Stairway to...

So, we have a plan of attack. I found pine tread boards at Lowe's - which I think will go nicely with the pine floors. Of course, there's nothing easy about a remodel. Can't just pop off the old treads to put on the new because the old are glued down. Can't just put the new treads on top of the old, 'cause then it's stacking pine bullnose on top of painted bullnose, which would look stupid. So, I called my HISC and we laid a plan. Sawz-all off the bullnose of the old tread, reface risings and stringers with 1/4" hardwood plywood, and then lay the new treads in. Excellent.

My to do list: find some hardwood plywood I like, and then treat all the wood with whatever treatment I want. I choose the polywax oil stuff Iwa' and I did all the floors with. It's eco-friendly, patchable, and forgiving to work with. And, on a stairwell with lots of traffic and dog toenails, something I can easily retreat which is a good idea. We went shopping for hardwood plywoods. I had no idea you could get such fancy plywood. Two catalogs full of exotic options from Koa wood to birdseye maple to foreign trees I've never heard of. When pricing came back at over $500 per sheet for even the more conservative of those options, we decided the Lowe's $25 birch was quite lovely after all.

Summer ends....

After a summer of mostly doing no house improvements....with maybe some yard work, which hardly made a dent...I'm ready and rested for the next round of projects. Of course, the yard needs cleaning up before it goes to sleep for the winter, and while I can still see what's going on before the maple drops its blanket over everything.

Iwa' did dye experiments this summer with treasures from the yard including salal and blackberry. Our favorite was the captured silken sunshine of the goldenrod.

Derek brought in two harvests of plums, sweets and Italians, and April made plum sauce enough to supply us and Yelapa for a year! Plus, we have frozen plums, fresh plums and dried plums.

Oh, and the tomatoes are out of control! Hello salsa...

Finally...the Housewarming party.

So, we finally (well, I finally) came to terms with the house being in the state it was going to be for the housewarming party. Summer solstice marked the day. We began with a traditional Hawaiian blessing, barbecued all day long, hand dipped candles, and closed with a candle lighting ceremony. Talk about delightful. We are so grateful to all who came to help make Chester "home"...

Parrot Paradise...

Nestled beneath the filbert tree...Devin and Alena blend right in. AND, they're much quieter outside than they are inside. They may be as close to chickens as we ever get. So much for fresh eggs.

a quick garden...

The men pulled it off. FiL brought over a rototiller, Derek cleaned it all up and planted tomatoes, basil and squash. We'll actually have a little bit of our own garden edibles to harvest this year. And I thought there was no place to plant a garden. Way to go guys! (The border is cleverly put in to keep the dogs out...mostly the blind Dorran from inadvertently tromping over the plants, but also because: who wants dogs relieving themselves on stuff yer gonna' eat? blech!)

some security...

Before having peole wandering around the property, checking stuff out, I thought it prudent to barricade the top of the stairs and the hayloft door so we didn't have any falling accidents. D built a nice little railing bit to keep things safe.

some extra seating....

In addition to the great patio set we got off CL - Derek and C recycled the fallen tree from "the back 40" into supports for a patio bench creatively secured to the little retaining wall. More seating for back yard entertaining!

Oops.

I'd been expressing some concern that the stairs and decks around the property weren't safe and secure. Derek assured me that because they were cedar, it was unlikely there was any real danger. A big fat "I told you so" after my foot went through a deck board on the potting shed. I'd been cleaning moss off the roof, and stepped back to admire the enormity of the piece I'd peeled off - crack! do'h! So, now D's on the hunt for some Craigslisted cedar boards to do some repair work. At least I finally convinced him to secure the master bedroom staircase, too! Eventually, we'll likely be needing to replace a lot of decking around the place. Ideally before any more serious "oops" incidents.

the patio

the patio had a solid layer of moss growing on it. A couple days of hot sun made pressure washing the task of choice. Sure seemed like a lot of work for what didn't seem like a major improvement. But, it does look better....

They'll nest anywhere!

