For any of you that have done renovations with your significant other, you know there are always things you both want to do differently than the other person.

Almost since we put the offer in on the house, we’ve been “debating” on how to paint the place. Dave wanted to paint the entire place white… just like his Mom’s condo, and his Grandma’s house. Every. Single. Room.

And I admit… it’s clean, and bright. But I’m a girl who needs COLOUR.

And while I’m pretty willing to just go with the flow… after living in “contractor beige” hell for the last eight years, this was not something I was willing to compromise on. Dave did make me promise not to go too crazy (no eye-bleeding yellow, or Barney purple). Most of the main floor will be varying, but complimentary, shades of green and the kitchen will be yellow. (I have a thing for yellow kitchens)

But, of course, the first room to paint is actually HIS room. His studio. For some reason, I kept envisioning it in light aqua. I don’t know why…

Anyway, I mentioned this to him, and he said “What is aqua?”

I explained it was blue-green, and I was thinking a shade a little lighter than the 1955 corvette model he bought me when we first started dating

“But I thought we were doing everything green?” he says.

We went back and forth for a while on how I am NOT doing the whole house in one colour, and how he just has to trust me… I’m good with colour and it won’t look like a fun-house when we are done. Eventually he gave up, but I never really got the go ahead on that aqua.

So, the next time we went to the hardware store, I dragged him over to the paint chips, and started pulling out all their “aqua” options.

He looked at the first one and said “But that’s green!” and I was reminded that he is, in fact, colourblind. It’s something I don’t think about much, but every once in a while we come across a situation like this. I told him it’s actually got a slight blue tint to it, but yes, it was more-or-less green. I showed him a few more that leaned a little more toward blue. “No, those are all blue. I don’t want blue” he said.

“So you want the green aqua one?” I asked.

“Yeah, that’s fine.”

I showed him a few more options that were truly green (light olive, etc) and he insisted they were mostly “grey”

So green aqua it was! I win!!!

It’s “Filtered Forest” actually. And I will admit, unless it’s up beside a true green, its blue tint is not as apparent. It’s really a little minty.

I had the whole weekend by myself to paint away. Dave’s Grandma was back in the hospital (she’s home and better now), so he was down helping his Mom out.

I know some people hate it, but I actually love painting. I wouldn’t want to do it every day, but it’s definitely my favourite part of renovations.

I cranked up the radio and brushed and rolled until the wall were covered.

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What a transformation from when we first started.

The room isn’t done yet, of course. This is just the first coat. And we still need to put in some flooring, and of course trim (which will be white), but painting makes it feel like we are closing in on the finish line!

Bonus pictures: You remember that nicotine coated ceiling and fan? Well it’s all fresh and WHITE now! Hurray!

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With a little help from Rupert, I’ve been stitching away every night on Cherry Blossom Wrapture.

And I’m very pleased with our progress so far.

I have two needles of the required size, so I’m building both sides out, more or less at the same time. I add a pair of logs to one side, then turn it around and add a pair to the other side. This just helps my brain envision the finished size better than working one side at a time.

I’m also sticking with the flower lace pattern for both the burgundy and green logs. The pattern gives you the options of a different pattern you can alternate, but I just really prefer the flower pattern. It’s going to look even better blocked out.

If I can continue at this pace, I’m well on track to finish by my self-imposed deadline of mid-September.

I told you that we are are a pretty tight budget. Any money that’s not going to bills is going to our renovations.

Well, I’m afraid I may have had a little slip…

In my defense… it’s Dave’s fault. Dave doesn’t Facebook. I do. He asked me to go on Facebook Marketplace and see if anyone was selling a laundry/utility sink for a good price. This house doesn’t have one – the laundry drains right into a pipe. But the lack of a utility sink is a bit of a pain when you’re in the middle of a renovation… there’s only so much you can clean in a kitchen sink.

