Visual Meanderings...

 Thought I would post some photos I have for inspiration and ideas (without posting my entire Pinterest catalogue) But if you are curious~http://pinterest.com/zuzuspetals/

Color Palette

Magnolia Pearl

I want to live in this much beauty... http://magnoliapearlblog.blogspot.com/

Magnolia Pearl

Major inspiration

Love

Peace

Copper!

Reminds me of Anais

Comfort

Rust

Someday

Always white

Whimsy

Beautiful decay

Hideaway

In the Land of Agnes

So....... major crisis diverted! The back panel does not need to be completely redone after all! The sculpture gets to stay. <3 I am beyond happy. Turns out the side wall had just been pushed out when measuring the panel, so all we needed to do was trim the panel itself. And, it was actually a blessing in disguise as I was able to fix a few little things that I forgot to do-replace old piping, glue down cupboard surfaces, clean and sand interior of headboard. And thank goodness for Joegyver!! He redid a very tricky floor area that would not have been easy with the back still on. He also made both corners far more secure. I can't believe how much he helped and how productive the day was! Yippee!

All better!!

Perfectly lined up :)

Joegyver's handiwork to secure the back floor and corner

Goodbye ratty rotten wood

After they completed all the new work and put the back together, voila! The metal skin now fits on perfectly. We were able to use it as a template for the window and the guys let me use the jigsaw to cut out the space.

Chance to make some improvements

Finally! Back window is ready for framing!

Goofy

They also fabricated nice new inside wood liners to sturdy the cupboards and hide all the ickiness that was underneath...resin, burns, just general nastiness. It was so nice to have another person there to actually carry out their solutions. I just don't have the skills or experience~yet ;).



Joe brought out his amazing dog, Zoe, and she had a blast. She is the smiliest dog ever! She has a wonderful bushy fox tail, a purple tongue, and the most incredible widow's peak. :) We also had an encounter with what was the largest black widow any of us had ever seen. It was hiding on the back of a wood panel in the garage. So glad they didn't startle it. It's body, not including its legs, was the size of a penny, I swear. Quite intimidating. It seriously looked like a fake Halloween toy. I really wanted to relocate it, and the guys sympathized. But they decided it was too dangerous for the dogs and I would have felt horrible if it eventually got one of them. :(

Zooooooeeeee!!

Oh.My.God. Biggest Black Widow ever. RIP little guy :(

 Since I am always barely teetering on one of the two very old rickety wood ladders, my stepdad decided to surprise me with a new ladder! No more twisted legs around trying to hold on while I use the nail gun on the roof. No more lines of bruises along the inside of my upper arms from hanging on for dear life to the sharp edge of the top metal. No more swaying into the spiky bushes!

My very own ladder :)

The infamous Joegyver

Any idea where Zoe is?

 
Mouse check for the week~negative!
A most endearing thanks to Joe for spending his day working his butt off in the sweltering sun! :D

Joe, at home in his workshop :)

Writing about the tedious stuff isn't so interesting. We did use a jack to hold the ceiling panel in place with glue and screws, so it doesn't bow down in the middle anymore. Nice to have figured out a solution. We've mostly been spending time dealing with little odds and ends and while I can see the progress, doesn't make for much interesting fodder.  So I'll just post a few photos for now until I find some inspiration to be more creative... :)

The wonderful prybar. Ben was right.

Oh, Agnes, "I've lived. I've got to figure out what to do next!" May have to write a little story based on these findings...along with the knife, bar of soap, and never ending supply of batteries and q tips.

So the mice used the repellent to make a new nest and leave me these squeaking babies. They were much cuter in person and fuzzy. Thank goodness the whole family left the next week.

Gluing and clamping cupboard doors at home

2 inches too much. The metal doesn't fit back on. Oi! Time for a re sculpt.

The lovely look on my face when I realize the whole back section has to be redone. :/

Me and my girl

I have a roof!

Fire too close to home

Pro with the Radial saw now!

All the benderboard pieces are cut and ready to be stacked on the roof

So neat and tidy and clean!

So I feel like we are making good progress, although things don't look too different. Lots of planning and thinking ahead (I already covered up 2 electrical holes that will be fun to deal with). But little things, like vacuuming out all the icky creepy stuff hidden in all the cupboards and nooks and crannies really makes it feel ready for all the next phases.

The weather has been quite warm, which makes us move at a tad slower pace. My hangover didn't help. I realized that I didn't pay close enough attention, although I had every intention to!, to how exactly things were laid out. I'm hoping that the little improvisations we make will work out ok. My biggest fear is that the shell won't fit on correctly. I also didn't measure the back window~where was my mind?! So crossing my fingers that we can use the lower back aluminum as a template and go from there.

I feel like we've done so much work, and we have. But in reality it's only been 15 days worth. I also know that soon after these big areas are done, I will have to deal with a million little tedious things that will probably take longer than I expect. Which is the fun part...But do I need a water heater? How does the electrical work? Do I need a vent for the refrigerator? Time for lots more research!

Today was the first day I used the Radial Saw. This one has been intimidating me. Watching that blade come at me...it was threatening my fingers. It wants to eat them. It can find a way to jump over the wood and slash off every little one of them, I'm convinced. And we are so far away from a hospital. And then I won't be able to drive, or type. And how will I give my cat his medicine?  Ok, I'm not really scared, just a little trepidatious. Once Bob shows me the steps, not so much. Just have to make sure I don't get all cocky about it ;).

Love the shop vac

The piece that was here was in such a state we just replaced it

After. Not too shabby

Concentrating

Dork

The ceiling is starting to close in!

My parents have a most lovely garden. Everything grows like crazy out there. It's organized and yet wild. I love all the random jars and little surprises...

Baby cauliflower (full size 1 week later!)

Love old jars

Peaceful

The mice have left the building...!!!

I've had this dilemma about the mouse family living in my oven for awhile now. I have been trying to figure out a way to evict them with as little as trauma as possible. Even humane traps seemed harsh as I never know if they have babies in there. I found this product on the Vintage Trailer Supply website and thought I would give it a try...

So last week I left the bags, still wrapped in cellophane sitting around the trailer and left the oven door open. Lo and behold, when I arrived today they had all left! I was so happy. I know it may have been unpleasant for them, but I think it was the best solution for all :) It made my day!

You're awfully cute, but you cannot stay

Life saver!

It was about 90 degrees today, so we were all moving a bit slow. The dogs were continually in the sprinklers and Tucker apparently thought it would be a good idea to roll in the dirt after..

Goofy

Other than a bit of gluing and assessing the wiring today, all we really did was remove some panels and beams and cut the vent opening for the ceiling panel. This was the first time I got to use a jigsaw. What can I say, easy as pie! I kinda felt like a badass. I think I may need to make another trip to Home Depot to get myself one for home.

Old ceiling panel. Eww.

Nice and clean!

I love power tools

I also cleaned up all the cupboard fixtures at home using Naval Jelly (a name that does not conjure a pleasant image) and a wire brush. It was actually quite a relaxing little project. Although, I did kinda like the weathered look they had before, they just seemed too grimy.

Before

Pink Naval Jelly!

After