Jeny's Ideas: Misc

Showing posts with label Misc. Show all posts

Monday, May 18, 2015

New Railing Inspiration

The past few weeks have been rough. Things could definitely be much worse but overall, they have been the most stressful in a really long time.

Friday a week ago, while I was at a friend's house down the street, Blittle called and said Jaxson jumped from the top steps into the yard. My heart stopped. That is about a ten foot drop. Jaxson is 10 years old and has arthritis problems. I knew he wasn't going to be okay. Blittle said he was hurt and to get home. My friend drove me home and as soon as I was in the yard, he hobbled over and put his head into my chest. I knew he was hurting.

Once in the house, I looked all over him. I rubbed, squeezed, and pulled to see if anything was tender or bulging. Nothing seemed broken so I just laid on the floor with him so he would calm down and rest. The next day we noticed his right leg was swollen so I took him to the vet. No breaks. Just a sprang and some sore muscles. It has been over a week and he is still limping but definitely improving. We put up a temporary fix (plastic garden fencing) for the railing until we can replace it.

Replacing the railing has always been on the list since we moved in two years ago. We know its not to code. It was on our to-do list for this summer along with replacing the stairs and painting the deck but now it is on the immediate to-do list.

The plan is to make it match the fence. We love the cattle panel look and it is so cheap! Its also easy to see thru and doesn't obstruct our view like a wood railing would. One concern with this project is our existing pillars. They are ugly and rough. My other concern is combination of colors. I DO NOT want to paint the railing but my pillars are already painted. We might cover them with new wood so they are smooth and can be stained. If we don't cover them, I am not sure what I am going to do.

Here are a few of my inspiration pics.

Photo Credit: Modfrugal.com

Photo Credit: Houzz

Photo Credit : Killer B Designs

Also, over the past week, Blittle got an infection in his foot. He had a ganglion cyst and the cyst got infected. We were supposed to fly to Germany Friday morning. Things went down hill fast with the foot and instead, we were at the hospital for his surgery. This weekend was pretty rough trying to get over missing the trip and with Blittle recovering from surgery. He has been in pain and it is hard to watch. I let myself have a 72 hour pity party and now I am moving on. I am back to my normal lets get things done, glass half full self.

Having said that, I will admit that I need some of this in my life. STAT.

The Caribbean is always calling my name but today I feel like it is screaming it. :)

Hopefully we can take a short trip when he gets better to a quiet gorgeous beach where I can relax and enjoy the scenery. Sit around and do nothing. That's what we both need right now. He has been stressed out with work, didn't get to go to Europe and had to have surgery. The guy has had a really rough week. Prayers are appreciated. He is still having some rough recovery days.

When I am not taking care of him, I plan to get ahead on furniture and to make big progress in the bathroom. The flooring will be in this week and our lighting has been delivered. I should have time to finish the vanity and get the countertop ordered. There are lots of little things left to do but I feel we are on the downhill and should get it done soon!

Have a great Monday.

Friday, May 1, 2015

Friday Update ~ 05/01/2015

How is it May already? Seriously. I have no idea where April went! On a positive note, the weather has been amazing this week and I can feel summer creeping in. I love this time of year! :) I'd rather be hot, sweaty and on the verge of heat stroke than be cold.

FURNITURE

The dining room table and 4 chairs went home this week. This project was challenging but I am so happy with the results. It was my first time to do this finish. I'll share all the before & after pictures plus details on that project next week. Here is what it looked like when it was dropped off.

Over the weekend, I picked up my next project. It is a huge bedroom set that consists of two dressers, two end tables and a bed. The goal is to get it finished before we leave for vacation. Fingers crossed really hard that I can make it happen. The weather has been gorgeous and the weekend looks to be the same so I plan on working as much as I can to keep this project on time.

MASTER BATHROOM

There was some progress in the bathroom as well this week. After reading about the wardrobe capsule and seeing several of my friends purge their closets, I decided to do the same. Y'all have seen some glimpses of mine and we can all admit that it wasn't good. Things were every where. It was packed with clothes and shoes...most of them I don't even wear. The closet situation was giving me anxiety every time I walked into the bathroom so I purged.

Before (no judging allowed):

I'll share details on the wardrobe capsule and closet purge later but here is the link to the original blog post by Unfancy. I still have some organization to do and I want to add a few shelves in the closet but it is definitely much better than it was.

After (yes I am a scarf hoarder and I like blue jeans...again, no judging):

The carpet has been pulled up out of both closets and they are now ready for the new flooring. I also painted both closet doors, installed the new hinges and knobs, and got them put back up. It is starting to feel more like a bathroom and less like a construction zone!

The yucky sticky tile floor in the toilet area is gone and that door has been painted and has new hardwood, too. I love the dark blue door. The plan is to paint all the doors in the house this color!

Not pictured is the vanity progress. I primed it last night. :)

I would like to pour the self leveling underlayment this weekend and install enough of the new flooring to put in our new toilet. That would be the ideal plan but I am not sure if it is going to happen. :)

MISC

Blittle's birthday was this week! We are not big celebration people and usually don't make a big deal out of birthday and anniversaries. That night we went to one of our favorite restaurants with friends and had an amazing dinner (the steak was so good!) and he opened his presents that night. As usual, most of our gifts have to do with the house or our travels and this time was no exception.

He got a new suitcase, noise canceling headphones and other accessories for the trip. This is our first long distant flight so we needed a few things extra to try to make 11 hours on a plane more pleasant.

Packing has begun!

Also, he got a teak bench for the shower. I was adamant about not building a bench in the shower. I wanted to put a removable one so we had options. The plan was to build him one but I have been too busy. I found a teak bench while out shopping the other day and it is perfect. He loves it!

