Des'ola Photography

This Friday I decided to feature a Photographer in Groton, 

Des'ola Photography. 

www.desolaphotography.com

I have had the honor of having her capture a few photos of my kids and I love how natural they are.  She was able to capture their personalities in every shot.  I am hoping to get some family photos done very soon.  Des'ola is also a fiance of a submariner.  She offers portraits for families, newborns/children, maternity, engagement, weddings, and some boudoir.  Des'ola also offers a military discount. 

I asked her to email me a little about why she loves creating masterpieces.  This is what she had to say,


     "I remember loving to look through my mom's photo albums when I was a little girl. As I got older, I realized really neither of my parents' had a lot of photographs when they were younger due to not having much access to a camera. I believe my calling is to help create memories for people and their families to look back on with my love for photography. Also, as a little girl, I loved being in front of the camera. There was a time I wasn't a fan of being in front of the lens, but then when I started to get back into that, I created a relationship of being in front and behind the camera. When I was a student at the Art Institute of Charleston in South Carolina (graduated with a Bachelors in Photography in June 2010), some of my portfolio pieces were actually self portraits. Recently, I have not done a lot of self portraiture, but it's still a favorite of mine. I have found when I can give an individual or a family happiness from seeing photographs of them being in their own moment, I then share that happiness."

"Over the past year, I have been specializing in portraiture of families, newborns/children, maternity, engagement, weddings, and even some boudoir. I'm very Fortunate to have something I absolutely love to share with others and create a career of it. Finding this within myself helped me love who I am, and I hope everyone can find that within their lifetime. "

So, let Des'ola capture your family memories.  You will not be disappointed.

Happy Friday

Alyse and Kristen

Book Club---Fifty Shades of Grey

Alright!  Are you all dying to talk about Fifty Shades of Grey???  I am!!!!  Overall I loved the book.  It was everything I love in a book.  It was easy to read, it caught my attention almost instantaneously, and it was a definite page turner, not to mention the emotions that were evoked from me by the characters and story line ;). 

There were a few things however that annoyed me a little about the book.  The similarities to Twilight by Stephanie Meyer were uncanny.  To me, Fifty Shades was an NC-17 rated version of Twilight.  I jotted down a few of the comparisons...

• The similarities of the main characters.  Ana and Bella, both described as somewhat homely, not caring much for their appearance, and both very clumsy.  Christian and Edward are both incredibly wealthy, handsome (okay drop dead gorgeous), and with "issues."
• Both Christian and Edward warned Ana and Bella to stay away from them because of said "issues."  Both men warned the ladies that they were dangerous and the women should keep their distance, yet both women ignored the warnings.
• Both Edward and Christian obviously have a "thing" for expensive European cars
• Ana and Bella each lived with their father (or step-father) while their mothers lived several states away (both in a warm climate) with new husbands.
• Both Ana and Bella had a friend who wanted more than a friendship and who made Christian and Edward jealous.  For Bella it was Jacob and for Ana it was Jose.....hmmmm both start with a J ;).
• Both stories took place in the Pacific Northwest

I may have been hyper aware after my husband jokingly told me that Fifty Shades was Twilight for adults but the more I started thinking about it the more I started noticing little details that were very similar.

Another thing that bothered me was Ana constantly bombarding Christian with questions about his past.  I almost felt sorry for him.  He obviously had an extremely traumatic start to his life leading to issues he was always trying to deal with.  I felt like she was being insensitive by not taking it slowly with him telling her his life story.  I really find this funny because I expected to think very poorly of Christian considering the things that he wanted to do to Ana, but I ended up siding with him and getting annoyed and angry at Ana. 

Alright...enough of my babbling.  Your turn!  Please post what you thought about the book!  I have written some questions below to ponder while you post!

• What do you think about Ana's Inner Goddess?  Do you have one?
• Who did you tend to favor....Christian or Ana...or neither?
• What is it about this book that makes it so popular?

 I hope you enjoyed the book and I look forward to next month's book club!  Happy Thursday!

