Oh, by the way

We have grass.

 

 

Lest you forgot how awesome it looked before...

 

 

 

 

And because I'm bragging, check out the entire yard! 

 

 

 

Looking good yard, looking good. Not that I'm enjoying the fact that it rains every day, but dear mother nature...our lawn thanks you.

 

 

Also, I need a new camera. For reals. Or my Iphone needs a new operator.

 

 

The end.

 



I'm alive

Well, well, well. Would you look at that, this girl is alive! It's been over 2 months since I've last showed up. I orginally started this long drawn out post to tell you what I've been up to all this time. But frankly, that seemed like an intense thing to tackle. I mean, we have a baby, we work, we live, we're busy. So let's just start with the present and work from there, shall we? So here we go...

 

Oh yeah. Katie's got her spray painting groove back...

 

 

 

 

Awhile ago I picked up this Ikea kids table (the chairs were AWOL) at the Salvation Army for $5. It's a mess, and I've got plans for it. I mean, we're not even crawling yet, but the good news is that Emme can start crafting next week.

 

 

Oh my god you guys, this is our lawn. Nice, huh?

 

 

 

For the record this is the worst of it. But the rest of the back yard (and front for that matter) are just as patchy. When we had the roof redone 2 years ago our lawn took a huge beating & never came back. Clearly we were too busy to notice that year. Then last summer I was too prego to care. But this summer? Well, this summer, my friends, is the year that the lawn comes BACK! I've got really high hopes. We're seeding and watering (rinse & repeat) like it's our job. I mean, getting grass to grow is like my life's mission at this point (I even declared it to our neighbor...she told me to say a lawn prayer for them too, although their's is fairing much better than our's at this point).

 

Speaking of neighbors, nosey Nellie here loves checking them out...

 

 

 

 

Just keeping up with the Jones's, she is.

 

 

Speaking of the bambino, we've started making baby food!

 

 



But before you get too excited, you should know our efforts were in vain because she's not a fan. It's a texture thing, and clearly I need to fine tune my baby food making skills (there's some dramatic gagging going on at times). So back to the store I went & Gerber continues to nourish our baby. There's only so much time in the day, you have to choose your battles wisely, right? This is one I'm not bothering to fight right now. I figure we can give it another go in a few weeks. In the meantime, I get to keep my mother of the year award because I'm not feeding her lumpy zucchini & carrots.

This year was my first official mother's day. We stayed at home & everyone came to us (with food in hand). The husband took care of everything. Really, it was a great day. I think this post over at Natalie's blog pretty much sums up what being a mom is. I could not have said it better myself.

And because I'm a mom I get to share this super cute pic of the wee one. It's old, maybe a month or so? But this is the sweet face I get to see every morning and after every nap. Even if she screamed her head off trying to get some decent shut-eye, she's all pleasantries when she awakes. Does not get better than this folks.

 

 

And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that this happened 3 years ago today...

 

 

 

 

Still one of my favorite pictures! 6 years together, 3 years married & 1 baby later...time flies when you're having fun!

 

 

 



White & bright...the porch is ready for visitors!

I had every intention of posting an outside update last Friday...that is until Blogger ate my post before I hit publish. Messing with a fragile pregnant woman is not a good idea. Just ask the husband...he's exhausted trying to keep up with my range of emotions!

At any rate, let's move this along, shall we? I'm sure some of you saw that we did some work on the outside of the house recently. Does anything look new to you?

Since you can all read (the title of this post made it quite obvious, no?), you don't have to be that observant to see that we finally replaced the upstairs porch railing. It's about time! The old railing was rotting & not up to code. In fact, I'll never forget the exact words our inspector said when we bought this house..."you should probably get this replaced right away...you really shouldn't invite children or drunk people out here". For reals, that's what he said. All joking aside, we took his words to heart and only invited are most well behaved (and sober) guests out onto the patio. It only took us 5 years, but we finally got around to updating things. Not only is it 1,000% safer up there, but it's definitely much better looking than what we had before (not that I'm biased or anything....just ask our neighbors, they like it too!).

