Just In Time

for the rain to begin....
I know - it is crazy to stain your deck in October - that is even what the hardware store told me as I bought their last three cans of cedar colored Penofin stain...but we made it just in time!

I had my first experience with a power washer - it is satisfying to see the difference it makes, but what a tedious job! 
Then choosing the stain...
Being the Engineer that I am - I had to do my research.
I found a great website that rates stains and then narrowed it down based on the single fact that I did not have time to order one of the "best" ones. 
http://www.deckstainhelp.com/category/deck-product-reviews/deck-stain-reviews/

We learned some valuable lessons when staining:
1. Don't use a painting mitt. Seems like a great idea - right! Save time on the rails by using your hand as the brush...that is until each rail is coated in little bits of fuzzy mitt. 
2. Do use paint pads but buy the more expensive long handle extension. Our wood one broke in about 5 minutes.
3. If it is windy - go ahead and secure the plastic paint liner to the tray. Yup - we dumped stain all over when the wind picked up the liner. Duck tape to the rescue...again.
4. When it says wipe down the stain within 30 minutes - they mean it. We ended up with some "extra" stain in some places.

Another project we finished just in time was trimming the bottom branches of a few large "Christmas" trees that we have. They were looking very dated so my mom and I worked to   show off their trunks and it made such a difference. 

Last but not least - my car is parked in the garage! The garage is definitely not what you would call clean or organized - but I made it fit. Yippee!

Now for some before and after pics:

Deck before - covered in lichen

Powering washing...so tedious

BEFORE power washing on the left - AFTER on the right. 

Deck done

This is a terrible before pic - but the tree we trimmed is on the far left

No more out of control Christmas tree

Before of second tree

After - look it has a trunk!

Happy wife = happy life

5 Months Later...

The living and dining room have taken us a long time to decorate, but they are finally looking finished and I am so happy with the result. Since we moved from a 900 square foot house, we really didn't have living or dining room furniture. It was fun to have a clean slate to work with, but also meant that we had a lot of furniture to agree on. My decorating consultant mom shopped all around to help find the right pieces and I owe much of the credit to her!

Here are some before and after pictures...

oh those mirrors!

old drapes and nasty carpet

light pink walls and cream carpet....

Finished Living room!

Living and Dining Rooms

The fireplace still needs some work...

Dining room with new drapes

Dining Room Light!

We finally replaced the horrible off center brass dining room light today with a new burlap pendent light! When I first went looking for dining room lights, I found one that I really liked, but after getting it home and putting it together completely, I realized that I could not use it without moving the electrical connection. As much fun as that sounded, I returned the light and went on the hunt for a new dining room light with a chain so that we could use a hook to center it over the table.

When I finally found the one I wanted in June, it was back-ordered. It FINALLY arrived and Kyle put it together and helped hold it while I figured out the right height. He is a patient guy!  Then Steve came over and installed it for us - thank you! 

I love the texture of the shade and the size. Worth the wait!

We have more volunteer plants in the garden this summer! This massive sunflower came up and I have to say that I was a little worried that it was just a giant weed, but then it started blooming and now it is 9 feet tall! We also have a volunteer clematis that has found a nice spot to rest on one of the deck chairs after climbing up over 10 feet! 

Blackberry Kill Zone!

This weekend Kyle and I tackled the blackberry vines that were taking over our ivy bank. I know what you are thinking - an invasive species growing over another invasive species...oh yeah...and they are both thriving. At the end of our mostly flat yard, we have a slope that goes down about 10 feet down to the fence line. It is a steep slope that is held in place by what I would guess is 30+ year old ivy. As much as I hate ivy, it does a good job holding the earth in place. But blackberry vines tangled with the ivy and random horsetails coming through both - now that makes me crazy.

I did a bunch of research on killing blackberry vines, and besides adopting a few goats, pesticides were what everyone said produced the kill. I really really did not want to use anything toxic in the yard because of Luna our pup and I strongly dislike using toxic chemicals. After talking for about 20 minutes with a wonderful earth loving vegetarian at our local nursery, he convinced me that painting on the pesticide to the newly cut vines instead of spraying it, was the best way to target the pesticide and avoid contamination.

Armed with my gloves, goggles, paintbrush, old plastic container, jeans, and long sleeve shirt - I was ready to kill some blackberries. It was a hot weekend and with our winter attire on, we were only able to work a few hours in the morning and a few hours at night, but we finally finished around 9 tonight! 

Here are a few before and after pictures:

 Before: Horsetails taking over

 Before: weeds and blackberries everywhere!

 Before: Blackberries tangled all over

 Before: Get ready to die blackberries!

 During: This was 24 hours after painting this blackberry stalk - black stem!

 After: Only ivy...ahhhh...just one crazy invasive species

 After

 After

Stress Relief In The Garden

We have spent so much time working inside our house that it feels great to go outside and get dirty. I have had a lot of fun building our raised beds, planting veggies, and making the garden my own. When the mountain on inside projects is wearing me down - the garden tends to be my stress reliever and hey - a little sunshine never hurts!


Here are a few pictures of re-purposed broken pots and an old milk crate that I have made into fun garden art.

 Broken pot with succulents. 

Hopefully they will grow quickly and look like they are spilling out.

 River created with broken pot and green river rocks

Milk crate pot holder

It has also been fun to see what is popping up in the garden. The Shasta daisies and hostas are out and it looks like we are going to have some blueberries! The raised beds are also taking off with the peas and zucchini plants in bloom.

Shasta daisies

 Bloomin' hostas

 Blueberries...come on and ripen already!

 Sugar Snap Pea Blossoms

 "Baby" zucchini plant taking over the raised beds

A few rooms at a time...

Sometimes it feels like I work so hard on the house with nothing to really show for it. A lot of the work we have done are things you just expect to be part of a house....paint, blinds, molding, hardware, flooring, electrical outlets, ceiling lights, etc. By themselves they are not very impressive, but once a room is put together it sure feels great! 


We have made huge progress in the guest bedroom, master bedroom, and family room. We have yet to hang pictures and Kyle is threatening an NFL like draft for the wall space, but the rooms are at least functional.


We have also spruced up the front of the house and added rock around the raised bed paths. Shout out to my mom for all of her painting skills, decorating advice, garden help, and time and to Steve and Carolyn for their help with the molding, hardware, and light installation - thank you thank you!

BEFORE

Outside Color!

Family Room BEFORE

Family Room with new carpet and paint

Guest Bedroom BEFORE

Current Guest Bedroom  

Master Bedroom BEFORE

Current Master Bedroom

New White Wood Molding

Horrible Brown Plastic Molding

Raised Beds with Path