A beautiful patio just in time for summer!

We have finally finished the big tasks for our patio! David (and his dad for part of it) laid the majority of the patio blocks last summer and fall, and it wasn't until this spring that David and I planted the grass and flowers that we had in mind to finish the space. The patio blocks are from Home Depot, and they were laid on top of several inches of graded gravel. Blocks that needed to be cut were cut with a concrete saw borrowed from my grandfather. At the end, David brushed stone dust into the cracks - we chose this as it was recommended to be the best at preventing weed growth. 

We still have a few things in the plans... like painting or staining the fence, perhaps putting in a different fence all together, and building a picnic table (with detached benches) to replace the current patio furniture on loan from Tommy. Even without the finishing touches, the patio looks AWESOME! I am so excited to have dinner out there this summer, and perhaps even sit out there working during the day. David also plans to change the gate to our backyard soon so that the entire space behind the house is secure, allowing us to walk right out the back door with the dogs off leash! They can then run around the whole yard and patio area while we are out there. 

To fully appreciate the above photo, you have to remember what the area looked like when we started. You can read the full blog post about when we started taking apart the back yard to build the garage by clicking here. 

There was a falling down metal shed in the back corner, and a weed ridden chain link fence along the back property line. We took out the fence to build the garage as close to the property line as possible, and took down the useless shed. We also obvious pulled off and discarded all of the unwanted foliage. 

The house actually had a really nice back deck when we moved in, and I was sad to see it go. However, it was too large to accommodate the oversized garage we had planned for. We saved all of the wood from the deck, and reused as much as possible. What we couldn't find a use for Harvie took home to Vermont. 

A view from the second (or third?) floor. This is with the bulk of the plant life removed, and the shed and deck pieces organized. You'll notice that entire backyard space was paved when we purchased the house. 

 Here's the "now" picture again. Beautiful! We obviously sacrificed "outdoor space" for the garage, but we did our best to find a happy medium that would still give David the work space he was looking for in his playhouse :) 

A view from another angle. We'd eventually like to purchase a larger gas grill. We've really enjoyed our small charcoal grills, but they aren't quite sufficient for entertaining guests and the extra time involved with heating the coals is just enough of a nuisance that we don't grill out as much as we'd like to. Charcoal will always taste better though! 

 The grass is still growing in, but its looking very healthy and lush. We may eventually open up the angled fence piece here to the rest of the yard, or replace it with either a smaller fence piece or a large bush. It offers very welcomed privacy to the busy street we live on, but it also makes the space feel smaller and doesn't create as direct of a path (or line of sight) for the dogs (or future kids) to play in.

We spent quite some time at a local garden center last weekend picking out plants that we liked the looks of, that were appropriate for the sun level in our garden, and that would grow to a high enough height to fill int he space some. David did the planting while I followed behind with the cedar mulch. 

We continued the patio blocks to the edge of the house on the driveway side. The back stairs were made by Harvie and David using the leftover stairs, railings, and wood pieces from the deck! This is the area that David will fence off (right at the edge of the house, behind the steps) so that the dogs will have a larger area to run free in. It will also be safer because the area will be fully enclosed when they exist the back door. Currently we take them to the yard on leash, and only let them loose after locking the gate behind us. 

In addition to working on the back yard, we worked some on the side/front yard as well. Last year for my birthday David's parents and his grandparents teamed up to give me planters (with plants if desired) to start landscaping along the edge of the house. They weren't sure what I wanted or what would work best for the space, so the gift existed in concept only for a long time while I decided what I would like there. A whole year has since passed, and another birthday is upon us! They decided to join forces again and combine two birthdays into one gift (still with two givers), so I picked out two large (and very pretty!) wooden planter boxes and one clay pot - all three filled with herbs for the summer. They are exactly what I had in mind! Ultimately we would like to remove the gray stucco from the house to expose the original red brick behind it, and continue the planters along the longer side of the house as well. We aren't quite ready to do that yet though, and didn't want to buy any more planters until we were able to evaluate how these looked and how they held up over time.



In one planter I planted rosemary, oregano, and parsley.

In the middle pot I planted mint - this received a pot of its own at the recommendation of the garden center. Apparently mint has a tendency to take over things and grow very large. Yum! I'm thinking... mint iced tea?

In the second planter I planted six basil plants. Maybe I'll grow enough for a small batch of pesto!

Many thanks to Harvie, Susan, Gpa Jim and Gma Netta! This was a perfect gift and I have a smile on my face very time I see the outside of the house now :) And I'm looking forward to using the herbs!

Here is a picture of my new planters from the front of the house. You'll notice that we also bought a hanging plant to spiff up the porch a bit. Everything is looking so clean and tidy! We repainted the porch and steps last spring, and have spent two summers working to improve the quality of grass in our side yard. We are also regularly pruning the bush out front too, so our front porch is no longer hidden by a green beast.

