Front porch Facelift

So I gave the front of our house a little more personality. It was sorely needed.

Before

After

Since we purchased it a little over a year ago, we've:
Removed the antenna, removed and replaced the mailbox, removed the flag pole, painted the front door, painted the shutters and porch (the most recent change), painted and re-hung the house numbers, and ripped out all of the juniper. Since this photo was taken John has also pressure washed the sidewalks and I'm trying to train Morning Glory vines up the porch railings.

The accent color doesn't quite show up in the photos. It's a muddy grey-ish brown. Sounds ugly, I know. But I wanted something neutral-ish that would still give some personality. The creme is kinda hard to coordinate with. I didn't want to choose something ultra-modern that would clash with the feel of the house in general. An 80's house with brick and cream vinyl siding would probably not look great with school bus yellow.

Plus I've always been a fan of craftsman style architecture and it's not known for super bold colors. In hindsight, I probably could have selected a teal maybe a shade or two darker than the house numbers and that probably would have been cute too, but I was hesitant to do something too trendy that I would hate in a few years. It's tedious to repaint shutters and porches. Trim work is so time consuming. Especially when you dislike painting like I do. That's why I put it off so long.

So, I think it turned out pretty cute, especially in combination with the mailbox I did.

Oh, that post is painted the color of the house trim now :)

Hope everyone is having a good weekend!

House reno and DIY updates

So I'm not sure how I've squeezed in any crafts, but I guess if a mom of six can, so can I!

We've been putting our tax return to good use around here. Having a baby and buying and updating a house all in one year is pretty good in Uncle Sam's eyes :)

Something we've been wanting to do since we moved in was update the kitchen appliances. But we thought that was something that might have to wait a few years. I'd been browsing craigslist for a great bargain on a stove, because ours was starting to be very sensitive. And of course there was that annoying bottom drawer that's half broken. And then our microwave got even worse. It was already slow, but it was getting even slower. And it didn't have a turntable.

So, we started looking at microwaves. At least $100 new (we had to have an over the range one). And I put out search alerts on craigslist. I really wanted stainless, but after weeks of waiting, I could see that nothing was going to come up on my limited budget. So I decided to switch to white. Easier to find and easier on the pocketbook. And probably more in keeping with the home values in our neighborhood.

Well the deal of the century popped up. A white smooth top GE stove, for $200. We decided to crunch the numbers, put off some other things and get it. Then a few days later, John saw a microwave at a thrift store for $18. With the mounting hardware. No lie. Then a friend of ours remodeled their kitchen, and we got their old dishwasher, for $40. It took several weeks to find the fridge. I really wanted a side-by-side. Ice and water in the door, heaven! However, this must be the holy grail on craigslist. They don't come up often, and several times, they were gone within hours, before I could call. Then, there was the width of our opening. Many were just an inch or two too wide. We thought we might have to get a top and bottom style. But then those would usually be like 5 inches narrower than our current top and bottom. And I didn't want to lose that much space.

Finally, one came along. I didn't even negotiate. I bought it just from one photo, and John picked it up the next day. I wish I would have negotiated. The ad said like new. Like, not! But, given all the factors I had (color, width, price), we are keeping it. And I like it. It's just got more scratches and dings than I ever thought a "like new" fridge would have. That part was a total lie on their part. They were also smokers. Thankfully a good cleaning and baking soda took care of that. It's also an off-white. Not almond, not cream, just an off white. Unusual color for a fridge really. But- it still blends in just fine.

So, by the time we bought everything and sold our old appliances, we were able to replace everything for $250. I'd say that is pretty reasonable. Of course it would have cost us more in labor and installation, except we have great friends who are always willing to lend a hand. Even if that means fighting with a microwave at 9pm. Why is everything always twice as hard as you think it will be? The only thing that was an easy switch was the fridge. Everything else required modifying. Thankfully my father-in-law eletrician fixed our stove plug. For some reason the height of the old one and the new one didn't match up, so it sat 2 inches out from the wall until he fixed it.

And speaking of dads who fix things- he also installed a vent fan in our bathroom. I am so glad! I really don't like the constant moist smell our bathroom had. He also fixed our laundry room light (no more fumbling with laundry in the dark!) which turned out to be only loose wires in the switch. And our front door deadbolt now slides easily since he widened the opening with his router.  It's the little (big) things in life! All that labor would have been a couple hundred bucks with a handyman.

