Thread: Radiance..Feb 1, 2010 Mexican Riviera

Thanks, Hanna for vouching for me! Still don't want to offend anyone so I'll choose my words carefully on that thread. We all know the "fun" people are on THIS thread!

Sally, I love your back yard! We did something similar at our old house, although being it was a tiny rowhome yard they were our flower boxes. The only thing that comes to mind is those landscaping blocks, but it would be a huge project and not cheap either!

I know about that changing mind thing. We've been here for a little over 16 months now and I've already been having trouble deciding on things with this house. Originally I really liked the paver walkway and front patio, but then I had to weed it That made up my mind 100% that I want a concrete walkway and small patio area We left all the previous bushes and plants too since we didn't know what was going to come up where, but since we were here last spring I now know or have a rough idea of what's been planted. Out front by the living room window there is nothing that I'd like to keep and the bushes have completely lost their shape. I told Mike I'd rather just rip it all out and plant what I want and, more importantly, can identify!

Janice, I agree. It can be overwhelming, the plus side is that we did know what we were getting into, I only wish we'd hit the lottery so we could get everything done right away and go on our cruises at the same time

I better go see what I missed at the stalking thread

I feel you pain on the paver's Judy. We field stone patio off our back deck and I had the bright idea of growing moss between the stones as I had seen that in a magazine and it was so beautiful. What they don't tell you is that when you live in the country surrounded by acres and acres of weeds that the seeds from those weeds blow into your yard and grow in the moss. I fought it for about 6 years and finally last summer David took pity on me and lifted the stones dug out all the moss and weeds and grouted the stones back down. It was a terrible job but I am sooo glad to not have to get up every morning and look out at the moss & weed patch. Here's the before http://www.flickr.com/photos/quiltsalad/2308679832/in/set-72157604035773100/ which looks ever so lovely before the weeds took over.
this is the after which is not as lovely but oh, so much easier to take care of.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/quiltsalad/4735961500/in/set-72157604035773100/

So things like that are why I made the comment to really consider all the options on the yard first and maintenance down the line is a big consideration. Also we've found with our 17 moves and probably 8 new homes that took complete yards jobs to plant small and leave lots of space because they plants seem to grow more quickly than we always expect and some of the houses we did the yards on were so very "over planted" when we went back to look at them in a few years. But you and Mike probably know that already. I think you can get cement now that is stamped to look like pavers with out the weed growing issue and far cheaper right?

Just reading what you guys are doing makes me itchy for a new house. I think I have one more in me but as long as we have my mom next door we are kind of stuck here (which is the way David likes it.....he doesn't think he has one more fix up in him at all.)

Nite all! I must say it is very nice to be back even though I do feel like something of a poser on a Cruise group, you all are just too good to miss.

Hanna, we watched "The Undercover Boss" last night. I've only watched maybe 2 previous shows before. This one seemed the least genuine to me. While it might seem like a big commercial for NCL, it didn't inspire me to want to book a cruise with them, IMHO.

Oh Sally, I can't imagine having to weed that stone patio I was having a fit over my little paver area

I don't really have any good pictures of the walkway and patio, but here are a couple that have the area kind of in the shots. I just want to put a small cafe table with 2 chairs on the front patio. These pictures were taken in Oct 2009, other than the new garage door and new outdoor lighting, we really haven't touched the outside front. All the bushes are going bye-bye sometime this year, it's just way too much green and not any color, I like color

We do realize to be careful about what we plant and to leave room, you can't see it from the pictures, but one of the bushes under the window is a holly bush and it's trunk is close to 3 foot in diameter We're concerned about it's root system pushing on the foundation There will be a bay window going in the front where the picture window is now so we have to make sure to leave room for it's projection from the house. I'm leaning more towards flowers, dwarf bushes or bushes that don't have deep root systems and only get as large as 3 foot high. I haven't picked out what to put there yet, I just know I want something that has color for more than 1 month like azaleas or rhodies, I have a whole row of azaleas out back that look beautiful for just a month

Sally, don't feel like a poser! I wasn't even on the cruise for this roll call!

Love the stone on your house and wouldn't a stamped stone patio in the front be pretty with some big colorful pots full of flowers and maybe a water feature. It is a very interesting job to tackle with so many possibilities. Do you ever watch that HGTV show curb appeal, I really like that. They do such clever things for so little that make the houses look totally different. You definitely had a previous owner that went down my path of too many plants too close. Just clearing out what you're talking about is going to make a huge difference. Nice to have such a flat area to work with. We are on a gently sloping side hill so we had to go with a big deck as our front door area. Makes for not the great "curb appeal" but we have no curbs here in the country so it's all good.

