The Froggy Surprise

After my grandma passed away this year, we had to get ready to have an estate sale. Which forced us to go through all of her belongings, a task our hearts were just not ready to deal with. The only thing my mom really wanted were these old concrete frogs that had been in the front flower beds for years and years. They were something my mom and her dad had found together when she was young, and my grandma loved them too. That's how old they are! (just joking, mom =P) Well mom kept saying how she'd like to have them but they were in such bad shape they should probably just get thrown away. I could see the sadness in her eyes when she'd say that and how much she really wished they had been taken care of. So the next day while she wasn't looking I sent my husband on a mission to get the frogs into my trunk. As soon as she came outside she noticed they were  missing. We told her someone must have thrown them away. She looked so sad I almost told her my plan right then! But I bit my tongue. I worked on restoring them for a little over a week, and I really wish I would have thought to take a before picture!!

 After two coats of green spray paint, I painted the eyes and the green highlights down the back. They looked a little freaky before I painted the pupils.

 Above: All the acrylic paint looked dull and flat before I put on the clear sealant coats.

Below: After the clear sealant coat, the green acrylic paint looked like natural highlight down the frog's back.

I was so excited to finally have them finished! I was originally going to wait until my parents anniversary to present them to mom, but I can never wait to give people their gifts. So the second day of the actual estate sale, I told mom I had a surprise for her. The two of them in one box was pretty heavy so my husband brought them in and we sat them on the table. You could tell she was a little confused at what it could be. I stood in anticipation as she opened the box and pulled out the tissue paper. She saw them and stood there for a second stunned and when she realized what I had done she cried, which made me cry. She hugged me so tight. I don't think I've ever been able to give her a better gift. :)