This isn't the best picture of how things were looking, but this should give you somewhat of an idea of what was up there before...

The wear and tear of time & life definitely got to the old railing, and last year's roof replacement didn't help matters either.

Pretty, huh? Yikes, I know, that floor! The good news is that as ugly as things looked at that point, the roof itself was still in great shape. So we dodged a bullet there!

I don't know why, but I was totally petrified to stand out there to take these pics...you know, scared without the 'safety' of the completely unsupportive, rotting, not-up-to-code railing... 



We're totally pleased with the final results! We used the same contractor who replaced the steps and railing on our downstairs porch. Although, this time around they may have not as liked me as much, since I put the 'ol pressure on them to get the job completed for the home tour. Which was completed at 3:00 the day before the tour...no joke. Unfortunately, and old pic of our house (without the new railing) went into the tour guide. Oh well, the job was done right and on time, so I guess we can't complain!



 

The next step is to paint the off-white pillars a nice, crisp white to match the rest of the exterior. Which, the husband has plans to paint the entire house this summer. I know, he's nuts (and I'm just as nuts for not really caring at this point). I think he's biting off more than he can chew (would you look at the size of this place?!), but he's in nesting mode about as much as I am and feeling ambitious apparently!? I just hope baby has a daddy by the time this project is supposedly complete...



Backyard progress

My mom and the husband have been diligently working on the backyard (with a little help from me now & again...there's something to be said for being pregnant!) Our yard has been a bit of a process for the last 3 years (we've come a long way since our days of cultivating a weed garden, much to the horror of our neighbors).

Last summer, we decided to part ways with the ugly tree that sat behind our garage. Talk about a mess...we definitely don't miss that thing anymore! Remember how things looked before? Let's take a walk down memory lane, just for kicks...

And then the tree left us. Best. Day. Ever.

And then nothing happened...for a long time. The tree/landscaper dudes never came back to complete their work until December. Yep, December (thank goodness for our mild winter). So things sorta looked like this for a solid 4 or 5 months.

After the soil was delivered and sculpted (is that a technical landscaping term??), things sat idle for awhile. And then a ton of weeds showed up. We have a HUGE crab grass problem that spreads from our lovely neighbors in the back. And try as we might, that stuff comes back each and every year. So with that tackled (until it comes back next year) & some misc. things planted, we had made some huge progress....

 

(points to anyone who can find the dog in this picture!)

The husband digging holes in prep for our trees to be delivered...

 

The trees are delivered (holy hell, these suckers are big!). And then the el prego would sit around and bark orders for the next 30 minutes...ha (it's funny, but only to me...the husband and my mom were not as amused)!

See? He doesn't look amused here...



We couldn't find the dog for much of the day. He was taking a nap in the garage (smart doggie).

Then I moved him out into the sun. I had to keep myself busy while heavy trees were being planted!



After everything was planted, I helped mulch. It's my favorite (I'm not sure why), and my way of actually helping that day. Things are looking much better, huh?



Our grass is shot to hell & we can't figure out how to get it back to normal (the crab grass really does a number to it each spring). I've been busy tossing around grass seed like it's my job, so we'll see if that works. Until then, ignore the patchy grass & admire the new landscaping, okay? The tall bushes were our way of somewhat disguising the neighbors ugly yard. They've made improvements to the house over the last year, but the ugly backyard and ridiculous shed don't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. The eventual goal is to put some pavers or a patio of some sort back here. We've got 4 big chairs back there now (shoot...never got a picture of that!), but I can tell you that we enjoyed this remodeled area all weekend!

And a view from the new landscaping, overlooking our garden (which is about 3 bags of mulch away from being finished!)...

The dog is enjoying his new surroundings too!

So now that the backyard is pretty much complete, we've shifted our focus back to the indoors. Since, yeah...we're t-minus 11 days from the home tour and I'm crapping my pants just thinking of all the things that need to be done before then! So you bet your behind I'll be posting progress pics over the course of the week (heck, at that rate you won't even need to go on the actual tour!). See you soon!