Spent the morning at the doctor's with my mom (you'd appreciate this I'm sure Janice) we went to the doctor because she was tired of coughing (she's had a cold for a couple of weeks) and was convinced she had pneumonia....also her wrist had suddenly become sore and swollen and she was sure that was cancer (she had a small squamous cell taken off the back of that hand a couple of years ago.) Well the cold is just the same as the one David had a month ago and is still coughing from (probably the same strain you've had) and the wrist cancer is a tendon problem from folding her hand up under her head funny when she sleeps. No antibiotics required her blood ox was 98% so the lungs are not compromised and he gave her a little splint thing to keep her wrist immobilized and straight. I tell you I go to some doctor or another with her several times a month. It's her new social life. Our up comings is a re-check with the plastic surgeon that removed a small Basel cell from her bottom eye lid last month and the Nepherologist that she sees (big boondoggle) yearly to say that "yep, you don't have the kidney's of a 20 year old but come back and see me again in a year" are on the schedule for this month. I know that I should just be happy that at 90 that is the worst of it and that she is able to live in her own house and drive herself to the grocery store and to get her hair done. I just have always hated doctor's offices. I also need to schedule surgery for her cataracs but I've been dragging my feet on that one. Maybe when we get home from NZ this spring. Can't quite face the multiple appointment, eye drops etc. just now.

Sally, are you testing our eyes with that tiny font? Funny you should mention your mom and dr's appts. My mom called me just as I got back from lunch. She went to the dr's this morning and was told to up her iron pills. She had her bloodwork done about a month ago and just not her dr is telling her she's very anemic. She gave me a list of over-the-counter meds she wants me to pick up for her.

Your mom's wrist problem is the same as the one I have. I've already had two steroid injections in my wrist. One more and that's it and then it would have to be surgery. I find those stiff wrist splints hurt my wrist even more! I even spent $30 on a fancy one and couldn't stand it. I found that this elastic type wrist brace I got at Walgreens was the most comfortable. Once it started to improve some, I wore one of those wrist sweatbands. I even brought the sweatbands along on our Radiance cruise because my wrist wasn't completely healed then. I still occasionally wake up in the middle of the night with a sore wrist because I had been sleeping with it bent again. Glad she doesn't have pneumonia.

We watch HGTV & DIY all the time Love the curb appeal show, but I don't mind telling you that I hope that the guy (I think his name is Ahmed) from Yard Crashers will be at our local Depot or Lowe's the next time we're there! I've already told Mike that if he ever is, I'm dragging him home

We don't really use the front patio area at all so I'm not sure if my plumber will agree to a water feature being out there. I can hear him now "but we don't even sit out front?!" Our previous owners loved holly bushes. I have a few out back that I thought were trees they're so big. When we first moved here I told Mike that the trees back there looked funny since the tops weren't shaped right, he said they're not trees, they're bushes!

Sally, your Mom is doing great for 90! My Mom is 76 and no longer drives, needs to get both her knees replaced and now has one of those mechanical chairs to get her up the stairs. I got a phone call this morning that she was going out with her friends, but would leave her deposits for the bank on her table and to make sure I get her tickets for the Mega Millions lottery during my lunch today Usually when I go there for lunch, she'll tell me that my things are on the table and it's her banking stuff or things she wants me to mail for her

Janice, hopefully your Mom isn't like mine and expecting to see you right after work with the over the counter meds.

Judy & Sally, right now I think our parents are doing better than I am. Earlier I went downstairs to the garage to get something out of the freezer and when I took a step back behind me, I step on the vacuum cleaner and took a tumble. I fell on my behind and landed on a package of canned beans from Costco so now the left cheek of my bottom is bruised. At the same time the back of my right shoulder hit the heater. Even though I was cold, I still iced it.

Thank goodness my mom isn't quite that demanding (yet). I'll be going over there Saturday after I get my hair trimmed so I'll drop them off then. I'm also expected to change out the cord for the drapery rod in her bedroom. I thought about just replacing the rod but I didn't feel like removing the old and trying to install a new one all by myself. There's already a bunch of other stuff she had in mind for me to do. I'm sure my dad has stuff for me to do also. You'd think I don't have 2 older brothers!

Judy, before we had our frontyard paved, I was hoping "The Curb Appeal" show would magically appear here! At first we were going to do concrete but it doesn't do well in earthquake territory here. Pavers are a pain with the weeds and moss esp this winter with our raining but once the rainy season is over, it'll be Round-Up time.

Ok, my butt is hurting from sitting here! Time to hobble over to the kitchen to cook dinner.

Chatties
Just got home from bowling. Linda was right, I suck. Terrible tonight.

I love all the pics you guys post of your yards. I'm such a city girl anymore, but I do appreciate the outdoors. I'm pretty sure I could live with Sally and Dave.

Janice, be more careful please. As we get older and fall, it's not so good. Things break more easily than 10- years ago. I'm glad you are ok though.

I've been trying to figure out what to do in Hawaii and can't come up with anything that pleases the other half. I should just let him do it. HA.

You guys all need to quit complaining about your moms. Be ever so happy that you have them so close and in decent health. DO YOU HEAR ME?

Thats my sermon for today.