Tempted!

Here I am...I'm blogging.  Why.  Because I can. :)  Because I have a full day without plans.  Because my 1 year old is napping.  Because my 6 & 3 year old are outside, still in their pajamas, playing.  Because I'm slightly crampy, and a little bit bloated (too much information? Maybe.), and I feel very much like NOT getting dressed today. Because I've decided NOT to workout today or clean or do much of anything else. Because...I CAN!!!!

Now on to the goods.  Do you know that sometimes I don't like my project very much?  It's true, sometimes I DO NOT like it.  Those times usually hit when there are GIFTS involved.  Coming up with a second-hand present is HARD!!!!  Mister C my 6 year old was invited to a good friends birthday party and in two days I had to figure out a gift.  This is in the midst of being up at Girls Camp.  So in reality I had one day to create something awesome that a boy turning 7 would love.  I turned to the trusted Super Hero Cape.  (Remember it HERE.)  But this time I didn't have my Mom's help (who is an AMAZING seamstress), and it literally took me ALL DAY AND NIGHT to make!  My thread kept breaking and to stitch around the super hero emblems is beaslty to say the least!    YAAAAAAH!  There was a lot of stress and unpicking going on.  I was cursing my project and was TEMPTED immensely to just run on over to the Mart and pick him up something.  But I didn't I was strong.  'Cause ya know what?  I CAN DO HARD THINGS!!!  :)  I plugged through and at mid-night I finished!  I wrapped it up and prayed  he would like it.

Fast forward a week which was couple days before my nieces bridal shower. I had been picking my brain on what to give her for a good month.  But nothing was coming.  Late at night, 2 days before her shower, it hits me.  I remember that I had the cutest recipe cards that I'd been saving for 5 years.  Because I couldn't just use them for something ordinary they were WAY too cute for that.  See how my mind works? LOL.  Then I also remembered I had an extra wooden recipe box that my Grandpa had made.  Don't worry people I already had one that he had made for ME.  I would never give away my one and only handmade box from my Gramps.  Any who...I was so thrilled to do this for her.  I know when I first got married.   I was NOT a cook!  So to help her on her path of becoming a good cook made me feel happy.  I wrote down some of my favorite recipes and moved on to the painting of the box.  My first plan was to spray paint it a buttery yellow color.  But guess what? Couldn't find a butter yellow in a spray, but I did have one in a Acrylic paint.  BAD IDEA.  It takes 3x's as long to hand paint then it does to spray and it doesn't dry near as smooth, especially when you try and rush it, because you need to have it all done by 5 o'clock the next day along with 10 other things you need to do that day. BLAH!!!!  So once again I was tempted.  TEMPTED SO BAD!!!  Just let me go to the Mart, or better yet Target.  Ah target...:)  But NO!  On to plan B, I WILL make this work!  I sanded the box again.  Grabbed the Ocean Breeze spray paint that I had on hand and went to work.  It took me a total of 2 hours to respray and completely let dry ( I heart spray paint!!).  I added a cute twiggy tree rub-on to the side, an adorable little bird and the the word "recipe",  and woola!  It turned out so GREAT! I almost wanted to keep it for myself.  But the thought of having to come up with something else for a gift made me break out in cold sweats.  So into the gift bag it went.

BEFORE:

 AFTER:

Yeah, I really hated (strong word, yes.  It's how I felt.) my project but then I loved it once again when I got a text from the Mom of the Birthday Boy saying that he LOVED his cape so much and couldn't wait to show it to his dad, and When my Sister-in-law said "You might hate your project, but we all love it because we get awesome gifts".  Just knowing that the work I put into the gifts is appreciated really means the world to me!  Plus to know I'm using  things that have just been hanging around my house for years FEELS GREAT. :) I think I just need to plan a head so there is not so much pressure with a time schedule.

Anybody have any GREAT gift ideas?  Please say you do and that you'll share them with me!!!!  I NEED HELP PEOPLE!!!  In more ways then one but we won't get into that right now. ;)