Starting to Make Progress

So when we bought our dream house almost seven years ago, I ignorantly said to my husband “and we don’t even have to do anything to it, it’s perfect!” And I meant it. It took almost three full months to start imagining all of the wonderful things that the previous owners forgot to do when they built the house. Coincidentally it took about three months to completely unpack and get settled… That’s when I started THE LIST. I love lists, whether they are for daily tasks, monthly goals or THINGS TO DO BEFORE I DIE (seriously, I have that list too). THE LIST was all of the fun I could have making this house my own. Some things were smallish, like “Hang family pic in hall” and some things were huge, like “Remodel pool to look like Pirate Cove at Disneyland.” Not kidding, I did that one two years ago.

The most recent big ticket item from the list I started long ago was “Redo front of house, including yard.” I always thought the inside of our house had much more character and charm than the outside and since I have to see the outside every time I come home or go out, this got to the top of the list over the summer.

Oh look, my yard is still a shit hole.

I am about three months into this project, which seems entirely too long, and I’m really ready to be done with it. In the beginning I made fresh lemonade for the guys so they would love me and be eager to complete my yard. That didn’t work, I think they kind of like it at my house so they are in no hurry to be done. I’ve started to roam around the yard muttering “wtf???” in the hopes of frightening the crew into a whipped frenzy so they’ll finish this f’in project just to get away from me. It’s not working. I like to hang my Christmas lights on Thanksgiving weekend but right now my front yard is a land mine of rocks, dirt and nails so it’s not looking good. The other challenge of this one is that it’s an expensive project in a tough economy. We had been saving for this for a long time so we had the money in the bank but it was kind of scary to decide to deplete it. Ultimately, the decision was made when we got a bid that was half the cost that we had been quoted before the economy tanked. Of course, every time I walk out there and change my mind about something, we add another $1,000 to the bill– ack.

Woohoo - we're rockin' the porch!

 

So where’s the bright side of a remodel project you ask? Well, I get a rush each day when I get home from work and there is a beautiful new development. I spent hours picking out rocks and bricks and plants, which for me is as good as a day at the spa. Then there is the little sketch of what I dreamed of for the front of my house years ago and guess what? It’s looking exactly like my drawing, which means that this dream is coming true. Can’t beat that.