So once the laundry room was complete, I had to add a new rug, and get something up on that blank wall. I wanted to get away from the all green theme. So I added in bold colors. Rug purchased at Ross and mirror gifted to me by mom from Hobby Lobby.

The way it was when we bought it. It makes me queasy to see this photo. (From the MLS listing)

The kitchen after paint but before new appliances. Notice the blank wall to the right of the fridge

Before

After

The $18 microwave. There are hairline cracks in the plastic. For $18 I don't care!

$40 dishwasher. That's really a half inch too big. I thought they were all the same size! Oops.

The $250 "Like new" fridge. I do love the ice and water in the door!

The $200 stove. No complaints here. We love it!

This isn't new, but I took a photo just because it was one of the best things we changed in the kitchen. The prior non-gooseneck chrome faucet made the sink depth like 8 inches. Awful!

I had to brag on our orchid. I got this as a gift when I left my old job last April. A year later John has kept it very happy and healthy. It made it through its dormant winter season and sprouted 12!!! new blooms this year! He uses worm tea (worm pee) to fertilize it. It's so healthy it had to have a new bigger pot! I love looking at it above our sink.

So that's the kitchen update. I like buying "new to us" things. It's both eco-friendly and budget-friendly!

Then I've also been tweaking a few things outside. John has been working on the grass. Right now it's mostly brown and dead (on purpose). But the new grass seed is down, and just barely showing growth in some areas. I can't wait to take a photo once it's green again. Right now I'm jealous of our neighbor's mowed (but green) weeds!

But if you remember in this post I talked about our mailbox. That we hated. That other people loved. People who don't live here. People who didn't know that it is small, and leaks, and looks antique which is certainly not my thing. I started off white, with a gold top. Then we sprayed it black to make do.
Then John finally dominated it. It required renting a jack hammer, a lot of sweat, and then a grinder to cut down the pole that held up the address sign. But it is gone!

Gone. Nothing but a big hole in the ground now. The green grass/weeds gone. The juniper against the house, gone.

The new mailbox. Package sized for John's business.

So the new mailbox was great for John. Functional. But to me it was a big black utilitarian thing. And I wanted some flair! So I decided to be really trendy and go with chevron stripes. I found a stencil on Pinterest, modified it to my needs and cut it out on cardstock. Then I bought a paint sample from Lowes and used white and turquoise that we already owned (the blue hue is Sophie's wall color). I want to paint the post the taupe color also. And the shutters and porch rails on the house. But that's down the road. Hopefully by the end of May, especially since my sweet husband offered to do the painting, after I asked if we could hire it out :)

Ok so don't look closely at the stripes. From 2 feet away they look fine. If you're driving by the look perfect. Up close, they look hand done. Which they are. But I did have a stencil. Let me tell you- painting a stencil is tough. I definitely would recommend using spray adhesive to make the stencil stick in place. I had a lot of bleed through and had to go back with a tiny brush and redo all the edges. I also hope this lasts a bit because I used latex interior paint on a shiny metal mailbox that has a ridged texture to it. This also made stenciling tough.

But for now, I like it. I even painted out house numbers the teal and re-hung them vertically. I'll show that once the yard and shutters are done.

Oh, I also tried my hand at mesh ribbon wreaths.

Excuse my wilted raffia. And that's the mailbox before the monogram, from a more flattering distance :)

I'll be very excited to show you the outside of the house! I love getting it personalized. I'm trying to kick the 80's old-man-owned monochromatic scheme it had when we bought it. The corrugated metal awnings make it tough to give it a modern look, but since they get us a homeowners discount I just pretend they're not there :)

Baby White Week 31

So let me update you on the provider we chose...

Ultimately, we decided to stick with a midwife and switch practices. It was a tough decision and by the time we came to it, I honestly didn't care anymore.

We met with the MD at our current practice. She was super nice. We liked her personality a lot. She was polite, calm and patient-centered. She's pretty natural minded for an MD. She has a 15 month old girl herself and had an unmedicated natural birth. If there wasn't a midwife in town, she would be my first choice for a doctor.

Immediately after that we met with the midwife at the other practice. She was also natural and patient-centered. She is pretty forthright and speaks overly loud. Her personality is alright, but not as pleasant. However, she is even more naturally minded than the doctor. She is ok with extending pregnancy one week more than the doc. And of course she has a great reputation in this area. A lot of my friends have used her.