Almost as bad as rats, but, not nearly as disgusting. D had fashioned me a gardening tool bag for shears, clippers, gloves, etc., back in February. I hung the bag in the breezeway with my best pair of gardening gloves, and, lo and behold, a sparrow decided to nest in it. Or, maybe it's a chickadee? To be honest, it's so fast I haven't gotten a good look at it, and we don't want to disturb their dainty little pink speckled eggs, so now we're tip-toeing around the breezeway, avoiding its pass-through convenience factor. Ah, the amount of compromise we sometimes make all for a little feathered friend activity. Devin and Alena should be so lucky. Of course, they do have their own new private condo perched upon an old stump in the shade of the filbert tree. The one I'd like to hack back. The one I can't even trim, now, for fear it'll inconvenience the parrots' shade. Seriously. When did their comfort become more important than my aesthetic preferences. Ah, the sacrifices we make...

(Devin and Alena are our mated orange winged amazons. They've had babies, but, I won't allow it anymore because it's just more lives we have to find reliable homes for, plus, Devin gets really nasty when he's in daddy mode. Omelets anyone?)

Speaking of obnoxiously loud birds, since when did keeping a peacock become acceptable? At first, we thought it was an amplified tortured cat. Then sometimes a crying baby. Finally, I hiked to the fenceline and across the next lot spotted the waggling top-knot of an adult male peacock. AAAWWWWHHHH-AAAAAAAAGGGHHHHHWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!

Imagine when he's 10!

Chance took a run with the weedwacker today! Great job! Fortunately, Bacca and the boy did most of the wacking, because I don't think I would have had the heart to do as much "damage" as they did, but, it definitely looks better. The paths are nicely cleared now, and should be fully healed in time for the housewarming party.

This is pretty much my weekend to finish getting Chester ready, even though it's not for another 3 weeks, all the future weekends are booked with events.

I'd hoped to finish the entryway stairs, but, I'm so discouraged by their current state, and the fact that no matter what I do, without ripping them all out and starting over it'll be somewhat half-baked, I've sort of given up. Derek helped me get skirting up on the one side pictured here that is missing it, but, the risers are too narrow, the treads are doubled up because of flaws in spacing, and topped off with them being painted wood (who paints wooden floors and stairs!?!) they're just darn funky. I'll just slap another coat of paint on before the party, and figure out how to deal with them in the future.

Should we tell them we found their cat?

Finally getting around to cleaning up a little in the barn. Lots and lots of rat nesting material, rat feces, raccoon scat...and, today, a dead cat. I was running the shop vac and suddenly had a cat skull stuck to the tip of my vaccuum wand. "Oh, look" I said to Derek, "a cat skull!" A few minutes later, I saw a small bone hand get sucked up, and realized it was a cat paw. As I turned off hte shop vac to dig out the little bones, Derek sifted through the rest of the nesting material, leaves and "stuff" and found femurs, hips, and the other part of the jaw. Pictured here? the ghostly remains of the stained and slightly mildewed plywood floor where the cat completed its disintegration...except for the bones, of course.

Yard art...

Some designs were evident when we first bought. Fern leaves in concrete...some things have been uncovered as the yard garners more and more of our attention. Here and there...little tokens of love, friendship and endearments. Children's footprints, handprints, and stone settings. It's a little eery, but, also magnificently darling.

The yoga room

I've dreamed about a room full of empty space. Nothing in it except a ficus tree, some mirrors, and a little tiny stereo. It still has a trunk and a stack of comic books that need to be removed...but, otherwise, the yoga room is on track to be just that. When it gets warm enough, I need to at least paint the doors. The walls seem to be in pretty good shape...more or less. And I need to clean all the cobwebs, trim out the window -- the WAY high window, rearrange the shelves...and decide what to do about the concrete floor. Stain/Acid etch? laminate/pergo? for now, though, the $20 garage sale wool area rug serves beautifully. Add a little space heater on a timer, and I'll fulfill the other part of my fantasy -- morning yoga. If only it didn't have to come so early in the morning.

Easter...

Just in time, Chester was ready for the family hosting of Easter. An invite list of 36 (!) fortunately (sort of) only coming in at 18 or so. Whew. The children hunted plastic eggs filled with stickers, candy, hotwheels and money, while the adults huddled out of the rain beneath the gazebo.

Easter was just in time...2 weeks later, the yard exploded.

one more snow...

