So mad

Apparently, "we're leaving now, see you in an hour" is now code for "we're going to stand you up."

Yep, the sectional lady was a no-show. Brent and I are livid...and sad. All our furniture has already been moved out of the man cave, so I spent last night laying on the floor.

It amazes me how inconsiderate people can be.

On to the next sofa search...

Curb Appeal (day 4)

What we left off with on day 3:

With how long the first set of timbers took Brent to remove, I wasn't expecting to get too much work done – so imagine my surprise when they all came out together:

What my timber-free landscape is looking like:

Yep, it's so much better already.

Next, we started the part I've been dreading – digging out the path:

And since I apparently need to run into a snafu each day I work on this project – we found a block of concrete in the middle of our path. After some debate, we decided it had to have been a gas lamp at some point.

Day 4 final:

I think Brent's chipped away at the concrete enough now, that we should be good.

I'm not sure when I'll have time for my "day 5," but I am happy with the progress I've made so far. Ideally, I'd like everything ready for flowers and shrubs by April 29th – which is when my favorite charity plant sale is.

Eeek!

I am so excited! I found this guy on CL, and Brent and I are picking it up tonight. This sectional will be perfect for the man cave.


Update: Ugh. Just got an email from the lady and she has decided to keep it. Guess the futon in the man cave will stay for awhile more.

Update 2: Apparently, I am getting the sectional again – the lady just wanted to keep it until she picks up her furniture on Wednesday. And since she'll be in the area, it will now be delivered to my garage. Sweet!

Beer-tasting party paper package

One of the most common questions I receive from readers is asking where I got my invitations, notepads, etc., from the beer-tasting party I threw for Brent's 30th. My reply back is always a "sorry, I didn't buy them anywhere – I made them."

Sadly, it never occurred to me that I could market this. When I started researching beer-tasting parties there was nothing out there (which was exciting and devastating), so I've decided to change that.

The beer-tasting party paper package includes high-res PDFs of...

Invites...

An 11x17 sign..

Notepads (sized to be directly uploaded/printed at VistaPrint)...

Food labels...

Beer category signs...

So, I hope this helps some of my readers out. All these goodies and more are under the new tab Paper Obsessed.

**I am linking up with DIY Show Off and Craft-O-Mania.**

Curb Appeal (days 2 and 3)

Slight hold up on the landscaping, those timbers are evil!

In 2 days, we went from this:

To this:

Yep, that took us 2 days. And this progress even involved chains and my SUV. It's getting somewhere though. I'm hoping to start the next retaining wall on Thursday.

Curb Appeal (day 1)

Well, the bushes have been removed, and that alone is a massive improvement.

With:

Without:

We have stairs!

Then I drew out the line I wanted to follow for the first retaining wall:

The top walls progress:

I'm not going to lie, building a retaining wall is zero fun. Making sure each stone is level takes forever. I'm really not looking forward to the one I'll have to do where the timber starts. But it will be worth the time and foul language spent.

Curb Appeal (the game plan)

Full disclosure: I'm not a fan of my front yard.


Nothing tragic, but nothing exciting either. It's just blah, and I've decided that needs to change.

The Game Plan:
- Remove the bushes (I don't like not being able to see the stairs, plus they are dying)
- Remove the old-school timber things
- Add several retaining walls
- Then pretty it up with flowers and shrubs