Nothing says, "spring has arrived!" at noTTafarm like the loud-but-steady purring of the Toro. After work, Scott was able to mow for the first time this season. He was a happy boy!
Enjoy This Beautiful Weather!
Monday, April 27, 2015
Rainy Day Fun
To cap a week of cold and damp weather, Saturday (April 25) was a cloudy, rainy day. With no opportunity to enjoy working outdoors, we turned our attention to the garage. When the garage was built, Scott had drywall hung, taped, and mudded in anticipation of creating a first-class automotive facility. The fantasy was put on hold until we found the time and energy to devote to it. Finally, the day arrived to paint the interior and kick-off "Operation Awesome Garage."
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Scott spent a good deal of time coaxing the 5-gallon bucket of Super Paint back to life. The SW sticker indicated that the paint was purchased on November 12, 2012; the bucket has languished in the basement since then.
We treated the garage like any other room: carefully cutting in with a brush . . .
. . . followed by two coats, rolled on by the resident expert painter.
After the south wall's first coat was complete, I took a photo break.
Of course, if one leaves the garage door open just a bit for ventilation, one can expect his little helper to join in the fun! Bibbers did not disappoint . . . and Leo and Wilson enjoyed time in the damp outdoors as well as inside the garage.
The soffit that houses the master bedroom's HVAC duct work was the trickiest thing to paint. Since I was a baby about straining my neck, Scott was sweet and took over. I should also note that he alone painted the entire ceiling way back when . . . right before the garage doors were installed.
On Sunday, we worked together to roll on the second coat, then Scott added switch plates and outlet covers. Next, we'll find time to hang the upper cabinets, install the lowers, find and install countertops and otherwise organize. It's so nice to have the major task of painting complete!
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The paint color, Sherwin Williams 6205 Comfort Gray, is another we had previously used in Grant Street's kitchen. Its lighter version (Sea Salt) is the color we selected for the house's exterior.
All of the cars plus the Ranger had to move outside for the day. We moved all the yet-to-be-installed cabinets and assorted piles of junk toward the center of the room.
Stay Tuned for Our Next Adventure!
Saturday, April 25, 2015
noTTafarm Featured on Blog
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Are you a "pinner?" Pella links new blog stories to Pinterest. You should probably follow them:
Tuesday, April 14, 2015
Junkin' with Chelsie
How does an Aunt lure a cute 25-year-old niece to noTTafarm for the weekend? With the lure of shopping, of course! It was easy this past weekend; both Chelsie and I were excited to take a 50-mile field trip to Avoca, Nebraska for "Rural Route Rust." This antique/junk vendor fair was so much fun - 45 vendors and literally thousands of visitors vying to see who would could nab all of the cute vintage wares. "RRR" was held at Bloom Where You Are Planted Farm which also hosts a fall pumpkin patch. If you get a chance to visit, take it!
The show started at 10 but when we arrived at 10:05, there was quite a hike from our parking spot and a little bit of a wait to get inside. It was a little windy but the weather was great!
My favorite buys of the day were from the Purple Pincushion. The proprietor, Sarah, re-purposes vintage textiles and creates the most adorable things! I love my purchases: a felted wool fox brooch (not to mention the Scottie dog brooch I had to have, too) and the cross-body bag fashioned from a seed corn bag.
Chelsie enjoyed the farm animals; goats, cows, and chickens were all available for we city folks to gawk at. (I should say, however, that I live on a not-a-farm and Chelsie is a current Agriculture student so technically, we're not city folks.)
After we left RRR, we zoomed a few miles up Hwy. 34 to check on some farm land my folks own. Chelsie was instructed to check to see if the ground cover rye was up (it was) and report back to Grampa. I took this photo to show them that their granddaughter is "out standing in her field!"
Chelsie also brought me a few surprises! She re-purposed a microwave stand purchased at a local thrift shop and created a beverage cart for me. She had my dad add a new structure with casters to the bottom, then painted everything a soft yellow. Mom purchased the Tiffany blue beverage dispenser at Target, then I added the matching bins below. Chelsie found another piece of Chromex and teak serveware on a recent trip to Overton plus a glass Scottie dog creamer at an antique store. Thanks so much, Chelsie! I'll be anxious to use all of this at our next gathering.
We Love Visitors!
Stay Tuned for Our Next Adventure!
Easter Sunday
Scott and I played host and hostess for the Camp family on Easter Sunday (April 5). We had ham (surprise!) and turkey and bourbon-glazed carrots and au gratin potatoes and so much more . . . whew! I think I'm still full! To top it off, Marita brought lemon meringue pie and chocolate sheet cake to share. It was quite a meal! The day before, The Newlyweds (Pat and Kathleen) spent the day at noTTafarm. Pat helped Scott clear more dead limbs and trees from the grove east of the barn while Kathleen attacked my pre-Easter to-do list. She was an excellent helper; she mixed, rolled, baked and dipped a batch of Kahlua Wafers (the Camp kids' favorites) and made deviled eggs. It was great to have an extra pair of hands in the kitchen!
The dining table centerpiece was a Pinterest find . . . Scott snipped lengths of twigs for me (very precisely, of course) and I hot glued them to a popcorn tin, then added a little jute twine as a ribbon. The container was perched atop the big pine slice last used as the wedding cake platter. With the addition of a moss-covered bird and a faux nest, the centerpiece turned out quite cute!
Of course, as with many events, I didn't have the presence of mind to snap many photos - but I did manage to capture one of our great niece Sophie. Her uncle Pat and aunt Kathleen hid a few eggs outside so she could experience a wind-blown hunt at noTTafarm.
We hope you had a wonderful holiday with your family, too.
Stay Tuned for Our Next Adventure!
Sunday, March 29, 2015
A Sign of Good Times
The Big Day stands out as our favorite memory of 2014. One of the many ways Pat and Kathleen found to thank us for noTTafarm's hospitality was the gift of an amazing authentic street sign. It took us a few months (ok, it's already been over seven months) but we finally found a great spot and completed installation.
After considering a few options for posts, poles, and trees from which to suspend the sign, we agreed that the easiest - and also the niftiest - spot was to hang the sign on the barn. Scott used the bed of the Ranger as a raised work platform, lining the bracket up with the door hardware.
The street sign is the official size and manufacture of a local municipality. One of Kathleen's friends (and a wedding guest) created it at her request.
We also received an official aluminum bracket.
Let's count how many tools it took, shall we? First, the drill was used to bore holes for the bolts . . .
. . . then a socket wrench to tighten the 2"-long bolts.
After a little bit of coaxing (with a file), the sign slid into the two slots which hold it in place.
An Allen wrench was necessary to tighten the bracket bolts.
(There was a slight panic when the Allen wrench went missing during the process. We calmed down when it was discovered in someone's pocket (not Kristin's.))
Ta Da!
We may move the sign closer to the driveway if we find an appropriate post. But for now, the sign looks great and we're excited to have it on display.
Thanks again, Pat and Kathleen!
Stay Tuned for Our Next Adventure!
Salvage Yard Find
For a Saturday play date, Scott and Kevin took a field trip to A&R Salvage - a fascinating local repository of salvaged architectural and construction items. Kevin was in search of antique door hardware but Scott is the one that came home with a prize. For $25, he* purchased two "T"s from an old exterior sign to enhance the Audi portion of the garage. He is planning to add battery-operated light bulbs so the T's glow as intended.
Now all we need to do is paint the garage interior, get the cabinetry hung, and decorate! We're aiming to have the fanciest garage in northern Douglas County.
Stay Tuned for Our Next Adventure!
*Actually, since he didn't have any cash, Scott owes Kevin $25.
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