Help! I've Fallen...

... and I am trying to get back up. Clearly, I have fallen off of the posting train. My apologies if any of you out there are still reading (or trying to).

What the heck happened? Well...

Frustratingly, all things house related (wires, electricity, closing, etc) took a serious halt through the December and most of January. In the past week we finally powered through all of that nonsense. (I will divulge details & pictures soon.)

While we were waiting to move things along on the housing front the holidays came and went. Actually, right before the holidays was my birthday. Disclosure: I do not make a big deal about my birthday and prefer everyone else follows suite. The people out there who insist force others to participate in their "birthday week" (or month-yikes!) make absolutely no sense to me. You are not that cool "princess". But, for that night H did just that, he made me feel pretty special. He took me out to a fancy, French restaurant here in Charm City that was beautiful and delicious! 

He also surprised the hell out of me by giving me this bad boy.

I have been dreaming of a big-girl camera for a couple of years now but, had no expectation of receiving one anytime soon. SPOILED! Thank you H! xo

This is where things started going downhill for me. I am pretty sure it is a combination of a lot of things but, here are the top three: 

• First, I.MISS.MY.FAMILY!!! & I.MISS.MY.FRIENDS!!!
• Second, I finally understand why so many people out here dislike winter. It is because east coast winters suck: Cold. Grey. Dirty. Dark. Rain. = Blechh!                                   NOT like J Hole: White. Soft. Fluffy. Activity-filled. Beauty=Amazing!
• Third, I have not been exercising. At least not more than a walk a day with Miss Maui and a day (maybe two) at the gym. We all know that exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. 

Then came Christmas. I was having a particularly difficult time getting into "the spirit" this year (see reasons above) and was hoping to have a little help in that department when we traveled town to Lynchburg. I fondly refer to H's home town as "Pleasantville" and the past few years we have spent Christmas there with H's family. It has been great, we have shared a lot of laughs, and had an all around good time. 

Little did we know, this year, Christmas was canceled in Pleasantville. (For a multitude of reasons that are not mine to divulge.)

After that (not so fun) trip we decided to spend a quiet, uneventful night at home for NYE. Which, would have been perfect had we not gotten into a tiff at 11:58. 

Lesson: Breathe. Then live, learn, & don't sweat the small stuff.

Into 2013 we dove, trying to make the start of this year better than the end of last. It has been slowly but, steadily progressing in that direction. As soon as this awful football season is over (7 hours and counting) I am hoping to start focusing on my goals and what will make me happy. In case you're wondering, this is how I feel about living in Baltimore while the dirty birds are in the Super Bowl.

My new approach at turning things around for myself is this: Perspective is instrumental. Energy is powerful. Align those two in a positive way and (sing it with me now) every little thing is gonna be alright!

Adirondack Love

As soon as I knew we were going to get our RTD I had been dreaming of a pair (or more) of pretty adirondack chairs to sit up there. Alas, most of the adirondack chairs that I've ever seen were in the $100-250 range, per chair. (Boo!)

Then the tides turned this spring while I was picking up some essentials in Home Depot. I found a pair unassembled and unfinished adirondack chairs on sale for $25 bucks! So, I grabbed two, paid, and ran like hell outa there thinking they had to be miss marked.

The chairs patiently waited in their boxes for some love until we moved. Once we cleared out our garage we finally had the space to tackle this project. I was hoping to paint THEN assemble but, H had another idea. He snuck into the garage claiming he was going to put them together on his own. I think he was just anxious to use his drill, boys and power tools. <insert eye roll here>

So, without protesting I just let him be. Pretty soon he emerged and claimed 'they were good to go'. Translation: 'You can do the rest.' 

After a little sanding and cleaning, the chairs were ready for some paint. Although they are kind of pretty in their au naturale state.

At first I had grand dreams of spray painting these suckers. The idea of spray paint just seems so lovely; quick and easy. But, after a few spray painting test runs I decided I loved these chairs too much to mess up with my amature technique so, I went back to the home improvement store and found a regular old can o paint. 

From day one I knew these babies had to be painted happiest color of them all, yellow! Plus I'm a Steelers girl living in Baltimore so, what else was I to do?!

This was a blessing because the Rust-oleum Sun Yellow if far superior to the other, at least in my opinion. Valspar products are great but, this particular yellow is the perfect bright and cheery color I was looking for.

Hand painting these chairs was also the way to go. Next time however, I will race H to the garage and paint them BEFORE assembly. It is just more efficient in the long run, getting into all of those nooks and crannies can be tough.

Here is the finished product.

 

These lovelies are now perched on the RTD and they make our little bit of outdoor space even better, especially with a warm cup of coffee or a frosty beverage.

Cold Hard Facts

How about some facts, folks?


The original houses (remember, there are two) we purchased were built in 1900. The houses each had two floors which meant we were limited to two floors as well (in order to get the historical tax credit (more on that another day)). We could have dug out a basement I suppose but, it wasn't in our budget.  Sorry H, no "man cave" for you.  


Buying the "shell" and having the opportunity to "renovate" (knock down almost entirely and build a new) we had the luxury to pick and choose the layout for our new house. Two large bedroom suites? Three bedrooms with one suite? Four smaller bedrooms? Decisions, decisions.  In the end, we decided on the three bedroom, two and a half bath option. We will have two guest bedrooms (taking reservations now) and a master suite. The master suite will have a large bathroom with a walk-in shower and an extra large walk-in closet. The later being the part of this project that H has become (oddly) obsessed with.


THE BASICS
On the first: garage, mud room, half bath, living room, kitchen, dining room and office (or breakfast nook).

On the second: guest bedroom (1), guest bedroom (2), full bathroom, laundry room, master suite, internal rooftop access. 

COLD HARD FACTS 
Year built: 1900 (technically the front wall is 112 years old, wowza!)
Square footage (approx): 2100 total, 1875 living
Width: 24'
Length: 42' (ish)
Levels: 2
Bed: 3
Bath: 2.5
Deck: 1 
Patio: 1
Garage: 1 car 
Estimated Date of Completion: August 1, 2012


It's a bit difficult to find a picture that correlates with this post and I'd hate to leave you without a something pretty to look at. So, here you go.


These pictures were taken yesterday just a block from our new spot.  Loving our colorful neighbors and especially that house wayyyy down at the end of the block...  

This last picture is dedicated to my Dad and the rest of my Pittsburgh family and friends. (xo) Here we go Steelers, here we go! (clap, clap)