Never a dull moment around here

Our new water line trench, all filled in.

Mark mixing concrete for one part of our water line trench.

Cutie Halloween bag filled with apple tree leaves.

There it is! We do have a Japanese maple that is turning a beautiful fire red.

Cutie Halloween bag #2 full of leaves.

We've cleared out a lot of overgrown brush and tree limbs from this level of the front yard, but we still need to get rid of the pile in the middle of the yard.

Beautiful autumn colors.

My nerdy dollar tree Halloween decorations.

More nerdy decorations.

What color to choose?  Forest Khaki or Wood Smoke?

 I hate not having a dishwasher.

What better to do on an autumn day than to make chocolate chip cookies!?

We're ready and waiting for those trick-or-treaters!!

HAVE A HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween weekend everyone!  What are your plans for the spooky weekend?  Well, for us, tonight was our church's Halloween party. People brought food, candy, there was a magic show, prizes for the best costumes (yours truly won one!), a candy walk, bingo, and lots of laughter and fun. In attendance were cowboys, pirates, angels, a witch, a zebra, a 1920s flapper, a nurse, two construction workers, Cat in the Hat, Sherlock Holmes, a hippie, serial murderer, a unicorn, a chef, a werewolf and others.  I'll give you a glimpse of my prize-winning outfit:

Fancy, huh?! It was pretty fun getting all decked out.

Tomorrow, on actual Halloween, I'll have to put my fringe and fishnets away, for the majority of the day will be a work day.  Mark is working on putting a new water line in (the trench through the front yard is already dug) and I'll be raking leaves, cleaning the house and doing load after never-ending load of laundry.  The evening will be spent (I hope!) passing out candy.  I am very excited to have trick-or-treaters for really the first time ever, but I have no idea if we'll have any.  I am prepared, though!!

I'll try my best to post some pictures of our exterior clean-up and Mark's trench tomorrow.  Until then,

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

Thank you...

...Uncle Donnie and Aunt Sandy!!

It will be a while before our next project gets underway...  :o)

Fireplace remodel - revealed!

If you were wondering what our first remodeling project was going to be (remembered, it had the word FIRE in it?), it was in fact our living room fireplace!

Just look at this beauty...

Lopsided mantle, smoke-stained brick and gorgeous brass front...It was in desperate need of a little love. We figured that now was a great time to love on it a bit, since soon we will want to be curled up in front of a blazing fire...but not starting at the above picture.  So, it quickly became our first project. (Remember, we've lived in this house exactly...2 weeks...I think.)

Mark started by first removing an outlet and a phone jack that was on the side of the mantle. No idea why the previous owners put them there...but they did...so we removed them. I was given the fun job of cleaning the ash out of the firebox. Once all that prep type stuff was taken care of, we got into the destruction phase which is exciting and really dirty.

We first removed all the wood around the brick, including the mantel, since we decided to replace everything. Mark then inspected the chimney and found some cracks that needed to be filled in the firebox (which will happen a little later).

After all the wood was removed, it was time to do something about that 30 year old terracotta tile. We carefully removed the glass doors (they just popped off!) and it was ready to go. Mark first tried hitting the tile with a hammer. It wasn't doing a lot of damage so he decided to take it up a notch...and use the mighty sledgehammer.  It worked (see below) and it is a miracle that he did not sledgehammer a hole through our entire floor!!  A word of advice: when you are sledgehammering tile, wear safety glasses!  Sparks were flying, chunks of tile were flying in all directions (including at our windows, Cliff, and my head)...it was pretty hazardous..so be careful!

Oh, did I forget to mention that sledgehammering anything inside a house is messy?  Well, it is!  Anyway, once that mess was cleaned up I got to start my part of the project - painting the brick!  To prepare the brick for paint, I scrubbed it up really good with hot sudsy water. I used a sponge (the kind with the rough side) and steel wool. It pretty much tore through both, but it got the job done because it looked much cleaner when it dried. Once it was dry, I applied 2 coats of Kilz oil-based interior primer, which said on the can "for brick", so I knew I was using the right stuff.

