Den/Library Renovation - Before and After

This is what she looked like the day we closed on the house ... (the den/library - dark floors, disintegrating wall paper, sheets for drapes, etc. etc.)
This is what it looks like right now! We are happy. She is getting there! My friend Beth calls our house a "Grand Dame" ... we're trying to put her back together piece by piece. We have deemed it a ten year plan. We hope we have not underestimated the time!

This is the new ceiling with moulding et al. We just need to paint it (the ceiling), but we're experimenting with what we want to use color and effect wise. Other than those details, we're over this ceiling project at LONG LAST!

This is what our living room looked like as we had to block the opening to the den to keep the cats out whilst the floors dried. Also, we had a place to sit and watch t.v. and use the computer and all that. It was just like living in a mess ... JUST LIKE IT! Oh, that's right ---- it WAS living in a mess!!! I am so very glad that part is over. I don't do well in that much chaos. Paul doesn't seem to mind so much. The cats don't like it either.

This is what the stripped ceiling looked like. YUK!

This is the gorgeous refinished floor. I'll never get over the difference between the before and after on this part. I can't wait for the whole front part of the house to be finished floor wise. It makes such a huge difference. But it's a HUGE amount of work and effort! And the smell is horrific! If you plan to refinish your floors, take a vacation while their curing! LEAVE THE PREMISES!!!

The ceiling when Paul started cleaning it for priming. Most of the paper had to be stripped off.

This is what we hung on the ceiling. It came from England in January 2007 when we ordered it! We hung it with clay paste and it was HEAVY to hold overhead. But we made a good team and after a couple of strips we had a pretty good rhythm going. It is so nice to see tangible evidence of hard work. This turned out really nice. Thank goodness!

Paul could reach the ceiling on the scaffold. I had to get on the ladder in the background. Not as much fun as the scaffolding ... I'm going to have to get taller soon! The ceilings in this house are 10 feet, 4 inches. I am 5 feet, no inches. It's a long stretch for me! Note the handyman apron Paul's daughter MADE for him for Christmas! Good job, Nina ... a perfect fit!

Here's our "new" den. We still want to replace the mantle and build book shelves ... but all in good time ... can't see why we should start rushing now! Besides, we're working on planting the garden and clearing the side yard. No time for inside work since the weather has finally warmed up. We do have a few "sprouts" in the garden thanks to the sun shining this weekend!

Whoo hoo!

On other notes completely:

*Jennifer returned from Japan tonight. Safe and Sound (Amen). Her trip sounds like it was ever so exotic. I can't wait to see pictures and hear more details!

*Our friend Caroline stopped by this afternoon with her sister, Ruth. It was wonderful to see her up and about. Remember, she's just had a double mastectomy. Keep up the great healing, Caroline. Our good thoughts are always with you.

*There is hope that Paul will go back to work at Star Buildings this month. Please keep your fingers crossed ever so tightly! We sure could appreciate his having a job again soon!

*Paul & I leave for Orlando for a few days at the end of this week. It you're looking for us, try the cell phone. I you happen to swing by the house, pull a weed or two in the garden before you leave! We are going to see the Dancer's Pointe recital as many of my students are graduating seniors this year. Also we will get to visit friends and family. A nice break!

*Beth leaves Italy for NYC on Tuesday. Happy and safe travels, Beth. Look forward to seeing you soon! Your bungalow is fine ... no worries!

*The members are starting to return to the Club for the summer season. Please keep good thoughts that someone will bring a friend who wants to buy a house from us. PLEASE!!!!

*Paul's dad had great news on the health checkup front. Blessings once again! YEAH!

*Paul & I are finished teaching dance at Crossnore for the season, altho we do hope to be going on some hikes and such with the kids. In our hearts we always keep good thoughts for the children and ask that you send prayers and blessings to them as well. It is amazing to see the progress the children make at Crossnore, especially given the conditions they are generally sent there under. There were 6 graduating seniors this year! a BIG class considering. Dr. Crain, who is the amazing director of Crossnore School has been given some very challenging health issues and we send her our very best in her endeavors as she moves through what she calls her "bend in the road". Dr. Crain is one amazing individual with a very clear picture of what her role in this life is for. Wish I could be so clear and driven to achieve as she is. Blessings to you, Dr. Crain. We are all sending you love & hugs.