Anyway… their were no sinks that tickled his fancy… but I’m sure many of you know the rabbithole FB Marketplace can be…

I was mostly just scrolling and dreaming about all the garden decor and patio furniture I want and can’t afford… but then I came across a post for Butterfly Bushes. You know I had to leave my beautiful Miss Molly behind at the townhouse…

Generally, Butterfly Bushes sell for between $30 and $40 around here. So I couldn’t quite believe my eyes when I saw $10 in the price bar.

I clicked on the picture, thinking it might be one of those posts where they are selling several plants and they are $10 and up… and the Butterfly Bushes would be much more.

But nope… Butterfly Bushes…. $10. At a new nursery not too far from the house!

I figured they had to be small. That was okay. I don’t mind starting small if it saves a few dollars. And I’ve been missing Miss Molly quite a bit. Right now is prime Butterfly season. One of the neighbours here has a pretty pink one in her backyard, but I can only see it when I’m putting garbage in my garbage can. I needed one in MY yard!!!

I told Dave I was breaking budget on payday. I promised not to go crazy… but I HAD to check this place out!

Friday, after getting groceries, I headed out. Turns out, it’s not quite a new nursery. They’ve been in business since 2009, but they were solely wholesalers. But as you all know, COVID hit at a terrible time for nurseries. In April 2020, many of the nurseries around us were offering up plants for free, just so they wouldn’t end up in the garbage. When summer rolled around, some of them opened to the public for the first time, just to get rid of some stock.

Apparently this nursery did the same. I wish I had more money to spend, because I could have spent HOURS there. In the end, I stuck to Butterfly bushes, and came home with three.

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• Royal Red – Which isn’t really red at all but a slightly darker magenta than my old Miss Molly.
• White Profusion – I didn’t even know these came in white. I’ve only ever seen them in shades of pink and purple. This one has a noticeable scent, which is light and a little bit spicy.
• Black Knight – I had to have this one, not just for the Monty Python reference, but because I have a thing for deep, dark purple flowers.

Can you believe it??? Three bushes for less than what I paid for Miss Molly. And remember I thought they would be small? They aren’t. They are the same size Miss Molly was when I first bought her. I was doing a happy dance all the way home. (Well, a happy drive!)

I got them in the ground right away. No pictures, but I put the white one just outside the catio. As it gets bigger, it will provide some much need shade inside the catio, and it’s close enough to the sunporch that I should be able to enjoy the scent.

The other two I planted on either end of the line of lilies I put along the side fence. Each has at least one bloom spike, and I probably won’t get too much more from them this year… but next year… oh next year is going to be just grand!

The garden plants are starting to recover from the move and being stuck in pots so long. But not suprisingly there’s not many flowers.

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The Frans Hals and Stella D’Oro day lilies have managed to put up a few blooms.

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The pink Speedwell (left) has put up one tiny little bloom spike, and the phsyostegia (right) is starting to bloom. I was only able to get a couple stems of this one out of the ground, but it should multiply nicely next year

My potted Hibiscus is very happy, and is giving me a big, golden bloom almost every other day. It didn’t fare well over the winter inside, and I thought I might have lost it – but it’s recovered beautifully.

The sedum is starting to turn pink, a sure sign that fall isn’t too far away.

And the neighbours on one side have a morning glory that’s grown up over the fence. I’m not usually out in the mornings to see it in bloom, but the other day I was up and out early and was treated to quite a show.

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I love how the flowers almost seem to glow from within.

The old owners didn’t have much in the yard but some shrubs. There is this Spirea by the front porch. The flowers are pretty, but I really got to get in and clean the weeds and stuff out around it. I’m not 100% sure I’m going to keep it, but she can stay for now.

On the other side of the front of the house, there’s also a large holly bush. The berries are just starting to turn red. I really want to keep this one, but it’s so overgrown and out of control right now. I really need to hack it back and I’m not sure how it will survive if I do.

But those are all decisions for later down the road. There’s lots on my plate to keep me too busy to worry much about the yard beyond keeping it tidy.

… I did get this picture from old neighbour Krista the other day.

