I write with fear and trepidation that I must officially return to work in less than two days. As I say every year, I'm not sure where the summer went. While the highlight of the summer was definitely our trip to Jasper, there was some work that needed tending to at home. And thus I bring you the latest edition of summer projects, the easiest summer to date.

First, immediately before and after our trip to the mountains, I worked on updating our fence. I called it the lipstick on a pig project.



The old girl was, to quote Vanilla Ice, "dated and hated," and "hurtin' for certain." We scraped excess paint, which took quite a while. Then the painting occurred, which took even more than quite a while. You know you've made it in life when you can dedicate countless hours to repainting a rotting fence. Oh well, I just want to get a few more years out of this fence (i.e. move before someone discovers its true character).

The result:









There was a little too much white going on, so the boys and I built a little wood rack attached to the shed. I also made a little black maple leaf. I insisted on black for a colour because our country is in mourning as long as we have Trudeau as prime minister.

And just like that, my biggest project of the summer was over. Lame a bit?

Our water cooler in the kitchen was gross. I tried cleaning it but these coolers are designed so complicated that they don't clean very well. So eventually we chucked it and bought a basin for our water jugs. Simple. I built a little stand to go with it. I mainly just wanted to try galvanized pipes in a project.

Becca told me to clean up my tools in the basement laundry room. I needed just a bit more storage (and some work space) so I took the map top from an old desk we had and built some legs and shelves.

The tiling work is what Joseph did, all on his own, back when he was four. This little space actually is now one of my favourite parts of the house. I've spent many hours standing there working on little items. It's quiet and peaceful.

We needed a new TV stand, and a nicer book shelf/ storage spot in our living room. So here we go:

This project I originally did with grey tops. But Becca really really wanted the brown tops (i.e. "change them or else..."). So I whipped up some brown baskets for them. 

I had some grey tops and baskets left over, which I designed into a mini-sewing shelf. Whether it actually gets used as such I can't say. But at least it could be used for such a purpose.

In theory you can get a little table out of it. I just need to find some new castors that can lock into place (sigh, Tisdale doesn't sell any).

A side project has taken place on my parent's acreage in Nipawin. My dad has been bringing home scrap wood that has been left for rot, de-nailing them, and helping the boys with a fun project: a treehouse!

Hammering nails:

We put up some railings and balusters the other day. I think eventually we'll build a little roof shelter over part of it. Anyway, the boys already have water guns left in place to defend their fort. They also love being given ice cream and other snacks to take up to the fort to eat.

In truth, the main project all summer has been our garden in Nipawin. It's a lot more difficult when you have to travel 40 plus minutes to work on it. Ideally you'd do a little bit everyday. But we are extremely thankful for a plot of earth at the acreage to grow food to feed our family. It's good to get one's hands dirty. The harvest has been very plentiful thus far.

The remainder of the garden, along with all our canning work, will need to be done late at night during school days. The motivation of eating good fruit and veggies in the winter will (hopefully) carry us through on those upcoming long days.

Thus ends Summer Projects 2018: The easiest summer to date.

Fort Saskatchewan

Ever wonder what goes on in the minds of little children? I can't imagine. Hmm...

- - -

Hi, I'm Joseph. I'm five years old and I know lots of stuff. I also need to build things because then I will be just like my grandpa. But my mom and dad don't let me. They say I have to ask first.

So I asked my daddy if we could build a tree house together. He said he didn't think it would work. So I drew him a picture of it. There, how could this not work? I even drew all the materials we would need. Dad is pretty slow sometimes.

Dad said he didn't think my picture would work! So I thought it would be good to let him sleep on it. I asked him the next day. He said no. I asked him the next day. He said no. I asked him... (repeat 37x) the next day... He said MAYBE!!!

Good! So that means I'd better start building it. I asked John Paul to help me. He's a good helper. He does what I tell him to. But he's a little bit dumb. Here's a picture of him and me working. I'm a workerman. John Paul's trying to figure out how to put his helmet on.

So the next thing to do is to come up with an idea. Daddy says that we're not going to build a tree house, but a fort instead. Great! So I went out to build a fort! But daddy says we need logs from grandpa's farm first. I think daddy is just trying to not do it. Just like when mommy asks him to vacuum the house but he says he's busy.

Instead of waiting, I made a plan of the fort.

It's going to be pretty sweet. I wanted to start building with John Paul. So I asked dad again if we could start the fort. He said we needed logs. But John Paul and I can get some logs in our yard.

Daddy says we can't use those logs because their for fires. Mommy says we're in trouble because we're not supposed to have the ax and saw. Mommy says we can't have lots of stuff. Like daddy's drill. Daddy says we can't have lots of things, when mommy is around.

Well, on Sunday we went to grandpa's house! At grandpa's house John Paul and I helped daddy cut down trees in the yard! Even grandpa came out with his chainsaw! I think it looked something like this:

We then put them in grandpa's chick truck and later hauled them home in our van. I fell asleep on the way, but when I woke up everything was unloaded. Poor dad probably never worked so hard. Daddy said we couldn't build the fort until Wednesday.

The next day I asked dad if we could build the fort. He said it was Monday, and that he wouldn't until Wednesday. He then said it was raining and that he didn't want his tools to get wrecked. It rained all day! So when dad came home from school I asked him if we could build the fort now. He said no because it was Monday and that it was raining. Dad sure likes to repeat himself a lot. I think he forgets things a lot.

The next morning I asked dad if we could build the fort. He said no because it was Tuesday and it was raining. But he said we could build it tomorrow! So I asked dad when he got home from work if we could build the fort. He said tomorrow again. Oh well. I'll ask him later tonight...

