Hilary and Nick want to wish you a very Merry Christmas and the Happiest of New Years!
December 25, 2009
December 6, 2009
Guestroom in progress
Our guestroom will soon be suitable for guests! The bright and loudly painted walls will soon be a soothing lavender. We are pretty sure that this process is going to take forever! We are going to have to prime everything- including the ceiling! The end result will be beautiful though.
Who wants to stay overnight in the beautiful new room?
prepping the room to be painted
Who wants to stay overnight in the beautiful new room?
prepping the room to be painted
November 29, 2009
Christmas is here!
November 26, 2009
Thanksgiving at Winifred Manor!
We had our first Thanksgiving at Winifred Manor! It was a great success! We had a ton of food and family over! We are so thankful that we were able to spend the holiday at our new house!
The menu:
Turkey
Gravy
Stuffing
Mashed potatoes
Sweet potatoes
Yams
Corn
Bread
Gingerbread
Chex mix
Pumpkin pie
Dutch Apple Pie
Veggies
chips
Turkey
Gravy
Stuffing
Mashed potatoes
Sweet potatoes
Yams
Corn
Bread
Gingerbread
Chex mix
Pumpkin pie
Dutch Apple Pie
Veggies
chips
October 22, 2009
A new home for our cars!
After a ton of stress and calling the city of St. Paul almost every day to figure out if we need a permit and getting a million different answers, we finally got it together! We knew that we needed a driveway before the ground froze and really should have started the process earlier. We are on a road that has a snow emergency on both sides and on the side street. We basically would have to park the next block down on snow emergencies, which would have been just plain awful! Luckily after many phone calls we got an answer and approval to our plan and began digging out a driveway and the place where our garage should go once the ground thaws this spring. We also got the pea gravel area cleared and the cracking cement work by our patio doors removed. I cannot wait until spring to get our yard put back together again!
October 11, 2009
Works in Progress
We have a lot of little works in progress right now. I think I am ready to move my focus to the guest room, because it would be nice to be able to have visitors stay in style! After a weekend at a B&B I feel the need to get that room up to standards! Plus, I love decorating and I am starting to run out of places to decorate!
Over labor day weekend one of the most important pieces to getting the guest room in the right direction was putting on a door! There was never a door on the room, but we found a paneled door in the shed and Nick and his dad cut it down, while I supervised of course ;-) Obviously I didn't supervise, but I did praise them for their hard work!
I am hoping to get the guest room painted before November rolls around. The garden ended earlier than I thought it would because of the earliest snow me and Nick have ever experienced (the last time it snowed this early we weren't even born!), so I should be able to find some time one long weekend if I take a Friday off.
We are also in the process of getting the driveway space dug out, finishing getting handles on the cabinets and hopefully getting the laundry room rearranged and vented properly. So many projects, so little time! Have I mentioned that there are still a few random boxes to unpack! Oops!
We are also in the process of getting the driveway space dug out, finishing getting handles on the cabinets and hopefully getting the laundry room rearranged and vented properly. So many projects, so little time! Have I mentioned that there are still a few random boxes to unpack! Oops!
October 8, 2009
95 is the way to be.
We just purchased a new, high efficiency furnace. It's incredibly slick, and actually cost a lost less than I had originally thought. The cost was around $4000, and since it is energy efficient, we will be receiving 30% of that cost back from the federal government in the form of tax credits. Pretty slick, I'd say.
Our old furnace was a beast. It was a modern furnace, but 26 years old. A furnace filter usually needs to be replaced once a year. The filter we had was never replaced. Ever. 26 years of dust, hair, and anything else airborne was still in that filter. I'm glad I never saw it when Genz-Ryan removed it.
In it's place sits a brand new, 95% efficiency Lennox furnace. The main points about the new furnace is that it is quiet, uses a lot less energy, and has a continually running fan to filter the air inside the house. The fan is a huge plus, since we opted for the improved filter that removes 95% of everything foreign object in the air. The fan is running the air through the filter even when the furnace is not on. Since Hilary has allergies, this should reduce her symptoms when they flare up.
High efficiency furnaces has some interesting quirks to them though. A high efficiency furnace does not use the normal chimney stack in a home and the intake and exhaust are vented out of the side of the home. Our vents are near the garden, one pointing down and the other pointing straight out. In addition, they also creates condensation in the intake and exhaust, which would normally flow back into the furnace. Thankfully, they have to redirect it to a drain. In Winifred manor, there is no floor drain so a sanitary pump was installed to pump the water into a standard opening in the sewer pipe. It's rather neat, since there is now a clear hose full of water running up through the ceiling of the basement.
Finally, we have a brand new thermostat, which is operated by a touchscreen. It's pretty fancy, and we will be saving even more energy when I program the thing. That is a project coming soon.
So now I'm sitting here in a nice, warm house. I'm not even sure the furnace is running right now. It probably is, but the thing is so quiet I have to put my hand up to the vent to feel if air is passing through. Oh... Yep, it's running. Would it be crazy to wish for winter to really see the thing in action?
Our old furnace was a beast. It was a modern furnace, but 26 years old. A furnace filter usually needs to be replaced once a year. The filter we had was never replaced. Ever. 26 years of dust, hair, and anything else airborne was still in that filter. I'm glad I never saw it when Genz-Ryan removed it.
In it's place sits a brand new, 95% efficiency Lennox furnace. The main points about the new furnace is that it is quiet, uses a lot less energy, and has a continually running fan to filter the air inside the house. The fan is a huge plus, since we opted for the improved filter that removes 95% of everything foreign object in the air. The fan is running the air through the filter even when the furnace is not on. Since Hilary has allergies, this should reduce her symptoms when they flare up.
High efficiency furnaces has some interesting quirks to them though. A high efficiency furnace does not use the normal chimney stack in a home and the intake and exhaust are vented out of the side of the home. Our vents are near the garden, one pointing down and the other pointing straight out. In addition, they also creates condensation in the intake and exhaust, which would normally flow back into the furnace. Thankfully, they have to redirect it to a drain. In Winifred manor, there is no floor drain so a sanitary pump was installed to pump the water into a standard opening in the sewer pipe. It's rather neat, since there is now a clear hose full of water running up through the ceiling of the basement.
Finally, we have a brand new thermostat, which is operated by a touchscreen. It's pretty fancy, and we will be saving even more energy when I program the thing. That is a project coming soon.
So now I'm sitting here in a nice, warm house. I'm not even sure the furnace is running right now. It probably is, but the thing is so quiet I have to put my hand up to the vent to feel if air is passing through. Oh... Yep, it's running. Would it be crazy to wish for winter to really see the thing in action?
Putting the tomatoes and peppers to bed
The early end of the planting season forced me to pick the rest of my tomatoes and peppers before temperatures drop below freezing this weekend. I spent all yesterday morning picking green tomatoes and ended up with an entire brown paper bag full! It is a shame they couldn't ripen on the vine. Luckily they will still ripen in the bag, and hopefully they didn't get too cold already. I also picked all the peppers that were left. I am going to dry them to use in soups for the winter. Does anyone want a bag of green tomatoes? I seriously have a ridiculous amount!
I don't know what I am going to do without my garden to occupy my time! I can bring my two herbs in but that isn't the same! I guess I need to start planning a timeline for next year's garden! I learned a lot from this years and hope to have so many more vegetables next year!
