apparently nothing all that exciting happens outside of our house renovations. I haven't blogged in over 2 weeks and have very little to report. The husband is working on a few small projects (building small retaining walls around the yard and finally hanging the drywall in the breezeway around the new door - pictures forthcoming).
This weekend we have a family wedding to go to (one of Tim's cousins) so that should be fun. One of the great things about his family is that all 12 cousins range in age from 18 to 27 so there always seems to be an abundance of weddings. We had one in 2007, two in 2008 (including ours) and two this year and a couple more sure to come in the coming years. I'm excited to go to my first post-my-wedding wedding. The last family wedding we had was 4 weeks before our wedding and I may have been a little sidetracked making notes of details I liked, etc.
On that note, our 1st anniversary is in 12 days. I can't believe it - this year has seriously flown by. No huge plans - we're going to the Red Sox game that night and will take half/all of Monday off work so that we can head into Boston early before the game. And since I wasn't blogging until early this year, I never posted about our wedding. Starting Monday (which will be one week until our anniversary), I'll post a week-long countdown of my favorite pictures (this idea was stolen from one of my followers, Katie!).
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Sunday, August 30, 2009
the baby bug
I'm surrounded and constantly taunted. By babies. And pregnant women. We're still at least a year away from trying (that's if I get my way) but I have permanent baby fever right now. On Friday I had lunch with a friend who's adorable little boy is almost 4 months old. Then last night we had dinner with good friends of ours who are expecting their first in February. She has a cute little baby bump and was glowing. I know why we're waiting (house projects, money, Tim just isn't ready yet, etc) and I really am ok with it - but it doesn't stop me from day-dreaming! Hopefully the next year of marriage flies by as quickly as this first one did and we'll be more in a place where we're both ready to expand our family.
On a similar note - on Friday night we were talking about aforementioned expecting friends and Tim asks when babies start walking. A little confused I told him the average is about 1 year old and asked why he was curious. He said "when J & A's baby starts walking I'll probably think 'we should have one of these cute little things'". I couldn't help but chuckle and secretly start plotting how to get their unborn child to be the earliest walking infant ever... :)
On a similar note - on Friday night we were talking about aforementioned expecting friends and Tim asks when babies start walking. A little confused I told him the average is about 1 year old and asked why he was curious. He said "when J & A's baby starts walking I'll probably think 'we should have one of these cute little things'". I couldn't help but chuckle and secretly start plotting how to get their unborn child to be the earliest walking infant ever... :)
summer relaxation
We can now use our patio to relax on great summer nights (like tonight!). Tim came home from Sears this morning saying he found a great patio set. We go back to look at it and it's perfect. And on sale! Then we got it at even more of a discount because the floor model was all they had left. We can't wait to grill out tonight and enjoy our new patio!
And I finally got some window treatments for our downstairs bedroom (aka my craft room). They were on clearance at Target but there were only 3. So I improvised and cut one in half then sewed up the edges and put those on the single window. It worked out perfectly because a whole panel on each side would have been too big for that window.
And I have to include a shot of my little boy. Here's Sox doing what he does best - lounging
And I finally got some window treatments for our downstairs bedroom (aka my craft room). They were on clearance at Target but there were only 3. So I improvised and cut one in half then sewed up the edges and put those on the single window. It worked out perfectly because a whole panel on each side would have been too big for that window.
And I have to include a shot of my little boy. Here's Sox doing what he does best - lounging
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
walkway done!
I was so happy to come home to a finished walkway and wall! Now we just have to plant some grass seed this fall and we'll tackle the garden beds in the spring!
Finally - no more contractors. At least for a while!
pretty wall
Finally - no more contractors. At least for a while!
Monday, August 24, 2009
walkway and other updates
It's still hot here but the mason guys keep truckin' away! Today they finished the walkway and the bulk of the small retaining wall. They also hauled away all the dirt that was piled in front of our house.
And one of our new lights is up! We're just waiting for more of the white mounting blocks and then they will all be up! I got these lights for my birthday (in April) from my parents and they've been waiting to be installed since we didn't want to put them up until the siding was done.
And our new garage door! Tim and his cousin did this for 6 hours on Sunday - after coming home from an all-night bachelor party. I was so impressed :) (The door is white even though the shade makes it look gray-ish)
And for good measure - another shot of the front of our house - complete with new garage door and no dirt piles.
looking from the driveway to the front door
close-up of the wall
looking from the front door to the driveway
And one of our new lights is up! We're just waiting for more of the white mounting blocks and then they will all be up! I got these lights for my birthday (in April) from my parents and they've been waiting to be installed since we didn't want to put them up until the siding was done.
And our new garage door! Tim and his cousin did this for 6 hours on Sunday - after coming home from an all-night bachelor party. I was so impressed :) (The door is white even though the shade makes it look gray-ish)
And for good measure - another shot of the front of our house - complete with new garage door and no dirt piles.
Friday, August 21, 2009
walkway
Despite day #5 of our heatwave, our mason guys were here today laying our front walkway. So far so good!
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
obsessed part 2
They are just about done with our siding! Just a few touch-ups tomorrow morning and they say they'll be finished.
And our patio is finished! LOVE it
And our patio is finished! LOVE it
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
even more house updates
Don't roll your eyes at me! I have already admitted to being obsessed with the progress being made to our house :)
Despite being almost 100 degrees today, our contractors were hard at work!
The siders still say they hope to be done tomorrow - so we'll see. It's doable I think, but it's supposed to be another hot one.
Despite being almost 100 degrees today, our contractors were hard at work!
I was so surprised to come home and find the front of our house finished!
And our patio! It looks a.w.e.s.o.m.e! Now we only need some patio furniture...
