summer project // landscaping

Since moving into our house exactly two years ago, we've had a running list of projects big and small, inside and out. During our first summer, we tackled a lot of the smaller, inexpensive projects - painting, changing hardware on cabinets, adding lighting, etc. Last summer we added the deck, which we LOVE and use many evenings for supper and bird watching. This summer's big project was landscaping the front of the house. When we moved in, the landscaping looked like this:

It was completely overgrown with perennials, shrubs, and weeds. Don't mind the tub/cooler in the front lawn - we must have just gotten back from a camping trip. We knew we wanted to change it eventually, so shortly after we moved in, we tore everything out and have spent the last two years staring at a big dirt expanse in the front of our house which would inevitably fill up with small weeds during the summer. It was ugly. I'm sure our neighbors were just as excited as we were to get this project done.

Fast forward to three days ago. After getting a couple yards of dirt and rock dropped off, purchasing plants and shrubs, and hauling three car loads of landscape block, we were ready to begin. And by we, I mean Tim...while Jack and I supervised from the shade.

A couple weekends ago, we visited a local nursery to look at our plant options and ended up going with:

+ 1 lilac-colored azalea

+ 2 dwarf spruce trees

+ 2 prairie grass plants

+ 3 barberry bushes

And after 18 hours of hauling, spreading, measuring, cutting, and planting, it was complete and a BIG improvement from the overgrown daylilies/weed-invested mud hole. Tim did such a great job and along with master deck builder, he can now confidently add master landscaper to his resume. 

Other upcoming projects:
+ new landscape to the right of the front door
+ spruce up the sunroom
+ replace the front door
+ till up a garden plot

happy labor day

Labor Day Weekend, the unofficial last hoorah of summer. In the past, there's been camping trips, fishing trips, and cabin trips. But this year is pretty low-key. While Tim is enjoying the wilderness of the BWCA, mom and dad came up and we:

+ shopped the maternity store at the Albertville Outlet mall
+ painted the nursery (love it!)
+ went to church
+ started filling and organizing the nursery closet
+ watched The Andy Griffith Show on Netflix
+ shut the air off and opened the house up thanks to cooler temps and no humidity
+ made 3 pints of fresh salsa

Today will be spent in leggings and a cardigan, letting the fresh air blow through the house, while working on some design projects and anxiously awaiting Tim's return.

lately // staining a deck + washing a dog

Sweet summertime is here in the form of extra warm days, house projects, peaches, and long evenings outside...until we get chased in by mosquitos. Our ceiling fans are constantly spinning and the cool leather furniture has become a welcomed sight after activities like mowing and standing over a pot of boiling corn on the cob.

Thanks to the warm and (mostly) dry conditions, Tim was able to stain and seal the deck, making that project nearly complete. The only things left are to router the edges and maybe add a step along the whole front perimeter of the deck. Oh, and patio furniture of course. I'm just waiting for a sweet Craig's List deal or an end-of-summer sale at Home Depot.

Summertime also means that Callie's bath is an outdoor activity. She loves the water when it's in the form of a lake, river, or pond, but when it involves a bath tub or a garden hose, she gets a little sour.

step 1: get Callie wet

step 2: have some fun at Callie's expense

step 3: shake what your mama gave ya

step 4: soap/massage time = Callie's favorite part

step 5: dry off as you watch Tim remove stain from the house siding

Summertime, I hope you stick around for awhile this year. That'd be great. Thanks.

all decked out

Remember our awesome nasty mud pit that was filled with rock, smashed concrete, and faded wiffle balls? It has been replaced by a gorgeous cedar deck!

Tim has worked so hard on this project and this past weekend he got a little help from his dad and brother. By Saturday night, we were eating our pulled pork sandwiches on the deck, admiring their hard work. All that's left to do is put a few more pieces on the step, stain, and add some landscape rock around the outer edge.

using a lot of brain power to get the step to come out just right

Bucket hat Bob preparing a custom piece of wood for the step

Zach, the one who put in nearly every single screw on the floor boards. Bravo.

carrot cake leftover from Tim's pre-birthday supper last night

p.s. Happy birthday, Tim. I love you more and more each day, and am so excited to make you a dad. You're the best.

let's recap :: projects/Chicago/I'm cold

I'm cold.