The unit we lived in is still empty, so she and other old neighbour Blake (he lived in the unit beside us and we often gardened together – I miss him already) went in the yard and raided my old blackberry bushes. I knew it would be a good harvest this year!

The kale and peppers on the plate are from Blake’s garden. Like me, he had his back, front and side yards full of gardens.

Next year my dear yard… next year!

Can you believe it’s been almost a month since the big move? I can’t. Time really does fly.

I’m happy to say (and you can probably tell from the pictures I’ve posted) that the cats have adapted beautifully to the new house.

Burton, as we expected, was the most chill about the whole thing. After about a day, and he realized he wasn’t going to be put back in the carrier, he dedicated himself to exploring every inch of his new space. And compared to the townhouse, this place has A LOT of inches. And of course, he was absolutely THRILLED when he discovered he could go outside without a harness, and whenever he wanted.

Though the days have mostly been crazy hot – so more often than not, he’s chilling under the stairs from the porch, or on the porch itself. But as soon as the sun starts to set, he’s out in the yard chasing bugs. I usually have to go out around 10 with a flashlight (there’s no lights in the yard yet and this town is DARK at night!) to bring him in.

Relic was the one we were most worried about. How would he adapt from being completely free range to having his territory confined.

It took him a touch longer than brave Burt, but he’s doing just fine. Every once in a while, I’ll see him pull at the catio fence. He knows there’s a whole world beyond it, but mostly he’s fine as long as he can at least get outside.

Like Burton, he’s quite pleased about the cat door.

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The pair of them are in and out all day long. Though if you’re standing near the door, and Relic is on the other side of it, he’ll still meow, expecting you to open it for him.

Now, I know you’re all wondering about Rupert.

He still spends 80% of the day in the bed. Which is pretty much what he did at the townhouse. But like Burton, he’s explored every inch of the house – usually at night when we’ve been sleeping. He does, however, still come down after dinner to sit with me until bed time.

He won’t come out to the catio unless I bring him… but it took him a long time to warm up to coming outside at the townhouse too. (And he’d get mad and want back in if you shut the door on him).

But when I do bring him out, after a minute to get over the indignity of being carried against his will, he settles right in and loves it just like the other two.

He does, however, LOVE the big windows this house has. Dave put the cat tree right in front of one of the living room windows, and if I can’t find Rupert in bed, 9 times out of 10, he’s hanging out on the tree, watching the weird new world outside the window. I’ve got to get a tall Shepherd’s hook so I can hang a bird feeder out there for him.

It’s hard to get decent pictures, because you aren’t allowed near him when he’s on the tree.

I managed to snap this one when I was outside working on the front yard.

I just love these boys!

In addition to catching up on bills, I’ve also got to catch up on my Spring Brook Blossom QAL. Because of the move, I wasn’t able to do July’s blooms.

But after getting my sewing room curtains out of the way, I decided to catch up.

Two more happy blooms. This one gave me a chance to practice making quarter square triangles (those little hourglass shapes in the centre). I still need more practice, but most of them turned out ok.

Here they are with the others I’ve made so far. It’s turning into quite a cheerful little garden.

August’s block came out on Monday, and I haven’t had a chance to make it yet – so I’m behind once again. But at least it’s not a whole month behind any more! I’ll try and get it done this weekend.

It will be no surprise to any of you that Burton is LOVING the catio. He loves the ability to go in and out as he pleases – and go out without a harness and leash. HE spends a good amount of the day out there (as long as it’s not too hot). But he especially loves going out after dinner, as the bugs seem to be more plentiful then. He LOVES chasing bugs.

But the other night, something new wandered into the catio.

He was small (about the size of a loonie), and very well camoflauged, as you can see. But as soon as he hopped, he was on Burton’s radar.

I had a hard time getting pictures of him. I kept losing him in the grass in and around the catio. Every time he hopped in, Burton had a blast following him about and investigating with a curious paw. You can see a little video here.

