Mother's Day weekend trip!!
We were joined by our "grown" kids. They came out to spend a little time with their momma and grandma and of course be put to work! I wish I would have gotten a picture of everyone together since it was so amazing to have them there with us, but there I go living in the moment and didn't remember... Liliana, Gaby & Robert, Kelsey & Aubrey, Sydney, Nakia, Naia, Myself & 3 dogs comfortably slept in that little farmhouse.
Me and my big ideas.
How many times have I heard Nakia tell me, "What have you gotten me into?" ha! But the thing is- he ALWAYS delivers and in a BIG way. I'm not going to discredit Nakia's big ideas because he has them too, but I tend to be a little bit more of a dreamer, which, I might add, he is just as good at bringing me back down to reality too.
So, you know that third and last (because it was in the worst shape) bedroom that we've been tackling? I thought, "since we need to replace the windows in there anyways, why not add patio doors and an upstairs balcony?" My reasoning: That side of the house faces West, and is scene to the most beautiful sunsets so wouldn't it make sense to have a balcony there to be able to enjoy that view? The idea was to have this bedroom be the guest room, and what a treat for our guests!
Nakia (My Romeo) thought I was crazy at first (what else is new?) but the more he researched it, the more he thought.... okay! He decided to build a Juliet Balcony. He found an Anderson patio door on K-Bid and won the bid of $8! He then found a frame for them at BMO (Builders Material Outlet) in Eagan for $60! Gotta love a steal of a deal.
FRIDAY
DEMO DAY! Mom took the girls into town for the day while we stayed back & made a mess. And what a mess it was! Cutting into that old plaster created so much dust!! While Nakia was tearing a hole in the wall, I was repairing cracks in the plaster and painting Kilz over the old water stains from an old roof leak... we also discovered a dead bug graveyard underneath the old window frames... fun, gross stuff... nothing surprises me at this point in the project.
Nakia spent the entire 3-day weekend in that bedroom. The door is in and secure but the balcony is not yet at this point. Here's a short demo video for ya-
SATURDAY-
Gaby's boyfriend, Robert, was a rock-star as him & I spent all morning clearing out more of the grove behind the garage & then spent the entire day burning branches and brush. Gaby and Robert cleared out the baby trees and low hanging branches around my Grandmother's old clothes line and Kelsey and Robert cleaned up all the trash in the woods behind the house. We were able to mow further into the grove and I'm looking forward to our next trip when I can white-wash the posts of the clothes line and re-hang the wire. Being located in the river valley, we get a wonderful breeze most days and the smell of freshly wind-dried sheets makes my heart go pitter-pat. I have fond memories of being out at that line with my grandma and am looking forward to creating new memories with our new generation.
See that little black spec of a dog? There goes Nova, running running running. She slept for 3 days after we returned home! Saryna & Kelsey's dog; Mabel, came out with Kelsey for the weekend & Mabel and Nova became best friends and spent 2 full days playing and running.
On Saturday, we also loaded up a trailer load of scrap iron from the burnt down pig barn to be hauled away to the scrap yard AND we mowed the property. By the time Saturday night came around we all collapsed into bed.
SUNDAY-
Mother's Day AND Kelsey's birthday (my fellow Taurean). We started the day celebrating Kelsey with Nakia's famous French toast for her birthday breakfast & presents & video chatted with Saryna. It wasn't the same without her there but thank God for technology. We are counting down the days for her to be back home and to be done with active duty!!!
When the clock struck NOON, we switched to Mother's day with a luncheon prepared by Lili. Naia had bought Grandma a sun hat as one of her gifts, which she, of course, had to try out... cutie patootie.
Before we left for home Sunday we decided last minute that we might as well tear off the old siding on the West exterior wall & fill potential mouse holes in preparation of our June trip, when we will be siding. It actually looks better with the old siding off! By the time we left I was so exhausted I couldn't see straight.
GOALS for June trip:
The Balcony & Siding up on the West Side.
Frame in around the interior of the new upstairs patio door.
Finish sanding the plaster walls in the 3rd bedroom and paint in there!