I think I look a lot like Vanna White here. Cliff, meanwhile, is doing some of his own firebox inspections. Once the second coat dried, I applied two coats of the paint we choose, Glidden's Stone White.  It's pretty much white, but with barely a hint of grey.

As soon as the paint dried, Mark began laying out the slate we picked out to be the new hearth floor (from Mark's uncle's store Portland Direct Tile and Marble).  It is called "Indian Autumn" and it has blues, greys, and taupes - it's very pretty.

Once we got that all planned out, he began to set it with thin set. We noticed that when we weren't looking, Cliff left his mark on the thin set. Sneaky goof.

It didn't take long to set 10 pieces of slate. Once that was in, it really began to look a lot different (well, the paint kind of helped too)! (We spray painted the log holders which are those two things with big rings on the front inside of the firebox...we spray painted the doors (not the glass) the same flat black.)

Then we grouted the slate with some grey color...natural grey or winter grey.  I can't remember.  It goes really well with the slate.You can kind of see on each side of the hearth an unfinished gap...we are going to fill that in with the same wood from the floor, but since we haven't torn any up, we have nothing to fill it with yet, so for now those will be unfinished gaps. Oh, and all the white splotches in the firebox are crack patches. Just thought you'd like to know...

So, dismantling, painting, and slate done. What's left?  The new mantel, of course! We decided to have a very simple mantel, much like what was already there before, so after purchasing some wood (good 'ol hemlock), Mark got to work (not that he wasn't working before...).

And before we knew it...

It was pretty much done!  Oh! And look how pretty our freshly painted doors look! After filling all the nail holes with wood filler and then sanding everything down, we were ready to stain. Which led to our next decision:

Dark Walnut    or    Ebony?

We chose...

Dark Walnut!!  And we are very happy we did.  It actually almost perfectly matches our end tables and sofa table.  Plus, it looks a little rustic, which I like.  We gave it two coats of stain and finished it off with two coats of clear satin polyurethane.

And with that, our first project came to an end.  We think it looks much better than it did before.  Here's a little side by side of the before and after (technically, after and before) for you.

One very small project down...400 more to go! But who's counting?!

A Greener Home

I think that you would agree with me when I say we all want to make our homes "greener". I think what holds many of us back from going the "green route" is money.  (Well, for me it is!)  So, when I ran across these two great "green your house" suggestions that don't take a lot of money, I thought I would share them. If these are things you already do, good job! But if you don't (like me), maybe you will think about starting!

Suggestion #1: Start a compost pile, bin, or box
Your only cost for this project might be the cost of a bin (if you choose to purchase one) or the wood to create your own bin. Other than that, you might need to train yourself in a new routine for handling compostable kitchen scraps (i.e. "don't put compostable kitchen scraps in the garbage can!"). Maybe a plastic mini trash can or plastic bag next to your sink is what you can use to collect your compostable kitchen scraps. Whatever it is, keep it close to the sink - the more convenient it is to access, the more likely you are to use it!

Getting started
Choose a container that's made of wood (or another sturdy material) that is not smaller than 3 feet by 3 feet. Place it in your yard in a shady spot that has good drainage.

Start adding waste in the ratio of three "browns" to one "green". Browns include carbon-rich material such as straw, leaves, branches and wood chips. Greens are nitrogen rich and include grass clippings and kitchen scraps like eggshells, carrot tops, and that gross wilting lettuce you forgot you had in the back of your crisper.

When you add new material, dig a whole in the middle so the new stuff is coated with the old mixture.

Maintaining the pile
Composting is a smelly process. You're breaking down food and waste, after all, but it should be so offensive that your neighbors complain. If you notice a stench, make sure you have enough "browns" in the pile. Moisture could also be the culprit. Grab a handful - it should feel like a rung-out sponge (about 50 to 60 percent moisture). If it's too dry, let the rain even it out; if it's too wet, add a few more browns.

When it's ready
When it's ready to be used, which could take a couple months to a year, compost looks and smells like very dark soil. If you are unsure, put a handful in a plastic baggie. Sniff before sealing. Then, place the bag in a drawer for a few days.  When you take the baggie out, it should smell the same as it did before. If it smells worse, it needs more time.

