Project Curb Appeal .... the continuing saga

There is a little area by the front porch steps that I like to call the step garden. Because, well, it is near the steps. Brilliant, no? I've left it pretty much alone since we moved in, other than a bit of weeding, because I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with it yet. However, as the rest of Project Curb Appeal is carried out, this little flower bed was looking sadder and sadder. Right before Culoare Zi I decided that the time had come to transform this patch of dirt into something prettier.

Here's what it looked like the day I started:

I know, it's awful. The hose was there because we were working on the steps, and the mailbox was in the middle of the bed so that the mailman could get to the box while we had the stairs blocked off. The mulch was waiting for me to put it to good use, and the boards are left over from working on the stairs. You can see more of those hideous red landscaping rocks the owners put in (thanks guys!) and a few other miscellaneous nasties.

About an hour later, after some serious work with a shovel, a garbage can and a relocation of some items, I had a clean slate to work with.

I took a few moments to work out the placement of the plants, and then dug their little holes. Eventually I want to put some daylilies in this bed, and a few other plants for more color variety. But for now, I like how it turned out.

My sister in law gave me the salvia plants (in the back) that will have tall purple spikes next year. She gave me the little hosta as well. It is a little leggy this year as it was struggling to get to the light around some tall lilies, but it should come in nice and thick next year too. The mums were from Lowes, and I love the sunny colors of the flowers. There are two more clematis plants behind the salvia that will hopefully grow up over the tree to the left. The only annuals I added were some yellow marigolds and these daisy like flowers whose name I can't recall now. The finishing touch was more of the pine bark nuggets that we put around the bushes in front.

I went with a mix of annuals and perennials that die back in the winter as this is one of the spots where snow accumulates in a major way throughout the winter. A shrub or small tree would just get mangled by the snow, and we can't have that, right?

So what do you think? A nice transformation?

You can read about the whole plan for Project Curb Appeal here, and the other projects we've done so far on it here and here.

I'm linking this post up to Fertilizer Friday over at Tootsie Time. Check out all of the other great gardens!

Summer Vacay in Wisconsin

If you were my friends in real life, you wouldn't see me very often, for one of three reasons:

• You live on a different continent
• You live in a different state
• You understand that I am the antithesis of a social butterfly and I can only handle so much soical interaction.

This is pertinent, bear with me. Several months ago, my husband suggested that we take some vacation time this summer and travel to Wisconsin to see his grandparents and uncles. The conversation went something like this:

Lover: I'd like to go to Wisconsin and see my grandparents this summer, since I'll finally have some vacation.

Me: (Sensing that my uber social husband was planning another social outing)Um, see them like stay with them and talk to them?

Lover: Yes, how else would we see them?

Me: Dunno, maybe we could send them a picture of us and they could send one back?

Lover: Um, no. While we are there we should see my Uncle Rob too, oh and my Tio Carlos. Maybe we'll go see your friend Erica, and our friends in Ohio on the way back?

Me: Wouldn't you rather go camping? By ourselves?

Lover: I'll take you to IKEA...

Me: Sold!

I may have exaggerated that convo just a bit, but the reality is that I am not a real social person, so I am proud of the fact that we spent SIX days with people non-stop, and I wasn't a grouch about it. Of course, the fact that we spent 30 hours in the car by ourselves probably helped too.

All kidding aside, Lover's grandparents are so sweet, and it is always relaxing to stay with them. I am always amazed at how spotless his grandma's house is, and by how much Lover's dad is like his grandpa. We spent Sunday through Thursday am with them. Aren't they just the cutest?

We always spend lots of time playing Skip-Bo, pool, Jarts and there is always TONS of food. Lover's grandma is an excellent cook, and we eat three squares a day. I think I gained ten pounds. :-) We also saw his Uncle Rob, and his crazy Tio Carlos. Oh and we went to this fantastic cafe in downtown Milwaukee with Tio Carlos and Virginia, called the Trocadero. If you're in the area, look them up.

While in Milwaukee we went to this awesome antique mall and had a blast browsing through the store. I tried on a bunch of vintage hats:

Lover found one as well,

and we drooled over many an antique book. (Don't worry, we didn't get any drool on the books!)

Thursday morning Lover kept his promise and took me to an IKEA that is just south of Chicago. Then we played four hundred rounds of the ABC road game whilst driving to Bloomington, Indiana to see my friend Erica. Lover won almost every time, I blame my very poor vision. Or my distraction. Or the fact that I am so busy trying to cheat in order to win, that I miss the letters I am looking for.

I hadn't seen Erica since we got married (she was my maid of honor) so it was great to catch up. We had a great time even though it was swelteringly hot, and of course we ate some more. At this point we no longer fit into our little car. :-) Erica and her sister Heidi have two of the funniest cats, so we had some laughs watching them. A good time was had by all! Sorry, inside joke.

