Playing in the dirt...

It is that time of year again.  Planting time.

I do not have much of a green thumb but last year Troy decided it might be fun to plant some veggies.  We ended up with some harvest so we decided to do it again.

Last year we planted

• green and yellow beans
• cucumbers
• tomato
• carrots
• radishes
• peas
• and catnip

We had good success with the beans.  Way too many cukes.  The tomato plant got HUGE.  Our best crop - catnip!!

This year we planted

• tomato
• green peppers (two varieties)
• radishes
• bib lettuce
• spinach
• brussel sprouts
• yellow squash
• zucchini
• peas

Mounds for the squash and two varieties of peppers 

We decided to plant the tomato in a pot and we will add a trellis if needed.  Troy doesn't eat raw tomatoes so this plant is for me.

The rectangular pot is for herbs - tarragon and rosemary and another pot (not pictured) is for parsley.  The large green pot in this picture and the tan square one in the one above is for catnip.  That stuff kind of took over last year so we thought using pots might be a better idea - and it might keep Izzy out of the garden!

Isn't he handsome??

We've already talked about building another bed next year and maybe another one the year after that!.  

Planting our garden was a great way to end a very pleasant weekend.  Maybe by next Monday's post we'll have somethings sprouting!

Everyone deserves a day off!

We decided that we would take the weekend off from construction.  We pretty much blew the budget with last weekends roofing and siding and windows.  This happens to us at least once during every project.

Besides - the house was a mess.  Construction doesn't leave time for the normal chores and we tracked a lot of extra dirt and mud inside as well.  We needed to spend a weekend the normal chores.

While I worked on Saturday morning, Troy got the yard mowed.  When I got home we tag-teamed the house.  A nice dinner and a night watching the race and we called it a day.

Sunday morning, I went grocery shopping.  Strange at is seems, this is a chore I've really learned to enjoy.  I found a great store that is not busy on Sunday mornings.  It is well stocked at that time as well.  I stuck to my list thanks -  in part to eating breakfast - bacon and eggs.  Going to the grocery store on an empty stomach is a big no-no!!

With that chore done and the afternoon free, we decided to join the Sunday Fun Ride our local Harley Owners Group has each week.  We are new members of the Bayside HOG Chapter but at our first two meetings we met some very nice people.  The weather was perfect for a ride and the company and conversation was very enjoyable.  I look forward to more rides with the group on our new bike - purchased in January 2014.

One of the group members mentioned that they were growing a lot of their own food this year which reminded us that we are probably a little late with our garden.  We dropped off the bike and picked up the truck and off to HD we went - this time for some seeds and a few bags of top soil.  

It looks like a shed!!!

Sunday - noise ordinance checked.  We can begin work at 7 am.  Well not me!  I'm still drinking my first cup of coffee at 7:30 am.  But Troy is eager to get to work.

Last evening, he went to Home Depot and bought the siding and the nails we needed for today's work.  We had decided on the wood siding with the wide planking on a previous scouting trip.  These scouting trips are highly recommended.  With these decisions made ahead of time, it is a quick in and out of the store.  And with phone camera's it is easy to store the right product number and pricing information.

Today's work was much like hanging drywall and is NOT my favorite.  Communication is the key and we were not always on the same page today.  But the siding is up and it looks like a shed!

We still have to make doors, add some flashing to the roofline, decide on some trim.

But it is already proving to be useful!

I have a few surprises up my sleeve yet - colors for the siding and trim still to be revealed and a special project or two.  Stay tuned!

 

Rah Rah Roofing day!

I am absolutely amazed at how much progress we made on the shed this weekend.

Finally the weather coopeated - sunshine and warm enough - Friday very warm - near 80.  Saturday was cooler - near perfect weather - 70.  Sunday a bit cooler but with no wind, the afternoon was quite pleasant.

During the day on Friday, Troy got the boards and tar paper on the roof done.  A trip to Home Depot when I got home from work for windows and shingles set the schedule for the weekend.

Early Saturday morning Troy went back to Home Depot to get the special tool we would need for this morning's work - a roofing nailer.

See the black round thing?  That holds the nails.  They come in a coil.

A wire holds them together.  All in all it is a pretty daunting machine but when I finally overcame my fear of it, I actually LOVE this tool.  In some ways it is like an air stapler.  Made quick work of the roof!

Never having done a roof before, I needed some instruction.  You have to stagger the shingles so the seams don't line up and the flaps overlap.  This sheds the water and keeps water from penetrating the roof.

staggered shingles

work in progress

By early afternoon we had a roof!  BTW, the shingles didn't go as far as the package said and an emergency trip to HD was necessary.

We also got the windows in.  They will add a bit of light and ventilation when I am working inside the workshop/shed.

a good days work!

I'm actually quite proud of myself as I'm not comfortable with ladders or heights but eventually I got comfortable on the roof.  I didn't to go near the edge even towards the end of the day.  All in all I think I was a useful assistant.