Sustainable Me - Space for Creativity and Backyard Bunnies

This weekend was truly beautiful spring weather. And I spent it mostly outside working on the back yard part of my vision for the outside of my  creative space.  I wanted to take advantage of the perfect weather and the  Lawn and Garden things out at Aldi's.  If you snooze you lose!  They have great quality items for very reasonable prices, and I wanted to take advantage of what they had before it was gone.  So on Friday evening while my kids were swimming at the Y, I made several trips to Aldi's, and one to Lowe's.  My car is a small Toyota Hatchback - so I did have to make a few more trips on Saturday. I also tried the Lowe's online pick up feature for the first time, and that worked pretty well, until I realized that I had ordered a 1000 pound bag of pea gravel.  That was not going to fit into my hatchback!  So, I cancelled that part of the order and convinced my friend Missy to let me use her truck and switched over to bags of River Rock...

Looks like I'm not the only one who feels like Waco and surrounding areas are booming.  This was an article in today's Waco Tribune Herald.  On the second photo showing the second part of the article, it shows a picture of a housing development on Ritchie Road.  My son and I used to live in Polo Park, which is a neighborhood across Ritchie Road from this one.  Just a few years ago, I would road bike on this road from my Polo Park neighborhood, and this side of the road was nothing but pasture and countryside.  I am in daily amazement at how fast our area is becoming  more and more congested and populated. I can drive from this area of Ritchie Road to our duplex neighborhood, and it is almost all housing developments now where it used to just be fields of green.   I grew up in this area, so I do have a long term point of reference.  The best part, I think of all of this has been the revitalization of the downtown area, and more of a cultural a...

I walked out into the backyard last night to check on the Mission Fig Tree, and was super excited to see this growth!  It might be a couple of years before we have figs again - but this little tree is going to make it - even after being transplanted!  It seems happy in its new spot and I can't wait to see how tall it is at the end of the growing season.  I'm so glad I brought it with me, even though it was pretty risky.  The tree has gone through a lot of change with the transplant, but is looking hardy and healthy.  

Making my own Stepping Stones I found this link to making my own stepping stones or pavers.  My plan, when I have more time after school is out, is to try making my own at home.  I have some broken glass that I have saved, and some stones, and shells that I can use in the pavers.  I want to make a large circle with these homemade pavers, fill it with gravel, and set the fire pit in the middle of the space - along with a couple of adirondack chairs. I realized when I fired up the fire pit for the first time - that I would need to place it on pavers or on gravel in order to be safe and have the fire away from any grass.  I won't be able to work on this project until school is out - but I am happy to find a solution that is inexpensive and using some things that I already have.   I can also use this same idea to make a garden path from the patio to the studio - which would be really helpful in messy weather.  I like the idea of personalizing t...

 I found these two rocking chairs while shopping at Aldi's.  Only $25 each.  After looking around and online - I thought this was a great price for porch rocking and relaxing.    I also found a terrific deal on Amazon for a $65 Fire pit.  Assembly was required - but it wasn't too bad, and thankfully everything was included that was needed for the assembly.  This fire pit came with some great accessories - even a plastic cover for bad weather.   A fire on a crisp Spring night with a crisp apple cider in hand.  Enjoying this from my new rocking chair.  I did realize though that, I will have to put down some kind of stone circle of pavers or a gravel pit somewhere for the fire pit, for safety concerns.  That still needs to be done.   We are going to have a lot of fun with this - roasted marshmallows, smores. and hot dogs coming up!

 Flooring and paint chips  Paint on large paper to test out with existing furniture  The living room - besides the garbage, we picked up around $6 of change on the floor  My mom didn't want to pay for painting the ceiling, but it really needed it - so I footed that cost.  The fumes from the black mold on this dishwasher were not tolerable The carpet was ruined and of course had to be pulled out.  And I insisted it be pulled out before we painted.  My friend and I didn't want to work in such filthy conditions.  It took a stern conversation or two, but we got our way.    Utility room mess Leak in the ceiling   Holes in the wall  Some mildew issues  My son's future bedroom - we were also going to need some new blinds.  We found all kinds of disgusting filth - even animal feces from where the kitty cat had not been properly cared for.    The...

I thought that I would include this in my blog, because it is kind of going back to the beginning of our move from the "industrial" area duplex, to the area where we now live. Because of the show "Fixer Upper" and the Magnolia businesses here in Waco, property costs have shot up, property taxes have had increases, and new building projects in the Waco, and surrounding areas have increased.  It has kind of been like living in some kind of boom town era. My parents worked hard to buy some rental properties and build a rental business for their retirement.  My Dad loved to do all of the repair and maintenance, and he was really good at it.  I learned a lot of my work ethic and persistence from him.  As he passed away almost six years ago now from cancer, my mom is the owner/manager of the business now. She sold some of their older properties, and invested into some newer duplexes in the Hewitt area. The original idea was for her to either build a duplex or buy on...

I have been thinking about my studio planning, and I realize that I also want to include the backyard space as an extension of my studio.  I think that the whole back yard and a garden can be a source of  inspiration to me, and it has always been important to me to have that.  I am sure that the backyard bunnies will enjoy it as well.  It is just that I am beginning anew, in a new place, and starting over so to speak.   I walked out in the back yard and realized that we have quite a few black ants and large ant hills - even right up around where the mission fig tree is growing.  I have also noticed some wasps, and a bee hive in a tree in the front yard.  So, I think my first challenge is to decide how to handle these issues.  Below, I have posted some photos of what I'm thinking of for the space so far.  I really like this stone circle and firepit and the adirondack chairs.  I would like to have a space like this to the left of...