Just take a look at these sad little things.

Visit my other blog TamraGirl to see my “new” chairs.

Tags: decorating, house

For those interested in the house updates…

I’ve been working on the backyard whenever it’s been warm (and dry) enough.  It didn’t even get close to finished last year since 1) I focused mainly on the front yard and 2)  Any time I did spend back there was usually spent ripping overgrown brush and dead bushes out before there was any chance of putting anything in.

Here are the before pictures.

This is by the shed. The broken concrete led to a handy dandy gas grill, complete with wasp nest.

To the right a little, with more broken up concrete.

And, moving further to the right. Notice the lovely (broken) air conditioner unit hidden behind the (ugly) fence section.

And even more to the right..

Beautiful.

Now, the after pics. I used the unbroken cement squares and made a checkerboard pattern. Weird, but the kids like it.

I extended the bed to go all around the tree.

Late last fall, the Green Stewards guys got rid of the air conditioner unit and put in the patio and little walkways. I’m wanting to plant espaliered apple trees along the brick wall.  I’m also thinking I’ll plant tomatoes and peppers under the windows, or maybe bush cucumbers, since it gets lots of afternoon sun there.  I can envision containers of strawberries too.

We found tons of patio stone and bricks half buried and covered by grass, brush and ground cover. I reshaped the beds (managing to save some groundcover) and re-laid a small patio edged with the found bricks. On the center stone, I want a fountain. I left some dirt to plant flowers or something around the fountain, again using leaf compost to build up the soil.

Tags: house, landscaping

Every neighborhood has its own personality.

Although neighborhoods are comprised of many different families, each possessing their own makeup, they all blend together to form a certain community temperament.

We have lived in several neighborhoods throughout our married life.  The first was a typical mid-income level subdivision, where all the houses looked the same.  “New” was the name of the game, from baby trees lining the streets to delivery trucks unloading pristine furniture.  Manicured lawns and stunted plants, struggling to grow in lifeless clay, adorned yards that were never enjoyed.   The neighborhood shrieked conformity.

The second area we lived in was off a dirt road in the outskirts of town.  Most houses were a respectable twenty years old and sat on five acres or more.  Vegetable gardens and John Deere tractors were what drew coveting looks from a neighbor.  People there tended to live at a slower pace, enjoying the simpler things and feeling quite smug they were at least a bit removed from the hustle and bustle.

Moving back to a subdivided neighborhood was a bit of a shock after enjoying the previous freedom.  This was an older, established neighborhood, giving it more of a relaxed air, as if it’s time of having to prove itself was past.  However, conformity still breathed heavy on each residence.  It wasn’t manifested so much in an outward manner (besides the latest SUV parked in each driveway) as it was exhibited in the expectations of the residents - you had to walk the walk and talk the talk.  We stuck out like sore thumbs.

Skipping ahead, we spent a year in a lakeside home.  The area there was rich with family history, giving a sense of deeper meaning.  It seemed as if everyone knew everything about everyone, and those who insisted on too much privacy were scoffed at as being unfriendly.  Neighbors loved to recollect stories, from humorous to shocking, of other people living in that locale, past and present.   Love it or hate it, this all culminated in a close-knit community, full of generous people who were eager to lend a hand.

Now home is a stately house in a historic Flint neighborhood.  Like the lakeside home, this area is rich in history as well, with homeowners reveling in the nostalgia of bygone days.  The eccentric feel at ease, and the varying house styles of each estate are as individual as their owners.  The word “proud” comes to mind, which may lead a person to think of close-fisted stinginess. But in actuality, there is an astonishing level of generosity and friendliness, more than we’ve experienced in any other neighborhood.

We appreciate the beauty and background of this neighborhood, and love making our home here.

With that being said, it is here that we have felt most keenly the lines between class, social position and race.  We sadly see that prejudice is alive and well, letters behind a name are often given more weight than perhaps they should be, and deference to unwritten expectations often preferred over actual ingenuity and thinking outside the box.

Are we wrong?  Time will tell, and we are planning on sticking around for a while!

Tags: house

What a difference one year can make..

Tags: house, landscaping

We returned the chickens and Mocha and Clover (the goats) to the farm last week.

Many of you have expressed disappointment in us “giving in”.  You should know us well enough by now that we aren’t afraid of a fight.  Besides, it isn’t over.  There is much work being done to make it legal to have chickens in the city, and we have high hopes to return them here soon.

Long live the chickens!

Tags: house, idiocy, photos

Weeds don’t stand a chance.

Not with Robb’s new fire-breathing smoke-belching thingybob.

With our many stone paths and patios, weed control is a potential problem and it can be tempting to resort to harmful chemicals.

Now, weed control has never been so much fun.

Tags: house, landscaping

Tags: house, simplicity

So if that would bore you, move along. There’s nothing to see here.

I had every intention of showing some old “before” pics so that you could get an idea of how much has changed, but changed my mind for a variety of reasons, the chief one being laziness. So use your imagination and picture a jungle of vines, thorns and overgrown shrubs. Everywhere. Then ripping all of that out and starting over.

This is to the right of the front door. We lined the edges of the path with salvaged brick. We need lots more brick. The dirt beds between the boxes contains 200 tulips.. if they survived the transfer.

Currently the boxes only have climbing roses, but they will soon have vegetables keeping them company.

This is to the left of the front entrance. Made a small flower bed beside the circle drive and edged it with salvaged brick.

Further to the left, I planted white roses along the sunroom wall. It will be nice when they fill in.

And just next to that, the entrance to our shade garden. Still a lot of work to do.

And look! New grass! Mah baybeeeees! There are large areas that are freshly seeded and I’m looking forward to the bare patches being gone.

On the other side of the house.

In the front of the property, down by the corner. Planted 9 azaleas and rhododendrons along the path.

Don’t know if you can see well enough, but the far side of the path will all be grass. Then there are 2 sections along the sidewalk that will be flower/vegetable beds.

Flowers by the front door.

And lots more plants, flowers and vegetables waiting to find their home.

Tags: house, landscaping

Skylar was given the task of taking some shots of the work we were doing today. I’m trying to keep a photo log of everything we’re doing here on the landscaping.

Okay, so I just transferred the pics off the card onto my laptop. This is what I found.

She may have gotten just a little sidetracked.

Oooh, here’s one of someone working!

And then there were about 30 of these.

And I’m not exaggerating.

I think she had it on speed shutter, and just snapped away.

No, I’m not tilling a field to grow corn. Although at this point that sounds kind of good. I was just prepping the ground for grass seed.

Tags: house, landscaping