So close!

So its been a month since we started on our bathroom. Obviously it's taken quit a bit longer then we thought but its gone pretty well. Strange to think we thought it would take a couple of weeks but then again we are both working a lot and only have a little time in the afternoon after work to get things done. Also didn't take into account the time to wait for things to set or dry or whatever.

We were able to finally take a shower at home yesterday!! Man what a feeling. Like Emma said, "It's like going from a cheap hotel to a nice Spa". So wonderful to have everything new and clean and not have two shower curtains on each side of you(one was covering the huge window in the shower). Of course we are not done with everything. Still have a good amount to complete but hopefully we can get a lot of it done this weekend. We still have to install the shower door, new sink, finish molding around the shower, install the crown molding, make and install the medicine cabinet and cabinet above the toilet and take out the old fan and light and install a new Fan\Light combo. Ok maybe a few more weeks! Go HERE for some updated photos.

Respect your Toilet!!!

Yes thats what I meant to say. Respect your toilet and cherish the simple act of being able to use it when you need it. Why am I saying this? Well of course because we don't have one at the moment!

Saturday morning we decided to install the tile floor in the bathroom. So of course this meant the porcelain god had to go! We unbolted it from the floor and tilted it to get it loose. Luckily it wasn't so bad to remove or was too icky to deal with.

Emma did a wonderful job on the tile and it is all finished and grouted and looks great! Hopefully later today when we get home from work we can connect the toilet up again and enjoy the freedom that we all take for granted.

The shower is almost ready as well. Still have to get some drywall repair and the trim for the shower installed and we are good to go!! W also bought a new shower door on Saturday but that won't be installed for a little while until we get the rest of the stuff installed in or around the shower.

Tile and bathtub are finished!

So here are some pictures of the tile in the bathroom. It turned out really well. Emma did such a great job and even though it was a bit harder then we planned it was still worth it.







Last night when I got home I decided to finally tackle the water damage near the tub. It's not a big place which is nice but its still something we have to address. I managed to cut out the bad wood and figure out a way to patch it up. Of course once I started ripping out the floor I decided to keep going and get rid of the top layer of plywood. Found out that the bathroom had 3 layers of linoleum and some tar paper. Some of that is staying and the new tile floor will go over the top. We will see how that goes this weekend!!!

For the rest of the pictures from the new tile go HERE.

Still waiting to take a shower at home!!

Well this weekend our remodel was put on hold. We had our bathtub refinished and the guy that did it suggested that we stay out of the bathroom as much as possible and to stop all work and leave it alone until today. So we decided to clean up all the stuff that we pulled out of the bathroom and to clean up the garage some as well. I also had to replace another section of pipes that connected the hot water to the bathroom sink. Somehow it started to leak and so it needed replaced. Also found out that we had a hot water hook-up to our toilet!! It was connected to its own valve that wasn't on but went through a copper pipe inside the wall. Had to disconnect that and plug up the connection. Strange that it was like that but it worked out to get rid of it.

Emma helped a great deal to get the garage all organized. I suppose I had my own organization....which didn't exist but hers is much better. Over time after some projects and the accumulation of materials and other items it was getting piled up. But now everything has a place and a good amount of it has been put away.

I will post some pictures tonight of the wonderful tile that Emma finished last week. It really is night and day compared to what we used to have. Next comes the finishing of the drywall and then the floor of the bathroom. Not sure how it will work out with no toilet for a day but we will see!!

Bathroom Remodel

Original Bathroom
Originally uploaded by ryan_nowell.

Here are some pictures from a recent project. Its been a bit harder and has taken longer then we had expected but its going well. We both have taken a crash course in plumbing and tiling and window replacement! Thanks to the library and the internet its been a great learning experience. Now if we can get done so we don't have to head to the gym each time we want a shower!!

Strange thing!

Had something rather odd happen the other day. Emma and I were on our way out to dinner, driving down the street, and I noticed something odd on the side of the street. It was a little girl, not more then 6 or 7 years old, walking along in the bike lane eating some candy. I happen to notice her....for one that she was young and walking along a busy street, but it looked like she was wearing pajamas and slippers. She looked like she was walking with a purpose or rather like she had done this every day.