Overall, John and I felt that a midwife is what we went into pregnancy wanting, so that's what we would keep. I also like the office practices better at the midwife's office. I realize I only have one experience to base it off of, but at the other office we waited about 5 minutes in the waiting room and about five or ten minutes in the consultation room. Our current practice runs at least 30 minutes behind at all times. Or at least all the times I have been there. I honestly don't mind if there's a wait, but I do want to be informed when I sign in. Our current office never does this. If my appointment is going to be delayed 30-60 minutes, I think it's only courteous to let me know when I arrive. I understand the doctors have emergencies or blips in their schedule. But I should get to make the decision if I want to wait that long, or reschedule.

And of course you know I was upset with the way they handled informing us that our midwife was gone. I feel her patients should have been contacted immediately. A letter, a phone call, something. If I had not called 2 days before my scheduled appointment to ask why my reminder phone call listed another provider, I would not have been told until I showed up. That meant several weeks lost that I could have been looking for another provider or deciding whether to stay. I also loathe their phone system. I don't want a busy signal 3-5 times before getting through. I don't want to call during my lunch (when most people have time to make personal calls) to find out that you don't answer your phones for 90+ minutes a day because you are on lunch. Eat in shifts. Getting a voicemail box. The only options shouldn't be no answer or leaving a message with the emergency service.

Actually, the practice manager called me yesterday. I was expecting it. The hospital that owns the practice has a Facebook page, and I went on their and posted a bit of a complaint. They still have my midwife listed on their website, in several places. I told them that was false advertisement and that I was upset with the way her leaving was handled. It would have been much better service to let her deliver her current patients (not take on any new ones) and then let her go. So I will probably call the practice manager and let her know my concerns, at least about the phone system and informing people of delays.

So now that I'm on the two week appointment schedule, I'll be headed back to the midwife on the 24th. I hope all will go well.

I also staged the nursery this week for a photo shoot. Now you can all see the completed look!

Of course the bassinet will move out to our room once she's here

I found an older hardback copy of "Little Women" at a yard sale. I love the book and the cover is very feminine.

We'll be holding onto this Bumbo seat since it may be hard to get one anymore! All because of silly people who can't follow instructions!

The print on the left says "Love you to the moon and back" The photo on the right is of our dogs :)

Pink tub to hold hairbows and headbands :) The pink blanket in the middle is the "make do" changing pad for now.

Dad's guitar is waiting for him to play lullabies :)

A nice soft glow from the lamp next to the swing

Comfy seat for lots of rocking. Along with a monogrammed pillow.

This week our city had a "Mom to Mom" resale event. It's like a huge temporary consignment store. The organizers take in your stuff and label and display it and handle all the sales. We weren't going to stop in since John is really not wanting us to buy anything else until after our showers, but he said we could pop in if I wanted to. I did :)

It was a mad house in there! Today some items were half off. But I did really good, since I took the hall monitor (John) with me. Can I just say that bringing your husband shopping is somewhat like eating dinner with your personal trainer at like, McDonalds or something. What was I thinking? I had about 10-15 dollars worth of stuff when we went to get in the checkout line, which went halfway around the building. Probably a 20-30 minute wait. That's when the hall monitor decided we should only get in line if I "really wanted that stuff". I gave up in exasperation. It was already clear he was not enjoying this like I do. He tried to backpedal with the "if you want it, we can wait," but for me all the joy was gone. So I put down the pile of a few hooded towels, bibs, burp cloths and a shopping cart cover and headed home.

I sure hope they'll be plenty of yard sales and that I'll feel up to going to them in October. I am sure we'll get lots of nice things from our family and friends, but I don't expect people to spend boocoos of money on us. I couldn't do that for someone else.

Last night we got out and walked around downtown for Gallery Night. So you're going to ignore that I'm wearing the same shirt from last Friday. It's my new favorite and the weather was cool enough for me to be comfortable in it. :)

Nothing out of the ordinary symptom wise. I think my feet and legs are starting to swell a little. I can't tell you how hard it was to get those boots on! Thankfully they came off easily.
My poor bladder is really being compressed these days. It feels full quite a lot, sometimes even when it's barely got anything in it at all :) I'm getting bigger and more awkward all the time :) But that's ok for now. Too bad it isn't ok for women to always be this round in the middle and still be considered "cute". Lol

Next week is my "big" shower, and I'm excited! I'm getting a mani pedi the morning of it too! Can't wait to share with you!

