When life throws you a bone...

Question:  When life throws you a bone, do you accept it?  Life has thrown me one, and I've been trying to decide what to do with it.

For Christmas, I ordered an iPad2 with 64G for Cory.  It was not brand new.  It was refurbished, but it was in perfect physical condition.  The company promptly sent it.  I turned it on long enough to make sure it had a full charge.  Then, I wrapped it.  When Cory opened it Christmas morning, he was so excited!  After playing around with it for awhile, he discovered that the camera didn't work.  He was so bummed.  We decided to return it and see if we could get a replacement.

The day after Christmas, Cory contacted the company I bought it from and explained the defect.  They said they didn't have any more in stock, but they would gladly refund our money.  They emailed us a shipping label, and we immediately sent it back to them.  In the meantime, Cory found another iPad online from a different company and ordered it.  The new iPad came, and he has been thrilled with it.

Then one day, the most bizzare thing happened.  We received an email from the original company we ordered the iPad from.  They received the one we shipped back to them, and they were processing our refund.  An hour later, we received a package in the mail from them.  Another iPad.  I was baffled.  They had originally told us they did not have any more in stock.  I immediately checked our credit card statement.  We had not been charged for another one, yet here it was.

I decided to wait for further action until the refund had gone through (I didn't want any confusion on their end to halt the refund process).  Then, we contacted the company to let them know about the extra iPad that was shipped to us.  Their response:  We have no record of shipping another iPad to you.

So, here I am with a dilemma.  Where do I go from here?  The little devil on my shoulder tried to convince me that it was okay to keep it.  I turned it on and started to set up my internet connection, email accounts, etc.  A few minutes into it, the little angel on my shoulder told me to stop and make contact with the company one more time.  In my message to them, I briefly explained that I was certain the iPad came from them.  Would they please check their inventory to make sure they weren't missing one?  Now I wait for their response.  If they ask me to return the iPad, I can do so with a clear conscience.  If they continue to insist that it is not theirs, I guess I will graciously accept the bone that life has thrown me.

The odds are against me, but I'm making progress

It's been a challenging week. Adam is off track and in need of constant entertainment. Sadie has been even more emotional than usual, if you can imagine that, and busy little Tyler has been making non-stop messes like this...

On top of everything else, temperatures have been frigidly cold, and the kids have a serious case of cabin fever. I try to send them outside for a few minutes everyday so Tyler can nap in peace, but it has just been to cold to make it last very long.

Despite the challenges, I am actually making real progress on Sadie's new bed. I made it through my first box of 100 screws.  The railings are well underway and should be complete mid-week in time to borrow Cory's truck to go get the boards for the playhouse portion on the bottom. Then, I will just need to find someone to borrow a jigsaw from so I can cut the door and windows out.  I have really enjoyed working on this, but I think I will wait for warmer temperatures next time I plan a major project.  I have spent a lot of time in my garage in freezing temperatures with no heat.  I hope Miss Sadie loves it when it's done!

A bit ambitious, but failure is NOT an option

I have been having so much fun with the compound miter saw I got for Christmas. I finally finished building frames for the builder-grade mirrors in my bathrooms, and I touched up the corners with caulk and paint. I have to say, they look pretty darn nice. Truthfully, I'm a little surprised that I did such a good job on my first project.

I may be a little over confident now, but I have decided to attempt a larger (and very ambitious) project: a new bed for Sadie. Not just any bed, though. This is a playhouse loft bed with a playhouse on the bottom and a bed on the top. I found the plans on Ana-white.com. See below...

I know what you're thinking...little girl with a new saw is going a little crazy. I know it is an ambitious project for a beginner, but failure is NOT an option. I have already shown the plans to Miss Sadie, and she is over the moon with excitement. Unfortunately with the time I have to dedicate to it, the project will take weeks. :(  In the mean time, I hope Sadie will be patient.  She is very emotional and will be heart-broken if I can't pull this off.  She cried for 20 minutes today when the library didn't have the particular book she was looking for.  Imagine her disappointment if this project fails.

