Still to do....

It has been overwhelming at times, but we have managed to do so much around the house since we purchased it last year!!! The list is still long though...we are very ambitions about what we want to achieve:-) 
I just had to slow down as I had too much on my plate (put it there myself ), and developed several unpleasant -aches and pains- which I am still dealing with, but slowly getting there.


Here is the current TO-DO LIST:

1. Finish hardwood on the steps
2. Tile entrance and kitchen floor
3. Paint the walls downstairs

Still undecided....

4. Paint the shutters
5. Finish the garden - as for this year..... We have so far planted 69 trees and shrubs!

Privacy hedge in the front

Housing situation once again

Yes, it is time to get another house, a birdhouse :-) We already have some bird feeders but decided to put also some birdhouses in our garden to attract even more birds. Not only because we love to watch them but because they are important for our trees as they liquidate all the possible unwanted insects that attack trees.

Here is our first one. I purchased this one, but will make more myself, or will assign a project to my husband ;-), based on this design later.

Hardwood floor

We  made a good progress with our hardwood floor over the Christmas holidays, so our dining and sitting rooms are now finished. My husband was a 'nailer gun master' and I was a 'designer'. In other words, he was nailing down the wooden planks (and sawing to adjust the length), and I was picking and arranging them on the floor. We still have to finish the baseboards, but we want to paint the walls first, and that will only happen in spring.
We have one more room to do - a family/TV room, but it will be a bit of a project because this room is connected with our kitchen, and we are planning to tile the floor there. We have already figured out how we want to make the transition between the tiles and wood, so we will start soon.

It was a lot of bending down, my back was really sore, but the result is worth it.



before


 

getting there...



after

New "American" Microwave

We bought a new microwave (an over-the-range one with built-in extractor hood) together with other kitchen appliances 3 months ago, but it was installed only this week. My husband was doing it himself and when he started, he realized it would be a difficult project. We wanted it venting out and as soon as he cut out a piece of drywall, there it was - a pipe and electric cables in it and a stud right in the way where the vent was supposed to go.

So we left it for a couple of weeks and focused on other projects, but at the same time were thinking what would be the best solution to this problem. We knew how to deal with the stud, but now also electricity!!! We decided to close the drywall and use the kitchen cabinet above, where was more space, to direct the piping outside there.

Finally, the microwave is working, so I started experimenting with its features. I decided for this GE Profile microwave because it is matching my GE Profile stove/ range. (WOW label)

One of the button says FAMILY SNACKS, so I pressed it and here it comes, these are my options:

1 - BURRITO
2 - CHICKEN NUGGETS
3 - OATMEAL
4 - INSTANT MAC AND CHEESE
5 - CANNED PASTA
6 - HOT DOGS
7 - FROZEN MICROWAVE PIZZA
8 - HOT CHOCOLATE

 

Well done GE! There should be a sticker on this product - "for Americans only". Definitely NOT my type of snacks. I can use only one option - OATMEAL. Even hot chocolate that I make is from fresh cocoa powder, but maybe I can trick the machine and use this option as well.

 

Well, the rest of the features are great, so let's just forget about this one :-)

 



Around garage

We have achieved a lot this past weekend...my husband and I. We were working on two projects: finishing the garage insulation and redirecting the first 3 downspouts - next to the garage and front door, basically finishing them properly.

My husband is really handy and because he wants to carry on with different projects also during the winter, and so do I :-), we decided to insulate our garage completely, so that we can use it as a workshop and don't freeze to death. Here is how it went...

As for the downspouts, we purchased the house with "half-finished job" on them (the whole neighbourhood has them that way) and whenever it rained, it caused erosion and flooded our driveway, because they were only pointed toward the ground next to the garage, front door etc. We were connecting them with the underground pipes and directing them further from the house to the landscape.

The job is done, now I am ready to finish what I started - my front yard landscaping - next year!

Garden vision

We are finally finished with the first stage of our garden project. We almost didn't buy this house because of the garden. Well, can you still call a lawn a garden? I wonder....

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature."

 

 

 

No, we definitely didn't buy a house with a "garden" . There was NOTHING in mine. Literally.

This is how it looked 3 weeks ago.

 

Before

 

 

Originally, we wanted to start with creating of our garden next year as we have many other things to work on around the house, but we couldn't take it anymore. The space just looked so desperate. How can one not have ONE tree in a garden!?

At the same time we didn't want to miss this year planting season, so last week we delivered more trees.

 

 

In process





My husband and I managed to put everything in the ground last weekend. It was a very hard work and we were exhausted, but it is so rewarding. I love to look into my garden now, and we have only just started :-)

 

 

After

Next project is a fence, a patio, and of course MORE TREES. There is never enough trees!!!

First project completed

My first project in a new house was to replace the floor in a laundry room. I decided to buy a new washing machine and dryer and didn't want to put it on an old floor, so here is what I did.

By the way, I am so happy with the new machines. There is absolutely no comparison to the old ones. The washing machine uses much less water, is much more efficient and sooooo quiet!!!!!!!!

Before



After

 

 

 

 

I was even able to replace the old floor base shoe molding with the help of this handy tool .... my husband helped to nail it down :-)

 

 

Since then I have moved onto next projects and will report on them next time.