Time for FUN

The BACKYARD Whew it is nearly finished..I think the rest of the landscaping projects back here will wait for next summer, but they are small in comparison to this summer

First we refurbished this brick wall, then power washed all fences and gates and re-sealed them.

Next came forming and pouring concrete edging along the north and west fence line. Then Dan had this great idea to built this little curved planter boxes with the leftover blocks we had to plant the new bushes in. He accused me of spraying the other bushes with weed killer but I deny that. They were simply OLD like 50 years old and tired and just went away. So 2 weeks ago we planted the new (Hibiscus bushes) in the nice boxes. They will grow big and tall and wide and block the neighbors ugly back yard. We like them alot.

Then more edging around the back screened in porch
f-

o

The sand box was re-built, moved and pavers placed around it. A cover now keeps the cats out.

Last was the small terracing in the corner that would become the play area.

We finished off by putting mulch everywhere.
In the corner we put rubber mulch to see how we like it.
While there is more to do we are really liking the transformation of this massive big yard is making. One more big surprise to come in a couple of weeks

The Many faces of the Man I LOVE!!

It's been a great 31 Years. You are the best!

The metamorphosis Little Dan to Dan the Man

The best Grandpa and Opa

Thanks for 6 awesome kids

I love You!!!!

The Final Refinish

This project has been on going for about 5 years.

Many years ago my mother gave me this desk and chair that she and dad bought when they were first married, around 1950. Sometime in the 70's she had antiqued it white. I think it was a huge craze at the time for I seem to remember entire bedroom sets through out the house sporting the antique look. By the time I got the desk the antique finish was scratched to pieces and the desk top was quite damaged with heat and water stains, it was an absolute mess. I used it that way for years and finally got the desk refinished a couple of years ago. I ran out of time and told myself that I would do the chair soon. My soon has turned into 4 years. Part of my problem was the chair was structurally unsafe. The one center back piece had been missing for as long as I can remember and several of the doweled joints had broken through. I didn't have the tools or the skills to fix it, I was in a dilemma.

Then into my thoughts came the name of Curtis. Curtis is my little (tall) brother. He is a master of wood and so I asked him if he could help my little chair to a new life. He agreed, I was thankful. Little did I know how thankful I would really feel until some 9 months later. A year ago I took it over to him and when I got it back in this May not only had he fixed the joints, he had completely taken the chair apart, tightened and re-dowels all joints, custom made a back piece and then stripped it to the bare wood. It was beautiful with out any stain. With all the yard landscaping and such I just didn't have a minute to finish this chair until this week. So now stain, varnish and new upholstery on the seat the chair is as beautiful as it was the day Mom and dad bought it.

THANKS Curtis

you are the best and I will love sitting in this chair every time I sit down to sew,

and that is quite often.

So you may be asking why would I want this chair at all, why not throw it away? So unless you are 5 foot tall or shorter you will not understand the sheer ecstatic joy one feels, to sit in a chair with your back touching the back, it a true upright posture, no slumping here and your feet, both of them flat on the ground, no toe touching. That is why I wanted this chair saved IT FITS ME!! plus its a memory of dad who died nearly 47 years ago. I am grateful that mom and dad felt inclined to purchase a quality piece of furniture when things were tight financially for them. I am sure they had no idea they would have a short daughter who would fit this chair "just right"
I sound like the baby bear in Goldilocks and the 3 bears story. Maybe that is why I always related to the little bear and his chair.

It's Been 13 Years

The last time this garage had a major cleaning Rachel was 6, that is a scarry thought huh.. I put in on my list for the summer and we finally got to it. I believe it was James who organized the last cleaning for a merit badge on Family Life. (Boys, I am counting on you to correct me if I am wrong.) He got his Eagle when he was almost 14 so that has been 13 years. After doing yard work in the hot sun we were ready for some work not in direct sunlight, but it was still very hot. Our kids will realize what a change this is. Yes Dad was willing to rid himself of lots of "baggage"

First pulled everything out of the garage that wasn't on the top tier of shelf's. Man did we have tons of stuff. What you see is after half of it was put away. It took 3 long days to sort, organize and put away.

Before.........and........After
We recycled everything we could, which entailed many trips to various recycling centers with the last load to go to Boulder next week with Dan. I couldn't find any place closer that would take all the scrap metal we had.

The middle section of the upper tier of shelving. Everything in its place and ohhh so nicely labeled

The junk closet cleaned and labeled and things removed forever

Stacy dreamed up this "Sports Center" where we organized everything to do with Sports. Peyton loved putting the baskets on the shelves. We recycled the shelves from when James made them,(another merit badge project for his room) Then Stacy found a piece of peg board that we finished putting misc things on. This was a good move.

One of many dirt piles

OK boys remember all the wood stashed on the side wall of the garage. Well a day on Craigs list and it is all gone. Yippee. Dan admitted he wasn't very attached to it anymore.

This is Stacy's proudest part of her organizing efforts. She took scrap lumber and cut it to size and made shelves for all the boots. We refer to it as a "Ski Rental Closet" We give cheap rates to family members.

The clean and organised work bench and tool boxes.
The following is a list of the funny things we found in the garage while cleaning.

*3 trays (like you buy starter plants in) filled with small plastic cups, filled with dirt and dead plants. Each cup was clearly labeled a-1,a-2 etc.... If my memory serves me right, this was Alans science project in about 6th grade. Now that was a long time ago. Boy did we get a chuckle with that one.
*A small woven basket with a handle with a 12 inch piece of rotted rope in it.
*Old sprinkler setup , the manual one
* All the old fixtures from the kitchen and bathrooms.

I can't tell you how many times we just shook our heads in dis-belief of the things we came accross.

Lesson Learned: NEVER wait 13 years to clean the garage
Stacy decided in these kinds of projects a cordless drill is your best friend and you don't have to be a afraid of it.

The way I see it if Stacy can't find a job teaching she could hire out as a professional organizer.

The breezeway is equally cleaned and organized. My goal on Friday was to stay clean for 3 days, but Stacy manipulated me into cleaning the breezeway by noon. Oh well now it is done and you don't hurt yourself trying to get through. LIFE IS GOOD