I will tackle the last item on the list first. Why am I cold, you ask? Because it's November...and it's 30 degrees outside...and we haven't turned our heat on. This is what you get when you're married to Mr. "I haven't been cold (or hungry) since 4th grade." At first it sort of started out as a little game - how long can we go without turning on our heat? Tim jokes every year that we're not turning the heat on until Thanksgiving, but that idea usually only lasts about 2 seconds because I swoop in with my, "Ha! Yeah right. I HATE being cold. No way." speech. But I am sorry to report that we may actually make that dream/nightmare a reality this year, just not on our own terms.

With a new house, comes all sorts of uncharted territory. The one we're battling and exploring at the moment - boiler and steam heat. How the heck do you get those things to turn on? Last night Tim was tasked with figuring out how to turn on the heat because I thought I might go hypothermic. But after hours of tinkering and researching, we had nothing but a big puddle of hot water on the basement floor. Bummer. We're not really sure what to do next. All I really know is that I will be sleeping yet another night wearing 4 layers and 5 blankets.

Projects

In other house news, we've been busy nesting and improving. We are both still reveling in the joys of being homeowners (until we can't figure out things like turning on the heat). What we love so much about this house is that nothing major needs to be done to it; everything we envision doing is all reasonable, weekend DIY projects. This past weekend was the first free weekend at home we've had in awhile so we decided to tackle a little nook in the kitchen.

When we moved in, there was a small, dim light over the sink circa 1970 that was begging to be replaced. After tearing down the old board and light, Tim cut and stained a new board and then it was off to shop for a new light fixture. We ended up buying three different options, taking them home, holding them up, and then deciding which one would work and look the best. And holy cow, what a difference a little lighting makes!

The window in the kitchen has never had a shade on it, and I thought a little pop of color would look good behind our fresh, new lights. So I decided to try my hand at a DIY roman shade I'd seen on Pinterest. For the most part, the tutorial was great and very detailed. The project was pretty time consuming, but the shade works great and it literally cost less than $15. Can't beat that.

Chicago

At the end of September, Marji called me with a great idea: girls weekend in Chicago over MEA. Never having been to Chicago, it didn't take me long to say, "Absolutely!" So after a few minor speed bumps (lost wallet/driver's license) we were on our way to the windy city early Thursday morning. We had such a blast. Thanks to our cousin-in-law (is that even a word?) we were able to stay in the heart of the city, just a few blocks off Michigan Avenue, which made it so easy to see and do so many things. Highlights would include:

• deep dish pizza at Pizzeria Uno
• The Field Museum
• Chicago dog from a street vendor
• the ease of taking public transit
• the smell of cookies wherever we went (due to a chocolate factory nearby)
• shopping Michigan Ave.
• architecture boat ride tour through downtown
• breakfast at Wildberry
• The Bean and Millenium Park
• champagne and sushi at Sunda

What a great trip! I can't say enough good things about it. 

farmers market and lumberjacks

Hola! After seriously one of the hottest weeks EVER, I am actually sitting here with the air off and the windows open. Glorious. I feel like I can breathe again. I always say that I love Minnesota for its summers, but when its summers are 98 degrees with a dew point to match...yeah, there's not so much love then.

The heat broke on Friday/Saturday, making it another beautiful weekend full of projects. I (finally) made it to the St. Cloud farmers market and picked up a loaf of bread, 3 cucumbers, 2 hot hungarian peppers, and 1 stem of basil. It was truly a beautiful thing.

I planted some hostas I got from a neighbor (have I told you how much I love having neighbors?!), and started some smaller Pinterest-inspired craft projects. But probably the biggest accomplishment of the weekend is credited to Tim and Bob - they took down 3 trees in a matter of hours on Sunday. They're a couple of regular ol' lumberjacks. Mary and I were self-assigned spectators and water bottle-fillers. I think we definitely had the easier job...

