New gutters... in February?

With close to spring-like temperatures these last two weeks, we've been getting some outside work done on the house. 

We recently suffered some leaks onto our living room ceiling and after having it inspected by two different companies (one that does not do gutters, so they had no vested interest), it was concluded that our gutters were to blame.  

Greg climbs a ladder a few times a year to remove debris from the gutters, but that, evidently, wasn't good enough for this winter.   While we've known the slope on the old gutters wasn't great, we didn't realize just how bad of a problem it was.   What appears to have happened during the deep freeze most of the country experienced a few weeks ago, is that after a lot of rain and a bit of snow, an ice dam built up in the guttering on the front of our house.  At some point it must have encroached into the soffit and worked its way into the attic - how much it's hard to know.  A warm day finally allowed it to start melting, resulting in a series of wet spots across the front outside edge of our living room ceiling.  For the moment, the stains left don't look very bad, and likely no one visiting would even notice them, but we know they are there.  At some point, a ceiling paint job will likely be hired out, but we first addressed the gutters.

On Friday of last week, we got new gutters with a leaf filtering guard system.  It's a beautiful installation.  

The company offered us multiple discounts (because it was February, and we're seniors, and the salesman treated us to a friends and family discount, AND we were extremely flexible with the timing of the installation) and the price finally came down to merely expensive, instead of the insane amount the salesperson started with.  I suppose they have to do stuff like that to make you feel a little better about parting with your cash.  At the end of the day, with today's inflation, while I don't expect that we got a "deal", we think the price is reflective of the current economy, but more importantly, Greg got freedom from having to climb a ladder again to clean the gutters every spring and fall.  And, hopefully, a new gutter with a good leaf filtering system will be a nice feature when we decide to sell.

The thought of selling and moving ever again makes me numb, but realistically, we won't likely be here more than 10 years, considering our ages.  That's the way Greg talks, anyway.  I can't think about it.

It's supposed to reach 60 degrees here on Friday, and I'm nearly giddy about it!  I know this unseasonably warm weather won't last long, but it's that many fewer cold days 'till spring! 

More doilies...

Still on a doily kick, I had to make another one in an autumn color - this one for me to keep.  I made another Summer Splendor (or I suppose I could call this one Autumn Awesomeness):

It's a fairly simple pattern (which is why I've made two now), but it has a nice Wow! factor.  This one is made with Artiste Cotton thread in the color Papaya.

Being smitten by doilies this month (especially smallish doilies) I did something a bit uncharacteristic for me.  I bought myself this overpriced, out-of-print book from a seller on Amazon:

I was searching high and low for patterns for small doilies (anything under 10 inches), and finally, somehow stumbled upon this book.  And I just had to have it!  And just like that, I was putting it in my "cart" and purchasing it!  What's wrong with me?!?  Normally, I'd wring my hands, put it in time out and decide the next day I didn't need it.  But for some reason, I decided right then and there that I needed this book.  And I didn't even put up an argument.

Fortunately, I was not disappointed when it arrived.  While I'd prefer the book had more 8 - 10 inch doilies (and I knew there were few that large when I ordered it), there's not a bad one in the whole bunch.

It was hard to decide which one to start with, but I finally settled on this one with the very inauspicious name of #74:

I'm going to have to get me a slightly larger steel hook for making these since this one (that was supposed to be 6 inches across) measured only 4.5 inches when I was finished.  It will make a pretty coaster, or maybe votive holder, but I'm not sure I'm interested in making doilies this small.   So back to Hobby Lobby I must go to get a larger hook.  Wish me luck!  

~~~~~

Yuko loved the doilies I gave her.  Upon the good advice I received last week, I suggested that she give one to her mother when she returns to Japan, but the fact is her family lives about 12 hours away from where they will be living when they return, so I don't even know how often they see each other.  I'm also not sure that Yuko completely understood what I was saying.  Yuko and I have become pretty comfortable working through a conversation until we understand what the other is saying, but with our two boys (her two-year-old and my 64 year-old) making noise in the background, our conversation was more challenging than normal.

Regardless of what she does with them, she appeared to be very pleased with the gift.  And she wrote me a very sweet thank you the next day.

Meanwhile, I got to enjoy these beautiful flowers all week that Yuko brought with her when she and her family visited:

~~~~~

Overall, it was a busy, but relatively quiet week.   After so much rain recently, I finally had a good day to power-wash the area next to where we put so many rocks a few weeks ago.  Pictures don't do the job justice, but I promised pictures, so here you go...  

The vast majority of rocks aren't actually visible.  

Most of the rocks are 8 - 12 inches below ground level. 

I forget how deep the hole was.  

