Local Mining Adventure

Mmm... Lake Mary. She sure is pretty.

Rugby loves to soak her feet in the cold mountain water.

We decided to take a quick ride up to the Mammoth Consolidated Gold Mine. I found a great write up about it here if you would like to read about out local mining history.

We just like to wander around...
talking about how life must have been in these mountains in 1927.
I wonder how much longer this cabin will be standing?
Rugby is ready to go. She wants to get away before the scary house falls down!

Operation Play Kitchen

About 9 months ago I found this...

Source: giggleberrycreations.blogspot.com via Jennifer on Pinterest

and many other fabulous examples of entertainment centers turned into play kitchens on Pinterest . I fell in love, I needed to make it...my creative need is very controlling sometimes ;0)
So I mentined it to my Sis-in-Law and she said that they had promised "B" a play kitchen but hadn't found one for her yet. So Operation Play Kitchen began.
We didn't find an affordable entertainment center until the beginning of April but when we did, it was just the right price...Free! Kevin had gone to the Thrift store and there was a bunch of free furniture going to the dump. He snagged it up and brought it home. So for the next 3 days this is what we did. Curt (B's dad) began taking it all apart .

He then cut a hole to accommodate my old Crock Pot bowl. Bingo! We have a sink. He also took off one door and turned the other small door into an oven door. So far still free.
Then it was Prime Time.We hauled it in the house and I primed all night.

Then paint...Oh Yeah!

The next day I started to plan the "window".

Curt installed a brand new faucet and it made the sink look perfect. We painted the inside of the fridge white and the inside of the oven black.

Our original plan was to paint the door panels with chalkboard paint or magnetic paint but the store was sold out. So we just went white with it.

Kevin cut a piece of glass from an old picture we had in the garage and added window trim to make the window just that much more real.

I am quite pleased with the way my painting turned out, in fact I would like to have this view from my kitchen window.

Here it is... the finished play kitchen while it was still at my house.

I made a couple curtains and a pot holder, Curt hung the hooks,a towel hoop, put a towel rod on the oven door and added new handles to the fride doors. Kevin built the little stove top and those metal stove knobs came off of his old BBQ. Curt used appliance paint on the white part of the stove top so it is shiny like a real stove top.

Here it is right at home in B's room. Eek!!! So cute.

When I was taking these photos she said "What kind of music do you want to listen to? Country?" and she pushed the button on her "stereo", which fits perfectly on her window sill. :0)

She then lathered up her soap and began washing her dishes.

Oh, if only washing dishes would always be this much fun.

B has made herself right at home in her kitchen with her own personal touches and it makes my heart sing to see how much she enjoys it.

I sure loved getting the chance to be apart of creating it.

Captain and Rugby

Lady Rugglesby had her first sleepover recently. Our good friend Captain came to stay with us for a few days. Captain is black with white and Rugby is white with black. Captain is big, huge in fact. Little Lady is small. I think they both resemble bears. Big bear, little bear, black bear, white bear...sounds like a children's book.

In the end I believe Rugby thinks sleepovers are over rated, she has spent all of her time outside covering all of Captain's markings with her own. She is so happy to be the only dog again. My porcine princess ;0)

Sometimes she looks just like a baby Harp Seal too!