Gavins Truck is Completed!

Both trucks are now finished.  The truck in the white background is Gavin's, and the one I just finished, the dark background is Nathon's.  Gavin's truck is lower by about 1/2 inch and I used a different technique to cut the boards down to 1/4" stock.  I have learned a number of new techniques that will translate to other projects in the future.  

The wheels were cut with a circle cutter, on the drill press.  Worked great but requires a ton of sanding using the drill press to get them to look like they do.  All of them turned out really beautiful in the cherry. 

The back of Gavin's truck is made with 1/4" stock.  To get that I used the Jig saw then sanded off the saw marks.  Turned out better than using the Table saw which did not produce a true vertical surface.  Both techniques should have worked but I was happier with the jig saw results

. It helped that I purchased a new 1/2 blade and tuned up the saw when I installed it.  

The finish on these trucks is Toy Makers finish(from Rocklers)  which is an oil based finish that was painted on and rubbed in with a lint free cloth.  It took five coats to get the finish I wanted but the results are outstanding on the cherry. 

ARG! Give us your Candy

Our little pirate hit to the streets tonight, well really all afternoon he starting visiting friends and family.  Tonight is a little rainy so he didn't actually do much more than the local neighborhoood.  He looks adorable as a pirate.  His long hair fits right in with the costume.  The girl in the Robin costume is Lena she is a friend of Teddy. 

Weekend in Monterey

1 and 1/2 year ago I left AdvantaCare and started a new job that allowed me to work from 1:30pm to 10pm. The provided me with a lot of time for walking Revel a commitment that has been extremely beneficial to both of us. It wasn't long after making that commitment that I realized we were walking distances that my feet could not do in tennis shoes. I needed more support and Dorothy (who knows shoes better than many) recommended Merrill hiking shoes. I purchased this pair of Merril Moab's and now approximately 1200 miles later ( we do about 25 miles a week) they are not cutting it any longer. The bottoms have held up very well but the insides are warn out badly. So being as happy as I was I ordered a new pair the only change I made was the color the new ones are Navy and Grey. Today we did the diabetes walk no great distance but we stretched the entire walk to about 6.5 miles and they were as comfortable as I remember the previous pair being when they were new.

Today we took the dogs, and Nathon and hiked the Juvenile Diabetes walk from Lovers Point to the Aquarium. Not a long distance, so we started at Mom's house and walked the "Long way" to Lovers point and back. It wasn't the most beautiful day but despite the huge number of people

 both dogs did great. Edward and Oma joined us at the start but then drove home for some quiet time. Revel

 attracted his usual amount of attention from many of

 the children and some adults. Libby showed off her better social skills with other dogs as she

 plays with all other dogs (Revel is more particular who he will associate with). I

 think 

everyone had a good time and got lots of fresh air. 

We are looking forward to our first trip to our new timeshare on the weekend of November 8-10th to Napa. We will be staying in the city of Winslow and having lunch on the Napa Valley Wine train. More on that when we get back.

Saturday afternoon with Gavin

Gavin and I got together on Saturday afternoon while Grandpa watched the baseball game Gavin played on my desk. So with the camera handy and Gavin in a cooperative mood I got these pictures. His vocabulary in increasing by leaps and bounds. While we are not having major conversations he follows simple instructions fairly well and if you know his meaning for the word he can convey his needs. Currently "UP" can mean a number of different things. His ability to run and walk is well developed. It is very fun to spend the afternoon with Gavin but it can be exhausting. 

Teddy is 18!

Teddy is 18 years old today. He is back at school a Freshman at Cabrillo College, working 20 hours a week at the Yogart shop and raising a wonderful little boy. He is to say the least staying out of trouble. It is hard to believe its been 18 years since we were at CHOMP waiting to go into the OR for the C-Section that would bring him to us. After his birth I spent the better part of the day in the nursery with Teddy. That day comes back to me very easily as one of the proudest, most enjoyable afternoons of my life. Not every moment over the 18 years has been as blissful as that but for the most part he is a wonderful young man with enormous potential that I can only hope I have the longevity of life to witness what he does.