Have a great weekend! I am hopeful that it will be extremely productive. If not, at least the weather is supposed to be beautiful and maybe I can get a little sun and some tan. :)

Thursday, October 30, 2014

Destinations & Directions Sign

Hi all. Long time, no post. I know. Annoying. I have consistently been waking up an 1 1/2 later than I usual. This is not a bad thing because I do need the sleep and I am now waking up at an acceptable time. Having said that, the 1 1/2 hours I am sleeping through used to be when I would blog and edit photos. Normally, I wake up between 5 & 5:30, make my coffee, then sit on the couch with the dogs and edit photos and type blog posts. Now, I don't have that much time in the morning so blogging, once again, has been neglected and put on the back burner. One day I will figure out how to do it all...or at least that's what I tell myself to stay hopeful. :)

We have had several home projects going on the past few weeks plus tons of furniture I haven't shared. Today, I want to show you the destinations and directions signs we made for our yard.

In 2012, Blittle and I went to the Exumas in the out islands of The Bahamas. (If you have never been to an out island....go.) We stayed on Great Exuma but there was an island across the bay that had a restaurant/hang out place. Chat n' Chill is the place to meet your friends for volleyball, cards, or lunch on Stocking Island. This is where we saw our first destinations and directions sign and knew that we wanted to make one for our home.

We were living in New Orleans at the time, which we knew was temporary, so we wanted to wait to make the sign when we were in a more permanent place. I originally thought I would place the post in a planter, concrete around it to make it heavy so it won't blog over, and put the sign on the dock. That way everyone can see it that passes by or is at the house, and it can be moved if it is in the way or we decide we don't want it anymore. Well, Blittle had another vision. We ended up putting it in the corner of the yard on top of the fence. I am not going to lie, I was nervous. Before, I thought it was going to be an understated conversation piece for the dock and now it is going to tower over the yard and be an attention getter.

This project did not cost much. The post was $4 and the signs I made from left over wood and paint. I used a paint pen to right the destinations and sprayed them with a spar varathane to try to protect the color from the sun and rain. We used bolts to secure the sign to the fence so it can be removed if a hurricane comes or we want to move it.

The places we chose all have special meaning to us and are places we have been to together. We did not put every destination we have been to. As you can see, we travel to the east a lot! That's where the Caribbean and Florida is. So we felt it was a little monotonous to have more arrows pointing in the same direction. So these are the places we did choose:

Ludwigshafen, Germany - This is where my parents currently live. It is the only destination on the sign we have not been to but we are going in the Spring.

New Orleans, LA - We lived in New Orleans for 2 years. It will always have a special place in our hearts and we love to go back and visit.

Turks & Caicos Islands - BLittle and I did not go on a honeymoon. Long story short we moved our wedding date and planned a wedding in 3 weeks. He had started a new job and there was no time to worry about a trip. We decided to go on an amazing 1 year anniversary trip and Provodenciales, TCI had been suggested to us. At the time, very few people we talked to knew what the Turks & Caicos islands were and where they were located. It was our first time to the Caribbean and at the time, I was treating it as the only time I might see the Caribbean. You never know what is going to happen and traveling is not cheap so our attitude was to do it all while we are there and enjoy what could be our only trip like this. We snorkeled, ate amazing food, went to some crazy places that felt like the end of the earth to fish. It was unbelievable. Such an adventure. Grace Bay is hands down one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever seen...EVER. I just thought I loved the beach and Caribbean, then we went there and I became obsessed. :)

Shimeck, TX - This is where Blittle's parents live. It is no longer called Shimeck but years ago, the land that they live on now, was called that.

Long Island, The Bahamas - Every trip we go on we love. Every island we have been to, we have enjoyed. Every time we go to the Caribbean our vacations are a little different. One time we rented a boat and island hopped on our own. We stayed in a nice resort. We have stayed in a house on the bay side and could fly fish behind the house. We have stayed in a elevated, camp house with no air or tv right on the beach. They have all been so different so we love them each for different reasons but Long Island was special. Something about it. This was one of those trips were you have to get on a small, chartered prop plane to get to it....don't even get me started on the duck taped windows....thought I was going to die. Anyway, Long Island was gorgeous like all the islands and the place we stayed was great and it was the first time I fly fished on a trip. Blittle always brings his fly rod and we either fish on our own or get a guide. On this trip, we got a guide and it was an amazing day. He was patient with me and waded with me all day constantly giving pointers and helping me improve. I hooked my first bonefish but a shark got him before I could reel him in all the way. The water was so calm and flat that you could barely see where the water stopped and the sky began. We saw a 6-prong and 5-prong star fish. It is a place I would definitely visit again...scary plane included.

Sabine Lake - This area is where I grew up, where BLittle and I met, and where we lived the first years of our marriage. Obviously, it means something to us since we named one of our dogs after it. :) Most of my family still lives there and where my parents have their home. Although, I never plan to live there again, it will always be special to us.

Charleston, SC - I know this sign isn't up yet but will be soon...and it to will be pointed to the east. We loved Charleston. It really is a great city and I was pleasantly surprised how much we enjoyed it. To be honest, BLittle and I have not traveled in the USA much. I have been LA, NYC, DC and other random spots but we didn't do any of those places together. We have been to Destin and have visited family all over Texas but Charleston was the big USA trip where neither of us had been there before. BLittle kept saying, "I want to do something America", so that's what we did. It was so much fun to see and hear about all the history that city has and the food was just....there are no words. The food was unbelievable. And lets not forget the fishing. We fish every where we go. Learning about the flood tides and to witness it was so interesting. Thanks again to our guide for that day. We had an amazing time and the sunset was gorgeous. I can't wait to go back and see more of the city.