Monkey Love

That is one happy monkey. 

(Pardon my pasty white leg)

Instafriday

It's time for another Instafriday, hosted by Jeannette at Life Rearranged.

J and I had a fun little Happy Hour last Wednesday with one of the new kids from work. Sometimes small gatherings are so much more fun than large ones.

My sexy man

We had some excitement to start off the weekend.  We were working in the yard and had opened the gate to get the hose at one point... About ten minutes later, I happened to glance over and realized the gate was still open! Gidget was standing, looking out at the street, but no Dozer to be found. For those of you that have been around awhile, you may remember that Dozer is male dog aggressive, so I was freaking out, thinking he would hurt somebody's dog!

I started walking around the neighborhood, talking to the neighbors, and no one had seen him... J brought Gidget to me to see if we could "track him" and he hopped in his truck to look farther and quicker. I called 911, they gave me the non-emergency line, the lady answers the phone and... here comes Dozer, trotting across the yard two houses down, wagging his tail, big ole grin on his face. Oh. My. God. Pretty anti-climactic, but an excellent end to a traumatic 15 minutes.

I took this picture as soon as we got him back in the house. He looks pretty tuckered out, no?

Sunday we headed over to my aunt and uncle's house for lots of food and fireworks. I made this Wave Your Flag Cheesecake for the party and it turned out fabulous! It was quick and easy and super-delicious.

I woke up Monday morning to this scene at the end of the bed.  Dozer doesn't realize he is not a poodle and apparently Gidget doesn't mind that she's about to be crushed.  He LURVES his seeester.

I got new pulls for the built-in's in the dining room. They are fabulous and I love them! I still have to paint the cabinet doors and the frame... Someday.

J has all of the crown moulding up and patched in the dining room.  He is apparently unhappy with the way the wood filler dried though, so I haven't been able to paint yet. Not sure what his plan is, but I hope he carries it out soon. I have yet to unpack practically anything, cause lots of my stuff is fragile, he has already knocked something over and broken it, so I wanted to wait until we were finished in the dining room to start unpacking. Alas, the project seems never ending.

What have you been up to in the last week? Probably more than us! lol 

Do you use Instagram? My user name is Oonafey, join me! Have you checked out all the other Instafriday posts over at Life Rearranged?

Quick Fix: Stove Update

I don't have a great shot of it, but the stove in my kitchen was two-toned.

This was annoying for two reasons; 1. the white on it was more of an ivory and it looked dated, 2. my other appliances are all black and it seemed awkward and out-of-place, like everything else had been updated and the stove was forgotten.

Saturday morning I had a haircut and I came home to this:

I don't know much about electronics and technology and all that, but I never would have thought the inside of a glass-topped stove would look like this!

Again, please forgive the fuzzy pictures, I still don't have a camera...

J took the entire stove apart, cleaned everything well, taped off the stove top and sprayed everything with this Rustoleum Appliance Epoxy from Home Depot.

It's amazing what a difference it makes!

It really does look like a brand new stove and I couldn't be more thrilled with the results! Start to finish the project took about 2 hours active time (dismantling, cleaning, painting, reconstructing) and he let the pieces dry for about 8 hours before putting it back together.

As you can see, I haven't started on painting the kitchen yet, although I do have the colors chosen and a tentative plan in place. We have been busy focusing on the dining room. The walls are finished, the ceiling is almost finished (we ran out of paint on the last coat, so I had to get another Quart), the medallion for my chandelier is painted (the paint crackled, so it had to be sanded down and repainted, then the dogs both stepped on it the second time it was drying!), he put the first coat of paint on the crown moulding on Saturday, and I *think* I have decided on curtains. Maybe it will be sorta finished by the end of the month!

Oh, and while I was out Saturday morning for my haircut I stopped by World Market. They have some really great products right now, I seriously could have spend hundreds (at least) on all the fab stuff I saw! Check out this gorgeous chair:

It was on sale for $179.00 and it was super-comfortable! I just love the colors and the little turned-wood legs, so precious.

I have been wanting this lamp for months after seeing it on the website:

But I hate the fact that it has a high-gloss finish. It's supposed to look time-worn and distressed, but then it's shiny? That doesn't work for me. It's looks matte online.

These dining chairs are gorgeous:

I love the ethnic vibe they have, but it wouldn't be overpowering. Plus, they are fairly reasonably priced for being solid, heavy wood with beautiful detailing.

