a day in the life

Band Mommy pictures

2008-09-13T09:34:00.003-04:00

I never knew how proud I would be of Kelley- being a band parent is so fun- here he is front and center at his first home game performance a couple of weeks ago-
These are from the Sternwheel Regatta parade-
There's my boy!

We have so much more coming up- the Majorette Festival and games and everything! Kelley loves everything about going to Capital High- we made the right decision!

A lot of firsts...

2008-08-27T10:00:00.005-04:00

Well, Back To School 2008 is underway. First day of school was August 26 and despite the ungodly hour that we have to get up, everything went pretty smoothly.

Kelley had his first day of high school- had to take his picture inside because it is still dark at 5:50 am (notice how bright eyed and bushy tailed he is)

Noel and Ashlyn on their way out the door. Noel started 5th grade (and was not to thrilled to go back to school, I tell ya.) Ashlyn had her first day of Kindergarten. She has full day Kindy. Just call me "Free Bird" now!Ashlyn got a little overwhelmed and emotional and shed a few tears. Awwww. She had a great day and couldn't wait to go back for day 2!

Here is a great picture of her trying to smile-

This one time, at band camp...

2008-08-12T16:57:00.004-04:00

Kelley spent a week working his tail off at Band Camp. Capital High School's band camp was held at Concord University this year, in a charming little town called Athens about 25 miles south of Beckley. It is a small school with a very pretty campus.

He had a great time, made lots of new friends, and Mr. Scott, the Band Director, really did a great job getting these kids whipped into shape FAST. I cannot tell you how impressed I was- in 6 days Kelley is out there marching forwards, backwards, sideways, all while playing a mellophone! This year they are playing music from Cirque de Soleil- the music is complex yet lighthearted at the same time. Their first performance is coming up very soon (in two weeks!) at Laidley Field against George Washington High School. Here is the link for the Capital High School Marching Band- the Pride of Capital High!
Remember you can click on any picture to see the full size version, which is huge.

Well, summer is almost over, it's time to start thinking about going back to school and this year all of the kids will be in school full time! Wow- hard to believe we have reached that milestone. Ashlyn will be in Kindergarten, Noel will be a big 5th grader (oldest grade at his school) and Kelley is a Freshman in 9th grade. I wouldn't believe it myself, except for these little aches and pains that are starting to creep into my own body that remind me that I am getting older, too. So is life!

As always- Don't forget to check my Ebay store for great deals.

Virginia Beach

2008-07-13T10:24:00.003-04:00

We spent a few days at Virginia Beach recently- we stayed in the north beach area where it is a little more peaceful. It was really nice and the weather was perfect- no rain and in the 80's! We still walked the busy tourist area and had a fun dinner at the Beatles themed restaurant Abbey Road.

Noel, Kelley and Ashlyn are growing into such good looking kids, aren't they?? Noel wants to pose like this in every picture now-
Noel took great pride in this creation- Noel and Kelley like boogie boarding and goofing around in the water.

I told Bill to Go Fly a Kite!
A few pretty sunset pictures- Ashlyn is super hyper and goes non stop so the beach is perfect for her.
Virginia Beach is very busy- there are nearby Navy and Air Force installations so there are always huge aircraft carriers and fighter jets in the distance and overhead. There are also lots of h-u-g-e cargo ships and pleasure boats as well. It's really an interesting place and there is always lots to do.

Virginia Zoo

2008-07-13T10:02:00.005-04:00

On our short getaway to Virginia we took a day and visited the Virginia Zoo located in Norfolk. It's a smallish zoo and reminded me of my old haunt, Tucson's Reid Park Zoo.
As you walk in they have these cool fountains and a giant granite globe in the middle that rotates on water. It's like the one at Disneyland. The kids were amazed by it.. LOL! Had to play in the fountains after awhile.. it was hot that day!