Phase one is in the works: building the railings. Follow my progress in future blogs.  There is not much to show at this point, since I am only on day #2, but check out my nicely drilled pocket holes on the rails!

Keep AT LEAST one eye open at all times!

As a child, I was taught to fold my arms, close my eyes, and bow my head for prayers.  Now that I am a parent, I try to teach my kids the same principles.  However, I find that I have a hard time practicing what I preach.  You never know what will happen when you take your eyes off your kids for a lengthy prayer!  So, as a policy, I pretend to close my eyes, but I keep one eye cracked just enough to see what is going on around me.

Here is how church went today...  Midway through the first prayer, I hear Sadie tell Adam, "Close your eyes!!!"  Apparently neither one of them were doing what they were supposed to be doing.  I was keeping my eye on Tyler and couldn't see the other two kids out of the "crack."

Midway through a baby blessing, Tyler wandered off.  Thank goodness I saw where he went.  If my eyes had been closed, I most likely would have panicked when I opened them since he wasn't visible from my vantage point.  After the blessing was over, I quietly tiptoed 4 rows ahead of us to where he was sitting on Brother Borchert's lap.....playing his iPhone.  It was a coloring book app, and he was busy coloring a kitty.  (What can I say???...My kids have a thing for electronics.)

Yes, I am convinced that keeping one eye open at all times is definitely a good idea.

I can build it, yes I can!

Have you ever watched a Bob the Builder cartoon? In each episode, Bob and his gang help with renovations, construction, and repairs with various projects. Bob's catchphrase is "Can we fix it?," to which the other characters respond "Yes we can!" 

I have been feeling a little Bob the Builder-ish lately.  When I asked Cory for a saw for Christmas, I think he had serious concerns.  He probably wondered what a girly girl like myself would do with a saw, and I'm sure he thought I would surely cut off a finger trying to operate one.  Hopefully my first project has turned him from a skeptic into a fan.

Awhile back I came across a blog where someone had built a frame for their builder-grade bathroom mirror.  The tutorial I read sounded like it would be a great first project for me to work on.  After a trip to Lowe's to buy the materials, I unpacked my new saw and asked Cory to give me a few pointers.  Then, Cory stood back and let me give it a whirl.  Here's what I did.

I measured the mirror and bought some moulding/trim and Liquid Nails at Lowe's.  Then, I cut each piece to fit the measurements on a 45 degree angle.  After a few coats of paint, I took the bottom section of the frame and glued it right on the front of the mirror using Liquid Nails.  I let it cure overnight, then I added the other three pieces.  I had planned on touching up the corner seams with some caulk and paint, but it actually looks pretty good without doing anything.  Here are the pictures.  Not too shabby for a first try.  Now I have two more bathrooms to complete before moving on to another project.  :)

A house full of party poopers

New Years at the Wolf House came a little early this year...

Our festivities began mid afternoon with special activities every hour. I blew up several balloons and stuffed each balloon with a piece of paper describing the activity we would do that hour. Then I labeled each balloon with a specific time to "pop" it (3:00, 4:00, 5:00, etc). The activities were simple things, like make hot cocoa, play balloon volleyball, and turn on some music and show everyone your best dance moves. The kids loved popping the balloons each hour to see what we would do next.

Knowing that nobody would make it until midnight, I only came up with enough balloon activities to make it until 8:00.  When we popped the last balloon, the activity was fireworks. We had a few small fireworks left from celebrations this summer, but nothing too exciting. I think Adam was less than impressed and asked if we had any that shot into the air and exploded. Tyler loved the fireworks, though, and Sadie was just happy to be having a party.

After fireworks, we headed inside and turned on the tv. Sadie fell asleep on the couch at 8:40, and Tyler wasn't far behind. Adam probably would have stayed up awhile longer, but we were tired, so we tucked him in bed at 9:00.  After watching the Times Square ball drop at 10:00 local time, we turned off the tv and talked until we both fell asleep around 11:00.  Quite the party at our house, huh? Trust me, you would go to bed early too if my three energetic kids lived at your house.  :)