Stealing a Seat...

Ever just wanna steal something from your kid?

Be honest!!!

Ok. Maybe you don't...


Well, I DO!

From Ty.

He'll be 25 this year and I want to steal this from him....

I've been keeping my eyes peeled for a vintage, red and white bicycle to put in the yard...as decoration. The ones I find are in too good of shape or they are WAY too expensive!

I LOVE the seat...

THIS SEAT!

He better lock it up!!! Or it might go missing....BWAAAAHAAAAA!!!!!

What a beeee.uuuuu.ti.fullll day.....

Baby Shoe Nest courtesy of Barbara Jean of Treasure's From The Heart. 
I won this at a giveaway she had last year.

Oh, man. What a tease today has been. Still a bit on the chilly side, 60-ish, but the SUN was shining....

and we have to 


take joy in the simple things

I opened up some windows and doors for a few, then after things aired out a bit, brought in some wood and started me up a fire to take the chill away. Nothing like a fire when it's NOT freezing outside. Just cozy.

***********

The other night, after work, I decided to Spring-Up our fireplace mantel. I found a few goodies I just happened to already have (duh! smiles my honey..."with all that treasure hunting you do, you could probably Spring-Up a whole city of mantels!")

O.K., truth be told, he didn't say anything, except, "Whatcha doin?", as I was wearing a path between the  dining room and the catch-all storage room that will someday be the guest room...

He never really complains about anything I do or how much stuff treasure I collect. He's the best that way!!!

*********

Earlier that day, I was at Goodwill by my work (errands are so fun to run during the day!) **you did not just read that, honey! :-) wink; and I spotted this gorgeous framed picture. It's just a print, but it's matted and it just SCREAMS Springtime!!! $6.00. ** My friend, Ginger, called me today and said she found the exact same print today for $18....score....

What a perfect match for the wall in the dining room...

It was hanging on the wall. I took it down. Examined it for stains, broken frame, scratched glass, etc...contemplated it. Hung it back up. Shopped the other areas of the store. Came back to it. Took it down again. Put it in my cart. Took it back out again...

Birds. Hmmmm. I don't decorate with birds. Hmmmm. It is yellow. I have lots of yellow in the house. Hmmmm. It's Spring. Birds are Spring-y. That blue bird is awfully cute. Hmmmm. Yeah, o.k. I can put it on the mantel. Then I can decorate the mantel for Spring. Now I'll need some bird houses. And maybe that little pink bird book I have. And, I do have those little yellow rain boots. Oh, and frogs. I have LOTS of frogs. And, I have those little seasonal blocks I made. And, there's forsythia and daffodils in bloom in the yard right now...Oh and....

The list in my head just kept getting longer and longer...

So, once I got home. I started on the mantel project.

One of my cast metal frogs AND an assortment of books I've collected because of their genre, color, and/or titles. This little birdhouse came with the house when we bought it 7 years ago, but has never had any little birdies, but don't ya just love the little roof line? 


Bird houses from the back porch. I simply added a #5 house number with a nail and "painted" the head with a black Sharpie.

Truth be told...these DID have residents, only NOT the kind I wanted in the house...good old Summertime leftovers....not bird poopie, silly-willy. This one has NO bottom.....dried up hornets nest!

Both houses will have "residents" tomorrow, as Ginger is kindly bringing me some mushroom birdies to add...

Just a little of my collection....I SO wish Daffodils smelled as good as they looked...Don't you??? Lilac season will be here soon, and then....Oh, those babies smell SO, SO yummy!!!


A couple pieces of my creamy white collection as vases with the flowers.

Loving the Forsythia, but I think it was happier outside! Saw this idea today, though....Very, very cute idea! 
Dang it! I need to go find the post and link it....I can't find it...check back, cause it's SO cute!!!  Found it! I love me some Google!!!


A little wooden drawer turned on edge with some scrapbook paper cut to fit to house the most adorable yellow rain boots.

Darling little rain boots I found a few years ago for a song. Bought the bird book last year, for..well, things like this!


Add a little bit of this and a little bit of that and Voila!

Frogs or toads, if you like, at the base of one of my vintage white, 3-paned windows; and my fave - a cast metal "S". I found THREE matching letters at one time....only three...T, P, S. I love it when things are meant to be....!