It's WEDNESDAY!!! OH BOY! Daddy said he would be home right after school. I looked out the window as often as I could so that I wouldn't miss him coming home. After lunch I looked out a bunch more. And then... Daddy came home! He changed his clothes and got out his power tools and we started working! John Paul and I gave dad screws when he needed them, and told him where to put stuff. It was a pretty big deal. We were pretty tired doing it, but we didn't stop. I think it looked something like this:

Well we worked and worked and worked like crazy! Dad got a wood piece stuck in his hand, but he didn't stop! John Paul went pee a couple of times too. But after about fifteen minutes of the busiest work you ever saw, we were done! We sure were tired. Dad then took some of the left over logs and we had a fire and made hotdogs and roasted marshmallows! Wednesday was the best day ever! I like Wednesdays! Here is what our fort looks like!

Daddy took a couple pictures of us. So I guess here they are.

We have a door that goes up and down!

John Paul worked pretty good.

We built a spy hole in it so John Paul can see out of the fort. I'm tall so I don't need it. But.. just for fun... can you see me in the picture? Look carefully!

Dad brought a Saskatchewan flag out. So we call the fort: Fort Saskatchewan!

I can't wait for another Wednesday when we can build more!

- - -

"Ask, and you shall receive; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you"

- Luke 11:9.

Kitchen Crashers: Cooking up Another Reno

“So…” you might ask. “What’s it like renovating a kitchen while having three kids aged four and under, including a newborn?” 

July 30^th. That sums it up. 

July 30^th is the first day I swung a golf club this summer.

The kitchen is more or less done. The heart of the home now beats vibrantly again. Our old kitchen was due for a makeover. 

The countertop was coming apart. The cabinets were loaded with grease and losing their stain. The floor had several spots that were worn and not salvageable. And this weird little nook was, um, well you can see.

Time to get to work.

Despite a few quick projects, I more or less began the kitchen after Becca’s parents left from a visit, about a week into July. I think I would have finished 10 days earlier had Becca and I not had 3 little kids to deal with. Emilie started fussing quite a bit. And the boys, seeing change right before their eyes, fell apart frequently. "Sooo much chaaaaange!!! Waaahhh!"

 While Grandpa Bear was still here he helped remove the doors.

Me scrubbing and TSPing the doors. Seems like forever since I did this.

 

One morning Joseph went off to swimming lessons. Hehehe, it was John Paul and my time to smash some stuff!

More work.

 At two different points I kicked Becca and the kids out. To paint and to do flooring. They went to Grandma and Grandpa’s house in Nipawin. It was amazing how much work I could accomplish without having to run and wipe a poop, pick up a crying baby, or put tools away so that little kids wouldn’t play with them.

 

Me in the basement. It's funny how renovating one room can disrupt the entire house. The basement was a mess. The office was a mess. The kitchen, of course, was a mess. At one point we had appliances and a table in our living room. The bathroom seldom got cleaned. The outside patio still has a table saw on it... The only room untouched was the basement bathroom.

It turns out Joseph's favourite thing in the world to do is stain wood. He wouldn't stop talking about how much he loved it.

 

Slowly some progress. At this point I kicked the family out to do the flooring. Vinyl tile flooring. Holy moly what a lot of knee-breaking work. It took about 30 hours to complete (including the grouting). But with the kids gone I was able to complete it in less than two days.

One last thing before the reveal. You need the right tools for the job. One benefit of doing a major reno every summer is that I slowly get to build up my tool collection. Here is my Makita line of tools. 

They are amazing. We needed an air compressor. Becca let me get the nail gun that goes with it. I love it! The unsung hero of the reno was actually the palm sander. Though all of my tools were put to good use.

Enough of this. Time for the reveal....

THE REVEAL:

You like? That's what a million dollar kitchen apparently looks like. Now for an updated kitchen at around 1/250th that price...

Subway tile backsplash. Never goes out of style. Oh, and new GFCI outlets. Cause in 1963 they didn't have much for code. Not that anyone's been electrocuted here because of it. At least as far as I know.

 
Joseph also loves tiling. I was working away and he asked if he could do some. I put a bit of adhesive on some wood and left him to it. Pretty good! I wouldn't mind hanging this on the wall. Would you like one too? That'll be $50! Gotta pay for the reno somehow.




A decorative pot rack. Made from an old iron piece that a farmer friend had. Not quite a farmhouse kitchen, but we don't mind showcasing some farm roots.

A custom pantry. Mainly with some MDF, laminated pine, paint and hardware. We saved a bunch of $ with this. Becca says to tell you that it looks way better in real life. Much better than what was there.





Our floor. Oh my. The best part is, the floor is actually disgustingly filthy at the moment, and you can't tell!



New water jug. The boys are having a blast filling up cups. Hey, whatever gets them to drink more water. 

Final Thoughts

- Don't like your kitchen? Buy some TSP cleaning product and scrub away. You'd almost swear we had new appliances.

- As mentioned earlier, the boys were a mess for a good chunk of this reno. Yesterday Becca was sick and I simply decided to not work on anything. When they clued in that I was just going to hang out with them it was if a switch went off.  From Evil to Good.

- We're not done yet. I need to build a little spice rack. And a little pull out island to go next to the stove. And buy some items such as a new toaster. And actually tile the entrance (and paint it) since I have some left over tile anyway (and the entrance looks yucky).

- My favourite part? Besides that it is more or less done? Definitely that it's opened up. That one cabinet is gone. Becca and I can't get over that we can cook food and still talk with the people at the table. And it feels like we have way more counter space too, now that we don't have to duck our heads under a cabinet.

All in all, the kitchen is more or less done. Thank you Saint Joseph.

Approved by the chef. And her soon to be helper.

Approved by the eaters too.

Now to go golfing...