Bathroom Repairs.

This is what is currently in the playroom: 

Yea.  That's a bathtub.  That at one time was in the guest bath.  

But not anymore.

I noticed a small spot in the guest bath around the drain.  It looked like the finish of the tub was peeling up.  I called that handy-dandy home warranty and they came to take a look.

Apparently the porcelain was cracked from the drain being screwed in too tight??

That means they had to rip out a large percentage of the tile surround and the tub.  It made a huge mess.  They have already replaced the tub, but the tile won't be fixed until later this week.  

I'm going to walking through this house with a fine toothed comb before our one year warranty is up!

Cold Blooded Killer.

A few weeks ago at about 9pm he "asked" to go outside to potty.  He ran through the backyard at a full sprint and then I saw something in his mouth.

Oh sh!t.  He caught a bunny.  

Cooper was gleaming with pride.  I know it's difficult to imagine a dog looking proud... but you could just tell.  He was pumped and walked with an extra bounce in his step. I tried not to cry and The Husband took care of the rest.  The Husband showered him with praise because he did "what he was born to do".  Ugh, whatever.  I moved on.

...until the next day when it happened again.

After the second death, we invested in chicken wire and wrapped it along the wrought iron part of our fence.  We hoped no more innocent creatures would enter the beast's domain.

For a solid month the chicken wire did it's part.

Armadillos stayed away and the bunnies lived to see another day.

Yesterday he was out in the yard sunbathing.   We were inside doing... who knows what.  Cooper started barking and I assumed it was a deer that passed by, or an animal in the greenbelt.  However, the barking didn't stop.  When I finally went outside and looked over the deck I saw a snake in the flower beds, and Cooper had it cornered up against the house.  ::cue screaming for The Husband::

One Husband and One shovel later... The snake didn't live to tell the tale of the beagle beast.

I'm so thankful Cooper didn't get bit, although after the killing we did some research and discovered it was a Hog Nosed Snake (not venomous).   

Sorry all you snake lovers.  He was hissing at my beagle... and he had to go.

Life in fast forward.

I feel like I'm living life in fast forward these days.  I can't seem to find the minutes to sit down and indulge my blog.  The last post was about Fall decor, and so much has happened since then.  I'm working on a few posts to play catch up over the next few days.  

This is the bush in the front yard that didn't survive the summer.

The coolest part about buying a new home, is that you call the warranty people when your plants die... and they replace them.  For free.  

My fall wreath (that I stole from my sister's wedding decor), and our creepy spider webs.  

$2 worth of webs really gives the effect

Roasted pumpkin seeds.  Nothing screams fall more than these!

Growing up, my family was not big pumpkin carvers.  Not sure why.  My guess is that my mom never trusted any of us with sharp objects.  I found a pattern online and this was my very first pumpkin.  I think it turned out great. 

I had so much fun doing pumpkin #1, The Husband and I attempted a much more advanced pattern.  This took us at least 2.5 hours but I think it's totally adorable.  We are obsessed with our beagle... and clearly, not afraid to show it.  

We were very prepared for trick-or-treaters.  Too bad we only had ONE.  

With our subdivision being almost brand new (within the 'master planned community') we only have a couple houses in the whole area.  Out of those houses, only one family has a child... so that's who stopped by.  The Husband and I have been working on getting this bowl to the bottom.  I anticipate we will have a complete success within the next two weeks. 

Halloween is over... I'm going out on a limb and saying 'BRING ON CHRISTMAS!'.

(No, I didn't forget about Thanksgiving... But I'm so excited about Christmas, I can hardly wait to start decorating!!)

Fall will come eventually...

So I want to be prepared.

In Texas, we're still holding on at an average of 90 degree highs.  I keep wishing the yellow and brown colors that have blanketed Texas were because has arrived... but sadly, it's just overcooked lawns, trees, and plants.  I'm sad to report there has been a confirmed fatality of a bush in our front yard.  I'll blog about the loss another day.

When you go to the major stores they have had fall supplies out since early September (as I assume most places... it's not still summer).  At first it irked me, as Christmas decor in October does, but I finally decided I would roll with it and hopefully my decor would encourage the weather to change seasons.

Our front door at night.  Note the pumpkin door mat. 

The display nook in the entry way.  I moved some candles off the mantle to help with the Halloween feel of the pumpkin.  I bought several of these pumpkins at Target.  They plug in and there is a small light bulb in the back.  Genius.  

This is the awesome shadow it makes on the opposite wall at night.