I should have kept track, but I definitely produced a ton of tomatoes! Each plant did really well, except the pots produced far less. Next year all the tomatoes go in the ground.
Sadly my pumpkins are nowhere near being ready, so next year I will need to plant much earlier. I think I need to try more gourds and squash next year. I will have to cultivate the area better though.
I think I will also diversify my peppers. I had all cayennes until the very end where the bell peppers finally produced.
Next year I want a ton more herbs. Hopefully the oregano and rosemary I have can last inside until next spring.
Until next year, I am putting away my vegetable garden tools. I still have a lot to do to prepare the yard for winter, so this isn't the last you will hear about our fantastic garden!
I don't know what I am going to do without my garden to occupy my time! I can bring my two herbs in but that isn't the same! I guess I need to start planning a timeline for next year's garden! I learned a lot from this years and hope to have so many more vegetables next year!
I should have kept track, but I definitely produced a ton of tomatoes! Each plant did really well, except the pots produced far less. Next year all the tomatoes go in the ground.
Sadly my pumpkins are nowhere near being ready, so next year I will need to plant much earlier. I think I need to try more gourds and squash next year. I will have to cultivate the area better though.
I think I will also diversify my peppers. I had all cayennes until the very end where the bell peppers finally produced.
Next year I want a ton more herbs. Hopefully the oregano and rosemary I have can last inside until next spring.
Until next year, I am putting away my vegetable garden tools. I still have a lot to do to prepare the yard for winter, so this isn't the last you will hear about our fantastic garden!
Chirstmas comes early!
I don't know where the season of Autumn went, but it went right from being Summer to feeling like it was Winter! For the past week and a half our house has been freezing! The minute I get home it is bathrobe, slippers and blankets for me along with a nice cup of hot chocolate!
Luckily for us, Christmas came early, with a present to ourselves: a brand new, high efficieny, energy saving, non-smelly, safety approved, furnace! The house is now toasty warm, and of course, now it feels more like fall than winter outside, but we can manage ;-)
I am sure that Nick can write all about what our shiny new furnace does and all the fancy bells and whistles attached to it. We had it installed by Genz Ryan and they did a fantastic job and actually arrived on time, unlike most contractors! I let Nick write more about it though!
Luckily for us, Christmas came early, with a present to ourselves: a brand new, high efficieny, energy saving, non-smelly, safety approved, furnace! The house is now toasty warm, and of course, now it feels more like fall than winter outside, but we can manage ;-)
I am sure that Nick can write all about what our shiny new furnace does and all the fancy bells and whistles attached to it. We had it installed by Genz Ryan and they did a fantastic job and actually arrived on time, unlike most contractors! I let Nick write more about it though!
October 3, 2009
Decorating!
Now that summer has wound down I have had the chance to do my favorite thing: decorating! Here are some of the newest, decorative additions to our house!
$50 richer and less one shed
Goodbye old shed!!
We listed our tool shed on Craig's List so that we could prepare for our driveway so that we can finally have off street parking (which after getting two parking violations, is more than necessary, grrr). We knew there was no way we could move the shed ourselves, and it was inconviently right where the parking pad needed to go. We decided to list it for $75 plus you haul it, and got a staggering 43 offers! We had no clue that anyone would be willing to pay us and try to move that beast. We ended up having someone see if and he offered $50 so we took it because this shed would take a lot of work to get moved.
This morning he came by and three hours, part of the tree down, a trip to Menards and a lot of creative manuevering, the shed was off our hands!
I think we got the better deal ;-)
September 20, 2009
No eviction necessary
Nick and his dad went up into the attic space to see if the squirrel family would kindly leave. However, there were no squirrels to be found! We are thinking the squirrel nest we saw is inbetween the original house and the newer addition which is only a part of the eaves but provides no access to the attic. We will definitely want to close up the area but luckily there are no squirrelies living in our attic!
September 19, 2009
Long overdue!
We have a lot of updates coming! We will elaborate later because there have been tons of changes at Winifred! We have been busy, busy, busy! We even took our first vacation away from Winifred Manor and had a Labor Day barbeque for all of our friends!
We have done tons of gardening, the tomatoes are in full bloom and have produced over seven batches of salsa and spaghetti sauce and a pound of blanched tomatoes that we froze for the winter. I also did a ton of weeding and gardening and lopping of some of the overgrown trees.
Nick has been installing brand new hardware on all of the cabinets, the guest room actually has a door now and we installed a new light in the kitchen!
We finally got our homeowners credit. Now we are also preparing to get our new furnace, a driveway and to clean out the basement.
We also have been having some pest issues, namely mice (RIP Gus), but have eliminated the problem with a new footboard in our mudroom. Out next pest task is evicting a family (I assume it is a family, but maybe it is just one) of squirrels from our attic. Which hopefully does not end in hilarity or rabies shots. We will just have to see!
We have done tons of gardening, the tomatoes are in full bloom and have produced over seven batches of salsa and spaghetti sauce and a pound of blanched tomatoes that we froze for the winter. I also did a ton of weeding and gardening and lopping of some of the overgrown trees.
Nick has been installing brand new hardware on all of the cabinets, the guest room actually has a door now and we installed a new light in the kitchen!
We finally got our homeowners credit. Now we are also preparing to get our new furnace, a driveway and to clean out the basement.
We also have been having some pest issues, namely mice (RIP Gus), but have eliminated the problem with a new footboard in our mudroom. Out next pest task is evicting a family (I assume it is a family, but maybe it is just one) of squirrels from our attic. Which hopefully does not end in hilarity or rabies shots. We will just have to see!
August 18, 2009
We no longer live in a fish bowl!
When we moved in, one of the first things that we did was remove the very broken, plastic-y, dirty blinds from the kitchen. Then we realized that everyone could see into our house. But there were other, more important things to fix and make pretty. So we decided that we could live without them for a while... which meant that we were basically living in a fish bowl!
This weekend we finally went out and bought curtains! Of course the curtain rod we bought was broken (Thanks Wal Mart) so we had to return it and try again. But second time was a charm, and we installed them super quick and easy, and for under $40 including the curtains and the rod and hardware! And what a difference it makes! I think it makes the cats happy too because they don't feel like they have to guard the window anymore.
This weekend we finally went out and bought curtains! Of course the curtain rod we bought was broken (Thanks Wal Mart) so we had to return it and try again. But second time was a charm, and we installed them super quick and easy, and for under $40 including the curtains and the rod and hardware! And what a difference it makes! I think it makes the cats happy too because they don't feel like they have to guard the window anymore.
Gus has left the building
I have found nothing in the traps, so I will only assume he left post-haste. Will shall watch for him in the gardens.
August 16, 2009
He got out... maybe?
So either my cats are the worst attack-kitties ever, or Gus made is back into the garden where he belongs. My cats aren't paying any attention to the refrigerator or stove area where he was hiding, the pet safe trap isn't sprung and the snap trap in the cupboard hasn't caught anything- thank goodness! I told Nick that if we did catch Gus that he wasn't allowed to tell me, but I swear, he isn't lying and we really haven't caught him. Gus is a smart little guy, he wouldn't get snagged in a trap. I should really go out into my garden and look for him, then I can have a little relief that my little "pet" is okay. I felt so bad that when he startled me last night in the mud room that I startled him back and got him all discombobulated. Oh, Gus... I am sorry but you are cut off from the bird feed buffet. We can't have a repeat of last night again!