Just know that there are a lot of rocks under the top layer

~~~~~

Several days after posting this, I found some pictures of the hole dug, and a couple of the piles of rocks (before shoveling):

Here's the hole (that is shown filled in above):

And here are the first two piles of rock we had delivered (one pile was jumbo-sized river rock, and one pile was simply large river rock):

~~~~~

Seriously wishing I had saved back more of 

the larger (Jumbo sized) river rock to create a 

more attractive sloping area above.  

I need to work on this (and maybe go buy some more rock).  

And the above was a bit of an afterthought.  

We had more rock than we needed, so we decided to fill in 

this area outside our dining room.  

Every spring I plant it with annuals, 

and every summer it becomes a weed-infested mess.  

I think I need to look for some perennials to pretty up this space.  

But for right now, it's just nice to look out the dining room doors and not see a jumble of guilt-inducing weeds.

And then there's a section in the front of our house under a hose reel where we laid some rock and stepping stones.  It's an improvement for various reasons, but at the moment a dirty hose reel box is sitting atop it, so I'm not bothering to take a picture.    Next spring/summer this will all hopefully look nicer with grass filling in the edges, and maybe some plantings in the rocks.  I haven't figured those details out yet, but for now I'm just glad the hard physical labor is finished.  

And now it's on to other projects!

To see what other YOPpers are up to, visit our group on Ravelry.

2018 Yarn Stash-Down:  35.66/100 Skeins

A LOT of rocks, a little yarn...

I wish I had a picture of all the rocks we've had in our driveway recently, but you're just going to have to believe me when I tell you in the last week and a half we've moved 6 tons of river rock - with the help of some young friends, I should quickly add.  Some things we wouldn't dream of turning into DIY projects, but after getting an estimate for having a professional do this, we decided moving rocks couldn't possibly be that hard. 

And, at first, it wasn't.

And then upon starting the shoveling of the 4th cubic yard we began to think the $900 a local landscaper wanted for the job was possibly in the neighborhood of reasonable.  But at over three tons in I guess we felt we were committed, so we paid our young friends generously and put our own bodies to the test, and I'm happy to say we survived for maybe a little over half the cost the professional with heavy duty machinery would have charged.  I'm trying to decide if I want to know the precise final cost so I'm putting off figuring it out.  The memories we created are priceless.  And the swearing (when the young folk weren't around) will hopefully be forgotten and forgiven in time...

Now, if it would just rain and wash the rocks clean and pretty so I can fully believe it was worth all the effort...   and swearing...  and forgiving...

Not that I spent much time with my yarn this week, but onto yarny things now...

Earlier in the month I made this little mandala:

Little is the operative word here.  That's a little dessert cup sitting on top of it.

And starting to get in the mind of donating some kid's scarves come cooler weather, I began making a squishy ribbed one:

I plan to trim it with big pom poms when I'm finished.  I hope someone grabs it who loves orange! 

And that's really about it.   Aside from shoveling rocks, it's been a good week with various activities that had me out and busy most days, but honestly...  I've missed playing with yarn.  Here's hoping next week sees more hook and/or needle time. 

To see what other YOPpers are up to, visit our group on Ravelry.

I think I can.....

It's amazing the difference carpeting makes to a room. The echo is gone and the room is cozy (well, as cozy as you can get without furniture). In case you're wondering what color we painted with (or even if you're not), we'll just call it our classic beige-a-vu. Okay, so we're pretty tame when it comes to painting the rooms of our home. There are worse things. Like black wallpaper and pink roses, that's what. (Don't ask unless you really want to know).

Actually, we painted with Sherwin Williams Beach House (darker shade on the brick wall) and Kestrel White (lighter shade and gloss trim). The paint brochure said it was an airy look. To me, it just looks like beige-a-vu.

Now -- the last push to paint three inside doors (both sides), a set of french doors (inside only) and window trim on two windows begins.

Can we do it?

I think I can....I think I can....

A new view of where the rains came down and the floods came up.

I used a latex gloss on these bookshelves. Now I read that I may need to wax them (with car wax, of all things) to keep paint from sticking to books. (sigh) Oh well. I think I can....I think I can....

I'm envisioning two cozy chairs in front of the fireplace. I'm also envisioning a gas log in there. We don't own those two cozy chairs or gas log yet, but I think I can....I think I can....


This little alcove is the space where I'm going to try to fit all our homeschool stuff (at least the stuff that remains in the family room.) I think I can....I think I can....

The boys are envisioning a pool table of sorts in this spot. I did too at one time, but I'm beginning to think.....I can't....
Ah well...we can finally see the light at the end of this tunnel and it's getting brighter every day.

It's a Comin'

The family room is finally coming together!

What was a dreadful shiny white painted brick wall...



...while needing some touch-ups in spots, now looks more sedate.