I love this Cardinal shot- he came right up to me. For you outastaters- state bird of VA and WV.
Bill and the kiddos at the Giraffes. Yes, Bill has an NAU hat on! We ran into some people from Clendenin at the Zoo that day! Small world.

This little Asian elephant put on a show for us.

The prairie dogs were everyone's favorite. They were so funny and cute and really mugged for the camera as you can see here!
Riding a bronze hippo- sounds like a Beatles song title, doesn't it?
I got so many nice animals shots that day so I will probably make a slideshow of this trip, too. There were peacocks wandering around and one of the males walked around in full show mode with all his feathers out. He was very full of himself and knew he was beautiful! Another post to come!

Check out my new Ebay widget...

2008-05-28T08:09:00.001-04:00

I have lots of new stuff and I am finally over 200 items in my store! Yay!

Gotta Have a Gimmick! 2008 Recital

2008-05-16T07:57:00.002-04:00

We had another year of great dancing at January's Academy of Arts in Charleston. This was Ashlyn's 3rd year and she loves going to dance, in fact, it's usually a fight to leave every week.
This year the theme was "Gotta Have A Gimmick" and Ashlyn's class did a tap routine to "Bon Apetit" from the animated movie Ratatouille. They were little chefs and I really loved their costumes this year. As you can see Ashlyn really loves the camera. LOL My mom, Bill and the boys were all able to attend this year and afterward we went out for mexican food at Cozumel. The picture of her on stage was dress rehearsal and Bill took the pictures (that explains the quality!)

Golden Horseshoe Day

2008-05-11T19:59:00.003-04:00

As most of you know, we were informed that Kelley won the coveted Golden Horseshoe. On Friday, May 9, Kelley, Bill and I attended the Golden Horseshoe ceremony and reception at the state Capital. Governor Joe Manchin was the keynote speaker before each winner was inducted as a knight or lady into the Golden Horseshoe Society.

"Each year 221 eighth-grade students are honored for their knowledge of the state in a one-day ceremony held in Charleston. The Golden Horseshoe winners have outscored their classmates in school and county wide testing competitions and made top scores on a West Virginia Department of Education test which measures their grasp of West Virginia Studies. Students also write an essay focusing on some aspect of West Virginia current events. A minimum of two students from each county and one student from the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind at Romney are selected for the award. The other 110 honorees are selected from the 55 counties based on each county's eighth-grade population.
While in Charleston to celebrate the Golden Horseshoe Day, the honorees are treated to a tour of the Capitol and Cultural Center and a luncheon held in their honor. The high point of the Golden Horseshoe Ceremony is the induction of the students into the Golden Horseshoe Society. The State Superintendent of Schools presides over the induction ceremony. Each student kneels and, with a tap of a sword on the shoulder, is dubbed either a Knight or Lady of the Golden Horseshoe Society. Each student is presented a Golden Horseshoe pin and the 70-year honor and tradition continues. "

Here is a link to the article and group picture in the paper-http://dailymail.com/Life/200805090055

We are very proud of Kelley!

Ashlyn is 5

2008-04-06T23:30:00.004-04:00

Ashlyn recently turned 5! I can't believe my baby is almost a Kindergartner. It seems like just yesterday I was picking out her nursery. What a wonderful and scary adventure it is to have a daughter. All of the fears that you buried deep inside come bubbling up as this little woman attempts to make her own way in the world. We are well into the 21st century but is the world truly a better place for our daughters than it was for us? No easy answers to that question-

Every day Ashlyn graces us with her excitement for life, her spunky "I can do it myself!" attitude, and her inner and outer beauty. She had a fun party with her brothers, her neighborhood friends, and family. (I made the super cool Cupcake shaped cake myself! I was so proud LOL)
She was so happy and pleased with the whole thing and that is all I need to be a happy Mommy! Here are some pics from her special day.