What an adventure!
In other pet news, we have two crysalis'. One will emerge in about 8 days and one will in nine days. I also have a new monarch egg that will hopefully hatch in a few days- I hope! It looks like a really new egg, but who knows if it will actually hatch or not.
What an adventure!
In other pet news, we have two crysalis'. One will emerge in about 8 days and one will in nine days. I also have a new monarch egg that will hopefully hatch in a few days- I hope! It looks like a really new egg, but who knows if it will actually hatch or not.
He got in!
Pet name, Gus; after treading out into the mud room, the little bugger scared Hilary, made her scream, which in turn made me try to scare Gus out of the mud room. Only, he went the wrong way and into our house and under our stove. We haven't seen the guy since, but we have set out traps (pet safe ones) so maybe he'll find his way into one. Or, the other likely scenario is that he is long gone already, living it up outside.
We'll keep you posted.
We'll keep you posted.
August 13, 2009
If you give a mouse a cookie
We keep all of our bird seed in the back mud room, and discovered that a little something was nibbling at the bag and dragging bird seed around. We also discovered that there was a hole in the foot board we failed to plug up.
The other morning I went out the mud room to water and saw tail quickly scurry through the hole. Now each morning, I have been silently peeking into the mud room to see if Mr. Mousey is still there. Sure enough, EVERY morning, he is there, nibbling away- it is actually kind of a cute in a disease filled animal sort of way. We need to get a cover for our bird seed box, but also need to figure out if we can keep him out, period. We have been trying to stuff the hole with tin foil, but are apparently not doing a good enough job because he keeps getting in. I almost want to continue leaving out the bird seed to see if we have succeeded in plugging the hole. He hasn't come inside the house, thanks to some excellent guard kitties, but now I am afraid that if we get rid of the seed he might get hungry and stupid and try to, and I don't want my cats carrying around a dead mouse!
But you know what they say, if you give a mouse a cookie, he will ask for a glass of milk. What if he decides to bring the rest of his mousey friends into the mud room?
I don't want to trap him because I have seen his mousey face and he likes to hang out with me when I garden (I am not making this up! Every time I have been gardening, I have come across him and he just sits back and watches!).
So, this weekend I think we are going to replace the foot board of the door and see if that keeps him outside. If that doesn't work I will have to build him his own mouse house so he stops coming into mine! Just kidding, but hopefully it doesn't come to that!
The other morning I went out the mud room to water and saw tail quickly scurry through the hole. Now each morning, I have been silently peeking into the mud room to see if Mr. Mousey is still there. Sure enough, EVERY morning, he is there, nibbling away- it is actually kind of a cute in a disease filled animal sort of way. We need to get a cover for our bird seed box, but also need to figure out if we can keep him out, period. We have been trying to stuff the hole with tin foil, but are apparently not doing a good enough job because he keeps getting in. I almost want to continue leaving out the bird seed to see if we have succeeded in plugging the hole. He hasn't come inside the house, thanks to some excellent guard kitties, but now I am afraid that if we get rid of the seed he might get hungry and stupid and try to, and I don't want my cats carrying around a dead mouse!
But you know what they say, if you give a mouse a cookie, he will ask for a glass of milk. What if he decides to bring the rest of his mousey friends into the mud room?
I don't want to trap him because I have seen his mousey face and he likes to hang out with me when I garden (I am not making this up! Every time I have been gardening, I have come across him and he just sits back and watches!).
So, this weekend I think we are going to replace the foot board of the door and see if that keeps him outside. If that doesn't work I will have to build him his own mouse house so he stops coming into mine! Just kidding, but hopefully it doesn't come to that!
August 11, 2009
Winifred Manor is expecting!
We hatched two caterpillars around August 2nd! We have a ton of milkweed in our butterfly garden, but so many birds that ever egg that hatched was than eaten. We managed to get to eggs before they hatched and now have two baby caterpillars! Here is some great information about the butterfly life cycle. I am thinking these caterpillars are part of the 3rd generation this season. Once they turn into butterflies they will lay eggs which will than be the butterflies that will migrate South. Maybe we will find some more eggs!
Here they are a few days after they first hatched, on August 5th (you can click on the pictures to make them bigger):
Look at how tiny they are!! They have grown so big over the past week! Here they are on August 11th.
I am thinking that they will be getting into their J's soon. I hope they do because then I might be able to see them turn into a butterfly. Me and Nick are leaving for vacation on the 21st and might not be able to see them come out of their chrysalis' and get released... hopefully we can get pictures so we don't miss our babies first flight!
Here they are a few days after they first hatched, on August 5th (you can click on the pictures to make them bigger):
I am thinking that they will be getting into their J's soon. I hope they do because then I might be able to see them turn into a butterfly. Me and Nick are leaving for vacation on the 21st and might not be able to see them come out of their chrysalis' and get released... hopefully we can get pictures so we don't miss our babies first flight!
Flowers and visitors
The flowers in the garden seem to be winding down. I am so glad I planted annuals in front of the house though, because those are still beautiful! Especially my Zinnias!
The vegetable garden is going, but slowly! I have had green tomatoes forever! The only ones that have actually turned ripe have had blossom rot :-( This morning though I finally saw that about three of my 100 tomatoes are starting to turn. My cayenne peppers are doing fantastic so garden salsa will happen soon! I even have my own onions! If only I had grown cilantro! Next year... next year!
I will have another vegetable garden update this weekend, and hopefully my first batch of salsa?
We also got a visitor to the yard! Isn't she pretty!
I will have another vegetable garden update this weekend, and hopefully my first batch of salsa?
July 27, 2009
First Family Party: success!
We finally unveiled the house to my side of the family two Sunday's ago. We had brunch for my grandpa's birthday courtesey of my brand new stove! The party went really well and the day was perfect for being outside in the garden! I want to thank all of my family for coming by, bringing food and presents! We were so excited to show off our home and host the party!
Our home is really feeling like ours now that we are getting all the details unpacked and finished. There is still so much to do but we have the rest of our lives to continuing working on it. Next on our list of things to do before fall:
-finishing putting up shelves/artwork
-getting a furnance/AC
-rearranging the laundry room before it gets cold
-getting a driveway
Our house rebate cannot come soon enough!
Our home is really feeling like ours now that we are getting all the details unpacked and finished. There is still so much to do but we have the rest of our lives to continuing working on it. Next on our list of things to do before fall:
-finishing putting up shelves/artwork
-getting a furnance/AC
-rearranging the laundry room before it gets cold
-getting a driveway
Our house rebate cannot come soon enough!
July 14, 2009
No More Pilot, We're Going to Burn...
So, last Saturday our brand new oven arrived. With it's arrival meant the departure of our old, gross stove. This stove had pilot lights, it was that old.
For those of your unfamiliar with pilot lights, they are continuously burning flames underneath your stove top and underneath your oven. They use a small amount of gas to keep the flame going, and when you turn on your oven, the burners receive enough gas going to them that the gas pushes through a small tube to the pilot light, which ignites the gas, and then the burner. A oven with pilot lights is literally a series of tubes in order to operate.
New ovens use an electric spark to ignite the gas, which allows the oven to use less gas over it's lifetime. However, this adds a new type of energy to your oven; electricity. I started to wonder how we were going to plug in the oven. There is an outlet above the middle counter, but I think it would look tacky if there were two major appliances running to the counter above.
