The Saga of the Play Kitchen

One thing I've learned this holiday season is to not procrastinate on assembling Christmas presents. Oh Jennifer, you may say, that is a parent's right of passage. What parent hasn't stayed up until 2 am on Christmas Eve putting together a toy for their beloved child? I know my mom did it when she made me a handmade cloth baby doll long ago.

Oh no, my friends, this wasn't time honored procrastination. This was pure stupidity and certifiable insanity.

It all started when I saw this blog entry showing a handmade play kitchen made out of an old entertainment center. We knew we wanted to give Sebastian a play kitchen but the idea of a handmade one was really appealing and special. No one would have a kitchen like him and it would be special because we made slaved over it. Ideas flowing, I then saw this blog and this blog, all re purposed entertainment centers. With these in mind we set out to find an old entertainment center on Craigslist. We succeeded and brought one home for $20.00.

In July.

Fast forward to December 18th. Not one thing was done to the entertainment center/kitchen. It sat in the garage covered with crap. Naturally I was freaked so I made my husband drag it to an easily accessible area in the garage and I took off all of the hardware and doors, and got to sanding. That must have spurned my husband on because he finally got off his butt and got to work with me on it. The next 6 days were play kitchen hell.

Alex attached the back and I filled all the holes with wood putty.

Kitchen is sanded and primered. Alex cut the hole for the sink and put in a board to separate the under sink cabinet from the oven. I spray painted the oven black, totally hotboxing myself in the process. I also spray painted the stove top and side of the fridge silver to resemble stainless appliances. I so don't recommend that, as silver spray paint is the devil and shows every imperfection and fingerprint. At this point I had lost about a quarter of my brain cells.

Under sink cabinet and wall color added. Cabinet dark brown color painted. Inside of fridge painted.



"Granite" counter top in place and "back splash" affixed.

As we were nearing the finish line we realized we were screwed, literally, when it came to the oven door. The hinges we had wouldn't work properly and the oven handle screws were too short. At that point I was too exhausted to care.

Then came time to move the behemoth into the living room. Going through the inside garage door wasn't an option and paint was scraped off in the process. So it had to go out the garage door, into the snowy, icy night, and back through the front door. Did I mention I was too tired to care? That was a good thing because those nicks would have made normal, rested me cry. We got it set up, I retouched the nicks, and was finally off to bed.

The semi finished product, set up for Christmas morning.

Detail of the sink, stove top, and back splash.

Inside of the fridge.

We still need to hang the oven door after getting the correct hinges and longer screws for the handle. We also need to print out the "view" for the larger window ( I had a small one, it looked stupid) and hang the rail we bought for a pot rack.

That may be done by next Christmas.

Though it almost killed us to get it (mostly) done by Christmas morning (I was up until 3 am completing finishing final touches and set up) and took much blood, sweat, tears andswearing,we did it and we were reminded why we even did it in the first place as Sebastian saw his kitchen for the first time. He ran to it, immediately checking out the cabinets and accessories and has been playing with it over and over, ever since.

Supply List

Those other blogs have lists of supplies they used on their play kitchens with prices. I did that on some things but honestly, I can't remember how much everything cost and my sheet where I itemized some items got tossed with the used wrapping paper so I'll try to do my best remembering below. We initially thought this project would be cheaper than a store bought kitchen but it turned out with the cost of paint and wood, it really wasn't. This isn't to say it couldn't but we tend to go big.

Craigslist
Entertainment Center- $20

Canadian Tire
Paint
Spray paint
Brushes (foam brushes are my new husband)
"Granite" Contact Paper

Home Depot
Primer
Wood

IKEA
LAGAN faucet- $22.99
TEKLA tea towel- $.49
SAXNÄS frame- $5.99
KOSING handle- $1.99
KOSING knobs- $.99

Dollar Store
Mixing bowl for sink - $2
Back splash tiles (floor tiling)- 3/$1
Stove top(selfstick blackboard paper)- $1
Fridge door baskets(plastic baskets)- 3/$1

Habitat for Humanity Re-store
Oven/Stove knobs- $1

One of the Worst Books Ever

Well, certainly one of the worst to read a week away from your baby's first birthday.

I happened across this book while at a local Christian bookstore, getting a baptism present for one of our favorite little dudes. Oh. my. god, I had to shut it quick before I started crying big ugly tears right there in the store.

I mean this one ranks up there with Robert Munsch's Love You Forever. You remember that one where the grown man rocks his elderly mother on his lap as she had done for so many years. KILLS ME.

You can see a few pages here but get out the tissue.

"Long ago you came to me,

a miracle of firsts;

First smiles and teeth and baby steps,

a sunbeam on the burst.

But one day you will move away

and leave me to your past.

And I will be left thinking of

of a lifetime of your lasts..."

*SOB*

"The last time when you ran to me,

still small enough to hold.

The last time when you said you'd marry

me when you got old.

Precious, simple moments and

bright flashes from your past-

Would I have held on longer if

I'd have known they were your last?"

Seriously, bad idea.

I am so not ready for his birthday to come. Please sweet boy, please stop, for just a little while. I'm not ready to let go.

Can I Get an Amen?

I was watching CNN and just saw a news blurb and clip on Barack Obama's speech in St.Louis yesterday. He commented on parental responsibility and how it's up to parents to help with homework, take the remote away and not buy the video games. I tried to find a video clip of that segment but couldn't find one. I was able to find a tiny blurb being reported in newspapers.

From the St. Louis Post Dispatch

Obama called on parents to take on their proper roles. "Only we in the home can teach our daughters to never allow images on television to tell them what they're worth,'' he said. "Only we as parents can make sure that when our sons grow up, that they treat women with respect and understand that when they have the ability to have a child, they must have the courage to raise a child."

I love that. I've also read speeches where he talks about not placing the blame on teachers and I appreciate that. So often I have had parents place the blame of their piss poor parenting on me. It's not my job to teach your child to behave and I shouldn't have to put up with your child's constant horrible behavior in my classroom, behavior that takes away valuable learning time away from the rest of my students. Freaking be a parent and stop it.

Anyway I like that he appears to be someone who supports teachers and what they do. We don't have that enough.

Are You Going to Leave the House Looking Like That?

A tiara? Really? No really, seriously?

Tonight, graduation was too much. Apparently, merely looking like skanks in slutty dresses and prom hair was too boring for the 8th grade girls. Oh no, this year's class had to up the ante. This year, two girls wore tiaras. Oh yes, tiaras.



The last couple of years we've witnessed the downfall of modern feminine society (and lack of proper parenting) at our school. Parents have been actually allowing their daughters to wear some of the skimpiest dresses imaginable. Keep in mind they are 13/14 years old AND attending a Catholic school. Uh yeah.

As one of my coworkers said, "(name not included to protect the trashy) looked like a streetwalker. In fact, I think I saw someone just like her on Cops last week".

Now you might think we are too harsh and judgemental but au contraire mon frere, we are talking dresses like this:



Why on earth would mothers purchase these dresses for their daughters? Why would fathers allow their daughters to set foot out of the house looking like this? Do they just not care? Do they actually think it looks flattering or gives off a good impression? Do they just want to give in so they don't have to hear their girls whine about how everyone else gets to have a hoochie dress and have their hair in a updo complete with glitter spray and butterfly crystal clips? Why must we sexualize our girls so early?

They are freaking 8th graders! I didn't even wear that crap when I graduated from high school.

Listen up mothers of America, stop living vicariously through your daughters!

And hang up the tiaras while you are at it.