What's been happening?

For the last couple of weeks I've been wondering (to myself) why I don't write. Stuff's happening. Stuff I'll wish I had written down & recorded. But once again, I let so much time pass that I'm not sure where to start.

Here's the excuse I think I'm going to go with...I'm a summer lover. A sun worshiper even. But this summer has been unreal. I've never in my life (ok maybe Arizona) felt like it was just to unbearably hot to do anything outside. Even go to the pool.

  And it seems like the more I stay in the air conditioned indoors, the lazier I get.  I don't write because I'm being really lazy. So now we play catch up...

Serious hotness

Let's go back to June...We've only had Gabi 1 time this summer (boo). It was the 1st weekend of June and we went to Flat Branch Park downtown for "Movie In The Park" and watched The Muppet Movie. We took a blanket and sat in the grass, got snacks, and had a really great night. I didn't enjoy the chigger bites so much, but that's a  small price to pay.

We took Annie to the trail to walk and played on the exercise equipment on the way. The little  pool from a couple years ago got blown up and it still makes her just as happy. And what's a visit with out some bubble blowing and movie watching? 

We've only been able to use the new fire pit like 3 or 4 times. With this hot weather we've also been in a drought. We did have a weenie/ smore roast when the kido was here though. 

Gabi had my phone and was playing games... and taking about 20 pictures along the drive too. 

Fun movie night in the park

Headed out to the trail

She loved all the equipment to play on

Bubbles in the pool

She's completely satisfied to play games, surf Disney sites or stream movies. She's so good.

I'll continue catching up through the week. :o)

xoxo

Lissa

 

 

A cute little outfit

Don't Blink by lissaatkins featuring baby doll shirts

Blink baby doll shirt
thinkgeek.com

Jane Norman jean shorts
$16 - janenorman.co.uk

Wallis kitten heel sandals
wallisfashion.com

GUESS blue jewelry
$140 - debenhams.com

Curb appeal... garage door

This is one of my favorite projects. Probably because it was all mine. It took a bit of a detour for me to get to this version of it, but I'm completely in love with the finished product. Adam didn't see this one. He just didn't think it would work well, but I figured it was just paint and I'd paint it all white again if I crashed and burned. No biggie right?

It started with carriage door hardware. About a year ago a friend of mine told me I should put it on the garage door to dress it up. I have no idea what re-sparked that in my brain (more than likely it was Pinterest) but I Tweeted this randomness a few weeks ago-

I got a few questions about how I was going to paint followed with some encouragement to "do it" coming right behind this Tweet-

With the idea in my mind that I wanted the boring, white, metal door too look like wood I, of course, turned to Google. I found several really great tutorials, and then I found it. The PERFECT idea. So with a plan brewing in my brain I ordered these.

Even though I thought I knew what I wanted, eBay offered up more options than I knew existed. You can even get magnetic strips that look like these or stencils to paint them on. I decided to go with the 3 dimensional, metal version. Just because it's a faux treatment doesn't mean I want it to look that way.

Generic white, metal garage door. Boooorrring!

 I scrubbed the top panels and down the center really well.

Next, the top row gets taped off around the outside of each panel to create the windows, and sectioned off with a thinner tape to give them panes.

We also taped of and painted a center line to create the illusion that our carriage doors will open.

I'm THRILLED with the results! 

xoxo

Lissa

A little bragging

I'm gonna do a little bragging here. We do alot of projects around here- home improvement and crafting goes on weekly. So when Danee said she had salvaged an old leather arm chair and was going to turn it into a reading chair for Myla's room, I got a little excited. I also thought it would take a LONG time. But she moved moved right along with it and knocked it out. I have to say, I don't know if I would have seen the potential in this that she did. She Googled the name on the plate and it was a company that closed in the 70's, so it's pretty old.

I don't have a tutorial for this. She read some instructional blogs and watched some YouTube. And, of course, there was quite a bit of wingin' it. What I do have are the really dramatic before, during and after pics she took. 

Saved from a moving neighbor's garbage. A diamond in the rough.

