The little things…
I am excited to share that I have a new fence! Whoo hoo! I can safely let the dog out and not worry that he’ll slip through and chase a bike! Phew! I can tell you, it’s been stressful keeping my eye on him all the time. In fact, I got to the point I would put his leash on and tie him up every time I was outside working. It was just easier than constantly looking for him or heading him off when a bike was riding by. [He has never liked bikes!!]
So, my new fence is clean and tidy looking and along one side is a line of cedars that will eventually provide some privacy - I’m really hoping it’s not too long a wait! Two sides of my property were quite a mess with lots of brush and who-knows-what and a fence that was inconsistent to put it nicely. It took about a week - lots of cleanup was required to get the old fence out - and the final product is lovely. See the pictures below!
I’ve been working on the garden beds. I sometimes think blank slates are great and challenging. They’re challenging because you have to envision your goal from the ground up, so to speak. You have to create it all and I think it’s difficult to know exactly what you want when you are new to a house. I know when summer hits I want to enjoy the beauty of a garden; the scents, the colours, all of it. However, when your first summer arrives in your new home there can be so much to do, that a blank slate can be overwhelming. The great part, though, is it’s all yours; your vision and your creation. With a century home and all those who lived in it before me, I did not start with a blank slate. I keep finding gardens or flower beds have been built on something else. The South facing bed that I wrote about last week had a rock border on top of a rock border. This past week I discovered a slate border on top of a brick border! So, not building from the ground up, but from below it! I’m loving the fact that established gardens are giving me colour and greenery so that I don’t have emptiness. I can change what I want and still enjoy the colours and scents of what came before.
This past week I decided to tackle a small corner spot. It’s at the back of my driveway, in the corner of the fence. [That’s where I found the buried bricks!] I’ve cleaned out the weeds, added in some fresh topsoil and black mulch. It gives it a fresh look. At the back of the driveway, along the shed, I decided I would create a lily area. There were three lilies there already and a number of them scattered along the house on that side. I’ve transplanted a few of them to make it look fuller. It’s got a lovely window box above it with freshly planted geraniums that are starting to flower. Next up I’ll figure out the side of the house from where I took the lilies. Since it’s the side of the house with my driveway, it’s a rather utilitarian area that I am not planning to spend much time or focus on. I want to build the ground up a bit along the house foundation (to help with potential water issues) and will probably put gravel down after.
The exciting work that has started is the painting of the front steps! That hard working nephew and mother of mine did so much work. They power washed, scraped, and sanded and got the first coat painted. What a difference it makes! The side porch will have the same colour. They worked on that as well today but after a very long day had to call it quits before painting. There were at least two colours on paint on the front steps and three on the porch. That’s a lot of washing, scraping, and sanding! While they worked on those two areas, I looked after the yard, the lily garden bed, and finishing the bed along the East side of the house. A lot of hard work was done! It got me thinking about all that goes into building a home. The little things are just as important as the big things.
Sometimes when you have a lot of projects you want to do, renos planned, or you have a long “fix it” list you can become stuck on only those items. The regular, everyday work of cleaning, laundry, mowing the lawn, etc. can become simply barriers to spending your time on the big ticket items. Those “small” chores, which make life more comfortable are rarely viewed with the same feelings of accomplishment as putting up a shed or renovating your laundry room. Think about all the “little” jobs that you do: washing the dishes, mopping the floor, changing the bed linen. Look around the kitchen and feel good about doing the dishes and tidying up. It’s not just the deck painting or flower bed building that should be celebrated. Praise yourself for all that you do to make a house a home and when you struggle or get behind, first be kind to yourself and then start over.
I’m frustrated because I don’t have the new kitchen I’ve been planning since I bought this house or the spa bathroom upstairs. I’m annoyed because I haven’t got my bedroom painted yet. After all, I bought the paint and the wallpaper and ceiling tiles have arrived. Why haven’t I got the work done yet? I can be so hard on myself. It’s not the end of the world. Yesterday afternoon, I started prepping my bedroom. We’re in a heatwave so it probably won’t get done this week but that’s okay. I’ve done lots of work and eventually the bedroom will be ready to show off.
Take care of yourself. At the end of the day, enjoy the little things. The fresh smell of laundry, the clean floor, the sparking glasses in your cabinet. They are as important as everything else you do.
Top picture - the process of removing the old fence.
Bottom two pictures - new fence!
Top left: a cute corner spot for lilies. Top right: a long line of lilies against a shed with a sweet window box above. I’ve used two of the old fence posts as a border - what do you think?
Bottom left: almost finished - just need mulch. Bottom right: clean up required!
Top picture is before. The bottom two pictures are from different angles (obviously) and show the new paint job. It’s an interesting colour - has tones of gray and blue as well as some purple when it’s first going on (from Behr and called Poppy Seed)! And, of course, we discovered something weird - the steps are not attached!
Coming soon - new life for the side porch floor!