This years Spring mantel. ***Insert confession here....I did NOT take a photo of the entire mantel...BAD, Tina....

 

Simple little wooden blocks painted and stamped with each season on the sides. Perfect for changing things up....at least four times a year. 

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Now if I could only get that UGLY 70's orange/black/white brick to GO AWAY like WINTER!!!

I have an idea....I'll keep you posted....and it's NOT painting the brick white. That's the ONE thing that won't work in the house....we use the fireplace way too often to contend with ugly brick chipping through the paint...NO matter how tough it is...

I hope it's as great in real life as it is in my head....that ever happen to you? Where it's perfectly perfect in your head movies, but then a complete and utter flop in real life? I've read about a few of those in the Land of Blog lately...glad I'm not the only one that happens to...

These stacked vintage suitcases topped with an old chippy wire basket reside at the end of the mantel. Ours is "L" shaped and the end faces the back hallway entry doorway.

Happy Spring Saturday!!!

Linking up to Donna up North at Funky Junk Interiors....

Linking up to The Stories of A to Z: Spring Mantel Linky Party...

Many, Mini Snails.

Last Monday, there was NO school. President's Day. A.J. and I stopped by the corner market to get a tasty beverage. Me, a hot mocha. He, a Gatorade. On our way out the market door, we almost stepped on a huge worm. It was a little wet out, not raining at the time, but it had been earlier. We got into the Jeep and then I had a thought...."We need to save the worm!" Save him or her. Are worms asexual? I don't remember. I just remember middle school worm dissection. Cut it open and name all it's parts. Who thought of that? And why, at that age, do we need to know about worm parts? In middle school, we are just barely figuring out our own parts!!!

Any who. Moving on. All I could think about was that poor, huge worm getting smooshed by some shoe coming out of the market. So, I opened the glove box and grabbed a Taco Bell recycled brown napkin. I always have some fast food napkins in the glove box - you never know when operation worm rescue might be in effect.

A.J. got the worm in the napkin and air-lifted him to the safety of the grassy area. Whew! Worm smooshing disaster averted. The guy parked next to us, just coming out of the market, gave us a chuckle and complimented A.J. on doing a good deed! (see we aren't the only ones with a heart!) 

Sure, if the worm was lunch for a bird, that would just be the circle of life. But, for a poor, misguided worm, lost in the concrete jungle, to lose it's life under a waffle-bottomed shoe...well, we just wouldn't stand for it!

Note: I stopped by the market yesterday, and the pest control guy was on the grassy area spraying all sorts of toxins from the "sky". NICE!!! Slink, worm, slink!

Now onto the snails. Same day. Monday. Same Me. Same A.J.

Our day to connect with nature. On the sidewalk leading into my office, he spied these guys. Can you see them? 

 

 They look like little pieces of pea gravel.

Here's a little closer look. Many, mini snails. 

These are not the regular snails we always see. Must have just hatched!? Do snails hatch? Or are they live births? Never thought about it before. But, clearly these little ones were new to the world.

Never thought I'd think SNAILS were cute! These snails WERE cute!!!

After their photo-shoot, A.J. promptly relocated them OFF the sidewalk. He's such a good Samaritan.

Happy New Year, I hope......

2010 started with a CRASH, BOOM, BANG. 

Not the traditional fireworks or ball sliding down a pole.

It rained a TON last night. Dumped and dumped and dumped. So much water fell from the sky, that Mother Earth rang in the New Year around here in a most unusual way.

A whole section of our hillside fell down - taking a tree with it. I guess the ground can only get so super-saturated before it cuts loose!

Honestly, I'm surprised to see this section fall. It "seemed" pretty secure all this time. But, Ty started clearing this section of all the under-brush and small, natural shrubs last year. NOW, I'm really nervous about clearing this side of the house for the recommended 100' fire break. We've got a whole big mountain up there - it's not flat!

I'm deathly afraid of forest fires, but I don't want to have the house full of mud either!!!

