Installation of Bathroom Vanity – March
There was a pedestal sink in the half bath that we did not like very much. You could see the piping, which was not very attractive. We’ve been wanting to change it for a long time, so we finally got to this small project. It actually only took us 2 days to complete.
BEFORE AFTER
Expanding Our Garden Area - March
We tried a small raised garden in 2017 and it’s the first time since we moved to Lincoln in 2005 that we’ve had success… go figure! It was all about finding the right location, using organic mix, and planting in the raised garden above the horrible rock/dirt we have below the surface.
So this is what it looked like in 2017. 
We were so pleased with our little crop that we decided to double the space, so we did! We had to chop down a bush for the addition, but it was well worth the trade off to pick fresh vegetables straight from our garden.
Here is the expansion. I can’t believe I did not get a picture this year of how large the plants got before the season was over. We still have one tomato plant and zucchini plant that are still producing! We’re going to plant our first winter garden because we’ve never tried that… we’ll see what happens!
Painting Backyard Fences - June
The fences were originally painted when the house was built in 2005. They were very faded and looked really bad… it was time!! Thanks to our wonderful neighbor Leo who had a bunch of leftover paint from his fences. He was happy to share it with us and do most of the painting with his paint sprayer!
Since we just had the lava rock and bark installed in the entire yard, we had to rake away all that material from the fence line (about 6 inches) to leave enough room to paint the fence. That was a heck of a job and took a few hours to complete. The painting is one of the projects we wanted to complete before the landscaping, but could not do so because of all the rain we got.
Finishing Side Yard – June/August
BEFORE AFTER 
After storing this bark up against the fence for a few months, we were finally ready to install it on each side of the house. We had to move the bark and install it in sections a little at a time because there was no other place to put it. We started with the section next to the house. We laid weed barrier and then the bark, section by section.
This rock was only sticking above the ground a little bit so we thought we’d dig it up… NOT!!! We had no idea that it was HUGE and we couldn’t even dig it up or pick it up because it was crazy big and so heavy. Instead, Hank had a “think out of the box” idea to make it part of the “landscape decor”. We used a heavy duty pry bar to raise some of it to the surface. Then we wedged several rocks under it to keep it there and put the bark around it. So about half of it is actually showing above the ground.
After completing the area next to the house, we started working on the fence side area. We knew we’d have enough bark to do the other side of the house, so we saved it by piling it up against the house until we had time to prepare the other side. Yes, we moved the bark a lot, but our plan worked out.
Before the landscapers started, we dug up and saved 6 plants that were in the backyard that were not going to be used in the new landscape design, we used existing bark, weed barrier that we already had, used rocks that we dug up for decor, so it didn’t cost us anything to do this side of the house (except that expensive concrete walkway)!
It’s a simplistic design & low maintenance and that’s the way we wanted it because we are really the only people that will see it. 
Finishing The Other Side Yard - June
We ended up moving some of the rocks and installing bark every other section between the fruit trees. We did this for 2 reasons… we had nowhere else to put the extra bark and we wanted to break up the look of so many rocks.
BEFORE
This is what the side yard looked like when we moved in. It had rocks on both sides, makes it very hot over there. 
In 2016 we planted fruit trees on one side and bushes on the other side.
The fruit trees have grown in 2 years and are starting to bear fruit. We removed some of the rocks, laid weed barrier, then added the bark.
AFTER
We added bark around the bushes and they have grown a lot in 2 years and are looking good.
Bathroom Cabinet – November
I wanted a cabinet in my craft room bathoom because it was a little boring in there. So I got some pictures off the internet, marked the areas I liked from each cabinet, then put it together to get exactly what I wanted. Hank engineered the design and off he went.
This is the first time we incorporated glass into a design, that’s what the openings are below in the doors. We used glass from an old frame & had it cut at Lowe’s = zero cost. Bought inexpensive wood and used other wood that we already had so the cabinet didn’t cost us that much.
Gluing the sides
Painting the MANY pieces took me a while, then I had to do a second coat to fully cover.
I really like the wainscoting we used for the backing. We had a big sheet of this we used for a large project when we lived on Corsley and we just keep using it for other projects.
And here’s the final product!! I love the detail and the molding at the top really finished it off.
Table for Front Foyer – November
I found these 2 beautiful pillars at a garage sale for $25 for the pair. They’ve been sitting next to our front door for a few years. I’ve wanted to paint them and put some kind of greenery on them for a long time, but kept procrastinating about it.
We had the idea to put a table top on them and move them to the side. We starting looking for quartz remnants but it was too expensive. Hank had a great idea to use left over tile from the flooring in the house as the table top and framed by wood, so that’s what we did.
Before paintingTesting paint colors
After painting base coat
Finished pedistal after base coat and dry brushing to give it that “aged” look.
We bought a piece of wood as the base for the tile to lay on. This is the back side and we added supports to help it from warping.
We then put tile adhesive on the base piece, glued on the tile and put heavy weight on it to ensure it glued down properly. Little did we know, that was a BIG mistake!!
The next morning all the tile had popped up. Apparently you don’t use a trowel with teeth to put on the adhesive because it forms ridges where air stays and that scenario doesn’t agree with weight being put on it. We thought we could save the base by removing the adhesive (which was still wet). But again we were wrong because the moisture made the board warp slightly.
Going on to plan B and spending another $25 for the second board. We bought some really inexpensive wood to frame it. This time we just inserted the tile into the frame, no adhesive!!
I painted the frame and varished it.
Then we glued the frame together to secure the tiles inside the frame.
Here’s the finished product. Sticking with our D.I.Y. on a budget, this project cost about $50 (less our $25 mistake), so overall a very inexpensive table. We were going to toss the slightly warped board, but decided to keep it and use it as a tabletop work surface for future projects, so it all worked out.
I still need to find some greenery from my stash and create a centerpiece to put on the table top and then we’re done!
