MIA.......

Yes, I have been a little Missing In Action for what seems like forever now....but I'm back! I have missed the world of blogging for sure and can only hope it's missed me as much. It just seems like there is not enough time in the day to get it all done. I guess that's life though.... constantly having something else to do. Well I am carving out some time now and hoping the long periods of absence are behind me. Much catching up to do, but here is a sneak peek of things to come.....

Snow in the mountains

Finally the last post for 2011! It's only taken me the whole month of January to complete it! I am now ready to have my blog printed for my annual Hay Clan yearbook. Yea!

After Christmas this year, my mom, dad and grandparents were heading to the cabin in North Carolina. We couldn't just let them go and have all the fun. So after putting a coat of paint on the bookcases, P and I packed up the girls and headed north. We really hadn't planned on going, so I didn't have anything ready. I ran in the house, threw some stuff together and 45 minutes later we were in the truck driving. I was quite proud of myself for the quick preparation! It was after 11 pm when we pulled up, but no one seemed to mind. We only stayed for a couple of days this time, but the girls had a blast none-the-less!

The girls love to "hike" around the cabin and play in the trees:

Rope climbing is a big adventure too. I bet they have a dozen ropes tied to trees and whatever else they can find! Here is a great shot of Miss Priss being a great big sister as she helps Little Bit climb the "mountain".

Finally at the top. The view is so much better from here!

After a couple of minutes hiking around on top of their newly conquered mountain, Little Bit got hung up in some sneaky little briars. It was Mommy to the rescue! I handed the camera over to Nonna and she captured the heroic rescue!

Thankful to be out of the briar patch!

Mountain Man Pop

Another picture Pop is gonna love me for! Most of you know my dad doesn't normally look like this. He's usually a clean-cut kinda guy. This fall he decided to see how long he could grow his beard. I told him to leave it til next Christmas so he can play Santa for my photos!

More "mountain-climbing"!

The guys decided to help Jim with a few projects around the cabin since they were all there. The biggest project was to get the satellite cord out of the kitchen window. They had to drill holes, climb ladders, move, shake and everything else you can think of. Here they are in action:

I said it was too bad P wasn't in his kilt! Pop said he'd have to hold his own ladder if he had worn it!

We were really hoping to see snow and get to play in the snow. It did snow, but by the time the girls went out to play in it there wasn't much left. They were determined to get their snow fix though! They both went around and collected as much snow as they could in their little cups. After packing the snow down tight, they flipped the cups over and made snow castles. They can entertain themselves with just about anything. Why do we keep buying all these toys??

Little Bit's masterpiece!

Miss Priss wanted to add a little flare to hers. She packed hers with half snow and half dirt.

What a grandmother will do to appease her great-grandchildren! Too bad for her I have a camera and just happen to be in the right place at the right time for great shots like this! Granny T went looking for the perfect cups to make snow castles with. As you can tell from the above pictures, they managed to find those cups!

Finally made it to the top of the "mountain".

One last picture (that I'm sure she's gonna love me for). This is Granny T sitting in the kitchen sink trying to fix the window. It wouldn't close all the way so she was going to make it happen! I just couldn't resist snapping a picture. I swear she is always doing something like this! Busy, busy bee!

We had a great time at the cabin as usual. Can't wait to get back there again. Hopefully next time their will be a little more snow!

bookcases

These bookcases, along with the quality time spent together building them, was my "big" Christmas present this year! I have been itching for some new bookcases for a long time now. We debated on just buying new bookcases, but none of them we looked at were full wood or worth the price tag that adorned them.

So, my wonderful, wood-working hubby suggested we build some custom made for our study over Christmas break. I was THRILLED! It was a project for the whole family to join in on. Just FYI this is a LONG blog post.....just sayin'.

Little Bit ready to help!

We started by cutting 4' x 8' pieces of cabinet grade plywood into strips.

They are 7 feet tall!

Then we cut the 15" deep tops and bottoms.

P nailed them together for the frame.

Then we cut the bead-board backing for each one.

We nailed the bead-board onto the back of each frame.

P standing back to admire the work done so far with his cup of coffee.

Shelby had to come down to the shop to monitor and make sure things were done properly. She directed everything from her bed (which is right in front of the fireplace!)

Now its starting to look like a bookcase!

The girls would steal our ear muffs every time we put them down. It was hard to get mad at them seeing as how they look so darn cute in them!

Next came the doors for the cabinets on the bottom of the cases. These were the most challenging pieces to make because they have to fit just right in order to work! I had no doubt P could pull it off. He really should be a carpenter.....maybe one day.

In order to get the cabinet doors perfectly squared, P used this cool old contraption called a framing vise he salvaged from his great grandfather's shop.

It lines the two pieces cut at 45* angles up and holds them there while you nail them together.

Now that the frames were nailed together, we had to figure out how to insert the bead-board into the center. P being the creative master he is, added a decorative piece that also added thickness to nail the bead-board to.

The frame is ready.

Next, insert the bead-board and nail it in.

Voila' - a door is made!

P used his new cool screw driver to attach the doors to the bookcases.

Last but not least came the oh-so-fun painting.

P brushed one while I rolled another....

And then we swapped for a final bookcase that looked like this!

Oh yeah, and we had to take small special brushes to paint around the hinges. (Oh and a little proof to show I helped! ;)

This picture doesn't quite to them justice, but I will add another picture late as it is now full of books!!

I <3 my new bookcases!!