An Amazing Birthday Break (And Now It’s Time To Buckle Down)

This previous weekend was such a enjoyable weekend for me. My good friend Lori, who lives within the Houston space, got here to city and spent my birthday with me, and I didn’t give a single thought to dwelling tasks the entire time she was right here apart from to indicate her what I’ve completed since she was right here final 12 months, and to inform her about upcoming tasks just like the storage room. Aside from that, I had a whole three-day break from tasks, and it was simply what I wanted. My weekend, together with my birthday on Sunday, was full of dialog, catching up with my good friend, a great deal of laughter, a number of good meals, and naturally, birthday cake.

I didn’t inform her I used to be going to do that, however I need to take a second to inform you just a little bit about Lori. She and I’ve been buddies for nearly 30 years. We met at church right here in Waco once we have been each in our 20s, and on the time, she was on workers with Campus Campaign for Christ at Baylor College. Since then, she has gone on to start her own ministry, Lori Joiner Ministries, the place she focuses on discipling ladies of their religion in Jesus. She has authored a number of books and he or she’s additionally a tremendous speaker. So in case you are in Texas, and your church is in search of a speaker for a ladies’s retreat, a ladies’s convention, a university ladies’s occasion, and so on., I’d extremely suggest that you just give Lori’s info to the organizers of your occasion. You gained’t remorse it! She is so enjoyable, and such a gifted speaker and instructor, and I do know the ladies of your church could be extremely blessed to have her come and communicate at your occasion.

Anyway, my birthday weekend was simply good, and it was the break I wanted. After I mentioned goodbye to Lori yesterday as she headed again dwelling, I made a decision to take the remainder of the time off and kit up for this closing push on my out of doors tasks that I need to end up earlier than I begin engaged on the storage closet. Right here’s the plan:

End the skirting on the entrance porch.

Proper now, the entrance porch skirting seems like this…

I’ve all of my fake concrete “stones” achieved and able to go. I simply have to get these adhered to the skirting space, after which I might want to add mortar between them after which prime and paint the stones to match the remainder of the home.

Final week ended on a low word as my plan for the adhesive I needed to make use of didn’t work out, so I’ve determined to make use of mortar as a substitute of adhesive. I’ve by no means used mortar earlier than, however I believe it can find yourself understanding higher than the adhesive in the long term. When you’ll keep in mind, one drawback I’ve run into with my earlier plans to cowl the skirting space is that the nook of the porch isn’t an ideal 90-degree angle, so getting something to wrap round that nook correctly finally ends up giving me issues.

That’s the issue I had with the latest PVC board choice I attempted. As a result of that nook isn’t sq., I couldn’t get the PVC boards to stay. If I pushed these boards onto the nook in order that they’d stick, they regarded clearly crooked and threw off the sample utterly. So I believe if I exploit mortar, I cannot solely use that to stick the stones to the concrete, however I may also construct out that nook to make it sq. and plumb. Utilizing mortar is just a little outdoors of my consolation zone since I’ve by no means achieved it earlier than, however I’m up for attempting one thing new.

End changing the skirting boards

After I get the stones hooked up, primed, and painted, then I’ll want to complete changing the rotted skirting boards with the brand new PVC boards. I began eradicating the outdated boards just a few weeks in the past (earlier than I constructed the facet steps to the studio door), however I gave up after I couldn’t get this facet board off.

However now I have to discover a strategy to get that board off in order that it may be changed.

Paint the porch boards

I’ve determined that I’m achieved with stains and oils for the entrance porch, so this time, I’m going to color it. I’ll be utilizing the identical anti-slip Porch & Patio Paint that I used on the facet steps to my studio…

I plan to make use of the identical paint in the identical coloration on these porch boards, that are wanting very worn and outdated proper now.

Set up new lights

Just a few years in the past, I put in tape lighting across the entrance porch, and it regarded actually lovely.

However I made a reasonably large mistake after I did that challenge. I simply relied on the sticky again of the tape lights to carry the lights in place, and I didn’t connect the little cable staples that got here with the lights. With the entire humidity that now we have, the sticky adhesive wasn’t sufficient to maintain the lights in place, so that they finally fell down. I’ve new tape lights that I need to set up, and this time, I’ll be utilizing the cable staples to maintain them up.

I even have new, bigger lights that I need to set up on both facet of the door. These smaller lights might be used on my workshop.

And at last…

End portray the brand new bed room door

I nonetheless need to do lots of caulking round this door to see if I can disguise among the wonkiness on this space. That is probably the most unlevel room of our home, and it’s very apparent on the outside as nicely, particularly with a door on this part that’s put in degree in a really unlevel part. So earlier than I head inside to work, on the very least, I need to get this door all caulked and painted.

The steps to this door must wait till now we have cooler climate. So I’ll get it caulked and painted for now, then head inside to work on the storage room throughout the hottest a part of the summer season, after which I can head again outdoors when it begins to chill down and hopefully get the steps to this door completed.

In order that’s the plan for the following couple of weeks, and people are the tasks I actually need to end outdoors earlier than I head inside and begin engaged on the storage room. Clearly, I didn’t meet my objective of ending up my out of doors tasks earlier than my birthday, however that’s okay. That was a reasonably arbitrary date that I set for myself, so I’m not too labored up about the truth that it’s going to take a bit longer. I’m VERY enthusiastic about getting began on the storage room, although. However I additionally don’t need to go away these out of doors tasks unfinished. I believe if I can end up these few, that might be a great stopping level for now, after which I can choose up the place I left off when the climate cools down.

I’m feeling rested after my enjoyable, lengthy weekend. And I’m feeling a renewed sense of dedication. I’m able to get going once more!

Addicted 2 Adorning is the place I share my DIY and adorning journey as I rework and embellish the 1948 fixer higher that my husband, Matt, and I purchased in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do bodily work, so I do the vast majority of the work on the home on my own. You can learn more about me here.