In the fireplace (behind the leaning door) we're hoping to install a gas log to enjoy this winter.

Joel (above) and Ben (below) putting a final coat on the new drywall.

Carpet is to be installed on Monday morning. Almost can't wait -- except there is still a load of trim to paint. Oh, my achin' back.

It Could Be Worse...

Construction has begun on our family room this week and we are so excited to be moving forward. Good things are ahead. In the meantime, I'm posting something Greg wrote tonight that pretty much sums up the week.



This is a true story. Only the yelling has been changed to protect the not-so-innocent....

On June 7th when we got 8 inches of rain, I thought, "It could be worse..."

When the water started seeping into our family room, I thought, "It could be worse..."

When the insurance company said we weren't covered, I thought, "It could be worse..."

When the FEMA said we made too much to receive a government handout, I thought, "It could definitely be worse..."

When the SBA said we made too much for a really low interest loan, I thought, "It could be worse..."

When the SBA said the money was disbursed electronically, I thought, "It could be worse..."

When the automatic deposit wasn't made for the loan, I thought, "It could be worse..."

When they said the check was in the mail for the loan, I thought, "It could be worse..."

When the building contractor said they could start right away, but they needed money down, I thought, "It could be worse..."

When the studs were exposed we saw water damage that necessitated re-drywalling more than we had originally anticipated, I thought, "It could be worse..."

When the paneling was pulled off we learned we didn't have insulation, I thought, "It could be worse..."

When they pulled out the bathroom sink, I learned we had a leak that then required a plumber for a couple of hours, I thought, "It could be worse..."

When they fixed the plumbing and as I sealed the walls with masonry sealer, I thought, "It surely won't get worse..."

When they finished fixing our gutter and pointing it away from the house, I thought, "It could be worse..."

When a monster storm came through last night and dropped a huge hundred pound limb on the fence and wires, I thought, "It could have been worse..."

When they pulled off what was supposed to be insulation, and discovered the remnants of termites, I knew it would get worse....

When the termite guy came through he said, "Yes you had termites, and while they aren't in the walls now, we need to treat by drilling holes all around your house and poisoning the colony". He went on to give us a lesson in entomology as he explained (in a jovial way we had trouble appreciating) that termites live in cool comfort underground in the heat of the summer, but will make their way back come fall, I thought, "It could be worse...."

When the contractors left and we decided to order Chinese because we felt like not cooking, I thought, "Well, maybe the worst was over." The weather had turned beautiful, the food was great, and our deck was comfortable (thank goodness as it was the only place we could all sit)....

That's when it got worse. The bluebird of happiness dive bombed the deck and I took a direct hit to the back of my neck and almost my plate of food....the bird must not have liked the Poo Poo Platter!

GRRROSSSSS!

But that's when I knew....it surely, most certainly, without a doubt....can't get worse (at least not for the moment).

How poetic, how ironic, how perfectly appropriate for the day----

I hope your day is better, but never stop thanking God for blessings and good friends that offer help, because it could get worse!

Greg

The mind of a man plans his way,

but the Lord directs his steps. - Proverbs 16:9

A change in perspective -- by The Soggy Blogger

As a homeschooling family of 15 years, we had decided we had accumulated far too much STUFF so I've been dejunking this spring getting ready for a whopper of a garage sale.

Here is just a sampling of what I've been collecting -- um, okay.... let's just call it what it is - hoarding. And this is just part of it all):

Neat hoarding is still hoarding.....

Lest you think, "This isn't so bad," keep in mind....I didn't take pictures of what wasn't neat.

'Nuff said.

As the date of the garage sale drew near Ben announced he wanted to sell refreshments. Great! An opportunity to learn some business principles. He figured the cost versus the profits and in the end, he concluded it would be fun to do a refreshment stand anyway. So Friday afternoon Ben made brownies, cookies and rice crispy treats.

Greg and I put the finishing touches on the garage sale (i.e. we made sure everything had a place and a price-tag). We are neat garage sellers, too:

See anything you want?


We'd heard there was a chance of scattered showers the next day. But hey! What's a little rain to a serious garage sailor? (Bad pun intended.) We shrugged it off and hoped for sunshine.

As we left our beautifully arranged stuff tucked neatly in our dry garage, we went to bed while visions of money (to buy more STUFF, no doubt) danced in our heads.

z z z z z z z z z

Thunderstorms rattled the house through the night and I woke up around 5:00 a.m. and groaned to see that the street in front of the house was flooded. I think I grumbled to Greg, "No one is even going to be able to make it across the moat in front of our house and into our driveway!" Keep in mind, we've had the street "flood" during heavy rains before, and since Greg wasn't worried, I decided to crawl back into bed and get some more shut-eye.

