Pumpkin Decorating: Metal Mouth

Last year was our first year to participate in the Annual Staff Pumpkin Decorating Competition at Todd Hughes Orthodontics.  Benjamin created this fabulous Cheeseburger and came in first place!  This year we had quite a few ideas floating around in our heads but decided to create something a little more simple this year.  Basing this off of our Domo Arigato pumpkin we made years ago we created this!!  I give you, Metal Mouth!

We liked the idea of Metal Mouth as a play of the nickname that kids give other kids with braces.  We started with an orange pumpkin and Benjamin sprayed him with a coat of silver spray paint to give him the metallic appearance.

For embellishments, we used items that can be found in the aisles of all hardware stores!  We picked items that would work best for the look we were trying to accomplish.

Grab a few L-brackets, a hinge, some lag bolts, corner braces and anything else that looks cool!  Get your screw gun and go to town!

We hot glued Googlie eyes and screwed in everything else.

 Three hands may be necessary to position, stabilize, and screw the appropriate pieces into place.

And then, TADA!  Your very own Metal Mouth or Robot pumpkin!  

The cost of this project is the foam pumpkin (that you can purchase at local hobby stores for $10+) plus about $10 worth of hardware.  It is an easy project for kids to make with parent supervision...or two grown adults to make with child supervision!

Can you believe October is days away?!?!

Patient Appreciation Day 2014

For the 8th summer in a row, Todd Hughes Orthodontics hosted their Patient Appreciation Day at Tinseltown theater.  Renting out one of the larger theaters, the staff was joined by almost 400 patients {and parents} for a morning viewing of How To Train Your Dragon 2.  

We took Winston along with us for his first movie theater experience.  Armed with a squeezie and popcorn, little buddy settled into his seat and did a fantastic job of watching the movie!  

He did really well for his first time.  We exited the theater about 30 minutes before the movie was over so that he could run up and down the halls while munching on some goldfish.  

It was a pleasure to be a part of the morning, helping hand out tickets and bags to the patients as a thank you for choosing Todd Hughes Orthodontics as a place to receive their care.  The staff are amazing, caring and passionate always enjoying each other and their patients.

Benjamin and I couldn't be more pleased that these are the fine folks {and some of their kiddos} who he gets to works with day in and day out.  There is not a day that goes by that we aren't thankful to be a part of this family.  

 They have embraced all three of us with open arms!

A huge thanks to everyone who came to participate in Patient Appreciation Day 2014!  We look forward to seeing you there next year! 

Houston, We are Board Certified!

This afternoon on my way home from work I picked up the mail and text Benjamin this image:

Upon arriving home, he burst upstairs into the bathroom where Winston was getting a bath and exclaimed, "I'm Board Certified!"  The excitement and glow of accomplishment beamed from Benjamin's face.  This achievement has been a goal of his since before residency.  It was one of the things he wrote that he wanted to accomplish in personal statement that accompanied his application letters and one of the main reasons that Houston was a such a good fit for him.  

Not every orthodontist that graduates residency is Board Certified.  It requires work above and beyond the requirements of satisfaction for graduating the program.  It requires countless hours of perfecting patients teeth, examining and re-examining their progress, writing and re-writing case files and being sure that, as an orthodontist, you can defend and give sound reasoning for treating this particular patient the way you did.  And you have to do that for six different cases.  It requires caring models of teeth in a padded case all the way to St. Louis, setting them and the write ups out carefully and then waiting for the next day when a team of Board Examiners ask question after question about the cases sitting before them.  Being Board Certified is an accomplishment that only 20-25% of orthodontic specialists can claim.

To my husband: I am so proud of you for this accomplishment!  Your faithfulness to trusting God's plan for your life has been rewarded in so many ways.  I am in constant awe of how humble you are in the midst of accomplishing great things!

To the Class of 2013: Congrats to all who have completed your journey to Board Certification!  You all kick butt in the best of ways and we are proud to have cheered you along!

 The ABO insignia pin to adorn the lapel at official ABO and AAO events.

