New Fire Place....

So, after many days of sun but no yard-work to do because the ground is still frozen and the nights are below zero, we could not wait any longer and had to have a fire (rednecks huh..). We really like our new place and have finished many of the reno's so we decided it was time to relax. After a day of cleaning and vacuuming the vehicles we cut some kindling, cleaned up the yard a bit (where there was no snow or ice) (ha ha maritimers) and set the fire pit in a nice sunny spot where it will stay until Daryl builds it a permanent home. After roasting some deer/elk smokies, eating some Doritos and drinking beer, it was time to move inside as the temperature dropped down to -2 (and we got bored). Once inside, we put together our new patio furniture and tested it by the new fire in the woodstove. We especially like the light up palm tree Daryl's mom brought us back from the U.S, as it adds a "tropical" feel to our basement.

It's Finished....except for touch-ups

Well, after a couple of weeks filled with distractions, our master bath is finally done. There are still a few paint touch-ups to do and we still need some towel bars put up but it once again a functioning bathroom with no mold or rot. Stay tuned because Karen plans to do another post when all is in place.

Fixtures

The house was built in 1990 and has not been updated or changed since, hence, we inherited many chandelier-style tinted glass ceiling fixtures. We also inherited peach coloured bathrooms with mauvy-purple sinks,toilets and tubs with surrounds that have big purple/blue iris' imprinted on them. Yes! Makes me want to garden every time I take a shower. Also to be enjoyed, were the brass cover plates on all the switches and outlets. It's a horrible flashback to something older than 1990, but hey.... crazy cat lady again. So far, Daryl has changed the sinks, toilets, plugs, switches and lights upstairs. Tubs and surrounds start tomorrow!

Wood Stove

One of the things we have missed most since moving is our wood stove, especially when it's -26 Celcius outside. On Monday the guys came and installed the stove and chimney. It is big enough to heat the entire house (2528 sq/ft) and looks very nice. Daryl installed the tile hearth and we have plans to put stone on the walls behind it.

Having a wood stove means we must get firewood. In this area of B.C, all one has to do is drive 15 minutes, and you can find it lying all over the bush. As I'm sure you all know (yeah, right)every Canadian household is allowed to take 2 cords of wood per year from crown land. It is a bit of work for some of it, but it's great exercise and the dogs love going. Karen doesn't mind it either, even though she routinely comes home covered in bruises and exhausted.

Painting.....Again

After vacuuming and shampooing the carpets (lots... remember crazy cat lady) We immediately turned to fixing and patching holes. In the living room alone, Karen stopped counting after filling 106 holes. There was also four fist sized holes which Daryl had to patch and repair (pics #2 and #4...yes it's the same wall) before Karen could paint (look how high she is.... once again, dealing with her phobias), as shown above.
More to come...

MOVED

For those of you wondering, we are finally in our new home. On the road to Cranbrook, we made one final pit-stop for gas in Radium, B.C. where Karen was able to snap a picture of this ram that was walking with 5 other rams about 20 feet from where Daryl was filling the truck. The sheep didn't seem to bother the folks of Radium. I (Karen) had no idea that these wild sheep are viewed as permanent residents, because they are always there, walking down the streets.

Here are the outside shots of our new house. We got a good deal but have to make many repairs and fix a lot of damage. This was a "court ordered" sale, as the "crazy cat" lady who owned it was put (permanently) in an institution... more to follow.

Wildlife

Can you spot the deer in this picture? This is the same deer taken from two different positions about 5 feet apart. Wildlife has such amazing camouflage. These pics were taken about 2 blocks from our new home. Being used to Vancouver Island deer, I thought this was a large one, as on the island, the big ones are roughly German Shepherd sized and viewed as large rodents. Daryl reports that this is only a medium sized three point Mule deer buck, called a "mulie" (As in Julie) aptly named due to it's large ears. Sadly, we noticed a tin can stuck on it's back hoof, looking like a cat food tin. While driving away, Karen stated: "hopefully it's tetanus shots are up to date...." while Daryl commented:"hopefully it lives to grow another tine so I can legally shoot it next fall." Sigh....... (sorry everyone, but our freezer is full of deer, elk, moose and grouse. Mmmmmm delicious!)