Getting Close

August 1st!!! That is our target move in day!!! In saying that, I totally realize we may not make it and we have until August 20 to actually be out of our home but this is still our goal. I am posting a bunch of pictures. None of them are in any good order. If I were a good blogger, which you all know by now I am NOT, then I would always put before and after pics together. I didn't!! Sorry! But you will get reminded just how far we have come since February 30th! This picture is one of the first pictures of the master bedroom. I have a current pic down below. Please realize that currently all of our beautiful wood floors are still under layers of paper and cardboard until all of the painting is done. I am really looking forward to seeing them again!

This is the kitchen as it was when we bought the house. NOTHING remains of the old one now.

Another old kitchen shot.

The foyer ceiling....with who knows how many toilet leaks found their way through the floor! SO GROSS!!!

I love this picture because that is all of the kitchen that you could see from the dining room.

Bob is getting ready to hang our foyer light fixture. Everything is so pristine again. It is so bright and happy.....and our "stuff" isn't even in it yet. It is still just a "house".

My friend Diane is doing Venetian plaster in the powder room. This will be a fun process to follow.....layers and layers. I found a small blue and white transferware sink from the 1800's that is my inspiration for the room so the walls will be layers of whites and creams. More pics to follow.

This is where my range will go. Hopefully it will find it's home this week.

Please remember that there is a beautiful dark pine floor under all of that cardboard so the kitchen won't really look so white when it is all done. This is the island before we started to finish the top.

Sunday, my friend Terri and I decided to tackle the top of the island and this is a picture of all of the supplies we used to get the look that I was after. It worked and I just love it.

One of the brackets on.......$4.oo Hobby Lobby!

The top all finished!!! Do you all remember the green piece I brought back from Roundtop flea market? Voila!

This backplate was something we had been carrying around for years. They came off of some old doors from Highland Park. They have a new home.

One of the bedrooms. Bad pic, sorry!

Another bedroom...almost done!

Master bedroom....so light and bright!

The infamous "purple bathroom"......the only thing left is the tub and on the 22nd it will be white!

Another shot of the purple bathroom.

Master bathroom shower....

Master bathroom.....These are just a few pics but gives you a better idea of how close we are. This will be a big week of changes so stay tuned!!

Glazing progress

Here is an updated pic of the front of the house. Remember the bushes we cut down to about 6 inches? They have grown back and I actually like the way they look now. It doesn't remind me of a cattle chute anymore! The two pots on the front porch have a fun story. Several years ago on one of our annual Round Top antiquing trips, my friend Cindy and I found these great huge urns. There was a pair and neither of us wanted two of them so we each bought one and both of us have used them for table bases. Cindy lives right across the street from the new house. A couple of weeks ago she called and said it was time to reunite the pair and my front porch needed them. It is her house warming gift to us! So.....Friday night we decided to move them. They are so heavy that it took two adult women and her 19 year old son to move them. It was a great time and will always be a special memory. They look kind of tacky right now because the plants are small but I will take an occasional pic as they grow up!

Diane working her magic on the front door.

Done...!

We are debating whether or not to take the screen door off. When it is open, the detail of the surrounding brick seems to "pop". We may put it back up in the fall when we can actually use it. At 100 degrees, not so much!

We are so dry down here and no rain in the forecast for the next 8 days. These two robins were so cute bathing in the sprinkler water yesterday. They aren't picky! When you've gotta bathe, you've gotta bathe!

I was at Sams by 8:30 yesterday. This is a baby bird that was in the cart return corral. He didn't budge when I got close to him and I could just hear him saying, " If I don't move she won't see me...she won't see me...she WON'T SEE ME"!!! I knew he was the first to get kicked out of the nest when I looked up in the tree above me and saw his two siblings sitting on the branch.....

I think they were saying, " YOU go next.....NO, YOU go next....Look at HIM, he jumped and now he's NOT MOVING. I'm NOT going!!" Whatever...it made me laugh! Such life lessons there, yes? I am off to bed! Later!!

This and That

I tried to find a pic of the front of the house with the old lamp posts and no carriage lights on the house but I couldn't find a good one. We took the posts down and put up these lights. I think the scale is much better for the house.

OK.....here are the first pics of the painted cabinets. The final coat is now on and they are starting on the walls....yeah!! The counter tops are now in but I couldn't get a pic because they covered them up almost as soon as they were installed. They are BEAUTIFUL!!!!! It is a Calcutta marble and if you have ever used marble in a kitchen, it is not stain friendly. Well, it already has a 4" stain and we didn't even get to make it ourselves! It is kind of like getting a new car and getting your first ding....now it is over and we don't have to wait for it! I really do have the attitude that each stain will just be a memory and lots of memories are great!