We passed on by and stopped at the light. I turned to Emma and asked if she had noticed the girl walking down the street and she had not seen her. We sat there at the light and the girl kept walking. She slowly started to come in to the main part of the lane as she came closer to the intersection still sucking on whatever candy she was enthralled with.

Luckily all traffic was stopped going all ways in the intersection when she started to walk across the middle of the road. A small boy and his friend were walking across the street and were watching her as well the entire time. He walked over and grabbed her hand to bring her out of the middle of the intersection. Everyone that was stopped at the intersection and didn't move even when the light turned green until both kids were out of the way.

My only guess is that she was either sleep walking or had something very wrong with her. Was almost like it was from a movie or strange dream!

Love you Granny!!

Today was not a happy day. It wasn't a sad day either. Today we said "goodbye" to Granny. In a way I wouldn't really say that we said goodbye to her since I really don't feel that way. She was and always will be my Granny. It's hard to imagine that she is not with us to speak with and to hug.

She touched so many lives and today it really showed. So many people showed up to the service and some told stories of how she took care and loved each and everyone in a special way.

Recently since I moved away, she would call to say hi and ask how things were going. It was the usual "how is work" and "how is the house" and would always remember so many details about your daily grind. She would always end the phone call making sure that you knew how much she loved you and how proud she was of you and what you were doing.

So even though she is not here to check up on me I know that she will always be watching over me and making sure I am happy, healthy and loved very much. I will miss her a great deal and will so many other people that she touched.

I love you very much Granny!

Snow day

Snow day
Originally uploaded by dougall5505.

So once again we have snow in Portland. Was a complete surprise to me! I never turned on the news when I was getting ready for work and it was raining at our place when I left. No sign of ice or any cold weather really.....I was wearing shorts of course because it really wasn't that cold out. I headed up the hill on the way to work and I called Emma to tell her it was snowing. All of a sudden around the corner there was SNOW and lots of it. I guess everyone else had seen the news and was NOT driving on the over pass that I take every morning. I only slipped off the road once but of course I was taking it easy.

It's usually the other drivers I am looking out for!!

I did not take this pic....forgot my camera this morning.

Lincoln City

IMG_0213
Originally uploaded by ryan_nowell.

So this past weekend Emma and I and the pup decided to head on out to the coast to relax a bit. It was really what we both needed. I had planned it a while ago to go but it was a Valentines Day surprise for Emma. I told her a while ago that I had surprise but wasn't going to give her any idea when or where it was going to happen. I decided to give her a few clues on Valantines day in the card I gave her. She was pressing me to tell her what I was up to but the clues were easy and of course she figured it out.

We ended up leaving for the coast right after I got off work and stayed until Sunday afternoon.

Our Boy Puma

Our Boy Puma
Originally uploaded by ryan_nowell.

Today we went to the park and Puma hurt his leg so he is resting a bit this evening. Hopefully it's just a muscle but we will keep an eye on it.

UPDATE
This morning he was feeling better and had no limp.

Also this past weekend went well. Emma and I took it easy and hung out around the house and enjoyed a movie or two and some football. Not much else except for shopping and resting up from a crazy snow filled week.

Cold morning!

Cold morning!
Originally uploaded by ryan_nowell.

Well the past few days have been an interesting time. We managed to get a "light dusting" of snow which they predicted but it turned out to be around 4 or 5 inches of white fluffy goodness. Day before yesterday I managed to get stuck once and then sit and wait on the road for around 30 or 40 minutes due to cars that were sliding off the road. They finally opened it up to let us go by but then eventually closed the road shortly after I got to work an hour late. I decided not to chance it on the way home so I called John and he came and picked me up from work and stayed at his place. Of course we couldn't let this sort of weather pass without taking his Jeep out for a spin in the empty parking lots around the area. Was a pretty good time.

If you look at the pictures I took a couple of pics of a smart kid being pulled behind a car on a snowboard. He managed to hold on for about a mile and a half and then turned into a residential area. This weather always brings out the best in people. LINK

Just Maui'd

IMG_0266
Originally uploaded by ryan_nowell.

