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July 11, 2009 :: Knee-high by the Fourth of July (and then some)

Growth abounds at the little house this spring/summer. Wow. It is full-on summer now, isn't it? Boy. It's been a while since I've been here.

Things have been cruising along this year it seems, and I've been caught off-guard by the passage of time. I planted seeds some three months ago, and above you see a tiny bit of the fruits of this year's planting experiment--front-yard-of-food, Cabbagetown. This morning I checked the yard and found that the corn was somewhere near ready (I think...I'm going to have to google to find out for sure), that someone may have swiped our latest batch of ripe tomatoes, right off the vines (I hope it was a legitimately hungry person and not a neighbor), and that our herbs are out. of. control. Soon, we'll have squash and pumpkins, really late-season watermelon and eggplant, too. I couldn't be happier (exepct for the thievery). I'm already planning for next year.

We're also planning some other big changes around here. It's still the year of the house. It may be the two-years-of-the-house, actually, given the slow growth of our budget for such things and my inability to blog about them, but we'll get a good chunk done very soon. I feel productive (if not a little poorer) having planned out such serious sawing and hammering. We're all permitted and ready to go. I'm nervous, but excited.

I want to try and document the process, starting with our beginning-point, rotted soffits, mossy roof, tattered paint and all. I love my house. I can't wait to love it even more.

We'll replace most of the exterior trim (it's rotted through), add gutters (why were there none in such critical places? seriously problematic), trim trees, power-wash the house, and then, the most exciting part....paint the whole thing a gorgeous blue. With purple-black shutters and window trim, a red-red front door and humungous western house numbers.


Some inspiration. Color on top, stenciled flooring in the middle for the porch, and an attempt to channel a little Margaret Killgallen for the house numbers.

I can't wait to get started.