killer squash

This is the zucchini that I found in the garden. It is HUGE. I made a quiche with 6 cups of slices, and also set aside 2 cups of shredded to make muffins tomorrow. That's after I cut out a lot of the middle section with the seeds that were the size of pumpkin seeds!

Wallpaper Saga

There is wallpaper in the upstairs hallway that we wanted to take down. Easier said than done.

We pulled on the paper, and it came down pretty easily! Yay, this will be easier than we thought!

But wait -

There's more...

Ok...ugly brown paper is a little more difficult to take down, but still do-able.

awww....nooooo.....

there's a THIRD layer...

from the 1950s! (I think...maybe the 60s?)

And BOY is that stuff hard to get off the wall! We're vinegar and watering this bad boy (which does not make the hallway smell very good).

This wallpaper is right on top of the drywall-which is not cool.

I'll let you know how it goes.

pics from the house

Here are some over-due pics from the work on the house:

Our supercool wetbar area in the basement (it has some more stuff on it now):

Old colors of the kitchen cabinets:

Cabinet doors on the garage floor waiting to be painted-the drawer has been painted the new color:





Old yucky countertop in the basement:

Tiles that we will be putting over the yucky countertop:

Futon I picked up down the street for $45. We have gotten a new slipcover for it, and it's in our living room.

New paint for the alcove in the bedroom:

Does anyone else think potatoes?

This is one of the headlines from the Boston Channel.com (channel 5).

Missing Tubers Rescued from River

I honest-to-God thought they were talking about potatoes before I read the article.

house update

We're in!
Sorta...

Most of our stuff (there's a few random things left at the apartment-and boy do I mean random) is in the house. It's not put anywhere in particular, mind you, but at least it's here. Most of the things are in the correct room, or the general area. We're sleeping on a mattress on the floor, seeing as how we haven't put the bed back together.

We also have cable/internet/and a phone. Well that's a lie, we have a phone line but not an actual phone. So I suppose it's perfectly pointless. I guess I have to add phone to the list of things I have to get tomorrow - along with shelf paper, since 3 rolls of the sticky crap aren't enough for all of the shelves to be lined - who knew?

Also of note - we couldn't figure out how to get mattress and boxspring up the stairs - didn't seem like it would fit, until the little bro realized there was a piece of loose molding, which came off easily in his hands, and was obviously how the previous owners had gotten their mattress out of the house. (good thing we didn't opt for the king-sized bed)

A special thanks will definitely have to go out to my little bro, my aunt, my parent- in-laws, and our good friend from up in the Lowell area (you know who you are) for helping us with the long and tedious task of moving.

Just when I thought it was done - oh yeah - we have to unpack these #@($&#*@ boxes too!

She will be loved - Buena vista social club

Another fun song to share with you.

Clocks Buena vista social club

I heard this several times in Aruba - I thought it was pretty cool, and thought you might like to listen too! :-)

House Update

I'm too tired to post pictures, so maybe there will be some in tomorrow's post.

I painted one wall in the bedroom alcove green - the gallon of paint only cost $5, it was in the mistake bin at Home Depot - it looks great! I have to finish a couple more walls, but needed a step stool to get the tape up.

I bought a futon from a guy down the street, and he drove it to my house and even helped me move it into the basement! Too bad it's WAY too big for the room, and the boy and I are just going to have to move it again, but it was very nice of him!

I have put two coats on the fronts of most of the kitchen cabinets. Hopefully I can finish the backs tomorrow. One of the cabinets is a slatted door (I think I might have just made up a word there, but you get the idea) - it's a PAIN to paint in between all the slats.

I measured the living room and the family room to make little graph paper diagrams to figure out where to put the furniture.

Oh yeah...and my streak is still alive...everytime I move, I get pulled over. without fail. I am proud to say I have never received a ticket though.

Now it's time for bed.

Happy Birthday to me!

What did I get for my birthday you ask?

Why...

I got a...

HOUSE!

:-D

We spent the day signing papers, cleaning, and cleaning, and moving some stuff, and cleaning some more.

Here are some before shots of the downstairs of the house. I took these pics before we did anything to the house. I was going to take some after pics, but it was dark, so you couldn't really see anything.

I'll take more photos tomorrow during the daylight, and you'll be able to see more.

Den:

Dining Room:

Den:

Kitchen:

I took the most photos of the kitchen, because that's where I will be doing the most work in the next couple of days (mostly paint).

Stay tuned for more! :-)

packing and packing and packing

Everytime I pack a box or two or theree, I think I'm getting somewhere...then I look around...and there's MORE to pack....

The living room is almost completely full of boxes - floor to ceiling, wall to wall to wall to wall.

Today I visited with my grandmother in the rehab hospital in Andover - it's nicer than most hotels I have stayed in! How do I get in?? (just kidding!) She seemed to be in pretty good spirits, and was happy to see the honeymoon photos I brought by with the boy's portable DVD player.

Then I went home to get some boxes to pack up my place. We ordered some pizza while I was home - mmm...veggie deep dish from Mandee's - I forgot how good that is! Mom gave me (hopefully) more boxes than I need, there's a lot.

Home again home again, jiggity jig, and I started using some of those boxes. I also made the boy dinner (he wanted - pizza, of course) so I mostly ate salad.

Anyways, tomorrow is the first day of summer work. It shouldn't be too bad - Mon-Wed 8:15-11:45. Then I have to go back home to Groveland to get copies of the marriage license.

wedding pics

our cake - isn't it pretty? The bride - that's me!
Cutting the cake - do you see the Alfred Hitchcock - like shadow behind the boy? :-)

For more pics check out my Shutterfly site.

JFK is scary

Not the president - the airport.

This is why I don't like flying in/out of there.

I have had to do it now four times in my lifetime - and that is four times too many. It's crowded, too busy, and just plain bad.

On the way back from the HONEYMOON, we were taxiing for an hour waiting while 25 planes went in front of us.

Just as a restatement from earlier - I do not have a problem with our 35th president.