Luckily, when Hilary and I were cleaning around the oven, she noticed there was indeed an outlet near the baseboard behind the oven. We were in luck! The oven would merely be plugged in behind itself. The electric issue was resolved, and I replaced the outlet with a new one, along with adding a missing cover plate. I went with the cheapest plate available, somewhere around $1.
Anyway, the major task of making the oven functional was going to be hooking up the gas line. Gas can be very dangerous, and it seemed that we would need to call the energy company to see if they could install the oven for us. I called Xcel, and apparently they do not install gas lines. Weird, being that they SUPPLY us with natural gas. Oh well. Instead of calling a plumber, my father and I decided to tackle the project ourselves. It can't be that difficult, right?
If you are thinking "Don't play with gas, please, Nick!!!" I understand your concern, but actually gas work is so similar to plumbing, it can be done as long as your are VERY cautious. Plus, my father knows which measures to take to ensure safety.
With the old oven gone, we had a very long copper pipe to deal with. The pipe was too long to use with the new oven, since the hookup location is different on each stove. So, we headed to Menards. We bought an oven installation kit, which makes everything a little easier.
For an oven to be up to code, there needs to be a flexible gas line and a shutoff valve behind your stove. At Menards, the installation kit included the flex line. Plus, right below the kits on the shelf were the ball valves that would make the whole thing legal. We also put specially-approved Teflon tape into our cart. Finally, we bought a flaring tool that would be needed to connect the lines. A flaring tool is like a giant, top-shaped piece of metal that is forced into the end of the pipe. This causes the soft, copper metal to expand outward. The result is a pipe that has one end similar to that of the sound emitting end of a trumpet.
We went home and started working on the line. I descended into the basement, shut off the gas, and head back to the kitchen. The flaring tool we bought also came with a pipe cutter, so we cut the copper piping about half as short. My father and I decided to practice with the cutting tool, since we needed a very smooth cut to make the flaring tool work. However, after using the left over metal for practice, we found that the cutting blade was destroyed in the process. For tools, you really get what you pay for. Distraught, we took a look at the end still in the wall. Thankfully, our first cut was the best. It was smooth enough for the flaring tool to work. This meant we didn't need a second trip to Menard's.
So, we flared the end of the gas pipe to what we thought would be the perfect size. We placed the valve up to the pipe's end, and found it did indeed fit perfectly. We took the Teflon tape and wrapped it counter-clockwise against the threads of the valve, grabbed two wrenches, and tightly secured the valve to the pipe.
Since this was the first step (and hardest) of the oven, we decided to test for leaks and call it a night. For gas leaks, there is a special, soapy spray that you can buy. We sprayed the entire valve down and I turned on the gas downstairs. If there were any leaks, the soapy spray would generate large bubbles. Luckily, no bubbles appeared. The valve was securely in place, and we called it a night.
The next day, we had to buy a second adapter for the flex pipe. So, after the Menard's run, we had everything we needed to finish the process. We Teflon taped the two adapters, making sure to wrap the threads counter-clockwise at least three times. We took our two wrenches, and secured both adapters, one to the valve and one to the oven's back.
The flex-tubing was the easiest part. You need no Teflon tape (they say NOT to put it on) and you can almost hand tighten the bolts on the piping. We used a wrench to cinch each end down, and after tightening the last bolt, everything seemed good to go.
To make sure everything was good to go, I sprayed down pretty much the entire operation with the soapy spray. I turned on the gas from downstairs, and found no bubbles around any of the fittings. The oven was up!
We pushed the beast into place, drooling every inch since the oven looked better and better the more it was in it's rightful place. Once in place, we leveled the oven so that cakes would bake evenly and the burners would receive the same amount of gas from front to back.
To celebrate, I turned on all four burners and watched the blue fire dance around. After satiating my pyro urges, I allowed Hilary to operate the oven and cook some fish and chips.
Needless to say, we are very excited to have our new oven, and even more excited that we were able to install the beast all by ourselves. Of course, I thank my father for all the know-how and tools to help me do these projects.
For those of your unfamiliar with pilot lights, they are continuously burning flames underneath your stove top and underneath your oven. They use a small amount of gas to keep the flame going, and when you turn on your oven, the burners receive enough gas going to them that the gas pushes through a small tube to the pilot light, which ignites the gas, and then the burner. A oven with pilot lights is literally a series of tubes in order to operate.
New ovens use an electric spark to ignite the gas, which allows the oven to use less gas over it's lifetime. However, this adds a new type of energy to your oven; electricity. I started to wonder how we were going to plug in the oven. There is an outlet above the middle counter, but I think it would look tacky if there were two major appliances running to the counter above.
Luckily, when Hilary and I were cleaning around the oven, she noticed there was indeed an outlet near the baseboard behind the oven. We were in luck! The oven would merely be plugged in behind itself. The electric issue was resolved, and I replaced the outlet with a new one, along with adding a missing cover plate. I went with the cheapest plate available, somewhere around $1.
Anyway, the major task of making the oven functional was going to be hooking up the gas line. Gas can be very dangerous, and it seemed that we would need to call the energy company to see if they could install the oven for us. I called Xcel, and apparently they do not install gas lines. Weird, being that they SUPPLY us with natural gas. Oh well. Instead of calling a plumber, my father and I decided to tackle the project ourselves. It can't be that difficult, right?
If you are thinking "Don't play with gas, please, Nick!!!" I understand your concern, but actually gas work is so similar to plumbing, it can be done as long as your are VERY cautious. Plus, my father knows which measures to take to ensure safety.
With the old oven gone, we had a very long copper pipe to deal with. The pipe was too long to use with the new oven, since the hookup location is different on each stove. So, we headed to Menards. We bought an oven installation kit, which makes everything a little easier.
For an oven to be up to code, there needs to be a flexible gas line and a shutoff valve behind your stove. At Menards, the installation kit included the flex line. Plus, right below the kits on the shelf were the ball valves that would make the whole thing legal. We also put specially-approved Teflon tape into our cart. Finally, we bought a flaring tool that would be needed to connect the lines. A flaring tool is like a giant, top-shaped piece of metal that is forced into the end of the pipe. This causes the soft, copper metal to expand outward. The result is a pipe that has one end similar to that of the sound emitting end of a trumpet.
We went home and started working on the line. I descended into the basement, shut off the gas, and head back to the kitchen. The flaring tool we bought also came with a pipe cutter, so we cut the copper piping about half as short. My father and I decided to practice with the cutting tool, since we needed a very smooth cut to make the flaring tool work. However, after using the left over metal for practice, we found that the cutting blade was destroyed in the process. For tools, you really get what you pay for. Distraught, we took a look at the end still in the wall. Thankfully, our first cut was the best. It was smooth enough for the flaring tool to work. This meant we didn't need a second trip to Menard's.
So, we flared the end of the gas pipe to what we thought would be the perfect size. We placed the valve up to the pipe's end, and found it did indeed fit perfectly. We took the Teflon tape and wrapped it counter-clockwise against the threads of the valve, grabbed two wrenches, and tightly secured the valve to the pipe.
