A Sprucing We Will Go

WOW! What an incredibly busy, busy weekend we had! It flew by so quickly it's hard to believe we had an extra day tucked in there. However, we were so, so busy that I think we're actually glad that it finally came to an end. We can go back to work and just, well, work - not WORK!

Remember that list I told you about? We've been able to work our way through about one third of the items on the list. WHEW! If we could have done so literally, I'm sure you'd have seen smoke coming from both of us! Here are a few samples of some things we accomlished over the nice long holiday weekend.

I found these fun wall clings out shopping one day. I thought they'd add a fun touch to our home. They're fairly easy to apply - though the first one was a bit of a bugger. Here's the dining room's "before" version:
And the "after" version:
And a sweet one for the bedroom. I hope you and your spouse live by this practice as well...
A beautiful new rug for under the dining room table. I just love the colors! They're perfect for our home!
My new "craft desk" in the garden room. Isn't it adorable? I found it at my favorite thrift store about 6 months ago. It's been stored away in the cellar until it's new home was ready for it. I found the cute little vintage linen topper on the desk at the Goodwill about a month or so ago. The colors are just perfect for my garden room! I'm going to recover the little stool just as soon as I find some suitable fabric. I'm hoping for something vintage that blends with the topper. Wish me luck!
While I was working in the garden room, I created this new little vignette in the corner. I just love it.
We also did some work out in the garden. Whew! I've been very neglectful of this area and it sure reminded us of that this weekend. I've decided to work on one small area at a time. This weekend we planted two iceberg roses, 4 hydrangeas, 2 impatiens, 4 pots of white alyssum, a culinary herb garden consisting of sweet basil, rosemary, tarragon, lemon thyme, garlic chives, Italian parsley and peppermint. I also re-potted my plumeria, which seems to be thriving in spite of me. See what I mean -- busy, busy bees! We also bought new cushions for the glider, an adorable green goose (again, from my favorite thrift store), and Kevin got a new toy...a new BBQ! It's a nice one - we tested it out over the weekend with hotdogs (for the Dodger game Saturday night) and steaks (for dinner on Sunday with Vicky). It's a wonderful BBQ that we'll enjoy for many years to come. Here are some photos:





And one final picture: Sweet Slippers in her garden. She just loves it when we're all out playing in the dirt.
One third down, two thirds still to go! Wish us luck!

Sweet Baby Girl

Shortly after Kevin and I were married, I had one of the most difficult days of my life. We were married in August and by December, we had to put down my angel dog of 12 years, Hobbes. He had congestive heart failure and no matter how many different medications we tried, none of them seemed to work. They all did for a while; when one stopped working, we'd try another ... and then, none of them worked at all.

I can't tell you how devastating it was to have to have him put down. I was depressed and cried for hours on end. He was such a good boy - and stayed with me through many of lifes ups and downs. I was so blessed to have him in my life - and when he was gone, I missed him terribly. I still do.

One Sunday after Hobbes was gone, I went into the living room and gave Kevin 'the pouty face'. He asked if I wanted to 'go play with puppies', and I, sad faced, nodded yes.

We went to the Pasadena Humane Society and found her. She was lying, belly up, in a cage with a young shelter volunteer scratching her belly. She looked up at us with eager brown eyes and Kevin swears she uttered the words 'this could be you'. We took her out in the yard and played with her to see how we'd all get along. From the start it was a match made in Heaven. When we went in to talk to the adoption counselor, she read the intake report. The final summation: sweet baby girl.

And that's exactly what she is. The name stuck -- we both refer to her often as 'Sweet Baby Girl'. She looks up innocently with those big brown eyes and wags her tail ever so slightly. She knew she had us from the word go.

This past weekend, Sweet Baby Girl (aka, Slippers) got her 'summer 'do'. I'm not sure who loves it more - Kevin and I or Slippers. From her perspective, she's got to be cooler and more comfortable without all that hair! From our perspective, we just love the fuzziness of her newly shorn coat! From any perspective, she's an adorable, albeit spoiled, sweet baby girl. What do you think of her new 'do'?Sleeping Angel

Listening to the early morning sounds in the neighborhood...

The Yo-Yo That is House-Hunting

You may have wondered how the house-hunt was coming along. Well here's the answer: it's not.

Why?