Tomorrow begins a new month already! The month of May brought us 9.64 inches of rain, with only 7 days being rain free. We are now officially out of the drought we've been in! That is a real blessing for many reasons, mostly for wild fires and the animals being able to find water to live. We are looking so forward to this season! Keep checking in ... we'll likely have some tales to tell.

Happy Trails to all,

Paul & Cheri

Memorial Holiday Weekend

Sabrina finally made it up to see us!
Hors de oeuvres on the porch in the evening

Lots of conversation, trivia and laughter

and a FEAST every night!

It was an absolutely delightful visit.

And being a good friend, Sabrina came bearing gifts ... Flake(s) for Paul, licorice too and LeMadeline tomato soup for me (my all time fav) ... not to mention all the wine, mixed raw nuts and copious other food and drink related fun!

Now I will begin fasting to try to recover from all the feasting and goodness!

A lovely visit. A wonderful holiday weekend.

Thanks for coming up Sabrina. :-)

And for the rest of you, she paved the way to open season here at Glover House.

Guest room now has A/C (it's still cool and rainy, but you'll need it soon enough), and the house is guest ready, so sign up for your turn!! It's open season once again. FINALLY!!!

Y'all come!

Happy Trails,

Paul & Cheri

A little of THIS and a little of THAT

3rd coat of poly on the floor and it's GORGEOUS! You can see your reflection in it!
Lettuce is planted! Hopefully there will be enough sunshine to keep it from drowning!

Paul and his treasure ... a big fat earth worm! YICK! But I know they make the earth rich for planting the food ... so I'll tolerate them.

Working the soil for the 'tater patch' ... last Sunday was a GLORIOUS day ... we had a wonderful time outside playing in the dirt ... as you can see!

We all take a nap during the golf ...

There is FINALLY decent fresh fruit in the stores! YUM!

Blueberries and strawberries. Can't set them in the ground quite yet, but they're ready when Mother Nature is!

This MAY DAY basket was left at our front door step by a little wood FAIRY we know. Her name is Beth ... and she is currently on holiday in England! Then she goes to visit her brother in Italy and hang out on the coast for a few weeks. MUST be nice!!!! We're back to Bungalow sitting. The basket has wild mint it in! Can't wait to get it in the ground and watch it take over the universe!

This is Spartacus keeping guard over our May Day deliveries we found. Not only was there a basket from Beth, but there was a box of blueberry vines from Kim (! - I LOVE blueberries) who works at the County Extension office. She is Mike's wife ... Mike who Paul is working on the 18 wheelers with, who also works at the hardware store.

Ceiling prep for the anaglypta. We've been in "prep" mode for about a week now. Along with the pollen came some wicked sinus stuff for both of us. Paul is REALLY suffering with it right now though, so we've kind of taken a break until he can actually breathe again! Maybe we'll start hanging the paper tonight ... we'll see!

The BEAUTIFUL bearded IRIS have come out in full force. Aren't they lovely? They sure do make me smile when I walk by them on my way in and out of the front door!! BEAUTY!

The hostas have popped up and the world is once again turning green. Thank GOODNESS. Our mostly right weather man is predicting lows of 30 next week. EEEEEKKKKK. Hopefully we won't lose too much to the frost. 6 FULL months of winter here folks!

Day lilies are coming up too! WE love this time of year ... can you tell?

Some updates:

Caroline is having a double mastectomy on Monday, May 18th. Please keep good thoughts for her complete and speedy recovery. It appears at this point that chemo or radiation will not be necessary. Fingers are crossed. Blessings to you, Caroline.

