Tool Time

Introducing Tim The Tool Man Taylor!!! Good ol' "Home Improvement". I always really liked that show. Not sure why. Probably just cause it was a good clean show. Nothing raunchy or dangerous. And no, it definitely did NOT have anything to do with Jonathan Taylor Thomas. Sure, he was "cute" but he had a sort of femmy-ness about him too. Not interested.

Anyway, we have been carrying on our own Tool Time, though with much better results than the cliche catastrophes that always seemed to accompany Tim on his show.

The first major improvement we made to our new abode was getting furniture. Up to this point, everything we own, aside from our bed, is a hand-me-down. And though we are grateful for just about anything, there were certain things we deemed not worthy of the move. The biggest of those items was the couch.

So we went shopping, waited for a good sale, and then finally pulled the trigger. Deciding on a couch set is a big deal! There is a lot to consider! But we found a set that we loved (included the couch, loveseat, recliner, and accent pillows.) We threw in an accent rug as well. The amazing thing was, it matches the existing paint almost exactly. Are we good, or are we good?! 

(Those curtains look red, but they are brown)

I spent lots of time dragging the furniture around trying to figure out where I liked it best. For some reason, I didn't really want it flush against the walls. I like the angle thing better.

Then when Ryan's parents came out to help us finish moving everything else in, we brought over my keyboard and tada! Perfecto!

Having furniture makes such a big difference! It makes it actually feel like a home! It's so inviting! I love it.

One big project we were/are facing is the fence. Some sections are in pretty ragged shape. Others are okay. There was one section where the dogs that used to live here pushed a ton of gravel against the fence and bowed the whole section out really badly. The dogs on the other side dug down, so it made the problem worse.

Then one day a man came to the door and told me he was the handy man for our neighbors and said he was fixing a section of the fence but he needed access from the other side and asked if he could work in our backyard. I said yes, naturally. It turns out that was the section he was fixing! Now I can't honestly say who's dogs were more at fault for the damage, but I was thrilled that they were fixing it. That's one less section we have to worry about.

Looks pretty snazy, right?

Remember that barren backyard? Well, shortly after moving in, Ryan started to put down grass seeds. He did it in sections to see how well it would grow.

He started against the fence plus one section out where there would be more sun. Those little seeds popped right up. It's amazing what happens when you water. :) So he planted the next row. You can see it just starting to come up in these pictures.

I took the picture below this afternoon. Look how well it is coming in! It's grown too cold to plant any more seeds, but we will pick up again next spring. As a bonus there are sections in the backyard were the old, trodden down sod is coming back to life. Again - water does wonders.

One of the biggest projects has been our master bathroom. The toilet never worked very well. Any time you would flush, the water would grow higher and higher like it was going to flood, and then slowly sink back down to the original water level - never actually siphoning out. We tried snaking it ourselves with no results. And the toilet just stunk. Literally. It smelled awful. A couple of weekends ago, Nicia and Joe came out to help tackle the problem.

Okay, okay. That's not really why they came. They did come for the bathroom, but not the toilet. Joe kind of got ropped into that one. Sorry Joe! But thank you!

When they got here, Ryan and Joe took the toilet off and carried it to the backyard where they tried snaking it again. There was definitely nothing clogged in there. Then they used the hose to see if they could see the problem when they filled up the tank and tried to flush it. It still wouldn't work. They determined that the previous owners had replaced a part in the tank that made it more "water efficient" but in so doing, the toilet could never work up enough pressure to actually flush. Diagnosis? New toilet.

(The toilet is still in the backyard. We have joked about putting potting soil in it and planting some nice flowers.)

The real reason they came up was to help us put in a new light/fan. The existing one in the bathroom was one of those dim lights that has the automatic fan connected to it. It smelled horrible too. The bathroom was dark and kind of creepy feeling. And I hate those automatic fans. And the stink? What was that all about? It seemed like that darn fan had sucked up years worth of bathroom stank and just held onto it. Nasty. 

