Tiling 1-2-3

When we closed on the House of Bam, our realtor Sam Strong of Metamorphosis Realty gave us a parting gift of the book "Home Improvement 1-2-3" by Home Depot, with a note on the inside cover that says "A guide to the easy stuff. Call me if it's not in here." Easy stuff is definitely open to interpretation, but we thought re-tiling the front entrance would be a simple weekend project - at least it looked simple in the book. Two weeks later, at least four trips to the hardware store, and an almost disastrous incident with the tile clipper that would have required a visit to the emergency room, we completed the project. We like the results! But was it easy?

Bye Bye Boo Radley

We enjoy the 4th of July - the warm weather, the food, the sentiments. Maybe it's less patriotic to admit that while we enjoy the 4th of July, we covet the fact that it gave us a 3 day weekend. Knowing that we would have this time at home, we decided to tackle the grime.

It is hard to tell when the last time the house was washed. Also it's been hard to confirm the actual color of the house. We got up bright and early (early enough for a 3 day weekend), rented a power washer, concocted the cleaner (a "green" cleaner from my Green Clean reference book), and scrubbed and sprayed all sides of the house clean.

We also took down the awning, just to really take in the filth that greeted anyone coming through our front entrance. We sprayed the awning clean, gave it a new coat of paint, and washed the front of the house. Once the awning was back up, in our eyes, the house looked a lot cleaner.

And we couldn't resist painting the front door and mailbox "cottage red". After a weekend of work, we think HofB is looking pretty darn handsome...the Boo Radley days are definitely behind us now!

HofB vs Winter 2011

I think most people around here would agree that the Minnesota Winter of 2011 seemed to last FOREVER. The blizzards (conveniently always occurring in time for the Monday commute), the bone-breaking ice, tire-blowing pot holes, and tundra-like temperatures drove even the most dedicated of us to give Minnesota the finger and scream ENOUGH ALREADY.

When we started hearing stories of the ice dams building up in gutters and under shingles, we got nervous. Our neighbor even hired an expert to chisel down their ice dams - at $200 per hour! Then we heard the horrors of the ice dams melting and water pouring into homes through light fixtures, destroying interior walls and ceilings. Why Minnesota, WHY?

We did our part by raking snow off of the roof and tossing rock salt-filled panty hose legs in the gutters (it's weird, but it works), but the rest was up to the house. To our relief, HofB took it like a champ and sustained only very minor damage.

We are very proud home-owners and grateful for a home with good bones. As for Minnesota, it is giving us a B-E-A-UTIFUL summer that is helping us to forgive the mess of last winter.

What does back-breaking work get you?

Satisfied Home Owners.

And the neighbors like the yard too. We didn't realize all of the responsibilities that come with owning a house on the corner. Oy vey, we're learning fast.

Yard Gems

Minnesota played a dirty trick on us, insisting on raining every weekend for a month. Do you know how hard it is to dig dirt in the rain? In addition, the boulders that were scheduled to be installed had to be delayed, day after day. We're not that crazy to move boulders by ourselves.

Just as our patience was running out, watching our new plants wilt in their pots, a break in the weather allowed the boulder crew to install the wonderful limestone monoliths. They actually look really cool.

So, last weekend, as the clouds lay low, we spent hours digging holes for our new yard gems. What did we plant?

13 Hosta Blue Angels
2 Afterglow Winterberry shrubs
1 Jim Dandy Winterberry shrub
8 Baja Daylilies
1 Pyramidal Japanese Yew
3 P.J.M Rhododendrons
1 Unique Pee Gee Hydrangea
3 Tiger Eyes Cutleaf Staghorn Sumacs
3 Jacob Cline Mondaras
5 Karl Foerster Grasses
3 Sedum Neons
10 Stella De Oro Daylilies
3 Annabelle Mydrangea
1 Dwarf Bright Gold Yew
1 Autumn Brilliance Apple Serviceberry Tree
1 Arcocona Norway Spruce Tree
6 Melting Fire Coral Bells

Basement Work Room: Before

No better time than now to tackle the basement work room!
Here are the problems
1) it's too dark
2) it's filthy
3) the window is too drafty
4) the workbench is too tall, is covered with asbestos tile, the shelving is not so good, and there is no place to attach a vice. And we all have vices.





So Sam took out the workbench. He found the artifacts that fell behind the bench over the years. Why does it seem that dirty tennis balls are always left behind?


Then Sam started mopping the floor. Whoa! The asbestos floor isn't so bad after all.

Dingo Day

In our case, the dingo is a compact utility loader that "ate" our yard.

Lucky for us, we live close to Diamond Lake Rental, and we have a very gracious friend with a truck (Dan Hanson, of Hanson Building and Remodeling). Sam and Dan loaded a trailer with the dingo and a sod cutter. Following the landscape plans we purchased from Gertens, we used those two machines, a couple of shovels, and back-breaking work to take out the Fugly existing shrubs and sod to make room for the Fabulous!








Through the dirt and mud, you might notice that we have a new sidewalk and steps!