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Sunday, October 15, 2023

In 2010, my beautiful, lovely wife had the awesome idea that I can make things out of wood.

I am still trying.



PRODUCTS MADE OF WOOD

FREE


Little Duck on Wheels

Hard maple wood, finished with Toymakers/Wood Bowl Finish. All edges smoothed for comfortable gript of the hands



Little Duck on Wheels

Pine wood, finished with Toymakers/Wood Bowl Finish. All edges smoothed for comfortable gript of the hands


A teether for a baby in a shape of a bear - made of maple, finished with beeswax and mineral oil, safe and smooth


Green car, long 5 inches, tall 3 inches, made of douglas fir, painted with safe acrylic paint, finished with wood bowl finish (the same ingredients as previous Toymakers Finish)


Cat puzzle - made of pine wood, finished with beeswax and mineral oil; round edges


This blog is not from a professional woodworker.
I do not compete for the best product or for the most products made out of wood. I only enjoy what I am doing as a hobby

My last name is Янев. It is Bulgarian name. There is no equivalent for the letter Я in the latin alphabet. Originally, after the end of the communism in 1990, it was written with Ia. After 1994, the Bulgarian government changed it to Ya.


I have always been afraid of earthquakes

I worked a little as a substitute custodian and graduated with an associate degree in Computer Aided Design and Drafting. I have a regular job. If I am alone, I have enought money for the rest of my life. But I am continuing working for staying with my wife. Most of my wood comes from the club Seaside Scrollers. A few of my products from wood are posted here as gifts for free. They cost almost nothing to be made. 


Because of




The Road to Happiness. As happiness is understood in the movie The Pursuit of Happyness. A movie that I like very much.
All above is achieved with the help of my wife.

(The Diploma from Bulgaria has never been used and probably it will never be used. In 1990, the economy of Bulgaria switched from government centralized to private sector. Most of the machinery designing and building companies closed and the equipment was sold. The company that paid scholarship for my educaton and I had a contract to work for them, closed producton and the equipment was sold. My contract with them was canceled. The economy of Bulgaria switch from production to imports and sells. I worked in a bakery (I did not make any food there) and for two companies that were importing and selling tools and toys. My major is designing construction machiinery and specially machines for production of construction materials. I learned the foundation of the designing, using formulas without a computer simulations. It was not available at that time. I am 60 years old. My personal opinion is that I am too old to catch up with all the changes that happened since I graduated from the Technical University.)


I am still learning English language (I grew up and I lived the first 39 years of my life mostly in Bulgaria). My wife has helped me a lot to learn English.

I am also learning English from communicating with my collegues at work. I have the best co-workers in the world in the best company in the world. 

The first English word that I learned outside of Bulgaria was the word "Church" on August 6th, 1990.



I have the privilege to visit different hospitals in San Diego area while driving this car and learning the streets of the beautiful San Diego surrounding area (only a couple times per month because of my time schedule). From all the hospitals, that I have visited, VA in La Jolla is the best hospital. 

I have been thinking lately about the little atom energy, maybe electricity, inside my brain/body that gives an electrical impulses to my heart and makes my heart beat. I don't know what will happen with that little energy when I die. I will have a little cotrol over it. For now, I am considering to buy an AED Defibrillator, afrer I learn how to use it 

AED and First Aid Classes



San Diego Seaside Scrollers club has helped a lot to learn working with a scroll saw and to learn making wooden toys


All books cost only $2 (or less) per book to buy them


In my free time and during the weekends, sometimes I like to use these tools in parks and on the street

(something that I learned while working as a custodian before 2014)


A fun fact about me is that in Germany (1990-1993) I lived on a house on Sonnenstraße (Sunshine Str.) and now I live on Sunny Ln. 

During the last few weeks I am trying to remember if I have done something wrong, if I have hurt someone physically or verbally during the last few years for which I have not apologized or I have not corrected my mistake. If you who reads this blog knows about a person that I have hurt and I have not apologized to that person, please let me know.

Clean mind for clean thoughts


I am trying to do my work with a heart full of song 

(as it is wtitten in the LDS Hymn "Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel")


A personal theory that you don't have to agree with. If the Earth has ever been hit by another planet, there will be a double energy, the energy of the Earth and the energy of the other planet. Maybe the disballance of these energies is what causes the earthquakes. Maybe the energy of the Earth is what makes the gravity for all objects on the ground. Just my theory that I wanted to share.

I am not a teacher. A teacher will always represent the lesson in such way for the students to look for something more. I cannot do that.


A quote






Sunday, October 7, 2012


We are Jennifer and Ivan Yanev of J.I.Family Toys.  We created J.I.Family Toys in 2011 to provide safe and cute toys for children of all ages.  Ivan is a drafter and a mechanical engineer from Bulgaria that enjoys making simple wooden toys.  Jennifer, in addition to working in education, is the main investor, and the brains of the operation.  Our favorite phrase is "It's a small world after all".

We are thankful to God for new knowledge at Church and for possibilities to study and learn new things at schools and colleges that we can use at work.

We are thankful to you for visiting our site.

Friday, October 7, 2011

These are some 1½” cubes that Ivan made for an order he received.  The person who placed the order is using them at a paper crafting workshop. 

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Jennifer Painting




Ivan is insisting that I post a picture of myself (Jennifer) painting the toys. He really is the talent in the company, but he wants everyone to know that I paint some of the toys.