The Sweet Suite: Or, The Project that Never Ends

The kitchen is installed, the doors are hung, the tenants are moved in and the suite is finished.  Well... Jared did break a light fixture on the last day, and so it needs to be replaced, and I never did get around to touching up all the paint I wanted to, and most of the electrical plugs are painted over because we thought we were going to have the time to replace them.  But, besides all that, the suite is finished!!!

I totally realize that I am way too excited about my crumby basement suite, but Jared and I have literally put our blood and sweat, if not tears, into it over the last two weeks (I'll be honest, Jared has put a lot more sweat into it than I, but I'm just better at baby feeding, that's all.)   I no longer am going to call it our "crumby little basement suite" but our "really awesome, totally cool, pretty sweet suite!"  Sounds better, doesn't it? 

In two short weeks we tore out EVERYTHING, and re-did it all.  And much of it we did with Silas on our backs!

He's a trooper, that kid!

We did learn a few important lessons in this, our first major home renovation:

1. Two short weeks are really too short to completely renovate an entire home.  Seriously.  A month would have been sufficient, two weeks was just about suicide.
2. When a caulking disaster strikes, and online it says that there is no solvent or method of removing waylaid caulk, tell the "experts" to stick it, and grab your good friend Mr. Clean and his Magic Eraser. Apply a little elbow grease, and before you know it, the great caulk spill of 2010 will be ancient history.  No magic dome to contain the mess, no caustic chemicals to clean it up, just magic little "micro scrubbers" washing it away.  For some reason I envision little microscopic alien robots with mops scrubbing away at our brand new counter top covered in caulk.  Keep up the good work little buddies!
3. A few accessories can do wonders in a small, white kitchen.

Um, I'm sure there were more lessons learned (like don't ever let Jared touch a paint roller ever again) but I can't think of them right now.

I did promise to send out a mad Blog Props to my brother-in-law Aaron, his crazy plumbing skills, and his family, without whom, we would NEVER have been able to finish it in time!  We love the Russells!

Here's the finished product.  Note the broken light.  Oops.

Even with the antique stove (we like to call him 'The Admiral') it looks fabulous.  Hopefully such a fanciful abode means we will never be a month without renters ever again!!! (By the way, it's available in September...)

The house that JENNY built!!!

Today I tackled the world... or at least a very boring white kitchen, which is now still very white, but totally awesome!!!  Sometimes my vision doesn't necessarily come true, but today, with a few tiles, accessories I transformed this:

into this:

Now to grout, clean up, and add a few accessories, and this place is ready to go!!!

The House that Jared Built

So, while we live in my parent's basement, we actually own two houses in town.  One very nice, very new condo, and another outdated but well loved house.  We lived in the house before our Michigan Adventures and rented out the basement to help pay the bills.  Since our departure from Alberta we have rented all three units and managed to stay in the black.  Yeah!

We happen to be between renters in the basement suite right now, and since Jared doesn't have a job (the reason why we're living in my parent's basement) we figured this is a good time to give the suite a much needed face lift, or a face replacement, really.

Let me just stop here to say that my dear Mr. Wiebe is incredible.  He has spent the last week an a half working from sun up to well past sun down tearing down and building up our modest little basement!  While I consider myself a pretty self sufficient woman, there is no way I could pull off what he has managed this week.

This is what we started with:

 Please take careful note of the carpeted kitchen.  Yum!

He tore out EVERYTHING.  With the help of my sister Alice, her husband Aaron, my nephew Benny and our friend Heidi we managed white wash the whole place on Saturday.  On Monday while we had the new flooring installed we spent WAY too many hours at IKEA picking up a new kitchen and several beautiful accessories. And today, with the Russell contingent helping again, we put things back together and began installing the kitchen.  As far as dark little basement suites go, I think this one is going to be pretty awesome.  Seriously!

Here's some pics of the current state of the basement:

 And Silas, for the first time in his life hung out in a play pen.  I was worried about the off-gassing of the new carpet, so when I wasn't wearing him I stuck him in the cage!  Well equipped with plenty of stuff to suck on, he didn't seem to mind.

New tenants move in on Monday, so this place HAS to be finished this weekend.  Final product pictures to follow, I promise!

Lady Bug, Lady Bug, Fly Away Home!

At our church the kids 18 months to 3 years meet in Nursery every week. In my ward I am responsible for the Nursery program.  We are supposed to provide a healthy snack each week, and until now it has consisted of stale, sugar-full animal crackers and hard, really old raisins.  Not so awesome.

I got this brilliant idea from my friend Heidi.  Best Nursery snack EVER!!!  It was such a hit, and I didn't feel guilty serving it to the little ones.  The problem is, how do I now beat it?  Impossible!

My Kid Went to Blackfalds, and all I got was this Lousy T-Shirt

 I missed the Marathon, but I came out if it with a painted basement, and this rad T-Shirt.  Can't complain.

Everyone had fun (except those of us stuck at home painting.)  Apparently Eli ran 3 km, and slept in the stroller the other 7 km.  All the kids loved the medals, and my dad obliged me and took some pictures.  I'm still sad I missed it, but there's always Blackfalds Fun Run 2011!

I ALMOST Ran a Marathon

Okay, so it wasn't a Marathon, it was a race.  Alright, it wasn't a race, it was a "Fun Run."  And I wasn't actually going to run, but walk.  But, Fun Run kind of rhymes with Marathon, and since I didn't actually end up doing it, I can call it whatever I want!

Today my family is running in the Blackfalds, Alberta Fun Run.  Until last night, I was set to participate. However, we are renovating our home, and are down to the wire, so I need to stay home and paint while everyone else wins the race.  I did send Eli with my folks (with his Lightning McQueen underpants on, for good luck) and think he's going to shine! 

Despite my absence from the race, I did manage to send off some medals for the racers.  Yesterday Eli and I whipped up these little gems:

They were fun to make and super easy.  Eli helped, with a little trampoline jumping break.  I may not be there to see them win it, but my 9 nieces and nephews and Eli are going to be big winners this morning!

Making the cookies.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip, with Skor pieces.

Break time. (This medal making is hard work!)

Wrap 'em in tin foil, with a hot glue gun glue on a ribbon, and there you have it!  I even sent the rest of the cookies along for the adult marathon runners.  I hope they are enjoyed!

And the winner is...

Some suggested that this would not be a fair contest, but let me assure you, that while I was waiting for Si to wake up this morning, I couldn't have been more fair.  To prove it, here is the evidence.  

First I wrote out all your names:

Then I crumpled them up:

In the hat they go:

And the winner is...

And since I'm feeling generous, I pulled another:

Yeah Callie and Cassie!!!  You win the first ever Hands Full of Happiness Giveaway!  Congratulations!  Send me your addresses, and I will mail off your hats.  If you have changed your mind about which one you want, let me know that as well.  YEAH!!!

And for the rest of you, don't worry, I've still got tons of yarn I need to get through, and no shortage of time to use it (humf!)

Thanks all for participating, it was fun!