So our big day finally came! It turned out to be exactly what we had imagined it to be. Lots of family and friends came and celebrated with us and enjoyed a nice vacation as well. The pictures in this set were mostly all taken by Emma's cousin Chad. He did such a wonderful job! Check them out on Flickr

The morning of the wedding, the skies were gray and had the chance for rain. I was a bit worried but knew that whatever happened it would work out. Just a few minutes before it all started the sun broke out and stayed that way for the rest of the day!

The reception afterwards went very well. The food was really great which of course was a must for Emma and I and it was really great to have time to spend with everyone.

Holidays!

OK so I know it's been a while since I have posted but I haven't had much extra time lately. Both Emma and I until recently have been working a lot of overtime and also mainly getting ready for the wedding. It's actually going to feel strange after we get back and have actual "free" time to do whatever which will be nice. Its hard to believe that we have only 10 days to the wedding!! Seems like it took forever to get here but now its here and we are both very ready to get married, see family and take a vacation!!

This past xmas eve Emma cooked up a great meal for the both of us. It was just us and the boy for a quiet evening at home which was very nice. She started out with making coconut shrimp which were out of this world! New favorite food!! I have had it before but this was the best by far!

Then after a ton of shrimp we had a nice salad with greens, Gouda cheese, caramelized pecans that mom sent, and cooked pears.

After that was the main course! We had rib eye steak in some sort of wine sauce with brussel sprouts, mushrooms, and sweet potatoes. The steak was from a local farm and very tasty.

Then came dessert which is always a treat. Chef Emma made Apple Fritters with vanilla ice cream and a caramel sauce!

Trip to London

119-1998_IMG
Originally uploaded by ryan_nowell.

So I recently uploaded some pictures from when Lance and I took a trip to London 3 years ago. We had a great time and hopefully we ALL can go back sometime. I would love to show Emma all the places we got to visit. I was only allowed to upload a certain amount so not all the pictures were uploaded. I will send the rest when I get a chance.

Getting Closer!!

OK so I have to say that the wedding has taken over my mind!! All I think about is leaving my work and getting on a plane to go a nice warm place. The time has flown by but now it's creeping along and driving me crazy. I know it will come soon enough but I want it NOW!!!!

Ok now that I have that off my chest. I found this picture the other day searching the web for pictures of Makena cove. This is the entrance to the beach from the street. It's pretty hard to see and when we first got directions we tried 3 times to find it. But now it will be easier. We will be sending out some directions to this beach and the other locations of the night before the wedding and the reception.

Interesting drive this morning.

So this morning was an interesting one for sure. It started out with noticing that the car was frozen when I took Puma out to play. This of course changed my plans to play longer with him and set up a short time before I leave to turn the car on and let it warm up so I could drive. I also decided to leave a bit earlier since the drive might be slower. Sure enough it was.

I turned the corner to get on to the St. John's bridge and I noticed that a lot of cars were backed up and moving slow. Didn't think much of it at first until I got closer and tried to slow down. Yep that's it, tried to slow down!! The front tires hit the ice and locked up. Luckily with my intense parking lot training with John a few years ago in the snow I remembered to let off the brakes and let the tires steer where I needed to go. I managed to stop the car just before the car in front of me. I then looked in the rear view mirror to see if any cars were behind me about to do the same but fortunately nobody had followed. A few seconds into driving across the bridge at about 2 miles an hour, I noticed in the rear view that the cops had blocked the road behind me. I thought....well great timing....about 20 seconds sooner and I wouldn't have the luxury of trying to cross the ice covered monstrosity in front of me.

So I continued, tires spinning and the car sliding to the large curb on the right hand lane. The car in front of me was worse off then me. I noticed that the tires were pretty close to being bald and being a Dodge Neon and having the wind pick up on the bridge wasn’t helping him. I managed to stay far back letting him show me the more icy spots on the road ahead and give me enough warning as to when the traffic would be coming to a stop.