Our Easter Pictures

2008-04-03T11:19:00.004-04:00

We had nice weather for Easter this year- it was overcast but no snow or rain and a little warm, so I definitely won't complain! We went to a neighborhood Easter Egg hunt and Ashlyn won a prize basket for getting the most eggs in her group. She had a little help from Kelley. On Sunday morning the Easter bunny filled their baskets and we had a yummy ham dinner.
Today I took Ashlyn to Kindergarten roundup and now I am off to start baking for her birthday party. Have a wonderful day!

Our Pictures with Hillary at Capital High School

2008-04-02T11:42:00.003-04:00

On May 19, 2008, Hillary Clinton visited us in Charleston, WV. She had a Town Hall style meeting at Capital High School. I took the kids out of school and Jason met us there. She had a great turnout despite the rain. It was a real pleasure to meet Mrs. Clinton and she was very gracious and signed our rally signs and my book.
Here is a link to the AP Video of her visit, Ashlyn is featured prominently in the first bit.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2008-03-16T21:50:00.007-04:00

Happy St. Pat's from the Denhams!

(I gotta lot pics today!)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY COUSIN JASON- 33 on MARCH 17- NOW YOU ARE AS OLD AS ME! HAHAHA!
We spent this weekend in Pittsburgh- had a great time at the St. Patrick's Day parade- my cousin Jason went with us and we had lunch with Bill's boss and his sweet family! They are very involved in the parade organization. There was about 50,000 people there.

Here we are in front of Heinz Field- home of the Steelers-
Lunch at Primanti Br0s- they have been featured on the Food Network for their HUGE sandwiches, served with cole slaw and french fries on the sandwich-
Lunch at Claddagh's Restaurant and Pub after the parade-
Ashlyn blowing her horn! Pittsburgh's Firefighters! They loved Ashlyn and gave her one of their flags!

What would the day be without lots of pipes??

Hillary's headquarters were behind us- she made an apperance at the parade! AWESOME
Noel and his wig!
The kids HAD to have a pic with this monkey statue!

On the bridge, I think that's the Allegheny River behind them.

I LOVE this picture of Kelley. I am so proud of my son.

Ashlyn and her Daddy-they have matching hairdos ;o)
Noel!!!!!!!

Love you all- thanks for reading and commenting-

Libby

Noel's 10th and a few other things...

2008-03-12T07:37:00.003-04:00

Noel had his 10th birthday last week. He had his (now) annual sleepover on Friday night, had 4 friends over plus his Grandma, my cousin Jason, and his brother and sister. It was a small group but those boys sure were LOUD! They had fun playing the Wii and 360 all night. Noel wanted a Harry Potter cake and our local Smith's did an awesome job. Whew! One down, 2 to go for the year!
This coming weekend we are going to the Pittsburgh St. Patrick's Day parade. It should be a fun time. I have the cutest outfit for Ashlyn to wear that I bought on ebay. I need to make some hairbows by then, if I get time. Everyone woke up feeling a little under the weather today so that means I won't get much done.
I have been very busy continually stocking my ebay store and running auctions as well. I have been able to get lots of new with tags items for kids from boutiques like Shilav and Beetlejuice for drastically below retail. For women I am starting to stock some items from Ann Taylor, Liz Claiborne, Macy's and boutique. I have my links on the side of this page- or you can click Here to View My Store

I can't wait to share our St Patty's Day pics!

New Post, New Bathroom

2008-02-19T12:48:00.001-05:00

Wow- it's been awhile since I posted! I was swamped with work right after the holidays. Things are cooling off now- so much so that I encourage you to check out my links to the right of the page!
We finished fixing up our upstairs bathroom. Of course it was a lot more work than I anticipated. The worst was removing the wallpaper and prepping the walls. It's a large room and took a lot of time and patience. Neither one is something I have in abundance! We removed most of the weird cabinets in the room and a makeshift closet thing. I painted it all in Historic Tan and the cabinet in Crisp Linen. All the hardware was purchased on Ebay about 2 1/2 years ago! I am very pleased with the results and I saved a lot of $$ by deciding to embrace my brass fixtures. I did almost all the work, with the exception of the medicine cabinet and towel bars. Bill hung those because I am terrible at hanging anything straight.
Here is a slideshow with old pictures to give you an idea of what I had to work with-

PEACE OUT!

