I thought I updated my blog during the summer - but when I just looked at it I saw it's been EIGHT months since the last update!!!!!!!
Here's a look at the past 8 months in pictures!
My Mom's Birthday!
She asked for an updated family picture - So I took advantage and took individual family pictures too!
A couple weeks later was Mother's Day, so I used the new family picture to create a collage for above my parent's fireplace and some Christmas cards!
Then came the END OF THE SCHOOL YEAR! Although, it wasn't the best ending to the year as I had a friend retiring and a good friend being transferred to another building.
I gave these useful hair-tie bangles to colleagues.
These were the gifts I gave retiring friends
(Letter Boards)
I also made Mugs from Shutterfly.
My friend and Ryan's second-grade teacher retired at the end of the school year - I couldn't resist a picture of them together - look closely at what Mary is holding - Ryan's first day of second-grade!
The end of the school year also brought a high school graduation for my nephew, Jacob.
Then came Father's Day
A dear friend lost her father right before July 4th.....I found these precious pebbles and ordered one from the UK. It arrived just in time for the memorial service.
Each week during my summer break, my dad and I did a "home project".
We changed many of our light fixtures
These are in the hallway (the center are beads)
The same fixture is in our entryway
A new pendant light above our sink
and two new light LED fixtures in each of the bathrooms
These are SO easy to wipe clean and give off better light than our previous 4 round bulb fixture.
I spray painted our bench
and then fixed this bad boy! I have HATED this electrical box that sits on the edge of our property - so I decided to spray paint it! It looks SO MUCH better now!
Then I decided after seeing how much better the box looked to do ALL the other boxes on the opposite side of the yard..... SUCH A DIFFERENCE!
We changed out all the weather stripping on the front and garage entry doors - Then we took off all the old painted hinges and repainted them to match the new door knobs.
New door knobs on both entryway and garage doors
Along with a new deadbolt - the original door knob and deadbolt were still on our doors!
My brother decided he wanted his own before/after and asked if I'd rescreen ALL his windows!
I hung all new blinds in the kitchen too!
We also changed the kitchen, bathroom and outside outlets to GFI plugs.
(We are finally up to code!)
I decided to change my hair to a darker color by adding low lights.
and spent some time in Lake Geneva with friends - We went on the only US Mail Delivery boat left! It was fun watching them deliver mail by jumping off the boat to the many mansions around Lake Geneva! We then had lunch on the Lake - FUN TIMES!
Ryan humored me by letting me take pictures of him for our annual Christmas card! We visited a couple new places and some old. We went to some barns and Cantigny!
This year's Christmas Card is printed and ready to go!
We had a wedding to attend (Bill's nephew Gary) as at the end of July in Chicago.
And the end of August brought my birthday! Happy Birthday to ME!
Ryan had a mysterious rash coming and going over the past year - I finally talked him into going to the doctor! It took about 2 weeks - but he's now back to normal!
With a new school year starting - and some grade level changes - Many teachers asked for a classroom sign:
Once the school year started we began construction on our siding. We went from cedar to "cedar impressions" - NO MAINTENANCE ANYMORE! The color is Flagstone with and Flagstone Shake on the front of the garage and bay window. Colonial White for the trim.
I LOVE HOW IT TURNED OUT!
Materials have arrived!
Cedar down on bedroom side of the house
Original cedar on yard side of the house - before
Cedar off the garage front
Cedar Shake placed on the face of the garage
Bay Window Cedar removed
Cedar shake placed on Bay Window and corners wrapped with Aluminum Siding
BEAUTIFUL JOB!
Shake above front door - Cedar Impressions along side walls
Added magnetic hardware to the garage door
House is FINISHED
(Love the white trim around the corners/edges/peak)
A couple weeks after the siding was completed - construction on the deck began!
This is the old deck...
Old deck removed
New deck under construction
Added railing to steps
Added a step onto the lower deck
And everyone knows you can't have a new deck without new deck furniture!
However, it's hard to find deck furniture at the end of October.
I found a nice, durable set at At Home - and got a GREAT deal! The price tags on the pieces were considerably hirer - I had an employee scan them and we both were pleasantly surprised!
I also changed up the shelf I have in the living room - It's had old picture frames on it forever - I decided to go with a "statement shelf".
October also brought my dad's birthday
At school/work, we started making a rock path - decorated rocks by students and staff
These are my contributions!
With my busy summer - I didn't have as much time to create! These are some of the projects I did create.
This is a notebook for Bill to record his mileage
Ryan's girlfriend is a hair stylist - I designed this graphic for a bag for Christmas
This sign was made to go along with the monetary gift for Gary and Jessica's wedding shower
A couple of mouse pads
and bottle openers for Christmas and a wedding gift
and the August birthday gifts
Here are some of my new additions to my Skechers collection. Since it's been 8 months - I thought there would be a lot more?????
WOW - That's a lot of updating! It's already November and the holidays are upon us! Yes, I've already started wrapping! Holiday pictures coming soon!
