Tree Time!

This fall we finally got some new trees in the ground! (Thanks to a shopping trip to the nursery with Mom. Love it.)  With a Japanese Maple in the back yard along the corner of the garage and a little pink Dogwood and a red leaf Japanese Maple in the front yard, we are feeling good!  Now, we can't wait till spring when things start budding and blooming again. 

Also... check out that beautiful fence!  

"It's not done yet." -RS

Official backyard fence project progress report

Exceeds expectations in every way!!!!!

 Delivery Day.

Barking tiny dogs = insane.  Quick, dig out that chain link and effectively utilize baby helper.

Set a few posts with the help of your friends. Thanks Joel, Tshombe, Jason and Mikael!

Looking Good! 

Gator in the tub

Bath time just got a little more exciting...

Nothing like a little basement work

Sooo... when someone [Ryan] says, "I think I'm going to re-route the ducts in the basement" it actually means "I'm going to start a giant never ending project that will cause a lot of stress and need to get done before we have to turn the heat on this fall..."

Here is our lovely furnace which leads some ducts to a little storage area under our kitchen nook.  After ripping out the duct work to re-route it, Ryan realized that there was dry rot in the cabinet because it was built on...er, dirt. Ryan ripped out the smelly cabinet, leveled the dirt, poured concrete, framed out a wall and a new floor joist, and created a hardiebacker board storage area. Then, re-routed the ducts.

Old meets new.  Sheesh, connecting ducts above your head is @!#$#@ tricky. Next step, caulk and tape and cross your fingers the air flows freely.

Window treatment

With the new neighbors moving in we decided it was finally time to class up the joint and add some blinds to our bedroom windows. Since our windows are standard size via 1927, the new blinds barely fit.  So after retrofitting the window casings, viola, window treatments at last! 

Hmmm??

Sometimes your outdoor flowers get sneaky and start GROWING through the basement walls. 
What the heck nasturtium?!?!! 

Mowstrip

This summer we've been putting some work into our mowstrip... or 1 ft. of space between our sidewalk and street.  Progress has been SLOW. What happened to the days of quick house projects? 

She did.

Anyway, after taking out the old sod (read, weeds) and leveling the ground, Ryan started putting our new wheelbarrow to work.  We took the old compost pile dirt, sifted out the big chunks and began filling in sections of the strip for plantings.  With the help of some donated plants we designed a new no-mow landscape.  Next came the old chimney bricks and our new walkways were born. 
Love it!

The Nook

It's bench time in the nook! Instantly more room for more people. Want to stop by to sit and eat at our table with us? 
Ali Jo can't wait.

Sewer

After a few years of putting off our sewer repair... we've finally got the job done. Well, Renyold's Sewer Repair got the job done.  In one day, they excavated the old terracotta sewer line from the house to the street and replaced it with new pipe.  The line zigzagged across the front lawn, under the gas line, around the new water line, and next to the old water line.  With all the permits in place we're good to go! (Just in time for Portland's ecoli notice in the city water supply and then a neighborhood water shut off for the city's own sewer repair project around the block.)

and then there's the nursery...

Spring Cleaning!

With a run to the dump and a basement overhaul we're cleaning things up around here!

Thanks Dad for painting our basement walls a blinding new white. It looks amazing.  With 2 coats of drylock paint we're good to go with all the Portland spring rain.

Ryan Schoonover Reclaimed Wood Furnishings

Call to place your order today!

Armrest coaster:



Rolling stool/end table/footrest:



Coffee table: (baby not included)



Bookcase:

Stairway railing:

Weekend trellises

When the new clematis plants in our side driveway beds started growing about 3 inches a day we knew it was time to figure out a trellis plan.  We needed to create some privacy for our bedroom window that now overlooks the new neighbor's side windows and driveway.  We wanted the trellis to be semi-permanent for easy removal when we eventually paint the house.  We were also interested in something that looked cool and wasn't too heavy.  So… these were conceptualized on Friday, constructed on Saturday, and sealed and hung on Sunday.  The trellises are mounted with pins that simply attach to the bolts that are bracketed to the house.  Imagine lots of purple flowering vines this summer. 

A new threshold (& some baby aerobics)

This past month Ryan has taken advantage of his paternity leave to knock quite a few house projects off the list.  The side door had a 2 inch gap where the threshold met the base of the door. This has required some major attention for ages now and the other day Ryan got to it.  We are all so excited that the door now swings beautifully and there is no longer a draft/rain/snow/outdoor elements blowing through.  The project was completed in a day and the door only came on and off the hinges, oh, about 6 times. 
Meanwhile, someone else has been working very hard on her super awesome full body leg kick moves.

Announcing the best February project there ever was:

She's cute, she's tiny and she's the best little Alice Josephine in the world. 
Meet Ali Jo! 

She loves her newly reupholstered chair. After months and months of sitting unfinished in the basement, we finally dug out the old chair and got busy.  We rebuilt the foam base, stapled on the fabric, and refinished the wood.  After looking for the original furniture bolts in vain, we finally bought some new ones and after 5 trips to the store came home with right size. Viola, cute new nursery chair. 

Valentines Day

Look! Ryan made us a new Valentines day bench for our front door.  Old barn wood never looked so good.  We're also very partial to the old egg crate turned shoe crate.  

Snow day clean up

Sometimes when you're stuck at home for 3 days in a snow/ice storm you decide to listen to your 3 yr. old nephew when he tells you, "Uncle Ryan, you had better clean up that mess."  
Sam, here ya go... garage workshop-tornado-disaster-zone turned into a functional storage and work space that will fit a car!!!!!! woohoo!

Winter Weather

First we have beautiful sunshine, next we have a surprise snow storm.  Heading to the coast for some sunshine felt amazing a few weekends ago, while heading home from work Thursday afternoon was a different story.  After 5 inches and a completely shutdown Portland, we are so excited that the heat works, the kitchen is busy and the house projects are abundant.  Hibernating inside all weekend may not be that bad.

Stairway to heaven

Refinishing the back hallway has been a big challenge that's required a lot of late night work shifts.  Lately Ryan's been spending his time replacing steps and risers, re-building some stairs and creating new molding. 

 Then came the acrobatic paint job. 

Next, he decided to frame out a wall and rewire some of the electrical. This required squaring off the lower staircase and tackling more drywall.  
Then why not add a newly constructed shoe shelf made from the old floor boards pried loose from the original landing? 
Love it!

desperately need a few more new appliances? why, yes. yes we do.

So, after the old dryer broke with 2 loads of wet laundry to finish... we decided to bite the bullet and buy a new washer and dryer. 
Tada! Let the laundry begin.
(We clearly chose a rather basic model without the compatible smart phone app or built in digital touch screen.)