We DIY

We recently tackled one of our first big DIY projects. We put up a new privacy fence in our backyard. Considering we had no idea what we were doing, we are totally happy with the results. We purchased the panels (6' x 8') at Home Depot and then brought them home on the roof rack on the Camry (thank goodness for that rack - it is a lifesaver!!). After battling rain and cement deep in the ground, we were able to put our fence up. Then after battling more rain, I was able to get the fence painted. While I was at it, I also painted an ugly fence that was already existing.

Here are the results:

This is the spruced up fence that once was an ugly shade of painted brown.


After many days and hours of hard work, OUR FENCE! Now we have something nice to look at instead of an overgrown easement for a utility company.


Cute puppy with a pretty fence (I couldn't resist adding it)!


Buddy tried to help painting. Enough said.

This was the result of his second attempt at painting. I tried to warn him that sitting on the fence doesn't really make for great results.

More Rooms Done!

Even though the living area was the first area done, it has taken awhile to get it picked up enough to take pictures. It always seemed to get the overflow from other projects. Now that we are going to have rowers staying with us on and off for the next few weeks - we thought it should all be picked up. That actually means that the whole house, except for our bedroom, is put together. We are really pleased with how the living room came together, and we love our new couch and TV. They are a perfect pair - super comfy and a great picture!

Here's lots of views of the new living area:

View from the kitchen.

View from the dining area.

View from the stairs.

View from entryway.

Another Room Done!

While Matt was gone this weekend seat racing for a quad in Connecticut, I officially conquered the office. Unfortunately, I have not yet conquered the paperwork that belongs in the office. At least when I finally face the mound of paper, I will be in a room with a nice soothing blue. It is very light blue - in fact, it is almost a neutral color.

The office also is our official "rowing" room. We decided that it was the perfect place to display all of our rowing memorabilia, medals, and pictures. We are so pleased with how it all came together.

Here are the pictures that you are all waiting for:

Getting ready to paint - that is always the toughest part. I certainly won't be sad if I never see blue tape again after we finish these projects! See that lovely radiator - I learned that those little cheap black foam paint brushes are definitely the best way to tackle painting behind radiators.

It is a small room, which makes taking pictures pretty tough. Hopefully you get the idea!

Where all the paperwork is going to happen - eventually.

Growing a Green Thumb

We've been busy - so many projects with our new (old) home. Having a yard for the first time is certainly a new challenge. One of the reasons that we loved this house was because of the backyard. We really wanted to have a little patch of grass, which is really what it is. Thankfully though it is no bigger - we'd probably be out of our league.

We still need to finish clearing all of the poisonous stuff, but luckily our neighbor helped us identify some of it. We also need to clear out some metal trash that someone decided to pile behind our yard. Eventually, we want to add more plants to create some privacy, buy a patio set so that we can eat outside, and a fire pit and a water feature are also on our eventual wish list. Hopefully, we might be able to find a fire pit soon so that we can enjoy it during the fall. We just haven't found one yet that fits our space well. Matt's parents bought us a couple chairs for our brick patio and have really enjoyed them.

Here's the backyard for now:

Using our sprinkler for the first time so that the little grass that we have doesn't all die. We are going to have to plant some seed in the fall, but for now, we'll try to save what we have.

Our new chairs that we love. They are super comfortable and we eat many meals out here in the evenings. Hopefully there will be a fire pit here in the future!

View of the backyard from our comfy chairs on the patio.

4 Years - and we finally get to paint!

This past Thursday, we celebrated our 4th anniversary. We really have so much to celebrate, especially with the new house. We took some time away from our paint brushes and scrubs to get dressed up and head out to dinner. It is tough finding new restaurants, especially when we had so many favorites by the time we left Chicago.

We ended up going to a place called Derek's in Manayunk, PA. Manayunk is a really cute part of town that has a lot of boutiques, stores, sidewalk cafes and bars. It is about a 5-10 minute drive from our house and reminds us quite a bit of Chicago neighborhoods - including the tough parking! It will be fun to explore it some more and find some favorites. Unfortunately, Derek's won't be a favorite. It was great food but a bit overpriced as far as we were concerned.

Here are some pictures from the evening:

We didn't even plan it - but flowers and fruit are the traditional gifts for your fourth anniversary.

Matt was none too pleased with me for taking this photo - his legs were sore from rowing, and we had to squat down to get within view of the camera for the self-timer. I kept messing it up. Oops!


Note the color of the kitchen walls in the picture above - here are some pictures of the kitchen now!

Matt trying to squeeze between the fridge that had been moved out for painting and the wall. Eventually we decided that jumping the counter was easier.

Liz smiling because she is finally done painting that kitchen! Little did she know that her hamstrings would be ridiculously sore the next day (and hopefully not the next day and the next day!!) from all the crazy positions she had to be in to reach all the little spaces.


The paint was called raspberry jam - but we think it looks a bit more like raspberry sherbert. It is bright and cheery, and we love it.

These are some embroidered tea towels that one of our groomsmen's mother made us for our wedding. We are finally using them - as curtains! Yes mom - I'm going to iron them and fix them. This is just for a quick picture!

Welcome to Philadelphia!

We've been in Philly for over two weeks now. Matt's mom and dad helped us load of our lives in Chicago and drive out to Philadelphia. They stayed a few more days and helped us tackle unpacking, some quick repairs, and some initial runs to our soon to be favorite store (or at least most frequented) - Home Depot. Their help was so invaluable - we can't imagine having done the drive to Philly or unpacking without them.


Then a few days later, my mom and sister drove up for a week. They also were invaluable in helping us get settled in - purchasing our first couch, painting, painting, and more painting, and tackling the tons and tons of poisonous weeds in our backyard. Unfortunately, my mom is now suffering from a terrible bout of poisonous something or other - I guess I should have looked harder for that long sleeve shirt for her. Sorry mom! She's such a trooper though.


Soon we'll post some pictures of the house before we started the renovations. Then we'll try to post some pictures as we make progress with all of our projects.