Simplify Fall

I had a garage sale a couple weeks ago and sold all my plastic fall foliage. It was hard seeing it go but at  the same time I felt so relieved. For the past seven years, right about this time, I would always get bins and bins of fall stuff out of storage. I really enjoyed decorating for the fall season, as it is my favorite time of the year. Our mantle would display plastic leaves in orange, yellow, and red. As well as other little trinkets I would find from Goodwill or garage sales, all autumn related. But this year, I'm done. Not done with decorating, just done with bins and bins of stuff. To give you an idea of the amount of bins I had, here's a picture...

In my own defense, the pink bins contained girls clothes that were also sold. So that leaves about six bins full of plastic foliage and other little stuff. 

My hubby is so happy with me, actually more like, "When is the next garage sale?" He was so happy that he sat with me during the entire garage sale. Probably to make sure I didn't sneak anything back in the garage. :) Not that I would ever do that, of course. 

So, with all my stuff gone I have to get more creative in the decorating department. One of the items sold was my fall wreath I had on the front door. There was nothing wrong with it, I just wanted something different. I kept back an old grapevine wreath that I didn't want to sell in the garage sale. I simply wrapped an old sweater around the wreath, sewed some burlap leaves and pennant together, and tied an "S" on it. Boom done. 

My mantle was usually the showcase for all my fall stuff. It was fun putting all the stuff together but this fall I wanted to simplify. I just shopped around the house and found things that I thought would look good together.

I've been seeing a bunch of fabric garlands around blog land, so I wanted to try one of mine own. It was very simply to make and I used fabric that I had. Dustin and Allison are not in love with it, and the more I look at it, it just seems like I need to add something orangish? to the mantle to tie it in. I was thinking of adding orange leaves to the branches in my mason jars. Or I could just take it down for the hubby's sake. Not sure yet.
That is about all I have completed this year for fall. I have a few projects that I want the kids to do and that's it. The best part is when it is 30 degrees outside, come November, and I am not hauling bins out of my house!!

To switch topics totally, I just have to share this awesome find. I was at my mom's house last week and I walked past her room and saw her night stand. I stopped in my tracks and just stared. It was the coolest thing I had ever seen! Really! I asked my mom who, what, when, and WHERE she got it from. It was from a garage sale and she had a friend fix it up for her. And since my mom is the most unselfish person you will ever meet and because she loves me so much, she told me to take it! I was, am, and forever, will be so happy! Here's a pic. Can you guess what it is?

It is a little hard to tell in this horrible picture, but it is a bingo cage. What? Yeah, a bingo cage. There is a little door on the side where they would pull out the letter/number. Cool, right? Anyway, Dustin isn't  a huge fan of my awesomely, amazing bingo cage as an accent table. Not until, I put lights in it and plugged them in. Take a look.

It makes the coolest shapes on the walls. I am in love with it!

Needless to say, it doesn't take much to make me happy!

Summer Projects

After working all winter on indoor projects, we couldn't wait to get started on the outdoor stuff. The first issue we wanted to address was a sidewalk/step to the front door. After we put the new siding on the house last summer we actually sided over the "front door" (a service door that lead right into our kitchen), so that meant the real front door to our house was going to be used. The real front door was  a screened in porch that the previous owners put in. We tore that down and for the first time in years, we were using the actual front door. So here is a visual aid to get a better understanding...

We marked off what we wanted the sidewalk to look like.

It is still wet here, but you get the idea. ;)

This photo cracks me up! They stood there for hours watching the workers.

The next project was a deck. There was an existing one there but, once again, we sided over the door that it was meant for. (The door was never used, and we added sliding glass doors to the dining room when we first moved in.) So we removed the old deck and went a year with just cinder blocks as steps to the sliding glass doors. This drove me nuts but we wanted to pay cash for this project, and have a solid plan before we started anything. The first pic I remembered to take was in the framing stage.

Before we put the final boards on, the hubs added a gas line to the deck. Which means, no more propane grills, which means, no more tank refills. Yay!!!

This is the only shot I have of what the deck looks like now. We are going to stain and put railing up next spring.

Another project we did was install dry wells for drainage from our gutters. The reason we needed this system was because every time it rained we had pools of water around the foundation of our home. Even with gutters the rain water would always move toward the house. The grade around our house is very low so I understand why the rain water does this, but we had to stop it. The hubby found a great solution in using dry wells, and it was all DIY. We bought all the supplies and got to work.
This is what the dry well looked like before we covered it up with dirt. It is a big garbage can with holes in it. Pretty simple. We wrapped it with landscape fabric to help keep too much dirt from getting inside.

