Finally Starting the Laminate Wood Floor Project!

Scott and I really got ourselves into a project this weekend! Last summer when I was laid off from my job, I thought I would have time for home improvement projects and I took my last bonus check to Costco when they had a sale for $8 off per carton of this harmonics flooring with a pad attached. The box says "Quick & Easy Installation" and so I thought why not? I paid $500 for flooring for the whole family room which I thought was a bargain for getting rid of the gross carpet. Poor Scott! He took vacation on Friday so we could start this "quick and easy" job. I had already torn out the carpet and pad and removed most of the baseboards from the walls before Friday so we could get straight to business. Well after about ten hours our backs and hands were hurting so bad and we had only successfully laid about one fourth of the room. We gave up and watched a couple of movies and crashed.

On Saturday we woke up fresh and ready to go! We were having a terrible time getting the pieces to lock snugly together and we even said oh who cares and moved on until we discovered a technique that worked well and so we ripped up so much to redo the correct way. We both felt so incredibly old and out of shape. Our minds were active and motivated but all the kneeling, squatting and bending over was killing our middle aged backs.
The dogs were so confused and appeared annoyed that we were tearing up their space. The floor is slippery and they are learning to slow down so they don't slide. By Saturday night we finished most of the family room and decided we would wait until another weekend to finish the hall and put the trim back on the walls. I did not want to post pictures until we were finished but I could not help myself. So remember this is a work in progress, ignore the missing trim and other minor details please!

Congratulations Whitney!!

Today my oldest daughter Whitney was offered a position at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN where she is going to transfer and finish her Master's degree. The position is a huge relief for her and supportive husband Josh as she will be able to complete her program at one of the best schools in the country without having enormous student loans! Whitney was disappointed last year when she was accepted to Vanderbilt but could not figure out how to get there financially. Now she has a job that pays all her tuition and then some. Josh has been there by Whitney's side for six years now through high school and college and he has no problem uprooting and heading to Nashville to help Whitney accomplish her goals. Whitney and Josh recently celebrated their one year wedding anniversary and I wish them many decades of happiness and two or three children to come!! I love you guys!

Josh's High School Graduation 2004

Whitney's High School Graduation 2005

Whitney Arizona State University Graduation 2008

Next Picture to be placed here when Whitney Graduates with and MA from Vanderbilt University!

Sparky Update

We have been trying to get these girls out for a walk everyday when the weather allows. I think the late afternoon hail and tornado warnings have finally left us alone. Sparky is handling the walks much better now. In this picture we were at the end of the walk and you can tell how tired they are (even Scott). I think both Millie and Sparky are beginning to lose some weight, I wish I was too. Today Sparky had close encounters with at least 3 other dogs and maintained her composure. Maybe you can teach an old dog new tricks?

Homework Avoidance Techniques

I am beginning to feel burnt out with writing papers for school. I had no idea that getting a master's degree was all about writing. This Tuesday I will have finished 20 credits towards my Master's in Elementary Education and I have written numerous papers. I am an excellent test taker as I have a photographic memory. However, I am too much of an over analyzer to write a paper efficiently. This week I have 4 papers to write and a project to complete and instead of working on them I have been painting. After painting the Entry this week I decided to paint the green kitchen and dining area a soft shade of blue. Scott really wanted me to find a sky blue and I did my best. I choose another color from the Ralph Lauren Modern Light collection called Pale Orchid. I love this collection of light soft colors, I feel like I can't go wrong. I am going to include pictures of the dining area and wait for the kitchen because it is still a work in progress.
The picture above is looking towards the front entry from the dining area around sunset. I like the way the colors complement each other. At least the blue works well with my table and green accents from my old green kitchen! I love Van Gogh, I have his work in many rooms. This was a poster I had for many years and never bought a frame. Michaels was having a 50% off sale this week lucky me!

This is another picture taken at sunset looking from the living room towards the backyard. Can you see Millie waiting to come in? She gets kind of anxious when I do projects around the house.

This picture was taken in the evening with my energy saving fluorescent lights.

The Garden and Roses Survived the Hail

After all the hail we have had over the past week I was surprised to see our garden is looking pretty good. You can see in the picture some of the leaves are torn or have holes. Scott used some of the cilantro in his yummy salsa that we at in two days. Our roses are so beautiful right now, I'm so glad they survived!

My Latest Oops Project

Anyone who knows me at all knows I love to paint and change color schemes in my house. I can usually only stand a color scheme for about two years and then I have to change something. Sometimes I paint a color and find the room feels too small or dark and this is a newer problem since the rooms in this house are much smaller than the ones in my house in Arizona that had an open floor plan. Since this is my hobby or some may think obsession I have to find ways to make it as economical as possible. I clean all my tools as thoroughly as possible no matter how tired I am after a project, because the tools can be the most expensive part of the project. Then there is the "Oops" paint at Home Depot. Every home depot has a selection of paint where for whatever reason it was considered a mistake. No matter what brand or finish this paint is only $5 a gallon. If the color is a little lighter or darker than you like they will adjust it for you at no additional cost. Today I went and found this beautiful Blue/Teal color and decided to paint the front entry to our home and this is how it turned out $5 and three hours of hard work later. Scott loves the color, he thinks it is one of my better choices. What's next?

