Getting there...

 

Hello everyone!

 

First of all...why is it so cold outside? :(

Fall here already... too soon!

Glad we got to enjoy the warm days this summer.
 

We have been trying to catch up on all the home reno projects

been making good progress....

The deck fix-up is complete... 

And it got a much deserved scrub down
here is the before...

looks so clean now will remember to click a pic to post
maybe if it wasn't so cold outside

Kitchen cabinets are done!!!
hardware is up as well :)
It was a major undertaking we are so glad it is DONE.
Here is a lil peak...they look awesome!

We are in the process of selecting countertops
decided to go with HD laminate
it is the only option that makes financial sense for this house
We will be going with a light color
trying to get something that does not look anything like the current countertop

we have our fav picked
just getting a few details ironed out before the installation :)

We are still hoping to get the front yard landscaping done
but will probably do the planting next year
and just get the area prepped now

We found a painter to get the high ceiling/wall area done
just have to set a date with him

ekkks almost too many things and not enough time
between work, taking care of the baby and daily chores
not sure how everything is going to be scheduled

Will keep you posted with our progress.
 

Home Reno update

 

Ok it's been a while since I last posted
over a month!!!

took me a while to recollect what the last blog was about

 

So let's see...

landscaping...Believe it or not...still working with the landscaper to tailor our project :)

the porch - is still where we left it
the deck - just a few railings away from being done...then just cleaning & staining
contacting painters...to get some of the interior hard to reach places done
renovation surplus...mess in the garage has been posted for sale online! just waiting now
Kitchen update....is on it's way to completion, staining is complete...poly coat left yaaaa!

Lately we have just been so busy with traveling for work
and watching Baby Z grow we haven't had a lot of time to get stuff done.
Hoping to get the kitchen and deck done soon and hopefully everything else as well :)

Here are all the kitchen cabinet doors drying in the garage :D
can't wait to have a complete kitchen again.

 

 



Summer is here!

Wow it's been a whole month since I last posted

been so busy with house work, cooking, taking care of baby

after I am done with all of it all I want to do is go to bed!

So let me see if I can get you up to speed with everything...

So much has been going on... where to begin!

 

We have been planning out our landscaping options

had a couple of professionals come and give us estimates

working with one to get something done :)

Here is an example... (sorry have to tilt your head to the left :)

We are also going to be redoing the porch post

make it look less country/vintage and more contemporary

list of stuff to order has been prepared

 

We got estimates on kitchen countertops

still deciding if that is something we want to invest in

going to wait till we get the cabinets re-done

yes we will be staining them dark! with some fancy knobs

Here is a sneak peek :)

Before vs. After :) 

 

 My Aunt visited from India and made us a ton of food yummy :)

Our freeze is stocked full till her next return later this year :D

 

I can grow stuff we can eat! who knew! I sure had my doubts :)

well we have been getting salad leaves from the garden twice a week

 

Then our deck

we are fixing it up, going to stain/paint it...haven't decided yet

but it is going to look awesome once we are done :)

Sneak-peek...

 

Last but not the least baby is doing awesome

she has started crawling and pulling herself up

exploring all around the house and learning that there are boundaries :)

 

We are loving this summer weather

hope you are too!

Until next time Buh-bye! :) 

More TADAAAA's!

  Ok so I did some rearranging while Grant was at Frisbee...

 

 Still not how I would like it to be

Oh well just trying to work with what we have

 Still have a lot of clutter that I need to get rid off

 Will get to that once we are done with renovation work...

 Kale chips...I stacked them on so all pieces did not get crispy

Grant would like not to try this again :)

Will just make them better next time ;)

  Finally got to these...

these were some frames Grant's mom got him for

his bare apartment walls in Ames

They just needs to be reupholstered to match our deco

 

 So we got some cool fabric for $7

 Thought we try two different prints in the same color scheme

Wiki was wondering what I was up to...

 TADAAA...

 1st pattern....naaaa 

that 2nd fabric combo just doesn't look right

 2nd pattern....

so used just the one fabric

naaa still not liking it...

 3rd pattern...like this one for now :)

 Then we have wanted to try and find a way to prevent Wiki from jumping off the deck

so here is what we did :)

 Yup we now have a cat pen/deck :)

Hoping it works!

 Gave it a try...Wiki was wondering what this stuff was...

but i bet he was already planning his new escape route

 Well he could not get through the railings

so here he is trying to get over the couch to jump off the top

Oh well just pulled it away and it was fine

 Mission accomplished!

Planning and organizing :)

So these past two weeks we have working on and clearing out the garage.

A lot of organizing and sorting - moving things to store in the basement or stuff 

we need up to the second floor.

Opening up all the wedding presents and the left over decoration was fun. 

But yeah we have a lot more sorting to do and have a lot of things to sell :) 

At this time however we have decided to just take things out of the garage and go through it later. 

The basement before....

  We bought some shelving...

 Wiki playing in the packaging...

 

 After a couple of hours...

 Our sorting station...

  The garage before...

 

After...

 We still got a little more work to do, but we are getting there...

 Now we just have to build that shed to hold all the lawn equipment :) 

as you can see it has taken over half of the garage...it is probably the next thing we are going to tackle...

 Some other things we have had to deal with...Wiki learned to go through the gate down the stairs into the back lawn. Which worries us cause nothing prevents him from just jumping over the fence.
So we tried to Wiki proof the deck.

With the left over aluminum mesh... yaaay finally got to use our staple gun :)

  It was a little mangled from using it as a sieve on the rocks in the front yard...

 And it was a success...for a little while at least...

 Haa haaa Wiki re-planning his escape...

But then he figured out the shortest jump to the ground and now he just jumps off of there :/

So now we got to go get more mesh and put it around the entire deck :/

For now Wiki gets no outside time!

We got him a fountain since the pump on his old drinking unit died, and he loves drinking flowing water.

This time we just got him this...we didn't like the actually pet water thingies they has for sale.

So that he can drink and relax indoors :) It seems to be working...

 We got some more lawn stuff...all the more reason to get that shed ASAP:)

 We got it so that we could water our dying grass. We also bought a different sprinkler - with a wider range found it to give better coverage. Look at it go...

 While we were out there we thought we would try and tackle the railing and 

see what it would take to get it off. Well turns out nothing is as easy as it seems. 

The screws used...some don't have a head anymore and others are way too rusted out. So we are going to have to saw it off. Oh well will have to tackle it some other time. 

  Happy web browsing everyone!

More exciting stuff to come :)