New Post, New Bathroom

2008-02-19T12:45:00.002-05:00

I had to remove this link because it was messing up my page layout :o(

2007-12-23T08:16:00.000-05:00

On Thursday, we had family craft day at preschool and Ashlyn and I made a little Gingerbread house They also sang us a few Christmas songs. Ashlyn took this very seriously and really belted them out. Diva!
I took this one of Noel after the Christmas program at school.
Not much else to tell except the usual- we had lots of running around all week, finishing shopping, wrapping, taking treats to school, working and such! We took the kids to see Alvin and the Chipmunks yesterday. It'a cute movie. The mall was crazy! Today I need to clean the house and bake some cookies with the kids.

the answer.... and some new pictures

2007-12-17T06:54:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year- lots to do! Kelley had his band performance last week. It was a fun concert as always! He had a solo :o)

We had breakfast with Santa at Clendenin elementary. We got to see Santa (again) and Noel's breakfast was free because he won a coloring contest! Yippee!

On saturday the 15th we went to the Nutcracker ballet- we also took my mom to lunch since it was her birthday. We had a great time! I love the Nutcracker.

I posted before about "finding your tumbleweed." There was a neat story in the news about a woman who made a business out of selling tumbleweeds! When other people looked at those tumbleweeds rolling around, they saw an eyesore, something to rip away and burn. She saw it as a work of art, a thing of beauty that others could use to decorate their homes, use as party decor, even for movie sets! Her successful business has a website http://www.prairietumbleweedfarm.com/ Her story really inspired me! I hope it inspires you to find the beauty in the simple things around you. My mantra has become "Find Your Tumbleweed."

Seasons Greetings~ Libby

Find Your Tumbleweed

2007-11-25T08:47:00.001-05:00

I have been engaging in my annual "try to get a good picture of all 3 kids for the Christmas card" frenzy. I ended up choosing several and doing a montage. Here is one that didn't make the cut but I really like! I took all these in our backyard, down on the river. It looks quite serene this time of year.
Try to guess what my title means and send me a comment!

Libby

on our way to pre-K

2007-11-09T17:01:00.000-05:00

Ashlyn still really loves going to school. Her pre-K teacher, Miss Cathy, is her new hero! We were on our way to "Thanksgiving Dinner" at school and I snapped a few pictures.

On the porch~

I enjoy the kids in action shots, here she is jumping~

And twirling~

Nice shot of her chipped tooth :o)

Ahhh to be 4 years old again!

Few more from Halloween

2007-11-02T07:40:00.000-04:00

I wanted to add a few more pictures from our neighbors, the Miller's, yard. Kevin Miller does the best Halloween yard! Scroll down for more pictures!
Robot was added this year, it was soo cool.

Trick or treating, my view from the porch. Our whole street was foggy from the Miller's fog machines!

Halloween In Clendenin

2007-11-01T11:02:00.000-04:00

Hope you all had a nice, safe and fun Halloween. Koontz Avenue had a nice Trick or Treat on Tuesday night.

Ashlyn went as a 'Mean Kitty' Kelley as 'The Dude' from 'The Big Lebowski'

Noel as 'Harry Potter'

The Denham Clan

The usual crowd from 6-8 pm. We give out about to about 600 kids.

I am trying to post more pictures but Blogger isn't working right- arg! I'll do more tomorrow!

Libby

AZ Bill's BBQ had a busy weekend~

2007-10-29T16:46:00.001-04:00

Bill did a BBQ on Saturday at the Clendenin Fire Station. It was hosted by West Virginia American Water, our new water utility in town. It went very well!