They had cats don't you think?

Foot stool

Over 600 upholstery tacks removed with a flat head screw driver and pliers. 

Bare bones

Black for the chair and pink for accent pieces 

Painted black

My favorite detail- all those upholstery tacks 

Finished product! 

Amazing right? She kicks some serious butt in the restoration department!

xoxo

Lissa

Tree spotting

I spotted it last fall, but it's back.  Adam doesn't see it.

Do you?

You see it now right? It's a cougar... aka mountain lion.

See what it mean? It's like the cloud game.... but with trees.  ☺

photo via Wikipedia

xoxo

Lissa

Yard work

It's been a very busy May so far. Work is nuts, which in theory is great. In reality it's just exhausting. June looks to be even busier, which means I should have a job for another year. ☺ 

I've been skipping the gym a lot. A LOT. Just when I make some great progress, my energy heads South and the fight is on. All I want to do is head home after work these days.

But on a very positive note, the Casa de Annie Spring spruce up is underway. A lot of new plants have made an appearance in the yard. I do still have some things that I'll want to add eventually, but I'm really liking the way things are looking. In July I will have been here 5 years, and in this time we've added plants and landscaping little by little. My biggest problem has been making decisions on what I want and where to put it. 

The hydrangea has a couple of friends now. It's going to looks so cool when they all fill the space. Ok, the soil isn't looking so good right now. I pulled all the mulch up to replace it and it was a muddy mess. It wasn't draining right which made for moldy mulch, mushrooms and it was just nasty. Adam got it taken care of so now it's time to get more mulch and pretty it back up. 

This little bistro set has been around since before I moved here and it needed a little makeover. Some black spray paint and it looks brand new!

The table hasn't been done yet. See the difference? 

Put a wire brush on the drill and this tedious task is done in no time. What is it?

Well, we've had one on the deck for a few years and I asked Adam to bring the second from one of his parents barns when he was there last week. They'll get filled with petunias. I LOVE petunias. They are so easy to take care of and last all summer long.  Right now there really isn't room for the pair of them but we're planning on "project expand the deck" this summer as it never got off the ground  last year. 

The herbs got planted too. 

And some hostas in front of a new rock wall. Why yes, that is a rope in the picture. The other end is way up in a tall, dead tree. I'm hoping I'm not going to be the one that pulls on the rope while Adam cuts it down. I mean someone has to stand by with video ready! 

This spot needs a little something.... it'll get there.

The fire pit is awesome! And there's a new short wall for the wood to hide behind. I love these little rock walls.

This spot used to be for tomatoes and peppers. But the deck will expand to take over this area so...

They've been moved to a new bed that was cut out of the hill side. 

And then we put some inexpensive stick lights down the stairs. It gets REALLY dark out there and trying to go up and down them is a bit dicey. Even this small amount of light helps a lot. 

A little disclaimer should go with this post. I really just do the fetch and carry for most of these projects. While the ideas are mostly brainstormed, the labor and hard work are all Adam. I can paint, sand and get things put back together. But if I had to dig holes or haul rock? I'd still be in the yard. 

xoxo

Lissa

Bully bird

So, if I hadn't seen some of this with my own eyes I would have never put some of it together...

I'm in the living room and Annie starts barking. I think that it's the dogs next door- when she's in the house she pretty tough and barks at them. Then I hear it. What I think is someone knocking on the glass door. I go back there, and there's nobody there. Again with the knock, and again, no one. It's strange, but I don't give it a whole lot more thought. I won't lie, I can get worked up about nothing pretty fast, so be proud of me. 

The next day when I get home it's obvious there has been a bird by the back door..... it actually looked like a FLOCK of birds had been there. Eeeww.  And the door itself is filthy.

 

Then we spot this guy. He was sitting on the railing of the deck and dive bombing the door.

After that it was pretty easy to put the pieces together. He sees himself in the door and then runs into it as he's showing off. And at the same time- the little girl whose crate is on the other side of that door is losing her mind. She seriously does not like that robin.