Sometimes...

You just have a rough day.

Love this little one.

Saturday

Austin will be on watch, it will be semi-rainy, and I am in full on nesting mode.

What does this mean?

That the tunes will be cranking as I tackle Spring Cleaning.

I will be taking some shortcuts from here.

If I am successful there will be photos of more of the house than just the front door, or half of our living room, or our bedroom available asap.

Wish me luck!

Shut the Front Door

As I alluded in my other post about our projects, we also recently took care of one of the projects that has been on my list since before we put an offer on this house. No, seriously.

It was one of the biggest things that I hated about our house.

This...

...Storm...

...Door.

I love our front porch. It is one of the things that sold us about this house. We love hanging out outside. We have updated the landscaping, added those shutters, changed the lighting, changed the house numbers, painted the bead board ceiling blue, and added cute little accents to make it welcoming.

But, that door.

Don't ask me why I hated it, I have no idea. I just thought it was ugly and needed to go.

I even tried to just update the door to live with it. I painted it red, hung a wreath with every season, bought new hardware, and highlighted the beautiful stained glass piece that the previous owners saved from the original house door.

But, that storm door. Ugh.

So, it was always on the list. Finally, Austin and I got around to going in and special ordering the door we really wanted (historic homes = special size, not found in stores doors). And last weekend, Austin and his dad started installing it.

I was so excited.

I took pictures. I did actually help a little...you know, reading instructions, finding "missing parts", etc.

The checked and re-checked measurements...

and checked some more...

I got bored and snapped this photo of my tea olives' growth. 

Yay for not killing plants! 

They measured some more...

I went and got them drinks and snacks...

They did some cutting and installing...
Did I mention we got to buy a hacksaw that day? 
It seems every project leads to a new tool purchase...

Installed all the locks and latches...and it worked!

 Doesn't it just look happier?

Also, please don't mind the reflection...

I was too excited to care about not being in the photo myself.

Before and After

Before

After

Our neighbors recently came over and told us how much they love it too. You wouldn't believe the amount of light that it lets into the living room now. Plus, the puppy, and someday baby, can see outside without jumping up on the door. Bonus.

I still want to add a door knocker of some sort under the stained glass, a la my YHL faves, just to balance things out a bit. And we need a new non-faded welcome mat. But all of that pales in comparison to this door being completed.

We love it.

...and it only took 20 months to get it done ;)

Bloggers, Bloggers everywhere

So, I have tons of new blogs from friends and family to share.

1. Dr. Lisa has started a fun new blog over at The Clinical Truth. She's three posts in on her spreading her wings as a psychotherapist with humor and I am hooked.

2. My dear friend Jess is being her true Southern self over at Grits & Gravy. She will tell you all about student affairs, cooking and hostessing, and of course, the Junior League. I thought I linked to this girlie a long time ago, but turns out I am a liar. Go check her out.

3. Allana has joined the blogging world! This young couple just moved to Lynchburg and are blogging their adventures at Our Long Life Together

4. My little bro (who is super cool and in a band that is playing here this weekend, if you happen to live in or near Minneapolis) has joined the blogging world as well. He doesn't really sleep, so you can catch him at the aptly titled Adventures through Awakeland: Insomniatic Tales


Or you can keep up with them via the links found over there -->


I'm out.

Outdoor Project Updates!

Well, we did get some project-ing done outdoors over the last few weeks. The biggest of which is our new storm door, which I am in lurve with. But thanks to Daylight Savings I could NOT get a good picture of the completed project this morning since it was still dark outside! Gah.

So that project will get its own post here soon. Yay!

In the meantime, here are some other things that we have added to the house/backyard.

To the right of the patio:

Raised bed for veggies and hanging planters for herbs. My veggies are starting from seeds inside at the moment, but my herbs have been moved out there since this photo was taken. 

I will get an updated one soon!

To the left of the patio:

Clothesline, which has since had the actually line added, and has a clothespin bag soon to be added as well...made by yours truly.

