Thursday’s projects

Exciting things happening!  The stone arrived and the fireplace was begun. The decorative faux beams started going up in the Great Room. What a difference it makes! Lighting continues to be installed and the painting is looking great!

Here is a picture from the hallway looking towards the kitchen from last night.

The stone mason arrived with two assistants and what a major production this is!

There is a real skill in laying the stone so it is level and looks right with the seams. We are so happy with this stone because it looks like we wanted: lots of variation in size both width and height. This is real stone from a quarry in Crossville, TN. When it arrived some boxes were soaking wet from the rain and the color of the stone was very dark. Others were almost white like the photo above in the wheelbarrow. Whew.

Other things were going on too with painting. We changed the trim color in Ben’s room to a darker version. The guest bedroom was started and the theater as well.

The theater was completed last night and the carpet and rubber exercise flooring is going in on Monday. I can’t wait to see the tiger stripe carpet on the platform!

We decided to change our move date to Wednesday next week. That way we give the team another weekend and a few more days. It will make our move in much more comfortable! I think everyone was happy with that change.

 

Fireplace is totally gone!

Yesterday I thought it was exciting that the hearth and chimney were out.

Then I stopped by this morning and saw that the fireplaces were all gone.

We are exploring the option of using a steel beam to go across the span. That way we won’t have to have a support column in the middle of the room. Wouldn’t that be nice? It would make placing furniture so much easier and give us more options.

My mom recently added a screened porch to her home and they used an innovative approach to the problem that didn’t require the column  and she’s sending me the plans to share with my builder and engineer to see if they’ll work. I can’t wait to hear if this will work on our situation.

Here is another cool picture of the rear yard view

Also stopped by the Mecklenburg County Extension office and met with two master gardners! It was my lucky day! Two were there and we discussed the side garden in depth. I was so worried about what to do with the nice naked dirt and they confirmed I should be putting some black plastic on top of it to keep weeds from growing…..immediately!  So, off I ran to buy black plastic garbage bags (which my sister recommended a week ago!) and paint for the brick.

I also found that I can send my dirt samples in and have them analyzed for FREE! I fill out a form telling the lab what I want to grow and they will tell me what my PH level is and all those important gardenly details like how to make it be in the right range for what I want to grow.  It was a super easy form to complete. You can do it for your lawn also, so I will find out what it needs. Wonder how long it takes to find out?

They had a LOVELY garden in front of  the office. Drat, why didn’ t I snap a picture? I will be going back soon and will be sure to remember. They also have a hotline that you can call and leave a message with any kind of gardening question. The volunteers research and will get back with you. Hooray, I am so happy about having professional gardener access!

Did I tell you I don’t like the white brick on the house? Well, that is a story for tomorrow I guess. I have to tell you that I am not afraid of paint! Just wait until you see what I am doing next!

Gardening Thoughts

My sister told me today that she is really sending me 350 iris. Wow! Plus daylilies! I am SOOOOO lucky! Now that my bed is ready, I better start figuring out a plan.

Here is a picture of the iris that is on the way.

Plus, I recieved an email from Breck’s this morning, as if I needed prodding!  Have just spent the last hour researching early blooming bulbs versus mid and late season bloomers. What a lovely way to enjoy a cup of coffee!

Here are some of the ones I am thinking about:

Snow Crocus – always an exciting thing to see at the end of a long dreary winter!

Quail Daffodils – 16-18″ tall and a mid-bloomer

Apple Blossom Tulips – these looked just yummy to me!  20-24″ mid to late Spring

Azure Allium – 18-22″ tall with  2-3″ blue spheres on top! Blue pom poms just look fun to me. I think they may look awesome with yellow daylilies.  It is ab early summer bloomer.

I am checking to see when the bloom times are for the daylilies and iris, then I can plan to my heart’s content. I heard a rumor that my mom is rooting some hydrangeas! Both blue and white varieties!  I will save a spot for those little darlings should they make it.

Now, the side garden is all dug up. The dirt looked really much better than I was expecting. No huge rocks or problems became apparent either during our dig. I wonder how I should treat it until these new gift bulbs get here? They will be her mid-October.  Then I can cover with mulch.

We are moving Nov. 19th adn will have loads of cardboard which I hear worms adore!  I planned on putting that down over the areas that are not planted then placing mulch on top of that. I think I can do newspapers too. What about until then? We are talking about less than two months.  I don’t want to pile mulch on, then have to take it off to plant, then place cardboard and then mulch. Am I asking too much? Will I get weeds growing before the gift bulbs arrive? Plus I don’t know exactly when the Breck’s bulbs will arrive either. Hmmm.

Maybe I should go visit Roundtree Plantation which is one of my absolute favorite ever gardening centers? They will know what I should do.