Because I said I have other things to talk about than pregnancy...

Of course with pregnancy brain, I can't remember half of them...

I got new lamps for our bedroom. I've had these modern yet small nickel bases with white drum shades for awhile. They function well- (I like pull chains!) and were cute enough, but I really wanted something more substantial, that made more of a statement. But lamps are so expensive! After looking at several stores I finally found a pair at TJMaxx in Tampa, and my sweet momma treated me to them!

Notice the pillowcases- those were another treat from Stein Mart here in town. I love me a monogram!!!

I would've taken a shot of the whole bed but alas, it was unmade :)

This past weekend was also my hubby's birthday. Friday night we went out for hibachi (one of his favorites) and it was so good! I tried a new place that came highly recommended, and they did not disappoint. Our chef was also cheesy, yet funny. And of course their knife skills are amazing.
We ended up at a table with three other random couples. At first it was weird but the chef talking to us and time passing helped everyone loosen up. We were chit chatting and laughing by the end. John and I decided it would be strange yet fun to go to hibachi often and pretend to be different people every time. Since you usually discuss surface stuff- like where you work. Like maybe he could be a taxidermist and I could be an exotic dancer. (Which would be pretty hard to believe, but still funny). We could pick bizarre careers and watch people's reactions. Oh the stuff we come up with.

Saturday John got his wish to sleep in due to rain. Rain is rather a buzz kill for yard sales. Saturday night we went to dinner with about 10 friends at Chili's. It was also tasty. For the most part they are a pretty consistent reliable chain.

Yesterday I purged our closets. I'd say it's nesting, but it's also just a normal part of my personality. I don't like it when the closets start getting cramped. And I know space is only going to become more valuable as our family grows. So I ended up with 4 garbage bags of things to get rid of. Some is going to friends, some I'm going to take to Plato's Closet (we just got one!) and some will be donated. I feel much better letting go of things that just don't quite fit right, so they get passed over repeatedly in the closet. I also got rid of several pairs of heels :( Somehow I don't see myself fitting into them again. I kept about 8 pair, for church and special occasions. I also got rid of about 10 handbags. Because I yard sale, I'm forever bringing in "new" stuff, and to keep it manageable that means old stuff has to go!

Maybe my renewed vigor to continue the cleaning and redecorating has to do with the weather change too. We've been sleeping with the windows open for a couple nights, and our highs are low 80's. Hopefully this means fall is coming and we won't have too many more super hot days left this year. That also gets me thinking that fall means a baby, and I better get busy!

Oh, we did meet with the doctor and midwife yesterday. We decided, but I'll save that for another post.

And on the 7th day they rested

The house has come a long way. There are still a lot of little things to be done, and I'm sure there always will be. But we feel like the lion's share is behind us.

I only wish I would have taken better "before" pictures to show just how much has changed. But I'll post what I have just as a refresher. I've posted them once before.

No more blood red carpet. But also no more patio furniture. Lol.

Everything painted, flooring changed

New floors, new paint, new ceiling fan

Border removed, TV shelf removed, every inch painted (except new support post, to be done) new floors

And now for all the rest of the photos:

TV antenna and flagpole gone, door and mailbox painted

We want to replace it, but camouflaged it for now. It was bright white.

Door painted red. 5 coats worth to be exact.

Foyer painted, new floors, new light

Painted, mirror removed, bricks scrubbed

Painted, now where I blog from :)

Painted, cabinets on bottom store movies, games, photo albums, blankets

Wedding photos, new paint

Painted walls and cabinets, new curtain, new faucet

Painted cabinets

Flowers from my mama :)

Laundry room- new floor and wall paint

New paint and new to us appliances, new light fixture

Hallway- paint and wall decor, new floors, new light fixture

John's office. New fan, new carpet, new paint

View from inside the office

Guest bath- new light fixture, new TP and towel holder, painted walls and cabinets, new toilet seat, new floors

Guest bath

Master- new carpet, ceiling fan, wall paint

View from the bed

Master bath- new light fixture, paint, cabinets painted, new TP and towel holder, new toilet seat, new floors

View 2

The new floors! A berber carpet we love and wood-look ceramic tile that we love and labor of loved :)

And now for a nursery sneak peek:

The curtains were the starting point

Then came the pig to match the curtains

Then momma agreed that this set on Craigslist was a good match too. And a paint swatch was brought home.

And then when I came home today, Papa and Sean were painting!

And there you have it!