Not Sure I'll Strip as a Hobby

Remember the night stand I snagged for 10 bucks off Craigslist? Well after a few days of stripping and losing some brain cells, I am down to this:

If you are interested in stripping something, I used Citristrip and liked it pretty well. I got the motivation from this blog http://www.centsationalgirl.com/2010/03/a-tale-of-two-strippers/. She compares two paint strippers and gives you some directions. Even though the process is easy, working with chemicals that require gloves and a mask kind of freaks me out. Even though the smell was almost pleasant, my nose still ran and I got a little light headed.

Actually, the funky gold on the edge is gone and it's all sanded now. Turns out the legs in front are plastic as well as the little embelishment on the front. It's also made or pure particle board. The only part with veneer is the top. Fancy!

On a side note, it was thundering while I was working in the garage and Maggie (the dog) freaked out. This is a normal occurance around our house, but I figured she'd be ok in the garage. Nope. She barked and paced around me nervously until I let her in the house. When I returned outside, she barked because I was not safe in the house with her. I finally called it a day when she started throwing her body against the door to the garage. Sheesh!

Nursery Peek

I'm slowly working on pulling a nursery together. A few weeks ago my sister-in-law, sister, and mom came over for a nursery painting party. I wish I had snapped a few pics of that. The last few days I've been in the middle of painting this rocker that belonged to my papa. This is after I primed it, so it looks really streaky.

A few pics of the curtains, fabric for bedding, and other fun stuff:

I snagged this little number off Craigslist for 10 buckaroos. This is going to look very different in a few days:

Adoption Update

I can't believe it's almost been 2 months since I've posted anything. You've probably stopped checking the blog at this point. Well, a lot has taken place in the last few weeks. I'm only going to share a few details right now because I'm realizing more and more that our adoption story is not just our story to tell. It is the birth family's story and our future child's story, and I want to respect their right to share about this experience on their terms. With that being said, I will probably share a little more once we have a baby, but I may be a little vague on some counts.

Anyhow, the exciting news is we could quite possibly have a baby girl come mid October! We are more than thrilled. We know that God has a perfect plan for this little girl's life. If this placement does take place, the circumstances are more than what we could have hoped for.

So we ask for prayers right now for us and the couple who is making this decision. We know whatever the outcome, God will bring the baby He intends to be a Lynch at the right time.

Rawkin' Photographer

If you are thinking about updating your family pictures, getting engagement pictures, capturing the preggo belly, taking some new baby pics, or needing a wedding photographer, search no longer. Ryan Price is your man! Seriously, go to his website and check out his work at http://www.ryanpricephoto.com/. Then, go to his blog and check out his heart at http://thoughtsbyryan.wordpress.com/.

I learned about him through a blog a friend sent me when she heard we were starting the adoption process. Turns out he offers a free portrait session and CD for prospective adoptive parents so you can have groovy pics for your profile that is shown to birthmoms. This is the entry where he blogs about adoption photos. http://thoughtsbyryan.wordpress.com/2009/10/15/photos-to-adopt/

Here are his own words on the matter:

"For the last few years, I have watched and prayed with people that I am really close to as they embark on the sometimes painful, but always redeeming process of adoption. As I have journeyed with them on this road, my heart has been captured by the beauty of adoption. How wonderfully this simple act reflects the work of Christ in our lives. My eyes have also been opened to the enormous need for more couples to seriously consider how adoption fits into their lives. How as believers we are called to care for the orphan.

One thing that every family that is looking to adopt will need to do is create an album of pictures of their family and submit it to the adoption agency for the birth family to look over. In an effort to assist families looking to do this in a small way, I want to offer my services to you for FREE to get you one step closer to having a wonderful child in your arms.

Yep… you read that right… I’ll give you my standard family package [usually costing $250], because I want to be part of what God is doing in redeeming our world.

So, if you are in the process of adopting or know of someone who is, just let me know and pass this along. This isn’t even a monthly special or anything, but just an ongoing thing that I will offer."

AMAZING!! What an honor! What an awesome example of how our gifts can be used for the body of Christ. He took time out of the crazy, busy wedding and graduate season to take pictures for our birthmom profile. This was such an incredible gift! Not to mention, he made us look pretty spectacular considering I felt totally awkward trying to "act natural" with a camera following me. (Ryan did not make us feel awkward, it's a camera phobia thing). I see a camera and I start closing my eyes and smiling weird, or I tell myself to keep my eyes open, so I end up with crazy eyes.

So...... go on over and blog stalk him a little, then schedule a portrait session.

Free Patterns

If you sew and you want a free pattern go to http://www.sew4home.com/. I found patterns to make this towel and hot pad set to match my mom's newly decorated kitchen for her birthday. These are pretty basic. I am definitely a beginner.

Marble Falls

The weekend before Mother's Day we loaded up Maggie and took a little road trip to Marble Falls to visit Trey's family. Here's Maggie not enjoying the ride so much. Lots of sighs from the back seat.

Down on the pier. We told Trey's nephew, Jack, we were going to the pavilion and he kept asking when we would get to see the chameleon. :) I think he was a bit disappointed when there was no lizard by the lake.

....but not too disappointed.

Sweet picture of granmama and Jack that came as a suprise on my camera. Is that how it's spelled (granmama)? I need to learn these things.

Moving Forward

Yay! We just got our homestudy scheduled for Monday, May 17. Once that is complete, they can start showing our profile to birthmoms (given that we finish our profile). Guess what we'll be doing this weekend!?