After careful consideration, many honest conversations, and numerous budget worksheets that have been worked and re-worked, we've come to the decision that we are not ready to buy a house. Yet. I know that there are some who will argue that this IS a good time to buy a house, but there's a flip side to that. Yes, housing prices have been coming down. Yes, interest rates are at their lowest since...well, sliced bread. However, the flip side of the argument is that we live in California. Southern California to be exact. I daresay that, save for perhaps New York City, this is the only place in the country where $40,000.00 down on a house is a mere pittance. It's also probably the only place in the country (or darn close to it!) in which a $400,000.00 house is a 'fixer-upper'. And that is being kind. Some of the houses we've seen in that price range are really more like 'are you KIDDING??'. Besides that, over and above the down payment, the monthly mortgage/interest/property taxes/homeowners insurance/PMI would be triple what we are paying now. TRIPLE. Ahhhhh, yes, the joys of living in Southern California!

That said, we're both surprisingly happy about our decision to postpone buying a house and stay put. One of the reasons we felt compelled to buy NOW, is the situation with the landlord and his being behind on his mortgage. However, now that he's re-negotiated his loan and has no plans to sell the house (I know this because I just came out and asked him...), we have no reason to rush into the purchase of a house. We decided that we would much rather stay where we're at for as long as we can and just keep stashing our money in the bank. Afterall, even with it's faults (and there are plenty), the house is cozy and very charming, we have it fixed up the way we want it, and the rent is ridiculously low (well, for our area. Say it with me: Ahhhhh, yes, the joys of living in Southern California!). We just don't feel that it's worth it to strap ourselves and perhaps end up in a messy situation -- like so many are experiencing with their homes during this crazy economic situation we're all living through at the moment.

So - there you have it. What this means for us (in addition to being able to set aside more money) is this: it's time to relax, enjoy and ... get back to work on the business of making THIS house our home! To that end, I've got a wonderful, very detailed, room-by-room list of things we can (and will) accomplish over the upcoming summer months. A new faucet here, a new picture there. Here a sprucing, there a sprucing, everywhere a sprucing, sprucing!

(...and yes, Kevin has read the list - is it possible to grimmace and smile at the same time?!)

Happy Mother's Day!

Today at Casa de Weir we held our annual Mother's Day brunch out on the front lawn. Though it started out a bit iffy - a little cool with some clouds - just as we began to fill our plates and sit down at the table, the sun broke through the clouds and it turned out to be a really nice day!

Kevin and I began this celebration to honor the moms in our family eight years ago. It's a tradition that we all look forward to and enjoy. Our moms and Deb always enjoy and appreciate all of the attention, and Kevin and I have a fun time putting everything all together. Here we are - all the girls (notice that, even Slippers got in on this one!)
This year's theme was a fun brightly colored floral/butterfly theme. Lots of pinks and oranges, blues and greens. Everything looked so festive! I found all of the decorations (believe it or not!) at the 99 Cents Only store - aren't these cute??
I also fell in love with these beautiful roses the minute I laid eyes on them. I thought they'd be perfect in the vintage white pottery rose bowls that we used as centerpieces at our wedding.
Food? Oh, there was no shortage of that. Afterall, we all know how Drew and Pat love their breakfast! They were genernous enough to share with the rest of us, though. On the menu: egg casserole with sauteed onions, pancetta and four Italian cheeses, egg casserole with sauteed onions, mushrooms and fresh spinach and a cheddar blend, croissants, fresh fruit, sausage, applewood smoked bacon, red potatoes and onions, buttermilk pancakes with maple or berry syrup, orange juice, champagne and coffee. Mmmmm...it was delicious!
(check out that cute little vintage-y tablecloth; isn't it adorable? I found it at my favorite thrift store ... of course! Here's another picture of it:)
In addition to the beautiful orchid corsages all the ladies are wearing, we also gave them these necklaces: Aren't they fun?! We made them -- or rather, I made them, but I couldn't have done it without Kevin cheering me on =)

It was another wonderful Mother's Day celebration. To our moms: We love you very much and thank you for everything you do for us! Deb, you're not our mom...but we love you, too!!

Don't Play With Your Food!

So ... it's blistering hot outside, it's Friday night and, having had a very busy week Kevin and I are both juuuust a wee bit punchy.