Friday morning we packed up once again, and headed home, with a detour in Cleveland to see some new friends of ours. We went to Houlihan's for dinner, a first for us. Very yummy food and a very interesting ambiance.

We got back to the Castle around 2am, and all was well. I happily informed Lover that we had filled our social quota for the rest of the year and we wouldn't need to see anyone else. He objected, until I promised to buy him a new tool. :-P

Exhibit A: Vinegar + Baking Soda conquer stains

Remember how I told you a while back about my best friends vinegar and baking soda? I'm back to show you literal proof of how these two BFF's work like a charm.

The backstory:

I recently blogged about making strawberry freezer jam and gave you detailed instructions, should you wish to make your own. What I neglected to mention was how I left the strawberry containers on my white countertops for a couple of days before I had time to make the jam. The berries in the bottom were apparently running over with juiciness, and shared the love with my countertop. Hello bright red stain!

I, however, did not panic, as my dynamic duo had come to my rescue many times before. I simply sprayed the stained area with a solution of half vinegar/half water, and then sprinkled a generous amount of baking soda over the stained area. I let it sit for a few minutes, then wiped it off with a sponge. Normally that would kick anything, but apparently this was a stubborn stain. It couldn't resist after a second application though, and here is what my countertop looks like now. Restored to it's former beauty cleanliness!

So the next time a stain appears, never fear, just have at it with some vinegar and baking soda!

Household Notebook

One of the ways I stay organized around the house is with my household notebook. Seriously, this thing is a life saver. It keeps everything together in one place, and also helps me contain paper clutter. And paper clutter is my nemesis, so anything that helps me fight it is welcome in my home!

I got the idea from several places on the web, mainly Organized Home. Here's a link to their section on household notebooks. I read all the information and then put it into action, which was easy peasy! I already had a 3 ring binder laying around from post college days, and lots of tabbed dividing folders. I listed out my categories, and started sorting all my papers!

I decided on ten categories:

To Do, Cleaning, Shopping, Contact Info and House Projects

Activities, Decorating, Projects, Christmas and Birthdays, and Parties.

The To Do folder has any RSVP's I may need to answer, bills to pay, house to-do lists, and other items I need to take care of. Cleaning, as I mentioned in my cleaning schedule post, has all of the lists I use to clean the house, as well as a yearly schedule so I don't lose track. Shopping holds my grocery database, comprehensive pantry list, and any coupons/deals I don't want to forget about.

The Contact Info has been the most helpful category so far. In it I have a sheet of important numbers (Lover's work #s, my parents' phone number, etc), a copy of our budget, a list of when infrequent bills come due, a master list of our filing system, and an "Important Information" sheet with pertinent phone numbers and account numbers for utilities, phone bills, etc. In this section I also have stamps and return address labels, as well as a plastic business card holder for the hair salon, car repair shop, etc.

I actually have a separate folder for most of the house stuff, as we are in the process of remodeling and there are many house related papers. I kep paint chips, measurements and to-do lists in this section.

I use the Activities folder to keep brochures we pick up of places we would like to go to, camping info, etc. Decorating has inspiration pictures from magazines (I keep most on the computer so there aren't a lot in here) Projects is mainly for sewing info, and other crafty projects. I'll put organized lists for my scrapbooking in here too. In the Christmas/Birthdays folder I have a list of everyone's birthdays and anniversarys, as well as ideas for gifts throughout the year. This folder is always marked "Don't Look!" :-) The last folder is for Parties, mainly Culoare Zi as that takes many months to plan! I also use the back folder on the binder for gardening info and yard plans, which I don't have a lot of yet.

The plastic folders are great for holding little notes and bits of information, and in each section I have some plastic sleeves to hold more permanent papers like the budget.

If you don't already have a household notebook, I highly recommend that you make one! It will simplify your life and make finding those important papers or pieces of information a breeze. Try it for yourself!

How to Develop your Own Cleaning Schedule

Image courtesy of nowsourcing.com

Have you ever struggled with keeping your house looking spick and span, but still having time to do other things? I hear you, my friend, and what you need is a cleaning schedule. Having a cleaning schedule ensures that you won't forget important tasks that need to be done, and you will always know when it is time to do them. My schedule has every cleaning task for each room in my house, and it tells me when to do these tasks. This simplifies the process and allows me to have room in my brain to remember much more important things, like my parents' international phone number. (Not!)

The first step I took to assemble my own comprehensive cleaning list was to find exhaustive cleaning lists. Flylady.com has a great detailed cleaning list, and Martha Stewart has a great spring cleaning list here as well.

