The Watch Spring

I got a new watch recently (yeah, I know what you're thinking, okay?) and I've been wearing it everywhere. It's gunmetal gray and it's ridiculously sick. After wearing it around for a few days, it started it feel a little too loose around the wrist. No big deal, I thought, I'll just adjust the band.

I went out to the garage and grabbed a small screwdriver set and started to remove one of the links. After putting it back on it felt a lot better... But it just wasn't perfect! You see, I'm kind of a perfectionist and a little bit OCD about somethings. This would bother me.

There's a place on the clasp that has a small spring rod that can be adjusted to make the watch just a bit smaller if necessary. Adjust this, and it would be perfect! I pushed in the spring and slowly tried to ease it out and... BOING! Gone. I heard it bounce on my work bench, hit the far wall, and fall down into the abyss that is the corner of my garage where random stuff gets stored. GONE.

I immediately went over and started searching through the stuff that was in the corner. It wasn't that stuff that was the problem, though. There was so much sawdust and dirt that had accumulated there that it was impossible to find this tiny spring. I was just completely sick to my stomach. Of course it doesn't come with an extra spring. I was so frustrated.

Then I realized I should just say a prayer! I said a quick prayer, went back to the corner, and started rummaging around again expecting the spring to just be there in plain sight... No. I searched and searched and couldn't find it. Fail.

I stood in front of the work bench and just without thinking got onto my knees again and this time offered a true heartfelt prayer for help finding the spring. I knew it was just a little piece of coiled metal that didn't mean anything eternal, but in the moment, it was a big deal and I needed help. After I finished my prayer, I opened my eyes and saw the spring on the ground at my knees, in plain sight like I'd expected the first time.

So here's the thing, I found the spring at my feet where I was working on my watch. I know for a fact that I heard it bounce across the bench and into the corner of the garage. I heard it! And yet, it was there at my feet. I'm so grateful for the power of prayer and the opportunity to LEARN from it. And I'm so grateful that our Heavenly Father cares enough about His children that even a tiny coiled piece of metal can be important.

Racing Stripes Are All The Rage

After finishing the trailers, I couldn't help feeling like mine looked a little plain on the outside. I didn't want to add the same wood trim that Tim and Dad had, so I decided I wanted to paint the sides instead. After months of waiting for someone to clear their schedule to paint it for me, I took matters into my own hands and did it myself!

Tim has a coworker named Devin who has experience with body work and paint. We threw some ideas around, finally decided upon a design we liked, and started collecting the supplies we needed. Tim and Devin came over last weekend and we went to work.

As you can see, it turned out great! It was a good day's work, if I do say so myself. I couldn't be happier with it and the best part of all was that we did it ourselves here in the garage. I can't wait to get this thing out onto the open road and into the outdoors! Jackalope Bros., baby.

Kitchen Cabinets

I didn't know it until recently, but Amber really does not like our kitchen cabinets. They're okay looking, I suppose, but the real problem is the paint. It's old, it absorbs color, dirt, grime, and anything that isn't nailed down, and it's gummy. Seriously, I don't know what they used to paint these cabinets, but it's HORRIBLE.
So after we ripped off the deck, Amber shared her true feelings about the cabinets. We had a friend come over and price out how much it would be to replace the cabinets and he estimated it to be around $4,000... Yeah. That's about the time that we got creative.

One of Amber's clients had mentioned that they had redone their cabinets by adding trim to the doors. Since the cabinets were still structurally good, we decided refinishing them would be the way to go. We went to Home Depot, found a trim moulding that we liked, and spent 4 full days straight (minus Sunday) taking all the doors and drawers off, sanding, stripping, and refinishing the cabinet faces, and giving our kitchen a much-needed face lift. Most of my time was spent in the garage cutting trim and attaching it to the doors.

When it was all finished, we couldn't be more happy! For $150 we have redone our kitchen cabinets and they look new, fresh, and bright. It's amazing what a little paint, trim, and a TON of sanding can do. Great project!

Before:

After:

The Oculatorinator

The other night, Jeremy came to me wanting to build an Oculatorinator. You know, an OCULATORINATOR. Yeah... So we went around the house collecting parts and went to the garage to find tools and get to work...


Step 1: collect parts

Step 2: hammer nails into blocks of wood

Step 3: Screw blocks of wood and foam sides together

Step 4: Get some electrical wire

Step 5: Attach wire and find barrel

Step 6: Attach barrel

Step 7: Install firing button

Don't forget safety glasses!

Step 8: Check the barrel

Step 9: Install firing mechanism and test

Step 10: Display on mantel to show off your work and intimidate anyone who enters

Garage Construction: Storage Shelf & Snowboard Rack

My latest update/addition to the Man Cave that is my garage was a storage shelf and snowboard rack. The back of my garage has been quite cluttered with all of our camping gear and miscellaneous nick-knacks so I decided to build a shelf on the back wall to clean up the clutter. Tim came over and we busted out the tools and went to work. It turned out quite ill if I do say so myself. And saved a ton of space down below! I had some leftover wood from the shelf and decided it was time to attempt an idea I've had in the back of my mind for quite some time: a snowboard rack. Jeremy helped me with this one and it turned out quite sick! Perfectly spaced for all my boards, both with and without bindings. Another job well done! Check the pics:



Now even more room for more tools! Win win!