I managed to make it to the top of the curve of the bridge and then it was all down hill!! I thought well I am half way there. This is when it got tricky! I kept pumping the brakes and letting the tires steer me on all while keeping an eye on what the driver was doing in front of me. I stopped for a second to let them get ahead and just then the Neon hit the brakes and slid to the curb scraping the side of his car to slow him down. I decided to drive in the middle of the road to give me more room.

I finally made it to the bottom of the bridge were traffic was backed up each way coming from East and West. Luckily the cops had stopped the traffic waiting for the cars in front of me to finally get off the bridge since we pretty much couldn’t stop. We all made it across the bridge without becoming bumper cars or a jumbled mess of cars.

I found out after I arrived LATE to work that they had just reopened it after putting down a deicer and some gravel.

I wonder what the rest of the weeks travels will be like with the high hovering around freezing!!

Parents visited

So this past week my parents came up to visit and to work. Some friends of ours (Paul and Kristin) are remodeling their basement and needed an electrician to do some work since they decided to do it themselves. I happened to mention that my dad does electrical work and they suggested having him come up to do the work. So they came up last week and dad worked on it until yesterday. All went well except for a few weather issues along the way. The eelctric company was supposed to turn off the power on Monday so dad could hook up the new box but with the weather as bad as it was they were busy taking care of power outages around town. They finally came yesterday and dad was able to hook it all up with no problems. He even helped me....well did the work....on adding a few extra plugs outside in the front yard and helped with moving our light up in the bathroom. It really is amazing how fast he moves. No wonder he wired an entire basement in a few days!!

47 DAYS until the big day!! Can't wait to see everyone and enjoy our time on vacation and of course get married to the best girl in the world. All the plans are coming together. It's the small details that we will have to worry about soon enough.

I am still sick for those who knew. I can't seem to shake this cold or flu that I have. It's just a bad cough but it's enough to make me crazy. At least it came a week early this year instead of like last year when I was sick for Thanksgiving.

Party Time!

So our party this past Sunday went well. Almost everyone that said they would come showed up with goodies in hand. Emma and Amy, who came up to visit early on Saturday were able to get things set up and ready to go without my sick body in the way. Yes I was still feeling ill and had vertigo again which wasn't too fun. It mostly makes you feel like you are car sick or on a ship rolling through the sea. Anyway. The party went really well and it seemed like everyone had a good time. The weather held out and the rain held off but it was a bit cold. Luckily the wood stove worked well and warmed it up some. They all had nice comments about the house and the yard and everything that we worked hard on all year. It was nice to hear after all the work that we did. I guess it's the amount of time that we spent on it and nothing else that made it worth it as well. I am not sure why but I forgot to take any pictures of people that came but it never occurred to me until after the party. Once again Emma and Amy did a nice job with the decorations and I was actually surprised at how well the garage turned out for a party.

Sick and Busy!

Ok so it's been way too long since I updated this. I have been sick for a while and have busy working on the house again. I ended up missing 3 days of work this past week and just started to feel myself yesterday morning.

Emma ended up working yesterday for graduation at her work. Luckily she didn't have to work too long.

Last night we went out to dinner and it wasn't the best experience. A new place near us called Christies just opened and so we decided to check it out. It was a bit odd to say the least. Maybe we are spoiled with going to places that we really like but this place will most likely not be on our "revisit" list. They only had a few entrees to choose from and the food tasted like it came out of a box. I suppose my taste in food has changed with Emma's yummy cooking but oh well. So of course we had to make up for it by visiting one of our favorite breakfast places. It's called the Tin Shed. Food is amazing. I had a "Fetch" which is potato cakes topped with bacon, chives, tomatoes and cheese and a biscuit on the side. So yummmmmmy!!

Well we are getting ready for next weekends big party! It's not that big but any more then a few people is big in our small place. I finished the staining of the fence out back and installed the 3rd light in the bedroom(of course with dads help on the phone). I wanted to make sure I had it all right before I started. I am not a fan of getting shocked or doing it wrong. Had a bit up a scare when I turned the light on and heard a small pop sound. Turns out I might have cut the wire a bit when installing it but it was an easy fix(thanks DAD). Emma has been busy of course cooking up some goodies for the party as well. Not sure what it all is but looks tasty!