I bought some fabric napkins that I had planned on turning into curtains for the kitchen, but then I got home and second-guessed myself, so they are still in the bag... Maybe they need some pom-pom trim or something to jazz them up and make them look less like napkins? I can't find them on their website, but they have a chartreuse background with pink, fuchsia, yellow, and teal floral designs on them. The problem I have with them is the stem details are dark brown and my cabinets and appliances are black. I HATE mixing black and brown (in my own home) and I really just hate brown in general, unless it's wood, leather, or a dog.
So I think I may return them for these instead. They still have the deep teal I need to bring in the dining room wall color and the yellow from the future kitchen walls, plus the brown seems to be minimal in this design. And the orange is really fun!
Although, I really love this design too, but they didn't have them in my store and I am afraid they will be too pastelly compared to the dining room. The yellow in the kicthen is going to be more of a pale, buttery yellow, so the curtains really need to *pop* to bring in some of the strong color from the dining room walls.

What do you think? What projects are you working on now? Anything you're trying to accomplish that's currently sucking up all your brain capacity? Do you tend to over-think every decision you make and everything you bring home?

Instafriday

It's that time again! Since I still can't seem to get back into the swing of things (work has been crazy, Dozer broke out of his impenetrable den, G wrecked his motorcycle and I had to go pick him up from the emergency room at 3 am), here's a snapshot into my life...

I've been contemplating cutting down these big bushy things in front of my house, then they went and bloomed. Any idea what it is? My real estate agent thought they were Lilac bushes when we looked at the house, but that is obviously not a bloom from a Lilac bush!

The three inherited hydrangeas behind the house have finally started to bloom, each plant showing multiple colored blooms!

Blue

Lilac and Green

Hot Pink on same bush as the first Blue

I have always had a thing for gargoyles. When I lived in an apartment I had a "Welcome" sign on the front door that depicted gargoyles. As soon as I picked this house, I just knew the front posts on the porch would be perfect for my very own gargoyles!

Forgive my inexpert way of covering up my address and the obvious need for tuckpointing.

I have a second one on order for the left side, which should be available for pickup tomorrow. I just love him. I know they are not for everyone, but every time I open the front door, he makes me smile. They will need names, though... Any ideas?

My new boy, J, had a bad day at work yesterday, plus some ex-girlfriend drama (which I can completely sympathize with), so I decided to make him chocolate chip cookies! Can you believe I had never made chocolate chip cookies? I told his buddy that and he was all "That's un-American!" lol

I used this recipe from Martha and they turned out really great! They are still squishy this morning, which is important, since I HATE crunchy cookies.

I just love this nail polish color, My Lifesaver, from (can you believe it?) Justin Bieber for Nicole.

It's my favorite and I get so many comments on it!

I can't seem to keep the dogs off the bed, no matter how many times I tell them "Get in your bed". They do, then they come right back to my bed as soon as they think I'm not looking...

Who could say "No" to that face?!


Well, that my week in a nutshell. We finished painting the dining room, but I still haven't found my camera and J still hasn't found the power cord for his camera and my iPhone is throwing the color WAAAAY off, so I still don't have pictures. Plus, I haven't decided on drapes and the crown moulding is not up yet... Someday.

See all the other Instafriday posts here.

Instafriday

I saw this cute new post idea from Jeannette via Lindsey @ The Pleated Poppy. I'm having a hard time getting back into the swing of regular blogging, between the craziness of trying to get the house in order, some boy drama (past, not present), getting Dozer settled in, and just generally trying not to go nuts from it all... I though this would be a good, simple way to get at least one post a week out and keep things sort of updated... Especially since I STILL can't find my camera. I actually have two cameras and both seem to have gone on walkabout. Gah.

I did some shopping at Homegoods on Tuesday and couldn't help taking a pic of me with my new fabulous Kate Spade purse! (Which I totally shouldn't have bought, seeing as I can barely afford my house as it is...)

But I figure it all balances out, really. That skirt is about 6 years old and it's from New York and Company, the T is Old Navy, and the sandals are from TJ Maxx.

My mom, J, and I hit up the Gypsy Caravan on Monday. I was pretty disappointed and thought last years wares were much more impressive. I did manage to get one shot of a fab booth.

I really wish I had picked up some of those purple bottles, but I forgot to bring cash! Ridiculous, I know. I am a terrible flea market, thrift shopper. I felt silly asking to borrow money for some old, dirty bottles... Neither of them fully appreciate dingy, crap quite like G did...

Dozer is officially a resident in our new home. I picked up his crate on Tuesday. I think he'll be plenty happy here.

My parents wanted to know how Dozer and the new boy were getting along...

I think a picture is truly worth a thousand words in this case.


What random scenes have you captured on your phone camera lately?

Inspection Frustration

So the house still didn't pass county inspection... Boo. Hiss. 