Oh, the "good-life" in the Pacific Northwest. Earthquakes. Forest Fires. Drought. Mud Slides. What's next? Locusts???? (I had to throw that last one in 'cause that's what Phillip said last night while driving home on the WATER-LOGGED freeway!) Snow. Ice. Wind. Flooding. Locusts..... We're off to a good start for a Happy New Year!!! 2009 was a great year, so I hope this isn't a sign of what's to come in 2010.......

I know ONE thing that WILL happen around here this year is getting rid of STUFF!

Our garage and my treasure-hunting-finds storage room got flooded too! Too much water. Most of my treasures were in totes or sitting on top of totes, so not much got soaked - thank goodness.

I have to admit though, that at 2 a.m. in the morning, as I was in there moving things out of the water, I was inclined to get rid of everything in the room. Making a mental promise to myself. A resolution, so to speak. That's one of my goals this year. GET RID OF STUFF!!! 


So, that's my New Year's Resolution! Make some changes around here regarding STUFF!!!

All you fellow junkers out there, wish me luck! Really, I'll need it. I feel like I'm drowning.......

So, Maybe, I Spoke Too Soon....

This afternoon, it's SNOWING!!!! Pretty, pretty white flakes. This was taken from my front door. I opened the door. Click. Shut the door. Baby, it's cold outside.

This morning, I went outside and took some after photos of the new house stone: walls, walkway, retaining/planter walls and stairs. It looks SO much different than it did when we bought this place in July 2004.

We still have a lot more to do, but that list is growing shorter each season we are here.

Here's the story, so far....

This is the house on the day we "found" it. A beautiful Summer day with a crystal clear, sunny sky - July 3rd, 2004. Take note of that HUGE oak tree on the right of the photo. I'll be referencing it later in this post....

The house was barn red T-111 siding with bright white trim. TONS of single pane windows - well some were actually just panes of glass sandwiched between 1x2 wood strips with silicone. (we happened to figure this out in the Winter of 2004 - after the new carpet was installed!) You see, rain water has a way of weeping in "windows" that have dried up, shrunken silicone beads....

Any who, that prompted the removal of several windows and replaced with two 5 x 7 picture windows - all the better to see the distant views. AND THEY NO LONGER LEAK!!!

We don't have central air - as it really only gets super, unbearably hot a few days each Summer. So, we've opted NOT to spend our $$$ there, at this time. Thus, the window air conditioner to "condition" the family room on those HOT days. The rest of the house is bear-able.

The front entry room (I guess that's what I'll call it) has been completely re-built and a REAL front door and FRONT porch added (it will be completed in the Spring), but for now, at least there's a designated entry to our home. Whereas, in 2004, we had FOUR doors to choose from. A bit confusing and not so welcoming.

****A fun footnote: Today, when I went to the door to look out at the snow, there was our FIRST package left by our post-person on the porch at the door. It was a box of Christmas presents from my mom in California. OH, it felt so good. I FINALLY have a PORCH!!!! I'm SO feeling warm and fuzzy inside.....

This is DUDE CAT enjoying the porch too. And that little blue wheel peeking out to the right, is my Radio Flyer wagon. I plan to keep it as a staple on the porch year-round.

Here is the house as it sits today. Many windows gone. Old rock pond gone. Larger garage over-hang. New lights. New porch. New walkway. New stairs. New entry. New shingles. New stone. New doors. New windows. LOTS OF TIME!!! LOTS OF WORK!!! This transformation DID NOT happen overnight. NOT even in a year or two. We have been living in a state-of-disarray since WINTER of 2004.

I've always heard the jokes about how a married couple risk divorce during a remodel. Not the case here, but I can certainly see how, unless both are willing to live in a CHAOTIC and MESSY and TEMPORARY environment for many, many months and even years, this could push some over-the-edge!!! Well, maybe, if you are a bazillionnaire, it wouldn't be so unbearable, because you'd be living in another place whilst a crew of hundreds made things happen in little to no time at all, but....for the rest of us....

The original roof-line was a squashed "W". Not so good for water run-off. So, we've completely changed the right side, so far. We plan to change the left side someday, but for now, we've just had it re-roofed and sealed up tight!

This is a close-up of the garage door, trim, stone, and new down-lights under the over-hang. There are three of them. They still need to be wired into the motion sensor and the shingles are STILL not stained. It's been too wet and cold.

