Main Problem

How does one use 26,000 gallons of water in eight days? By having a major leak in one's water main to the house!

I'm very thankful I checked our water bill before filing it. We have it paid by direct deduct, so the paperwork is just a formality, really. But I try to stay on top of our utility usage. So when I saw the big bill and the 20,000 gallons more than usual on the bill, I thought perhaps it was from the pressure washer the painters used in prep work. But that still seemed like a tremendous amount of water. So I called the painters; no, they had never seen that kind of water bill from a customer before.

Then I called the water company. Yes, the reading was correct. So I took the dog for a walk and went by the meter (which is located all the way across the pasture at the crossroad). As I looked at the gauge, I could see the dial going around. Not the little jiggly one that tells you there is a drip somewhere; the main dial that turns with every 10 gallons of water dispensed! I took a reading, compared it with the previous (very high) bill and realized we had used another 26,000 gallons in just over a week since the last reading. Big problem!

On the way back to the meter and shut-off valve with a pipe wrench, we discovered the large, wet sink hole in the pasture. Tire tracks lead to and away from it, so we have our culprit. With the water off, the standing water has already receded a bit in about an hour, so I'm almost positive we have the right spot. Now I'm waiting on the workmen to come hand dig the line and find the problem. Did you know most plumbers charge $95-$125 an hour?! Anyone want to come help me dig???

{drip...drip...drip}

Ever had a leaky faucet? We did. Notice the past tense conjugation of "do". As in, used to. Not anymore! I didn't think I would ever be so excited just to have a faucet that shuts off. But when you've spent months holding your mouth just right and wriggling the faucet handle slightly up and to the right just to make it shut off, and then enduring weeks when even that trick only reduced the stream to a slight trickle, you'd be excited, too!

It was a simple $3 fix. We will be getting a new faucet soon during the kitchen remodel, but it will be accompanied by the new sink and countertops. So I didn't want to order my new faucet, install it, remove it, and then install it again in about a month. So I was going to live with a drip. Until I couldn't live with a drip any longer. A trip to Lowes with a knowledgeable plumbing department staffer resulted in new seats and springs and a quick how-to lesson.

Jeff had the spigot off in a jiffy and allowed me the photo opp of placing the new parts. A few tries at getting the faucet reassembled and voila! No more drip.



I'm here to tell you, friends don't let friends live with drips. If your tap is leaking, run to the nearest big box store and get yourself some seats and springs. You'll be so happy you did!

Fall is for Planting!

Our autumn weather has been quite beautiful lately. We've had several chilly nights that leave me longing for central heat, but I just remind myself that it could be worse (i.e., regional church winter campouts at Bakers Acres, for those of you fellow adventurous ones)! We'll get the HVAC guys out eventually, but we still have some plumbing and electrical changes to make first.

In the meantime, I've turned my attention to landscaping, as fall is the perfect time to establish new plants. At our last bungalow, we applied the first time and money expenditures on the interior. Mainly because the exterior stuff is so expensive! But at the farmhouse we are taking a different approach. It's been neglected for so long in so prominent a location in this small town that we wanted to give back to the community, in a sense. The interior things are mainly selfish, because they make our life better and easier. But the outside is for the neighbors and passers-by, primarily. It's an opportunity to really let our light shine and truly "love thy neighbor".

All of this love has to be done on a budget, however! The exterior painting and trim repair are being completed by professionals. It's expensive but worth it for the time savings (not to mention the safety aspect with all those ladders). So I've been stocking up on clearance plants at Lowes, driving around town to pick up free horse manure to amend the soil, and will be making a trip to our local landfill for gratis mulch sometime next week.

Keeping the plants watered and warm while I wait for the painters to stop trampling around the house is quite a job. An ever-expanding job, since I continue to find great deals on more plants!

I have Weeping Holly, Abelia, Indian Hawthorne, Butterfly Bushes, Knockout Roses, shrub roses, Loropetalum, Rudbeckia, Coreopsis, Pink Jasmine, Yellow Trumpet Vine, three types of ground cover, and a handful of other perennials. Oh, and that doesn't include the large Canna bulbs and many clumps of day lilies that friends have given me!