We sit down to dinner, sharing a cool and refreshing Chinese chicken salad. YUM! Just as I pick up a piece of chicken and start to take a bite, it hits me ... this piece of chicken is staring back at me! I said to Kevin 'look at this piece of chicken!' and we both began laughing hysterically. Kevin runs in to get the camera and, well, see for yourself: I swear, we did not engineer this craziness - it just happened. I told Kevin we should sell it on eBay, but, nah, the chicken was too yummy to pass up.

I don't know. Maybe it's the heat, or the fact that we're tired or ... maybe just because we're a bit off center, but every time we look at this photo, we crack up. (Oh yeah, ask Kevin to imitate this face for you the next time you see him; he does a great job! Go ahead, ask me how I know...)

Should Work Really Be THIS Fun? (...or Coffee, Tea, or 7-Layer Bean Dip?)

Though I had some concerns about starting our new school year this past fall, I can honestly say that, as the year has progressed, it's clear that my fears were unfounded.

What were my concerns? For starters we have a new principal this year. And yes, it's true I was on the committee that chose him, but you just never know -- sometimes people aren't always what they seem. This, however, is not true of Jeff. He really is a 'what you see is what you get' kinda guy. He's absolutely wonderful we love him, and we feel so lucky to have him as our principal. To top it off, he's just crazy enough to fit in perfectly with our staff. What do I mean when I say our staff is crazy and he fits right in? Here's a little snippet of day to day life at FA:

For the past six years during state testing, we've put together a 'snack cart' for the staff. The cart contains various goodies - fruit, granola bars, small packages of peanuts, baked goods, etc. And coffee. Always coffee. While students are testing, the cart gets wheeled from room to room. At that point the teacher can step out, select a goodie and some coffee and the person pushing the cart can give the teacher a brief break to go to the restroom. I can't exactly remember how this practice began, but it's one that's enjoyed by everyone, and really, it's just a little morale booster. Who couldn't use one of those, right?

Several weeks before testing began I mentioned our 'snack cart' practice to Jeff. He was incredulous that we do this, but was good natured enough to go along with it. Our schedule is set up so that we test each morning for 6 days; all testing is finished by breaktime and we resume our regular schedule for the rest of the day. The first day we had the cart, as I set it up, Jeff gave it a look of disdain. However, as he walked past the cart, he couldn't pass up helping himself to a package of cheese and crackers. A bit later, he enjoyed a cup of coffee. Shortly after that, he indulged in a package of peanuts. Before he went out to supervise students at breaktime, he grabbed a granola bar. Huh. Guess he's re-thinking the snack cart issue.

The next afternoon as he was dashing out for a meeting on campus, he looked sheepishly at me and said 'can I take the licorice to the meeting?' Of course! ...but next year, I don't want to hear anything about the snack cart! We both laughed.

This pretty much continued every day we had testing. We had the same 'basics' on the cart each day, but typically a staff member would also have made something to put on the cart and share with the staff. One day it was an egg casserole, another day - you guessed it - 7 layer bean dip. Why? Because we have a teacher who once a week will walk into the faculty lounge and proclaim "What, no 7-layer bean dip?" Hence, the 7-layer bean dip.

On our final day of testing, the coffee place up the street that had been filling our cambro with coffee, met with catastrophe; their coffee machine broke down and, horrors!, there was no coffee. I sent a message to the staff letting them know that we were ending testing on a low note; due to circumstances beyond our control, there would be no coffee. Jeff (aka Mr. Snack-Cart-Poo-Poo'er) didn't want to disappoint everyone, so he began making pot after pot of coffee in the office until the cambro was filled with coffee. I sent a message out to the staff letting them know that, because our fearless leader does indeed love us, there would be coffee. Here's a sample of the responses that followed:

Me: “Just wanted to let you all know that Jeff is up here brewing coffee, so there WILL be coffee on the snack cart. Can you feel the love???”

MG: “Tell him the doughnut machine is broken, too.”

JR: “I knew there had to be a reason we hired the guy.”

MZ: “Let's taste the coffee first before we go and make rash judgements!!”

DP: “Exactly. If the coffee gives us a rash, then Jeff is fired.”

PR: “Cheeeeeez! The things people do around here just to get a good cup of coffee!!!”

See what I mean? Now don't you wish you worked here?

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Yesterday we had an early celebration for mom's birthday. Mom and dad, Deb, Bill and the boys and Kevin and I all met at Mimi's Cafe for breakfast. We had a fun morning and all enjoyed a yummy breakfast.

