House Mishap

I don't know how it happened but outside of buying a new couch and loveseat (and having an extra couch in the living room that I cannot wait to be rid of) John and I haven't really done any work on the house since we moved in. Well, I know how it happened. Life and the holidays got in the way. Considering it's now April, I probably shouldn't use the holidays as an excuse anymore. Owning a house is a lot of work, yo. Everyone tells you that but no one ever really explains how much work it is.

So, we are embarking on a new House-Sprucing schedule. I told John we need to try to tackle at least one project a month. That way, we can feel like we are moving forward with making this home our own and we can spread out the expenses so we are not breaking the bank. Plus, it puts weeks between Home Depot and Lowe's runs (which I loathe).

Here is a list of things I'd like to accomplish:

-paver patio in the backyard

-tile backsplash in the kitchen

-new dining and kitchen light fixtures

-ceiling fans/lights in the guest rooms (we'll hire this out -- I don't mess with cutting holes in ceilings)

-painting the upstairs hallway and 2 story foyer

-painting the 2nd guest room and transforming it into my sewing room

-wainscoting in the 1/2 bath

-switching all doorknobs to lever knobs

-tiling the floor in the guest bath

-new sink in the guest bath

-new floor and double sink in master bath

-painting shutters and front door

-various landscaping projects

See what I mean? Lots of work that we thought was move in ready. This list is not really in order although I wanted the patio done first. I love eating outside and as the weather warms up, I was really looking forward to doing this. Unfortunately, the grading of our yard had other plans for us.

We had a landscaper check things out. He did not have good news for us. Not only would it cost a boatload for him to do the patio (we were probably going to DIY anyway) but he didn't recommend doing anything until our water issue back there is resolved. Oh, you didn't know we had a water issue? Yes, well then, let me present to you Exhibit A.

This is the mulched area around the one and only tree in our backyard. Sad, right? There is currently a possible suit pending between our HOA and the contractor who thought it would be a great idea to run all the sump pumps into our backyards instead of out into the street. So, until this is resolved, no patio Chez G. I guess we'll just put our plastic chairs on the grass. :(