Adventures in Grilling

Here she is, my new grill.  5 burners and a zillion BTU's.

The first cookout was great and using it as an oven to avoid heating up the house has worked out pretty well.

Pizza, yum.  I can get two pizza stones on the grill and still have room on both sides.

Here's what I mean about using it as an oven.  I don't have to give up bread making in the summer.  And you know we have a very long summer!

Ciabatta, before it went into/onto the grill/oven.  Forgot to take pictures of it after but I'll do it next time and post it after this one. 

Here's a picture of bread from a different batch but using the same recipe.  You  should see the holes I'm getting and  taste the garlic bread made from these loaves.  Fabulous if I do say so myself!

The Couch

Even though it's not totally finished, I'm posting it anyway.  If you look closely you'll see I've pinned the hem. New pillows are needed too but I'll wait to find just the right fabric. 

Still need to do some topstitching around the arms and back to give it a more finished look.

I wimped out on making welt partly because it adds a huge extra step and complicates the pinning process and also because I like the look of the topstitching.  I'm determined to complete it before Labor Day.  

Slipcovers

This is my first attempt at slipcovering something ala Miss Mustard Seed (check out her blog and tutorials if you're interested).  We replaced the giant footstool with a smallish one from the Pottery Barn outlet store.  It had a basic muslin cover but was missing the slipcover.  Great price though and it fits the room much better.  So here I go.

 

 This is a painter's drop cloth purchased at Lowe's for $20 and I only used about 1/3 of the material for this project. It's an oatmeal colored cotton that has a lived in linen look that we love.

I figured out making slipcovers is not an exact science and the tutorials I had watched kept playing in my head while I was pinning the fabric.  

I also kept remembering it was only $20 and my labor, so not much to loose if I didn't like the results.  

Last pinning step with everything inside out.  First time I pinned the skirt, I did it backwards and had to re-do all of the pins.  Other than that and a few things I would do differently next time, I think it came out pretty well.

It's washable too, as I pre-washed the drop cloth before starting.  Sorry for the dark spots, I seem to have a smudge on my camera lens.

My next project is to slipcover the gray couch.  I'll be making my own welt or covered piping to add to the difficulty factor.  Wish me luck!

4th of July

There were many Aggies present for the 4th of July this year.  They are all great kids and we had a blast hosting them.

I think they had fun too!

Many meals were consumed and many dishes were dirtied.  We thanked God for the invention of paper plates!

The Painting Continues

About mid June we started painting the hallway outside of the front guest room and bathroom and the new wall that was created when we had the closet put in.  It looks like we're planning on leaving the ceilings unpainted but don't worry, we just painted the easy stuff first!  

Here's a picture of the door we found at an estate sale (fancy name for garage sale).  I did some refinishing and waxed it after I got it looking as good as possible.  It was an exterior door so this side is a different color than the other side.

We're waiting on the Barn Door Hardware to finish out the trim around the doorway and then mount the door.  It will slide across the opening when it's complete and give the "guest wing" of the house a little privacy. 

The Mertz's Return

They're back, and they brought with them 3 new members of the cast.  Lucy, Ricky and Little Ricky.  We were so excited to see them.  They're not ready to come all the way up the hill yet so we're throwing corn down to them.  

Fat Albert returned too.  He brought a girlfriend that is the exact opposite in coloring but just as homely.  We haven't named her yet.  Any suggestions?

Alien Visitors

Here they are, all the way from the Left Coast.  

John Deere Racing would have been in order if we only had two.  

Never forget the Alamo!  I really should have taken pictures of all of the meals we ate.  It was epic and the most fun we've had since moving here.