Then on Sunday he did a pig roast as a benefit for the WV Sei ei Kan karate school on Main Street. They have several peoplewho have qualified to go and compete in the Ireland Cup!
Congrats to them!

Apple Butter Time

2007-10-28T10:04:00.000-04:00

On our way to soccer and other Saturday activities a couple of weeks ago, we happened upon an interesting sight in Elkview, WV, about 8 miles from us. Some older gentleman were making apple butter. Check out the very large, 30 gallon copper lined kettle and homemade wooden stirrer. It bubbles over the edge so you need to be far enough not to get burned! There were 4 men taking turns stirring it and they cooked it for about half the day. We chatted with them for a little while and they were happy to let me take some pictures- they said I wasn't the first to ask. :o)
Bill is a big fan of old time and slow cooked food and this really made his day. Thank goodness for those who strive to keep traditions alive in our fast paced world.

Oct 20- Bridge Day

2007-10-23T08:05:00.000-04:00

Check out this Bridge Day Video! Nice views of the New River.

Raw Video: bridge jumpers take a leap
http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/ver/247.1/popup/index.php?cl=4606176

Fall in West Virginia..

2007-10-15T00:07:00.000-04:00

For us means a trip to Capitol Market to pick out pumpkins, gourds, mums and a hay bale!

Clendenin Fall Festival Parade

2007-09-30T09:06:00.000-04:00

Another fall festival is under our belts. Arizona Bill's BBQ vended for the third year and did very well! A portion of our profits are being donated to the Elkview Middle School Marching Band and we are so happy to be donating.

It was a totally crazy day- while Bill got set up on Main Street I took Ashlyn and Noel to their soccer games. Then I raced back up the river and got the kids ready for the parade. Kelley marched with the band and Noel was in the Cub Scout float. Ashlyn got a whole bunch of candy- she loves parades. I forgot to take a pictures of Main Street and all the vendors but I got a few of the parade.
We were so tired last night we fell asleep on the couch about 9:30 and literally had to drag ourselves to bed. Now I can enjoy the rest of fall. I LOVE autumn in the mountains

Got an email from Dooney today...

2007-09-27T15:52:00.000-04:00

Why oh why do they do this to me? I am totally lusting after this tote-

I am also on MySpace

www.myspace.com/denhamgenes

Check it out!

Visit Capitol Market

2007-05-17T09:38:00.000-04:00

One of our favorite places to go is Capitol Market in Charleston. I remember going there as a child when farmers would just pull their trucks under the freeway overpass and sell their tomatoes and other crops. Capitol Market has really evolved into a wonderful place to find all the plants you need (and many you didn't know you needed), support West Virginia growers and sample some yummy treats! You have to try the gourmet cheeses! We visited a couple weeks ago for their Spring kickoff!

The kids made BIG bubbles!

A good snow....

2007-03-02T12:59:00.000-05:00

February finally brought winter!

merry christmas from the Denham's of Clendenin, WV

2006-12-11T11:06:00.000-05:00

Well here we are.. another year coming to a close. Time flies by and we are just not as great at keeping in touch as we should be! Here is our short and sweet letter going out in our cards this year:

