Sunday, March 14, 2010

I've Seen Fire and I've Seen Rain

Here is my fire pit as seen through the screen of my porch.

Wow, kids. If there was ever a weekend NOT to lose an hour of sleep, it was this one. It was a really great weekend, but packed with so much stuff. I didn't get half the stuff done that I wanted, but I did a lot of other stuff that I didn't plan on either.

Friday night was just about perfect. I rode my bike home from work and got right into my running stuff and ran my 6 mile route. So far, one of the tough things I can see about doing a duathlon, will be getting my sea legs after riding a bike and then running. My legs felt so weak at the beginning of my run right after my ride.

The night kept getting better and better. We ate, and then I went out to start the fire. Of course, it started raining the minute I got it going, but that's okay. We now have a screened-in porch to hang out in and watch it. Stinky fell asleep before I got the fire going, but Coadster sat on the porch with me and we planned her graduation party and chatted about what she was doing for prom. It was a really nice talk. It started getting chilly, so went in the house, I drank a beer and we watched Up in the Air.

Careful, IronMan. Those new counters might be a little slick.

On Saturday, I got a call from my co-worker's husband asking if he could stop by around 10 and put the counters in and rewire the kitchen. I, of course, said, "Hellz yeah!" He brought his ten year old son to help him and it took about three hours to get everything done, but it looks a million times better. I still have to work on those damn cupboards. I just bought 2 saw horses so I can finally get the doors done. My goal is to be all done with the kitchen, including the backsplash by the end of the month. It should be interesting.

Here is a before pic, just for reference.

My stove is now where the fridge used to be. It's so much better this way.

The rest of Saturday was cold and dreary. It seemed like a good day to start getting excited about outdoor projects by shopping around for some things. Stinky and I ran into an excellent sale and bought some canna and gladiola and lily bulbs. Both of my girls love doing yard work as much as I do, so it makes it even more fun to plan it out when we can all spaz out together. We also got everything we needed to start some seedlings in the house. I am so excited about what I'm going to do with my backyard, I can hardly stand it. I've spent the last however many years, helping other people with their gardens, it's going to feel even better now that I finally have my own. Woo hoo!

Some of the fun kids at the Dublin.

Saturday evening, I got a call from G. she was freaking out about a few things. I talked her down and told her we'd just go down to the Dublin, play some fun music on the juke box and have a good time with our friends...And that's exactly what we did. It was cool and I think G. felt a lot better after the first hour of being at our little sanctuary. I was super exhausted, so I went home by 11, but it sounds like G. went to afterhours and had even more fun. Good for her.

Today was another haze of working on the house, running and going on errands. Since it was so nice, I decided to grill for the first time this season. I made our favorite grilled foods - ribs and steak and we also had twice baked potatoes. Thank god, Spring is finally here.

10 comments:

Mnmom said...

Campfire!!! Sure sign of Spring!
One of my favorite pubs downtown had theirs going, and our entire lovely downtown smelled like woodsmoke.

Your kitchen is GORGEOUS! I kind of like the open cupboard look.

SkylersDad said...

The remodel looks really great! Nice work there. And good thing you have Ironman on the job.

Tara said...

I love the new counter tops!

What did you think of "Up in the Air"? I have a whole list of things I want to rent, and that is one of the movies. I also want to see "Precious".

Unknown said...

I read this and didn't comment. Oops. Or I thought I did. Great job on all.

Mrs. Hairy Woman said...

The counters and cupboards look amazing!
I thought we gained an hour in the Spring.. I was lucky and didn't lose much sleep!

Ananda girl said...

Your kitchen is beautiful! YOu've done such a great job with your home.

Sanctuaries are wonderful. Great that you were there for your friend.

laura b. said...

Iron Man is so lucky to have such a nice kitchen to hang out in! It looks great, Churlita.

Very cool that you grilled. That really is a sign of spring.

Churlita said...

Mn Mom, I love the smell of woodsmoke.

Skyler's, Yeah. Ironman and I have a lot more work to do together.

Tara, I like it. It was a really good character study...And George Clooney is plenty easy on the eyes too.

Pamela, Thanks.

Mrs, I don't mind losing that hour when it gives us an extra hour of sunlight after work every day.

Ananda, Thanks. I am a big fan of sanctuaries. The main one being my home.

LauraB., Thank you. I love to grill. If it weren't so damn cold, I'd do it all Winter too.

booda baby said...

I'm really glad I came back and scrolled down. I'd have hated to miss this. Your counters are outSTANDING. I'd go so far as to say stunning, but I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to apply that word to counters.

What a great space. And it's yours.

AND you got to catch Up in the Air. I liked it so much. It was the rare movie that read like a book. I love Jeff Bridges, he's a local and he's a hero and he's so dear to us here, and I think his performance in Crazy Heart was superb, but if I was in the Academy ... it might have been a tough call. George Clooney delivered something so subtle and powerful ...

Jaymes Daniel said...

I like that IRON MAN keeps showing up! I'm enjoying your blog. Thanks for sharing! Your ambition is encouraging...great kitchen/home! ~J