I visited a local nursery and worked with one of their staffers there to draw up this plan for the front foundation beds.

I'm also drawing on a lot of the things I learned in the Master Gardener class about soils, planting techniques, shrubs, lawns, etc. I am learning to be patient because I want my little two and three gallon plants to be full size already (which will take at least five years)! It's so hard to remember not to crowd them in there to give a full look now, only to have trouble and unhealthy conditions down the road. Oh the lessons to be learned from agriculture!

A queen for my king

We have been sleeping in a full size bed for the past six years (at least). When we bought our first old bungalow, the bedrooms were small and I found a great antique iron bed (which were all full size back then) that we loved. Not only is the mattress only the length of a twin, it was rather old and squeaky to boot. It was plenty of width for the two of us cuddly sleepers, but at six feet tall, Jeff was frequently hitting the footboard if he stretched out.

We've been thinking about getting a new mattress set for a while. But mattress shopping is a bit overwhelming! We'd gone a time or two, but with just a few minutes to sit on, bounce on, and lie on a mattress in a showroom, how do you decide! What size, what plushness, what material, what price point?

But after we enjoyed the very nice bed at the hotel in Tucson for almost two weeks, we realized how bad our old mattress really was. So it became a priority as soon as we returned home. And I'm happy to say we found a great deal on a Eurotop memory and latex foam queen set with organic cotton. So now we have comfort and support from our heads to our toes with no creaks or jostling in the night! There is even a bit more room for DaVinci to join us on the bed in the evenings for a short cuddle. Here's to a good night's sleep, my King!

Birds of a Feather

Speaking more of birds, I enjoyed a view of the huge flock that landed in the west meadow earlier today. I was reading in the bedroom, enjoying the late afternoon warm sunshine pooling near the window, when I became aware of the rising and falling chatter of birds. I glanced out to see an enormous flock feeding in the grass. I snapped a few photos through the blinds before they took flight. It was quite entertaining!

You'll have to squint through the streaky windows; the painters are powerwashing and it makes the panes a bit of a mess

And then there were two...

Every poultry keeper I've talked to has a fowl loss story. Now we do, too. Peckadilly was killed last night by some loose dogs who damaged the coop and got into the nest box. We were so upset and sad to find the destruction and carnage in the morning. It just reinforces how animal instinct desperately needs a change, just like human nature.

Thankfully, Attila and Atomic are fine. Unintelligent little birds that they are, they don't seem stressed or traumatized in the least. Now that we're down to two, I face learning how to introduce new birds or chicks to the tiny flock come spring.

Tucson Time

What a refreshing time we had in Tucson! Funny, since our annual religious convention couldn't have been held in a drier place. But we thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to visit the Southwest.

We rented a convertible and drove with the top down nearly all the time (in blazing 97 degree weather all the way down to cool 72 degree evenings ):

In our spare time, we toured Old Tucson, the movie set where hundreds of Westerns have been filmed:

We ventured into some national parks and took in the flora and fauna:

I got to experience "zero gravity" (not really, but it was the name of this a fun trampoline/bungee jumping combo):

We enjoyed one particularly memorable steak meal (I had the pecan crusted sirloin, Jeff the prime rib):

We took a side trip to IKEA in Phoenix while we were up that way. It wasn't planned, but when we saw the mammoth Swedish store, we couldn't resist. It's only in major cities, so I go whenever I can!

Our flights to and fro were thankfully uneventful, which is about the best that can be hoped for in economy class seating. We've returned home invigorated and excited to take on the challenges ahead!

Five Dollar Mistakes

Sometimes I feel like I'm penny wise and pound foolish, as the old saying goes. But in the case of house painting, I'm pretty sure that's not the case.

I absolutely love the little paint samples that all the stores sell now. It started with Benjamin Moore a few years ago, and now everyone offers it. For anywhere from $3-$8 you can buy paint samples ranging from 4 oz to 1 quart (and price does not necessary correspond to size)! They will tint them to any stock color, and most will color match competitors brands and do custom colors.