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Denhams 2006
We have had a busy year and the older the kids get the crazier everything gets around our house! Here is a very quick update.
Bill still BBQ’s under the name Arizona Bill’s BBQ. He caters from time to time and really enjoys it. He started working with Fremont Investment Corp in the spring as an Account Executive for the state of West Virginia. It has been a change for us because he travels more for business, but we still have him nights and weekends most of the time. He just got back from training in Tampa, FL. He travels all over the state and really enjoys what he does. I still manage the house and I also have my ebay business that has grown quite a bit this year.
Kelley is 12 years old and in 7th grade. He loves middle school! He is in the marching band (French horn/mellophone), wrestling & golf teams, tech club, karate, and in his spare time (ha ha) is an Xbox 360 expert gamer. He makes us proud! Noel is 8, in 3rd grade, and loves school and friends. He LOVES soccer and is wrestling right now. He loves video games like his brother and does great in school. He is such a lovable child. Ashlyn is 3 and will start preschool next fall. For now she is home with me. We go to twirling on Tuesdays and ballet and tap on Thursdays. She loves horses, animals, Princesses. She is always dancing, singing and being a little girl. She helps me with everything & is my little buddy.
We are still working on getting our historic home painted and redecorated. These things take time! I love it though.
We took some great vacations this year to Myrtle Beach, SC, Nick Hotel in Orlando and some short trips to different parts of WV, VA, KY and Washington, DC. You can always call us @ 304-548-7974 or email @ denhamgenes@yahoo.com
Bill, Libby, Kelley, Noel and Ashlyn Denham

Old Clendenin Jersey.. Cool

2006-07-17T13:00:00.000-04:00

Check out a great piece of memorabilia... I found this yesterday! I think it's from the old middle school.

4th of July in Clendenin, WV

2006-07-07T09:47:00.000-04:00

Oh- just to let you know, I have enabled comments ooooppps.. sorry it took so long!
Forrest, our neighbor, had a July 4th party at his house and I got some great pictures.
First is his house

Ashlyn and Noel playing with other children from the neighborhood:

Enjoy your summer! More to come soon.

Libby

Finished- yahoo!!

2006-02-24T16:47:00.000-05:00

I am so happy that we got the bathroom finished over the weekend. What a relief. It turned out cute and I am happy with it.
So here are the pictures:

Here is a shot of the CUTEST bathroom tissue holder that I got from http://www.eagle-emporium.com/wrought.htm. It's Amish made and was just what I needed, and their prices are dirt cheap.

For this room I used Historic Tan Gripper primer and satin paint from ICI Dulux, and for the trim I used semi gloss White Linen. It's a nice crisp white. The shower curtain is one I already had from the old house by Waverly. Still a big fan of their Country Life toiles. The mirror is from Southern Living at HOME, it's the discontinued Dress Me Up Mirror. I really like it because I can change the ribbon depending on mood and for holidays. I used seed glass shades for the light fixture from Lowe's because I just really *heart* seed glass. I got the little cabinet from Homegoods, and even though it fell out of the back of the truck when we got home, it didn't break and looks fine (well one door is crooked LOL.)
One more look:

This was a special job for us, especially since we did everything ourselves, including some plumbing, and drywall. It's a small bathroom that was added on in the back of the house. The back entry and this bathroom is located in what used to be a porch.

Why o why

2006-02-13T20:02:00.000-05:00

Why do all my projects take waaayyyy longer than I plan?? It must be because I am always doing about 5 million projects at once. Well, more like 5, but still. And I still have to keep up on the everyday stuff. The everyday stuff has multiplied a lot since Ashlyn got big enough to really get into things. I have been working on my ebay store too, it's worth a look and you can see it here : http://stores.ebay.com/The-Denham-Genes
Next post will hopefully contain a picture of my finished bathroom!

Reasons I hate wallpaper

2006-01-25T13:00:00.000-05:00

I am just hating wallpaper today. This stuff is the devil (channeling Kathy Bates from the Waterboy here)! I know there are times when paper is the best wallcovering... no, it's never good. If your walls are in that bad of shape, replace the drywall!
So here is my list of why wallpaper is the spawn of Satan:

1) it is difficult to remove!

2) Almost all of it is ugly. Other people don't like your taste and you won't like a garish print in 2 years.. mark my words.

3) it hides things that shouldn't be hidden. For example... mold, mildew, water leaks, holes in walls.

4) it is difficult to hang properly and only a professional does it right. Sadly, it is usually NOT professionals hanging the stuff.

