Emma Squared Designs

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Regrets

Have you ever done anything that you have regretted so completely that it eats you up inside? I have. Quite recently. I am not going to say what the regret is except that I hurt my best friend and don't know how to fix it. My first instinct is to run away, hide from the people I hurt, and force myself to suffer alone. That would be sufficient punishment right? Wrong...If I run way, nothing will get fixed. So how do I fix it while facing my fear of confrontation? I always imagine the worst, even if it isn't that bad.
So how do I make it right with my best friend?
Pray.
That's all I can figure out.
Pray.

Emma 1

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Shoe-Box Fish bowl

***Please note that is post was actually started on October 14, 2011 but never finished. Emma #2 is now 9-years-old and really into art stuff. Enjoy the post!***

Emma #2 asked me to post an idea she would like to share with you. Until she is either old enough to post for herself or have her mommy or daddy help her, I will be posting for her.

Emma #2 is a bright, funny, loving, caring, 8-year-old with really great ideas! I am hoping that by fostering those ideas here, she will become more creative. For privacy reasons, Emma #2's picture will not be shown on this website but her ideas sure will be.

Supplies needed:
Empty shoe box
Paint
Paint Brushes
Paper plate (to put the paint on)
Water
Paper Towel
News Paper (to protect the surface you will be working on)

Construction:
Working on newspaper to protect your surface:
1) Remove the lid from the shoe box, set the shoe box aside.
2) In the lid of the shoe box, cut a hole. (Emma #1 recommends adults help with the cutting part.) Cut the hole no bigger than 1 inch from the sides of the lid. The idea is the lid will become a "window" into the shoe box.
3) Place some white paint on your paper plate and add about 1/2 teaspoon of water, stir until completely mixed and paint the entire shoe box, inside and out. (by painting the shoe box with white paint, it will make it easier to add other colors to your shoe box without too much fading)
4) Once the white paint has dried, paint the INSIDE of the both shoe box and the inside of the lid BLUE to represent water. **A lighter blue would probably work best. Set aside to dry.
5) Once the blue paint dries, use other colors to paint the top of the lid and the outside of the shoe box as desired. Emma #1 also recommends painting some plants on the back and pebbles on the bottom.
   OPTIONAL: to add dimension to the project you could draw and cut out fish bowl plants, glue in small stones as the gravel, and even add a little castle like you might see in a real fish tank.
6) Take either cardboard or think paper (like cardstock), draw and color a fish on one side, cut and color a mirror image fish ton another piece of paper to be glued on the back side of the first fish.
7) When both fishes are ready to be attached, take a piece of "magic strength" or clear thread, knot at one end and place between the fish with glue. Set aside to allow glue to dry.
     ***Make several fish of different shapes and sizes to add variety to your "fish bowl" shoe box. Emma #1 also suggests that you cut the thread to hang the fish at different lengths to make the "fish bowl" look more real.

Assembly:

When all your pieces are painted and decorated as desired (with GLITTER, per Emma #2), begin to put the fish bowl together.
1) To attach the fish, place take on the loose end of the string and place on the "top" of the inside of the shoe box. Hang in the desired locations. Emma #2 suggested hanging a fish or two from the inside of the lid so the fish will look like it is close to the side of the fish bowl.
2) Once all your fish and fish bowl are decorated as desired, place the lid back on the box, and set on the side to display your "fish bowl"!

I will add some pictures later on when I have made one of my own. Until then, you can use your imagination. :)

Emma 1 & Emma 2

History lesson

    I meant to write a post about my dad on March 27 but I didn't. I shouldn't focus on that one day even though it was a day that changed my life forever. I try to focus on the good things...the positive things...the happy moments.
     Like the time Dad was a parent chaperon for my field trip to Mount Lemon near Tucson. My class was doing a science walk through the mountain and collecting things like owl "hair balls". We then went back to school and dissected the "hairball" to find mouse bones and other things that the owls eat then puke up. Gross but it was a trip I will never forget.
     Or I think on the time that Dad helped me build a shelf for my bedroom. It was when I was living at home and taking classes at a community college. Mom was working in a city 6 hours away so I was taking care of Dad at home. We would visit mom often but during the week it was just us. Dad and I spent a couple of days measuring, cutting, gluing, and screwing together a tall skinny shelf. I then shellacked it in a room with no ventilation (to keep the cats away from the shellac)...I now blame my lack of intelligence on fumes from the shellac.
     During the time mentioned above, I learned how to do some cooking but really I just winged it most of the time. Dad would eat anything and liked everything I made. If the Lord ever blesses me with a husband, I pray his taste buds are just like my dad’s!
     Another great memory of my Dad was always the road trips we took. Whether it was the whole family or just the two of us, Dad was the driver. Dad was a driving machine! He could drive from Flagstaff, Arizona to Champaign, Illinois in 26 hours WITH OUT sleep! He would stop for gas, coffee, and the bathroom...that was it. My dad was such a great driver, too. He knew how to handle most any scary situation and that's why I never had any problem sleeping in the car with Dad at the wheel.
     Dad wasn't just the best dad; he was also the best teacher. He was my 6th grade teacher! He had a great rapport with kids of all ages and could help them work out any school related problem. I remember him telling stories of two girls from his 5th or 6th grade class when he taught in Tuba City, Arizona. Rhonda Anderson and Karla Kikendahl. They would always react when Dad pretended to trip and I know I felt special when Karla invited me and my sister, Amanda, to her birthday party! Dad and Mom thought Karla was joking about having us at her party or that she and Rhonda would pick on us but that was not the intention at all! Karla had a massive doll collection and show Amanda and me all of her dolls. We just loved it! Rhonda and Karla were older than us so to have more mature girls like them ask us (I think I was 6 and Amanda was 7, or so) to attend a birthday party! WOW!!!
These are the memories that keep me going. These are the memories that bring a smile to my face.
     The History Lesson I want you to get out of this blog is to always cherish your loved ones while you have them because we are not promised tomorrow. When they have passed away, all you have is your memories to cling to. Strike that! If you have Christ in your life, you have Christ to cling to...and the memories.
     I hope this blog is uplifting because it made me smile remembering my precious Daddy.

Emma #1

P.S. I am not able to upload a picture right now because I am at work. When I am at home, I will try to upload a picture of my dad.