The flooring is finally here! . . . . .

Not a whole lot going on right now.  We are working all the time on something and have a few major victories but it sure seems slow going.  And nothing really blog-worthy. I can't do anything very crafty since I have no workspace and most of my supplies are packed away.

Dear Hubby and Computer Geek went to pick up our new flooring this morning.

This is supposed to be 725 square feet.

It is tongue & groove white pine.  A very soft wood but we know that.  We expect dings and scratches along the way.  While our house isn't a farmhouse, it is farmhouse style.  This will fit perfect. We have narrowed the stain color down to Minwax Early American stain (on the left) and Minwax Golden Oak (on the right).  

I know they are both close but one has a little more brown and one a little more yellow.  We are going to have to play with some more samples for a few more days.

So after letting the wood acclimate for a week, going out of town for a week or more, several days of putting the floor down, 2 days of staining, 7 to 10 days of sealer and sealer curing. . . . . well, we're looking at another 6 weeks before we can even think about putting things back where they belong.

I can't wait to see the final product and to show you!

 

Blessings, Cathi

The New Blogger, do I like it? . . . . .

Jury is still out on this one.  I thought I would play around with the new Blogger template.  There are some things I like and some I don't.

I just got on the computer to change my blog from a 2-column to a 3-column blog so I could list some items that I am selling on Etsy.  One thing led to another . . . . . yada, yada, yada.

So here you have it. Almost 4 hours later.

Have I worked on any quilting? . . .  NO

Did I help Dear Hubby with any of the floor remodeling ? . . . NO

Have I done anything this afternoon other than sit here? . . . .  NO

Okay, I'm outta here.  But what do you think of the new Blogger?

Blessings, Cathi

Garden and Remodel Update . . . . .

Things are moving slowly on the remodel as it always does in our house.  Too easy to get distracted with fun stuff like sewing for me and woodworking for Dear Hubby.  That's why we wanted to hire a contractor for the big stuff.

We are now the proud owners of 8 new piers with footings, 2 big long beams and a MUCH sturdier floor.

Dear Hubby and I are in the process of putting down a second layer of subfloor, glued and screwed for added strength.  Next will be the pine floors.

The dining room has become the staging area.  The 2nd layer of subfloor is already down in here.

Now if we could just decide on the floor stain color!!  More on that later.

Garden is coming along, too.  The tons of rain seem to have stopped so it's back to handwatering every couple of days.

Here is a picture of the daylillies that I promised.

Our first harvest of bell peppers and tomatoes this morning.

We even have some raspberries.  They aren't quite ready but I'm so afraid that I will go out one morning and some bird will have gotten to them before me!

Blessings, Cathi

Giveaway at Primitives From The Attic . . . . .

There is a wonderful giveaway from Wendy at Primitives From the Attic. She makes such wonderful Annie's.  You can go visit her and even buy some Annie's from her but don't enter the giveaway . . . .  I WANT TO WIN!

Blessings, Cathi

They are Labradors after all . . . . .

Lookie at the new toy we set up for the boys.

I think this may be just the ticket to wear them out.

Nelson is acting like he's 6 months old again.

So much so that Reagan just had to leave.  Nelson has the pool all to himself !

90° already today and it is just 12:45.  Thank goodness for air-conditioning!

Blessings, Cathi

How does your garden grow - Part 2 . . . . .

While the house is a disaster zone, I've been trying to keep my mind on other things like gardening.  Here are some pictures I took this week. 

The herb bed . . . much farther along than just three weeks ago.

A couple of tomato plants . . . almost as tall as I am!

Our first crop of zuchinni, squash, cukes and banana peppers.  I threw in some purple basil to carry in the house. We cut the zuchinni and squash into medallions, covered in olive oil, salt and pepper and threw them on the grill  Delish!!

Our first watermelon about the size of a golf ball.  Yes, that's purple basil you see on the left.  I think they like each other.

An Easter lily from last year.  Stuck in in the ground after church last year and forgot about it.  I didn't think potted plants took to the outdoors very well.  This one sure did.  Complete surprise this year. 

The other daylilies that I showed in the first garden post are just starting to pop open.  I'll wait until they are all open before I take pictures of them.

Hope your garden is doing as well as mine.  We have had an unusual amount of rain this year.  Not so much the last week so I guess it's back to hand watering like other years.  Next year's goal . . . .   drip irrigation!!

Blessings, Cathi

Even more BIG changes to the house. . . . .

One reason that we wanted to remove the fireplace was because of this . . . . .

We have to have some structural work done underneath the house.  The house was built in 1975 by a fairly incompetent (in my opinion) builder.

As I said before, the living room is 13' x 24'.  The floor joists were made with 2"x8" timber.  Code just about everywhere is 2" x 10".  And there is no piers under the house in that 13' span.  You can see the dining room table out on the deck in the picture below.  To be moved later this afternoon to the storage building.

Our floors bounce when we walk across.  Even when the dogs walk across !!

Yes, we should have done this years ago.  But it is what it is.

The good news is that with all this destruction comes construction!  We are getting all new floors downstairs.  After much deliberation, we have decided to put down white pine floors.

I stole this picture from the Lumber Liquidators website without their permission......just so you know!

Yes, we know that they scar and ding easier but it will just add to the primitive charm.  It's going to be a long couple of weeks as we wait for the contractor to fix under the house, put down new flooring in the entire downstairs, stain, sand, seal, etc.

Every stick of furniture will be either upstairs in one of the bedrooms, the upstairs hallway or in our storage building out back by late this afternoon.

Computer Geek and Son-In-Law are unplugging the computer (which lives in the Living Room) and moving it to my bedroom.  I may or may not be able to get on-line for a few days. 

It will be different and exciting.  Here's hoping we don't find any surprises!  Boy, I wish Mike Holmes lived nearby !!

Blessings, Cathi

Okay, now for the big news . . . . .

I have so many quilting things to show now that they are getting backed up.  But I love the prim stuff and am just thrilled with my garden so much that I can't seem to fit it all on one blog.

So I started a new one ! . . . . . .Just for quilting!  

And to celebrate, I am having a giveaway.

You need to go to the new one......Shakerwood Quilts to enter.  All entries MUST be made on the Quilts blog.

You have 4 chances to enter and there are 4 prizes to win.  So hop on over to my new blog and GOOD LUCK!

Blessings, Cathi

Are they nuts? . . . You betcha . . . .

We (meaning Dear Hubby and Computer Geek) spent this past weekend getting rid of this.  We've had plenty of people informing us we were nuts for taking it out.

It had a mantle on top, a large 5" x 5" piece of cedar, but I forgot to take the first "before" picture.  This fireplace would have looked great if the room were twice as big or had a cathedral ceiling.  It was just too massive for the space.

 So before I get any "Are you nuts?" from anyone, let me explain.  These pictures were taken from my kitchen doorway.  The living room is only 13' across. The room is more like a bowling alley. . . . 13' x 24'.  We never have been able to arrange the furniture the way we were comfortable with it.

And the hearth.......it was just stone sitting on the floor.  You couldn't decorate it with anything cute.  Nothing would sit level.

And the dust from the woodburning heater...........Aaahhh.  The blower used to be a variable speed.  Now it is just two speeds.....on and off.

So right now there is just a big hole in the wall.  Notice the underlayment.  Big changes are coming to the floor.  There was carpet.  10 year old carpet that had survived 4 kids, 6 dogs, 2 cats, 2 rabbits and a husband.  Of course, I never spilled anything on the floor !!

Hopefully in two weeks, I'll be able to show more pics of the progress. 

  On the quilting front, stay tuned.  I've got some big changes coming!

Blessings, Cathi