Well off to watch the second game of the World Series. Cubbies didn't even come close to making it this year but I still love the game!!!

89 Days from today!

The big day seems to be creeping up on us very quickly. Plans are coming together and RSVP's are streaming in. Saturday we spent a good amount of time signing up for wedding registries and driving around town. It was fun to pick out things that we would want if we had an unlimited budget. Of course most items were "dream" items if we won a shopping spree but it was still fun checking out everything. Emma also updated the Wedding Channel website with address info and times of some of the events.

The weather was a bit on the rainy side even though I don't remember the weather being forcasted that way. But of course that's just the way it can be around here. I tried to finish the staining of the fence but got too wet and besides that, a playoff game was on as well as some football games to be watched. I will have to take a picture of the "new" fence and post it.

We then spent a majority of out time cleaning up the house and cleaning out the garage to get ready for our party at the end of the month. We figure the weather won't be the best and our place is tiny to have lots of people in so the garage and it's cozy fireplace will warm it nicely and add room for people to gather.

Fall is coming!

I would have to say that this time of year is always nice around these parts! The weather gets cooler and the sun is still out. It hasn't started to rain all the time and the days of hot weather with no AC are gone until next year. The leaves of the trees are starting to change color and litter the streets. Halloween is coming which leads to all the rest of te fun holiday's and with it the yummy treats that are made. This past weekend we went to Sauvie Island to pick up some veggies and fruit from the farm near by called Krugers. It is really a great place. They have everything that you can possibly get and right now tis the season to get pumpkins of all shapes and sizes. We picked up a small one for Emma to cook up a yummy pie with and boy was it!!!


Of course this weekend wasn't with out it's projects and other work around the house. I think I have become partly addicted to working on the weekends. I finally got around to staining and sealing the backyard fence. It was really amazing to see how the color changed as it dried and how it really looked like a brand new fence. Ok that's not that exciting but it was still a cool change.

One more thing. Our friend Pete ran in the Portland Marathon yesterday(26.2 miles). We went down to downtown St. John's to catch him as he went by to get a few pictures but I saw him at the last minute and snapped a few shots. Was really disappointed since I wasn't able to get him coming down the bridge but I didn't see him until it was too late. It was cool to see all the people and all the friends and family cheering them on. I think it would be fun to join in some year but the training will have to start before that happens.

Pete did a great job! Here are his stats. WAY TO GO PETE!!

Place Overall: 2072 out of 7548
Men: 1416 out of 3328

FINISH: 4:03:40 pace: 9:18
10k: 54:40 pace: 8:48
Turn-9.1Mi: 1:22:40 pace: 9:06
Half: 1:55:12 pace: 8:48
20 Mile: 3:00:38 pace: 9:02
35K: 3:18:40 pace: 9:09
Chip Time: 4:03:40
Gun Time: 4:05:12

Trellis

So the final addition to the yard has been added. Worked out really well and was easier then I thought. Would have to say that out of all the projects, this was the first one that didn't have it's problems. We usually had one or two things go wrong that took time to resolve.

So we thought the weather had changed to being much cooler the past few weeks but today we were about 84 which is quit warm since it was in the high 60's recently. We are excited for the weather to change and welcome fall and all the new colors. Of course with it comes rain and mud for the dog to get into but it's always nice to play in.

Vacation slideshow!

Here are some pictures from recent trips. They are all mostly of Emma....but hey I always have the camera and she is much nicer to look at!

I also updated the site a little and added a link to the right of Adbel's son Alex's website for his band. Great music!!

Front Yard Pictures!

Finally got a chance and a break in the weather to take some pictures. Was really nice to be done and enjoy our yard.

Done Done Done

So the yard is finally DONE!!!! We installed the path over the weekend which took longer then we thought but of course nothing is new with that. I also finished up the front gate by building it and then cutting the tops off the posts and installing the final post caps. It went in pretty well with only a few hiccups but all in all it was great to be finally done! When I get a chance I will post some pictures.