(The story is quoted/paraphrased from here http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/10/22/composting/index.html?iref=newssearch.)

Suggestion #2: Make your own green, nontoxic household cleaners
This might sound time consuming and radical at first, but after reading this article, it seems cheaper and easier than I expected! Your start-up costs might be buying some of the ingredients and a few new plastic bottles/containers.  To be uber-green, use recycled cleaner containers...just be sure and clean them out really well!

Here is the fabulous story...and recipes for 36, I repeat 36, different household cleaners. They have included everything from an all-purpose spray to drain cleaner to carpet stain remover to powder laundry detergent to air freshener and toilet bowl cleaner!

http://www.younghouselove.com/2009/10/clean-up-your-act-all-natural-homemade-cleaners/

I hope this inspires you to mix up a few for yourself!  Who knew that microwaving 2 cups of water and 1/2 cup of vinegar on high for 3-4 minutes would clean your microwave! (Well, you do have to wipe it down.)

I hope you enjoyed these two suggestions for going green cheaply! I know that it's made me want to start composting and mixing up my own cleaners!  Once I do, I promise to post about them - hold me to it!!

Our ongoing side project

Make that ongoing outside project!

It's obvious from previous pictures that our landscaping is a wee-bit overgrown.  Well, not long after we moved in, Mark took on the grass and mowed, which actually made a world of difference, but there is much, much more to be done.

Grabbing some gloves and my handy pruners, I first tackled the 8' rhododendron in our front yard and then the ... bushy tree thing next to it. You can kind of see our first brush pile building up behind it.

The bushy tree thing next to it took forever to prune!  There were so many dead branches underneath (and still are) and they were all super skinny and you didn't know where they connected - ahhh - it was the worst!  Anyway, we then tacked the Tarzan vines that entwined one of our fir trees out front.

You can still see what we couldn't reach without a ladder. Those things are tough! (Check out growing brush pile #2!) We're going to have to get out a really tall ladder to finish off those vines.

This evening we started in on the sticker bushes that were surrounding the 5 or so mailboxes at the end of our driveway. Despite a few sticks (Mark got one right in the neck!), we managed to come out on top and removed most of them. They really don't stand a chance against me and my trusty pruners!

Underneath everything, we found a beautiful Japanese maple!  It's actually pretty huge and was getting overtaken by those pesky sticker bushes...but we took care of that problem (see scary photo of me above). Now we only have to remove some Ponderosa Pine branches above it so that it gets a wee bit more light and then it will actually be visible to us and people who drive by! (Sorry for the dark picture.)

A little down, a lot more to go, but it's looking better all the time!

Finally!

What you've all been waiting for...PICTURES!

Let's start with the outside...

Front of our house...left side.

Front of our house (left side)...another view.

Covered, overgrown, and ugly back porch.

Front of our house (right side).

Another overgrown backyard view.

Our awesome front door + window.

As you can see, things are pretty overgrown, outdated, and just plain ugly!  But we think this house has a good...foundation...so that's something!!  No, I'm joking. It's got good bones and I think we can really make it shine. It's just going to take a lot of time and money and money and time. Oh. And hard work.

And now for some fabulously terrifying interior pictures...

An inside shot of our very cool door.

Mark in front of our huge living room windows.

Another view of our great room.

(Something in this picture became our first remodel project!)

Kitchen. Cool windows. Yellow sink.

Dining nook. Those curtains are already gone.

Andrea's apartment...I mean part of our basement.

So, there is a small glimpse of our huge new-to-us house! I decided not to bore you with about 1,000 square feet of cement-floored basement, three boring bedrooms...actually, one is all wood and quite fabulous:

and two bathrooms. Actually, one of those is pretty photo-worthy too:

You may be thinking...are you sure that is a bathroom? Could it be an entrance to a saloon? (Check out the swinging door...that doesn't go all the way to the top or bottom!)  I promise this interior outhouse is an actual bathroom - complete with working toilet and shower stall! You may ask, where do you wash your hands?  My only answer is, the shower, of course!

We have so many projects ahead of us, we decided to start one that we would actually be able to finish within a week. My next big post will be about that amazing transformation. Prepare yourself to be shocked and amazed!