OK...I searched and searched for my dining room chandelier. I finally found one and it took 3 weeks to get here. This was the condition of the box when it was placed on my front porch! Notice the "Handle with Care"!!! Ya right! Who in their right mind would actually deliver this to someone? Needless to say, it was NOT in one piece when it arrived and has been sent back so now I wait for the new one to be shipped. Hopefully this one will arrive in better condition.

Broken post....but you can see the finish on the light.

Remember the "Before"? Here is the "After". Bob did such a great job!!

We finally made the very difficult decision to age the dark woodwork in the house. We debated back and forth because it really is such incredible wood. Bob was really the one dragging his feet a little more than me. You know how men are about painting wood! We finally gave my friend Diane the go-ahead and you would not believe the change. Bob LOVES it.....really LOVES it!! It just softened and updated the house. This is Diane's business and she is so talented. I have LOTS of talented friends! Thanks Diane!

Now I am switching to something even more near and dear to my heart! My sweet family! Halie had her first dance recital last week. It was a hoot!!! She did so well and most of all, she had a great time and wasn't nervous in front of all of those people. She did NOT get that from her Nana!

It was also Halie's 5th birthday and she and some of her friends went to a salon and got their nails done. It was so much fun....the adults just watched but I really needed to take a seat and get a little work done on mine. Every week I think I will get that done but as of now it just hasn't happened!

Avery came to town for the party. She idolizes Halie and it is the sweetest thing to watch them together. There in NOTHING that beats being a grandparent!

Austin was content just to sit in the foot tub and play with my iphone!

Yesterday I had a blast! I got to have BOTH of the girls all day! We painted, had a tea party, played in the garden hose (it is still HOT here!) and went to the squirt park. They LOVE crafts of any kind and I love to watch them be so creative.

Mollie is just waiting for a stray goldfish!

Last but not least....playdough cookies to finish the day!

Have a great week!!!

Memorial Day

It has been almost a month since my last post. Life here has been non-stop and if you've ever experienced one or two of those times in your lives, then you know how hard it is to get caught up. I am committed to posting this new entry tonight!!! Even these pics are outdated by now. I will get these posted and then it will be easier for me to add new ones in the next few days! Thanks for your patience.

We traveled down to the Dallas National Cemetery for Memorial Day. Bob's dad is buried there. It is always such a sobering experience. I am so thankful that every grave there represents a person who loved this country enough to fight for the freedoms that I take for granted every day of my life. Thanks to every one of you.

The floors are actually stained with one coat of poly UNDER all of this cardboard and paper. This is to protect it during the painting process, which is currently underway.

Have you ever stripped wallpaper? This was the fruits of my labor one afternoon. The project is still not done. If you are not from the area, you are missing out on record heat and low rainfall. It was 105 today in McKinney. Not the best weather to be stuck in a powder room scraping and scraping! Oh well, it will still be there when I get back to it.

ISLAND UPDATE!!! The base it done!!! Bob is working on the top so I will take a pic tomorrow and post it. It turned out so much better than I had even envisioned.

The electrician and Bob. He is quite a character and we are so thankful for his talents. Anyway you can see the island minus the top, the cupboards installed and the pine floors down. As of today, the cupboards are now painted white and the floors are stained, varnished and covered with paper. This kitchen is the most amazing change in the house. It is so bright and happy. I am so excited to see the rest of it come together. The counter tops are being installed this week.

This is a shot of the island as Glenna was working on it.

I think there were at least 6 layers of paint put on before she was finished.

These are a few pictures of a dresser we used for the apartment bathroom vanity. It is finished too so I will take a new picture of it. Bob did a fabulous job putting two sinks in it.

Before the sinks installed....

One of the possibilities for our lights above our island. I have another choice too. These may end up being too big but they will also work out in the apartment if I choose not to use them in the kitchen.

As I mentioned earlier it has been a crazy busy month. Our son in law Paul graduated from SMU Law School. We are so proud of him! It is an amazing accomplishment!

My daughter Sarah and precious Halie at the graduation.

Paul and sweet Austin at graduation. I'm not sure what the deal is with those caps......!! Congratulations Paul!!

The following weekend we headed to Lubbock for our son Jeff's graduation from Texas Tech School of Medicine. We had a great time with the family. Avery checking for free bubble gum!

Sawyer and Ben learning from their big sister! It is so funny how those machines intrigue kids even if they never get anything out of them.

Bob had the honor of hooding Jeff at his graduation. It was really emotional for me. What a journey his education has been. He actually beat his dad for the number of years in college. We have had some member of our family in college since 1971....yes, I said 1971!!!!! Wooohooo....I think everyone is DONE!!
Congratulation Jeff!!

And a word of thanks and congratulations to Sarah and Kristen for their love and support of Paul and Jeff in this journey. They are both such amazing women and every day I thank God for the gift they are to us! We love you!

OK.......there it is...a quick update! It will feel so good to push "publish" and get this off of my "to-do" list! Now it will be easier to get new pics on! Again, thanks for your patience! Have a great week! Stay cool!