Projects

So there’s a fellow spouse on base who has a blog called “Last Project For  Awhile”. This other spouse is actually an amazingly talented super crafty person, whereas I prefer just the occasional, practical, not super-detailed project but I still adore this title because that’s how I feel almost every time I’m working on some little project around the house; Boy, this is kind of a pain.  This is not turning out exactly how I pictured it.  This is my last project for a while.  But somehow, more opportunities keep popping up.  Anyway, here are some of my recently completed projects. 

Here’s the corn hole set I made at the wood shop that will be available for play  at the “wedding” next May--ready to be painted! 

Here’s one after being painted and stenciled. There is actually a thin gold outline around the border and the B but it doesn’t show up too much in this picture.  On the plus side, the paint that leaked under the stencil doesn’t show in this picture either. :-) 

Also, the desk and side table set in the study got a little face lift!  :-)   This furniture was generously donated to us by my parents and it’s been in my family since before I was born but it was time for an update. Here’s the before...

And after!  Nothing like some paint and new handles to quickly, easily, and cheaply turn around some furniture.  Welcome to the White Furniture Club, desk and side thingies! 

Also, when I was taking out the drawers from one of the side pieces, I found the warranty information for my parents’ old Hitachi camcorder (Hello, 1984!) and a confirmation card that my Aunt Susie had sent to my brother( ca. 1997?).  Talk about a blast from the past!

More on Satan Ants

Mainly because it’s an interesting picture...here’s a visual update of what happened when those nasty ants attacked my hand...no worries, after a couple days of ice, anti-inflammatories and anti-histamines, it went away.  Six bites on my pinky and four on the rest of my right hand.  Guess I’ll garden with gloves from now on!

Snippets

A few quick updates from the past couple weeks: 


The week after the Fourth of July weekend, Caleb got to go to San Antonio for a few days for a trip to the highly dreaded/anticipated centrifuge.  In case you're not familiar, the Air Force has a handful of these devices that you sit in and they spin around really fast to simulate flying at up to 9 Gs.  Caleb pulled 5 and 6 Gs for 30 seconds each and 7.5 Gs for 15 seconds during his day there.  He did not black out, which is common, but I did get to see the video and it looked like an invisible hand was trying to rip my beloved's face off, which is something I think every wife would prefer not to see.  He also got to go to Sea World and spend an evening on the famous Riverwalk.


Last week I enjoyed a trip back to CO where I caught up with my old ballet studio, worship team, went to the rodeo and spent time with my friends, worked on some wedding stuff, and spent time with my parents.  On the way home I accidentally left my phone at the airport in Dallas, so that was disappointing, but oh well, whatcha gonna do? (as Caleb would say)


And lastly, a rant: while weeding our flower beds today, I was attacked by a band of fire ants, which should be more accurately renamed Satan ants! If you have never experienced Satan ants, count your blessings.  They are these deceptively cute mini-ants that swarm over whatever body part you stick closest to their hub and clamp onto your skin with their little jaws until you pinch them off and wipe them onto some other surface.  Then wherever they bit you hurts like the dickens for I'd say a good thirty minutes, and then the little bites itch like the dickens for a least a week thereafter.  Satan ants!  


All right, that's all for today.  Aside from the ant issues, we're happy to be home at the same time for a while now and have been appreciating our air conditioning! 

Naval Air Museum Pictures

First of all, I have to apologize for the amount of these pictures.  Normally I have no problem brutally paring down my shots into a few good ones but I really felt there were so many cool displays at the museum that this really was the bare minimum.  Enjoy!

Me as a Blue Angel!

Speaking of the devils...some older planes that maybe used to be Blue Angels?  Or they might just be models. Not really sure, to be honest. 

Uh, another Navy Fighter plane.  Not sure which one.  :- /

One of my favorite parts was the large multi-room display they had of a WWII-era ship and town, because my maternal grandpa was stationed on the USS Maryland when it was attacked at Pearl Harbor, so I could picture him living in a ship like this.  Here we have the “head” where my grandpa said he was when he was first alerted to the attack. 