Mom's been working on sprucing up the house with some new decorations. She's made pillows and re-worked a floral wreath - all with a bird theme. I thought I'd continue that theme when creating her birthday gift. It turned out really cute! It was fun to gather all of the goodies to create it, it was fun to make, and best of all - mom loved it! Here's a picture of it: Since I completed it, I've had it sitting on the table out in our garden room. Now that we've given it to mom, our table is looking a little bare. Hmmm ... guess I'm going to have to get busy and create another one for us!

Happy birthday, mom. We hope your day is a special as you are!

Reminiscing

A couple of months ago I reconnected with some friends from high school whom I've not seen in years. Emails flew back and forth between us and a get-together was planned.

That get-together took place this past Wednesday night. What fun we had! It was so good to get back together and catch up with each others' lives and reminisce a little about the past. Boy, it's been a long time! (no, I'm not telling you how long it's been!) But, as Lisa said the other night, it's like we never missed a beat. It was so natural to be together, we chatted and giggled like we'd seen each other every day since high school. It was wonderful!

At the end of the evening, we vowed to make these get-togethers a regular event. We'll even include our husbands from time to time.

Karen, Lisa, Blanca and Leslie: it was great to see all of you again. You all looked great!

Barbie and Trini: we missed you and are anxious to catch up with you both at our next get-together!

...with two cats in the yard

Or more accurately, four cats.

Earlier this evening Kevin called me over to the front window to see something interesting. Four cats laying in our front yard - unusual enough in itself since we don't own cats. Even more unusual, though, was the way they looked at each other and synchronized their movements. They were hilarious!

...until someone on a skateboard swooshed down the sidewalk and made too much noise. (bonus points for scary green glowing eyed kitty)

A Bit of a Reprive

WHEW. We spoke with the landlord tonight and found out that he was, in fact, able to re-negotiate the terms of his loan on this house. What does that mean? It means the auction that was scheduled for May 7th has been canceled. That's wonderful news!

It doesn't mean that we aren't still searching for a new home - we definitely feel it's time to buy something of our own and move on. I does mean, however, that the search can be a bit more relaxed and we can be very particular about the home we choose.

Good thing. I think we've already put our poor realtor into a bit of a tailspin!

(Not really - she's great. It's just that our list of 'wants' is long and our bank account - while nicely padded - doesn't exactly meet the demands of our ever growing wish list. Or as my Pa used to say, I've got champagne taste on a beer budget. Yep, he was a no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is kinda guy!)

An Etsy Shop?

I've been doing some crafting lately and have been toying with the idea of opening a shop on Etsy. Also, with the pending move, I'm thinking that, as I pack, I should sort through my stash of vintage goodies - linens, aprons, doilies, and such - and perhaps add those to the store as well.

Just today I found a phenomenal deal on ribbon yarn - which I love! The color combinations are fabulous and the yarn makes the most beautiful scarves. Two years ago I made several of the scarves to sell at a craft fair we had a work. They sold fairly well at that time, but I think I may have priced them a bit too high. However, with the great deal I found today, I could price them lower and still earn a profit. Besides, I enjoy knitting. It keeps my hands busy so they stay out of the cookie jar! ...well, usually anyway

A Stroke of Genius!

Okay, maybe not genius exactly, but certainly a great idea! As I was doing my grocery shopping this afternoon, I decided to check out the day-old bakery section. As I searched through the goodies on the rack, I spied several loaves of garlic bread. You know the type - the fresh, soft bakery French bread loaf in the foil bag that is spread with garlic spread and is all ready to pop on the grill or under the broiler - for just 75 cents a loaf!! It suddenly occurred to me that I should buy all three of the loaves and add them to our 'Don't Panic...' dinners in the freezer!

Often Kevin and I have pasta or soup and salad for dinner, which we enjoy with soft, warm garlic-cheese bread. However, because those are often last minute dinners, it's difficult to have those dishes coincide with having fresh garlic bread on hand. With that in mind, I usually have a loaf or two of garlic bread in the freezer-- sometimes Pepperidge Farm, sometimes the store brand. However, those loaves typically run about $3.75 (or more) and, though good, are smaller than the loaves I found in the day-old hot bakery area.

So ... I did it. I brought home 3 loaves of yummy garlic bread, added a bit of parmesan cheese on top, cut the loaves into portion sizes then wrapped them first in plastic wrap and then in freezer bags to stash in the freezer. Mmmmm. I can hardly wait for the next pasta or soup and salad night!

Busy, Busy Bees!

This week's discovery: buying a house is not for the faint of heart!!

Last week turned out to be an incredibly busy week. Partly because house hunting is new to us, and partly because work and outside activities kept us on our toes all week.

On the housing front, we currently possess in our hot little hands, a mortgage pre-approval from Bank of America. YAY! We looked around at different lenders and thought about going through our credit union, but were surprised to find out that we could actually get a much better deal through BofA. Fine with us. When we walked through the approval process with our representative, Kim, both Kevin and I were a bit nervous, but everything went through just fine. An amusing anecdote: in obtaining our information, Kim said she had to run something called a 'debt merge' on her computer. The process seemed to take forever, which made us a bit apprehensive - until Kim finally laughed and said, 'my manager says to tell you both congratulations! You have no debt!' Interest rates are amazingly low at the moment, but we won't be locking in a rate until we actually offer on a house and begin the process.

Another interesting thing is that we've already changed realtors! The first realtor we chose was recommended by my friend, Linda. She'd helped her daughter and her husband purchase a house this past summer and Linda said she was really good. We talked to her on Tuesday, but she said that she was really busy and would be out of town for the weekend, so the earliest we could meet with her would be this upcoming Wednesday. Hmmmm ... that seemed like an awfully long time to us - especially if a listing came on the market that we were interesting in seeing. Well, that's exactly what happened. She said we had plenty of time and could wait until this week when she could show us the house. We disagreed. Both Kevin and I feel that if something good comes on the market in our price range, we want to jump on it. So ... we found a new realtor. This time a recommendation from my friend Michael. He said she was great! She helped Michael and his wife Amy buy a house a few years ago and, though she was busy, Michael said she made them feel like they were her only client. We thought we'd give her a try. We asked to see a house that just came on the market on Friday; by Saturday afternoon, Kathleen had made an appointment for us to see the house that day!

Unfortunately, the house wasn't what we were looking for, so the search continues. I won't go in to the interesting mix of folks there to look at the house, but suffice it to say that this initial round of house hunting opened our eyes a bit to who - and what - lies ahead. However, I will say that it's nice to know that we have someone who is as excited about finding a house for us as we are!

It's Time to Take the Plunge

Just after the first of the year, we began receiving foreclosure notices in the mail and phone calls to our home. Apparently our landlord was in default on his mortgage and there was talk of foreclosure.

We called our landlord and he said he 'was not aware of it'. Hmmm. Okay, so we made him aware of it. He asked that we forward any correspondence that we received in the mail to his home. Which we did. He also asked that, should we receive any further phone calls, we give the caller his number and ask them to call him directly. While we received a slew of mail, we didn't receive any further phone calls. Then, the mail dwindled, too, and after about a month or so, we didn't receive anything further. It was our assumption (there's that awful word!) that everything had been resolved.

Not so.

Last Tuesday when I got home from work, there was a three page document taped to our front door that stated the landlord was truly in default and the house is to be auctioned off on May 7th at the steps of the L.A. County Courthouse. WHAT??

Again I called our landlord and, again, he said he wasn't aware of it. Call me crazy but in my mind that either makes him dumb as a fence post (since we told you about this several MONTHS ago) or dishonest. Kevin's voting for both - and frankly, I agree. Let's face it - he couldn't NOT be aware of the situation. It also strikes me that if he's in default on the property, that means he hasn't paid his mortgage for quite some time -- though we've been paying rent as usual. It makes me wonder just what he's doing with that money...

We've decided it's time to take the plunge. In light of the recent circumstances, we definitely think it's time to go out and begin the search for a home of our own. We'd kind of been holding off until Kevin had his final evaluation to end his work probation. Thankfully, it's just a 6 month probation which ends in mid-May. Things are going wonderfully for him at work, so we've decided that's not a concern any longer. Therefore -- it's time to buy a house!

We've made several contacts to lenders to find the best loan we possibly can. We've got a nice chunk of money saved up as a down payment. All we need now is a good realtor and a pretty little house in a nice, safe area. I can hardly wait to begin the search! I know it will be nerve-racking and will create some stress, but the end result - a home of our own - will definitely be worth it.

Wish us luck. I'll keep you posted!

Never Underestimate the Rejuvenating Power of a Spa Day

I don't think it's a coincidence that the words 'Ahhh' and 'spaaa' rhyme.

