Friday, May 29, 2009

The Long Awaited Kitchen Remodel is Complete!




Well, after months of living without a kitchen, cleaning dishes in the bathtub and layers of dust...we are happy to report that our kitchen remodel is complete (with the exception of a few small items: a back splash tiles, bar stools and cabinet lighting)!   All of the pipes behind the walls have been replaced, hopefully saving us from leaks in the future, the hot water heater is now tankless, and the washer dryer was replaced by a stackable and put in the pantry. This has opened up space in the sun room for an eat in kitchen and playroom for Chloe. The floor and walls of the sunroom were slanted and very insecure, so we leveled the floor, added insulation and re-enforced the walls. The floor no longer shakes when you step into the room, ahhhhh.
I just finished putting planter boxes on the railings outside of the sunroom windows, flowers still tbd.  A special thanks to my Dad for his work on the templates for the door handles and to my Mom for overseeing the installation!
We hope you will be coming for a visit soon. The door is always open and you will be greeted with a nice glass of wine or hot cup of coffee!
xoxo

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

In Summary, our trip was amazing!

One last stop...the drive through tree and tree houses!





Chloe's favorite...the tree houses!

Traveling Home...a few fun stops along the way.






A picnic in the Redwood Forest in Humbolt County. "I want to go naked please!"

The Charming Town of Arcata






Our final destination was Arcata, a small hippie town not far from the Oregon border. We spent 2 nights there and explored the area which included: a memorable stroll across the square to Arcata's newest gem, Cafe Brio, for European style all-organic pastries, perfectly prepared Blue Bottle coffee and a rosemary potato tart that makes my mouth water just thinking of it; a short stroll through the center of Arcata, popping into the bookstores and boutiques around the plaza, before heading to Humboldt Brews for a pint of hemp ale and a wicked match of pool...Chloe helped; and a drive to Redwood National Park where we viewed a herd of Elk. Arcata is a artsy college town, where, unlike in surrounding cities, dreadlocks outnumber mullets; there are more bookshops than gun stores; locally farmed cuisine rates high on the priority lists of eating places; and you can explore a redwood grove in the heart of downtown. What more do you need?

Amazing Hike Through the Redwoods




Pretty incredible trees!

Let's Go Looking for them...


the fairies...and the cats Daddy!

Where the Fairies Live...




Redwood Forest Hike







"Big trees Mama!"

More pics of the coast




Mendocino Coastline




After lunch we drove further North on Route 1 and stopped off along the coast to play in the sand.

Family Fun on the Beach in Mendocino




Mom and Chloe Playing




Mendocino Coastline