Nov 15, 2021

Geometric Black Wall Treatment in the Master Bedroom

 Here! See some pictures of my room! Quick before the clutter explodes all over the place again!



In case you can't tell, what you see in the above picture is a geometric black wall treatment in the Master Bedroom. We designed the room with this little recess for the bed to sit in specifically so we could have a cool wall treatment. 

Here is the wall before: 


Ah, Special.

I drew up several designs, and this was our favorite.


You can tell, because I drew a heart in the corner. 

Then I painted the wall black. I'm pretty sure this was black paint I bought to paint the shelves in our library, but ended up not liking it. I still wish this was more of a matte finish, but we all have our crosses to bear.


With the wall painted and a stack of 1.5" mdf trim, I was ready to go. Theoretically I should have been able to take measurements and cut the angle perfectly, but I have never had that happen in real life. Pretty much every angle I adjusted it with a hundred tiny cuts until I got it perfect, and then cut the straight edge to length. I got tired of running up and down the stairs after a while and just brought the miter saw into my bedroom. I figured all the dust would be worth it. I have no regrets.  

And then there are shelves full of books and Legos. All the things a married couple needs.



The art on the wall below came from HERE. Its a paint by number Mandy from Vintage Revivals had designed to paint on her daughters wall. I just painted it on a big ol' canvas instead. I kind of wish I had done the whole wall, but maybe there is enough going on in here with the black wall treatment behind the bed. 


So, there you have it. A black wall treatment in the master bedroom. Are you edified? Enlightened? Enriched? Enraged? I can't take responsibility for all your emotions, so get a handle on yourself.
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Oct 7, 2021

The Last Smoothie Recipe You Will Ever Need

 This is it! The last Smoothie Recipe you will ever need! Well, unless you want a chocolate smoothie, or an Orange Julius, yum, or maybe a PB&J smoothie, which is one of my favorites. So let me alter my title a little to say "The Last Smoothie Recipe You Will Ever Need From Me". probably.

Here's a picture!

I always start with a frozen banana, a frozen plum (because we have a plum tree, so this is just what I have on hand) and a handful of baby spinach. Then I add two more fruits.  In the picture above I used a pear and a handful of mixed berries. Anything is good. Peaches, strawberries, raspberries (which have more fiber per cup than any other fruit), mango, pineapple, whatever. You don't need me to think of fruits for you. I tried Kiwi, and that was good too, but I always wonder, does Kiwi hurt everyone when they eat it, or am I mildly allergic?


Apples are good too, but I recommend only using half an apple, unless you really enjoy chewing your smoothies. I also find that it tastes best if at least one of the fruits is fresh. I often make it with everything frozen except the spinach because that's all I've got, but then I have to add more water to make it thin enough to drink, and the flavor just isn't as rich. Obviously.

I also add Chia Seeds and Flaxseed Meal because their packaging says that they are really good for you. And I sweeten it using Monk Fruit. If you know that Monk Fruit is going to kill me, will you let me know, cuz honestly, I don't even know what it is. Oh, and a scoop of protein powder. But don't add it until the very, very end, because if you blend it too long, it poofs everything up in a way that ceases to be delicious. And that's it. It varies depending on the fruit you use, of course, but it general, they are about 500 calories. Good for you, and stuffed with enough food to tide you over till dinner.  


5 servings of fruits/veggies a day = Check!


Bowels ready to empty themselves at a moments notice = Double Check!


ULTIMATE SMOOTHIE RECIPE 

  • 1 handful Baby Spinach
  • 1 frozen Banana
  • 1 froze Plum
  • 2 other fruits of your choice
  • 1 to 1 1/2 cup water
  • 1 Tbsp Chia Seeds
  • 1 Tbsp Flaxseed Meal
  • 2 Tbsp Monk Fruit
  • 1 scoop Protein Powder (don't add it until the end!)
Blend it, drink it, love it. Or don't. I'm not the boss of you. Bye.

