Build And Grow: Shrek Onion Carriage

Told you it was another Build And Grow.  But that's okay because Atrus likes going to them.  And he is getting better each time we go.  For this one, it was still summer, and Lowe's was doing a Dreamworks theme.  The first two were Madagascar, then it was Kung Fu Panda, and now it's Shrek.  We skipped the Kung Fu Panda one.  I believe I already posted the first of the Shrek pair, which was the Dragon Ride.  This one is an Onion Carriage!  The thing that Shrek and Fiona leave in at the end of Shrek and then take on Shrek 2 when they go to Far, Far Away. 


In any case, each one starts out the same.  I have Atrus look at the paper and try to figure out what he's making. 


Then we go over inventory to orient what pieces are what and how they go into the project.


His facial expression while hammering was so funny.  It was this look of consternation, like he was trying so hard and getting annoyed; but he was doing just fine.


A bit more relaxed on this one.  He's getting the hang of nailing the wheels onto the axles.


Donkey, Shrek, and Princess Fiona.  I put the cardboard feet on them.  Atrus hasn't really done anything with paper dolls so he wouldn't have a clue, and they were a touch on the fragile side, so I wanted to make sure they at least started out fine.  Besides, I did play with paper dolls when I was a kid.  What?!? 


Look at him enjoying it all put together.



Let's see ...  it looks like the next one will be also another Build And Grow.  I said I didn't take many pictures this summer!  Also, I kind of got flakey and didn't actually take first day of school pictures, so I don't have those.  He started back on September 4, and there's actually some quiet in the house!!

Thanks for stopping by.  Early apologies for the kid-building-stuff picture glut, but that's what I have for now.  I'm pretty sure I will have some other stuff coming up soon.  See you next time!

I Do, Again

In mid August, the Boys and I headed to my parents for their 40th Wedding Anniversary and renewal of vows.  As planned, we went down the day before to help out and all that.  Plus, the boys got some time with Grandma and Grandpa.

Chance answers the phone!


Waves in the slinky!  A new thing for Atrus to discover.  The slinkies we've had at home got stupidly bent out of shape and tangled.


Chance puts the shapes in teh right spot!


Playing with the new flash, got a shot of Grandma and Chance.  Husband got this one.


The happy couple.  Husband also got this one.


Stained glass in the church.  I may not do much with church, or even really consider myself religious, but I love the stained glass there, and I also love the pipe organ.


Not sure I will be posting the family and renewal celebration pictures.  Next up is another Build And Grow, yes another one.  I've been making it a point to do those with Atrus so it's just me and him, but I haven't been taking much in the way of other pictures, so it's going to seem that's all we do.

I hope you like the pictures and I'll put another post soon.

Introducing Tea Cup

I was going to do a different post, but it appears that my photo hosting site is now adding extra characters to file names and that is screwing up my coding for the blog because of how I have been doing it.  Waiting to see if it will be a permanent thing or what.  In the mean time, I have these other pictures all set to go, so I'm going to do that instead.

For some time, I've been wanting to get another cat.  I love Kieran, but I've wanted to have a second cat.  One day I decided to head into the local animal shelter to see what they had.  Hoping for an adult female cat, possibly all black (they're adopted less).  Adult so I wouldn't have to spay her and female so there wouldn't be a pissing contest in the house from two dominant male cats.  No adult females, and no entirely black cats.  No matter, I found a kitten I fell absolutely in love with and brought her home.

She was getting underfoot some and was so tiny and very vocal.  At one point Husband called her a Tea Cup and the name kind of fit, so that's her name.

So this is within the first few hours of her being home, finding a brief napping spot.


Playful Kitten.


She can get up and over the top of the tall gate, meaning she can get up and over the gate to get to the litter box (a worry since she's so tiny).


Sleepy Kitten napping in the Singularity (my desk).


Kieran keeping his distance.



 He isn't always sad.  In fact, he's actually stopped hissing at her for show (she's hissed back) and the two actually play nice even.  We think he's starting to realize he has someone to play with.  Tea Cup is fitting in nicely.  She's a very lovey-dovey kitty and a purr-box.  She's very sweet. 

Let's Build A Birdhouse!

As I mentioned earlier, I was able to get some Build And Grow kits to build at home, and one of them was a birdhouse, and I chose to do that one first. It ended up smaller than I thought it would, and it didn't take as long to build either.

The sides/back went together in one piece.


The front went on easy, as well.


It's a pretty open back, and it looks like it suction cups to the window.  Daddy thinks he can get some clear coat for it to help it last longer outside.


The finished.  I love the pun for the birds, not that they can read.  We will find a spot for it outside.


Happy and Proud Atrus



That's it for this post.  Currently going through the other pictures to set up the next post.  I realize it has been a while since I posted.

Happy weekend, and thanks for stopping by!