How a Class-A Piddler fills her time

I've had a couple of weeks of spare time since classes haven't started yet.  I spent a little time up at school last week, finishing some projects up there and will go up a few more times next week just to finish up before summer school starts.  I'm not working summer school this year--two other librarians wanted to do it and I like/trust both of them to leave the library in good shape.

The rest of my time mostly has been spent in the yard.  Admittedly, we don't have much yard to fuss with.  Most of it is xeriscape (rocks & native plants) and while the yard is about 12 x 12, it isn't real grass.  Throw in the patio and it doesn't leave much to do.  I've got a few pots although fewer than in years past and most of them are now filled with perennials so I don't have much to do in the spring in regards to replanting.  But, even with a low maintenance yard, there has still been enough to do the pass the time and fill up more than a few days.

I have had to do some replanting this year.  As happens with all living things, plants get old and die which is what happened to the Mexican feather grass that we had.  I wasn't a big fan of this grass, although I didn't know it when it was planted by the landscaping company six years.  I like the look of the grass-it's a wispy, happy little grass; I didn't like the little seeds that blew all over and all the little volunteer feather grass we had growing.  There were four of them that had all died over the winter.  I replanted one spot with a red yucca.  We've got three of them in the yard already.  Paul laughs that I get excited about the flower stalks every spring, as if I have anything to do with them.  But the yucca outside our front door has eight! this spring.  The new guy is little bitty--only a one-gallon plant--so it will be a year or two before it has a flower stalk.
The red yucca beside the front door.  See!  Eight flower stalks!  The other two well-established red yucca have four and one flower stalks respectively.
The new wee yucca just planted this spring.

Where the other three grasses had been, I planted some cheapy grasses I picked up at the grocery store when they had bedding plants for sale last month.  I'm thinking I'd like to do something that flowers there instead so I'm going to go to a native plants nursery and look at penstemon.  Since the flowering plants in the landscape are reds and purples, I'll probably get one of those two.  Or go crazy and get a combo of the two. There is actually another drip for a grass that died long ago that I never replaced. As I was studying it out this morning, I think I'll get a couple of grasses and a couple of penstemon. Maybe. I might be otherwise inspired when I get to the nursery. I also planted a new columbine plant called "Winky" that is red and white. No flowers on it yet but at least it's still alive.
The petunias beside the front door. The columbine is peeking out beside the second step (between the hose diverters).
A better picture of the columbine and a pot of portaluca/moss rose/whatever it's called.  We've had a nice amount of rain the past two weeks so I bought a downspout diverter.  It will probably not rain again for months.  I would really like to put a rain barrel at this downspout--it would collect rainwater from about half our roof.

I've spent quite a bit of time cutting back some plants that have gotten overgrown.  The chaste tree in the front was really thick but when I started trimming out some of the dead twigs and some larger limbs, I discovered a nest so I'm leaving it alone until fall.   The Apache plume in the backyard had gotten really big and unruly.  I was geekily excited this spring when I bought a hedge trimmer specifically for the Apache plume.  It looks goofy now because I cut out quite a bit of dead that was on the one side.  I think/hope it will fill back in.
The Apache plume in the back, pink gaura (whirling butterflies) in the front. The gaura is my favorite plant in the yard. There are two here at the side of the house and three more in the backyard. There were three others but they didn't do well since the spot I'd planted them is pretty shady.  I pulled those out earlier this spring and put in some shade-loving plants that supposedly have purple flowers.  Haven't seen those yet but they've only been in the ground a month or so.

I needed to move one of the large moss rocks and rearrange some river rocks to make a better spot for the portable hammock we got at Christmas.  Every year, we have issues with ants and as I was cleaning up the Apache plume, I noticed tons of ants swarming around.  As I was moving the river rock, I found out why--under some of the rocks were what I've determined to be cricket eggs.  Blech.  We'll be having fewer crickets this year (and hopefully fewer ants as well).  I was worried that it was cockroaches.  We've had some in the past few months which totally grosses me out since we've had maybe one in the previous nine years.  I know it's a result of living in a city but it makes me feel like a bad housekeeper.  My next task is to find an exterminator that is pet-friendly so I don't have to worry about the Jubinator.  (And I totally don't know why I just shared that about the cockroaches.)

While I was doing rearranging those rocks, I decided to add a couple more brick paver steps linking the front walk to the backyard.  The bricks edged the yard when we had real grass and I'd put in the other five several years ago. I'm not sure why I stopped--probably got tired and just never got back around to it until now.
The hammock fits perfectly. The two new steps are at the middle and end of the hammock. And you can see how goofy-looking the Apache plume is. Paul says it looks like a backwards comma. Here's hoping it fills in soon. I moved the pot of daylilies in front of it hoping the large gap wouldn't be as noticeable. I don't think it works.

