Life is more fun with crafts!

I have been inspired for a while by all the fun bottle cap creations on Pinterest. I had an idea to take my boring patio table and add some flare. Ryan likes an evening beer or two, so we had quite a few bottle caps. I organized what I had by color. I had black, red, blue, and silver. It seemed liked a lot, but I didn't have enough to cover the table.  I bought an additional 1500 from an Etsy shop. That should do the trick!   

 My new bottle caps arrived and it was time to start! Once I added the new caps the design phase began. I laid the caps out and continued to play. I decided on a wheel meets sunburst design. I had to make some changes as I went because of cap colors. (That is why the end product is slightly different.) I would need some more red, silver, and gold to finish. Time to drink up, Ryan. 😃 We left for our Colorado trip at this point, so he had time. 


 All the bottle caps were in position, time to get gluing. I bought tile adhesive from the local home improvement store. I vastly underestimated how much I would need. I bought my first quart thinking that I would have some left over. I did not, that quart got a quarter of the bottle caps attached. I ended up buying two more gallons to get the job done. I realized about this time that I must have lost my mind a little bit to pursue this project in the summer. I went outside in hour bursts until I couldn't take the heat/sweat.  

 All the caps were glued down. Now came the most intimidating part, the grout. I took a tiling class eight years ago, but had never used what I learned. I again headed to the home improvement store. I decided on a bag of gray sanded grout that just needed water to mix. 

 I mixed the grout and began spreading it on the table. I had the thought that I may be messing up hours of hot outside work. What would I do if this doesn't work? Luckily, I wasn't going to have to figure that out because it was working. I scraped off the excess as I applied the grout. I let it dry for about ten minutes and took a wet sponge to clean the bottle caps. Some got scratched by the sand, but I liked how it looked. I sprayed two coats of clear gloss to the top and I was finished! 

Colorado Trip: What If

After camping, we headed to Greeley for the rest of our vacation. I was still sore, but I was doing ok. I kept having that nagging "what if" as I would move and hurt. Philip had no idea what had happened, but he could have grown up without me. Things could definitely have been much worse.  I had to grin and bare the pain... I was alive! Of course the word had spread and even family that wasn't there was informed of my "adventurous spirit". Everyone was concerned if I was ok, but I was just embarrassed. I was good and determined to enjoy the rest of my vacation! 

I was excited to take Philip to Ryan's dad's dairy for the third time. He had done well his second time there a few months before. I was especially excited because Philip loves animals and is more interested in them everyday. He loved it! He wanted to see everything and had no fear to reach out and touch the cows, even the big ones.  

My Little Bug turned one a couple days later. How is that possible? He was just born? Where did the year go? We celebrated with a small party, pizza, and cake.  Philip was a fan of the pizza and his very own chocolate cake. He destroyed it, got it everywhere, and needed a bath afterwards. He was showered with gifts and love by his Colorado family. 

I had grown more sore, especially in my upper body, and it took a lot to get out of bed in the morning. More than that though was the amount of love that I was feeling. I was overwhelmed by love of my life, my husband, and my son. I am so blessed! God protected me and blesses me richly every single day. Why does this matter? Well, I felt like I had gotten a second chance.  With that my thoughts started to change. Ryan and I had taken foster classes, but is that the right direction? We started to seriously talk about our options.  Should we try for another baby? 


These thoughts left me conflicted. Am I crazy to even be thinking about this? What if I have complications again? What if I need a C-Section? What if I have Postpartum Depression and/or Anxiety? I just finished taking my Postpartum medications. Do I want to start them again? I could go on and on with negative what if's, but what if we should try again? What if now is the time? What if I am prepared for these possibilities? 

I don't know what the future has in store, but there are definitely more options than there were a couple of months ago. I'm just happy to be here and I am ready to see what God has in store for my family!! There is a God and it's not me... He has a plan for my life. 

Colorado Trip: Mountain Madness

Where to begin...

