Reader's Digest Condensed Version of the Last 2 Months

Lawsy! Has it been that long? So sorry about that.  It's not that I haven't been doing anything, just that life has gotten in the way. So, in an effort to keep this short and easy for me, here is the condensed version of what's been goin' on.

The (Anti) Cruise. Unlike the fabulous 5 day Caribbean cruise where I was going to be wined and dined by my husband, my mother was going to be celebrated for 80 years of making the world a better place, my grandchildren were going to experience the wonders of surf and sand and my kids were going to get some well deserved rest, we rented an RV and spent 2 nights at a state park. Not as fancy but I bet roomier than the stateroom Meg and Eddie were booked in and who needs a balcony when you have a concrete pad outside the door? We even hiked to the Guadalupe for fun in the sand and sun. Keeping with the bad luck, the water faucet in the kitchen broke, spewing water continuously, making it necessary to keep the water turned off coming into the RV. That meant no bathroom, no showers and no water inside. Much like the Triumph Cruise we were supposed to be one. We just couldn't win. The kids had a ball, though, and Reid can't wait to go camping again.

The Pergola. The house Meg and Eddie bought had a lot going for it, but the backyard wasn't one of them. Big, with a couple of huge trees, it had lots of potential. We set out to add some equity and shade to the house, trying to keep with the mid-century modern style and a modest budget. It took 2 weekends of lots of work, but we managed to finish it all.

It took crazy amounts of jack hammering and 3 trips to the dump to get rid of the tons (literally) of concrete that we had to take up.



And now...

This is the couch we made with cinder blocks. For the pillows, I had some outdoor fabric I bought for another project and never used. I got some of that outdoor furniture foam stuff with a coupon at Hobby Lobby and use some leftover marine grade plywood to make the seat. I bought a canvas paint tarp and Scotchguarded it (useless, it was covered with sweet baby footprints in no time) to upholster the seat. Between my mom and me, we had enough patio furniture to furnish the whole thing. I used more fabric to make cushions for the chair and Meg spray painted all of it. The only ready made cushion we bought was for the lounge chair. I think, for all the patio furniture, cushions, and paint, we probably spent $150. Not bad at all.

                 View from the east.

View from the west. We added a flagstone patio where we cut out some of the tile and removed a concrete slab. Now the back doors opens.

They love it! The wisteria is already to the top of the posts so it won't be long till they have shade all day long. The only project left are the planters I want to make for her. More on that another time.

My brother.  About the time we finished the pergola, my brother had a pretty bad encounter with his old friend CHF. He didn't see a bright light at the end of a tunnel (like he had before), but it was pretty serious. I got a call after work one day and after the blur of ICU, sleeping over at the hospital, etc., I looked up and it was about 10 days later.

That kinda wraps up what we've been doing, life wise. Squashed in there is also some sewing, gardening and a room redo. Stay tuned.