Hallway & Some Befores

For pete's sake!  It's been a MONTH since I've been on here!  I feel like the page creaked when it loaded just now.  When I have to choose between family, work, my sanity or blogging...blogging gets kicked to the curb.

While my job can be demanding at times, I work with some pretty awesome people.  In fact, my hilarious friend & coworker, Leslie, sent me this card.  I got it in the mail today and LAUGHED my head off....

 The inside reads, "A bad day is all about perspective."

Classic.  She's the best & I don't know what I would do without her!

So let me show you the hallway.  We finished it a few weeks ago and I'm pretty happy with the new look.

Before:

I had already taken down pictures and started patching the walls.

After:

Ta-da!!!  Yes, it's a white hallway.  Seriously, though this was A LOT of work.  Brian installed all new trim, added crown molding and then I caulked & painted everything.  The devil is in the details and he whipped me on this one, but it was totally worth it!  

 Here it is at night with the light dimmed.....looooove it! 

 

Here's a view from the back of the hall. I have some blank frames hanging while I work out which pictures go where.  This will also motivate me to get enlargements finally made of vacation pictures.  I'm the worst about getting that kind of stuff done.

What I really like is that I can easily add more pictures and go bananas with frames from ceiling to floor, and it will totally work with my look here.

 Other side.

We used the slip-on corner pieces and I love how easy they are to install (or I should say Brian loved how easy they were to install.)

I flipped the attic cover and found this grooved wood.   Love it!

And yet, another angle.  It feels more open and brighter now. 

Before I run, let me show you really quick what I have going on for the next few days (and next couple of years)...

 I have this chest painted and will be putting the finishing touches on it sometime this weekend.  This one is going up for sale.

 I'm sanding the top of this coffee table and will stain it, then paint the legs. It's a nice solid piece.   

This is what's going to take a few years...my backyard rehab...

We had 2 Bradford Pear trees removed last week.  It's always hard for me to pull the trigger on trees but it had to be done.  (Bradford Pears are brittle and will split in half and make a mess.)  We have a lot of work to do but this was a good start.  Now that we're getting some good sun back here, we're going to relocate and expand our garden for next year.   

And I'm working on this..

  When the guys cut the trees down, they trashed my trumpet vine.  Not a big deal - it needed to be pruned anyway.  A little TLC and some paint and this will be ready to enjoy when the weather cools down some. 

Mom says that as long as you own a home you will never be finished.  And you know what? She's right!  Thanks for reading and I'll talk to you soon!

I'm linking to The Before & After Party at TDC,  Anything Goes at Type A.

Hugs-

A Feature at Type A!!

Super sweet Tammy from Type A featured me today!!! Hop on over to see my guest post AND there's a peek at the hallway.

Hugs and a good day to you!

Happy Day!

Today is a special anniversary for me and my husband.  We met exactly 6 years ago..so every July 14 we try to do something just a little special..nothing major, but something nice.  Usually we go to the restaurant where we had our 1st date.  It's a very charming place off a very cute square in a nearby town.

Well, this year I pulled out ALL the stops for Brian.  Do you want to see what I gave him for our special day?? 

A destroyed hallway that needs to be put back together!!!  JUST what he wanted...

  While he's doing the trim & molding...I'll be painting these frames (all for $25 at ReStore)..

and finish taping then paint the hall door..

So.....

He's VERY understanding of my wonky ways...one of the many, many reasons I adore him!

I'll leave you with some Norah Jones and one of our favorite songs.....

Stargazers, Catch Up & Hallway!

 If you were here, I would tell you that you MUST smell this beauty....

Stargazers are my favorite flower.  

I have a few that come back every year and this year they were huge!

 I didn't have to edit these pics. They had just bloomed & were perfect.

Ok, now on to this last week.. I'm not going to bore you with all the details, so here's the Reader's Digest version.

First of all..do you guys know what this is?

That's Goliath. It's an INSANE roller coaster at Six Flags.  

Rule #1, don't ride roller coasters when you're stopping for Pepto on the WAY TO Six Flags because you feel queasy.  Rule #2, LOOK at the roller coaster BEFORE you get on it.  I didn't do that. I just got in line behind my husband and hopped on...like an idiot.

 Sure, it was a thrill to feel my face smearing off as we zoomed along the track and down a 175 ft. drop at 70 mph, but was it worth it? You tell me, I got off the ride, went straight to the ladies' room & barfed.  I was a trooper though..we were at the park another 7 hours (SEVEN HOURS) after that, spending the last 2 hours soaking wet from all the water rides.  My conclusion, I think I'm getting too old for some of this.

The next highlight was a fierce storm that blew through July 4th.  Lightning knocked on my front door, came in and cooked my modem, seriously..it was FRIED.  So after many, many phone calls to AT&T and a delivery from UPS, we have a new modem and are up & running.  Being offline was strange, to say the least.  I didn't realize how much I rely on the internet; the upside is, I got a stupid amount of projects either finished or nearly finished (applause, applause).  The newest one started is my hallway...

 Kinda before:

 I took all of our pictures down, then remembered to take a picture.

 After I have worked my magic with spackle.  Since this is a small space, I'm going to do something that packs a punch.

I'm inspired by this:

                                       Coco&Kelley

 I'm not quite sure exactly how I'm going to paint the hall or the frames yet but I love LOVE this picture. This is beadboard all over but I think white paint will have a similar impact, as long as the details are done well.

I finally have stuff to share on the den but since I didn't want to do megapost, I thought I'd wait until tomorrow.  I'll talk to you later & it's good to be back online!!

Hugs,