Kristen and Alyse

Introducing....Military Foodie

Once upon a time I decided to try blogging.  My topic of choice was of course food...cooking, eating, etc.  I declared myself a Military Foodie and my blog reflected this.  Once Alyse and I started this blog I was looking for a way to tie my old blog along with my love of food and cooking into this blog.  Thus introducing...Military Foodie.

Every Wednesday will be dedicated to my favorite topics of food, drink, and cooking.  I strongly encourage followers to share recipes, cooking tips, restaurants, cocktails, wine, etc.  Anything that relates to food!  In the famous words of Julia Child....Bon Appetit!

I hope everyone had a fabulous Wednesday!

Kristen and Alyse

Dresser Hack

I hope everyone had a great Tuesday.  I am going to show everyone a step by step on how I refinished my daughters dresser.  I came across a dresser for sale for $20 on facebook one day.  I went to pick it up and the guy was so embarrassed that his wife wanted money for it that he gave it to me for free.  I was shocked but super excited. 

Here is the before picture.  Its solid wood but it was ugly to start with.  It also had dog bites on the one bottom corner. 

I liked the size but that was about it.  So I started with trim I picked up at Home Depot.  I put a small detailed trim around the top just under the top piece of wood.  I also popped off the bottom boards and put new trim on that so it didn't have an opening for toys to get lost. I did have to learn how to use a mitre saw but It was actually very easy.  I started with just using wood glue to attach the trim boards but my husband said that was not the "proper" way to build furniture so he taught me how to use the nail gun.  I puttied over the holes and lightly sanded.  Sounds much harder than it actually was.  Trust me.

I then added decorative trim to the drawer fronts because they were very boring and I wanted detail. 

The dresser had a musty old smell to it so I put a coat of Kilz on the entire thing to cover the smell.  Then I started with the painting.  Here are the colors I chose.  I bought Behr paint in a satin finish.  

I ended up using 3 coats to get a good even coverage.  I painted the dresser and the drawer fronts pink and for added kick I painted the inside parts of the drawers grey.  Now also I needed a 3rd coat because I kept coming back to my project and finding hand prints and designs in my semi dry paint.

I found some really cute black and pink fabric at JoAnns so I covered the inside bottoms of the drawers with it.  i just used spray adhesive and a knife.  I glued it down then just trimmed the edges.

After the painting was completely finished and dried I glazed all the edges.  I used the same technique as the desk. I brushed it on then wiped it off with a damp cloth.  This time though I mixed the glaze with black paint so it had a darker look.  I did all the corners and cracks. I forgot to take a picture of this step so I only have the after shots.  Sorry.  Still getting used to this blogging. 

After some convincing from my husband I did put one coat of sealant on the dresser as well to protect it.  Moving as much as we do is really hard on your furniture.  I am really glad I did put the sealer on it.  It gave it a smooth texture.

Now, I hated the knobs that came with the dresser and I just could not find anything I liked at the stores that was worth the money.  So I spent hours online looking for the perfect knobs.  I love the ones from anthropology but again they were a bit expensive.  I did however find a set of anthropology knobs on ebay at a great price.  They are perfect and I love them so much!

So here is the finished product.  I truly love this dresser!

Happy Tuesday!

Alyse and Kristen

Military Monday.....What is a Military Wife?

I had a friend give me this while my husband was on his last deployment.  It really brightened my day and reminded me that I was strong and definitely not alone.  I thought I would share with all of you!  I don't know who wrote it but I definitely find it inspiring.

What is a MILITARY Wife?


They may look different and each is wonderfully unique.


But what do they have in common?


They have THIS in common:


Lots of moving---
Moving.
Moving far from home.
Moving two cars, three kids and one dog--all riding with HER, of course.
Moving sofas to basements because they won't go in THIS house.
Moving curtains that won't fit.
Moving jobs and certifications and professional development hours.
Moving away from friends, moving toward new friends.
Moving her most important luggage; her trunk full of memories.


Often waiting---
Waiting, waiting...
Waiting for housing;
Waiting for orders;
Waiting for deployment;
Waiting for reunion;
Waiting for phone calls;
Waiting for the new curtains to arrive;
Waiting for him to come home for dinner--AGAIN!