Be careful what you say...

...because it just might mean that the tree trimmers are gonna do that landscaping afterall...

Ah well, what are you going to do. It looks nice & the job was done correctly...even though it took 5 godforsaken months to complete. But who's counting (besides me)?

It's at this point I would normally rant & rave about how these folks grated on my every last nerve, and how I wouldn't recommend you use them either (unless you like waiting absurd amounts of time for a job to be completed). But you know what? It's the holidays, so I'll spare you. Consider it your early Christmas gift!

And then there was no tree

...in our backyard that is. Remember when we had a tree removed from the backyard, um, this past summer?

Well, months went by before they came out to remove the stump (after several empty promises & no-shows), but stump they did remove! It only took forever, but you know.

But see that small stick-like thing next to our neighbor's fence? Well, that small "stick" was actually a small tree that had sprouted sometime within the last year and was going to be an impossibility to get rid of without removing our neighbor's fence first (which was not happening...in fact, the house is a rental property & we don't even know who owns it). So with the promise that they'd return at some point to cut down said "stick", the wait was officially ON. Fast forward to December 20 and finally....oh yeah, wait for it...

The stick is gone...finally! It only took several threats of non-payment for them to finish the job. It's funny how dangling money over someone's head can convince them to actually do their job! Just barely of course. We had planned to contract this same company for landscaping (that was also supposed to happen this past summer) but now I'm having second thoughts. Obviously. But did you notice (minus the leaves) that the before pic is relatively similar to the after photo? Yep, no snow! December 20 and not a flake to be seen. Which just goes to show that it's not always snowing in Buffalo people. Just thought I'd point that out....

So how's that for some excitement today?! Here I thought I'd be sharing Christmas photos & stories on the 'ol blog this December...and instead I'm sharing tree trimming stories. Early Christmas present perhaps?!

Finished front porch!

The front porch is done! I finally finished up this little project this past weekend. Which left me wondering why the hell I put this one off for so long?! Easy, peasy I tell you. It's amazing what little tweaks can give you all sorts of new curb appeal!

So let's revist how things used to look before...dangerous, trashy & down right embarrassing...

And then new steps were installed...

And the ugly storm door removed...

A little filling, sanding & paint...and voila! A new front porch!

SO much better, right? I had the paint matched with a sample from our house (which is two different shades of gray for some strange reason) & used an enamel from Sherwin Williams made specifically for porches & stairs. Our stairs are of the composite/man made variety, but it can be used on wood as well. Which was good to know, since I decided to cut corners & use the same paint for the door surround. Probably a major no-no (it dripped & was difficult to work with at times), but I did it anyway. I just couldn't see buying totally new paint for such a small area. What can I say, I'm a professional painters worst nightmare!

And just to give you an idea that not all grays are created equal, check out the night & day difference in color!

True to form, we're not completely finished with tweaking the outside just yet! I have plans to change up the exisiting light fixture, mailboxes, house numbers, as well as paint the pillars white (to match the new porch railings). Whew! And then I think we'll sit tight for at least a year or so. The pink & green trim is SO not our style, but that will have to remain until we can bring the professionals out to change things up a bit. One of these days...

All in due time, all in due time...

And then there were none

So I'm really starting to think that this blog is beneficial...in a way that says, Dear Contractors: get your ass to our house & do the work you promised, you hear?!

Seriously, it was only days ago when I mentioned the fact that the tree trimers--who promised to come and do their work at the end of July--still hadn't shown up to our house. And here we were a month later wondering what the hell happened to them?! I won't go into the long & boring story of how many times we rescheduled an appointment for an estimate for god sakes. Or the number of times they promised to call me back to reschedule an estimate (and didn't). Or how late the owner finally showed up to give me one. Or the promise he made to come over "next week to do the work". Maybe that should have been a sign?!