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Oct 4, 2021

A Trip to the Uintah Basin


Thursday 

Our plan was to leave Thursday right after school, but because of surprise optomitrist appointments, and forgotten about Parent Teach Conferences, it was 6:00 pm before we left home. We'd hoped to eat in Vernal when we got there, but as it was we stopped at Carl's Jr. on our way out of town. Just like campers of old. At 9:00 pm we were almost to Vernal, but we were ready to stop for the night. Richard reached out with his inner camper's sense and turned off at some random road and found a place to pull over. We put the jacks under the camper and just like that we were ready to hit the hay.

Course the kids weren't ready to fall asleep just yet, so I read out loud to them a bit from "Dune" and they were out in minutes. 


FRIDAY 

The campsite Richard parked us in turned out to be kind of perfect. The boys explored the nearby hills while I cleaned up and Richard made pancakes.



I LOVE camping in a trailer. 5 minute take down is all it took to get us back on the road and headed for Vernal. First we stopped at the local Field Office to get tips on nearby BLM camping, and any other sites or activities we needed to see. The woman loaded my hands with maps, and our brains with tips and sent us on our way. We still weren't really clear where were going to camp, but Vernal is surrounded by BLM land, so we knew we'd be able to find a spot somewhere. 

This map shows what area is BLM land and what isn't. It would be awesome if it was an overlay you could get on Google Maps, but we were mostly able to figure out where we were. We headed for the yellow section of the map, and found a fantastic spot right along the Green River. It was clearly used for partiers and was kind of a mess, but we took a chance and set up camp anyway, figuring that if the entire population of high schoolers showed up that night we could always move somewhere else. I also gave my boys a few garbage bags and had them fill them up and it was looking much nicer in no time. 



And then the fun could begin!

About 45 minutes outside of Vernal, nestled in a field of oil derricks, is a little place called 

Fantasy Canyon. 

Words will not do it justice. Places like these are what pictures are for.






Amazing right? Have any movies been filmed here? I looked it up online, but there weren't any as far as I can tell. It is such a small and fragile place, it might not be possible, but it really looks like an alien landscape just crawled up out of the ground from another world. 

This helpful sign was on the outhouse door:


We did NOT see any pigmy rattlesnakes, but you better believe I never let my guard down.

Later that day we went to see the Indian Petroglyph's at McConckie Ranch. We learned about this place at the local field office so we decided to check it out.


We also decided to see what happens when you wink while frowning.






We hiked around and saw lots of cool stuff, but we were getting hungry and tired so we headed back to camp. However, when I was looking up McConckie Ranch online, I found TONS of really cool petroglyphs that we didn't see. So we're going to have to go back! That was pretty much the theme of the whole trip. There is too much to see and do in the Uintah Basin. 

We're going to have to go back. 

Richard made Patty Melts for dinner and we built a fire on the beach and roasted marshmallows and then put out the fire and looked at the stars. We never saw another living soul, so maybe the locals only party there during the summer months.

I read some more Dune to the kids to help them wind down, and they were snoring in minutes. I'm going to have to remember that. Dune is like a sleeping draft of magicalness.

Saturday

We started the morning (after eggs benedict, for reals, cuz my husband is truly wonderful) at the Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum. (I suspect that when they were sitting in the Naming of the Museum Committee meeting they just couldn't come to any kind of consensus, so they named it everything they could think of.) 

We learned a lot and took a lot of awkward photos! (Some more awkward than others)



Look at his bravery. He doesn't even care that the Utah Raptor is about to eat him!


Then it was time to head out to Dinosaur National Monument, in Jensen UT!




Another really cool place that will require a lot more exploring. But it was so hot, and dogs are not allowed on a lot of the hiking trails, so this is another place we'll have to come back to.

After lunch we headed for Red Fleet State Park. During the summer you can rent kayaks and paddle boards, which you can use to explore the lake and nearby Dinosaur Trackway. We had no such luck however, so we had to drive around the lake, and hike to the trackway. 


Or maybe dance.






Dinosaur Tracks! Right under our feet! They were everywhere! When we'd seen all of the dinosaur tracks we could bear to see, it was time to head back. 1.5 miles each way isn't that big of a deal, right? We just had to climb back up this insanely steep hill. 


I hadn't realized we'd gone downhill so much on our way in, but by the time we climbed the mile and a half back up to our car, my legs were on fire. We were hot and tired and thirsty and slurpees were in order. Fortunately, Vernal has five 7-Elevens. For a population  of 10,500. And I think we stopped at every single one. 