This is the retaining wall/planter area. It will be filled up more with soil so that red and gray area won't be visible.

This is the view of the walkway.Colored, stamped concrete walkway. Huge, heavy sandstone slabs for the stair risers/landings. Once we have it all back-filled and planted, the sides won't be as visible.

Close-up of the porch and stair walls. Keep in mind, the porch is still not finished. That's a whole other project.

Stairs. For some reason, they look really butterscotch here and the grout looks white. But really, the grout is light brown/taupe color. I can't wait to have the "flats" topped with seasonal goodies....pumpkins, miniature evergreens, pots of springtime flowers, galvanized tubs of American Flags....Oh, I can't wait....

Look, it's starting to snow..... Our new porch. We put up the porch lights, well, for light, but it still needs the cladding, gable trim, wall caps and trim, post trim, ceiling wood, ceiling light/fan, door trim. AND let's not forget the flag bracket. Lots for Spring.

These are our porch lights. The same as our side door, only bigger.

Our simple door knob. Simple. I like it that way. I like it even more, that it's installed and can be used. It's amazing the little things we tend to take for granted in our daily lives. Door knob. Who knew such a simple, little luxury could make such a difference....?

Remember that HUGE oak tree in the original photo? Well, here it is today. I just love the leaf-less silhouette it creates against our white winter sky...

On a side note, ever since moving here, I've daydreamed about having a tree house up in this tree. The view of the valley and the river would be absolutely stunning from up there.

...BUT, I have to finish THIS house first!!!

I'm beginning to sound like a broken record.....

Yep, that record that plays over and over. "I know, I haven't posted in a while...."

...but we've been busy as ever. Busy working around the house starting/progressing/finishing all sorts of things around the house - inside and out.

The retaining wall/planter. Sealing the inner walls with concrete sealer so the stone veneer won't pop off once it's done. Freezing water and such. Fabricating a perforated steel drain cover at the base of the wall. Filling the space with drainage rock. Then covering it with topsoil/garden loam so our future plants will love their new digs.

Here is the pallet of capstones for the top of the retaining wall and the stair walls. The walls will be covered in stone too, but we haven't ordered them yet!

Completing the entry walkway up to the front door. More like side-walk supervising the awesome crew that took on this project. 6000 lbs. of super thick sandstone slabs set in beautifully stamped concrete. We love it! Now we just need to do the landscaping - but that will be the "easy" part compared to the rock hardscaping.


Here is Wonka-dog enjoying the walkway. The first day the stone were set, he promptly made his way, testing, each and every stone. Step. Lay-down. Test. Step. Lay-down. Test. I think he approves. Now if we could get some landscaping so he quits rolling in the dirt = dust!

The front porch stairs. After a zillion phone calls. A ton of communication. Waiting almost three months. Our stone stair treads finally got delivered. All the 14" x 14" stone and the retaining wall capstones turned out beautifully. The 14" x 28" stones...well, let's just say, if I was doing a science project to illustrate fossilized tide pools...BINGO! We'd have it covered. Only, fossilized tide pools don't fair too well on main entry steps!!! So, here we are. Waiting once again for the replacements to be shipped in from Missouri. You heard me. Missouri. Missouri to Oregon. Believe me. I tried to find sandstone stair treads in Oregon. No such luck!
The layout pictured here is NOT the final layout. There will NOT be running seams from one step to the next. That just isn't the plan. I'll post photos when my little gems arrive from MISSOURI!!!


The walls of our entry/foyer. Plan. Shop. Measure. Measure again. Cut. Glue. Nail. Fill the seams. Ready for paint. Cream paint. Chocolate brown paint for the top walls. It's not done yet, but it's progressing. Things around here take time and money, but it gets done in due time. Plus, it's a little bit of a challenge transforming a 1976 house with an awesome view and location - with NO architectural style - did I mention 1976? into a 1930's farmhouse/cottage style home. A challenge, but worth the payoff!

Plan. Dream. Sketch. Plan. Dream some more. Execute. REST. Execute some more. Live with it partially done. Dream some more. Execute. FINISH! Well, that's the plan anyway. To finish. To finally have that dream come true. I don't know what we'll do when it's all finished, but I think we have a TON to do still, so I don't think I should be worrying just yet.