And a good weekend isn't complete without good food - brats, homemade baked beans, caprese salad, chocolate chip cookies, and pad thai. Seriously delish.

weekend warriors

Before we moved in, one of the biggest things we talked about was all of the projects we wanted to do to the house/landscaping/etc. Even though everything is pretty much in great shape, there are still many things we want to change and improve. Hearing endless conversations of, "Let's do this to the front and this to the kitchen and this to the basement and this to...", everyone kept warning us to not go too fast in order to avoid getting burnt out. And while that is sounds advice, I think we've silently agreed that we'll push our luck on that one. Smart? Who knows. All I know is that all weekend was one big house project party and we ended the day yesterday covered in sweat, dirt, and accomplishment. It felt so great!

Projects we accomplished:

organized and cleaned up basement storage room
got rid of a lot more "stuff" that was left in the house when we moved in
overhauled the front landscaping (see proof below)
put new hardware on the kitchen cabinets

Looking at the list now, it doesn't seem like that much, but taking out the landscaping alone was whole afternoon project. And on top of all this house fun, I got to take some photos of baby Evie being all cute, purchase my first pair of really good base layer bottoms for camping, go out to sushi with Matt/Marji/Zach, and enjoy a warm summer evening looking at the Minneapolis skyline from St. Anthony Main. If this weekend is any indication of how this summer is going to go, I'm willing to claim "awesome" right now.

let the painting begin!

What do you get when you mix a new house, paint and a continuous playlist of 90's country?

Yep, you get a Mandy covered in green tape and a t-shirt that says "Rebel Attitude." 

I knew Mom was planning on coming to help paint for the weekend, but Mandy didn't want to miss out on all the fun so she surprised me. I may have screamed a little. We they got SO much done. While I was at worked, they painted their little hearts out. It was epic, and I am in love with how everything turned out. After much deliberation, every color is perfect. But my real pride and joy is the striped wall in dining room. I couldn't be more ecstatic with how it turned out! I can't help but smile every time I walk past it. It was worth every minute of careful taping/measuring/marking/painting. Here's a sneak peek at the piece de resistance in progress...

According to Pinterest...

We move into our new house (still feels so crazy to say that!) in exactly 2 months, which has got me thinking, dreaming, and breathing anything to do with paint colors, area rugs, and wall art. I am one of those girls who, since my teen years, has always been antsy to have a house, a space of my own to do absolutely whatever I wanted. I remember going to antique stores with my mom and finding so many cool knick-knacks or impractical pieces of furniture that I could never justify buying because the only space I could claim as my own was my bedroom. And let's face it, you can only fit so many paintings, old tins, vintage chairs, and quilts into a 12x14 room. 

But now I have a house. We have a house, and it's ours to fill. And I honestly couldn't be more excited. I sort of have the feeling I did when we started planning our wedding. After going to many weddings and taking note of things that were cool and not so cool, it was our time to come up with exactly what we wanted to make our day perfect. Same with a house. I have dozens of pins on Pinterest devoted to beautiful house spaces, colors, and rooms, and I'm figuring out exactly how I want our house to look.


But I was realizing the other day while thumbing through a catalog of home decor that every single room in the catalog looked perfect: perfect white trim, perfect wood floors, perfect crisp bed spread, perfect vase of flowers by the bed. The same goes for Pinterest. I look on there and everything is glossy, freshly-remodeled rooms that look like no one lives in them. And I feel like my generation is starting to take this as the norm, that even as a newlywed twenty-something you should be able to have the perfect looking house. 


I'll be the first to admit that I've fallen into this trap many times, and probably will in the future. I was just talking to Tim about this a couple of weeks ago and said that I've lately found myself expecting to have the glossy, freshly-remodeled rooms in the very near future...because that's what everyone else has (according to Pinterest). But I know now and am realizing that that is not practical, not feasible, and not necessary. I need to count myself incredibly blessed just to say that I'm a homeowner at my age and that it isn't the size of a postage stamp and that it's not in the ghetto! I am so thankful.


So for now, we will take it one step and one room at a time. Who cares if we don't have granite countertops or white trim in the next year or even 5 years? Who cares if we don't get to painting over the pink paint in the basement right away? Who cares if we don't get the landscaping taken care of this summer? I am going to enjoy every decision and every process and not compare myself to the so-called real world. Amen.