What a great way to test colors! The little chips in the store lighting are never what they seem once you get the gallon home. Somehow beige begins to morph pink, taupe turns purple, gray goes green, yellow yells "schoolbus!", etc., etc., etc.

So, I have been testing exterior colors. Which is a vastly different experience from testing interior colors! Who knew that sun could do such things to shades and tints and hues? Our farmhouse is mostly seen from the west and the south, which means lots of direct, bright light. Light trim colors all look white; medium tones get washed out; deeper colors look like garish Easter eggs. I have a towering stack of tester quarts out in the shop and have been to Sherwin Williams three days straight to pick up various body, trim, and accent attempts.

Oh, well. Better to have a few $5 mistakes hiding in the garage than a $2500 mistake on the sides of the house for the whole world to see!

Three body colors and four trim trials later, we're hopefully narrowing
in on a winner! (You can't see the accents I've been playing around
with down on the first floor; I've run out of room on the dormer!)

Thrift Store Scores!

A month or so ago, I found this great water cooler at one of my favorite thrift stores. Since we only have a mini fridge in the kitchen at the moment, Jeff had not had ice cubes or cold water to drink (he's very fond of an icy cold beverage) since we moved in. This bubbler provides crisp, filtered water, with the added bonus of a hot tap, too! I'm thrilled with that aspect, because I can make hot beverages or reconstitute bouillon in just seconds. Now that it's gotten chillier, I've used it quite a bit.

Then, yesterday, I thought I would pop by the same thrift store since I needed to drop off a donation anyway. I've been keeping an eye out for a dining table, since we sold our Queen Anne set when we moved from the other house. It just seemed too formal and delicate to evoke the warm, lived-in feel I want in the farmhouse. The old dining set:


Jeff bought me six cognac leather parsons chairs for our 10th anniversary, and I've been hunting for a big table ever since. Would today be the day? Why, yes, it is! I found and bought this fabulous trestle table for $100! Here it is:


And the leather chairs Jeff found a few months ago:

This table is huge; 92" long including the two leaves. The best part is the gear mechanism slides that allow me to extend and contract the table all by myself (the base remains in the place and only the top moves). Now, I can extend it to full length to work on sewing projects or set the table for company without help.

This trestle style is very hot right now, and I've seen smaller ones selling for $2500!
I'm amazed no other shoppers spotted the potential and snapped it up (though it was surrounded by some pretty horrid looking chairs and they were asking twice as much for the set). The table is waiting in the shop for a refinishing job (I'm thinking a soft satin black on the base and apron to match the chair legs and a waxed natural or lightly stained top). The only down side is the trestle bar at the bottom; DaVinci loves to sleep under the table, and I'm afraid he may have to give up a favorite napping spot. But on the upside, my rug will be less hairy!

Bathroom Facelift

Here is the mini-makeover reveal of our bathroom! It's just to tide us over until we can do the major work (floors, vanity, toilet, plumbing changes, etc), but it's amazing what a little scrubbing, scrapping, and painting will do.

The before shots don't quite paint the real picture. The dirt, mildew, cracking, and peeling are rather generously smoothed over by the camera lens. But the room was so bad that our home inspector (who crawls around, in, and under old homes) wouldn't touch anything in the bathroom with his hands when he came!

The upper walls are Sherwin Williams Comfort Gray, the tile, woodwork, and ceiling are all Benjamin Moore Linen White, and the floor is a $5 Sherwin Williams mistint that perfectly coordinates with the adjoining mudroom/laundry in Bennington Gray. Shower curtain, bamboo shades, and towels are from JCPenney Outlet.

Before:


After:


Before:


After:


During patching:


After:


Before:


After:

Feathered Friends

We have more happy avian guests than just our little chickens. Jeff called me over to the large dining room windows this past Sunday morning to watch a bevy of bathing beauties. All the birds in the neighborhood must have decided to visit our bird bath at the same time. There were four or five birds jostling for a turn all at once. It was a lovely sunny morning and we had our newly cleaned windows open, so we could even hear the splashing and ruffling. It was quite entertaining!

I was only able to capture a few of the bird varieties, but we have seen cardinals, blue jays, black capped chickadees, mourning doves, ringneck doves, and a host of others I can't yet identify. I need to get an Audubon book to keep near the kitchen sink!

