Oh the Weather Outside is Frightful...

....Thank goodness we've moved indoors!

A cold front hit us hard this week bringing highs in the 30's and low 40's and some pretty ugly rain showers to top it off. I must say, it sure is nice to be out of the wind and rain. We're still working in 2,500 square feet of studs, but we've begun the long insulation process so the rather large (and rather loud) kerosene heater can build up a good bit of heat in that place. It's no sauna, I assure you, but our fingers aren't going numb either.

In celebration of a completed exterior, I'm just going to give you all the eye candy: photos!  But first some more reading (hehe).

First of all, painting. Ohmygosh painting. I really have to give all the painting credit to my mother who kicked some serious you-know-what painting the exterior of our house.  I may lovingly call her the paint nazi, but in all seriousness, she knows what's she's doing! Climbing ladders like a madwoman, dangling off the edge of the roof on a very dubiously placed ladder, caulking, sanding, scraping, and rolling away - the woman is a powerhouse. Her "work clothes" are a great testament to her painting capabilities - or maybe just a good illustration of how much she paints.

About a month ago, we noticed a hired gentleman doing some repair work on the beautiful but unkempt farmhouse Victorian next door. I was planting our brand new magnolia in the front yard, and I asked him a few questions, wondering if our little exterior update had motivated the owner next door. Sure enough, the next day we saw next door a whole crew of men preparing to paint, so westopped by to chat again. Mom asked them how many days it would take for them to finish the paint and not surprisingly they said three. Days. Three days. Total. In comparison, ours took weeks, months even.  I could have been disheartened, but here's the difference:  Mom then asked how many coats of paint they would do and if they would repair or replace any of the siding.  Again not surprisingly they said one coat and no repair work.  In comparison, we did three and a whooooole lot of repair work.  That owner?  She'll be paying them again in a few years.  Us?  We're not touching that paint again.  Just another lesson in how often times doing things yourself = doing things better (Dad's mantra?).

Now behold!

Not only have we finished exterior painting, but we've added all the necessary finishing touches like...

...A newly refinished front door with an ornate and shiny door plate/handle...

BEFORE

AFTER

AFTER

....Front porch lights....

...Stylish and chic house numbers...

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AFTER

...A mission style chandelier for our cute little side porch...

....Flower beds along the front, complete with seasonal blooms and perennial standards...

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AFTER

...A modern roof for our lower back deck...

...A brick landing pad under the street gate entry with stepping stone path...

AFTER

...Stepping stones to connect the side and front porches as well as stones by the man gate in the backyard...

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...Stained fence and adjacent flower bed...

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...and last but not least, thanks to Todd's lovely mother, we planted a fabulously southern magnolia tree to grow with us through out the years.

So in summary...

BEFORE

AFTER

We've saved one last project for Thanksgiving weekend: the small, front picket fence.  Todd's family will be coming to celebrate the the weekend with us, and they're looking to get their hands dirty and make their mark on the house.  That's help we can be thankful for!