They call her 'military dependent,' but she knows better.
She can balance a checkbook,
Handle the yard work,
Fix a noisy toilet,
Bury the family pet...
She is intimately familiar with drywall, anchors, and toggle bolts.
She can file the taxes, sell a house, buy a car, or set up a move--
All with ONE Power of Attorney.


She welcomes neighbors that don't welcome her.
Reinvents her career with every PCS.
Locates a house in the desert, the arctic, or the deep south and learns to call them all 'home.'
She MAKES them all home.


She is fiercely independent and somewhat hasty;
Leaps into decorating, leadership, volunteering, career alternatives, churches, and friendships.
She doesn't have 15 years to get to know people.
Her roots are short but flexible.
She plants annuals for herself and perennials for those who come after.


Military wives quickly learn to value each other.
They connect over coffee, rely on the spouse networks, accept offers of friendships and favors--and records addresses in pencil.


Military wives have a common bond.
The military wife has a husband unlike other husbands.  His commitment is unique.
He doesn't have a job, he has a 'mission'--he can't decide to quit--
He's on call for his country 24/7,
But for the military wife he is the most unreliable guy in town!


His language is foreign:
TDY
PCS
TRE
OPR
ACC
DCA
BDU
And so, a military wife is a translator for her family and his.
She is the long distance link to keep them informed, the glue that holds them together.


Military Wife has her moments--
She wants to wring his neck, dye his uniform pink, and refuse to move to Siberia.
But she pulls herself together.
Give her a few days, a travel brochure, a long hot bath, and a wedding picture.
And she goes.
She packs.
She moves.
She follows.


Why?
What for?
How come?
You may think it is because she has lost her mind.


But actually it is because she has lost her heart.
It was stolen from her by an amazing man
Who must put duty first
Who salutes the flag
And whose boots in the doorway remind her that as long as he is her Military Husband,
She will remain his Military Wife.
And proud of it.

Feature Friday....FishGill Designs!!!

For today's Feature Friday post we thought we would share this incredible jewelry company started by two fellow submarine wives.  FishGill Designs specializes in making custom bracelets from uniform bootstraps.  Completely brilliant if you ask me!

Kristen and Victoria started making these bracelets as an FRG fundraiser for the USS NEBRASKA (Gold).  According to Kristen, "As submarine wives, we are all so proud of our guys and want to show that off and these bracelets were something a little different than what else Victoria and I had seen in Dolphin Stores and on the web."

They created these bracelets using the submarine dophins and other personal touches including the boot band with the idea of keeping a piece of our sailors with us even when they are out to sea.  They also make bracelets for "those above periscope depth."

 

FishGill Designs currently has a Facebook Page which you can find here FishGill Designs or you can email them at fishgilldesigns@gmail.com.  They are currently selling in the Dolphin Store at the Bangor Sub Base.  They hope to be in all the Dolphin Stores and a few submarine museum gift shops by Autumn!  They are also working with FRGs to sell the bracelets as fundraisers. 

Please like their page on Facebook and support these fellow Submarine Wives!

Have a great Friday and a Fabulous weekend!

Kristen and Alyse

Its crafty Thursday and I thought I would show you my flag wreath I made. Now I didn't take pictures while I was making it.  I totally couldn't hold the yarn tight and still snap a picture so I am sorry about that but it is super easy to figure out.  I found the idea on this site. The cellar door stories

Here is my finished product.

So first I went to the dollar store and bought a foam pool noodle then I went to the craft store and bought 3 skeins of yarn and some pre cut felt stars.

I just duct taped the noodle ends to create a circle. Then I wrapped the yarn around and around. I started with the red and white then finished with the blue.  It took about 2 hours but I was able to watch tv while doing it.  I just knotted the ends of the yarn and your done. 

I stuck on the stars in random places and then tied up a bow made out of ribbon and thats it.  

It really was that easy and its very festive and cute on my front door. 

The total cost was about $13 because I bought everything.  Still $13 is very cheap for a wreath.

Happy Thursday!

Alyse and Kristen