Since this was the first step (and hardest) of the oven, we decided to test for leaks and call it a night. For gas leaks, there is a special, soapy spray that you can buy. We sprayed the entire valve down and I turned on the gas downstairs. If there were any leaks, the soapy spray would generate large bubbles. Luckily, no bubbles appeared. The valve was securely in place, and we called it a night.
The next day, we had to buy a second adapter for the flex pipe. So, after the Menard's run, we had everything we needed to finish the process. We Teflon taped the two adapters, making sure to wrap the threads counter-clockwise at least three times. We took our two wrenches, and secured both adapters, one to the valve and one to the oven's back.
The flex-tubing was the easiest part. You need no Teflon tape (they say NOT to put it on) and you can almost hand tighten the bolts on the piping. We used a wrench to cinch each end down, and after tightening the last bolt, everything seemed good to go.
To make sure everything was good to go, I sprayed down pretty much the entire operation with the soapy spray. I turned on the gas from downstairs, and found no bubbles around any of the fittings. The oven was up!
We pushed the beast into place, drooling every inch since the oven looked better and better the more it was in it's rightful place. Once in place, we leveled the oven so that cakes would bake evenly and the burners would receive the same amount of gas from front to back.
To celebrate, I turned on all four burners and watched the blue fire dance around. After satiating my pyro urges, I allowed Hilary to operate the oven and cook some fish and chips.
Needless to say, we are very excited to have our new oven, and even more excited that we were able to install the beast all by ourselves. Of course, I thank my father for all the know-how and tools to help me do these projects.
July 12, 2009
Before and After: Hilary's Office
Finally I have unpacked my office! I still have one box of miscellaneous junk I can't seem to figure out what to do with, but overall the office is complete! I have a great work station for paperwork and my laptop and have my desktop fully functioning! It is my girly-room in the house where I can have flowers and pink and everything else that makes me happy :-)
Before
After
After
July 11, 2009
Before and After: Stove!
Our new stove was delivered today! Now that I am getting rid of the old one I have an awful story about the old stove. When we first moved in and were cleaning things from top to bottom we realized that the mice lived behind the stove, fridge and cupboard. As we got to cleaning we found out that they didn't just live behind the stove, they lived in the stove! We had mice, in our stove. We disinfected the crap out of that thing, but you can't really enjoy a meal knowing that mice lived where that meal was created. Ack. There was also only two temperatures, on and off, and no way to really adjust the burners.
I am so unbelievably excited to have a brand new stove! It is so exciting!
AFTER
The new stove is so lovely!
I am so unbelievably excited to have a brand new stove! It is so exciting!
BEFORE
AFTER
The new stove is so lovely!
The love for my garden grows daily
Every time I go into my garden, there is something new in bloom or growing! The newest addition to the garden are the coneflowers (above) which are in white and pink shades and everything in between! I took one of the pictures (the first) on a cloudy day and the other two on a super sunny day. They are really beautiful and seem to be lasting a really long time.
I also have roses on my American Beauty. I cut one and put it in a vase! They smell amazing!
I also discovered this really beautiful purple flower. It is some sort of Lily, I think, and is such a deep purple!
There are also a ton of other yard pictures in our album. I am trying to get some bird pictures. We have three types of woodpeckers that live in our yard. We have also had a few Cardinals. Our newest critter are gold finches! We bought a really cheap little feeder and they are already catching on! We need to get a bigger gold finch feeder that can feed more than two at once. We saw a really cool cooper feeder for finches at Menards and might have to splurge in a few weeks when I get paid again.
I also have roses on my American Beauty. I cut one and put it in a vase! They smell amazing!
I also discovered this really beautiful purple flower. It is some sort of Lily, I think, and is such a deep purple!
There are also a ton of other yard pictures in our album. I am trying to get some bird pictures. We have three types of woodpeckers that live in our yard. We have also had a few Cardinals. Our newest critter are gold finches! We bought a really cheap little feeder and they are already catching on! We need to get a bigger gold finch feeder that can feed more than two at once. We saw a really cool cooper feeder for finches at Menards and might have to splurge in a few weeks when I get paid again.
July 7, 2009
New things a-brewing
We will have a rather large update on our house projects coming up shortly. We are very busy at the moment, but please be patient. :-)
Edit: Expect it Friday or Saturday.
Edit: Expect it Friday or Saturday.
July 5, 2009
4th of July at Winifred!
We celebrated our first 4th of July at Winifred! We are a few blocks from the Taste of MN, so we got four nights of fireworks, the 4th of July being the best! We found a nice grassy area a block away to watch. It is right where they shoot them off so they are huge! The last night we tried to view them from the look out without the trees, and they were fantastic! We are definitely watching them from the lookout every night next year!
Overall we had a great little get together with our families as we celebrated the 4th and Nick's birthday! We ate and ate and ate and had a lot of fun enjoying our garden. It was the first 4th of July that we had rain, but luckily the flash-floods and downpour were over by the time we had our bbq!
Here is the fireworks from the view of the lookout with the skyline in the background. It doesn't do justice to how great they were!
Overall we had a great little get together with our families as we celebrated the 4th and Nick's birthday! We ate and ate and ate and had a lot of fun enjoying our garden. It was the first 4th of July that we had rain, but luckily the flash-floods and downpour were over by the time we had our bbq!
Here is the fireworks from the view of the lookout with the skyline in the background. It doesn't do justice to how great they were!
June 21, 2009
Before and After: Bedroom
The BEFORE
A before and after picture! The bedroom! Before it was dark and cold. Now it is a warm, serene retreat! It is one of my favorite rooms next to the dining room!
A before and after picture! The bedroom! Before it was dark and cold. Now it is a warm, serene retreat! It is one of my favorite rooms next to the dining room!
The AFTER
June 19, 2009
Garden pictures!
Here are updated pictures of the garden. These are from the end of May. This weekend I will take more! The vegetable garden has grown considerably since then and there are a whole lot of other flowers and plants in bloom now! More picture can be found in our photo link on the side bar of our site. Here are some of my favorites!
Me and Nick went to Menards yesterday and bought a bunch more perennials and a few annuals for really cheap! I am planting them all tomorrow.
Does anyone know what this flower is? All I know is that it is pretty and still around
My bleeding heart flowers
My vegetable garden. It is MUCH bigger now... and sadly, overcrowded
My first bouquet of the season from my garden!
Me and Nick went to Menards yesterday and bought a bunch more perennials and a few annuals for really cheap! I am planting them all tomorrow.
My Lillies of the Valley. They are sadly all done for the season now
Does anyone know what this flower is? All I know is that it is pretty and still around
My bleeding heart flowers
My vegetable garden. It is MUCH bigger now... and sadly, overcrowded
My first bouquet of the season from my garden!
June 14, 2009
Of Lawn Bags and Clogged Sinks
My father has been feeling a lot better since his surgery, so he and my mother visited today and we worked a lot around the house.
Downstairs, after shaving one day, I noticed the sink was clogged. My heart sank. I did not feel like dealing with fixing a clogged sink, especially with water now sitting in the sink. However, I thought maybe if I left the water to sit, perhaps it would drain after a while. Maybe it was draining so slow I couldn't see it draining.
After two days, there was no progress on the draining, so after the weddings Hilary and I went to Saturday, we decided that the sink needed to be unclogged.
Sunday, my father came over, and we practically ignored the sink until they were about to leave. We had filled ourselves up with turkey burgers, so we were content to just work outside in the nice weather. Right before my parents left, we worked on the sink.
