Dining Room Blinds Version 4.OhMyHead

One kid ago I set out to make dining room curtains.  I was motivated to make them myself instead of buy them because:

• I could choose whatever fabric I wanted
• I could choose the style curtain/blind I wanted
• I thought it might save some money (fabric coupons go a long way)
• I don't remember the other thoughts because when I started it was awhile ago

Initial post beginning this ridiculous and unnecessary curtain journey:  Ladies and Gentlemen A Curtain

Here are the curtain versions if interested in:

1.0

Lesson learned- this tie up curtain was cute but wanted something I could raise and lower in seconds.  It was lowered every evening to keep sun out of eyes while at the dinner table.  Plus the fabric needed some help not looking bunched and messy when quickly tied up (probably my somewhat heavy fabric choice to blame).  Would maybe be better in a room where it did not need to be raised and lowered so much.  I also decided I wanted cleaner looking lines.

2.0

Lesson learned- you can't just put loops and strings on the back of any fabric square and it will look good when raised and lowered.  This design when raised would just bunch up into a mess at the top.  I had to create the folds by hand to make it look somewhat normal when in the raised position.  Again, not what I wanted in a curtain I was raising and lowering daily.

3.0

Don't have a picture because it was ugly.

4.0

The current shade (roman shade).  Still not perfect when quickly raised.  Fabric still will  fold backwards when raised (instead of forward creating the nice over lap folds in the front).  I am happy enough.... for now.  

Just for reference this is what the back looks like.  Tube tape, dowels to keep things from bunching and string threaded through.  If it worked great I would share more tips, but I am still in need of some tips myself.  Like I said, for now it is good enough.

Overall lessons learned- lots learned.... so I consider the overall process a gain for the brain, but was not the way I preferred to spend my 'free' time.

Saturday progress on the basement, ceiling is up.  Thankful for friends help.

This weekend hubby and I plan to put up some walls.  Don't worry, not figuratively speaking.

More details in another post on the over all construction/progress of this basement that used to flood every rain storm.

Springing My Thoughts Forward

The past few weeks have shown promising signs that spring is actually coming.  The snow is starting to melt!  We still have at least 1.5 feet on the ground, NOT counting the drifts and banks, but slowly we will get there.
As is my usual custom on sunny days I went out and looked at the garden.  Though I don't want to disturb muddy soil, I am considering shoveling the raised bed box and an area to start the spring crops....

and also the asparagus bed.-

Yes, I have a patience problem!  (I said that even before you got the accusatory thought through you head.)

We're also planning on what to plant.  I want to focus this year on things that can be preserved easily into the winter.  Such as root vegetables and items that can be canned: such as beans, tomatoes products and pickle worthy products.  I suddenly hear these peoples voices-

Portlandia episode: We Can Pickle That

I am happy to share that I am STILL cooking with tomatoes from last years garden.  It is extra work at the time but has been worth it to have those summer garden tomatoes for meals throughout the winter (I use mine instead of store bought canned crushed tomatoes and also to make tomato soup).

I am still working on perfecting my sweet potato growing operation here in the north east.  It is very doable, Victory Garden does it all the time.... maybe it's that regal sounding intro music they like.  Sweet potatoes like warm soil (typically about 120 days of warm soil) so I attempt to speed up the soil warming by mounding up the dirt and covering it with a black tarp in the beginning of the season.  Tarp has to be taken up shortly after vines are in so they can put down additional roots.

Short season varieties have done best for me.  The past few years I have been planting this lovely heirloom variety that was graciously shared with me by the Seaton family in Tennessee.  These potatoes have been passed down through many generations in their family.  They yield huge tubers and LOTS of vines and greenery (did you know that sweet potato leaves are edible).

My kids like digging for them, it's like an easter egg hunt.  We even enrolled a friend.

The Seaton's heirloom variety is different from what you find in the stores and, do I even need to say it, taste much better.  There's a lot of special things about an plant variety passed down through the years; specifically the history and the care it takes to keep it going.  Makes them more special to me.  I think I will name them the Seaton Sweets. :)  I was able to grow some slips (seedlings grown from a tuber) from last year's crop, I hope they will make it to planting season.

I promised last summer I would make a post about biochar, what it is and how to make it.  This is one of Jonathan's things he is proud of.  He claims it is why we get such good tomatoes, maybe he is right.  I will try and make a post on that still.

A few other notes from last year's garden.
Little man is looking forward to picking off potato bug larvas this year, well at least give them a guilty stare.... if only looks could kill.

Little lady will enjoy playing in the dirt again I am sure.

Looking forward to seeing more pigtails, BOTH kinds-

I'm also looking forward to doing more pickling and food preserving experiments.  Lime pickles, an old recipe from my grandma (who I miss), was a hit this year.

One of Jonathan's friends gave me a quick lesson on how his grandmother cans tomato/pasta sauce, the way they did in the Old Country.  Old Country is Italy for those not sure, old country to me is something sung by Waylon Jennings or David Allan Coe.  Oh, the things I am learning.

Enough daydreaming for now, I am getting both tired and excited just thinking of it all.

The Snowman That Will Not Go Away

We once built a snowman
That was a pretty fun day
But he has started to wear out his welcome
That snowman that will not go away

We giggled after the second snowstorm
Seeing his new skirt and pretending he liked ballet
He was still fun to have around then...
That snowman that will not go away

After the third snowstorm he caught my eye one morning
He seemed to be swimming laps as if to say
Don't worry I'm enjoying myself here
Because I am the snowman that will NOT go away

He even is a little nosey
Peeking in at us though out the day
It seems we have a squatter!
It's that snowman that WILL NOT go away

Now he is nice and cozy
Settled in and seemingly here to stay
Maybe in the spring when we see him again and laugh
At the thought of the snowman, who would NOT go away

(Our yard guest was originally built about 3.5-4' tall, but he keeps getting taller.  The elements are definitely in his favor.)