Mantle.  The pumpkins are faux and purchased at target.  The cinnamon broom makes my whole house smell like fall and I love that it resembles a witches broom.  The jack-o-lantern on the right is another plug in from Target.  

The fall season makes me want to get my bake on.  These will come in handy.  

Yet another faux pumpkin in the kitchen nook.  

The Husband and I also picked out a super cute bowl for Halloween candy and some fake spiders web to string over our front window and door.  I'm hopeful we'll get trick-or-treaters this year!  Too bad we're still kind of alone in the back of the neighborhood... so I doubt we'll get too many.  However, I will be prepared in the event of a ghost or goblin knocking at my door.  

Fires.

Texas is in an extreme drought.

As in, I can't remember the last time I saw rain.  It's been months.  Droughts bring fire.  

The fires are thankfully, for the most part under control... but there was one about 10 miles from our home.  It was close enough that we sat down at 11pm and decided was what most important and put it in a suitcase.

It's amazing, and humbling, that The Husband and I can have this beautiful home full of wonderful things - but the *real* stuff can just fit into one suitcase.  

Photos from our childhoods and wedding, IDs, Passports, External Hard Drive, my camera, a few home videos, and our insurance/closing documents.  That's all we actually need, although we're surrounded by all this stuff.  

It puts things into perspective... quickly.  

Thankfully, the fires didn't get close enough to be a major concern.  We feel very fortunate.  These photos were taken from our street.  Some, just from right outside the front door.  

This fire (below) is over 33 miles away.  The smoke was intense.  

Furniture lay-out for dummies.

We have made some (very) small steps towards a furniture decision.  

We found a couch and chair we really liked at a local store.  It was enough to get us home to tape out the possibilities in the living room.  I am very visual, and I was hoping this would help the husband pull the "trigger" on the purchase.  

large rectangle centered on the back wall = couch

small square near the kitchen = end table

angled square near the back door = chair

rectangle in front of the couch = ottoman

square perpendicular to the ottoman = chair #2

view from the kitchen:

view from the extended entry way:

view from the back door:

 So you can see the space between the furniture and tv:  

After all of that... we decided the couch wasn't for us.  Neither was the chair.  We're still on the hunt for the *perfect* couch... but I'm feeling like we're getting closer as we're getting a clearer idea each time we shop.  

We also decided that the above floor plan didn't work as well as we hoped.  Chair #2 (perpendicular from the ottoman... near the kitchen) made things feel too blocked off.  We decided that if/when we actually purchase chair #2, it will live up against the wall, right next to the tv.  This allows for conversation and creates more space near the kitchen.  Oh, and we also decided that the couch wasn't large enough for our liking.  We will end up with something a bit deeper and longer than what has been taped out on our floors.  

Solutions everywhere.

We finally got our act together and hung photos above our couch.  This is a huge wall and thankfully, we purchased the photos and frames when we lived in our last apartment.  I wish they were a little larger - but it fills the space pretty well and it's much better than an empty wall.  

Hang something on empty wall:  Solved.

Photos are all from the 1940s of our city.  We and had them printed at the local Historical Society.  

You would not believe the math that was involved before we hung even one nail.  Math is not my strong suit.   

Keeping it real.  This is the mess that is a Monday morning in my house.

However, from this angle there are two things on the walls!  It's only taken 2 months.  

This was a purchase from last weekend.  It's apparently the "coolest" ladder at HD.  It extends up to 12 feet, and it will work on steps... and it was mega expensive at over $200.  Oh well, at least our air filters can get changed now.   It's a Werner brand... I forget the name.  

Reach tall ceilings: Solved. 

A few weekends ago, Sears was having a pretty good sale on these Craftsman Versa Track systems.  We purchased 8 'tracks' and loads of hanging accessories for the garage.  This was a perfect solution to getting all the crap off the garage floor and making more room for... walking... and parking.  Genius. 

Garage Storage:  Solved.   

We worked for a while in the garage (you MUST find studs... and mark each clearly... and check 5,567 times that the track is level... which is a process if your husband is a total perfectionist) and ended up with two of the 8 tracks up on the wall.  I already love the system and can't wait to finish the rest.  I imagine we'll only get two done a weekend.  Expect a 'completed' post in December.   

Remember my computer chair issue... or lack thereof?  

This is not (at all) the style of chair I had in mind, but Handy Hubby really wanted something that was more functional than pretty.  This chair from Office Depot did the job.  And as much as I hate to admit it... I think the Parson's chair would have been a bad idea.  I'm secretly loving this chair.

Chunky-leg issue:  Solved.

And the leg room is divine.