After unearthing some of the splendor in the yard from winter detritus...one more snow dusting right before Easter....showing the little pathways winding through the garden.

Got a breather...in awe of the yard...

My planning was right on schedule...finished up the kitchen in time for the yard to explode, take a little vacation, and now the garden simply dominates. Every day new bulbs are popping up, flowers are peeking out, new plants are discovered, and the garden is beautifully overwhelming.

Having taken a break, the push is now on to wrap up some key cleaning, organizing, and unpacking projects in preparation for our Summer Solstice housewarming party. Right before a quick vacation to Mexico, the yoga room was filled with boxes as the basement bedroom at Frances was transferred to Chester. That 'bout broke my heart, 'cause it was mostly crap I don't want/own/care about emptied into my precious, empty, wide-open space yoga room...but, while I was gone the dutiful hubby returned it to its lovely mostly empty space. Nothing like emotional growth opportunities having a minimalist married to a consuming-addicted packrat.

Unemployment has enabled the same dutiful hubby to attack the crop of dandelions also blossoming in the yard. And, uncovering even more surprises, like a brick patio. Go figure.

More...the yard...

Well, having finished the kitchen JUST in time to start on the yard, I'm longing for longer days, and not deterred by such soggy things as rain. Green things are sprouting up all over, buried beneath several seasons of overgrowth. Every time I walk out there, I have flashbacks to The Secret Garden...and can easily pretend I am Mary uncovering the Earth's glory. I've always wanted a garden of pathways winding through a jungle of flowers. I found one. Now, I just have to finish excavating it! I've counted at least 13 hydrangea bushes, too many rose bushes to count (blech -- I don't care much for roses) and Iwa' greatly pruned several of the butterfly bushes -- which, really, as pretty as they can be, are sometimes more like a noxious weed.

Plus, the stream is burbling in "the back 40", begging to be cleaned and adorned with bridges, benches, and secret eddy observation points.

Chance and I purchased many packets of seeds a few weeks ago to grow corn, pumpkins, tomotoes, lettuce, peas, broccoli, etc. Alas, I am at a loss as to where to plant them!? There are mounds of sprouting bulbs over nearly every inch of the yard. Hmmm. What to do? I really want to grow our own food...

Yay for my beautiful kitchen!

I thought it would never happen...but it's here! A fantastically, conservatively remodeled kitchen. I LOVE it! (The before shot is from when we first toured the place - with the sellers things still in it. )

The Compound in the Autumn...

We have maple trees, spruce trees, pine trees, filbert trees, plum trees, and other trees I don't even know the names of...Fall foliage was delightful...although, the brown carpet of decaying leaves around the compound is a little bit messy.

A worthwhile 80 dollar investment...

Chester came with an enormous supply of scrap wood. One of these days I'll post some photos of examples. This included 2 sheets of MDO...which Derek estimates at 80 bucks apiece. So, I got the cabinets for the island...now it needs a lid. Great! says I, we have scrap material we can use! Can we do it in one piece (which would be super cool!), or, do we have to cut it in 2 pieces? Being that I'm married to a brilliant carpenter man, he manages to pull off a "lid" in one. sweet...! And now, we have this lovely bar/island! woot! Okay, it needs a little work...some tile, some trim, etc. But man, talk about improved functionality! I'm almost ready to live crazily, and start unpacking the kitchen!

at last...an ISLAND!

Okay, so, we'd been getting by with one nice kitchen cart and one falling apart kitchen cart...the wheel not quite secure...and occasionally rolling away.

Though I got these 2 great cabinets, there's something funny about the trig of the spacing, and the fronts don't quite align, while still leaving consistent spacing between kitchen floor and livingroom floor. Ah well. So be it. I've gotten accustomed to concessions on this project. Additionally, the 2" spacer is sufficient for the tops of the cabinets, but, because of the angling, leaves a gap at the bottom. I'm anticipating HISC (home improvement santa claus) to offer up some snazzy solutions.

I immediately put stuff in all the drawers and cupboards. ahhhh....storage space! yay! And, I'm definitely keen on drawers over cabinets. Might have to invest in the pull out shelves for the 36"-er to avoid those lost-in-the-way-back-items issue.