However, replacing the light/fan wasn't as simple as putting in a new one. We wanted one like the one upstairs which has a light, fan, and heater. They are all separate entities, but can funtion all at the same time too. The biggest issue with this was the fact that we would need more wiring in the wall. Ryan is an amazing handyman, but he has never done electrical stuff. Thus Joe's help.  

To start, they had to go in the upstairs green room and tear up the carpet in order to drill holes in the floor. They then discovered that there is no real vent system for the fan. So it was sucking up the air and just putting it in the dead space between the floors instead of carrying it outside.

After a couple trips to Home Depot and Menards, drilling holes in the floor and in the side of the house, the vent was in place and most things were in order, but there just wasn't enough time to get it all done before they had to head back.

Have no fear! They came back the following weekend and the boys finished it up. It looks incredible! We are so lucky to have them as friends. Joe and Ryan worked so stinking hard. Our husbands are amazing. Just saying. :) And it was fantastic to hang out with Nicia and her kids. 

So none of the following pictures are that great... but here they are. 

Behold: The new light/fan/heater. The heater puts out lots and lots of heat. It's wonderful. (Part of the problem with the bathroom was that there was no door. So even though the water is warm, all the cold air from the house just pouring right in... not pleasant.)

New triple switch (proper wiring in the wall included.)

And best of all, thanks to Nicia's insistence (Ryan wanted to wait for a sale - but it turns out they got it for a great deal anyway)... a new toilet!!! Hurray! Ryan and Joe went to pick it out. They explained the issue with the last one and how it wouldn't flush anything, they asked how well the model they picked out would do. The employee responded, "That thing could flush a monster!" Well that solved that. :) 

Ahhhhh!!!! I actually really like this bathroom now! It is so much brighter and roomier than before. (The old toilet was tan in color and there was a small shelf thing in there that made it feel really cramped.) The toilet really is incredible. The light/fan/heater is amazing. And now, thanks to proper ventilation, the bathroom stank can be wisked away to the outside world. Hahaha. AND there is a door! Which means that all that glorious heat from the heater actually stays IN the bathroom. It is fantastic! Thanks again Nicia and Joe. You are the best!!!

And last, but not least, the most amazing transformation of all. We're talking curb appeal. :)

Remember the before?

Well, while Ryan's parents were out here, they tackled the front area and cleared everthing out. See what a difference that makes already?!

A couple weeks later we went a bought a few perenneal plants from a nursery Ryan's coworker and her husband own.

It's simple, but it looks really nice. We also planted a ton of bulbs for next spring. Tulips, daffodils, and haisynths. 

But the biggest transformationw as yet to come. A day or two before Nicia and Joe came out the second time, I ordered 3000 lbs of brick for the front retaining wall and had it delivered. I could have driven back and forth to the place and had then load up 4-5 70 lbs bricks at at time, but that seemed pretty excessive considering they could bring the fork lift and the whole package in the one trip.

Ryan did a ton of work starting a trench for the bricks so that we could do it correctly by putting down sand and gravel and using a level to get it just right. While Ryan and Joe were working on the bathroom, Nicia and I put our tough momma muscles to work and really tackled the trench too. We might not look like much, but we are pretty darn tough. :) 

There wasn't enough time in the weekend to finish the bathroom and take advantage of the extra man muscles to move the brick but we made a ton of progress. 

I left a couple of days later for Utah for Pierscen's 3 month post-op check up. When we made it back Saturday afternoon, this is what we saw: 

Isn't that amazing?! It looks so, so, SO good! Ryan did this all on his own. All 3000 lbs! Am I one lucky woman or what? Every day I am amazed by his skill, knowledge, and his perseverance. He is incredible.

And honestly, doesn't that give it some tremendous curb appeal? I'm tellin' ya, curb appeal makes all the difference in the world. And so does a do-it-yourself husband. I am so proud of him. And so grateful for all of his hard work. I sure love him!

We are loving our house. It has been so much fun to make it our own!