With a bucket under the sink, I undid the trap. My father and I were expecting the worse, but we did not find much. The stop in the sink has become stuck, and it would not budge. So, we undid the stop and jammed paper towel down the drain. We used a snake to push the towel through, as it came out where the trap should be and landed in the bucket. The towel was filthy, but it did the trick. After attaching the trap back, the drain is now working at max capacity.
People can finally wash their hands in the downstairs sink!!! WOO!!!
As for the outside, Hilary, my mother, my sister, and my father worked hard outside. We swept the sidewalk, removing all the dead leaves and hacking down some unruly plants. It now looks very nice, and when it rains, the rain will clean away the dirt rather than pool in places.
I removed large portions of the trees between our garden and the neighbor's house. They are all maple trees that have not been trimmed for a while. There were a lot, and I have not cut them all yet, but now we can actually see some of the plants on the outskirts of our garden. Hilary found a fantastic red flower which I'm sure she'll talk all about.
With all the weed pulling we did, the yard waste bin is completely full. There may be a little bit of room for some leaves, but that's about it. Waste pickup is not until Thursday, so I guess it's back to good, old-fashioned lawn bagging.
That container is not small either. We weeded. A lot.
Downstairs, after shaving one day, I noticed the sink was clogged. My heart sank. I did not feel like dealing with fixing a clogged sink, especially with water now sitting in the sink. However, I thought maybe if I left the water to sit, perhaps it would drain after a while. Maybe it was draining so slow I couldn't see it draining.
After two days, there was no progress on the draining, so after the weddings Hilary and I went to Saturday, we decided that the sink needed to be unclogged.
Sunday, my father came over, and we practically ignored the sink until they were about to leave. We had filled ourselves up with turkey burgers, so we were content to just work outside in the nice weather. Right before my parents left, we worked on the sink.
With a bucket under the sink, I undid the trap. My father and I were expecting the worse, but we did not find much. The stop in the sink has become stuck, and it would not budge. So, we undid the stop and jammed paper towel down the drain. We used a snake to push the towel through, as it came out where the trap should be and landed in the bucket. The towel was filthy, but it did the trick. After attaching the trap back, the drain is now working at max capacity.
People can finally wash their hands in the downstairs sink!!! WOO!!!
As for the outside, Hilary, my mother, my sister, and my father worked hard outside. We swept the sidewalk, removing all the dead leaves and hacking down some unruly plants. It now looks very nice, and when it rains, the rain will clean away the dirt rather than pool in places.
I removed large portions of the trees between our garden and the neighbor's house. They are all maple trees that have not been trimmed for a while. There were a lot, and I have not cut them all yet, but now we can actually see some of the plants on the outskirts of our garden. Hilary found a fantastic red flower which I'm sure she'll talk all about.
With all the weed pulling we did, the yard waste bin is completely full. There may be a little bit of room for some leaves, but that's about it. Waste pickup is not until Thursday, so I guess it's back to good, old-fashioned lawn bagging.
That container is not small either. We weeded. A lot.
June 10, 2009
Overdue apologies!
I am so awful! I owe all of you so many pictures of what we have updated since moving in! I don't have my camera hooked up to the internet yet, but when I do, I will finally post pictures!
We have officially had the house for two whole months. It looks like a whole new home! I am finally starting to touch the nursery/guest room, and it should be painted within the next few weeks. It is way overdue that we finally hang our pictures and shelves as well!
What is also overdue is our housewarming party! I am thinking it will be the second week in July! I will keep you all updated!
We have officially had the house for two whole months. It looks like a whole new home! I am finally starting to touch the nursery/guest room, and it should be painted within the next few weeks. It is way overdue that we finally hang our pictures and shelves as well!
What is also overdue is our housewarming party! I am thinking it will be the second week in July! I will keep you all updated!
June 7, 2009
Lawn mowing at its finest.
I don't own a lawn mower yet, but I haphazardly started planting grass seed as soon as I moved in.
Well, with planted seed comes lawn, and soon that lawn needs a mowing. A week ago, I borrowed my father's lawnmower since my lawn needed mowing desperately. Well, there was a catch.
My car's trunk would and could not possible fit my father's Lawn-Boy. So, I had to place the mower in my trunk, partially shut the trunk door, and use bungee cords to strap the sucker down. Securing the mower was like a brain teaser. My trunk has few places to secure a bungee cord strap, and at the bottom of my car there is only a plastic bumper to latch onto. It took four cords and some twisting and turning, but finally my dad and I secured the mower down.
We even tied a red scarf to the end of the mower to make it legal for me to drive.
I maneuvered my way up from Eagan to St. Paul on 149 North. That road eventually turns into Smith Avenue, which is the High Bridge in St. Paul.
When I returned to my home, I kicked the mower into gear and mowed like a mad man. Eventually, I filled three lawn bags full of grass clippings. You should find this remarkable, since I have a small lawn. The grass was JUST THAT LONG.
Which leaves (no lawn bag filler pun intended) me my last problem, one in which I have found a solution. Our lawn was not well kept before we moved in. There seemed to be several autumns worth of leaves on the ground. After picking it all up, we literally filled our art house full of lawn bags. Roughly 20, to be exact (a sentence that should make your head spin).
Turns out, our garbage company, Veolia, has year-round lawn bag pick up for roughly $85 for the year. They dropped off a huge lawn waste container, and I'm set to mow my lawn time after time after time.
Problem is, now I need a own a mower.
Well, with planted seed comes lawn, and soon that lawn needs a mowing. A week ago, I borrowed my father's lawnmower since my lawn needed mowing desperately. Well, there was a catch.
My car's trunk would and could not possible fit my father's Lawn-Boy. So, I had to place the mower in my trunk, partially shut the trunk door, and use bungee cords to strap the sucker down. Securing the mower was like a brain teaser. My trunk has few places to secure a bungee cord strap, and at the bottom of my car there is only a plastic bumper to latch onto. It took four cords and some twisting and turning, but finally my dad and I secured the mower down.
We even tied a red scarf to the end of the mower to make it legal for me to drive.
I maneuvered my way up from Eagan to St. Paul on 149 North. That road eventually turns into Smith Avenue, which is the High Bridge in St. Paul.
When I returned to my home, I kicked the mower into gear and mowed like a mad man. Eventually, I filled three lawn bags full of grass clippings. You should find this remarkable, since I have a small lawn. The grass was JUST THAT LONG.
Which leaves (no lawn bag filler pun intended) me my last problem, one in which I have found a solution. Our lawn was not well kept before we moved in. There seemed to be several autumns worth of leaves on the ground. After picking it all up, we literally filled our art house full of lawn bags. Roughly 20, to be exact (a sentence that should make your head spin).
Turns out, our garbage company, Veolia, has year-round lawn bag pick up for roughly $85 for the year. They dropped off a huge lawn waste container, and I'm set to mow my lawn time after time after time.
Problem is, now I need a own a mower.
June 1, 2009
Unpacking... still.
This weekend I finally made a fairly good sized dent in the unpacking disaster that was the upstairs hallway.
Before I continue there are two things that need to be said: 1. I am a girl, therefore, I have a lot of clothes, 2. I am a girl with a shopping addiction, therfore, I have an obscene amount of clothes, and 3. I am a girl with a shopping addiction who hates to get rid of clothes, therefore, I have a ridiculously obscene amount of clothes.