The official letter!

Even Luli took the time to read the letter and give her Daddy celebratory arm hump!

Catching up at The Kitchen

At the beginning of the year, there is a one day orthodontic conference held in Houston by UT Ortho for doctors to get CE credit, learn something new, and catch up with friends and faculty.  Knowing that almost all of Benjamin's classmates would in coming into town for the event, he sent out an email blast a month or so before coordinating a dinner for everyone, kiddos and spouses included.  We chose White Oak Kitchen because of its delicious food, and relaxed and quiet atmosphere.  

Due to the busyness of the day with the conference, the dinner allowed for catching up with faculty and other doctors knowing that everyone could catch up later that night.  After placing our food orders, we went around the table giving everyone 5 - 10 minutes to share what had been going on in their lives since graduation.  It was a fantastic way for everyone to be able to celebrate with each other on life after school.  Since graduation we have had one engagement and one baby!  Plus each person has been blessed with amazing work opportunities and are settling into their daily routines.

I remembered to get a few pictures, but only after Monica had left!  With everyone scattered from Victoria to College Station to Washington, its something we plan on continuing as the years go on and the Class Family of 2013 continues to grow!

DIY: Valentines that are {Star}Bursting!

Knowing that Valentine's Day was around the corner, Benjamin asked me to start thinking about something little he could do for the girls at the office.  A token of appreciation for jobs well done!  When thinking about doing something for the ladies, we had a few things to keep in mind: we needed gifts for 18 and we didn't want it to be too mushy.  

I set out to the best source for ideas: Pinterest.  I found a list of over 100 things to do for Valentine's day and started rattling off my favorites to Benjamin, tweaking them here or there to make them office appropriate.  The winner for this year's Valentine was.... Bursting with joy that you're part of the team!  

 

To make this Valentine (for 18 people!), we purchased the following:
6 bags of Starbursts
1 pack of large cello bags
4 spools Valentines Day ribbon
We used cardstock that we already had at home.

Benjamin divided the Starbursts up into the bags

Then using the starburst form in PhotoShop and our our Silhouette, the tags were created!  I then tied the bows and voila!  A cute token of appreciation bursting with flavor!

These would also make adorable Teacher Appreciation gifts or Just Because gifts for neighbors, students, family, friends, co-workers... the list goes on and one!

Pumpkin Decorating: Cheeseburger!

Benjamin came home from work one afternoon early in September declaring that we needed to start thinking of a pumpkin decorating idea because the office has a contest each year and it is highly competitive!  Amidst everything else we had going on we added this to our list started brainstorming.  Benjamin had a few ideas that, if done well, would have been super cool, but they were quite time intensive.  Since this was happening in the middle of closing, packing and moving, the design needed to be something fairly simple.

We have a running joke with Luke and Kala that the only thing Benjamin eats when we are on trips with them is hamburger and fries!  ...And it really is true.  He eats a hamburger in every city we visit.  On top of that - his first job was at Micky D's and the man cannot pass up a good cheeseburger and extra crispy fries!  

Enter the pumpkin idea for 2013: Cheeseburger!

We took one of those foam pumpkins that you can find at any hobby store and sliced it in two.  This made our two buns.  To make the top piece look more like a burger bun, I hot glued pumpkin seeds all over.  To create cheese, we purchased yellow Fimo clay, rolled it out and cut it into cheese squares.  Funnily enough I had placemats that look like very large pieces of lettuce, so one was donated to the cause.

Fries were also created out of Fimo clay with the thoughts of getting a McDonald's fry container to put them in.

It took two buckets of the Crayola air dry clay to create the hamburger patty!  After a full day it was still damp, so we put it in the oven on low heat to dry it out a little bit.  Then Benjamin spray painted it brown.

Once the paint dried, we put assembled the burger and ....TA DA!  A cheeseburger!

A really, really BIG burger!

Benjamin loaded the burger and fries into his car and toted it to the office.  On his way, he was able to secure a McDonald's tray, large drink cup, and a fry container.  I was eagerly waiting to see the final product when I got this text...

