Tag Archives: DIY Home Projects

Our Guest Bath Update

Good morning friends. The forecast here in our corner of Washington State has predictions of heavy wet snow with the possibility of falling trees and branches breaking and downing power lines. Hopefully we will not lose power but if we do, I’ve created a few posts for this week and hopefully the predictions won’t be as dire as forecasted.

When we moved into our current home in September of 2018 we knew that we wanted to make changes in our guest bath. In 2019 we bought a slab of maple wood with a live edge to replace the countertop in this bathroom. That slab lived under the guest bed in what we call the Blue Room for about 3 years. Along the way in those 3 years we bought a new sink for the bathroom, too.

Demolition day…

After he stripped the bathroom, the walls, ceiling and cabinet were painted white.

The slab of wood was measured for cutting the hole for the sink and faucet.

Now it was time to treat the wood with TopOil.

The top oil complete it was time to install the backsplash.

Time for the plumbing. We tried some of our old wall pieces and really didn’t like the look so we contemplated changes that would function better. That wall piece on the side wall got moved to the master bedroom. It poked out to far over the new countertop and imposed on the counter space.

Time to set the sink and hook up more plumbing.

We tried a few pieces over the toilet area and finally settled on this piece with shelves and a rod for hand towels. We found this piece at Wal-Mart.

We are pleased with the update. Josh and Laura were our first overnight guests to enjoy the changes.

Dear does good work and has saved us thousands of dollars over the years by doing these projects himself.

I was going to list the projects that Dear was planning to complete in the next several months but as Providence would have it we had an emergency health event that has changed our plans. Dear suffered a Stroke on Saturday in our home while we were together enjoying our lunch. He and I recognized something was terribly wrong. 911 was called and we had a great response with the EMT’s and the Fire Chief of our area. Once evaluated at our local hospital, Dear was transported to Spokane to the ICU at Sacred Heart for further evaluation. Our son drove me to Spokane and booked a room for us across the street from the hospital. Dear is in expert care and it was determined he should have surgery sooner than later and he will have an Endarterectomy on Tuesday afternoon. We are grateful that things were caught early and the right treatment was given for the best overall outcomes. His brain and speech are in great shape. The lingering symptom is weakness in his left hand. Thanking God for watching over him. Thanking those of you in advance who will pray to our God for Dear’s surgery to go well and for his recovery to be free of complications.

We have had such an outpouring of care and prayers from loved ones, our kids have rallied, our church family in Colville, old friends in Edmonds, Monroe, Bothell, Lynnwood, Kenmore and Poulsbo. Family in New York, North Carolina, Texas, California, my ‘girls’ in British Columbia and Manitoba. We are so thankful to our God for the love and peace we have experienced because of those prayers.

Posts this week will be sporadic if at all.

Hope your new week is going well.

Out with the Sink Hodgepodge…

1. In a rut, in a jam, in the groove, out of sync, off balance, out of touch…which saying best fits some area of your life currently (or recently)? Explain.

I’m literally out of a sink. The only thing that is still standing in our master bath is the toilet. The photo at the top of this post is what this area in our master bedroom looked like on Monday. Demolition started after I took the photo. Because of this chaos I am out of sync and off balance right now.

We are extending the bathroom wall into the bedroom by a foot and the wall will go all the way on the right instead of having that useless desk area. A new double vanity should be delivered on Tuesday. The new toilet will be in a different spot. Instead of a tub/shower unit we installing a shower stall. New flooring and two new smaller windows in different spots which means the siding on the outside of the house will need to be re-done, too. Dear is doing all the work himself. He will get some advice from a plumber along the way.

2. What is it about somebody else’s style of work (coworker/employee/shared volunteer project/household chore) that makes you crazy? Why?

Oh dear, this question can get me in trouble. I get antsy around laid back, do it the last minute kind of people. I might start tapping my foot wondering when the job is going to get started. Now I’ve learned over the years that these types of workers still get the job done but I’d rather not be there to watch. I like to plan and plan and make a list and start things early and have everything ready on time. For unplanned last minute things I’m good with fly by the seat of your pants.

