I keep promising (at Sugar and Meringue) to post photos of my redecorating projects. So… here's the latest. We ripped out the carpet (it was very stained in some places) and replaced it with wood laminate flooring. We have an open floor plan so the flooring extends into the kitchen/dining, entry way and hallway. having the same flooring throughout make the place feel much more spacious. The brown paint on the walls was fairly recent so I left that, but I painted all the oak trim white. (Much better!) The couch was in the family room downstairs, so we just switched the couches around. Things I bought (other than the flooring & trim paint):

The shelf above the couch - $5 ( I painted it with the same paint I used on the trim)
Both lamps with shades-$17 & $25
The coffee table- (I cut the legs down to make it coffee table height) $35
The rug- I bought that at Target. I think it was $80.
The little wooden chair with the crazy fabric seat $5.00 + $15.00 for the fabric on the seat.
I made the pillows on the couch from some fabric I've had laying around for a while.


I didn't buy all of these things at once just a few things at a time over the last several months so all-in-all, I would say it was an fairly inexpensive redo.

One area I still need to adress is the stairway. You can just see a little of it on the left hand side of one photo. I can't decide what color to paint it. It's such a big, pain-in-the-neck wall to paint that I'm afraid to commit to a color.!

Nebraska Junk Jaunt Finds

Just wanted to show you all my fun finds. I'll come back and add some details later!

Finding Myself

It's been a while since I've posted anything here at Flying Time.

Wondering what I've been up to?

Well… I've been on a quest to find myself, to figure out who I am and what I'm all about. After some really deep thinking, here are the results of my quest:

If I were a TV Mom I would be just like Lois from Malcolm in the Middle (TV Mom Quiz) and the Super Hero I most resemble is Spiderman. My Austen Heroine is Elinor Dashwood and my Grey's Anatomy character is Isobel Stevens.

Vincent Van Gogh is my Dead Celebrity Soul Mate and my Classic Rock Song is Ruby Tuesday by the Rolling Stones.

I'm probably quite psychic and the common dog breed I most resemble is the Doberman.

My personality type is either INFJ or INFP depending on the day and the questions, and I scored highest in the Visual/Spatial category on the multiple intelligence test.














So there you have it. That's who I am. Who are you?

Whirlwind Week

Why is it that a weekend away is always followed by a week of insanity? It's been a whole week since my trip to the Walnut, Iowa Antique Show and I'm just now getting around to writing about it. (Honestly, I should be doing a million other things but, it's early and I've gotta drink my coffee before I start working)
So, the Walnut Antique Show – really nice primitives, collectibles, etc.– fairly priced…
Not for me. It was an "antique" show and many of the booths carried things that really were 100 years old or older. The vendors knew the value of their items and they were priced fairly. I'm more of a flee market type of girl. I like finding mid-century junk, at dirt cheap prices. None of us bought very much.
While the antique show was kind of a let-down, the trip itself was not. I went with four good friends and we had so much fun just getting out of town and leaving our responsibilities behind for a while. We had reservations at a hotel in Red Oak, Iowa and when we got to Red Oak after our day of antiquing, we were starving. We drove around Red Oak and after seeing all the gorgeous houses in town decided they must have some really great local restaurant somewhere. So we drove and drove with out finding anything. Finally, we found Johnny's Bar and Grill. The place looked kinda run down and frankly, I was a little afraid to go in. It was the best meal ever! The service was fast, the waitress was friendly and the food was a heart attack waiting to happen but delicious.
The route we took back home, took us through some flooded areas. My gosh, it was awful to see all that water, and we weren't anywhere near the areas that were said to be hit the hardest. I can't imagine how awful it must be to deal with that.


As soon as I got home, it was off to the park for a Father's Day picnic and the first s'mores of the season. Yumm!

So, here I am a week later still trying to get caught up. But it was so worth it!

Tornado!