I am done with the wallpaper rant. I love paint. Paint is the best!! Okay, so I am almost finished removing the wallpaper in the downstairs bath. Bill replaced the damaged studs and we are almost ready to drywall and put the shower back in. I found another leak last night though so now we have another thing to fix. I hate that. Nothing ever goes fast and under budget.

In other news, we have gotten 2 inches of beautiful snow today and Ashlyn made her first snowman (with my help.) The boys did great at their karate tournament on Saturday- Noel took first place in Kata and Kelley got 2nd place in Kata and Kumite. Go Denham Boys!! Tomorrow Bill has another orientation for sub teaching and has tons of work to do to get his loan business going here, and Ashlyn has dance class at January's.

IKEA and other obsessions

2006-01-20T10:16:00.000-05:00

Have you ever been to an IKEA store? This place is like Disneyland for me. I can spend an entire day browsing and shopping and then cap it off with a wonderful meal of Swedish Meatballs. Since we have moved, we have to drive to Pittsburgh to get to the closest IKEA store, which is a 3 hour drive from our home. I have been wanting to take a day trip there to get some new kitchen cabinet handles, 2 pendant lights for the kitchen and shelving for the kitchen and bath.
Check out the handles, called "Snacka" They are 2 for 2.99.

I got my kitchen touch up paint finished today and have a coat or two more for some trim. The kitchen is celadon green with white trim. My accent color is tomato red and the color combination is so fun! Picture to come, eventually! I want to get the wallpaper strip job finished today before the weekend. The boys have a karate tournament tomorrow- wish them luck!

I love ebay!!

2006-01-19T21:58:00.000-05:00

I have been picking up some great old postcards on Ebay. I have two dated 1912 and this one just cracks me up, especially since I feel this way all the time:

Scenes from our area

2006-01-19T16:31:00.000-05:00

I wanted to share a couple of pictures. The first is a picture of

the ducks and Canadian Geese that visit us here on the Elk River. This is our access to the river from our backyard. Taken in September.

Next is a classic scene associated with rural West Virginia. This is a barn about 5 miles from us on Rt 119 towards Elkview. All pictures were taken by me, photography is one of my favorite hobbies.

Great Clendenin History Link

2006-01-18T18:44:00.000-05:00

This is wonderful and gives a slice of life in Clendenin, Wv in 1911

http://www.rootsweb.com/~wvkanawh/local/clendenin.html

Bathroom adventures

2006-01-18T13:39:00.000-05:00

Our house is located in Clendenin, West Virginia and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places as "Koontz Avenue Historic District, Blonde Brick 4 Square." It has both Arts and Crafts and Victorian elements which reflect the changing styles of the time. Other information is that it sits on the site of the first brick mill in the area that made all the bricks for the homes on the street as well as the brick streets of Clendenin. This was the site of a 1770's era log cabin as well. The home was built by a prominent man named Koontz who once ran the bank, the natural gas plant and served as Mayor of Clendenin, WV. He built this house in 1905 for his mother in law, who was an Osbourne, then built his own home in the lot next to it immediately after. The most interesting bit of history about this house is that the front room, which we now use as a dining room, was used as a "Laying Out" room for the dead. As there was no funeral home in the area at the time, the owner invited anyone who lost a loved one to lay them out in the front room for the wake or memorial service. I hope to cover a little Clendenin history in future posts.

