ben's birthday blitz

blitz is a football term, right? because i think it's probably the best way to describe what happened this past saturday. friends and family converged on our home to paint our walls! why the blitzing? because saturday was ben's 26th birthday! woohoo!

the best part was that he had no idea everyone was coming. he thought it would be the two of us + his sister, maggie, and brother-in-law, wes. i'm surprised he didn't catch on when i kept on buying more brushes and roller covers at sherwin williams on friday night!

for those special helpers who contributed and are reading this, thanks THanks THANKS! it was such a blessing to get everything done in ONE day, instead of the 3-4 it would have taken me and ben if we had done it alone. you are the best, and we are blessed by your selflessness and willingness to help. ben said it was the best birthday gift he could have received.

(kristen came over on friday night to help us prime the living room, after some red robin, of course.)

(hands down, best painting outfit - although maggie's was pretty awesome, too.)

(crissy in the blue room.)

(kaylee in the bathroom.)

(i'm not really sure what is going on in this picture.)

(birthday balloons and treats for benji!)

(sneaky!)

(wow, that's one MEGA GREIGE.)

(food, painting, and maggie's new premier jewelry in the corner.)

(the product placement in this photo was unintentional.)

(maggie doing the "mary smile.")

(bruce and the notorious miss b.e.f.)

(pirates! she knows how to dress for the occasion.)

(men at work: ben, wes, mikey, and DORIAN GRAY.)

(another one i'm not sure about...)

(butter sauce and steamed pudding ensued.)

(the birthday boy doing what he does best.)

(caught in the courtyard!)

(everyone loves a happy painter.)

(my arms were sore.)

(i love this picture!)

(cleaning up shop.)

(wrought iron off!)

(we were trying to do a serious pose. it didn't work.)

(the very grateful couple.)

for those of you who have endured to the end, here is a sneak peek of our exterior, sans new garage door. before pictures here.

show, not tell

a gray day at the house

it was a gray, rainy day here in bloomington...but i came home to a little gray on the house, too!

have i mentioned that we are doing gray siding? maybe i have. i forget.


it's pretty light, but we're doing darker vinyl shingles on the two peaks, along with white trim around the front windows. nothing crazy, just classic. and the light color will look good for a while, we hope - less fading.

it's looking like maybe the siding and roof will be close to done at the end of next week. heck yeah!

as for ben and i, we are on a serious schedule. we pulled up a google calendar to map out exactly what we have to do each night/weekend in order to finish the projects we've started by mid-october. our social lives are pretty nonexistent, except for church and bible studies. we're missing our beloved dg conference this weekend, too, which is kind of an anniversary for us. we "met" at this one in 2004. "sex and the supremacy of Christ" makes for a great story. five long years ago!

north oaks rummage sale

hi! yesterday was a fun day. i had heard about the north oaks rummage sale from ben, so i got up bright and early (after a late night of surprise partying for my mother-in-law) to head up to shoreview. the sale started at 7 - i got there a little after. it was pretty crazy. police directing traffic, people parking and practically running to the door...a little preview of holiday shopping.

but it was so worth it. first, on the drive up, the sun was making beautiful pink and orange patterns in the sky, and i was listening to a bruce ware sermon about the self-sufficiency of God. second, i left with some good stuff! i had intended to look for some living room chairs - perhaps ones that could be reupholstered or painted. i also wanted to look for dining chairs or a coffee table.

but i also got some clothes - pieces were $2 or $3! i found a white sweater that is super '80s, a beautiful pair of ann taylor dress pants, a fun a-line skirt, a crazy sequined top (i'm a sucker for sparkly), and two bright scarves.


but there were many other things to look at, too.

(housewares galore.)

(for the kitschy kitchen.)

(loved this chair - sold.)

(these chairs were amazing. the wood was beautiful. but they were only selling as a part of an $850 bedroom set. bummer.)

(sorry for the blurry picture - i was in line for my purchase and it was kind of a mob mentality. but this huge tufted blue ottoman was really lovely. in great shape, too.)

(many things to see!)

and finally...what i bought. when i first walked in, i went straight to the furniture. i was looking at this chair and a worker asked me if i wanted to put my name on it to hold it - then i could have 30 minutes to decide and pay for it. i said yes! i was kind of nervous because it is such a crazy green...but it is actually in really good shape. but who am i kidding? i love a good green. and those arms...beautiful! i'm not sure if i'll paint it, but i could. i'm keeping it in the back of my suv so i can get some bids on costs for reupholstering it. it is in really good shape and is comfortable to sit in.

(tufted back+beautiful arms=definite potential.)

when i was in line, a few people came up to me and said how much they liked the chair...i was glad for the affirmation because i was kind of waffling. we'll see where this project lands.

until the future!

there's a hole in the bucket...

coming home from work these days is super fun: i walk around the house and see what the guys have been working on while we've been away!

today, i got home and did my usual roundabout. then i walked upstairs to change clothes. now, our upstairs is usually uncomfortably hot due to poor air flow and a small air conditioner, but as i walked up the stairs today, the change in temperature was quite intense. when i walked into our "bedroom" i saw this.

(sorry about the dark photo...but it sort of masks the little-boy two-tone paint job the previous owners left us.)

love it! plastic sheeting for a window. let's be adventurous and say we're living in a tree house...that's what it feels like with all this scaffolding outside our upstairs windows. :)