Maybe I won't feel so bad when I kill them since they were "free"

Yesterday was Make a Difference Day and in the spirit of the day, about a dozen in the Junior League volunteered to help the ABQ Rose Society mulch the rose beds for the fall (there were other JLA groups doing other do-gooder stuff as well). It was a beautiful morning and what better way to a Saturday morning shoveling dirt and pushing wheelbarrows. Not that I do this at my own house on any given Saturday morning--perhaps if I had 10 other women lending a hand. . . .

I didn't realize how large the ABQ Rose Garden is--I think it's size is deceptive as it surrounds one of the public libraries in town. At least, I now know it is deceptive since I've spread mulch in about half the beds and realize how large the garden actually is. But we braved thorns and rose bushes that wanted to hurt us to do our good deed for the day. We worked for about three hours--in addition to the Rose Society and JLA, there was a group from the city so the work went fairly quickly. Here I am taking a break with my friend Devlyn (who hates having her picture taken--I had to strong-arm her into this one):

When we finished, the head person of the Rose Society mentioned she had extra rose bushes that were free for the taking. So I took two of these. I don't know why I took two. I'm mostly good at killing things and we don't have room in the yard for one rose bush, much less two rose bushes. But several members of the Rose Society told me that these should do fine in a planter on the patio and what I needed to do to keep them alive and so hopefully I'll be able to do so. If nothing else, my in-laws' neighbor Mrs. Green is a member of the Rose Society and perhaps willing to give free advice to a rose novice. Because that might be the only thing I get for free after taking these. (So far, my "free" rose bushes have cost me over $50 for two large planters. It's like my "free" cat I got 10 years ago.)

Furniture Ideas

Shortly after we got engaged, Paul made a request that we buy new furniture. Apparently, he felt the love seat and "ladies" (smaller sized) recliner I owned wouldn't cut it. And he did tend to hang over the edges of both whenever he stretched out. So began the hunt for a new couch. We ended up finding a couch and love seat we liked that was on clearance because it had been the floor model at a local furniture store. It fit the priorities at the time--within our (limited) budget, big enough for Paul to stretch out on, wasn't plaid.

But now, some eight years later, it's time to retire this first big purchase of ours. The couch and love seat never fit quite right into our teeninesy living room. And honestly, I've gotten rather tired of them. I'm not one for modern or contemporary--nothing too sleek--but I'm done with how overstuffed this overstuffed couch is. So, now I'm on the hunt for new living room furniture as our anniversary/Christmas gift. We're thinking to get a sofa and two chairs, possibly recliners. Maybe two stationary chairs with an ottoman. Really, the possibilities are endless until we just settle into that perfect seat.

I have a specific look in mind for what I want my house to feel like--Paul calls my decorating style "rusted metal and old things." But really, I like a warm, cozy, inviting, a "casually elegant" space where you just want to curl up on the couch with a blanket and read. Or spend an evening in front of the roaring fireplace with a glass of wine, a couple of friends, talking endlessly and playing board games. Create interesting vignettes on the coffee table and mantel with pictures and found objects from our travels and little out-of-the-way antique stores. Except we don't travel that much. And I'm really not that fond of clutter and tchotckes just sitting around although I will fill every inch of wall space. Paul doesn't understand the beauty of my few well-placed items so everything gets pushed aside or stuff is piled on top of it. Also, we have a gas fireplace that doesn't really create a roaring affect. . .

But I can still go for warm, cozy, and inviting (and durable since I live with Paul and Jub). Paul has declared that all furniture stores make him sleepy (and make me quite irritated with him) so I'm going to strike out on my own this weekend to look and then drag him out for the final OK later. It can be difficult to find furniture that fits both of us because of the foot difference in our heights. I snuggle cozily into a chair and Paul hangs over all the edges. He finds a chair that fits perfectly and I look like Edith Ann. (And that's the truth!)

After perusing the Lane furniture site, I've found some definite maybes. All warm, cozy, and small enough to fit in my tiny living room. That's been the main issue I've found while looking at furniture sites--we have to have "studio" or "apartment" scale furniture because my living room is roughly the size of a matchbox. If a matchbox had 2o-foot ceilings.

The possible sofa: Comfy, cozy, and three cushions so your hind-end doesn't fall into the crack when you're napping.

If we go the recliner route: Two of these in a different fabric (although I do like the shown fabric, Paul would probably vehemently object).

Or another possible route: Is it a club chair? Is it a recliner? No! It's BOTH!

And just for good measure (but not because I think I can convince Paul we need it), maybe we can throw in a new dining room table.