Our town was hit by multiple tornadoes late Thursday afternoon. Thankfully my family and home are completely unscathed and no serious injuries were reported by anyone in town. However, there was extensive damage throughout our community. You can see photos and get all the statistics from our TV station and newspaper sites.
I'm afraid any commentary I could offer about the storm would sound either overly dramatic or less concerned about the damage than I should be so I'll just tell you what we were doing during all of this.
4:00 p.m. - I get off work, aware that severe weather is approaching. My husband gets home just before me and decides he better get the yard mowed before it starts to rain.
-I check the radar on the computer to see where the storms are and which way they are going. Looks like the worst of the storm might miss us and be north of us before it gets this far east.
-I turn on the TV to see what they are saying– Tornado warning for Buffalo County, the city of Kearney is in the path of this storm–sounds like we've got a good fifteen to twenty minutes until it gets here.
-The doorbell rings. It's the Fed Ex guy, delivering the Guitar Hero game that my husband bought on ebay
-The phone rings. It's my mom calling to make sure we know about the tornado warning.
-I have the kids put on their shoes and get ready to go to the basement, find my cell phone and a flashlight and put them in my pocket and put my purse and a few photos and things at the top of the basement steps to grab on my way down.
-I continue to monitor the situation on the TV, totally absorbed and unaware that my son and our Boston Terrier puppy have been playing a little too rough, and my son has been injured. He has quite a scratch on his face and is crying! (No, it wasn't a viscous dog attack, just one of those things).
-I break from the TV to care for my son and then the siren blows. I send the kids downstairs with the dogs then go outside and try to get my husband's attention. (He's still mowing). Finally he sees me making a twirly motion with my finger and gives me a nod. So, I go in and join my kids in the basement. I make them go in our office where we have a sturdy desk and table that they can get under if need be. I even gather blankets to cover them in case of shattering glass.
-I should note here that the sirens blow a few times every year and we always go to the basement when the sirens blow. But, we don't always make sure we have shoes on, we don't always make sure we have our cell phones, we don't always grab photos and things and we don't always go in the office with blankets, ready to dive under the desk. But this storm felt more threatening than others we've had.
–So, we've been in the basement for a couple of minutes, my husband still hasn't come down and my son is starting to get very concerned about him. I run up the steps to yell at my husband and I can't help but take a really quick peek out the window looking to the southwest. I don't think I actually saw a funnel cloud, but I did see the darkest, scariest looking cloud I've ever seen. I quickly go back downstairs and my husband follows shortly after.
-The lights flicker and then go off for a few minutes and we lose our TV reception.
-The storm seems to be right overhead and the house isn't falling in. We relax a little and let the kids hang out in the family room (in the basement). They play the new guitar hero game until the storm is over.
-We're able to get TV reception again and hear reports that multiple tornadoes have touched down in the city of Kearney. There are reports of damage in an area where a couple of my friends live. Then there are reports of damage kinda close to my parents' and grandparents' houses.
-I try to call my mom on her home phone. No answer. I try her cell. No answer. I try my dad's cell. No answer. I try my grandparents. No answer. The TV continues to report touchdowns and damage in Kearney. This is the scariest part of the whole thing. Knowing that we really have been hit and not knowing if my family and friends are ok.
-I go outside and see if there's been any damage in our neighborhood. We're fine but a low spot on our road is completely under water andthe neighbor's trampoline is in pieces in the middle of a nearby field.
-While I'm outside I finally get a hold of my mom and dad on my cell phone. They're fine, Grandma and Grandpa are fine, their houses fine except for some dings in the siding.
-We stay home, walk around the neighborhood, watch TV… I can't take it. Both land and cell phone service is spotty, it's hard to get through. I want to discuss what just happened with someone. I want to know how bad it was. We head for my mom and dad's house.We live just outside of town and they live on the edge of town, so we can get there without driving through town and getting in the way.
- Some houses about half way between here and there have major damage. A garage is leveled. The side of another garage is missing and several trees are uprooted.
-My parents and grandparents aren't home. My mom and grandpa are leaving for a special vets' trip to Washington D.C. on Friday morning and they're having a "send-off" party for the vets at the legion. It it going on as scheduled to so that's where they are.
So we go back home and listen to the news accounts of the tornado some more then go to bed.
Friday 5:00 a.m- I haven't heard anything about or from the place that I work. I have an adjusted schedule so my work day begins at 7:00 a.m. Almost everyone else, including my supervisor and the head of human resources, starts at 8:00. I don't want to bother them. I check the TV station's website for closings. Nothing there. One nearby factory is closed but another looks like they plan to open later in the morning. About 6:40 I decide I better head out. It's very, very foggy. I try taking my usual route but the road is blocked and I can just barely see that there are power lines laying across the road. My alternate route takes me by the fairgrounds, where the Expo building has been destroyed. I see lots of downed trees and power lines and other (fairly minor) damage. The fog makes it seem so ominous. Finally I turn into Morris Press and just then they come on the radio and announce that we're closed for the day.
The rest of day is spent calling friends (they're all ok) and hauling food from my parents and grandparent's house to my house to put in our fridge/freezer since they still don't have electricity and we do. We have grandma over for supper and later my aunt comes over and we spend a nice evening visiting around the kitchen table.

Power was restored at about 10:00 last night. We're going to spend today shopping and going to a concert in Omaha, and feeling very lucky.

M.O.Y.S.

Superhero Hideout, originally uploaded by Flying Time Designs.

As a blogger, I typically discuss, crafts, decorating, baking, junking and other domestic issues. I feel it is time for Flying Time Designs to address a more serious topic and to perform a public service. That's why I'm introducing M.O.Y.S. (Mothers of Young Super Heros).

Raising a "super" child can be quite challenging and there are very few resources out there for moms. We want to help our children harness their power and use it only for good. In the words of Ben Parker (Spiderman's Uncle), "With great power, comes great responsibility." We as mother's must ban together to raise responsible children and fight the forces of evil! Join M.O.Y.S now! (just leave a comment)

Our first M.O.Y.S topic…

Creating the Perfect Secret Hideout

Every superhero needs a top secret hideout/headquarters. Here is the hideout my son and I created this weekend*. Some sturdy boxes from my work provided the building material. To make the structure look more solid and intimidating, we used a sponge to stamp on some bricks and we painted a fake door on the front to fool the bad guys. The real door is on the side! We used packing foam, aluminum pie tins, cut up pieces of expired credit cards and even an old cell phone to create the interior controls. See more photos here.

You might also want to check out this previous post. It was written prior to the creation of M.O.Y.S but still offers some helpful ideas. You might also want to check out my Comic Book Wallet tutorail.

Coming soon…
•links to some great superhero sites
•what every M.O.Y.S should know about comic books
•recommended reading
•recommended tunes
•costume making, art projects and more!

*Warning do not disclose the location of your hide-out. Posting photos may be considered dangerous. Pertinent details of the this hideout will be modified to maintain its secrecy.

Happy Mother's Day!

mothersday, originally uploaded by Flying Time Designs.

Yep! That's me with my feet up, wearing the brand new, hand knit slippers that my daughter made for me. I had a great weekend and there's lots to talk about but for now… I think I'll just sit here with my slippers and take it easy. Hope other moms had a chance to relax today too!