Craft Fair Excitement

I had a booth at our school's craft/vendor show last Saturday. It was a beautiful booth!

The biggest reason I thought about doing the fair was that Dad's Starkress Woodkraft shelves didn't sell on Etsy, and I thought they would sell so much better in person. I bought this closet door from DI for $8 to display the shelves in all their glory.

I put together sets of my greeting cards and thank you cards.

I printed posters and I framed some and had some foam-mounted.

Katie helped me fill up the booth with wreathes, paracord bracelets, and the MOST adorable pinecone art.

I even printed up Grati-Dude card sets for MEN. There was a whole set of antlered animals because this is Idaho.

From 10am to 4pm, I sold ONE set of cards. Katie sold ONE bracelet. And no shelves. It was a long day. Very educational, not particularly profitable, but not the worst Saturday I've ever had.

I adjusted and fiddled with the displays every 45 minutes or so to look busy and feature different items.

And I made friends with my booth neighbors. They agreed that business was slow.

Evan was really sweet and supportive of me. He helped me setup the night before, watched the boys all day, and helped me take everything down at the end! He told me he was proud of me for the effort I put into it. I don't often experience ambition, so doing a project this big was daunting and stressful. But now I can add this to the list of things I've done.

Temple Update

Hi family, I updated our blog. If you want to have a look at what we've been up to.

Talent Show

Sorry we missed family chat on Sunday. We'd worked on our talent and recorded our dress rehearsal for you. Here it is!

We also got one of these:

 
But ours is very dirty and has a bigger back seat and bigger wheels so it's farther off the ground. Then imagine your shortest sister trying to climb up in that thing in a dress. It's a good thing I've been practicing on the pull-up bar for a few years now —I can barely do an actual pull-up, but I can pull myself up in the truck.

And we got one of these after my Kia Sedona was totaled in a crash:



We got it on an online car auction, so in real life, mine has hail damage on the hood and top, a couple of cracked mirrors and it needs the windshield replaced sometime. We got a screaming deal on it. (That's a literal statement: when I told my neighbor how much we paid for it, she screamed.)

Reno Update

I hope I’m not being a blog hog by posting again so soon, but here’s another weeks worth of photos!

http://jerusalemjudds.blogspot.com/2018/04/out-with-old-and-in-with-new.html?m=1

I hope you are all doing well!  Sounds like Shellie still has snow in the forecast!

Love ya bunches!  —Jill

Renovation Update--slow week!

Hi, sweet family,

Here's a link to this week's photos of the renovation.  A few photos, hopefully more progress in the coming week!

Love ya!

http://jerusalemjudds.blogspot.com/2018/04/renovation-iii-eye-of-hurricane.html

Florida Spring Break Movie by Karly

Now a couple of questions will come to your mind after watching this...first, where in Florida are you? Answer: St. Augustine. Second, were there any adults on this trip? Answer: yes, there were lots of adults, it just we aren't hip enough to be filmed, let alone be in her video.  And third, who are all those extra people and why aren't her siblings named Phebe and Sterling in the video? Answer: I don't know, please take up these complaints with her at this email: karlybrown1616@gmail.com. She doesn't listen to me!

Here are a few other shots our bishop took of the kids in Florida...

Link to Renovation pictures

Hi, Family,

Here's the low down on the craziness here!

http://jerusalemjudds.blogspot.com/2018/03/a-time-to-tear-down-and-time-to-build.html

http://jerusalemjudds.blogspot.com/2018/03/renovation-part-ii-inside-scoop.html

Also,  here's a link to a google doc where we can make ancestor cards.  I haven't done much besides put in names yet, so your input is welcome.  The idea is to invite each grandchild to pick an ancestor, look up some info, and type in a brief bio.  If you want to reserve someone, go ahead and type your child's name by that ancestor. 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zKZD0rhduS6e2qcb3WcjlU1N5QdSMac03ZDYAZ00ZMQ/edit?usp=sharing

Katie and Utah Valley Magazine

Hey Family! It's Ken. Somebody from Utah Valley Magazine witnessed Katie performing at Comedy Sportz and asked if she could interview her for the magazine. For FUN! Here is the article. (Follow this LINK.)

And no, we aren't sure why they keep referring to me as KENNETH. Katie has never called me that, even when I'm in big trouble or late for dinner. It's usually just a louder, "CRAIGSLES!" So, we don't know where Kenneth came from. Also, Katie loves the hog-jowl tacos at Black Sheep Cafe. They don't serve fish tacos. Basically, it's a miracle this interviewer got ANYTHING right. But this photo of Katie is adorable, right?!

Love to all of you, and we can't wait for Kansas!

Ken

Vintage Submarine Books

I love vintage books. Here are some I have about submarines that Mark and the kids can read someday.

Nautilus 90 North (1959)

Amazon review:
U-571, The U.S.S. Nautilus was America's first atomic powered submarine. Developed by Admiral H. G. Rickover, "the father of nuclear submarines", it laid claim to another historical first by cruising under the Arctic ice cap from the Bering Strait to the Greenland sea, passing under the geographic North Pole in August of 1958. This is the story of that monumental voyage as told by her skipper, Commander William R. Anderson, U.S.N. Everyone with any interest in naval history and submarines needs a copy of this highly entertaining book. Bravo, Cmdr. Anderson on a well written account about a very dangerous mission and the brave men who took it in stride.