About 7:00 a.m. I got up for real and plodded down to the kitchen. "WOW! Look at all that water in the back yard!" But again...we've had a lot of rain before, so I didn't get too excited - yet, but I was beginning to think the garage sale might not happen.

I decided to check our downstairs. We have a half-basement family room with french doors that open out onto a cement patio area. This area sometimes accumulates a bit of standing water in a heavy rain, and remembering once before it had gotten dangerously close to the doors I called out for Greg to come take a look.

By the time he got down there, I noticed that the carpet was a slightly darker shade of gray along the doorway. "It's coming in!" I yelled. Then I noticed that the carpet was wet all along that wall. It was wicking in fast. We called the boys to get up and help us move bookshelves and desks from that side of the room. We pulled everything away from that outside wall and then we sat down to take a deep breath thinking of the disaster our precious bookshelves had escaped.

Then we noticed that what was previously just wet-looking had turned into a puddle. "Quick! Get these bookshelves unloaded and carry everything upstairs!" We spent a frantic half hour (at least) doing just that. And since Joel had boots on, he was enlisted to go outside and place bags of water softener salt along the outside of the door. What a sport.

Then we sat down to catch our breath again (and to apologize for all the yelling that had just gone on - yes, ours....not the boys'). Beginning to see the humor in it all, the guys started to laugh and made a list of all the videos we could watch while we waited this baby out. They came up with:

The Longest Day (June 6th)
The Poseidon Adventure
Titanic
A River Runs Through It.
The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything
Jonah
The Sea Hawks
Treasure Island
Mysterious Island
Run Silent, Run Deep
The Hunt for Red October
Lifeboat

And anything with Claude Rains.....

I decided to check out the downstairs room again. "Get down here, everybody! The water is making it's way to the other end of the room!" The salt bags weren't helping much at all. So once again, we worked frantically to carry the remaining books, and bookshelves, upstairs to higher ground. The only things we couldn't manage to get up the stairs were a large computer table, a sleeper sofa (that has seen many, many better days) and a recliner.

At this point, we crashed and decided there wasn't much else that could be done but to wait it out. I mean, it had to stop raining sometime, right? I decided to humor myself and take some pictures.

It wasn't very funny:








Up until last weekend, we had thought this floor outlet was pretty clever. After it bubbled and sizzled, we began to wonder just why we thought it was a good idea. (BTW, the electricity was turned off at this point.)



Greg tried squeegy-ing water from the carpet into the laundry room where there is a floor drain. Can't you almost hear the water sloshing?

The rain did finally begin to subside and we ventured outside to take a peek.

Yes, that is blue sky you see reflected in the pool of mud on our back patio.

The lowest corner of our back yard. By late afternoon it was already starting to recede.


Our shed remained flooded for the better part of Sunday.

And believe it or not....about mid afternoon on Saturday we decided to open up the garage door and have at it. We made a whopping $7.50 -- with Ben making the majority of that selling brownies (and that $7.50 included a 2-dollar tip!) We've got some pretty nice neighbors, don't you think?

Sunday afternoon, our good friends, Mark and his son, Danny came by to help in whatever way they could. The guys pulled out the larger pieces of furniture we hadn't been able to remove the day before and then ripped up the saturated carpet and pad:

Nathan, who is SO glad to be home from college, hauled wet carpet and pads out to the street.

Ben and Joel took turns vacuuming with a shop vac while Mark squeegeed.

How do you like that 60's linoleum? Ben wants to leave it so he can roller blade on it. I know retro is in, but I'm not sure I can live with this.

Dan and Joel also worked hard pulling out the wooden carpet strips and baseboards. I can't believe I didn't get a picture of Dan working up a sweat! What great workers they all were.

After a second trip to Walmart for me (to buy a couple mop heads this time) the floor got a good mopping and while we waited for the floor to dry, we enjoyed some well-earned sub sandwiches. Finally, the guys carried back downstairs (onto a dry floor) the bookshelves and many boxes of books we had lugged upstairs the day before -- so we wouldn't be tripping over them in the coming weeks while we figure out what we're going to do to give this room a face lift.

A contractor (and friend) came by today to give us an estimate and a time frame for getting this room into shape. It will be at least three weeks before we can get squeezed into their schedule.

The silver lining is that we have time to contemplate what we want to do with this room.
And to contemplate that we were among the luckier ones. Many suffered much worse damage than we did -- just blocks from our home. Some lost homes and automobiles and at least two persons are missing as a result of the flood waters in this sleepy little town last weekend.

We're also contemplating how much larger our garage sale is going to be once we're done clearing through everything that we're realizing hasn't really been all that worth saving for the past 10 years. (That's how long we've lived in this house).
It's interesting how something like this changes one's perspective about material things.
This change of perspective is a good thing.