The siders still say they hope to be done tomorrow - so we'll see. It's doable I think, but it's supposed to be another hot one.
2009 Boston Breast Cancer 3-Day Recap
Finally!
To be honest, I can't take any credit for this recap - my mom wrote it and I changed a few minor things. What can I say? She's a teacher and has more time on her hands right now! Plus, she has more of a way with words than I do. This is the letter we sent to our donors to give them a glimpse into what they helped us do:
Dear Friends and Family,
Here are just a handful of pictures from the weekend:
It really was one of the best experiences of my life. Words can't even describe how it felt to be surrounded by people all fighting for the same cause. I can not wait to do it again next year!
To be honest, I can't take any credit for this recap - my mom wrote it and I changed a few minor things. What can I say? She's a teacher and has more time on her hands right now! Plus, she has more of a way with words than I do. This is the letter we sent to our donors to give them a glimpse into what they helped us do:
Dear Friends and Family,
Earlier this year I asked for and received your support to participate in the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk. The big event was a few weeks ago and it was an incredible, life-changing, 60-mile journey and I have so many wonderful memories!
It all began on a rainy Friday morning at 6:00 a.m. We braved the rain and the mud with excitement and smiles. Fortunately, the sun came out by the time we got to camp and we were able to set up our tent and get acclimated to our surroundings under sunny skies. Day 2 we were awakened by excited campers at 5:15 a.m. and got ready for what we were told would be the hardest day of the three days, which it was. We walked 22 miles. One of my teammates and I were walking with blisters we developed in the rain on Day 1. Thank goodness for the first aid tents! On Day 3 we were raring to go--we walked with enthusiasm as we anticipated completing our journey. It ended with a celebratory closing ceremony at the
Over the weekend I met a lot people. There were approximately 2,000 walkers who were there for a variety of reasons—some were survivors, some were walking in honor of loved ones who survived and some who didn’t. A man spoke about being a breast cancer survivor, and we were all touched by a group of young volunteers (ages 10-15) who spoke about how they had been affected by breast cancer already in their lives; 2 who had lost their mothers when they were very young. What had the biggest impact on me was meeting two survivors who were in their late twenties, barely older than me! Meeting them reminded me that this disease is not discriminatory—anyone can be afflicted. While great strides have been made in early detection, we still need to fight for a cure so that no one else ever has to go through the pain of dealing with breast cancer. My team and I plan to walk again next year.
Because of your generosity I personally raised just over $3,000 and the entire
Here are just a handful of pictures from the weekend:
Mom and me by our tent
me, my mom, my sister-in-law, and my mother-in-law after finishing Day 2
the Remembrance Tent which is filled with pictures and notes to loved ones who were lost to breast cancer - SO emotional
we did it!!
the survivor's circle at the closing ceremony
It really was one of the best experiences of my life. Words can't even describe how it felt to be surrounded by people all fighting for the same cause. I can not wait to do it again next year!
more house updates
tired of them yet?
too bad :)
So our siding contractors did NOT work through the weekend - though I can't blame them since it was approaching 90 degrees both days, not including the heat index. Yesterday they came and replaced our front and side entry doors. The new ones look awesome! Of course, they wouldn't install the hardware because that "wasn't a part of our original agreement". *insert eyeroll* My wonderful husband left that for me to do when I got home from work while he was working on putting up trim around all the doors. Of course, as someone who thinks I know how to do everything, I didn't read the directions carefully and I put a hole in our front door that I promptly realized I drilled in the wrong spot. Not a huge deal - nothing a little putty can't fix!
Regardless of that mishap, the new doors look great and I can't wait to paint them! I have Friday off so I was hoping to do it then, but then Tim reminded me that the contractors would probably be working, so maybe on Sunday.
Our masonry guys started yesterday as well - they came and dug-out/leveled the ground where our patio will be going (and apparently dug it all manually!). He told Tim that they could be finished with the patio in one day, but since they won't be able to move to the front work until the siders are done, they will probably take their time with the patio. I'm sure they'll be happy for the shortened work days with this heat (it's supposed to approach 100 today - it was already 75 and very humid when I left for work at 7am).
As always, some pictures of the latest work!
too bad :)
So our siding contractors did NOT work through the weekend - though I can't blame them since it was approaching 90 degrees both days, not including the heat index. Yesterday they came and replaced our front and side entry doors. The new ones look awesome! Of course, they wouldn't install the hardware because that "wasn't a part of our original agreement". *insert eyeroll* My wonderful husband left that for me to do when I got home from work while he was working on putting up trim around all the doors. Of course, as someone who thinks I know how to do everything, I didn't read the directions carefully and I put a hole in our front door that I promptly realized I drilled in the wrong spot. Not a huge deal - nothing a little putty can't fix!
Regardless of that mishap, the new doors look great and I can't wait to paint them! I have Friday off so I was hoping to do it then, but then Tim reminded me that the contractors would probably be working, so maybe on Sunday.
Our masonry guys started yesterday as well - they came and dug-out/leveled the ground where our patio will be going (and apparently dug it all manually!). He told Tim that they could be finished with the patio in one day, but since they won't be able to move to the front work until the siders are done, they will probably take their time with the patio. I'm sure they'll be happy for the shortened work days with this heat (it's supposed to approach 100 today - it was already 75 and very humid when I left for work at 7am).
As always, some pictures of the latest work!
new front door
(can you see the putty from the hole I drilled in the wrong place? Look below the door handle)
(can you see the putty from the hole I drilled in the wrong place? Look below the door handle)
new side door
the stone for our walkway and wall and the granite slab that will be our front step
our future patio!
here's some work they did late last week
and this is what they did on Saturday...
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