Another Project Done!!

I am one step closer to becoming Americas Top.... oops, let me switch to the reality part of my brain.....
I am one step closer to having the dining room complete.  Big deal my friends, BIG. DEAL.

The latest completion- walkthrough painted and I made a growth chart ruler!

I set myself to completing something since I needed a bit of a mood lift.  This was Monday-

We got about another 10".  Don't get me wrong, I like snow.  I like to play in the snow.  It just limits outdoor activities somewhat, we try to be creative though.

So completing something on my to do list always lifts my spirits.  The kids like the ruler too-

Notice in the, background baby girl unloading the colored pencils, the illusion of my clean home is ruined (not that I mind, otherwise I would not have pointed it out)-

Kids love marking and seeing their growth.  Also, another good thing about the ruler is we can take it with us if we ever move.

Here was the before; old woodwork is stained pine.

We learned that you have to paint a 'seal' over the knots otherwise this will happen (this is our living room cabinets)-

The Kilz we had on hand didn't do the job, we used B-I-N Shallac Base Primer and it seems to have worked.
You see here, the stain that wasn't fully sanded away is seeping through our primer coat (before we used B-I-N)-

Ugh, so much prep just to get something painted correctly.  Remember how much I hate painting, my last whine about it HERE.
Also note, that I slightly cringe at painting wood white.  I like the clean look of white but DO prefer the natural look of wood more, just not pine.  We are trying to keep as much natural wood as makes sense.

The natural wood ruler does add some nice texture here-.

Also, it was easy to make.

• Bought thin boards (I think red oak) for a low profile and easy to tack flush to the wall
• Applied a few layers of Satin Finish
• Marked lines with a black sharpie
• Pause for a motorcycle race

• Used Century font as a template to trace the number (or could stencil them), again used a sharpie

To end, here is a detail in the Dining Room I could use input.  We had to rip out all our old trim, if you remember.  Jonathan replaced it and now we are left with a gap and exposed raw edge at the top-

Cutting a piece of trim at an angle (to form a wedge to finish the end) will not work because of the angle of the trim.  The wedge piece would angle downward instead of perpendicular into the wall.  Too big for a filler like caulk..... 

Any ideas please!!!!

Basement electrical and lights should be installed (by hubby and a friend) next weekend so we can get back to work on the new playroom.  I am SUPER pumped about that.  We also budgeted out our other updates for the year.  I am very excited to share them with you as we get to them. :)

Snow Clothes, Snow Pics

Snow can be great, it really can.  Getting young kids ready to go out in the snow can be great------ly difficult.  Some people joke it takes more time getting everyone ready than you end up staying out-

<Start Timer>
Before my kids put on their snowsuits they demanded to see which suit was bigger, they did not believe me.  Here they are comparing them to see which is longer.
Total time spent: 8 minutes

 Next little lady demanded that I NOT help her put her suit on.
Total time I spent watching her fuss with the suit: 5 minutes

I heard baby girl crawling into the dishwasher and stopped her before she discovered the lone knife that wanted to be washed again.
Total time spent: 3 minutes

Checking back in on little lady, she was putting the suit on backwards.
Total time spent shaking my head with my hands on my hips: 1 minute

Baby girl slipped and bumped her head.
Total time spent giving hugs and calming her down: 2 minutes

Little lady has succeeded at getting that suit on...

...now to get the 100 other necessary articles on. (We were in luck today and able to located all hats, socks and mittens quickly.  Sometimes this is where the not-so-committed-to-the-snow children give up).
Total time spent getting the endless articles on both kids: 8 minutes

Little man told little lady she looked like Aunt Sponge from James And The Giant Peach story.  She was not happy and I had to mediate.
Total time spent: 2 minutes

Running baby girl upstairs to her bed to nap while we are out in the yard.
Total time spent: 1 minute

And we are out the door ladies and gentlemen.  Total time spent to get there: 30 minutes

It is in the 20s today with little wind and sunshine, so not bad at all.  Some snowballs were thrown, lots of snow eaten...
Side note and opinions welcome-  I still have not made snow cream for my kids, I am a little hesitant to even let them eat snow from our area given the really, really bad air quality of the Providence area.  I'm no expert on the matter and wonder how much air quality affects snow contamination or if it is enough to matter???

 No sledding since our sled was froze to the ground the day before the storm and now buried. :(  Oops.
We filled the bird feeder, checked in on the barn cat, threw more snowballs, little lady said her face was cold and went inside (total time she spent outside, maybe 20 minutes).  Little man hung out with me some longer, but snow was too deep for him to walk in, then he went in.  He made it at least 30 minutes.

I then went around and snapped some pictures.
Good thing we got enough firewood in for a week-

Not so welcoming-

This fence is 4' high, snow is at least halfway up it all around the parameter.  This depth held up even after high winds all day.  The snow is very light because its so cold, so nothing is stuck to the trees.

This is where I fell climbing over the fence, true story-

 Empty chicken coop-

Whipped snow in the shed with mouse tracks-

 Some drifts went over the fence (if you can see to the right of the feeder)-

To deep for me to walk through-

 

Questioning what I am doing in thigh deep snow-

Cat tails from the frozen pond, I'm looking forward to hearing the peeping spring frogs-

Last picture of a partially snow covered fence.

Thankful the storm did not damage our area but praying for those on the islands and Cape Cod that are without power in these frigid temps (single digits most nights).