blessings of a grandpa

{okay....so lots of words right now, to explain the layout below...you know how i can get with words...}

last year at this time Kristian was looking at plans for building a new garage. he was thinking about design options for the building. planning out different areas to put it in. all that good stuff!

Aidan was very interested in this. i think it was the "knocking down the old garage" that may have captured his interest!

the two of them spent many evenings drawing out plans. sometimes they got out the Lego blocks and built a variety of garages! Aidan and Kristian became more excited every day! it was cute. and it still is!

we really could not have built the garage without the help of two special people. Kristian's dad and his brother are both experienced and excellent carpenters. phew!! i have several photos of Aidan and the entire process....as i type this i'm thinking that maybe these layouts will need an album all their own. he was still too little to be right in the building mix with his heroes, but he was often found off to the side playing out whatever they happened to be doing at the time....either that or watching in amazement!

Grandpa Olsen and Kristian had the brilliant idea to set him up with a hammer and wood and some nails. they got the nails started for him, and let him go ahead and bang away. {safety glasses came in handy a few times!} i guess carpenter Grandpa felt that he was doing well and gave him a more challenging task. he cut some wood and set Aidan up in assembling a flower box. oddly, only Grandpa knew what Aidan was building....Kristian and i thought it was a tool box! see what i mean about it being a good thing to have the help of a professional!

we were amazed to see how focused Aidan was in this entire task. at one point he commented on how sore his hands were! he was wearing gloves....but i'm sure those little hands were numb!

when it was completed, Aidan got to help Grandpa attach the flower box to the newly built playhouse/shed. with a power tool!

paper is by PinkPaislee and Graphic45. i used some glimmer mists too.

flowers are Prima. there is the leftover heart and felt embellishment from our cards workshop. buttons are from my ever growing stash....could be MM or AL or BG....or from a grab bag i bought years ago...lol!

i love the distressing technique for the paper. i thought it would be perfect for a masculine page...especially one with building. i'm so grateful for artists like Irene who share their ideas with others! you can read about this technique here. she is super talented. i also used her masking technique to make my border more interesting.

the chipboard word is MayaRoad. letter stickers are from BG and Prima. i just bought the ribbon....but i can't remember who makes it. oops!

i also used the espresso dimensional pearls from Adirondack.

the ticket is TimHoltz. the photo turn is 7Gypsies. brads are AmericanCrafts.


the photo itself i used photoshop to desaturate and soften it. it brought more emphasis to their carpenter jeans. oh, memories! that was a very cold day, but so fun for Aidan. and for the his family.