Amazing right?!  

I can tell you that... "ba da ba da daaa, I'm lovin' it!"

Inspiration: Graduation Dinner!

Y'all.  Benjamin and his classmates graduate in less than 2 weeks from Ortho Residency!  I can hardly believe it as I type it.  Where have the past 26 months gone?!  I am so proud of Benjamin and his class, my skin can hardly contain me!

Benjamin assumed responsibilities for planning graduation this year and I am super stoked about it!  If you follow me on Instagram, you may have already seen the giant toothbrushes that are a brilliant gold.  Our theme for this Grand-uation is "Glamorous Teeth!"  I mean, these seven people are going into the business of enhancing and creating beautiful smiles, so why not give them a beautiful graduation dinner!  

The decor will be classy with splashes of color to compliment the UT orange, along with black, white and gold.  Dental themed accents will be sprinkled throughout the room and yes, a few chalkboard items may make an appearance.  I'll be looking forward to sharing the final turnout of the event in weeks to come!

Bringing Back Cassette Tapes...

It had been a little while since we had hosted a get together for the UT Residents, I was itching to try out my new Silhouette, and Benjamin was really missing his mullet wig... so we threw an 80's Party!

We found an adorable template for cassette tapes in the Silhouette store, bought some neon paper and then spent an evening creating these cuties:

We had a few original toys from the 80's scattered around and our guests brought yummy treats to snack on!

We had our 80's music playlist going all night.  I think we probably have 25.4 days worth if we put it all in one grouping!  Our friends started arriving and their outfits were AMAZING!  Can I just say that we are so blessed with the group of people the Benjamin spends every day with?

We had a prize for the best dressed - A Simon to David, who is pictured above sporting his awesome Walkman.  We also did an 80's Trivia game that covered everything from politics to sports and pop culture, Daniel won that landing himself a sweet Rubix cube!

We wrapped up the night by creating our own version of an 80's rock concert by hitting up the best that Rock Band had to offer!

Project 52: Week 34, 35 + 36

Today Benjamin asked me if I was ever going to update my blog again.  My response was a very mature one as I stuck my tongue out at him.  Then he asked if I had given up on Project 52.  No, no I have not given up on Project 52 - I've just been otherwise occupied, ya know making money and being a wife.

All of the photos from Week 34 revolved around our trip to San Antonio.  Benjamin was such a champ finishing off that cinnamon roll!  Funny story about the McDonald's run after Lulu's.  You should ask Benjamin about it.  Or Luke or Kala - they tell a very funny version of it!

Benjamin working on a retainer for a patient.  My official offer letter from The Oil Company arrived!  Jingle Jangle and Lulu chilling out on the Kermit rug.  That rug is one of Lulu's favorite places to be.

Jingle wanted to take a ride home with me to Pearland.  Next time, sweet pup!  Kala + Kate and I at Tabletop Friends.  Shawna makes these awesome covered strawberries and she brought them to girls night!  Benjamin snapped this photo of Casey and Luke.  I side with Luke, donuts are better than celery!

Halloween Party

Benjamin and I have never been a couple to go over the top for Halloween, however this year with our commitment to host events for the ortho department and my excitement of the costume I had found for us we threw ourselves into hosting a Halloween shindig!

A few weeks before Halloween, I turned our dining room table into a painting studio as I crafted our costumes.  After hours, I was proud of the way they turned out!

 We were Nerds!!

My side was the exact verbiage on the back of a box and Benjamin's back was the nutritional facts.  And yes, Benjamin is wearing tights and his hair is purple.  No, I did not have to coerce him into this either.  I can't take complete credit for the idea.  We did see it on pinterest.  Just love that site.

Here are the cast of characters that graced our home:

Part of the party was a pumpkin carving competition.  We covered our back yard in drop cloths and set up the work lights.  One couple even came armed with a dremel and canned air!

Thanks to everyone who came out and contributed to the fun times!!