diff --git a/podcasts-gtk/Cargo.toml b/podcasts-gtk/Cargo.toml
index 8d9e553..128b4cd 100644
--- a/podcasts-gtk/Cargo.toml
+++ b/podcasts-gtk/Cargo.toml
@@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ chrono = "0.4.6"
 crossbeam-channel = "0.3.8"
 gdk = "0.11.0"
 gdk-pixbuf = "0.7.0"
-glib = "0.8.0"
 gst = { version = "0.14.0", package = "gstreamer" }
 gst-player = { version = "0.14.0", package = "gstreamer-player" }
 humansize = "1.1.0"
@@ -28,13 +27,18 @@ serde_json = "1.0.39"
 # html2text = "0.1.8"
 html2text = { git = "https://github.com/jugglerchris/rust-html2text" }
 
+
+[dependencies.glib]
+features = ["subclassing"]
+version = "0.8.0"
+
 [dependencies.gettext-rs]
 git = "https://github.com/danigm/gettext-rs"
 branch = "no-gettext"
 features = ["gettext-system"]
 
 [dependencies.gtk]
-features = ["v3_24"]
+features = ["v3_24", "subclassing"]
 version = "0.7.0"
 
 [dependencies.gio]
diff --git a/podcasts-gtk/src/app.rs b/podcasts-gtk/src/app.rs
index 219686b..5f5f413 100644
--- a/podcasts-gtk/src/app.rs
+++ b/podcasts-gtk/src/app.rs
@@ -20,8 +20,13 @@
 
 #![allow(new_without_default)]
 
-use gio::{self, prelude::*, ActionMapExt, SettingsExt};
-use glib::{self, Variant};
+use glib;
+use glib::subclass;
+use glib::subclass::prelude::*;
+use glib::translate::*;
+use glib::{glib_object_impl, glib_object_subclass, glib_object_wrapper, glib_wrapper, Variant};
+
+use gio::{self, prelude::*, ActionMapExt, ApplicationFlags, SettingsExt};
 use gtk;
 use gtk::prelude::*;
 
@@ -43,11 +48,56 @@ use crate::widgets::show_menu::{mark_all_notif, remove_show_notif, ShowMenu};
 use std::cell::RefCell;
 use std::env;
 use std::rc::Rc;
-use std::sync::Arc;
+use std::sync::{Arc, Mutex};
 
 use crate::config::{APP_ID, LOCALEDIR};
 use crate::i18n::i18n;
 
+#[derive(Debug)]
+struct AppState {
+    some_window: gtk::Window,
+    some_label: gtk::Label,
+}
+
+pub struct HmdApplicationPrivate {
+    state: Mutex<Option<AppState>>,
+}
+
+impl ObjectSubclass for HmdApplicationPrivate {
+    const NAME: &'static str = "HmdApplication";
+    type ParentType = gtk::Application;
+    type Instance = subclass::simple::InstanceStruct<Self>;
+    type Class = subclass::simple::ClassStruct<Self>;
+
+    glib_object_subclass!();
+
+    fn new() -> Self {
+        Self {
+            state: Mutex::new(None),
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+impl ObjectImpl for HmdApplicationPrivate {
+    glib_object_impl!();
+}
+
+impl gio::subclass::prelude::ApplicationImpl for HmdApplicationPrivate {
+    fn activate(&self, app: &gio::Application) {
+        println!("activated!");
+    }
+}
+
+impl gtk::subclass::application::GtkApplicationImpl for HmdApplicationPrivate {}
+
+glib_wrapper! {
+    pub struct HmdApplication(Object<subclass::simple::InstanceStruct<HmdApplicationPrivate>, subclass::simple::ClassStruct<HmdApplicationPrivate>, HmdApplicationClass>) @extends gio::Application, gtk::Application;
+
+    match fn {
+        get_type => || HmdApplicationPrivate::get_type().to_glib(),
+    }
+}
+
 /// Creates an action named `name` in the action map `T with the handler `F`
 fn action<T, F>(thing: &T, name: &str, action: F)
 where
@@ -87,7 +137,7 @@ pub(crate) enum Action {
 
 #[derive(Debug, Clone)]
 pub(crate) struct App {
-    instance: gtk::Application,
+    instance: HmdApplication,
     window: gtk::ApplicationWindow,
     overlay: gtk::Overlay,
     settings: gio::Settings,
@@ -100,7 +150,7 @@ pub(crate) struct App {
 }
 
 impl App {
-    pub(crate) fn new(application: &gtk::Application) -> Rc<Self> {
+    pub(crate) fn new(application: &HmdApplication) -> Rc<Self> {
         let settings = gio::Settings::new("org.gnome.Podcasts");
 
         let (sender, receiver) = unbounded();
@@ -401,8 +451,17 @@ impl App {
         bindtextdomain("gnome-podcasts", LOCALEDIR);
         textdomain("gnome-podcasts");
 
-        let application = gtk::Application::new(Some(APP_ID), gio::ApplicationFlags::empty())
-            .expect("Application initialization failed...");
+        let application = glib::Object::new(
+            HmdApplication::static_type(),
+            &[
+                ("application-id", &Some(APP_ID)),
+                ("flags", &ApplicationFlags::empty()),
+            ],
+        )
+        .expect("Application initialization failed...")
+        .downcast::<HmdApplication>()
+        .expect("Congrats, you have won a prize for triggering an impossible outcome");
+
         application.set_resource_base_path(Some("/org/gnome/Podcasts"));
 
         let weak_app = application.downgrade();