Scroll Saw Project #11: Monitor and Keyboard Stand

My scroll saw days are few and far between. The last time I used it was to make our frisbee shirts last fall! But last month I had a project in mind and the scroll saw was the perfect tool for the job.

It was the project I was working on on my birthday (I just didn't get around to posting about it until now): a wooden stand for my computer monitor and keyboard. After painting in the living room, I decided I wanted to move my computer to a new location to minimize the clutter and add more space the room.

The old setup

The cabinets next to the fireplace seemed like a great location, especially since I could tuck the computer away underneath. I just needed to prop everything up a bit so that the monitor and keyboard would be at the right height for me. I couldn't find anything in stores, so I turned to making my own! It was a very satisfying project with an awesome result.

Hide all the mess in there

Much better!

Emily Gets Braces:: Step 10: Full Braces

Emily had a big appointment last week: her time with the Clark Twin Block appliance was done and she got fixed braces on both dental arches. This is the final stage of her orthodontic plan and should last about 11 months.

Progress so far -- before the braces

Feeling nervous?

It was a long appointment, lasting over an hour, but was relatively painless. The worst part was the tightening with elastics near the end. Emily says she often feels quite nervous for the day leading up to an appointment, but is pretty calm during the process and always relieved (and pleasantly surprised) when it's done. And she also admits that it's all been worth the discomfort! She's thrilled with the results so far.

Dr. Smith was very kind and told me I could get 'right in there' to take pictures of the process. Emily said that mouth-opening device looked much worse than it felt. She had no idea her teeth and gums were so exposed.

Gluing on each bracket (more than half done!)

Waiting and watching

The blue light sets the glue

Elastics - ouch

Ta-da!

The pain mostly happened in the couple of days following the appointment. Emily's teeth were sore to the touch which made eating many foods impossible. She got by on small, cooked noodles, scrambled eggs, kiwi, and tiny-cubed cheese. She's feeling much better now and is eating all her usual foods.

Goodbye gross retainer and case...

... in the garbage you go!

Braces are in

1-year comparison

Tightening appointments will happen every 6-8 weeks. We are looking forward to seeing the progress in these final months! 

N: How's it going, Emily?

E: Good! I'm used to it already. I even like braces more than the retainer. The only annoying part is that the brackets sometimes cut into the inside of my mouth. I have to put wax on the brackets so that they don't irritate the cut. But it'll all be worth it when I'm done! 

Lucy Love

We did some puppy-sitting last weekend! Lucy's family was away for four days, so we popped in to see her and hang out a few times a day. It made for some pretty cute photo ops (well, mostly of us on the couch and Lucy snoozing or looking sad). She must have missed her family so much! But at least she was always excited when we came in and sat down instead of dropping her off in the mudroom. 

We love you, Lucy! ♥

Total Solar Eclipse

Yesterday, April 8th 2024, we witnessed a once-in-a-lifetime event: a total solar eclipse in our area. They say it's been several hundred years since our city saw a total solar eclipse, and it won't happen again until the year 2399.

(source)

Announcements were made weeks in advance, giving everyone time to prepare. The kids were given the day off of school, and Queen's University provided all students (and many adults) free solar eclipse glasses. Steve and I got our free pair at the public library a couple of weeks ago. Jessi's class also built eclipse viewers out of empty cereal boxes. There was a lot of excitement, but also some fear surrounding the event due to the risks involved in staring at the sun for too long. We were prepared!

The bright dot is the sun

The eclipse started at 2:09pm, with totality occurring between 3:22pm and 3:25pm. Then it was all over at 4:34pm. After a few minutes of being outside and seeing how cool it was, we decided to bring out our hammocks and hang out to watch. It was a beautiful day, albeit a little cloudy at times. We also felt a noticeable dip in the temperature as the sun disappeared!

The best way to describe what we saw through the glasses is: total darkness, save for a bright orange ball with clean lines and a growing black chunk out of it, reminiscent of a crescent moon. Something like this:

(source)

Bring out the blankets!

I couldn't help but take a video just as the sun became completely covered. What a cool moment in history! The bang at the end of the video is the sound of fireworks. I guess someone thought the moment of totality was a fireworks-worthy event.

Episode 47: The Total Solar Eclipse

Safe to look at during totality

Above was the best picture I got of the total eclipse. The picture below was taken by the brother of a friend of a friend of Jessi's. Ha! Good pictures travelled quickly. 

The eclipse glasses worked great (thanks, Queen's U!) and we are so glad we were there to witness the moon's moment in the sun!