Bunks.  They also had some lockers that didn’t make it into the shot but had personal belongings and girlfriend pictures taped up.  Actually, in nearly every room of the ship, they had those sepia 5X7 photos of some forties girls.  

The dispensary, or medical room of the ship.  Note the photo on the wall. 

A very cool, huge, detailed model of the USS Enterprise

I made Caleb let me take his picture with the hot air balloons since they have a hot air balloon festival in his hometown and he seems to like it so much.  :-)

Fighters on a model of the USS George H.W. Bush, the Navy’s newest carrier

This was a cool display/book promo of the story of these three guys who survived 34 days on this raft, I think WWII era also. 

If you look closely you can see their tally marks where they kept track of the days on board. 

In the little Pearl Harbor Display was this diagram of the arrangement of the ships there when they fell under attack.  My mom’s dad was on the USS Maryland.  

Outside the museum with an F-18. This is the aircraft that the Blue Angels currently use.  I wish they painted all planes prettily like they paint the Blue Angels and Thunderbirds.  I was pretty disappointed to learn that the majority of all the other military planes are some variation of gray.  

Caleb with a neat sculpture.  Each pilot represents a different American war; from the left: WWI, WWII, Korean, Vietnam, and Gulf(?)  Caleb may correct me on this.  The WWII guy is telling the other pilots a flying story with his hands.  Which they do.  

This place was stuffed full of planes!  Very difficult to capture but neat. 

This display reminded me of how my grandma and grandpa probably looked in the 40s.  Except they both had darker hair than these wax figures.  

In the same display as the flirty sailor, they had a WWII era American street, complete with a grocery store with items with ration points, a shoe shiner working, a movie theater, a barbershop, and on the right here is the “1940s home” with a radio and historically accurate kitchen and decorations.  If you look closely you can see the blue star banner hanging in the lower windows, symbolizing that that a family member was serving.  Pretty cool! 

Pensacola Trip

For the long 4th of July weekend, we went to Pensacola, FL, and stayed at a lovely hotel at Pensacola NAS (Naval Air Station), which is an large and amazing base that made me a little less excited about the base we currently live on, but I guess it proves the bases will probably only get bigger and better from here.  Pensacola NAS also happens to be home to the Blue Angels and the Naval Air Museum, which deserves its own post because it was so large and amazing.  Anyway, here are some other pictures from the trip.

The boys went sailing...

While the girls did some paddle-boarding!  So fun! 

This was the best shot I could muster of the groups of dolphins swimming around the harbor.  So exciting!

"

“Home of the Blue Angels!”  Unfortunately they were out of town when we were there. :-( 

In front of the Pensacola NAS lighthouse.  They were charging a silly amount of money  to climb to the top so we just got these two pictures and went back to the beach! 

In some rocking chairs on the lighthouse front porch

While I went for a walk with my friend, Caleb and another guy caught this jellyfish!  There was also another small fish in there but it’s kind of hard to see.  

And some hermit crabs!

Stay tuned for museum pictures!

Milestone

For those of you who have driven or ridden in the little green Accord, which I think encompasses nearly all of our audience, look what happened on our trip down to Pensacola!  (Pictures coming soon)

190,000 miles and going strong!  

Caleb insisted I also take a picture of this numeric palindrome.  Don’t worry, he was driving, I was taking the pictures! 

Pictures From Tara’s Birthday

Daily inspiration from a calendar my parents made the first year they were married

Me with my loot!  And my sign that my friend Maylis made for a little party some fellow spouses had for me 

Adorable tea towels and home fragrance from Aunt Susie... 

Amazing Urban Decay eyeshadows from my grandma...

Perfume, candy, a cooling rack and timer from Caleb...

A robe, tweezers, salad servers, microfiber cleaning cloth, and Odyssey and Radio Theater CDs from my parents...

Cards from family and friends...I’ve gotten some more very cute ones since I took this picture, too!  I felt very loved  :-) 

Birthday dessert of choice.  Actually, my first choice would have been an amazing fruit pizza but this turned out to be a lot cheaper and easier.  

All in all, a great day!