Next, I customized this list for my own home. We don't have a family room or a master bathroom, but we do have a deck and a porch that I wanted to include. I made a list of each room that would need cleaning. They are:

First Floor: Living Room, Dining Room, Kitchen, Front Entryway and Porch, Back Entryway and Deck

Second Floor: Master Bedroom, Bathroom, Hallway, Office and Guest Room

Basement: Rec Room, Laundry Room, Bathroom and Kitchen

Then, I listed each task that needed to by done by room, and how often it needed doing.

Example: Dining Room - Wash inside of windows - Seasonally

Bathroom - Wash fixtures and mirrors - Weekly

Kitchen - Wash outside of cabinets - Monthly

Once I had each task assigned to each room it was valid for, and when to do said task, it was a cinch to assemble my lists by frequency; Daily, Weekly, Monthly, and Seasonally, along with Spring Cleaning and Fall Cleaning.

An important point to remember in making your lists is to customize the tasks and frequency

to your own home. We don't drink coffee regularly, so cleaning the coffeepot is not a part of

our daily routine. It may be for you. However, we spend a lot of time on our deck in the summer,

so I like to add that to my schedule in the summer months. Don't be afraid to add some things in,

or delete ones that are not necessary.

I have summarised the lists by frequency for you to use, if you would like. These are not the

exact lists that I use on a regular basis, as I like to have my tasks broken down by room so that

I can see that everything is getting done. I'll show you where I keep my lists in another post, it's

a lifesaver!

Oh and you may be wondering why my fall cleaning list is longer than my spring list. I am

anti-tradition, what can I say. :-) Actually, because we are inside all winter, I clean a lot more and there really isn't a need for a big spring clean. But, throughout the summer, with parties, bare feet, gardening, and open windows, the dirt piles up. Come fall, the house needs a good cleaning! Plus, a big cleaning in the fall means that everything is spick and span for the holidays, and ready for the hard winters here in upstate NY.

Sure hope this helps you keep your sanity, and still have a clean house!

Drying in the Breeze: My Easy on the Eyes Clothesline

I love the smell of lined dry clothes, and you can't beat the savings of a clothesline. When we purchased our home last year I immediately looked into setting up a clothesline so we could dry outdoors. Growing up, we had a pole like this in our backyard, only ours was much more rusty.

:-)

I had misgivings about setting up a similar set of poles in our yard, mainly because I would have to look at them year round in all their ugliness. Our area doesn't have great weather, so we spend a large amount of time sitting indoors looking outdoors. So, I put my little mind to work coming up with a better solution than metal poles.

Lo, and behold, Walmart had the perfect piece missing from my puzzle. I found retractable clotheslines that can be mounted on the wall, attached to hooks to form a line, or retracted and folded to stay out of the way. And the price was perfect.

Lover sunk two wooden posts into the ground across from the garage, and mounted the clotheslines for me. Here's what the clothesline looks like on the days I use it.

The clothesline part has a little doohickey (actual technical term) underneath that you wrap the line around to secure it and keep it taut.

When not in use, you simply unhook the line (the eye of the line goes over a hook on the posts) and allow it to retract, folding the device against the wall.

Genius! When I'm not using the line, you hardly notice the posts, especially because of the beautiful Morning Glories climbing all over them.

In case you are as inspired as I was, and want to copy my setup, here's a link to a similar model on Amazon.com, although the ones I got at Walmart were about $5.00 cheaper. Sorry! Enjoy your lovely line dried clothes, and the extra money in your pocket.

July 2009 Recap

July was a very busy month, with something going on every weekend, and lots of projects during the week. Lover spent three days in NJ, which allowed me to finish up some projects we've been working on. We also threw our yearly Culoare Zi party and took a week long vacation to Wisconsin. Here's how we did on our year's goals this month:

• Go camping We went once this month, and it was a blast. Camping is so relaxing and stress-free. Wish we could go more often!
• Go to the Renaissance Festival We went and had a great time, as seen in the post below.
• Throw 2-3 good parties this year. Culoare Zi: The Year of Yellow was a smashing success, despite copious amounts of rain. Pictures to come soon.
• Plant a vegetable garden. The peas were yummy, as were the blackberries. The cukes are growing quickly, we have baby peppers and little cherry tomatoes. The canteloupe are still flowering, no sign of fruit yet. Hopefully we'll get to taste the fruit of all our labor, before the bunnies and groundhogs get to them.
• Go to Wisconsin We spent four days with Lover's grandparents in Wisconsin, and had a great time. It was nice to catch up with them, and some other friends along the way home.
• Read 12 non-fiction books. I finished a Chance to Die in Wisconsin last week. Definitely an interesting read on the life of Amy Carmichael. Non fiction books read year to date: 3

In addition to these goals, we also:

• Made freezer jam
• Painted the front door
• Refinished a dresser
• Replaced the bushes in the front of the house
• Saw lots of family and friends

Can't believe more than half of 2009 is over!