We have done so much since moving into this house in July, but we left the bathrooms for later. Well... later has come! Before I get started on that, let me first do a quick rundown of past projects:
1) Strip wallpaper from 1 upstairs bedroom, paint three bedrooms upstairs.
2) Installed a new ceiling fan in master bedroom, upstairs bath, downstairs multipurpose/playroom.
3) Installed high efficiency washer and dryer by LG in laundry room. In January we rerouted dryer vent out the window. Long story.
4) Changed all the window coverings, avoiding the wood trim whenever possible.
5)kitchen- installed new Jenn air appliances- gas range, counter depth fridge and dishwasher. Put in a white island for more storage ( got it at Lowe's for $40!!!), new Corian counters in Sahara, changed the cabinet knobs, added a plate rack to the walls and a pot rack over the one window. We painted the kitchen a cheery celadon green and white trim. The kitchen is the only room that the trim has been painted so we went with that. We changed the ceiling fan, which was awful, for a small chandelier.
6)new mailbox and post... several times :o)
7)4 foot high picket fence around the backyard for the dogs
8)new storm door on back with built in dog door
9)Repainted living, dining, kitchen and bedrooms with ICI Dulux paints. I will publish the colors later.
We got a ton of supplies from Lowe's. We have donestuff through Home Depot and our local hardware store here in Clendenin, Karr's, has been a wonderful and convenient place as well.
10) new white wicker porch furniture and black wrought iron table and chairs for the patio, all from Lowe's.
there is more but I need to move on!

Our project this week is working on our downstairs bathroom. Wow, this is a challenge already. The back porch was converted years ago into an entry/mudroom and small bathroom. After we bought the house I realized that the wallpaper in that small bath would not come off easily. We found out from the local plumber that there has been numerous burst pipes in the shower. I could tell that the wall behind the shower was in bad shape. We removed the shower walls and discoverd that the moisture resistant drywall had indeed become severely damaged as had the studs that support the plumbing. UGH UGH UGH We have removed all the wallpaper and the offending wall and now have a nice view of the brick backside of the house, the uninsulated pipes and the damage. We need to put in new cement board and will probably just tile the enclosure instead of doing a fiberglass wall. We have decided to put in a small bath (we only have about 52 inches length) that we have to special order and hopefully we can get things up and running in a week or two. More on this subject tomorrow!

4 months already?!?!

2005-05-16T12:40:00.000-04:00

I can't believe it has already been 4 months since I posted! How pathetic. This is just like every journal/diary I ever started in my life.
We are in the midst of some major changes in our household. We have decided to pull up stakes and move across country. We are about to close on a house in a little town called Walton. It's an 80 year old farmhouse on 4.74 acres with a small river behind it, bordering the property on the east.

First Blog

2005-01-14T23:55:00.000-05:00

I have always wanted a blog, and now I have one. Yay. I have loads of opinions on everything. This annoys some, particularly Bill. He is with the boys at Tony Hawk's Boom Boom Huckjam tonight so I have some time on my hands.

I have recently been privileged to pick up a couple of the best albums in a long time. The first is Van Lear Rose by Loretta Lynn. I am not a fan of most modern pop country, this is more of a bluegrass with some bluesy elements. Jack White (of the White Stripes and an amazing musician) produced this album and backs up Loretta. There is so much raw emotion in this CD, there are times I wanted to get up and dance and sing along (High On A Mountaintop) and times that made me cry (Little Red Shoes.) Jack constantly amazes me with his versatility. We went to see the White Stripes perform at the Mesa Amphitheatre and it was one of the best shows I have ever attended. He is definitely going to go down as a music great. He also had a decent size role as traveling musician "Georgia" in the movie "Cold Mountain." Wonderful movie, too!

Another newfound masterpiece is the new Alison Kraus CD. I knew her from some of her work on the Oh Brother Where Art Thou soundtrack. Anyway- Bill and I walked into Barnes and Noble and heard it and had to have it! I barely got it the other day but it already has a permanent spot in the Cd player.

I am on another decorating spree and I can't get enough of toile. I could literally cover my whole house in it right now. My color scheme of black, white and taupe has really stuck, so much so that I hope I don't go overboard. I stayed up until 2 am last night finishing some curtain I made for my family room. I get on these maniacal bents sometimes you know. I still want to do something for my sliding door. I really am on a mission to get better organized too. What else is new... but seriously, I need to sort my pictures and get my stupid office straigtened up once and for all. Also- update my filing system. Sometimes I think I have ADD or something.