OMG, she lives! And blogs!

Back in May I promised photos that never materialized. Let me tell you, a broken leg is no picnic. Especially in a multi-level house. For a little while I mostly felt sorry for myself and because of that I was pretty quiet. But then it got easier to get around, and I started going down to the kitchen again, and into the livingroom to sit and knit and read. I even ventured all the way down to the family room to watch television occasionally. But I still wasn’t feeling like dragging out the camera for photos and if I did, it was a quick point and shoot and be done with it.

And now (FINALLY), the cast is off and it’s full on summertime here. Our weather is lovely and the garden is blooming and we have vegetables! We planned a huge project for this Spring, complete with a greenhouse and replacing a fence that had blown down a couple of years ago in a crazy windstorm. Then when I broke my leg I really didn’t get to be part of the building and planting, and that really honestly bummed me out. I used to love to get out in the garden. A couple of days ago I ventured out to take photos, another thing I’ve not done in a long time, and it felt really good. I still have to watch how much walking around I do without at least one crutch, but it gets easier with every passing day.

The weird thing about bringing out the camera was that I felt I’d forgotten everything I’d ever learned about composition and exposure. Rather than let myself be discouraged and pack it in before I began, I just tried to have fun with it and play with the exposures and such without being too hard on myself. These photos are all in and around the backyard and the garden. There’s more over on flickr. I hope you’ll enjoy looking at these new photos. I’d really like to get back into it again.

As you can see, I haven’t lost my love of taking photos of insects or flowers. I’m trying to get more into taking photos of my knitting projects and perhaps now that I’m happier with my weight (a story for another day), you may even see me in photos instead of my favourite dress dummy! I did a lot of knitting during my “down” time. The biggest problem was that I couldn’t block anything since I was pretty immobile in the first months, which is why I just kept knitting and didn’t do much finishing. Now I’m faced with a really cute summer tote that needs to be sewn together and lined, as well as a gorgeous cabled sweater coat that is SO close to being done that I actually knit up during the winter Olympics! I’ve got several new projects on the go too, and will post a few pics in the days to come.

I knitted up a scarf just before I injured myself that I’ve not yet posted about and I am really happy with how this pretty little bit of mesh loveliness called Icing turned out! It was knit up with some gorgeous handpainted yarn from the very talented Melissa of Yarn Candy. You have to go see the new yarns she’s bringing out for Fall, the colours are wonderful. I see several projects in my future with her luxurious new colourways.

Enough rambling for one night, see you again soon!

click pic for bigger imageI thought I’d post this photo since it’s close to what the finished design will look like. The cabinet guy was out late yesterday and agreed there was a few screw-ups that need to be fixed. Apparently while “tweaking” the design, someone forgot to move the upper cabinets to match the lower, but that will all be fixed.

The uppers are being redone to align the microwave directly above the stove. At the moment it’s about 3 inches off being centered correctly.

They also agreed the granite is totally wrong and it WILL be fixed to our satisfaction. There is a strong possibility that new granite will be brought in because of the damage to the current counter.

click pic for bigger imageLots of notes and photos were taken to document what needs to be done. A few cabinets are being rebuilt and as a gesture of goodwill they are designing and installing a custom wine rack. I’m thinking it would also look nice filled with yarn skeins…

Naturally that meant I needed to move another light switch. We are getting to know the electrician VERY well!

click pic for bigger imageAnd of course, the appliances arrived - because I had arranged for delivery because we thought everything would be ready. So now the appliances are residing in the dining room.

click pic for bigger imageWe are getting almost too used to living this way. I’ve forgotten what it’s like to not be breathing in sawdust and drywall dust every day. But I just keep repeating that it WILL be worth it in the end. And I know it will (I’m not really complaining, just getting tired of living in chaos).

One last image - this is my faucet. I love it, it was way too expensive (but I got a good discount). I consider it to be “bling” for the kitchen.

I found similar designs, but they either looked cheap or were way too large.

This one is just perfect. If you are either (a) into reading about faucets or (b) wanting this for your own kitchen, read the specs - Ladylux Faucets specs.

Getting in under the wire here with these pics for Becky’s request for virtual backyard tours! My backyard is actually quite a mess right now. A windstorm blew part of the cedar fence (on the south side) down, and we haven’t even begun to prepare for Spring (although hubby went out today and took stock of what needs to be done). So I’m cheating a little, and using a selection of photos taken over the last two summers.

Please click on the thumbnails for a larger pop up image.

This is the view to the east, looking out the dining room patio doors onto the upper deck. You can also see the hottub on the next level (to the left in the photo). Our backyard isn’t very deep before you hit a steep slope down and at the bottom of that is a chainlink fence.

I like it – the coyotes can’t come in, but we still get to see them.

If you had stepped through the dining room doors out onto the deck and looked to your right, this is what you’d see! Oh, and that’s not really more yarn storage. That’s the garden shed (for bikes, lawn mower, gardening supplies, etc). But with a window, heater, some lighting and a good cleaning – it could be Maple Ridge’s newest yarn shop, don’t you think?

By the way, that is the cedar fence that got knocked down in the big windstorm. I have photos of it all down, but they aren’t all that exciting…

This is the view to the left from that same upper deck. We have a 3 level wood deck, and then a cement patio with a cover over part of it. Under the cover are the doors that lead into the family room. Bobbie used to live in the house on the other side of that big cedar hedge (yes, there’s a fence and a hedge – they were both there when we moved in).

This is my favourite chair, sitting under the patio cover. I took this photo with my back to the doors that lead into the family room. (am I confusing anyone yet)?

Another view, looking from under the patio cover and out towards the backyard and the upper level decks. I love our yard in the summer. It’ sunny and bright and Himself plants tons of flowers for everyone to enjoy (and for me to water)!

This photo is especially for Bobbie! She used to live next door to me, and the duckpond was behind her house. But if I stand on the bench beside the hot tub I can see it. And I don’t have to do anything at all to listen to the dozens and dozens of ducks that making that pond their home. The pond is part of the property that is behind our house, and in fact all the houses on the same side of the street as us. It’s a farm, and in the summer the horses are usually in the upper field, so we see them as well when we sit on the upper deck.

Now if you were really incredibly good and got through all those photos, bravo! This is the last shot, and it’s not really the backyard. It’s where I sit and knit in the fall and winter, because it’s the warmest room in the house that also contains a TV!

I hope you liked the tour, and Becky – great idea!