Yesterday we had a visitor stroll on in to the back yard. It was a friendly older dog. He had an insteresting ridge along his back and he mostly just walked around and pissed on everything. Puma loved it becuase he turns into a puppy around dogs that come into HIS yard. So of course he wasn't wearing a collar so we closed the gate and tried to figure out what we were going to do. Then Emma had the idea that maybe he just belonged to one of the neighbors down the street so I started to walk down and ask around. One couple didn't know english so I tried to ask them in Spanish and it turned out they don't have a dog so that was easy to figure out.

Then I came across another neighbor outside loading stuff in his truck and he turned out to be the owner. Said he never noticed he was gone. As we walked back he said " Oh you guys are the one with the new yard....looks nice!!" That was nice to hear. He then introduced us to his lost boy, Rudy the Ridgeback!

1 year!!!

So yesterday was the one year anny for us being in our home! Still can't believe it's been that long. Time just really flew by. To think that when we first moved in how different the look and feel of the place was. We were sleeping in the living room on the futon and I was being bit up by flees fromt the dog that used to live there. Of course this was also Pre-Puma so he never had the joy of the itchy bites on HIS legs. our bedroom wasn't finished and liveable for 46 days and the rest of the time until we could sleep in our own bed was spent on the futon in the office.

Then we later adopted our boy. We went from working day to day painting or ripping out walls to walking the dog or taking him to the Dog Park.

Christmas came around and we got engaged in our home. It was a bit of a surprise for Emma but she was sort of expecting it to happen soon. Was really a great moment!!

And now time has flown by, our yard has been completely torn up and built back up again and now we only have 4 months until the big day!!

It's been a great year in our first home and we will for sure have many more. What will we be up to in another year? Who knows!!

Fun with Treadmills

Just a little reminder that working out can be fun!

Busy weekend and good news!!

This past weekend went way too fast!! Emma helped a friend with catering so she was gone all Saturday which left the boy and me on our own. I worked on the yard and the fence toppers or whatever you call them. They turned out pretty nice. Cheap too. Could have spent $14 on each but since we built our own it was only$1.62 a piece. Saved $175 but it did take a while to make. I will post a picture when I get them installed.

Since Emma worked so hard over the weekend and made some extra money we decided to go to Costco and see if they had any scanner\printers available. We have been wanting a better printer to print photos and she also wanted to be able to scan in the thousands of recipes that she has collected. We found one that was $50 off and hopefully it works well. Now we just need to invent a touchscreen to access all those recipes in the kitchen!

Also received some news about our neighbors next door. We noticed a while ago that they were going missing one by one. Those pesky kids stopped running around and then no more vehicles were being worked on in the carport. Then one weekend the house had all it’s lights on all day and night. Then one day when Emma was walking Puma she noticed a note on the door from Kermit King stating “If you do not return by 3:30 pm tomorrow then I will assume you have vacated the premises.” Sure enough they were gone for good. I looked over the side and everything was gone. Someone had shown up and started to clean the place out for the next couple of days. Then yesterday morning while I was in the front yard Kermit stopped by to say that he had kicked the tenants out and has already sold the place!!! He said they were supposed to leave a month and half ago but had to go through the legal process to get them to leave. He said the gentleman that purchased the place is single and is looking to buy his first place. We were hoping it would be a younger couple but oh well. At least we won’t be expecting any piss filled condoms in the yard!!!!

San Francisco!!

This past weekend Emma and I went to San Francisco to meet up with the family and see the sites. Here are some pictures of the trip and a few others.

San Francisco

Front yard

Ok so it's not done yet but it might be a while till it is. I was looking up some pictures from last year when we bought the place and it's interesting to see how its changed.

Here are some before, during and after pictures:

Keeping an eye out!

Came across this site (UofA Webcam) the other day and thought it was cool. It's always nice to see what the old home town weather is up to. Some cool time-lapse videos as well. Enjoy!

I promise I will post some pics of the new front yard. Just need to take them!!

Not much going on at the moment besides working all the time and working on the yard. Emma is going to Rhode Island for a memorial and then the weekend after that we are off to San Francisco!! Should be some good times since Emma's family is all going to meet us there.