Auction Projects

Long ago, in a land far far away, lived a humble farm girl that wanted to volunteer at her children's school. She had signed up in the fall for not one, but two class auction projects. After the holiday season was over, the calls began. "Remember that you signed up for the Auction Project parent for 5th grade and PM Kindergarten?" the voice on the other end reminded her sweetly. So the farm girl in question began racking her brain to find something that the parents would actually want and something the kids could participate in. She purchased a second hand hutch, a can of primer, and a can of Asparagus paint from Behr. She had everything else on hand. Then the farm girl went to Craft Warehouse and got fabulous metal stars and scrapbook paper. She had taken the first bite and now had to finish...

The kindergarten stars involved developing a template, cutting pieces out for 6 stars and inking all the edges of the paper. When the day came to go to the Kindergarten room, she was confident that the kids could really accomplish this. Decoupage glue with a few foam brushes and the project was well on it's way to being complete. With a little help from another farm girl and a stash of spare ribbon, the project was finished.

The Hutch was a huge undertaking. Not only did the farm girl have to load the hutch into her SUV, but also had to wheel it down the long hallway to the 5th grade classroom on the other side of the building. Teachers and students alike, peered out of the doors to see what was being delivered. Then came the priming. 9 children huddled around two pieces of furniture, straining to make their mark, was quite an undertaking. The farm girl learned that 5 graders definitely need deodorant. Day two, was the base color. Day 3 was the sanding and staining. Day four, was spent feverishly trying to get the fabric and the new knobs with screws that were breaking their ity bitty heads off, installed. Another trip to Home Depot and then back the the dreaded 5th grade classroom, and finally, is was complete.

The night of the auction came. The day before, she had received several calls asking if it was ok to sell the stars separately and if there was anyway the children could sign the inside of the hutch..huh? Anxiety crept in. Were they going to be good enough? She had heard that this school was sort of Elitist. Would anybody buy them? Well that night, as she went to the auction just to add a last minute shelf to the inside of the hutch, she was suddenly bombarded with cheesy quilts with photos of kids, benches with sponge painting on them, mosaic planters....ok time to breathe. Her creations were a hit. The auction chair then approached the farm girl and gave a her a huge smile. "Finally, another mother that has some creative ability! I am so glad you are here!" The farm girl then replied, "I'm moving in a month..."

I came, I crafted, and I left realizing that I had nothing to fear. I am good at what I do even with the help of elementary students by my side.