It has been a little while since my last post.  It has been busy around here! We have had a vacation, a wedding, a birthday, family visiting from England, and lots of summer fun. Let me start with our vacation in early June.  

Ryan, Philip, and I traveled to Colorado to enjoy Ryan's mom's wedding. We rented an RV and made our way to Sylvan Lake. It was a beautiful area - mountains, nature, and of course the lake! Our first day there we enjoyed hiking, campfires, and spending time with family. Ryan even took Philip on a four-wheeler ride with his brothers who were on mini bikes.  There was a dirt road that went up the mountain side to a gorgeous view. By the end of the day, I was one of a few that hadn't made it up to see the view.  

The next day was the wedding. The lake was a beautiful backdrop for the ceremony on a beautiful day.  Ryan's mom couldn't have gotten better weather, even if she had hand picked it. Ryan officiated the intimate ceremony. There was not a dry eye around as vows were shared and the happy couple became husband and wife.  I was also able to be the photographer and was thrilled to lend my services. (Deanne: Your photo book is finished and heading your way soon!)

After a barbecue lunch, we were free to enjoy the area again like the day before. I was excited for the afternoon. The plan was to go on the four-wheeler to see the view with Ryan.  Then my five year old nephew was going to teach me how to fish. He had a hard time believing I had never tried, but he was willing to teach me the basics. 

Ryan's brothers were going to watch Philip. I changed out of my wedding outfit and I was ready to go! Ryan was going to ride a mini bike, while I was on the four wheeler. I got a quick tutorial - start up, brake, gas.  It was easy, I was all set! A quick selfie and then we were off. Just beside the campsite, there was a stop sign.  I stopped and the engine died. Ryan told me how to avoid that and drove off up the mountain road that led to the view. 

I followed behind, nervous, but feeling confident. I had only gone about two hundred feet before things started to go wrong. I was having trouble staying straight on the bumpy, curvy mountain road. I veered to the left and tried to correct by veering right.  I must have over corrected because that is when the front wheels left the road.  I was now driving off the road, heading down the mountain.  I screamed, but there was nothing I could do.  

I closed my eyes and thought it was my time to go. I
was falling down a mountain. Who survives something like that? I came off the four-wheeler and 
felt  myself do a couple head over feet tumbles before skidding to a stop on my back.  I didn't move and my eyes were still closed. Am I ok? Did I break any bones? I heard people at the base of the mountain shouting that a girl just drove off. Would they help me? What should I do? 

I heard foot steps and Ryan's voice.  He had heard my scream and was coming to find me. He was at my side asking me if I could move. Did I have any broken bones? I started trying to move. Things seemed ok. I couldn't believe what I had done, but I could move! My sister-in-law was there to help now too. They both helped me climb through the dirt back up to the road. 

A park ranger had arrived to interview me for an accident report.  I was sore and very dirty, but felt ok.  They recommended that I go to the doctor, but I was more embarrassed than anything. I had a few scrapes, but nothing major. The four wheeler definitely had more injuries than me. It had continued down the mountain until stopped by a barbed wire fence. The park ranger had me wave to my worried family, who had gathered down below, before having me sign that I was declining medical treatment.  

We made our way back down.  I needed to clean up and take a few minutes. I had a small scrape on my chin, a couple on each arm, and that was it! I could write plenty about how things could have gone worse.  The four wheeler could have hit me, I could have hit a tree, there could have been broken bones, or worse. One of the wedding guests was a nurse. She told me what I should watch out for and that I would probably wake up sore the next morning. Each day I was more sore and about a week later, I had some rib pain that wasn't fun.  

It was a crazy, embarrassing, scary event, but I survived relatively unharmed! I didn't get to see the view, but I was just happy to be alive... more time to enjoy the daily blessings in life with my family, friends, and these two loves!


(My new father-in-law took me in his truck to see the view before we left the campsite.")


Stay tuned for Colorado Trip: part two in the next couple of days.