The Shed

Did you see me casually throw in the fact that we built a little shed in my patio update post?? Oh yeah! We did. And it was hardly a "little" shed. Coming in at 5 1/2 feet wide, 7 1/2 feet long and just under 6 1/2 feet tall it's aptly named the Extra Large Extreme Storage Shed!

We got to work on this Sunday afternoon thinking it was going to take us a LONG time and lots of frustration, but it was surprisingly easy. Now when I say easy, please don't read quick. It still took us a good two hours to put everything together but there was never any question about what goes where or what is this part for. Not even any leftover pieces which is always a good sign!

Here she is in all her glory

started out with huge pieces like this:

and about two hours later:

standing on the outside edge of the patio- you can see her haning out back there, but most other places you can't even see it!

And it's amazing how much space we have regained in our garage! We can actually put in some cabinets or something!

Patio update #3

So here we are about a week later and the patio is about 90% done! Very exciting. Just as a run down this is what has been completed:

1. demo of old patio/ sidewalk
2. set forms/ pour/ stamp the pigmented patio
3. set forms/ pour the concrete for the sidewalk and side of house area
4. pour concrete pad site for our storage shed in back of the yard
5. replace & paint shingles on front of house
6. replace shingles in back of the house
7. Build said shed (more to come on that later)

Now all we have to do is finish priming/ painting all the shingles, get the grill re-installed to the gas line (after we decide exactly where it's going), put in the crushed granite around the gas meter and place patio furniture! Then in about 2 weeks they will come back to do a final seal of all the concrete!

That was a lot of work for one week! Here's where we are now:

pardon the debris- this was after a day of monsooning!

possible spot for the grill

cute little feet on the pergola and you can see the edge of where we'll be putting some crushed granite- we chose not to put concrete around the gas meter in case we ever needed access to it.

Where we need to finish painting- notice anything missing???

walkway from backyard gate to the driveway- this little area on the left will also be getting some crushed granite

and the new sidewalk- with no step! YAY

I'll be back soon with final pics!

patio update #2

The patio is poured and in the process of being stamped and it's looking awesome! I'm just going to let the pictures do the talking:

Forms in place

Concrete truck is ready!

And we pour!

starting the stamping process

Needless to say it was one LONG day of full of concrete! But it's amazing what a few tons of concrete can do for your backyard!



tweaks

So, in my long absence from blogging over the holidays I think I forgot to show everyone some of my gifts from Santa and the re-arranging that followed. Mainly, we got a new cabinet for our entry "hall" (really just a wall!) See the transformation below

First, here is out entry BEFORE:

And AFTER with the new console:

this is when it was still decorated for Christmas

This was one of my big gifts this year was very exciting for me. It's something I've been stalking on Home Decorator's Collection for a while, so I was pumped to find it on sale and with free shipping! Oh I mean Santa was pumped. It was actually even delivered before Christmas which allowed me to get it put together and decorate while I was off from work! And then re-arrange my whole house afterwards! P was so excited. . . but not really!

First off- this allowed me to get our DVDs out of sight- we were feeling a little like college kids with our DVDs on display

see them there over on the right hand side?

Then it allowed me to move our old entry table into the guest room. So we could move the very short and narrow table off this long wall.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

And I went ahead and updated the paper in the frame- I never really liked the way the flowers looked even though I do like the paper

something a little more sophisticated

for an overall effect:

Then I could use the DVD rack for my cookbooks and Sam's toys/ treats, etc in the kitchen

BEFORE:

*Sam's treats, etc sat on our bar which was always annoying

AFTER:

We are really loving all of the changes! Even if it took a whole Saturday to figure them all out!!