Church

I know, I haven't posted pictures yet of the house, but we finally have one of the many wedding dramas resolved. We have a church again. Now THEY better not decide to do renovations or anything. St. Peter's. Near the reception hall. Same date, same time. Check it out here: http://www.stpetersnet.org/

Quick Rundown

Pictures will be up later today, but HUGE thanks to: Tim, Random Dude, Mike, Matt, Kyle, Kelle, Amy and Jen!!!


Random Dude was named Pat. He walked in asking if this was the moving party. Well, yes, but who are you? He's from God's Hysterics, duh... Um... Random Dude, while very nice, was supposed to be moving someone else in the apartment complex. Bye, Random Dude.


Accomplished items since we last spoke:
- Master has 1 coat of paint (still needs another)
- Lined about 1/2 the kitchen cabinets, put more of the sticky little bumper things on them
- Cleaned/rectified enough of the upper bath that it's semi-usable until we renovate it
- Chimney and roof are both progressing
- Some stuff has been put away, but we're still living with a lot of boxes
- AND the washer died. Totally. Kaput. Currently shopping for a new one. Sigh...

The Countdown Begins

Now that we are TWO DAYS away from moving in, you might think I'm close to regaining my sanity...and you'd be wrong. We're moving towards having a renovated house, but not quite done. Since last update, we've accomplished the following:

- Touch ups on blue man cave trim
- Master is primed, and trimmed out in the color
- Cleaning has started
- Chimney is started
- Roof is started
- More things are getting moved from the apartment


However, as we get closer to renovation bliss, we get closer to d-day. And by that, I mean decorating. Having spent most of our money, I am looking for inexpensive ideas.









For instance, this mantle by Lucas Allen is beautiful. I love the paper butterflies. I may try and recreate something like them in a wall-hanging.


However, for now, I'll worry about furniture placement. Doesn't cost a thing!

Don't Sleep and Renovate

So, I may have pushed myself too far. Aside from just getting cranky, my exhaustion has caused more than a few mishaps.

Two days ago, when trying to finish the family room's second coat, there was a ladder-meets-fan incident that I hinted at. I was moving the ladder, the fan was on, it hit the ladder, and the blade went flying across the room. Not pretty. Good thing we were planning on replacing it anyway.

Yesterday, my hot streak continued. Small issues, like dabs of paint where they shouldn't be, but then I managed to WHACK my head on the miter saw when bending for a paint can. Still hurts nicely today.

Next, when returning from the grocery after reno work, I confused the gas and the brake. Yeah, brilliant. Rammed the car into the parking block, and busted part of the bumper. Hasn't fallen off yet. Thank God.

Finally, after fighting with Chris because "I shouldn't be tired" according to him, ...umm..., I curled up with a book in bed at like 8pm. Then proceeded to puke my guts out. But will I be back tonight to do more? You betcha.

House in Progress

I...am...so...tired... You wouldn't even believe. It was another LONG weekend at the house, with more wonderful helpers, and it's finally starting to look like a home. We're pretty close to wrapping up most of the projects we want to do before moving in, and will be mostly packing, cleaning, and moving stuff this week. And...I still have to paint our bedroom. Minor little detail. Anyway, here's what you came to see. Pictures.

Monster isn't fond of moving.

I lost my mind and painted Chris's Penn State man cave.

The bar.

The kitchen.

Other finished projects: family room is painted, den is painted, door to laundry is replaced, dead air conditioners are removed and the walls are patched, ugly kitchen light is replaced, hardwood floor for the family room is purchased (but not installed yet), some outlets replaced, holes in laundry room closed so Monster can't hide in them. Think that's it. A lot.

Upcoming:

- Paint master

- Install floor

- Rehab chimney (mason coming next week)

- Replace roof (contractor coming next week)

- Ground electric (electrician theoretically starting sometime soon)

- Logo on bar wall

- Repair or replace washer

- Fix dining room ceiling where roof leaked

- Replace ceiling fans in master and kitchen (there was an incident with the ladder)

- Renovate the upstairs bathroom (currently demo's done...)

Only a couple things in the next month or two, right? Doh...

Change in diet

So, here's the irony...I've been pestering Chris for awhile that I've wanted to be a vegetarian again. We've tried limiting the number of meat meals, and recently agreed that I would eat poultry and fish around him, but limit it otherwise. I also am lactose intolerant, so I eat limited dairy. I am not overweight. I am active. I eat Cheerios every day. I don't have a sweet tooth. All that being said...I just found out I have high cholesterol. Damn you family history!

So...now I have an even better reason to go vegetarian. And to knock off the 10 lbs I've been meaning to lose forever. (While not overweight, I am at the upper end of the recommended range. Plus, want to look good in the wedding dress I just bought!!!) Therefore, the battle begins. In the past, I have lost the war to wonderful things like BACON. I know my cousin, Peter, is a big fan of the fake stuff, so we'll see.

Take a Chance Challenge: Random Book Selection

For my random book selection, where I had a plan on where to go in the library, I ended up with "Every Good Boy Does Fine" by Tim Laskowski. Admittedly, I finished this quite awhile ago, but completely forgot about posting it. I REALLY enjoyed this book and don't think I would have picked it up on my own. The main character had been a concert pianist in his "real life." That is, the time before his brain injury. In his early twenties, he had gone rock climbing, fallen, and lost most of his short term memory, inhibitions, and some physical function. His struggles to deal with his new "real life" were fascinating, and based off of the author's relationship with a brain-damaged patient in his own life. Grade: A