Just like me!

While searching for some bungalow-related information, I stumbled upon this image in the prestigious Seattle Times. It shows a bungalow foyer with a light fixture rather similar to my new acquisition!

I love the shapely milk glass shades on this one. I'll keep an eye out for something similar, but it'll be hard to beat the dollar deal I got on my current shades!

Kitchen Pleasures

Jeff fixed a minor problem for me this evening that has been a daily annoyance. I'm glad I have such an understanding husband who really recognizes what goes in to making a kitchen work well!

As I've mentioned before, we are currently without a stove or full size refrigerator as we are planning the major kitchen remodel. I have a mini fridge sitting on a folding card table to hold my daily items, and I trek out to the shop for the deep freeze or larger fridge when needed (55 paces one way to be exact). The mini fridge is in a slightly precarious position wedged in a corner behind the kitchen door. I have to walk from the opposite corner of the kitchen (where my prep spot is), around the little island, half close the kitchen door, pull open the fridge with my right hand, wiggle out my required items with my (non-dominant) left hand, and then re-adjust the kitchen door so it is out of the walkway.

I had tried to change the fridge door swing, but hit several snags. But tonight, Jeff made it happen! I can't tell you how much better and easier this is! Every time I open the fridge, I smile. This is one upside of hardship: you appreciate little conveniences and niceties so much more!

Cracking Up

If you've ever seen paint fail, you know it's worthy the money for a quality product. I wish the previous occupant had felt the same way; it would have saved me many hours of prep work!

The bathroom plaster walls have many hairline cracks. This wouldn't be an issue, except the most recent (and I use that term very generously) coat of paint was a cheap flat finish. That's not good for a humid environment where you might be inclined to wash down the walls every once in a while (aforementioned previous occupant wasn't so inclined if the state of the bathroom is any indication, so perhaps he wasn't concerned with scrubbability)!

Everywhere that the plaster cracked, the moisture worked in under the top paint and opened up a meandering pathway of chipped color. It was an ongoing process, and I continually found little flakes of paint on the floor, on the baseboards, on the towels, etc.

It's all white on white, but on the left side you can really see the cracking paint; the dark shade on the upper right is the beginnings of my skim coat

Something was needed to stabilize and smooth the surface. So my project today was skim-coating. I scraped and sanded everything down a few days ago, and this morning began the slow process of troweling on a thin coat of drywall compound over all the walls. It's setting up as I type, so I'll be back in there this afternoon sanding and touching up. I'm hoping this will work, as Sherwin Williams has a big paint sale this weekend and I've been chomping at the bit to buy and apply my wall color!

Freshly skim-coated upper walls

Lighting it up

It's been an enlightening week, as Jeff said! We got the new dining room chandelier hung and the new (old) foyer fixture up, also. I'm very excited about both, especially since I feel I got a great deal on each of them.

The dining room was in desperate need of an update. It had an old ceiling fan that whirled dust bunnies and cold air down on our food, and glaring lights that threw unattractive shadows into the corners.

You can just make out the bottom of the ceiling fan here

I was really drawn to the lines of the Restoration Hardware "Lander" chandelier, but at over $450, it wasn't a price I wanted to pay.

My inspiration picture

So I was thrilled to find a version at Overstock.com at a third of the cost. It has the strong lines of Arts and Crafts or Mission pieces, with a touch of the more modern Transitional about it. It even mirrors the rectangle shape of the old upright piano in the room and the square fabric shades look just my dining room floor lamps. I love it on the dimmer so I can adjust the lighting and mood throughout the day.

After

Though the farmhouse is very original, all the light fixtures had been replaced (sadly), probably in the 70's if style and dust are any indication! So, where possible, I'm looking for vintage fixtures. I really wanted a focal piece for the foyer, to replace this interesting Mid-Century Modern light (unique, but not right for the era of this house).

Before
(DaVinci wanted to know what what was so photo-worthy out in the hall)

It was such a blessing to find the perfect fixture on my local Craigslist. All I needed were glass shades, which I found for $.99 a piece at the Habitat for Humanity Restore.

After