I was never given a list of things that needed to be fixed. I was, however, given the impression that everything was being taken care of by the seller. I was told there were four problems: cast iron plumbing needed to be fixed (done), there was a leak in the gas water heater (done), there was a broken window pane in the basement that needed to be replaced (done), and the utility room in the basement needed to be vented (done). So it takes the seller's agent another week (!) after this is all done to get the inspector out to the house, who then tells my father (I can't afford to take any more time off work right now, plus my parents are the greatest) that there was a list of electrical things that needed to be fixed as well (not done). Bastards. So it failed. 

Luckily the guy I am currently dating is an electrician and had all the (minor) problems fixed lickety-split!

Not so luckily, the inspector can't make it back out to the house until Tuesday!!! And since I'm not supposed to be staying in the house, I can't bring Dozer's giant crate over until after the inspection... Grr. I've got him again this weekend cause his daddy's going camping, so it'll be interesting to see how we work around not being able to leave him in the house and the temps being in the 80's (no leaving him in the car, either). Frustrating. 

We did get a coat of paint on the ceiling of the dining room though. No mean feat, considering I've been sick and have gotten the new guy (let's call him J) sick. Whoops. 

Helpful!

Here is the first coat with the DR light off:

Forgive the craptastic dreary morning iPhone pics... I still can't find my camera. 

And with my new DR chandelier all lit up:

It's just one coat and is for sure needs at least one more coat, but I think it will be a fun, blingy contrast to the peacock walls I'm hoping for. You can see two of the contenders under the window there. Oh, and we had to install the chandelier for the inspector... Obvs it's coming back down before we paint some more. 

Not sure what's going to get done over the weekend, but hopefully something!

Boxes, Boxes Everywhere

I thought you might like a little peek into the ridiculous disaster that is my current living situation.

Here's the view from the front door into the DR

If you look right instead of straight ahead 

The "Office"/ 2nd Bedroom, view from the living room

"Office"/ 2nd Bedroom, view from the Master Bedroom end (if you look carefully you will see a sad pittie in her crate)

Master Bedroom

I want to paint the bedroom, so I am hesitant to bring the bookshelves in yet, so everything is in still in boxes and piles. Plus, I want to upholster the bed and it seemed silly to put it together just to take it apart to upholster it, so none of my under-the-bed storage is in use, so I can't find anything and everything is a big, huge, GIANT cluster... Ahhhhh!!!

The Breakfast Nook

I bought new pendants, but need to paint the ceiling before I can hang them...

Rest of the Kitchen

I have the paint for the bottom half of the walls (BM White Dove, why mess with a solid choice?) and the millions of holes have been spackled, so we shall see what I accomplish this weekend. Probably not much... Tonite I have dinner with my parents, tomorrow a friend of the ex-Mr.'s (who will heretoforth be know as G) and I is having a get-together and he will be out of town, so I feel like I should go, and Sunday I have to go out to the old house and play with Dozer for a while. I may bring him back to the house for a while to start getting him acclimated. G has decided that it would be best for Dozer if I take him! *happy dance* But unfortunately I don't even have an occupancy permit yet (shhhh), so I can't bring Dozer's big oak containment crate (which I have big plans for, that involves lots of paint and some chicken wire!) over just yet. A few things didn't pass the sellers inspection at the last moment and they were still in the process of fixing them, but they are done now, so hopefully Monday.

The disaster of my DR

You can see a table under all that if you look close! I didn't even want the table and chairs, but G's mom got him an antique maple DR set complete with a 6 foot long sideboard/buffet... Exactly what I've been looking for, I speculate, and I find it highly suspect that she just suddenly came across this great, awesome deal now... ; D   I bought a chandy for the DR and the paint for the ceiling, so job #1 needs to be move all this shit downstairs into the basement so's I can get my paint on.

I found this amazingly hideous piece of wonderment at a junk/antique store in Grafton a few weeks back and I couldn't leave it behind!

It's hand embroidered and signed from 1973! The colors are beyond amazing and are my inspiration for the house. I know, it's ugly, but I think it's super-fun and I just love that it's one of a kind! Plus, it's like Puck or something! Surely that adds a little sophistication to it, right?! That's what I thought.

I plan on putting it in the DR, right on the side of the Bergsbo cabinet.

I haven't decided if I'm going to paint the frame or leave it gold... I'm afraid any other color with detract from the embroidery. Although it does have an equal amount of silver thread in it, so maybe I'll silverleaf it.

What do you think I should tackle first? Can you believe I've been here two weeks and have accomplished next-to-nothing? Go me! Score one for the laziest girl in the world!