Overseas Friendly Growth Chart

I seem to be in a season of creating here.  I don't know if it's because my husband had a week off at the end of our summer camp season (yes, it's summer here in Costa Rica.  No, don't try to figure it out.  Yes, we are north of the equator, but they still call this time of year summer.)  I digress.

Ok.  So back to the Overseas Friendly DIY stuff...

So my husband has a thing for recording the boys heights on the wall.  Which works wonderfully if we were to stay in the same house from now until the baby is in college.  But, being that we are kind of global nomads, the likelihood of that happening is virtually 0.

So.  One day I realized I could make a fabric one!  What?!  We have a fabric advent calendar that is so easy to pack, and as we all know, we can always use a bit more padding in those suitcases.  And unless you are making one of these out of denim it shouldn't add too much to the overall weight. Really, denim would just be like another pair of jeans.

Ok, so here's how we did it.  I say we because I am mathematically challenged and needed my husband to help with the measuring.  I know. Lame.  Anyway.

Noah (my husband) decided we should make it 6 foot 5 inches tall.  Yes, our boys could grow that tall.  Vamos a ver.  He also decided that it doesn't need to reach the ground, just down to about 37 inches.  Yep, this means that the baby won't be measured any time soon, but that's fine too.  Do what you want.

I found a piece of cream muslin in my stash and cut it in half.  Then I found some other brown leafy fabric and sewed it with the right sides facing each other, you know like making a pillow case.  The brown fabric was wider than the muslin which is what I wanted.  I liked the idea of having the leafy pattern on the front side too.  Then I top stitch it down the side with the brown fabric.

Next, I marked the inches and half inches.  With some cream cotton yarn I had, I made the inch marks.  I didn't do that as neatly as I was hoping, but hey, this ain't rocket science.  I had a brown pen and used it to add the inches in and to mark the big boys heights from this last year.  Goodness they have grown!!

And now we can have those heights for posterity.  And it's portable!

Does your family record the kids' heights?  What other things do you do to keep memories of childhood?

Overseas Friendly DIY Chalkboard

So, let's talk a little DIY, shall we?

I have wanted a chalkboard since we left the states.  I had one in Michigan in our playroom.  The boys and I loved it and it was a sweet reminder of my years in Sunday School because it came from the church I grew up in. 

But chalkboards don't fit nicely in a duffel bag or foot locker.  The things we give up, huh?

I finally had mental energy and time to figure out how to get my hands on a chalkboard.  It only took 3 years folks.  Things just take time on the mission field. Ha!

After asking around, I finally decieded to just make one.  The results aren't too shabby!

So here's the deal.  All you need is paint, whatever color you want, and some unsanded grout.  I figured grout would be incredibly easy to find here, since there are entire rooms that are tiled.  No, I am not joking.  There are three rooms in my house alone that are covered from floor to ceiling with tile.  Anyway.

Overseas Friendly Chalkboard Paint
1/2 cup of paint  I used Dark Secret (the blackest I could get)

1 Tablespoon of unsanded grout (I used midnight black, but if you picked a different color paint, you should use something lighter...but you are all smart and knew that already!)

A smooth surface  (My husband found me some particle board type stuff that I didn't have to sand or mess with in anyway.  It's not real wood, but it was great for this purpose.)

Use something disposable to mix your paint and grout in.  And just know, as soon as you start mixing this, it will start to harden.  So don't go mixing an entire liter of paint with grout thinking you can save it for later. 

I used a small roller brush and put three coats on my 60 x 80 cm board.  The  1/2 cup paint to 1 Tbs of grout recipe was the perfect amount for that sized board.  So maybe you could go in on this project with someone because you are going to have a TON of leftover supplies.

After the board is completely dry, take a piece of chalk and cover the whole board with it.  No really.  Then wipe it down with a damp rag.  Drill a couple of holes, find some twine and you are all set!  And just so you know, this isn't like a real slate chalk board.  You will probably need to wipe it with a wet rag to actually get the writing off of it.