when the cat is away the mice will play... and tie dye!

Jay has been gone all week long.  Last year on these long trips he takes I would feel miserable.  i would get bored and antsy and pretty lonesome.  Now that C is basically a little human being (let's face it, last year she was kinda like a boring burrito) she is so much more fun!  We really had a great week filled with playing, pooling, meeting up with friends and of course crafting. C got to spend some time with her besties this week...

We got to have a front porch dinner picnic after a big storm went through and we lost power, yes that is a cold can of beefaroni that I served my child (she ate at least 3/4 of the can!)

And of course I did some major crafting.  I worked on a couple projects for my new classroom that I am getting next year.  You will see the pics when they are finished.  I also made C some 4th of July apparel.  What good US citizen does not have a nice tacky shirt to wear on the 4th?! (of course her father and myself will not be wearing one, but babies can get away with anything!)

So for C's 4th of July outfit I got some cheap tie dying materials...

Tie Dyed three shirts using different methods (I hadn't done this in a while, so I was a little rusty with the process)...

Chose my fav...

Then wanted to try a technique I had seen on pinterest.  I had seen some cool shirts that had been written on with a bleach pen.  Well it turns out that a bleach pen costs about 5 dollars AND I am super cheap, so I made my own.  I used q-tips dipped in bleach to make stars over the tie-dye and it seemed to work just fine!  I can see how if you are wanting to do something with sharper lines, the pen would be helpful, but this worked for me!

So we had a successful week, stayed busy and the cat is coming home tonight (yeah!) plus we are all ready for the fourth...tacky baby t-shirts, shades and of course some glow bracelets!

-melissa

Dear Beach...

You look a lot different than where I am from in Virginia.

I haven't seen you in a year, so at first I was a little leery.

My Tiki told me all about how fun you are.

The water was nice, but the sand was much more fun.  You know how I love to dig.

One of mommy's friends told her to bring a pool.  Nothing better than playing in the shade, in a pool on the beach.

Mommy had a great time at the beach.  She loves it there.

I never really understood how the water goes away, but then comes right back.  Maybe next year.

This blanket was made for the beach and so of course we had to get our yearly picture on it!

Daddy and Grandpa enjoyed the shade more than catching rays like mommy and Tiki.

But, we did so much more than play at the beach!  I got plenty of wagon rides.

Played in the pool!

And tried out all the major summer fashions.

One day we even got to see tons of different fish at the aquarium!

We saw weird ones.

And ones with pointy noses.

I even got to pretend I was one!

At the end mommy shoved this hat on my head.  She thought it was funnier than I did.

It was really fun!

I played so hard that a couple times I tried to put myself down for a nap on the back porch.

Thanks beach for letting me come over, hope to see you again soon!

Love Always, Charlotte Gray

a swinging father's day

Sorry this post is so late, we have been doing a lot of this lately...

We really did have a very nice father's day here at the Hess house.  C made it through church this year (unlike last), we had a nice lunch, Jay got some photography equipment and we packed to take a trip to the beach with Jay's parents.

Just before father's day we were busy cutting, sawing, painting and burning.  We decided that since both parents were now in their retirement homes that they needed something to build some memories on, like a homemade tree swing.

I had this idea for a while and of course I was very sure of myself that this was the gift that we must give, but no idea how to actually build one.  That is were Jay always comes in, I have the crazy ideas and he has to figure out how to pull them off.  So after some research on Jay's part this is how we built our swings.

First we gathered the supplies at the local hardware store.  You will need (to make two swings): 10x8x2 pressure treated wood, braided rope, three inch outdoor deck screws, four metal quick links and a wood burning tool.

Then Jay cut the long piece of wood (8x10x2) into sections.  Each swing needed a piece that was 32" and two pieces that were 4" for support.

Before you attach the three pieces together draw a design and use a wood burning tool to create a message or picture on the swing (this was my job!)  I decided about halfway in to put some safety glasses on due to the fumes from the burning gun making my eyeballs burn!

After you are happy with your decoration it is time to assemble.  Screw the 4" pieces onto the bottom of the 32" piece.  This will offer some support for when grandparents and grandchildren alike pile on the thing in years to come.

After you are finished assembling the swing, polyurathane the whole thing so it will last for years.

-melissa

from sea to shining sea

Happy Memorial Day! This day has a lot of meaning and significance for many Americans. I recently watched a few movies about wars that Americans have fought in and through the story telling and acting in those movies I gained a new respect for what many men and women have given up for us as Americans. We do live in the best country in the world so if you are or have served...Thanks! We decided to have an all out American day, which began by mowing our lawn. What is more American than that? We did have a picture, but Melissa looked pretty sweaty afterwards and it was vetoed. You get the idea though.

Next we headed to our new swimming pool, but before you get too excited it's just an 8x8 blow up that we got from Sam's Club. All three of us fit in it and after mowing the lawn and trimming, it was just what we needed. This is only the second time we've been in the pool and I think Charlotte loves it a bit more each time. We picked up some great pool toys from the dollar store and enjoyed a refreshing dip in our luxurious pool.

I enjoy taking aim at the dogs and surprising them as they linger close to our deck. Notice my precise aim.

We live in a great little town that has it's own Memorial Day Parade, so after a morning nap for Charlotte and a quick lunch we headed up the street to take in the hoopla. Here is a picture of me and Charlotte at the same parade last year.

Now compare to this year...a few more grays on my head and lot more hair on Charlotte's.

We dressed Charlotte up in a patriotic jumper and some volunteers offered us some handheld flags and Charlotte gladly accepted.

She also found a fountain that sits in front of one the shops on the main drag and was mesmerized by it.

She even decided that the flag needed to be baptized a few times as well. I told Melissa that after Charlotte carried that flag around for about 10 minutes we probably needed to retire it properly and have it burned for all of the ways she desecrated it...but she sure had fun.

I love this shot!

Here's how the parade began. Pretty small-town-feel, but a great parade.

Charlotte wasn't always sure what to think of everything, but she had a good time anyhow.

Here's one of the local high school marching bands. They didn't have any bands last year so this was a treat for band nerds like us.

Ford Mustang fans would have loved this part.

Another great shot of the girls.

The best part is that we live so close to the parade route that when we wanted to head home, we did, and it only took 5 minutes.

We knew that as Americans, we had to put some meat on a grill today, so I thought long and hard and landed on baby back ribs. I haven't made them in a while but, after all was said and done, I couldn't tell that I hadn't made them in a while because they turned out awesome. We added some homemade au gratin potatoes, courtesy of the Pioneer Woman, some simple corn on the cob, sparkling lemonade and some fresh strawberries. Here's the shot before we all dug in.

Charlotte's first crack at a rib bone. She acted like she'd been eating these things for years.

Also her first crack at corn on a cob. No big deal. Apparently the 5 teeth she has coming in right now are paying off big time.

This stuff is yummy.

Before we cleaned up I looked at the table and told Melissa, "I have to take a picture of this." We demolished the table.

Finally, what's more American than a popsicle on the front porch. Charlotte knew what to do with these as popsicles are an everyday occurrence at the Hess House.

"What.....it's all gone?"

And to round things off, drinking out of the hose. Melissa showed Charlotte first...

...and Charlotte stepped right up.

We hope you had a great day with family or friends or whatever. It's never easy living away from family, but our little family here did today BIG. As a matter of fact, everyone but me is asleep. Charlotte in her crib, Melissa and Abby on the couch and Jack asleep in his bed. Love to all of you, near and far.

-jay