It's A MAD HOUSE!!

When we were home this summer we had big plans to watch the original Planet of the Apes--one of the best films of all time. Jess wanted to film our own version after we watched it, but how could anyone really mimic such an all time classic? I was very dissappointed with blockbuster, hollywood, and family video, because none of them had the 1967 classic in stock. We found a scifi film shrine though at a hole in the wall video store in American Fork, UT and got it there--the amazing Sunrise Family Video. We recently purchased the entire Planet of the Apes Legacy Collection (1967-1973). Yee haa! So here is a tribute to the best scene in one of the best movies all time:
If you don't know what this scene is all about, well, then you better see the movie. All I can say is, "It's a Mad HOUSE!!" ;)

Project Maddness

These last 2 weeks Rhett has been gone on his preceptorship in Marshall, MO. He learned a lot and had a great experience with his doc. His doctor he followed was kind of a hick and Rhett loved that aspect of his experience. I missed him a lot and had 7 days off all by myself and so it was a perfect opportunity to indulge myself with the many projects I've been wanting to jump into.

I was able to get a baker's rack from a friend--we traded. I painted her girls this sign and painted a decorative border in their room in exchange for this rack and she even threw in her old kitchen table. I told her I felt she was getting the short end of the deal, but she insisted so I was very grateful for the unexpected kitchen table. Our folding table went upstairs for crafts and we now have a little round table with 2 chairs in the kitchen, it is quite cozy.
Anyway, the rack was a dark green so I painted it black and it is in the dining area. I was really excited to get it, i don't really know how to display stuff on it, but maybe one day I will figure that out.

Next project was restoring the old farm windows. The white one is the original old, rotting one that I haven't decided what I want to do with it yet. When we remodeled the bathroom, I asked Rhett to be really careful when he removed the old rotting windows because I wanted them for a project. He didn't break a pane, so I've only done one of them. It took so long to scrape off the old paint. But I used this crackle medium so the bottom layer is red, and black on top, with cracks all through it. I've decided to use it as a photo frame, but I can't decide what kind of montage I'd like to use it for...pictures of our trip to Italy? Pictures of Rhett and I? Pictures of national monuments? I think once I decide where I want to display it, it will help me decide what to put in it. One thing I know for sure is I'd like the photos to be in black and white. What really would be my dream but isn't feasible right now would be to have black and white wedding photos of each of our parents and both sets of grandparents on each side. I eventually want a collage of these family photos, I especially love the weddings that took place in the 50s and 20s, but I kind of have to be home to borrow the photos, scan them, and return them. Especially all the photos of Rhett's grandparents who have all passed away, I'm sure the photos belong to one of his aunts so that project will take some digging up and coordination to pull off.

Next is my 4th of July display. Mainly I bought these little star boxes from Roberts crafts when I was home and painted them and painted lettering on them: USA, America, and In God We Trust. The block has 1776 and on the other side: "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness"--it's just a chunk of 4x4 I painted. The jailer's keys and apples I found at my splurge to Tai Pan Trading when I was home. The ladder I made at Christmas time.

I found this fabric at Wal-Mart for $1/yd. It feels like flag fabric, and I got excited because I made all these pajama pants for my nieces. My worry is I didn't have any pattern, just started hacking into the fabric guessing their sizes so we shall see if they fit any of them. Also with sewing, I had these scraps from a dress I made for myself and decided to make a little baby dress to put the waste to some good use. i borrowed a friend's baby clothes a while ago to make a pattern and finally got the scraps used.

Anyway, it was fun to have time to work on so many of my hobbies, but I'm so glad Rhett is back. I missed him a lot and couldn't wait for him to return. He's started the summer semester and it will the final section of their cadavers, all they have left is the brain to study these next 4 weeks...I think Rhett will kind of miss having anatomy lab, he had a ton of fun with the other 3 students assigned to his cadaver and it was really interesting. I however will not miss washing his formaldehyde laced clothes. It actually wasn't bad as everyone had warned us...it did stink but not so bad we had to resort to a laundromat or anything.

Jane Austen Lover

Take the Quiz here!

Don't worry: Jessica took this quiz...but Rhett HAS seen the movie many times.

You are Elinor Dashwood of Sense & Sensibility! You are practical, circumspect, and discreet. Though you are tremendously sensible and allow your head to rule, you have a deep, emotional side that few people often see.

Back in Kirksville

We're back in town and here are some updates:
1. Bathroom remodel is finished! We re-tiled the shower, added a window, fan, refinished the tub, new medicine cabinet, painted it a butter-cream yellow, new toilet lid (which makes a huge difference), and new vinyl floor. We love the new bathroom and we learned a lot so next time it should be faster and easier.
2. Our trip home was fun
3. Rhett is out of town doing his preceptorship in Marshall, MO and has a great doctor he's following and it's been a good experience and he's learned a lot
Jessica is working and home alone with all her friends gone for the summer or moved away for good so she has been working on projects like mad.

Yes, we finally managed to have the lawn mowed after taking matters into our own hands. Now all we have to do is bale it. :)

Favorite Pics from Our Trip Home

On our way to Utah we drove through Rocky Mountain National Park. We were both so excited to see mountains again, we had never before realized how attached we are to the Rockies.

Rhett with Dace, our newest nephew on the Kelly side, he is a chunk and looks a lot like Jessica's Dad--Scott.
ALL THE KIDS!

Every year we take our nieces & nephews on the Crapo side to St. George for two nights. We mainly swim...all day and all night, but this year the additions included karaoke contest "St. George Idol", pickle eating contest, white elephant gift exchange, and our annual water football--Rhett's team won this year. Our best friend, Molly also came with us too. BIG ED

Rhett's parents let us borrow Big Ed, their van for the trip. Every seat belt was filled and we sang and danced the whole way to St. George. Each time a car would pass the kids would start dancing like mad and it was pretty funny to see the different reactions as people passed us. The drive was Jessica's favorite part of the trip...it was SO fun to sing with the kids. They all know every word to any of Stitch Riley (Rhett's former band) and also Jared, 9, has recently fallen in love with Journey (one of Jessica's favorite bands) so we sang "Don't Stop Believing" multiple times.

Back in Delta the whole fam went fishing but Jess & Tana were too old and needed fishing licenses so they didn't fish but we ended up catching 5 small rainbow trout and filleted them. Jess, Rhett's Dad, and 2 nephews were the only ones that ate them. The night of the 4th of July, we slept outside with Dallin (14) and Tana (13) on the tramp. Rhett fell asleep but Jess and the kids stayed up chatting and all the sudden the sun was coming up! Jessica loved it. We miss all the kids already..