There was a TON of digging in this project, as you can see. We did rent a trencher (not sure what you call them) to dig the sides of the house.
We installed two dry wells in our backyard to catch all the rain water from our gutters. Since we have installed them, the only problem we have had is when there are down pours. They simply can't drain the water fast enough so a puddle will usually form at the top of the well. It isn't a huge problem and we only get those kind of rain showers a few times in the summer.

After the dry wells were in, we decided to add landscaping all around our house. We did get one quote from a landscaping business to get an idea of the cost. It was more than what we wanted to pay so we started to dig, again! Let me tell you what. This was labor intensive! It was a lot of work, which is why landscaping businesses deserve every penny they earn. ;) I understand why it costs so much. Do I ever want to do landscaping again? No way!
We dug around the entire house and brought in more dirt to fill in the really low spots. We liked the look of landscaping that sits higher than the ground.

 We wrapped the dirt with landscaping fabric around the house. Then we added black mulch. Sorry this is the only picture I have.

We haven't added any plants yet. We can't decide what we want and where to put it. So we will wait until we make up our minds.

The last project we did this summer was cut down a huge tree. Well, we didn't do it. Even though the hubs would have loved to remove this tree himself, we hired a professional tree trimmer to come and do it. This was something that needed to get done. Our electrical provider and two other tree trimming businesses told us to get it removed. It was hollow at the top of the tree and there were several large branches hanging over our house.

It was a tulip poplar tree. It had beautiful flowers in the spring/summer but it was a mess in the fall.  

The tree trimmer stayed up in that tree for six hours! 

Timmmberrrrrrrr....

The one thing I miss about this tree was the amount of shade it provided us. And that is about it. When we examined the top of the tree it looked as though some furry creatures had made it there home.
Sorry Mr. and Mrs. Squirrel and/or Raccoon, you are evicted!


As you can see, it was a busy summer! I haven't picked up a shovel since the landscaping was done! Not to complain, but I needed a break from dirt and all things related to the shovel. Thankfully I am fully recovered, ready for colder weather, and some neglected indoor projects. ;)

Lord bless you!

Another Update

I was looking through my phone pics and noticed some things the kids have been up to. So I decided to dump a bunch of pictures from my phone on this post.

 Enjoy!

My dad let my 3 year old drive a lawn mower! 

Never have I seen him so happy.

Allison made our cat Fluffy, a comfy little bed. Complete with a book about Fluffy's adventures, a drawing of Fluffy catching a mouse, and a mattress ( bubble wrap).

We read about yurts in a book for school, so Emma went to building outside.

Someone got a hold of my menu board and filled out supper for the week. 

Can you translate it?

Another someone, gets the peanuts out of the pantry and helps himself. 

He also helps the dog get his fair share.

Emma is learning how to play chords and scales on the piano. 

This a huge step for her and she is doing great!

Each of the girls made a toad house. Since there has been no evidence of a toad in a few weeks, they are now bug houses, which get plenty of traffic.

This is how Asher plays hide and seek. 

What?! 

You can see him? 

;)

Bookcase Find

We started school 4 weeks ago and are already in a good rhythm. I use the Sonlight curriculum and love it! With this curriculum there are books, alotta books!! And when you have a bunch of books you need some bookcases. So, all summer I have been searching Craigslist, Goodwill, and garage sales for bookcases. I wanted 6 foot shelves, preferably matching, in whatever color. Well, guess what? I found them! It was literally everything I wanted in a bookcase. I know that sounds weird, but it is true. They were posted on Craigslist so I  asked or begged ;), if we could go get them that night. Hubs said yes! I texted the post and the lady selling them said we could get them AND even came down on the price. Cha-ching!!! That made this momma so happy!
So, we brought them home and moved some of the furniture around. They fit perfectly in the corner of our living room.

Love them!!! They were in excellent condition and all I did was dust them off.

Fast forward a month, school has begun and the shelves are full! How did that happen? Well, I gathered all the kids' books as well as the homeschool textbooks and readers we use. Put them in an organized fashion (each shelf has a purpose), and it filled fast! 

It is a relief to finally have all the homeschool books organized. Last year, we spent a good deal of time searching for books. Now, the girls know where all their books are, and even Asher has the bottom shelves for his books! We had books scattered in every room of our house! I guess it didn't hit me how many books we had until i started looking for all of them. So happy all of them are together!

On other matters, do you see that not-so-pleasant-looking chair in the pic? What should I do with it?