I had been trying to unpacking my clothes and soon the entire upstairs was a conglomeration of multiple piles of clothes. I figured if I was going to do this, I was going to do it right and make sure that everything was organized. Sadly, I haven't had a lot of time on my hands lately, so the upstairs has been a danger-zone of hazardous clothing for weeks. This weekend I changed that!
The upstairs is still in various stages of unpacked, but now I have all my clothes put away and an entire bin of clothes to sell and donate. This is an extraordinary feat! I don't like to throw away clothes that still fit me because the way fashion goes, you never know when something will be "in" again! I did it though, I weeded through it all and am sadly parting with several outfits.
When I finally get my computer and office set up I will post pictures of how amazing this closet is. It is basically the closet of my dreams. A few more shelves and I will be a happy, happy camper.
I also started to unpack some of our books and hopefully we will soon have the entire upstairs landing/our book-nook, a mecca of all of our favorite books.
So, three weeks of unpacking and living at Winifred down... many more to go! Hopefully we get a bunch more unpacked before next week when we are having a garage sale!
Before I continue there are two things that need to be said: 1. I am a girl, therefore, I have a lot of clothes, 2. I am a girl with a shopping addiction, therfore, I have an obscene amount of clothes, and 3. I am a girl with a shopping addiction who hates to get rid of clothes, therefore, I have a ridiculously obscene amount of clothes.
I had been trying to unpacking my clothes and soon the entire upstairs was a conglomeration of multiple piles of clothes. I figured if I was going to do this, I was going to do it right and make sure that everything was organized. Sadly, I haven't had a lot of time on my hands lately, so the upstairs has been a danger-zone of hazardous clothing for weeks. This weekend I changed that!
The upstairs is still in various stages of unpacked, but now I have all my clothes put away and an entire bin of clothes to sell and donate. This is an extraordinary feat! I don't like to throw away clothes that still fit me because the way fashion goes, you never know when something will be "in" again! I did it though, I weeded through it all and am sadly parting with several outfits.
When I finally get my computer and office set up I will post pictures of how amazing this closet is. It is basically the closet of my dreams. A few more shelves and I will be a happy, happy camper.
I also started to unpack some of our books and hopefully we will soon have the entire upstairs landing/our book-nook, a mecca of all of our favorite books.
So, three weeks of unpacking and living at Winifred down... many more to go! Hopefully we get a bunch more unpacked before next week when we are having a garage sale!
May 29, 2009
Paint, clean, clean, new paint.
I was roped into painting for a large majority of my evening today. Not that I mind. Actually, I enjoy, to some extent, the act of painting. It's refreshing in a way few things are. But if it wasn't so time consuming and such hard work, and such an expense at times, painting could almost be recreation. Almost.
But, alas, it is not.
The dream was that Tammy, Carol, myself, and Hilary would team up and use a paint sprayer to deal with the foyer, because it is a textured surface (It's made of swirls of plaster). One we loaded the sprayer, it was time to test the baby out.
The damn thing is loud, and seems to suck power like an arc-welder. It shot out an amazing amount of paint, and we were concerned at first because it seems Hilary and picked out the EXACT same color as what the foyer was previously. We could not tell what was and was not painted at first. The sprayer was holding strong, and the job was seeming to be over in just under an hour.
Then, the problems started, and soon brought our idea to a halt.
Tammy ended up finding herself being sprinkled upon, and the ceiling was receiving a fine powdering of paint particles. The sprayer, not only being noisy and powerful, had the knack of constant and devastating over-spray. This was not going to work in the close confines of the entry way. Then, Tammy noticed another problem. The paint started to run, badly.
"Well, we'd have to go over EVERYTHING with a roller anyway."
So, the electric sprayer was put to rest, and I decided to hell with it. All the taping was done, I was going to paint this foyer, even into the wee hours of the night.
I picked up my roller, and changed our light brown foyer into a basket-weave-colored foyer.
But, alas, it is not.
The dream was that Tammy, Carol, myself, and Hilary would team up and use a paint sprayer to deal with the foyer, because it is a textured surface (It's made of swirls of plaster). One we loaded the sprayer, it was time to test the baby out.
The damn thing is loud, and seems to suck power like an arc-welder. It shot out an amazing amount of paint, and we were concerned at first because it seems Hilary and picked out the EXACT same color as what the foyer was previously. We could not tell what was and was not painted at first. The sprayer was holding strong, and the job was seeming to be over in just under an hour.
Then, the problems started, and soon brought our idea to a halt.
Tammy ended up finding herself being sprinkled upon, and the ceiling was receiving a fine powdering of paint particles. The sprayer, not only being noisy and powerful, had the knack of constant and devastating over-spray. This was not going to work in the close confines of the entry way. Then, Tammy noticed another problem. The paint started to run, badly.
"Well, we'd have to go over EVERYTHING with a roller anyway."
So, the electric sprayer was put to rest, and I decided to hell with it. All the taping was done, I was going to paint this foyer, even into the wee hours of the night.
I picked up my roller, and changed our light brown foyer into a basket-weave-colored foyer.
May 25, 2009
It came from our FRONT LAWN!!!!
*Start ominous tones and creepy strings*
I cleaned out the pond in front of our house yesterday. This pond is small, but has had leaves decomposing in it quite some time. Which means the water was pitch black. Not a good thing.
I dug around under the depths, clearing up rocks and gravel. Dead leaves piled up next to the pond.
Then, I noticed things wiggle just below the water surface. They were clear and had long tails, as though they were trying to grab onto something solid.
Edit: They were clear, larva looking things. They were rather large (about the size of a caterpillar) and you could see all their muscles working through their skin. They had very long tails that must keep them latched to something, or else to eat. I'm not sure. They were disgusting.
There were lots of them, so I hauled the pond up and moved to the sewer.
I now have a dry basin which in the future I can put water in.
I cleaned out the pond in front of our house yesterday. This pond is small, but has had leaves decomposing in it quite some time. Which means the water was pitch black. Not a good thing.
I dug around under the depths, clearing up rocks and gravel. Dead leaves piled up next to the pond.
Then, I noticed things wiggle just below the water surface. They were clear and had long tails, as though they were trying to grab onto something solid.
Edit: They were clear, larva looking things. They were rather large (about the size of a caterpillar) and you could see all their muscles working through their skin. They had very long tails that must keep them latched to something, or else to eat. I'm not sure. They were disgusting.
There were lots of them, so I hauled the pond up and moved to the sewer.
I now have a dry basin which in the future I can put water in.
You neighborhood friendly salesmen.
So, we now have an alarm system. $2200 worth of alarm system. The cost? $150.
The only catch is, other than paying the alarm system's monthly fee, is that we need to advertise we have the alarm system. Sounds like a plan, right?
This all came around from a social young salesman who seemed very eager to give us a system. Yes, I'm sure he has a quota, but for a sound piece of mind in the city, the small monthly fee is hard to beat, plus all the equipment for free!
We had four door sensors installed (one for each door leading out of our house) and a glass-breakage detection sensor located in the middle of the house. It's designed to recognize the sound of breaking glass and trip the alarm. Since I do not personally trust the locks on the windows, I felt this was a better detector over the more common motion sensor.