So there you have it. Dreams. Progress. Execution. Finish?

Toot-a-loo.

ps.

What can you possibly find in the attic of a 1976 house? Classic love letters? Priceless antiques? Vintage children's toys?

What's in that box at the far end of the attic???? Hmmm.....

I'm Still Here....

A big Hi and Hello from Grants Pass. I know. I haven't posted in a while. It's been pretty busy around these parts.

We've been working with the "crew" on the huge rock placements for the entry way.

What an undertaking! I don't think I realized just how heavy those big 'ol sandstone slabs would be. Sure, there's over 6000 pounds of rock total, but I thought each individual rock would be manageable....WRONG! This sandstone is more dense than concrete, eats diamond saw blades for lunch, and given the chance will squish a finger or two.

We've been continuing on Phillip's home office - installing baseboards, hanging the closet door, attaching door trim. I'll post pictures once it's done.

Still have to paint the closet door, closet door jamb, entry door & its door jamb. Then, finally, he can begin moving in and decorating.

This will be HIS sanctuary. HIS place to write. HIS little escape from the rest of the world. NO phones. NO customers. Nothing but what HE wants to do. A little music. A little T.V. and a WHOLE lotta rest and relaxation. Trust me, he needs a break from the daily grind.

True. He does have an awesome job. He gets to be creative everyday, but sometimes a detox from it all will be nice. A retreat where he doesn't have to try and create the impossible from thin air. I think, in over 20 years of working in the entertainment industry, the only thing he wasn't able to deliver was the floating-ring hat. YES, believe it or not, years ago, when we were up in Seattle, a magician actually made a request for a hat with rings that would float - without any attachment ie: wires or strings....He's good, but come on. Defy gravity!???

Any who, we have been busy, but things are getting done around these parts. I should be able to "reveal" the new walkways by the end of the week. I can't wait to share. Heck, for that matter, I can't wait to see them too!!! AND all before Christmas....

****map and photo credit: The old National Automobile Club travel guide from 1969. My, Grants Pass has grown since I was ONE!!!!

During.....

The front entry stairs - concrete base. These will be covered with rock.


Walkway forms for the back sidewalk. This will be colored stamped concrete.


This is the other side of the sidewalk that wraps the house.


Next, is the entry walkway that goes up the hillside from the garage under the house. These are the pads that the big honkin' rock slabs will be mortared onto. The gravel sections will be colored stamped concrete to match the sidewalk.

I can't wait!!!!!! It's a dream come true. Really! I've been visualizing this stage of the project for over a year now.

I'm starting to visualize the next phase....the landscaping. Yeah, buddy. Plants, grass, trees, flowers - my FAVORITE part of home ownership. The gardening!!!! Well, I do like the other puttering too. Decorating. Treasure hunting. Painting. Planning. Shopping. O.k., so maybe that's why the bank "gave" us a 30 year mortgage, 'cause with an older house, it takes that long to do everything!!!!!

...and then there were none!

This morning, as I was preparing to leave the house, I heard quite a commotion outside the kitchen windows. A whole lot of cheeping and chirping! I went out on the upper deck, off the kitchen, and saw a bunch of little birds putting on quite a show. Dive bombing each other. Doing spins in the air. Playing like little siblings do.

It would appear that they were fighting, but after watching them a while, I realized that these little meanies were in fact the five, sweet, little birds that have been in the barn birdhouse the last couple of months, that have been entertaining us from within.

They, finally, left the nest! There they were, for the first time ever, flitting about. Testing their wings. And showing each other who was boss. All in my presence.

After taking a peek into the bird house, it was confirmed. These little ones were done with being crammed into the cozy quarters their mom and dad chose for them only a couple of months back.

Every year, we watch as the couples come and check out the run-down "barn". We have other abodes out there, but this is the only one that has been occupied since we moved in back in 2004. It came with the house.

I'm glad we didn't take it down, cause it has provided us with years of entertainment. Mom and dad coming and going. Little ones singing to us every time food was delivered, but this is the first year I got to witness the "move-out".

Too Cool! I only wish, now in hind-sight, that I had grabbed the camera. But, I guess, there's always next year!