3. What’s a tradition that always makes you feel at home?

Having a meal with family and friends sitting together around a table holding hands while saying a prayer of thanksgiving to God before we eat.

4. A favorite song with a girl’s name in the title or lyrics? Any reason why this is a particular favorite?

Michelle by the Beatles. Beatlemania was alive and well in my junior high and high school years.

5. Share a favorite quote, verse, or saying relating to gratitude or thanksgiving.

Psalm 118: 28-29 ~

You are my God, and I will give thanks to you;
    you are my God; I will extol you.
Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
    for his steadfast love endures forever!

6. Insert your own random thought here.

On Sunday I posted this for Bread for the Journey at Mennonite Girls Can Cook Blog.

More and more it seems the world around me is choosing to come against the truth of God’s Word. Some of these voices, strong and bold, can confuse me and sometimes because of the labels they attach to anyone who does not have their strong point of view I am silenced. What should I do? …read more at this link.

I’ll be linking up with Joyce From This Side of the Pond for Wednesday Hodgepodge. She asks the questions and we answer them. Thank you for stopping by and reading my answers. I appreciate my fellow bloggers and others who stop by, too.

The Attic

13882504_10210295058761144_1181105195605208738_nWe have an attic that is easy to access with a drop down staircase. We keep holiday bins up there, luggage, old files, Katie’s stuff, and some of Dear’s parents memorabilia. We also have our kids old toys that we drag down when we have little ones visiting.

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Looking down from the attic to our main floor.

13879209_10210297015490061_2440112983852184676_nThe space has a very low ceiling and a wood floor that gives us splinters when we crawl around up there. We decided to organize and to put some inexpensive outdoor/indoor carpeting on the floor.

13901447_10210320701602199_4947315802862830364_nThe process begins. Wiring also needed to be moved and tucked away.

 

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The new carpeting installed and the bins organized.

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An inexpensive project that will make our lives easier every time we head up those attic stairs to access our seasonal stuff.

Do you have an attic? How do you access it? In the meantime Dear is busy on another outdoor project and he had some interesting company today.

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Can you see the wild bunny?

Update on our attic space. Many of you suggested this would be a fun place for kids. Here’s the first kid to enjoy our newly carpeted attic space. She and Andrew are here today waiting for the arrival of our kids from the East.

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Her Awana shirt still fits from her elementary days!

Happy Saturday everyone!

Before and After – Back of the House

Just to forewarn y’all, this is a photo overload post.

This photo was taken in 2000 and it was before we replaced all our windows.

This post is full of photos that are interesting for Dear and me in documenting the progression of our home improvements.

This is the finished product with the trim painted around the upper level of our home which is our master suite. The bottom narrow window is our laundry room.

Now for the process step by step…somewhat.

This rosemary bush was out of control and we ended up taking it out completely. It not only got in the way of the work but it’s fragrance when disturbed was so strong that Dear and I would get nauseated working around it.

This photo shows the planter (rosemary bush) cleared out and ready for new plantings.

Dear has done the siding and improving the “look” of our home I wanted to post the photos of  all the hard work he has put into this old house! Along the way he has had some help from our boys. Dear is taking full advantage of his “temporary retirement”. For the record, before Dear was a Pharmacist he had very different jobs as a Loader Operator in a Quarry, a repairman/welder, and a painting contractor with his father. He inherited some ladders from his father and has purchased some of his own and is comfortable on a low and high ladder. This next out of sequence photos shows his prowess.

Putting the new windows in the garage.

Yikes! That’s high!

We are considering putting up a Barn Quilt between the upper window in the loft and the middle window of our garage/shop. The lower level with the single garage door is the shop. Our garage is the middle level with a double garage door on the opposite side of the building. We might enlist our daughter’s skills in designing and painting a Celtic Cross design for our “barn quilt”.

Back in 1999…

2008

Spring of this year.

And this is the upper entrance to the garage today with our new privacy fence showing on the right. Maybe we should put a barn quilt on this side, too.

Dear is working hard to finish up his projects on this old house because soon he’ll be working on a renovation at our son’s home. Today and tomorrow he is finishing up the trim on the garage/shop in between fast moving storms. No ladder work if there is lightning!

Do you have any projects progressing on your home?