These detectors were given to us free of charge because we are on a corner lot and have a frequently used road (there is a bus line on it). All we have to do is have a minimally sized sign in the front of our house. The security company said they were forgoing a television ad campaign and instead were focusing on installing systems in neighborhoods to see if the trend grew from there.
I think it's a smart strategy.
We were lucky enough to have a same-day install just before our party, and the installer seemed unsure of what to think of me. I was hanging around in my Gamecube shirt (basically my pajama shirt) and was lazily watching television. When the guy entered, he looked to be around his late twenty's. He must not own his own home either, due to the questions he asked me.
"So... how old are you?"
"22, why do you ask?"
"Oh, nothing... just..." He paused. "So, is this your parent's house, or do you own it? Or what?"
"It's my house. I own it."
He seemed a little shocked, or at least did not suspect that answer. "So, are you married?"
"Oh, no. Not yet."
So, after that, I watched him install the system. He asked about if I was thinking about getting married, and what I majored in. I could tell he was a little nerdy, like myself, so we had a good time talking, so he was a little puzzled that I fixed computers, but had an English/Cultural Studies major.
"Yeah, not many people get that either..." I said to him.
The only catch is, other than paying the alarm system's monthly fee, is that we need to advertise we have the alarm system. Sounds like a plan, right?
This all came around from a social young salesman who seemed very eager to give us a system. Yes, I'm sure he has a quota, but for a sound piece of mind in the city, the small monthly fee is hard to beat, plus all the equipment for free!
We had four door sensors installed (one for each door leading out of our house) and a glass-breakage detection sensor located in the middle of the house. It's designed to recognize the sound of breaking glass and trip the alarm. Since I do not personally trust the locks on the windows, I felt this was a better detector over the more common motion sensor.
These detectors were given to us free of charge because we are on a corner lot and have a frequently used road (there is a bus line on it). All we have to do is have a minimally sized sign in the front of our house. The security company said they were forgoing a television ad campaign and instead were focusing on installing systems in neighborhoods to see if the trend grew from there.
I think it's a smart strategy.
We were lucky enough to have a same-day install just before our party, and the installer seemed unsure of what to think of me. I was hanging around in my Gamecube shirt (basically my pajama shirt) and was lazily watching television. When the guy entered, he looked to be around his late twenty's. He must not own his own home either, due to the questions he asked me.
"So... how old are you?"
"22, why do you ask?"
"Oh, nothing... just..." He paused. "So, is this your parent's house, or do you own it? Or what?"
"It's my house. I own it."
He seemed a little shocked, or at least did not suspect that answer. "So, are you married?"
"Oh, no. Not yet."
So, after that, I watched him install the system. He asked about if I was thinking about getting married, and what I majored in. I could tell he was a little nerdy, like myself, so we had a good time talking, so he was a little puzzled that I fixed computers, but had an English/Cultural Studies major.
"Yeah, not many people get that either..." I said to him.
Catty
I just posted a blog, but had to blog about this:
We have a lot of yard cats around the neighborhood. Almost every night we have been awoken by a howl outside and a response of our cats, Purrky and Smudgee, in the upstairs window yowling back, sometimes hissing and then accidentally attacking each other. They are getting used to it now and luckily aren't attacking each other because they are scared, but this evening there was a black and white cat outside the patio door and Purrky got so angry! She decided to pounce on Smudgee but then realized that this cat outside was the problem, not her sister, so she took action! The cat went away but she has now taken post in front of the door and has been there for three hours, just watching, and waiting for the cats return. She won't let no yard cat push her around. They are so funny!
We have a lot of yard cats around the neighborhood. Almost every night we have been awoken by a howl outside and a response of our cats, Purrky and Smudgee, in the upstairs window yowling back, sometimes hissing and then accidentally attacking each other. They are getting used to it now and luckily aren't attacking each other because they are scared, but this evening there was a black and white cat outside the patio door and Purrky got so angry! She decided to pounce on Smudgee but then realized that this cat outside was the problem, not her sister, so she took action! The cat went away but she has now taken post in front of the door and has been there for three hours, just watching, and waiting for the cats return. She won't let no yard cat push her around. They are so funny!
Memorial Day Weekend
For our long, Memorial day weekend we had soooo many plans. And then I got sick and the plans came to a halt. Being overly ambitious I was really hoping to get a ton of things unpacked, the garden completely finished (transplanting some potted veggies and the seedlings into a new spot), the pond drained, cleaned and get a fountain to work for it and then have an extraordinary, awesome barbecue for Nick's graduation and Memorial day.
Because I have been a coughing, disgusting, wheezy mess since last Wednesday, I tabled most of the garden work. Nick, wonderfully, cleaned out the disgusting pond (there was something living in it!), and we realized that we can't get a fountain or pump to work because the only power source is behind the house. So that got tabled as well. I did some research though and found one that might work that is solar powered, so hopefully we can do that another one of these weekends. We did fix up the benches and bought cushions so that we can enjoy our garden though!
I got a lot of the downstairs unpacked and then randomly, on a whim, we got a security system installed in our house for a great price! I am sure that Nick will blog all about it though! And suddenly, before we knew it, it was time for our barbecue!
So, I didn't get everything done that I wanted to, but we did have a fantastic get together! Thanks to the Voysey-Olson's we had steak, corn and Cajun sausages. Our other guests also contributed to our spread. I made barbecue chicken with Dr. Pepper BBQ sauce (which was delicious!) and a creamy Italian pasta salad. We also had lemonade, ice tea, strawberry and orange ice cream floats, chips, salsa, brownies! It was amazing! So much eating occurred! I ever felt better for the duration of the party. We played Guitar Hero and yard games and had a really fun time!
Here are some pictures of us playing Swedish lawn games and enjoying our yard!
Our team lost.... the other team thought I was playing purposefully bad to benefit their team.
I decided to join in!
Because I have been a coughing, disgusting, wheezy mess since last Wednesday, I tabled most of the garden work. Nick, wonderfully, cleaned out the disgusting pond (there was something living in it!), and we realized that we can't get a fountain or pump to work because the only power source is behind the house. So that got tabled as well. I did some research though and found one that might work that is solar powered, so hopefully we can do that another one of these weekends. We did fix up the benches and bought cushions so that we can enjoy our garden though!
I got a lot of the downstairs unpacked and then randomly, on a whim, we got a security system installed in our house for a great price! I am sure that Nick will blog all about it though! And suddenly, before we knew it, it was time for our barbecue!
So, I didn't get everything done that I wanted to, but we did have a fantastic get together! Thanks to the Voysey-Olson's we had steak, corn and Cajun sausages. Our other guests also contributed to our spread. I made barbecue chicken with Dr. Pepper BBQ sauce (which was delicious!) and a creamy Italian pasta salad. We also had lemonade, ice tea, strawberry and orange ice cream floats, chips, salsa, brownies! It was amazing! So much eating occurred! I ever felt better for the duration of the party. We played Guitar Hero and yard games and had a really fun time!
Here are some pictures of us playing Swedish lawn games and enjoying our yard!
Our team lost.... the other team thought I was playing purposefully bad to benefit their team.
They celebrated their victory!
I decided to join in!
Sarah commended me being a double agent.... I really wasn't, but a good double agent goes with the flow ;-) I really did suck at the game THAT bad.
Ryan enjoyed our hammock
Hanging out in the garden
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