Eventually, Mr. Toad hopped onto the pavement of the back driveway, out of Burton’s reach.

But it allowed me to get some better pictures.

We never saw ANY toads at the townhouse. I’m so happy Burton got to have this experience! I hope there are many more! (Now I have go dig out my toad house and find a good spot for it in the catio.)

I said that curtains for the studio would be the first thing I sewed when I finally got a chance to play with my machine again. And I am a woman of my word.

Because of the move, and ongoing renovations, money is VERY tight. As such, there’s nothing extra to buy fabric for curtains, as much as I’m tempted to (even cheap ones from Wal-Mart or Giant Tiger). That meant cracking into the stash for something.

Because of the size of the window (this house has VERY large windows compared to the townhouse), it meant raiding the bin that I have set aside for quilt backs. I ended up going with this yellow/gold fabric. If it looks familiar, it was a clearance bin find and it’s shown up in bits and pieces in quite a few of my quilts. (Most recently the chicken quilt).

It didn’t take long – as much as I love making quilts, I’m not really a fan of sewing other things, so I kept it simple. Just a couple of rectangles with a rod pocket at the top.

Here’s a little before and after

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They make the area look quite quaint and cozy. In retrospect, I should have made them a few inches longer, to make tying them back a little easier, but they will do for now. When this room eventually gets redone, I’ll probably want different curtains anyway.

Here’s a closer look at the tie-backs.

Just some nice crocheted lace trim from the stash. I had just enough for the task. They are just pinned to the wall with a thumbtack (don’t tell Dave!) but I think they work quite nicely!

Moving can be a very expenvsive affair, especially when, like us, you have overlap of the two properties, and are doing renos at the same time. Add to that almost two months of $100-$200 a week in gas and road snacks going back and forth, and it’s going to be a few months until we dig out from under it all and get caught up to where thing are comfortable again.

As such, it’s going to be a 100% homemade Christmas. That’s not a problem – I have plenty of yarn and fabric to make that happen – but it does mean I need to get moving on those projects in my free time. (Of which there’s not a tonne these days either).

Back before the move, I dyed up three colours of Slinky Cat for one particular gift:

Cherry Blossom Wrapture by PDXKnitterati. I’m not usually a fan of garter stitch lace, but for some reason this one spoke to me.

I’m also not usually good with rectangular shawls. I find them endless and get bored really easy. But, I’m feeling the the log cabin construction of this one is going to be enough to keep me interested.

It starts with a pretty leafy centre. (You all know I love leaves!)

And then it’s built out with logs of contrasting colours.

After seeing my colours all together, I kinda wish I’d made the green a little darker. But can live with this.

Now that the centre is done, I’ll be working on one side at a time from here on out. I’m giving myself a deadline of mid-September. I’ve got a big list and a lot of things to make – and a house to reno! (Though I’m happy to say I got Dave’s studio drywall finished and primed on the weekend. Next weekend will be paint, then it’s just floors and that room will be wrapped with a bow!)

Yep – it’s puppy time again!!!.

On Monday, Dave and I finally got the Bonneville dropped off at the top shop (Everything went smoothly this time) and on the way home, I talked him into taking a little detour to check in on the puppies. (It was only about 15 minutes out of our way)

At the time of these pictures they were just over two weeks old. They’ve doubled in size from the last time I saw them. A couple of them are real little porkers.

Their eyes have opened, though I couldn’t get any decent pictures. They wiggle too much when they are awake!

Mom took this one and sent it to me. You can also get a better idea of their size here.

When I was visiting, they were mostly asleep.

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And oh so cute. It’s very hard not to pick them up and squish them all.

Most of them have black foot pads, though this little yellow has multi-coloured toes. And this little black girl has one white toe (Apparantly Daddy dog, Hank, has one white toe too)

All but two have homes now, and I’m sure the other two won’t be far behind.

They love to sleep upside down, and on top of each other.

It’s hard not to scoop them up and bring them all home!

They’d fit in a pocket so easily!