Paint the legs? Reupholster? I found it at my mom's and like it by the bookcase. Now what?

Happy Hunting!!

Update! Update!

When life is going full steam ahead, I try my best to stay up with it. The bloggo on the other hand, gets the back seat. No good excuses. Lets continue with the update, shall we?

The house. Remember that whole 'painting trim talk' I had and how I almost threw in the towel? Well, I am so glad I didn't. I painted the entire wood paneled wall in our living room, as well as the rest of the trim, a bright white. It turned out great and we love it! Here's what I am talking about in the living room.....

So much better! And brighter! Here is the before.....

Here is a tip I found out while on my 'lets paint all the trim white' quest. I spray all the trim and wood paneling with a vinegar-water solution, then scrub it down with some rags. And always, always use oil-based primer before the paint. 

The kiddies!! We had a few birthday's during my backseat blog days, I mean months. ;) It is amazing how fast they grow. I know everyone says that but when you witness your daughters get sick of the beloved dollhouse... Yikes! Never, ever thought I would witness it! It left our house (was put in the shed-almost given away) for about six months, and then all of a sudden my little seven year old asked if she could play with it. I was never so happy to get that huge house and about a million accessories out of the shed. It's just so hard watching them grow up! 

The eldest was in softball this summer and loved it!
Would live on her bike if I allowed it.
The biggest helper a mommy could ask for!  Really!
Watches little brother like a hawk.
Asked me, "How many children should I have when I grow up?" Made mommy laugh...and cry.

The middle got glasses!
Loves to sit and read for hours.
Just recently turned into a girl version of Mello (our dog), asked if we could call her Mella!
So pumped to be a big second grader.
Took art classes for a month, and is now teaching us what cool and warm colors are.

The baby (well, only to his momma) lives in the dirt!
Can name every construction machine on earth.
Will checkout the same John Deere movie from the library every visit.
Won't let anyone kiss him.   Sad but true. :(((
Says, "Mommy I starvin'", every half hour.

Have a great day!!!

Room Makeover with Board and Batten

Excuse my blogging disappearance, but I have been busy. In all of my free time ( that's kind of funny to say), I have been either painting, caulking, sanding or driving to Lowe's for the fifteenth time because I forgot something.  Dustin and I have been working really hard to get this room done. So I am happy to show you our most recent room redo.

Here it is.........   

(this was before the carpet was installed) 

 

For the past 6 years this room has been a catch all for stuff we didn't know what to do with. It has always been cluttered and is a total waste of real estate in our home. Side note: our washer and dryer are located in this room so we had to create a multipurpose space.

So after a TON of dejunkification ( I just made up that word ;)) by yours truly and hard work by the hubby, we made this room work for the whole family.

 

I was trying to find a really good before picture but I didn't take one until I had already taken a bunch of stuff out.

 I must say that it is a wee bit embarrassing to show people how it used to look, but here goes:

 

Yeah, it's bad!

 

We had a piano, a freezer, a bed, bins of my junk, a washer and dryer, two 6 foot shelves.......

 

I am not a hoarder, I am not a hoarder.....

 

Anyway, here is a different angle of the room where the washer and dryer are.

 

OK, I think we are done with before pics!

 

So Dustin got busy with framing the room out the way we wanted it. He put the drywall up and ran all the electrical lines. And then one frigid morning I turn on the kitchen faucet and hear water running out of somewhere. I run to the water heater and it is leaking. I am not talking about a drip, I am talking water pouring out of both sides of that thing! So, in true Betsy fashion, I panic (a little too much), grab my phone, and call Dustin.  Long story short, we had to purchase a new water heater and Dustin installed it in a few days.  After that disaster we hired some help with the rest of the mudding and I am so glad we did! What would have taken us weeks to finish, only took a professional a few days.

 

Mudding is messy business!!!!!!

So here comes the fun part of painting and the laying out of the board and batten. We found this awesome smokey-blue color to paint the walls.

Not quite sure why my dryer door is open????

 

 

Once we knew where the boards were going we put them up. This was really exciting for me. I have been dreaming of having this done in our house somewhere. I am so glad the hubby was on board with the project!

 

 

Board and batten in progress!

Sorry for the weird coloring. I am still using my phone for pics!

Laundry room doors!

I can actually hide all our dirty clothes now!!!!

This is where we are today.

Carpet guy came and did a great job.

Asher and Mello were the first to test it out!

 

Overall, this was a very time consuming project. Most board and batten you see, are usually only done on one wall. We liked the way it looked and did almost the whole room.  It gives this once forgotten room, a new life!