That Darn Hail is Going to Ruin our Garden

Why has been hailing every day? I guess I should not complain too much since others around here have not been as fortunate as we have. The mail man told me today he has to have his roof replaced and lost an apple tree in yesterday's hail storm. So far we do not have damage but Scott is concerned for his garden. Our front and back decks are not looking well though, I think we will have to strip and repaint or finish. I took a video today and look here it is on my blog!
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Busy Evening - Walk, Yard Work and Bunny Rescue

Yesterday when Scott came home from work I asked if he would like to go on a walk since the last few evenings have consisted of rain, wind and tornado warnings. See how Millie's ears perk up when I say walk? Millie loves walks as much as I love chocolate.

What a beautiful walk it was!

When we returned I asked if he would trim a couple of branches off our uneven tree out front and he went straight to the garage to get out his tools and take care of it. (I did mean right now but I'm okay with that.) While he was bundling the branches in three foot sections for trash pick up I noticed this cute baby bunny watching him and decided I should look in the window wells for trapped bunnies and I found one and sent Scott in for the rescue.
In this picture the bunny is actually in the bucket and Scott is climbing back out of the well. I have not gone down there yet to try and rescue one because I'm scared I will not be able to get out. Scott is very athletic and a natural climber. We really need covers!

Making Chocolate Chip Cookies in a High Altitude

When I was about ten years old I learned to make chocolate chip cookies with my mom and we would just follow the Nestle Toll House recipe and the cookies came out perfect every time. I memorized the recipe and would try making small alterations and eventually became know as the one to make the cookies. During the holidays I would make cookies for my parents' friends at work who would actually pay me to make them. I am not known for too many talents however everyone loves my cookies. So you can imagine my distress when I moved to Colorado and every batch I made was to hard, runny, or greasy. I have been so frustrated, how can I make a good soft fluffy cookie in this high altitude? Today I finally accomplished the perfect chocolate chip cookie! Scott and I can't stop eating them. All I did was add an extra 1/4 cup of flour and 3 teaspoons of water. I also used organic sugar, real organic butter, unbleached flour and a pinch of cinnamon. Yummy!

The Weather Changes so Quickly!

At 1:45 pm Scott calls me from work to inform me of a Tornado warning for Douglas County. I was unaware since I was deep cleaning the kitchen with no T.V. or radio on. I was enjoying the storm with the windows and doors open. There was rain, hail, lightening, thunder and some wind however, I would not have guessed funnel clouds spotted in the area. I looked up the weather on the Internet and found the tornado warning expires at 2 pm. By 2:30 the dogs are begging to go outside and I realize the sun is shining and the air smells and feels crisp and clean. So I grabbed my camera to try and capture how beautiful it looked within 30 minutes of dark stormy weather with funnel cloud activity. I love all the rain we have been getting because it keeps the air fresh and we have not had to water the grass at all this year. More so, our house remains at 70 degrees all day with no A/C or fans. So our water and electric bill will be so cheap this month!

The Backyard is Blooming!

I spent some time in the backyard today enjoying the beautiful weather and chirping birds. I was surprised to see the roses are coming back. So far a few of these cream colored ones have started to bloom and a few pink. The red is yet to bloom.
The garden is looking really good as well. I see a few peppers and strawberries developing as well as cilantro and oregano ready to use. I think we will be able to make Salsa soon! Yum!!
There are always bunnies in the backyard drooling at our garden and today when I went outside this bunny did not run from me. I kept stepping closer and snapping his picture and he did not care.

More Visitors!

The guest room has been quiet for about a month now, after my dad visited in early May and Sean's best friends Austin and Luke drove all the way from Arizona just to pick up Sean and bring him back to AZ for a visit. Sean had so much fun on the road trip with his friends, he wants to do it again. I freak out just thinking about my baby driving on a 800+ mile road trip. Sean really does have great friends. Now one of Scott's closest friends Tim and his wife Gloria are going to make the drive and come to visit us over the Forth of July weekend. There is so much to do around here I have no idea what to do. Everyone we talk to says "have you done this, have you seen that?" No, no we haven't! So much to do and see and so little time and money. We have a lifetime of vacations all around us including camping, hiking, rock climbing, fishing, awesome bike trails, boating, kayaking, white water rafting, snowboarding, snow shoeing, historical towns, mountain towns like Vail, Aspen, Breckenridge, Estes Park, Telluride, Steamboat Springs to name a few. There are museums, zoos, great sporting events and awesome parks, lakes and rivers. What should we do? The only thing the state is missing is an ocean!