Submarine: An Anothology of First-Hand Accounts of the War Under the Sea (1939)

Amazon summary:
This collection of oral histories is the first book to bring together eyewitness accounts from almost every navy that deployed submarines in World War II. With self-deprecating modesty, humor, pride, sadness, and sometimes bitterness, submariners from Great Britain, Germany, the United States, Italy, France, the former USSR and Yugoslavia, Norway, Greece, Poland, the Netherlands, and Japan describe submarine life. From landing agents in enemy territory, laying mines, and being depth-charged, to distilling illicit alcohol, rescuing a cat, and treating appendicitis, the stories add an important personal dimension to the official operational record of WWII submarines. Arranged chronologically, the stories are given background and context by the editor for a full understanding of the contributions made by those who served beneath the waves.



The Real Book about Submarines (1962)







The Monitor and the Merrimac (1951, Landmark book)
Dust jacket notes: "In 1862 the Confederates built a startling kind of warship - an ironclad - designed to destroy the blockading Union fleet. But the Union Navy kept right up with them. It too built an ironclad - to make the blockade more perfect! When the two ships - the Union's Monitor and the Confederacy's Merrimac (or Virginia, to label her correctly) - met at Hampton Roads, the resulting battle became famous all over the world. It has been called a drawn battle, but the nimble Monitor had all the advantages, and it and its successors were able to keep the ports of the South closed more effectively than ever. For there was more than one monitor! The Monitor that engaged the Confederate ironclad in battle at Hampton Roads is the one best known to the average reader. However, it was only the first of a large family - all of them the products of the clever brain of an inventor named John Ericsson. Born in Sweden, John Ericsson was one of the thousands who have come from across the sea to enrich the United States with their ideas and skills. Fletcher Pratt also tells the story of the men who commanded the monitors and the ironclad vessels of the Confederate States. The pages of this book take us to Mobile Bay to hear Admiral Farragut's famous cry, 'D*** the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!' In the same battle, Captain Craven of the Tecumseh sacrifices his life to save the life of his pilot. There is stirring, authentic history in this account of a brilliant inventor, of proud ships, and of the stanch sailor-men who made up their crews."



The First Book of Submarines (1957)

My copy



Illustrated version

We Were There On the Nautilus (1961)

Summary: Through the experiences of three young sailors, the journey of the Nautilus is traced from Hawaii to England by way of the North Pole.


One I'm getting once I find a reasonable price for first edition hardcover:



Up Periscope (1956)
Good reads Summary:
The story 1943 - the Pacific War. 
U.S. Submarine 'Shark' is gliding through enemy waters on a dangerous mission. 
Ken Braden, young officer just out of the Underwater Demolition School, has to swim ashore to a Jap-held island, photograph a code and get back to the patrolling sub. - without detection. 
This is one of the most exciting sea-stories of all time, written by a man who knows all about action.



It's not vintage but I'm interested in reading this one. 

The Right Thing (2003)
The captain of the U.S.S. "Greeneville" reveals the untold story of the deadly collision of the nuclear submarine with a Japanese fishing vessel. His accountability, integrity, and religious conviction provides an inspiring challenge to anyone who is facing difficult choices in any area of life.

A Sweet Film Tribute

Here is the link to the student film my kids were in. The young man who did the project created it as a tribute to his grandparents, based on a poem his grandfather wrote for his grandmother. He mentioned that his grandfather passed away before he was able to show him the film, but the rest of his family thought it was a wonderful tribute to him. He also said that his family was delighted by how much our kids looked like their family--even blonde Tanner--they said he looks like one of their uncles as a boy!

https://vimeo.com/248073650

Password: manosdemiamada

Click on the link and then use the password to view the film.

Fun Way to Learn Morse Code

This was posted on the Robinson Curriculum home school facebook group:

Here is an idea from Cheaper by the Dozen: a fun way to learn Morse code without learning Morse code -- through syllabic mnemonics. Stressed syllables in all CAPS represent dashes and non-stressed syllables in lowercase letters stand for dots.

Sorry it's a low-res photo.

Feeling *Ultra* Crafty Part 3

There's a small chance that Evan's sister could have seen these, so now that it's after Christmas, I can show you the rest of my craftiness.

ELISE'S SEASONAL DECORATIONS

Elise got married a year and a half ago and was commenting that she doesn't have a lot of seasonal decorations for holidays and such. I remember being in that stage and Shellie sent me some cute Christmas decorations. So I got a storage bin for her and put lots of goodies inside.

 I may have gone a *little* banner crazy. Here's a birthday pennant banner and spool of black ribbon to hang them on.

Most of you know my obsession with paint chips. This is a springtime streamer using paint chip circles and dental tape (it's thicker than floss and I bought 2 rolls of it once on accident so now I use it for crafts). On the right side of the picture is the black plastic envelope that has 50 more feet of this banner. It's crazy long.

In this photo, the moose is wearing my short practice sample of the autumn leaf banner. I made it by punching paint chips into leaves and sewing them onto a white ribbon I got from Shellie.

Here's a close up.

This is a little jar I found at Michaels filled with Autumn toned felt balls and beads. It turned out cute. And I got the felt balls on clearance!

These are the Christmas ornaments I made! I got a box of lace seam binding from an estate sale last year. They turned out so light and cute.

Doesn't Roger make a great model?

Evan found this idea on the Country Living website. He thought it would be a fun craft for me to do with the kids. But then I went FULL-CRAFT-CRAZY and did them all myself. I made six for Elise with white ribbon hangers and six for me with twine. They are ponderosa pinecones that the kids found up in the mountains last summer and they are large.

Also, since I bought new mattress pads recently, I had these dandy zipper bags for the different ornaments and banners.

This was the frame I showed off at the last chat. I used semi-gloss lacquer as the finish and I wish I'd gone full glossy now that it's finished. I think the color looks much flatter now. Bummer.

And here are some of the pages included with the frame: