Cleaner Sewing Room

I know it isn't perfect, but it will get there. Bo and I worked really hard on it all weekend. We hope to make it a playroom/sewing room. Right now Boll Weevil goes in there and just laughs. I guess he finds it funny for some reason.

Wind Storm

This is what Bo and I came home to last night. I guess we had a bad wind storm at our house while we were at work. It took Bo about a half hour to get this down.

Just another angle.

This is really not what you want to pull into your driveway and see. I have a entire weekend of sewing planned. I hope that means I'll have lots of things to post next week.

Weekend Round Up

My parents came to visit and Bo and my dad hung the ceiling fan in Boll Weevil's room.
Bo did the manual labor and my dad read the instruction. They really enjoyed their time together.

My mom watched Boll Weevil for me which means they sleep on the couch while I folded clothes.

Thanks Mom and Dad for coming we all really enjoyed our day with you.

Summer without TV

That is right Bo and I are going again this summer without cable. Actually we have already had our cable disconnected. This year it seems a lot easier than last. Maybe that is because we don't have any time to watch TV. When we do have time we watch old episodes of The Big Bang Theory. Bo go the first three seasons on DVD for Christmas. This show is so funny. People who don't watch don't know what they are missing.

You would think that having no TV would give me more time to sew, but it really hasn't.

ICE Storm

We didn't receive any snow, but we did get ice. Bo braved the outside this morning to see how much ice we really got.

This ice is hanging off my car
One of the bushes out front.

Hanging from the roof.

Because we live in the south and this so rare we got the day off work.

Coat Tree

For some unknown reason to me it has turned bitterly cold in the south. So I have a problem - what do I do with the Coats, hats, and gloves?
So I had this wonderful idea go get a coat rack. I went and got one and as soon as I put it together and put three coats on it. The wood broke and the coat rack fell down. Bo took it apart and put it in the bag. Now it is back to the store with this one and back to the drawling board for an idea for the coats. I so wish the builder of our house would have put in a coat closet or maybe it can just stay warm in the south in the winter.

Nursery Update

Bo and I have been really busy lately getting the nursery ready for the baby.

We got this chair at Babies R Us the day after Thanksgiving for half off. The blanket on it was handmade by my aunt. She also gave baby Bo the Lamb. I hate that she lives a 1,000 miles away from me.
Bo put together this book shelf on Saturday morning. It was something we picked up at Ikea a month or so ago.

I really like how the paint treatment turned out. Bo did an excellent job. He has come along way since we first meet. We did have a few moments when the crib wouldn't go together and then we looked at the directions together and figured it out. Bo is left handed and I think sometimes he looks at directions differently than right handed people. This can be an advantage in some situations.

We still have to remove some exercise equipment from the room.

We still have a long list of things that need to get done before the baby arrives.

Every Girls Dream

Isn't it every girls dream to have a shark hanging in their bedroom? Well, I can tell you it wasn't mine, but the shark had to be moved from the so to be nursery.

This is Bo's shark and in some weird way I really like it. Mostly because I can see how happy Bo is to tell people about the day he caught it. I'll give you the Reader's Digest version: Bo went deep sea fishing as part of his graduation gift from high school. He said he wasn't to far out when he had a bite. He was the only one in his group of friend to catch anything that day.

From the tip of its tail to the tip of his nose the shark is right at 6 ft. long. Lets just say I wouldn't want to swim in the Gulf knowing it was in the water.

The shark has moved around our house several times and I think we have found a permanent place for it. It started off in the living room above the couch, then it moved to the guest room, and now it is in our room. I have also decided to start calling it Tommy.

Now, if only I could find a place for the deer head that has to move out of the baby's room!

By the way the art hanging under the shark came from the Nassau, Bahamas. I love to collect artwork from different trips we go on, and I picked these up while we were on our cruise last year. The artist is Tiff Barrett.

View From My Pool

This is what I see when I'm floating in my pool. Trees and the sky look great.

I have to say that I could feel fall in the air because it was cool when I came up out of the water, but I will enjoy my pool until it gets to cold to swim. The water was warm which felt great.

Bo and I enjoying the pool.

We want a deal

Let me just start off by saying I'm horrible at asking for a deal. I pretty much just pay the sale price. Not Bo he looks for the manager to see if they can give him a deal. That is were this chair comes into the story.

You see I have loved these Adirondack chairs at Joann since they came in, but I wasn't going to pay $49.99 a piece for four of them. Well, I have watched the price drop on them until they were marked down to 70% off, but Bo still didn't like that price. And they had a ton left. So one night when we were in Joann we saw the manager. Bo of course went up to him and asked him if 70% was as low as the chairs could go. The manager thought about it said he couldn't do any better because he didn't have much room to mark down merchandice. Bo said we would just wait. Then the manager suddenly changes his mind and takes another 30% off the clearance price. Making our chairs $10.50 a piece. Bo was on top of the world since he got a great deal, and I was excited because I finally got the chairs I wanted.

This just proved to me again that it is good to wait and always ask for a deal.

Paint Trade

My friend Lizzie is a very talented artist who loves Soy Joys. I can usually find Soy Joys pretty cheap. So I trade her Soy Joys for paintings. I think we both make out pretty good. This is my latest painting I traded for. I love the colors and texture. I now just have to find somewhere to hang it in my house.

New Look

I got a new Welcome sign for our front yard. Bo thinks it is a little loud, but it was either this or one that didn't fit my house at all. This one makes me think of fun and sun. Oh! I so want to go to the beach.
I wanted to show you our front flower beds. Bo and his dad worked very hard on them on Saturday. They pulled up the old mulch, trimmed the bushes, planted a rose bush, and laid pine straw. It looks great.

Tent

This part of our yard still needs some work. I think I'm going to paint the bench this weekend. The umbrella just landed there because I didn't know what else to do with it. I'm really thinking I need a hammock to go in this part of the yard. But that would be mean I had a lot of time to lay in the back yard and take naps.

So Bo and I got tired of waiting for the part to come in for our first tent. Also another piece broke so it was back to the store for that one, and off to Big Lots to get a new one. This tent is 10x12, and very roomy. You should have seen us putting it together. It seemed like a comedy of errors, but we got it done. Now if we only had time to enjoy it.

There are just some marigolds we have in the backyard. I love their big blooms so I thought I would share them with you today.

Square Foot Garden

Bo mixed the soil. This flower pot was used a huge measuring cup.

Here he is spreading the mixed soil in our new 4x4 garden boxes. Our neighbor was teasing us about living next to the farmers. By no means are we farming, just trying to grow a few vegetables.

This is just a little bit of what we have planted. I hope it all grows.

I wanted to follow all the instructions in the book All New Square Foot Gardening. Bo didn't read it so he did most of what I suggested. I can't wait to show you what we grow.

New Gazebo - Maybe

The evening started out pretty good. Bo and I were jocking around with the corner pieces of our gazebo. It all seemed like it was going good.
Two and a half hours into it as we were lifting the top on to our gazebo this piece broke. I felt so bad because that was the piece our neighbor was helping us with. He felt so bad.

We headed back to the Home Depot to see if they could give us a replacement part. But they don't have any in this region. They have already sold the store display when they told us last week that they wouldn't sell us the display until the end of the season. We came home and contacted the manufacture. Now the sides of the gazebo are still standing up in the yard. If we don't hear from the manufacture we will have to take it down and take it back to Home Depot. I just hope it comes apart easier than it went together.

i haven't left

Sorry, I haven't posted much. Bo and I have been really working on our backyard. I should have pictures of it tomorrow.
I don't know if I told you or not but I have a new niece which has inspired me to think about sewing again. I hope to finish the back yard so I can make her something soon.

Need Some Light

I should start out by saying I didn't start buying these light bulbs for myself, but that my dad gave them to me as a gift one year for Christmas. You see every year for Christmas my brother and I each get a special gift just from my dad. Now it has turned into Bo and I get a gift and Sister in law and brother get a gift. We open this after all other presents and it is something that my dad has thought of and picked out himself. One year as little kids we got ball gloves and as a teenager I got a cordless phone. It is always special and a surprise, but as I have gotten older the items have turned more to items for the house, which is great. The first Christmas Bo and I were married my dad got us a 6 ft. ladder. At first we thought this could come in handy at some point. Now, I can't tell you how many times we have used it.

Sorry, I kind of got lost there. Now, back to the light bulbs. These light bulbs were expensive when they first came out so one year my dad gave me several for Christmas to help me get started in changing out my light bulbs. Since then I have changed out almost all of my light bulbs, and I think at this point I only have a few lights that don't use these bulbs. My dad help start me on the path to save energy. I have to admit I don't think they last as long as the packaging says, but I don't keep the stuff to send them back in for the grantee. Bo actually has a friend who has a spread sheet to keep track of his light bulbs and he has gotten many for free. I just don't think that is worth my time.

If you haven't I would suggest changing out your old light bulbs with these energy efficient one when your old ones die.

Yard Stuff

This weekend we did a little more than just watch movies. We also went to Home Depot several times and planted a few flowers.

We have a terrible problem with birds. Okay, it isn't really a problem until they eat stuff out of your garden. Our next door neighbor hates it when we grow cherry tomatoes because the birds pick them off our plants and take them over to his yard or patio. So to stop them from eating our tomatoes I thought I could feed them. My in-laws had given me some money for Easter. I used it to buy a bird feeder. Isn't it pretty? The birds seem to love it.

We also got a new planter. I just loved that it is shaped like a fish. For some reason I think it should be called Edward. I'm not into Twilight so it didn't come from there. This picture doesn't really show you how large he is. I think he would look great next to a pool.

Our Strawberry plants are really growing. I can't wait to eat my first strawberry. Unless, the birds beat me to them.

This is my first year growing Zinnias. I just fell in love with their colors at the Home Depot so I hope they do well in my back yard. I'm also growing some Marigolds, but I'm having a hard time keeping some kind of animal out of them. Whatever it is isn't eating the flowers just digging around in the potting soil. It is a pain to have to replant them daily. It is also the pot closest to my house so it has to be a brave animal. I should let you know besides birds, I have squirrels, rabbits, raccoons, and deer in my back yard. I live in a neighborhood in the city we just back up to some woods. So if you have any idea on how to deal with a natural way to stop them from attacking my flowers I would appreciate some hints?

Spring Growth

A new elephant ear from last years bulbs. I can't wait to see how big they are going to get.
Double Knock out roses that the Easter Bunny gave us at my in-laws house. Yes, that is correct we get an Easter basket at my in laws and wait it gets better we get one at my parents house too. Bo and have some of the best parents in the world.

Azaleas that are waiting to be planted. We can't decide were we want to plant them in the back yard.

Painted Bathroom

No, this is not my bathroom, but one of my co-worker's children's bathroom. He has a boy and girl that share the same bathroom and this is the fun paint job that his very creative wife came up with. It maybe hard to tell, but if you look in the mirrors you can tell the wall with the window mixes the green side with the blue side. I just LOVE it!

This is the girl's side.
This is the boys side.

I just can't imagine how much time this took to paint, but it turned out great.