apparent to him that he was going to have to go back to school.  With a wife and four kids he needed a way to provide for us.  So off to community college he went and two years later he graduated with honors and a process technology degree.  I made him get photographed wearing his cap and gown because I was so damn proud of what he had done.  He swallowed a tremendous amount of fear and just did it.

He works shift.  Not easy on the body- and has sleep issues because of it.  It's a type of swing shift, so the days on/off are not very consistent.  But he does it.  Up at 3:50 am to be on the unit by 5 am. or out the door at 4:00pm to work nights.  12 hour days, overtime, fire calls, holidays- all because he wants to give us a good life.  Are we rich?  No, not by any stretch, but we are comfortable and he is able to give our kids what they need.  His hard work has afforded me the opportunity to homeschool our son, build my little business and pursue a passion.

Watching him leave for work wearing that blue suit he looks like super hero in my eyes.

13 years ago today...

I said, "I do."

And I still would.  Again, and again, and again...

Happy 13th Anniversary to us!

We will be out in the Texas hill country this week.  Be sure to follow me on Instagram!

How we design...

Our project conversations usually start something like this...

Travis- "Do you have a second to look at this?"

Me- "Yeah, watcha need?"

Travis- "Okay, on this desk...do you want____  or should I just ____"

Me- "Um, just do ___"

This conversation pretty much goes through the entire project.  They always start with a rough sketch by me:

Technical, I know.  I draw it, sans measurements that are accurate, and Travis makes it happen.

I start out with a list of features I'd like to have in the kitchen:

*open shelving

*Taller cabinets flanking the stove

*Display space

*fridge built in

That is about the extent of our fancy planning.  I also worked this kitchen by only investing in the things we needed- like new appliances.  I am not a fan of our countertops- haven't been since we chose them at the "design center" where they didn't even know what honed granite was!  Because folks, I really, really, really wanted honed granite.  And a farmhouse sink, but I wasn't willing to sell a kidney to get it.   So instead of mourning what I didn't have in our kitchen, I just worked around it- which is pretty much how I design most of our rooms.  My husband is a plant shift worker and I am was a teacher, so our budgets are pretty small for our renovations.

We always describe our renovating style as a "fly by the seat of our pants" affair.  Tweaks are made as we go, the design changes as we go, and sometimes the end result doesn't turn out quite like my original drawings and that's okay.    I like how we work together, and I look forward to our project time.  We play on each other's strengths and it all works out in the end ;)