Project: Dollhouse Cubbies for Christmas!

Perhaps the most fun that Kaylee and I have ever had giving a gift was two years ago when we bought Hearts for Hearts dolls for Christmas.  We purchased the dolls, but we also made beds and bought furniture at a miniatures market.  It was a month-long project that we both enjoyed and they have been a regular part of the girls' playtime ever since.  Kaylee has also greatly expanded their wardrobe with various dresses, outfits, and jammies that she sews in her spare time.

The problem is that they have just been set up on the floor in the corner for the past two years.  Not only does it make them a bit hard to play with, it's a poor use of space.  When we decided to stay here a year ago, Kaylee started thinking that a cubby-style "house" might be the best way to get them off the floor, give the girls some more storage, and allow them to personalize their space.

Finally, last month I made it happen.  It was a simple enough project, just some plywood and paint.  I built the cabinets the week before Christmas and every time the girls asked me what they were, I said, "Oh, just some cabinets that Mommy asked me to make."

Kaylee did all the painting. She even mixed her own custom colors for the second floor of each.

Our big plan was to set them up the living room for Christmas morning, but we didn't realize that the girls already had plans.  They had picked out jammies for Christmas Eve and outfits for the following morning and were planning to make a night of it.  I convinced them that the dollies would enjoy camping next to the Christmas tree, so they set them up and then headed to bed themselves.

After giving them an hour or two to make sure they were sleeping and not going to show up with one of the 100 excuses they have, Mr. and Mrs. Clause got to work and this is what greeted Anne, Addi, and Lydia when they came downstairs on Christmas morning:

Kaylee had also made a new dress and scarf for each one and we found umbrellas just the right size in the market!

And finally, this is how their doll corner of the play room looks now:

El Castillo de los Gatos

One of Kaylee's go-to sources for ideas of activities that she can do with the girls is the magazine Family Fun.  Naturally, the girls also enjoy looking at the pictures and pestering Momma to do a project.

Anne was recently flipping through the latest issue and found a castle for kitties, made out of cardboard boxes.  She asked Kaylee if they could make it for Shadow and Snowy and Kaylee told her, "That looks more like Daddy's area of expertise."

Well, why not.  But also, why not do one better and make it out of that 3/16" plywood that I'm not using?

I had to put it off as we started classes here at Etnos, dealt with flooding, and the general craziness of things.  Then we had a break, a two-day legal holiday for Carnaval.  It was the perfect opportunity, and we made the most of it.

While the girls had class with Kaylee in the morning, I cut out the majority of the pieces and then we set to work in the afternoon.  The girls got some good lessons in power tool use and safety and enjoyed the work.

Lydia takes a turn at pre-drilling for screws

Anne used her own compass to mark the access holes for moving between levels

We had a lot of curious passers-by throughout the afternoon as we worked.  After the girls went to bed, I finished cutting out and installing the battlements, which completely the assembly.

I need a workbench :)

 The next day, the cats tried it out.

Of course we couldn't just leave it looking like that, so I painted it white and presented it as a canvas to my little artists, who decorated it as each saw fit.

Even Kaylee added her own touches:

Job done!  And if those weren't enough cute little girl pictures for you, click here to see the whole Picasa album.

Tinker Rescue!

The other day, Lydia walked up to me and said, "Meow.  Hair.  Owie."  I looked over at her, and she had a motorized toy cat stuck in her hair:

 The little kitty was one of Addi's Christmas presents from a cousin in the US.  If you click on the picture to make it large, you can clearly see the label warning of this very thing.

 I really didn't want to cut that much hair off the side of her head, so while Kaylee stayed with her, I ran downstairs to get the screwdrivers. 

I love toys and appliances that are put together with screws!!  There were no tabs to pop, no hidden clips.  In less than a minute she was free.  She did lose some hair, but so little it's not noticeable.

While I had it apart, I cleaned out the other hair and fuzz that the kitty has collected from the floor.  Popped it back together, and away it goes!

Junior Tinkers: Airplane

Our girls have recently started the formal process of homeschooling with Kaylee.   You can read much more about that on her blog, A Day in the Life: Missionary Wife.  As a father, I have an important role to play in that process, and I, too, want to teach my children.
     -Because I am a Christian, I teach them about God, through the Bible
     -Because I am a musician, I teach them songs and music
     -Because I am a tinker, I plan to slowly teach various other skills as well

Oftentimes, these skills will be passed along informally, but some formal "classtime" can be very helpful as well.  On Saturday, I found a little metal-frame airplane kit in the market (for $3), and thought it would be a good project for Anne to learn something about basic tools, nuts and bolts, and following a schematic.  While her sisters were napping this afternoon, we pulled it out and got to work!

 She was very excited to see that the kit included a wrench and screwdriver, just her size!

 She helped grab parts and set them in place whenever she was able to.  She also did most of the fastening, after which I tightened everything down.