And, yes, I realize that our backyard needs desperately to be raked and that it looks like...well, dirt. But, those things (grass, landscaping, etc) are all in the works currently and believe me when I tell you that it is so.much.better than the graveled piece of land that used to be a parking space for classic cars.

Though some might think the classic car look is better.

Not me.

Music at Work

So, I have a very desk-oriented job. {read: I sit on my a$$ all day, though now that I am ku'd I have a recurring appointment on my calendar to get up and walk around every 20 minutes or so}

Besides contributing to stagnancy and weight gain {inner monologue: "how was I so skinny in grad school? I ate out all the time, didn't work out...oh yeah, but I walked.everywhere"}a desk job is actually really great for grooving to some tunes. When I first started, I was issued headphones like these ones, just like all my other coworkers.

Aren't they cute?

Well, a few weeks ago, word came down from the top that wearing these headphones and listening to music makes us look "closed off" from students or other employees wandering around. So these headphones went in the drawer. We could still listen to music {though that was touch and go for a while} but we would need to use ear buds. Much smaller and less imposing looking.

The only ear buds I have are the set that I keep in my car for when I go to the gym. I need them to go to the gym. I hate working out. Like hate it. Not when I am actually there, or the feeling after - that is great (yay endorphins), but the whole getting dressed for it and actually dragging my butt to the gym - no thanks. It takes serious motivation. That motivation exists in the fact that i can still watch Food Network nonsense programming while I am on the treadmill/elliptical. 

Yup, I am that girl.

I need a distraction so that I don't just think about how exhausted I am or how much that hurts or whatever. Even when I was running regularly, back in the good old TLC days, I was not that girl that was all "just me and the road". Hello iPod. I can't be alone with my thoughts! Are you crazy? That's why I read. 

I am totally mentally healthy, no worries.

So, the ear buds have stayed in the car. Little reminders in my center dash to go.to.the.gym.already. Now that they are in my office however, you can certainly believe that this music policy has not only contributed to my stagnancy, but to the fact that I will never go to the gym again. Its fate has been sealed.

Don't worry though, someone is getting a workout. Those big ol' headphones. Since they aren't allowed on my head, they are being stretched to their limits on my belly, so Baby G can enjoy the tuneage too.

I hope (s)he enjoys fratbeats.com

I am going to be the BEST mom.

Girl Scout Cookies

It is that time of year everyone, Cookie Booth time!

Cookie booths, for the uninitiated few, is the official term for those adorable little scouts you see hawking cookies in front of every place that you are trying to go during the month of march. Church, Sam's club...basically anywhere they will let you set up a table and the mom doesn't mind being all day in a lawn chair.

If you can't find one, don't worry - there's an app for that.

In any case, while we were doing our weekend projects we had to make our trip to the local Lowe's to grab some supplies. On the way in, there they were, two adorable little girls asking everyone who passed, "Would you like to buy some Girl Scout cookies?"

Immediately as I watched people brush by them with a brusque "No thanks" my heart went back to my own cookie booth experiences.

It was, of course, one thing to be rejected door to door. In those cases only your mom and that person knew that you had just had your cute little hopes for that ultimate grand prize bike dashed once again. But, in public? Standing there all day, trying again and again, and even some more, to sell those cookies? It was more than this little girl's heart could take - the constant rejection, the condescending "Aww isn't she sweet, but no thank you honey." It was the worst feeling that could ever crop up for a serious type-A-can-and-will-achieve-at-anything-striving-for-perfection-and-acceptance little girl.

Not that I know anything about that.

Which is why, even though I bought two boxes from my neighborhood Girl Scout already a few months back, I headed over to that table and coughed up $3.50 a box for some thin mints and tagalongs.

The smiles on those girls as they dutifully counted out my change and the look of thanks on that mom's face were totally worth it...besides, frozen thin mints? Downside? Anyone?

Just call me a victim of Girl Scout Guilt.