I suppose that is the message I want to leave with you today. Vernal is the heart of Dinosaur Country and the 7-Eleven Capital of the World! So what are you waiting for? Visit the Uintah Basin today!

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Jun 7, 2020

How To Turn Weeds into Lawn in just 99 Easy Steps

1. Get rid of your old Septic Tank.  

Think you don't have a Septic Tank? Well, maybe you don't. Maybe what you have is just a ghetto cavity deep in the ground that your toilet waste has been pumped into for the last 15 years. I don't know. Your sewer set up is really none of my business.

Wanna see a picture of OUR hole in the ground?



Those are actual wooden logs floating in it, FYI. We used a backhoe to dig it up. When we cracked through the slab of asphalt with that was laying across the top, the smell slammed into us like a stinky slap in the face, but after a bit it wasn't so bad. Probably because the smell floated into all our neighbor's yards. It's fun to live in our neighborhood.

Anyway, get that sucker pumped out and filled in and move on with your life as quickly as possible. Then you'll be ready to get to the actual yard work.

2. Chop Down Some Trees.

I mean, you don't have to. But if you are going to chop down any trees, NOW really is the time to do it. You don't want to tear up your pretty new grass during the massacre. This big ol' tree in front of our house was really close to the foundation. It also grew directly over the gas line. And, like half of the trees on our lot, it was growing into the power lines, so every couple of years the city came and hacked the top off. With so many strikes against it, we decided maybe it was time for this tree to move on. Good thing we still had the Manlift!
    


It started raining on us but I bribed Colin's friends with plates of cookies if they would help us drag all the branches into the backyard and we managed to get most everything cleared up.


Right next to that tree there was a plum tree and a snowball bush that we tried to save, but in the end, they didn't make it.

2. Remove all the Weeds.

First I used Vinegar to kill my weeds, cuz I had read somewhere that it was the best thing to do. It killed a few weeds, but apparently vinegar doesn't kill the roots, so it really doesn't get you much in the long run. So next I used a deadly weed killer and sprayed the heck out of my weeds. A few of them died, but I think my weeds are some kind of super strain, because mostly they just mocked me. I finally gave up and had the front lawn tilled. I found some guy on KSL who was just trying to make enough money to justify the tiller he had bought. 

Sep 23, 2019

2. Remove all the rocks. 

There is no picture for this, but I think you get the gyst.

3. Remove all the rocks. 

You missed some.

4. Remove all the rocks.

Nope, you still missed some more.  

5. Plan out your sprinkler system!

For this, we used Richard's brother, who planned out the whole system for us. If you don't have a brother-in-law with sprinkler skills, I think Sprinkler World will also work up sprinkler plans for you if you buy your parts from them. 



6. Dig your trenches. 

We rented this bad boy. 
 

 It made the work easier, but it was still exhausting. And because of poor planning, there were still a couple of trenches we had to dig by hand. I swear, digging will be the death of me.



 7. Remove all rocks. 

I know you think you already did this, but apparently you didn't, because there are still SO MANY. Good luck finding somewhere to put them.

8. Remove all rocks. 

I'm not kidding. 

9. Remove all rocks.

For reals.  

10. Put in your pipes.

Use your brother-in-law for this too, if you can trick him into it.



11. Bake your brother-in-law a cake. 

Or cookies. Or maybe a pie. Or he might never talk to you again. 

12. Fill in your trenches and rake everything smooth again.


13. Remove all rocks. 

You are really bad at this. That's why you have to keep doing it over and over.

14. Wait all winter long because someone at the hydroseed place told you didn't need to call to get on the schedule until October 10th or so, but when you call on the 10th you find out that they stopped spraying hydroseed on October 1st. 

Try not to be too bitter about this. But pick a different company to use when its time.

15. It is Spring! Time to kill the weeds again! 

Good luck! They are even more resistant to weed killer than they were last year!

16. Remember just in the nick of time that you also need to get rid of the stump leftover from the tree you cut down last fall. 

Pay a tree service to grind it out for you because you've learned the hard way that removing stumps yourself is virtually impossible.

