Thursday, June 26, 2008

Let the Renovations Begin!!

Until today, the "renovations" we've done on our house have really been more on the redecorating side of things. Except for the electrical upgrade, the only things we've done have been painting or removing paint :)

Today I started restoring the windows! Well, I actually just started removing the windows so that they can be restored, but still, it's a step in the right direction. One of the things Britney and I agreed on was no vinyl replacement windows. We still have the original windows, complete with wavy glass. I love them. Restoring the windows should not be that difficult - just time consuming. And considering we found out this week that we have to have the stucco on our house replaced, we're back to pinching pennies and doing the windows ourselves is one way we can do that. Also, considering it could cost us a small fortune to heat our house this winter (we use diesel fuel), we figured getting the windows in tip top shape couldn't hurt.

When we got the first window out, we discovered that our windows are double hung, but the top windows have been painted shut for who knows how long. We also found the weights inside the jambs, just where they should be. It looked like I was pulling small bombs out when I grabbed the weights and pulled. Those suckers were heavy!

Projects are therapy for me. So is shopping. But with the upcoming expenses, I figured this project was probably the safer way to go, and I'll still get to go shopping for the tools that I'll need :)

I'll keep you updated on my progress, complete with pictures of before and after.

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

What I Did On My Summer Vacation (Part 1)

Part one of our summer vacation is our stop in St. Louis, MO. We stayed with Britney's cousins, Tim & Tami, and had a great time. They have two kids - Brandon and Amber. I think Brandon is 14 and Amber is 12.

Despite Carter throwing up in their front yard as soon as we pulled into the driveway, they were great hosts. The kids took to Amber right away (Brandon was camping) and she showed them all of their pets. Ashlyn was doubly excited because they have a bunny. She has been asking for a bunny for over a year...

We got up on Saturday and went to the Gateway Arch. Ashlyn has asked to stop at the Arch every time we drive through St. Louis, which has been quite a few times over the last 3 years. We've never had time to do it before, but with all of the vacation Britney has this year, we decided to extend our trip a little and take the kids to see the Arch.

When we got there, Carter DID NOT want to go up to the top. I think the size of it was a little intimidating to him. But once we stopped talking about it and just took him inside to do it, he had a blast. So did Ashlyn. They were both enamored with how high up we were and how small the cars looked below. Even I have to admit it was amazing! It was a bit claustrophobic (especially the ride up) but I survived just fine :)

After the Arch, we headed over to the zoo. St. Louis has one of the most awesome zoos I've ever visited. I think the most exciting part to me was that it was FREE!!!! And since it was Saturday, it was crowded. And HOT! We walked through one section of the zoo and saw hyenas, fox, rhinos, hippos (they were the coolest!) and some other animals. After that, everyone was hot and tired so we headed back to the pool :)

Thanks, Tim, Tami, Brandon and Amber for opening your home to us and showing us a great time. You helped start our vacation out in a terrific way!

Sorry for the lack of pictures from the zoo and the pool. We mostly used the video camera for those and I'm too lazy right now to go get the camera and the cable to upload them :) Sorry - they'll come later, I'm sure!

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Back To Normal

Our new fridge was delivered yesterday, so I'm sure you'll all sleep better knowing that the fish smell is completely gone and we have a wonderful new WORKING fridge in our kitchen. No more trips up and down the basement stairs 100 times a day! YAY!

I really will post about our trip in the next couple of days. It's just been a crazy week!

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Welcome Home...

"Welcome home after being gone for 20 days!" said the rotten fish from inside our freezer that had stopped working who knows how many days ago.

I'll post more about our awesome trip later. Now I'm off to shop for a new fridge.