It is my humble opinion that there is nothing better than a relaxing spa manicure and pedicure -- especially when it's a gift!

For the past few years, each Christmas dad has bought a spa package for each of us girls. We love it! It's a surefire guarantee that at least once a year, mom, Deb and I will have a girls day together. For the majority of the year, it just seems like it's difficult for the three of us to get together to do this sort of thing. We get together for other things, but not spa days.

Well this past Saturday was our day. We each had the most wonderful manicure and pedicure - with extra massage time, thank you very much! - and then we went out for a fabulous lunch.

Thanks dad (and BrushTech!) for such a wonderful, relaxing time. I can hardly wait for girls day next year!

Happy Easter!

We are blessed in so many ways - and we're grateful for each and every blessing. I hope you all have a wonderful Easter with your family.

If I'd a Known You Were Coming, I'd a Baked a Cake

Oh wait ... we did bake a cake! And cupcakes! (there were 18 to begin with, but now there are only 16 - shhhhh! Don't tell anyone!) My thinking with the cupcakes is that most kids don't like coconut, so they can have cupcakes. Well, that and Deb bought mom an adorable cupcake holder last year and it makes an awfully cute table centerpiece.

Every year at this time my mind wanders to a moist, light and delicious coconut cake. I've seen picture after gorgeous picture in magazines depicting the most perfect, most beautiful coconut cake I've ever seen. I can't tell you how many times I've thought to myself that I'd love to bake a cake like that. So this year, we decided to give it a try.

We will be celebrating Easter at mom and dad's house tomorrow. Easter Saturday? Well, sort of. This tradition started years ago when everyone got a bit older and had families of their own. Having the big gathering on Saturday is nice because then everyone can celebrate Easter Sunday with their own families. It's kind of the best of both worlds if you will.

The recipe we used indicated that it's good to make the cake a day ahead, so we baked and decorated it today. Let me just say this: having now made a coconut cake from scratch, I now know why baking one of these creations is not for the faint of heart. I'd say it's probably one of the most labor intensive cakes I've ever made. Plus. it was a bugger to get out of the pan! It tore in several places, but I was able to piece it back together without too much trouble (or as Kevin so gallantly pointed out "put enough frosting on it and no one will know!" Now that's a strategy I can live with!) I'm not so sure that it turned out to be the cake of my dreams, but I think it came out pretty well. Besides, Kevin and I had fun in the kitchen baking up a storm - especially since it's somewhat cool and drizzly outside.

Cupcake paraphernalia before:
And decorated cupcakes after (I asked the bakery department at our Pavilions if I could buy one of their boxes for easier cupcake transport; they gave it to me as a courtesy because I'm a good customer. How nice is that?!)
Coconut cake before (... before it ripped coming out of the pan ...)
And coconut cake after (I think Kevin is absolutely right ... with enough frosting, who could tell?!)

Freezer Cooking This Week

While on spring break, I thought I'd make a few more dishes to put in the freezer for future dinners. I didn't make too awfully many things, but a few. Though I intended to make more, a nasty cold has me a bit sidelined. (It's no fun to be sick while on spring break; however, the good news is that at least I am already off work and didn't need to take any sick days!)

Here's what I accomplished earlier this week:

12 seasoned, shaped hamburger patties
14 stuffed baked potato halves
3 bags of diced, seasoned, roasted sweet potatoes
6 stuffed baked sweet potato halves

Not too bad considering! The stuffed baked sweet potatoes are a new recipe. Kevin and I are both anxious to try them!

Cleaning Up After Winter

With spring here and summer just around the corner it was time to clean up the gazebo area and spruce things up a bit. Boy, was it ever in need!

When we bought the gazebo and set it up four years ago, it came with net curtains. The theory was that, should you ever experience an enormous bug problem, you could simply close the net curtains, zip them up and ... viola! no more bugs. For several reasons, we never used them. In the first place, they seemed like more of a hindrance than a help. By the time you'd run from corner to corner and unfurl the netting, then have it meet in the center of all four 'walls' and get the darn thing zipped up, that bug invasion would be laughing at you as it enjoyed the burgers and potato salad you were trying to keep them away from in the first place. The other reason is, it's rare that we have that many bugs to even bother with. A pass of the hand to shoo along a few flies really about covers it. Besides that, I just think it's creepy to close the nets and be 'zipped in'. It occurs to me that, in essence, it's really giving the bugs free reign while YOU are the ones being held captive. I just think there is something inherently wrong with that picture.

