Ok, so here is a quick project that anyone can tackle…and I mean ANYONE with a miter saw, sander and wood glue! It’s a decorative DIY rustic table tray and it will take you no time at all to make it. It’s large, and square which makes it the perfect accessory for a fabric ottoman to act as the table top. The overall size is 19.25″ x 19.25″ and features a diagonal wood pattern for the base.

I’m thinking of making a stock pile of these because I think they’d make a great house warming or hostess gift which will come in handy with the holiday season on our heels. They’re inexpensive to make and you could make a whole lot of them at the same time. I actually made this one out of a scrap 1x6x8′ and a 1″x3″x8′ I had sitting in the corner of the shop.

Every time my wife starts designing a new room or making over a room in our home I know that my honey-do-list is about to grow exponentially (it’s basically an ongoing series). Honestly, we get one room done, then start the next, and when we finish them all…we start again!.

But that’s okay because it keeps me busy doing something I love – building.

When my wife started designing our daughter’s ‘big girl’ room, I knew that there were going to be a few elements that I would have to tackle. That’s when I start seeing secret pins show up in boards that we share. I get an idea of what I’m in for.

We love pizza in our house, but really, who doesn’t. Actually, my father-in-law doesn’t…probably the only person in the world that doesn’t like pizza. I mean how could you not like pizza??? You can make so many different combinations of toppings, there’s gotta be something for everyone, right? Like this delicious barbecue chicken pizza.

Pizza comes in a close second to pasta as a quick go-to dinner because it’s so easy and versatile. On nights when we’re pressed for time, I will go looking through our fridge and pantry to create something out of nothing.

All of the projects I’ve worked on in the house have been, well…for the house. It’s all about making the house pretty, comfortable and organized. I finally realized I was building these projects on just two sawhorses that were anything but sturdy and a couple of 2×4’s with a 3×8′ sheet of plywood on top.

That really won’t hold anything with a significant amount of weight and it was throwing my builds just slightly off square/level/flat. 

Fire up the BBQ kids and make yourselves these loaded truffle BBQ baked potatoes (and by kids, I mean adults…by no means am I promoting BBQ usage by kids), but be careful you don’t lose your eyebrows or arm hair (no, that didn’t just happen to me…or did it?). 

I have to say that I make 90% of the dinners in our household. I like cooking most of the time, but I ESPECIALLY love it in the summer when I get to fire up the Q. And who doesn’t? Not only does it make the food more flavorful, but I love the smell that permeates the neighborhood and your clothing. If they could bottle this, I’d wear it. Something like “eau de BBQ”. Sounds classy.