16. Rake the soil smooth again.


17. Remove all the rocks. 

It is possible that someone is sneaking the rocks back into the soil when you are not around.


18. Get some Topsoil

We had our topsoil delivered from Topsoil.Rocks. That is the name of the company. https://topsoil.rocks/wp-content/cache/all/index.html The price was good and the delivery was free and they left us with a big pile of dirt in the road. Good times. 


 I spent ALL DAY with my boys shoveling dirt into the wheelbarrow (wheel barrel? I don't know what it is called! I could look it up but I don't care!) and dumping it in piles around the lawn. I made it about a 3rd a way through the pile. So the next day we rented a machine to help us because we wanted to not spend the rest of our lives shoveling dirt.



 We wanted to rent a bobcat, but that big thing was the only one we could find on a Saturday. Those stupid tracks tore the crap out of everything. We tried to fill in some holes in the backyard, and it is now a total disaster. 


19. Rake the yard smooth.

20. Remove all rocks. 

21. Remove all rocks.

22. Remove all rocks.

23. Remove all rocks.

24. Remove all rocks.

25. Remove all rocks.

26. And so on.

27. And so forth.

28. Forever

29-46. and ever......




47. Install Curbing.

The curbing will look too tall after it is installed and you will think it looks wrong, but it isn't! It is supposed to be that high to account for the thickness of the grass when it grows in. It will be fine.

Curbing is sold with a minimum. The guy I used charges for at least 100 feet. Some people require you to pay for 150 feet. So we figure if we were paying for it anyway, we'd put in as much as we could. We were just going to section off space for flowers in front of the house, but we decided to extend it all the way around the side of the house while we were at it. It came out to 90 feet. 

   

The lines looks too wiggly from a distance. I wanted them wavy. But I'm not sure I like the way it turned out. I'm hoping once it is full of plants the wiggly lines won't be as noticeable. 


48. Get angry at the weeds that can't take a hint.

Dig them all out by hand. 

49. Rake the yard smooth. 

It doesn't seem to make a difference. Do it anyway.

50-57. Remove all rocks.

58-63. Curse rocks to the deepest trenches of hell. 

64-88. Shake your fists at the sky as the rocks mock you.

The rocks have recruited all their friends to help ruin your life. 

89-92. Refuse to give in. 

93. Never give up! 

94. Never Surrender! 

95. You will be victorious!

96. It's Hydroseed time!

We chose Hydroseed primary because of cost. I think I got a quote for sod once. It was in the thousands. I don't remember. Lots of money. The cost for Hydroseed for the same area? $180.00. 

 

 
Rejoice in the grassy future that awaits you!
 

97. Cry into your pillow when the city shows up two days later to replace the sidewalk in front of your house, trampling the hydroseed on the easement all to heck.




98. Sit Around and Watch the Grass Grow.

Hydroseed is cheap, but it comes at a cost. The first week especially we constantly worried that we were watering it either too much or not enough and had no idea if we were doing either one. But One Week later we had tiny blades of grass shooting out of the ground!


 Look closely. They're there.


99. Take pictures of your brand new baby grass! 


WEEK 2 

It looks like grass! It really does! And what the heck is that round thing pushing up out of the ground?

 

 Why are you here, giant mushroom? 

WEEK3!




 Hot dang, would you look at that? There have been several more mushrooms pushing up from the depths of the soil, but I eat mushrooms for breakfast, so they were no match for me. 

During week three, we got to mow the lawn and put down fertilizer. Exciting times!

WEEK 4!


Folks, we have grass. We also have weeds. Lots of weeds. But enough time has passed that we can put down a broad leaf weed killer. And weeds are normal in the first year, but hopefully by next year the grass will be strong enough that it will choke out the weeds. You know what they say: The best defense for weeds is a healthy lawn. 

So, that's about it. You too can have grass by following these simple steps. 


Here is a fun before picture. This is from Google Street View right after we moved back in to our remodeled house. I especially like how cute and tiny the minivan looks in this picture.


And here is how it looks today! 


Here is the WAY BEFORE, just for reference:

_MG_3502

That's the end. Go home now.
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