Back Yard Update – Day 3
Feb 8th
So many posts in just one day! That’s what you get when I procrastinate.
Here’s what the back yard looked like after day 3 of the landscaping job. Hopefully Monday will be the final day.
Back Yard Landscaping Update
Feb 4th
Okay, so below are some photos of how the back yard landscaping job is going. The first photo below is what the back yard looked like after our almost 23 hours of straight rain… 3 days later!
The images below are what the back yard looks like before Day 1, which was Wednesday, February 2nd.
This is what the back yard looks like after Day 1.
The existing patio is being covered with pavers.
You can see it how it will be extended beyond the current area.
A better shot of the extended patio.
This is where the grass will go – the orange circle area.
Another view of the grass area.
This is where a mound of dirt will go with some rocks and flowers. I guess that’s what people do. I’ve been told it will look nice.
So, keep checking back for more updates. Every day I will post new photos of the progress. Today they are finishing the patio and putting in plants and laying irrigation. The grass will go in on Monday!
The Countdown Begins – 15 Days
Feb 2nd
Today I realized that there are only 15 days until I leave for Seattle on my way to Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. I’m so FREAKING excited, I can’t stand it! This will be my third Winter Games and will most likely be the best ever. This time I’m going with a larger group of people that consists mainly of family but also includes my friend Rachel who went with me to Torino in 2006.
We’ll be spending 2 days in Seattle before heading up to Vancouver. My sister and her husband are coming along and they love Seattle so it will be fun to spend time with them there. I also hope to meet up with a former college friend who now lives there. We’ll see. This will be twice in less than 6 months that I’ll be in the PNW… maybe I should just move up there? ;)
We’re set to see Men’s Ice Hockey, Short Track Speed Skating and Curling (which rocks, btw). It should be some good times. We’ve got ourselves setup with a nice Canadian family that lives right outside of Vancouver but is next to a SkyTrain station for easy access downtown. So, the adventure is set to begin very soon.
The games begin 2/12/10 -- will you be watching?
Our Cleaning Lady
Jan 29th
So we have a cleaning lady and her name is Rosie… and she’s a robot… a Roomba to be exact. :) I love her so much. Every day at 11 she sets out to accomplish the task of picking up every last bit of dog hair lying on the floor and she does a pretty damn good job of it. She sweeps the kitchen and dining area, the living room, master bedroom, the bathrooms and even the office. After she’s completed her task, she goes back home to recharge for the next day. She’s amazing. Only once this week did she get lost and need help finding her way back home (locked herself in the master bathroom water closet). I’ve attached a photo of the carpet showing the pattern she followed while in the office for you to view in amazement. :)
Arizona Weather
Jan 29th
Last week we had rain… lots of it. Consider this… Phoenix normally gets about 7 to 8 inches of rain a year and last week we got almost 3.5 inches. That’s kind of nuts to think about. Amazingly, there wasn’t much street flooding in the metro area, so that was good. The back yard of the new house was a lake (not so good when you want the landscaping done ASAP). There was lots of wind damage though. Phoenix was under a tornado warning for most of Thursday night and some event tents were blown across the Loop 101 in North Phoenix leaving all the classic cars stored underneath them exposed to the elements. Up in Flagstaff, they got close to 3 feet of snow. Normal snowfall for the entire month of January is only 22 inches. There were quite a few buildings that had their roofs collapse under the intense weight and seeing the pictures posted this weekend and early this week, it’s a good thing the buildings gave way after closing time for these businesses.
So yeah, it was a crazy weather week for us and there’s still signs of the storm lingering around the valley… like water actually flowing through the Salt River at the 35th Ave bridge! SRP is saying that we’ll see water flowing until at least March as they release water from the reservoirs upstream.
Here’s a photo of what the sky looked like on Friday morning as I was driving to work after dropping Beezus off for her spaying appointment. A dark sky that we’re not used to seeing in January.
What to Write? – Blog Quickie
Jan 28th
I’m doing a lot of these quickies because I have no idea what to write here. I mean, I have ideas but then I don’t write them down and by the time I get to the computer, I’ve forgotten. I’m going to try to do a better job of jotting down some notes. I swear there is stuff I want to share on this site but it just never seems to happen as frequently as I’d like.
I don’t want to bore you all with continuous updates on the house.
Happy 2010!
Jan 26th
Okay, so this post is a bit late. Whatever.
Happy 2010 everyone! I have a feeling that this is going to be a great year. Below is a small list of goals that I’m hoping to accomplish this year.
- Enjoy work more.
- Be organized and tidy (at home especially).
- Be more social – hang out with the great friends I already have more often and maybe make some new ones.
- Have people visit – The new house comes with a guest room. Hint, hint to those of you living out of state *cough* Derek, David, and Stacey *cough*
- Be smart with money – it’s really hard not to spend, spend, spend on this new house.
That’s a few of my goals for 2010. It’s kind of hard to think of them really. I mean, I don’t want to sound like I’m not happy, a slob, disorganized, or anti-social. I guess I just want to be better at all of the items I’ve listed above. 2009 seems like it was a stressful year and I want 2010 to be more relaxing. Let’s hope that will happen.
HVAC System Update – Blog Quickie
Jan 22nd
So I read the FAQs online and was able to troubleshoot the heating problem. The system works like a charm now. Just in time, since the weather took a turn for the worse this week. We have had pretty not stop rain since yesterday at 4pm. Nuts.
January – 12 of 12 – Finally!
Jan 20th
I know it’s a bit late (a huge understatement) but here are my photos for January’s 12 of 12.
What is 12 of 12? Find out here.
Coffee and Texting first thing in the morning. What could be better?
The new house – the front yard still needs a bit of work.
Some douche decided to hit my car in the Lowe’s parking lot. The damage isn’t too bad.
The new fridge! Isn’t it pretty?
The new washer and dryer. They are wonderful!
The living room. Since the backyard hasn’t been installed yet, a sheet needs to protect the couch from dusty doggie prints.
The infamous “before” shot of the backyard. Hopefully you’ll see a dramatic change by 2/12/10.
We went to IKEA and bought the shorter dresser to compliment the taller one. They fit perfectly in the master.
This is the office, before we did massive work on it this past weekend. It’s 10x better now.
This is going to be the library/media/game room. Why have all your dvds in th living room when they can be neatly stored here?
I was at home waiting for something (I can’t recall at the moment) so I decided to check on the funds left in my Starbucks card. Empty.
I decided to have lunch at Johnny Rockets before getting back to the office. It was good! I still have yet to go to the Yogurtland next door though.
There’s my 12 of 12 for January 2010. Very house centric but I think it was a pretty good set. Hopefully you’ll see some amazing changes by the 12 of 12 for February.