Breaking Ground

This past weekend, Adam got started on a project that we both are pretty stoked about.  He is going to build a shed in our backyard!

A shed will offer us some much needed storage.  Our two-car garage is filled to the brim with not only yard stuff, but also Adam's workshop.  There's room for one of our vehicles, but not both.  The end goal is to put all of the yard stuff in the shed, which will leave plenty of space for Adam's workshop and both of our cars.

So this weekend, Adam started to work on the layout and dig holes for the piers that will support the shed. He worked meticulously to get everything even and level and plumb.  Glad he has the patience for that, I sure don't!  Once he knew where the piers would be going, he started to dig holes.  He had to dig six holes, each of which were 28-30 inches deep.  That's a lot of work!  Again, glad he has the patience (and strength) for digging.

On a side note, we made sure to call and have any utilities marked before starting to dig.  That way we could be sure that we wouldn't hit any live lines.      

After the holes were dug, Adam filled each hole with 4-6 inches of gravel to provide a good base for the foundation.  

The next step is to place a sonotube (that round cardboard form in the upper left corner of the photo above), level it up and fill it with concrete.  These will be the supports of the shed structure.  

Adam decided to rent a concrete mixer to help make the concrete mixing a bit easier and go quicker.  It's in our backyard as I type this!  I'll be sure to keep everyone updated on his progress!  It will be fun to watch a shed go up in my back yard.  I'm impressed with Adam's hard work and willingness to try something new!   

Little Updates Can Make a Big Impact

It never ceases to amaze me what an impact a small change can make in my home.  A little tweak can bring new life to a space in my home and make me love it even more!  I recently completed a few little updates around my house and am so happy with the results!

One small change I made recently was switching out the cabinet hardware on my tv stand.  The knobs that came with the tv stand were nothing special and didn't stand out.  So I started to keep an eye out for some new knobs that had some more interest.  I found some acrylic and brassy-gold knobs at Hobby Lobby. They were 50% off to boot!  So I swapped them for the old ones and they make such a difference.    

 

The brassy-gold tie in nicely with the hinges.  Plus, they pick up the same hue as the brass animal I have sitting on top of the tv stand.  Who knew two little knobs could make me love our blue tv stand even more?! 

I also made a change to our vacation gallery wall in the living room recently.  I adore our little gallery wall because it features photographs and artwork of all our travels!  Looking at our gallery wall brings back so many sweet memories of all our trips Adam and I have taken together.  I had included a mirror, a "K" initial and some other artwork to help fill in the space originally.  But since I first hung the gallery wall, we've done quite a bit of traveling!  I just kept adding frame after frame and it was starting to look a bit sloppy.  

So I decided to take the whole gallery wall down and start over.  I took out the stuff that didn't relate to our travels.  Then I laid everything out on the floor in an arrangement I was happy with.  From there I made paper templates of each frame, including marks indicating where I would need to add nails to the wall.  (I followed a similar method in this post.)  Then I added the nails to the wall and hung everything up!  Luckily, most of the old holes were covered by the frames.  I did have to Spackle and repaint a few holes, but the end result was totally worth it!    

I love how the map with push pins indicating the places we've been together is front and center.  And the new arrangement of photos is far more pleasing to the eye.  This update was free, though it did take some time.  But what a difference it makes!  

The last of my little updates took place in the office nook in our bedroom.  I used to keep all of our paperwork in a file cabinet next to the desk.  While it was very functional, it was not very pretty.  You can tell from the photograph below that our printer sat on top of the file cabinet, as well.    

When we got our tv stand, I decided to move the printer into it.  Since it is wireless, it could go anywhere around the house.  It fit perfectly into its new home.  Then I had to figure out what to do with our file cabinet.  I went through all the paperwork and was surprised at how much I could get rid of!  I managed to get all of our paperwork into a small wooden file crate.  Since it was so small, I was able to put it in our closet, which meant I didn't even need the file cabinet anymore!  So I moved that sucker out of there.  

That wall looks much less cluttered now.  I also picked up this surge protector that plugs into the wall. That way all the cords are off the floor.  Another little update that made a big impact!  

Jazzy Blazes A Trail

Jazzy adores her "outings."  That's the code word Adam and I use for going on a W-A-L-K.  I don't feel like I can even type the word without her knowing.  Anytime she hears the magic "W" word, she goes crazy!  She starts jumping around and staring at her leash.  The girl loves her "outings!"

While she's perfectly content to wander around the neighborhood, she gets even more jazzed when she gets to go on a trail.  All I have to do is whip out her seatbelt harness and she knows some fun is headed her way!  

Adam's mom is in town and she wanted to check out a nature trail.  We decided to invite Jazzy along since she loves to go on "outings."  Look at that sweet girl!  She is ready for a hike!

   

Despite it being a bit muggy and buggy, we all enjoyed ourselves.  Jazzy was enthralled with all the new smells.  She insisted on smelling every. single. smell.  So eventually we had to just pull her along.  

I made her stop and pose for a picture.  Since she's such a professional model, she did stop and pose.  But she wanted to keep on smelling all the smells.  She had her eye on her next target.  

Jazzy was so excited to come along on this nature trail expedition!  But she sure was exhausted by the end of it.  It must have been too much excitement for one evening.

Happy trails to you!