Anyway - all this to say that, after four years of inactivity, we finally took the net curtains down. WOW! What an incredible difference it made! It just made the entire gazebo seem larger and lighter. Definitely a huge improvement. Over and above that, I cannot express to you how NASTY and dirty those curtains were. But ... let's not even go there.

Next, we pulled all of the furniture out to the lawn where it got a good washing and the chair pads got a good cleaning. Next, we moved on to the old paper lanterns that hung from the center of the gazebo. As you might imagine, after four years, they were more than a bit dusty and much more than a bit dilapidated. The once lively blue and green orbs that danced lightly in the breeze had become so faded and 'threadbare' that you could almost see right through them. The cure? Why new paper lanterns, of course! This time I went a bit more 'there's a party waiting to happen here' and bought a variety of colors. They're so fun!

We have several black wrought iron candle holders along the fence that, while nice, are a bit heavy looking for this area. So, I lightened them up with just a hint of white paint. If you were to look closely, you'd still be able to see a bit of the black coming through -- which is fine with me. It just gives it a bit of a lighter touch. And then what's a candle holder without deliciously colored and scented candles? Strawberry Fields seemed just about right.

While all of the furniture was out drying in the sun, we thought we'd attempt to hang a set of gazebo lights that we bought a few months ago. When Kevin took it out of the box, we kind of looked at each other as if to say 'huh?'. It looked like quite a beast. There was a long center strand of lights and four other smaller sets of lights that branched out and two huge bags of clips to clip the strands to the skeleton of the gazebo. We weren't quite sure what we'd gotten ourselves in to, but thought we'd give it a go. Much to our surprise, they were actually quite easy to install. It took less than 30 minutes before the gazebo was strung with tiny white lights. We could hardly wait until dark to see how it looked. It was worth the wait - the lights look beautiful! They set off the gazebo perfectly!

Next a new covering for the table. Over the years I've tried all sorts of things - vinyl tablecloths, bamboo mats, place mats of varying types - but nothing seemed quite right. This time I decided on a beautiful quilt! Why a quilt? Why not?! It's the perfect size for the table, the colors in the quilt blend perfectly with all of the colors we used to spruce up the gazebo and, best of all, when it gets dirty, you can toss the whole thing in the washer and it will come out perfect every time.

Okay, enough talking -- here are a few pictures of the final product: Here's a little mosaic birdbath I made years ago. It's kinda quirky and kinda funky, but I just love it! So there you have it - we're all ready for our first outdoor get-together of the year! ... or at least a good pot of strong coffee and the newspaper.

You Say Goodbye, I Say Hello

Our little town, like many across this country at the moment, is experiencing some sad lows and some interesting highs.

On the low note ... There is - or rather, there was - a wonderful little mom'n'pop jewelry store in town that's been around since 1922. Though just a small shop, it did a pretty good business all these years. I can't say that I've ever really purchased anything there personally, however, Kevin did buy me a gorgeous pair of diamond earrings there last year for Christmas. We've also taken some things there for repairs when needed. Well, that cute little mom'n'pop store that made it through the depression and several recessions over the years, closed it's door for the last time this past Saturday. Kevin and I talked about going in one last time before they closed, but we decided that it was just too sad and we'd rather have the nice memories of when it was a bustling business. RIP Boxx Jewelers. You will be missed. (Interesting side note: there is a town clock that sits outside the store that says: BOX JEWELERS. However, it's actually BOXX Jewelers.)

On the high note ...
After many attempts to raise funds to build a new town library, two years ago our small town passed a bond measure which enabled us to build a brand new - sorely needed! - library. It's been a long wait, but this past Saturday, our town held the dedication ceremony for the new library. What a huge change!!! The old library was ... well, old. It was quite small and the selection was somewhat lackluster - especially in the media department. Very few books on CD (or even tape!) and a barely noticeable selection of DVDs. When the library actually opens to the public on May 16th, it will be more than double it's original size with increased collections in all departments. Not to mention a large reading room and an expanded technology area with many more computers to serve the town. It's so exciting! I can hardly wait for our first 'Friends of the Library' book sale! Here's a glimpse of the old library: And here's a glimpse of the new:
Now I'd say that's worth waiting for -- wouldn't you?!