Well, talk about a blogging miracle...the mere mention of them on the 'ol blog last week & they called the same day telling me that the crew was heading to our house! I wasn't home when they arrived or completed (sort of) the work, so my before & after pics are lame-o.

But here's what we were working with before...

You can't see the top of the tree, but trust me when I say it was a HUGE mess. See that electrical pole to the left of the tree? Yeah, the branches were all sorts of tangled up in the wires above (yikes!). The electric company trimmed the tree over a year ago & instead of taking the damn thing down (talk about a hazzard, it should have been gone a loooooong time ago), they left us with a huge mess in the backyard, all of which was our responsibility to clean up. Oooh, that was not a good day. You don't even know....

Anyway, I full expected to come home to find the guys still working, but nope! They had finished their work (well, mostly) and were gone. So here's what we were left with....

...a whole lotta sunlight (love!) and one big tree stump. But we're not completely done yet! The land in the back slopes into the neighbors behind us, so the plan is to fill & level the area. Basically, the tree guys are "landscaping" for us, minus the plants, as we plan to do that on our own. We want to plant something that's tall enough to block our view of the neighbors & their ugly shed (it's a rental property that's not kept up very well & we rarely see the people who live there anyway). Although, did you notice that from the time we got the estimate to when the tree was removed, the neighbors had their house painted? It's a start, but they have a long way to go over there....and we're not intersted in watching the process. Hence the need for tall shrubbery!

So that's where things stand right now. We're hoping the work is completed in the next couple of weeks ("hoping" being the key word here), and then we can begin planting. Afterall, fall is one of the best times to plant! And stay tuned, tomorrow I'll have updated front porch & door pics! I finished up things this weekend & we're so pleased how things turned out!

Nothing says welcome to our home like a new door...

Okay, so maybe the door isn't exactly new. But I vowed to make some changes this summer and changes I did make!

Remember what things looked like before?

Oh my god, awful & embarrassing...right?! I suppose when you don't use your front door and you don't welcome guests through it, you just kind of cast it aside and pretend that it doesn't look so bad. But it does.

So anyway, after the new front steps were installed, I decided the mangly (not a word, I know) storm door had to go. We had no plans to install a new one...which, come to think of it, is probably something important to have in Buffalo. But after surveying the neighborhood to see what others were doing, it was about half and half--some had storm doors, others did not. I prefer the look of the original door (sans storm door) anyway, so I don't know why I bothered with my informal neighborhood "survey" in the first place. My mind was already made up. Okay, enough with the rambling...let's get to it Katie!

First step was removing the door. I was on my own here, as the husband wanted no part of this process. After several stripped screws & try as I might...that damn door was NOT coming off. I was able to remove a screw here & there, but the door was not going anywhere. And that's no exaggeration...the thing was literally painted on & stuck to the molding. I swear, I think it was installed in 1909. So I gently begged asked the husband for help, tearing him away from Die Hard 45 (or however many Die Hard movies there are out there) and he very patiently removed the door for me. People, this was not an easy task! And I would know...I was watching!

So WHEW...the door was finally removed and I put it out to the curb (just in time for our Thursday morning garbage pick up), and I'm not totally positive...but I'm fairly certain it was gone by the time I left for work in the morning....and garbage pick up hadn't happened yet! The husband is super perplexed by this & wonders why anyone would want that stupid, ugly door. But hey, another person's trash is another's treasure! Even when it's a 100-year old storm door.

Okay, so much better, right? Bye, bye storm door! I don't miss you!

So then came the task of filling in all those holes. Which, for the most part was easy, minus a few larger areas that needed some help.

I'm no expert when it comes to this stuff, so I just did what I thought would work in this case (I learn as I go!), and that was to completely wood fill the larger gaps. I'm sure there is a better looking way to have taken care of these areas...but oh well. It's not perfect, but then again neither is our old house.

So that's where things stand as of today. I'll be back at it this weekend sanding & painting and ready to reveal the final results next week!

TGIF!