I'm fairly certain some of our guests will agree with Paul

I recently found the new comforter for the guest bedroom. The color of the room--a blue-green turquoise that is darker in person than it photographs--definitely narrowed my choices. I really can't remember what the world was like before Internet shopping--all that endless time spent driving from store to store. No more. I searched various stores online and narrowed my choices to a few at Linens 'n Things. One I really liked wasn't available for full beds--darn that Nate Berkus. Another selection had a blue that I think would look bad with the wall color. So through the process of elimination, this was my final selection. Paul suggested that this one might be "a bit girly" with all the flower patterns. I can only imagine what he would have said had I brought home the coordinating sheets with the pretty pink posies embroidered on the edge (although I did purchase the pillow cases). But I like my choice--it's bright and cheery. Like me. :)

The dresser in the background was made by Paul's paternal grandfather, Ralph. Ralph was a principal at various schools in rural Kansas. During the Great Depression, he often filled vacant teaching positions himself--this dresser, complete with cedar drawers, was made while he was a woodshop teacher. It was given to us by Paul's parents shortly after we married when we were in need of furniture (apparently the French Provincial set I'd owned since I was seven was "a bit girly" for Paul). It's definitely my favorite piece of furniture that we own.

Projects

I ordered one of these last fall with our last name (um, duh) and recently decided to get all decorator-y and hang up family pictures around it (combining what Paul says are two of my favorite things--pictures and putting holes in the walls). There are two single-matted frames, two double-matted frames and one triple-matted frame. It was hard to narrow it down to just nine photos--I'd still like pictures of us as children, ones of our nephews since we selected some with our nieces, maybe one with Paul's brother. Paul said we could always rotate these pictures out. I thought we could just add a few more frames (you know, to put a few more holes in the wall). I'm thinking two or three more on either side of the ones I now have hanging. Maybe do 5x7's or even go crazy with the 8x10's. Dunno.... Anywho, these were copied into 4x6 black and whites and framed in black with white mats. For family/those who have been to the house, I've hung these on the hallway wall just opposite the kitchen. (It's a hard place to get a decent photo because of the angle--just use your imagination).

A "classic"--Paul and Jeff ham it up after Alan and Julie's wedding. This picture is totally staged--neither of them sing or play a musical instrument.
From our trip to CA last March. This is one of my favorite pictures of Paul because he's really smiling which is hard to get him to do when there is a camera around.
I like this picture from Abigail's first birthday because it's the women in my family--from left it's Grandmother, cousin Emily, me, Mom, Gran, Donna, and Amy. The birthday girl (who's 4th birthday was Wednesday) is on the table, sticking her foot in the cake. Yum.
In Lubbock on the Texas Tech campus--in front of the statue of Will Rogers and Soapsuds on a football game day. (For those non-Techsans, the statue is always wrapped in red crepe paper before every home football game. And the rear-end of the statue supposedly angles toward Texas A&M. Because we hate the Aggies.)
Of course I had to include a picture of this guy.
A favorite picture of an 8-month-old Abigail--it always makes me laugh.
My parents at the 2000 Balloon Fiesta--the hat over my Dad's shoulder belongs to Paul. (I think I'm going to trade this picture out for one take more recently--the one of you and Dad on the cruise, Mom.)
Paul's grandmother and our niece Sarah at the 70th wedding anniversary celebration last June (we could also call this one "what Sarah will look like in 87 years").
Paul's parents in Austria with the church choir a few years ago. Paul asked them to bring him back a boomerang--I think they thought he was seriously confusing Australia and Austria.

My other project (well, one of many but the one started today) is taking down the doors on the cabinets above the stove/microwave to create a bookshelf for my cookbooks. We'll have to get Paul's dad over to help us, though. The center bar was both screwed in and glued in. We don't want to damage it in case we need/want to put it all back together some day. So, it's FIL to the rescue.

Next up, finally put on the knobs and pulls we bought for the cabinets, oh, two years ago. We definitely cannot be accused of getting in a hurry about projects. Also in the queue, I had enough fabric leftover from the dining room chair project so I'm going to sew a cushion for the bench by the front door. And maybe, finally, do the window covering project I've been mulling over for a while. I'm also on the lookout for new bedding for the guest room, which I've been updating a bit because that repainting project I did when Paul was out of town? Yeah, it didn't work. It was a cheap, cheap, cheap side table I was painting so it's not a real loss. Last weekend, I bought a new side table, which lead to some new accessories, which eventually result in new bedding.

After my recent guest room shopping spree (which really wasn't a "spree"--more like a "sp"), Paul asked if I'm OK--I think he's worried that this recent burst of activity is because I'm feeling blue again. I'm not. Although the recent worry/stress in life has caused interesting dreams, I'm actually feeling good. I'm happy. Some days are better than others for Paul and me but I think that's typical for any marriage (heck, any relationship). But I'm not needing to keep busy because I've got the overwhelmed feelings of last fall. It's just a burst of energy to get some stuff done around the house. I could probably sit on the couch for a few minutes and it would completely pass. But, darn it, I finally want to get those knobs on my cabinet doors.