Yes, it's real

This was taken tonight, about 5:15 on the beach. It was an insane sunset, it just kept getting better and better. We've been having really low tides the past week so there was lots of wet sand to reflect the light. It's a much nicer photo than the Christmas lights below :)

Tis the season already?

I realize this isn't a very good photo, but thought I'd share it anyway. Thanksgiving is over, so hey - it's time for Christmas lights! We were actually the 2nd on our street to have our lights up - not that it's a contest or anything. We went with all blue & green, just to be different. They look good in person, although here, they just look kind of washed out. You can see the cool patterns the exterior lights make though!

Not much else going on with the house. We've really settled down on projects, but still have a list of stuff we want to do. Slowly, slowly...

Professional Style

We finally got the cabinet mounted above the laundry sink in the garage. We didn't think it would be too complicated, but of course, we ran into a stumbling block we had to overcome.

The cabinet is 24" and mounts assuming the studs are 16" on center, which is standard. Well, this particular wall is not standard, and has the studs 24" on center. So we first had to mount two strips of wood that were attached to the studs, then mount the cabinet to those strips. And, we had to do this making sure we didn't drill into the gas lines or water lines that are so prevalent in this wall. We manged to do it without any explosions or geysers :)

Now, we have an "official" spot to store cleaning products & help the garage stay organized. We still only have one car in it, but one thing at a time :)

More things green

Ok, the clover continues to sprout so that's good news. We probably need to fill in a bit more as some of the dirt spots aren't showing too many sprouts, but overall, it's looking good.

And the green in this picture, well, it's not the new backyard. This is Jeff & our friend Lori on the patio at Wolff Vineyards in the Edna Valley, which is on the southern end of SLO. Mike & Lori were visiting this weekend and we went wine tasting on Sunday. It was a beautiful day. This is a nice shot looking north, across some of the vineyards at Wolff, toward SLO.

Happy Tuesday!

It's alive....

You cant tell from this picture, but the clover has just started sprouting. Of course, as soon as we planted it, it cooled down, so I'm sure that's slowed things down a bit. So, for a while longer, we have this patchwork lawn. I hope to post an "after" picture in about a month that shows the lovely green clover filling in the dirt patches. In the meantime, we'll just enjoy the dogs tracking little pieces of topsoil around the house :)

Not much progress on anything else house wise. Personally, I've enjoyed being a slug the past week, for a change!

New & improved gate

Here's the new header on the gate. What a difference it makes. The gate now opens & closes perfectly, just like a door. We are very happy. And, it came out looking pretty cool. Once it rusts (and you know it will) it will blend in nicely.



We worked in the yard quite a bit yesterday, finally getting our new shrub planted where the bamboo was. We chose a Pittosporum Silver Sheen which is a somewhat open & loose shrub. It should grow 10-12 feet tall, be able to handle the wind, and not need any pruning. We think it will look good.



We also spent a lot to time getting what's left of the lawn ready for the clover seed, which we will sow today. I'm not sure how long it will take to germinate & grow, but the stuff is supposed to be really hardy & be able to grow on barren soil. I hope to have a good picture of the new lawn in a month or so.



Yesterday saw another hot day with temps in the high 80's. Today though, is foggy a cool so far. What a difference a day makes! I'll leave you with another picture of the gate, from the front of the house.

Still here :)

Yup, still here, just haven't posted in a bit. But, we do have an update. They came the other day to add the steel support header for the gate, but it didn't fit. So, they made this temporary plywood gate for us until the bracket could be replaced. They are supposed to install it today, which is great, because the gate has been very difficult to use and is getting damaged because it was sagging so much. I'll post a picture after the header is in - hope it looks ok...

We actually had five trick or treaters last night! Ok, three of them were high schoolers, but they were dressed up and that's all it takes in my book. Needless to say, everybody who did come got lots of candy.

In other news, we are overseeding the lawn (or what's left of it) with white clover on Saturday. It's in horrible shape and we want to give clover a try before completely removing the lawn, which is a serious option at this point.

The onshores are starting again, and it's supposed to warm up this weekend - I'll take that!