i had a dream...

and it took all summer. but it came true!

i had a dream last spring of building a picnic table together with my kids. partly to teach them a skill. and partly to have in our yard somewhere so that we could be more accessible to our neighborhood by just BEING OUT THERE.

it took all summer. but it came true!

first. we had to get a saw! (pat is SUCH a good sport. going along with all my crazy ideas. he was just glad it wasn't another kid!) i learned every step of the way right along with them! NONE of us had any idea what we were doing!

{warning: picture overload. but i took pics of nearly every step!}

the kids were a part of EVERY step. that was the whole point. i printed out a plan online. and we took those plans to home depot and bought the wood. i stood there and told them what we needed. they loaded it on the cart.

they loaded it in the car.

we put the saw together (harder than you might think. especially when you put the blade on BACKwards the first time!)

and finally started cutting! LOTS of talk about safety...

i tried to give them all ways to help out...

then we attacked our boards! the boards that were going to eventually be the top of the table and the seats, we distressed with nails, screws, hammers, anything we could think of! we watched a youtube description about it so they understood, and then we went to town!

then we sanded them a little (this is the only step i would have changed...i would have sanded them a LOT more!)

next was staining them. man...this was quite the project!

that is a ridiculous amount of hours right there...

putting poly on all the boards. 3 coats.

and painting the boards that hold the table up, black.

we started out with a wood stain that was black. but i didn't like it. so we got a black paint.

now to FINALLY put it together!!!

at this point we realized that we had a problem. i had altered the original plans to make the table longer...and the last 2 boards weren't the right length...

so back to home depot we went...more cutting and painting...

and then it was done!

just getting the table onto our porch (which is where we decided it would live) was a huge task! that thing is HEAVY!

we have eaten so many snacks and meals out there already!

and i hired my girls to make some decorations to brighten that side of the porch up. they came through and we finished the whole thing up yesterday. i could NOT love it more!

we've already served lots of neighbors at this table...and i pray we serve lots more!

some close-ups of the fun distressing :-)

pat bought me this piece at a thrift shop in myrtle beach. i knew RIGHT where it was going to go!

and we're even ready for nighttime meals and fun!

come on over!

{what should our next project be?!?}