My niece, Hollie (sister Cyndie's daughter) is graduating from high school tomorrow! Hollie is a fashion model, and you can view her blog for more info. http://holliedokersblog.blogspot.com/Hollie plans to attend fashion school in NYC. Good luck in your future Hollie and gobs of success to your career!!

My BFF Sabrina is coming up next week sometime and staying through Memorial Day ... the High Country will probably never be the same. I can't wait to see her and introduce her to Mayberry!

Jenn (my daughter) is going to Japan on the 26th. Safe travels to you, Jenn. Don't worry, we'll take GREAT care of Christian while you're gone. :-) SPOILING GRANDSON ALERT!!!!

Our adopt-a-hikers made it to Damascus, VA in time for Trail Days. Apparently there was a 33 mile day involved in that! As one of their family members commented, "so much for pacing yourselves"! I'm so glad to know they made it to the festival.

That's all for today's update ... need to get back to work!

Happy Trails to all,

Paul & Cheri

The Mother's Day Fairy

Paul came home from the hardware store early Saturday morning to tell me "you might have some hikers stop by to use the internet in about 20 minutes" ... so I got out of my jammies and into some real clothes and then Paul called and said "they're really tired and just ate a huge breakfast, so it might be a while but they'll probably be by so keep a look out for them".
So, obviously they stopped by looking for electrical outlets to recharge their electronic devices and a place to rest their weary bones and tired feet. Turns out they had eaten at a local diner and all but one of them had picked the wrong menu items. So as the visit wore on, we had some very distressed young men in our care ... poor guys!

So, they abandoned their packs on the front porch, came inside to rest and juice up their stuff ... but during nap time one of them just got too sick and Paul took him up to the local hospital for some fluids (as he was losing them faster than we could keep up with!) and 2 of the 3 remaining went to sleep to try to settle their stomachs down. One of them was perfectly fine, so we went to the store for supplies! All the while, trying to determine if they'd gotten in to bad food ... or bad water! I don't think we have a confirmation ... but it appeared to be food poisoning in the end. YUK!

So this is TWEAK ... the hiker who got to visit the hospital and get all pumped up! TWEAK is from The North (CT I think).... and has been a member of the GEEK Squad! It was great fun talking with him about things ... and this is his website: ericjeffcoat.com ... so you can follow their hiking story! TWEAK has some interesting life stories to share ALREADY!

This is ACORN from Dothan, AL. This fella has an absolute cast iron stomach ... no problem with him. He & I went to the local store and picked up supplies whilst the other fellas were recovering. We had great conversation about real estate and such things, as well as hiking and trail stories. These are very intelligent and nice guys! Such a delight to have some adopt-a-sons for Mother's Day.

This is TANK who hikes in a kilt! He is from CT and is very interested in the Southern terrain. TANK had great stories of diving in Hawaii for our entertainment. What a nice guy too! I'm telling you, these fellas were a treat to talk with and have around for a little bit. TANK loves to eat! He ate a hamburger on the way to the trail head that was ULTRA impressive! Such a great lesson in burning calories! Hope he had enough fuel for his journey! Here is MoonTower from CT also. MoonTower is by trade a land surveyor. It was very interesting to hear some of his trade info about land owners and their rights in different areas and in different scenarios. MoonTower also suffered pretty intensely from the food, poor guy. But by Sunday noon time, these guys were all ready to hit the trail and on their way to Damascus, VA for the Trail Days festival that they have there. MoonTower was by far the first one ready to get moving! And TWEAK was definitely LAST to get ready ... funny how there is always a line up in any thing in life!

Here's Acorn all packed up and ready ....

Tweak ready to go

And TANK and MoonTower moving out ...

I would just like to thank the Mother's Day Fairy for bringing these delightful young men in to our lives and giving me some adopt-a-sons for the day! AND for having them be such great guys. What a true treat!

Hope all the moms had a great day ... and all the dads and kids enjoyed it just as well. The sun came out here ... Paul played in the garden yesterday (I'll post those pics later) and I even planted some hostas in the flower beds. Such fun!

Happy Monday to all!

P & C