A close up of the front porch. Next on my list is to paint both the front doors and the screen doors. I haven't decided on color yet... but I'm leaning towards brick red for one and white for the other. Does anyone have any suggestions?? I was thinking brick red to match the brick we plan to expose along the foundation. I have seen other screen doors painted on neighboring streets, and it looks quite nice actually and might make the doors look a little bit more upscale than they do now. I think a white door would be much brighter for the main door (it's currently a very dark wood), and would look nice from inside the house as well. 

Finally... some cute doggies excited that there are plants to water at least once daily so they get more time to run in the yard!

24 Hours of Lemons, round 3

After a two year hiatus, Eric Gemme and I decided to attempt to get our 24 Hours of Lemons car back in to running order. 24 Hours Of Lemons (a play on the 24 hours of Le Mans, a famous endurance race) is a race where you are only allowed to spend $500 on your car...total. This excludes safety equipment (roll cage, harness), but everything else counts towards the value of the car. Our previous two attempts didn't go very well: 2010 it took us 30 minutes until we blew the engine, and 2011 we got ~5 hours run time due to problems and black flags. Even so, our 1986 Nissa 300zx made it to take the checkered in 2011, a significant milestone for us.

2010 LeMons - the best the car ever looked

The 2011 24 Hours of Lemons Team.
From Left: David, Eric, Dan, Ryan, and Greg

Two years later, Eric and I decided to make another attempt with two new team members, Rob and Rob Greig. Yes, they are cousins named Rob Greig. They quickly became "Senior" and "Junior".

The resurrection was potentially going to be a large undertaking, as our car didn't run incredibly well two years ago when we put it......in a field....and forgot to put antifreeze in it (instead of water). We knew that the water had frozen the first winter, but we didn't know how badly it had hurt the block (you can easily crack the engine block, ruining it, by letting water freeze in it). We towed the car to my garage, put it on the lift (so. awesome.) and started to check out the damage. Turns out that the aptly named "freeze plugs" had saved us! One had popped out, emptied the engine of water, and saved us! We replaced the plug, filled it up, and the car held coolant. We removed all of the emissions equipment at the same time, hoping it would help with the idle (it previously didn't).

When we buttoned everything back up it took some coaxing to start, but it started! As the engine warmed up (this was the middle of winter) it ran better and better, to the point that it seemed....normal! We rejoiced.

Wanting to make sure the car was more reliable, we replaced the rear axles, secured the gas tank, replaced the rear brake line, replaced the gas filler line, replaced the front struts, built a duct for the radiator, and generally cleaned the car up. Having tested compression and found it was low in three cylinders, we even bought a new engine as a replacement.

May 10th we headed out to the race! (Trailer thanks to Caroline's Grandpa John)

Our car had a "Bacon" theme to it (all cars are required to have a theme). If you squint, you can kind of see it.

At the race, the first day (practice) went....almost too well! Everyone got race time and we felt pretty good about the car.

Race day came and so did the rain. After lining up, Eric took the first stint. He drove very well and managed to get no black flags (our #1 goal)!

However, out black flag luck ended there. Rob Sr. got a black flag, I got a black flag, and Rob Jr. got a black flag, all for relatively minor infractions. Five black flags and we basically have to stop for the day. We "toned it down" and managed to only get two more black flags for the rest of the day, one of which we were able to "buy off" by donating to charity.

Just before the end of the first day our clutch disintegrated. We managed to find parts, get the car up, and replace all of it. We also replaced our rear differential with a limited slip one (we had lots of inside wheel spin). We managed to get a whopping 3 hours of sleep after finishing everything. All in all, we only missed and hour and 20 minutes of race time due to the problem! Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of this. I did find a decent picture of us in full race mode (including a bashed in door) from a race gallery:

You can see more pictures of the race here: http://www.murileemartin.com/UG/LNHS13/LNHS13.html

After two days of racing, we had completed the most number of laps ever for our team. We had the clutch problem, and a leaky radiator (another lost hour), but we ended up driving for most of the 14.5 hour long race, a huge win for us. Finishing 50th (out of 87) wasn't awesome, but it wasn't too shabby either. We'll be racing again in August and September, so look for more updates then!

Race footage from the car:


Data Analysis - Coming soon!

Caroline hasn't killed the african violets yet!

Back in October I wrote a post about my African Violet ICU. I have killed a number of African Violets in my lifetime, and this last time I was so discouraged I called my grandmother and asked her how I could salvage the plant. She suggested rooting the leaves, and so I did! I wasn't exactly sure what to expect, but it seems to have worked well - I have new leaves sprouting!

My planted leaves in October, after letting them them root in water for awhile. 

Here is how I rooted the leaves (keep in mind I am NOT an expert gardener):

1. Cut a few big healthy leaves off of the dead/dying plant (this could be done with a healthy plant too, I just don't have too many of those around). Be sure to cut the stem at an angle for maximum exposure.

2. Place the cut leaf in a small dish of water (I used a ramekin) and put in the sun. Be sure the leaf isn't in the water itself, just the stem - you can use something like wax paper with a slit in it to help keep the leaf upright. Change water occasionally, and wait. Eventually you will see roots start to extend from the leaf!

3. Keep waiting. When there are a lot of roots coming from the stem, plant in small pots using African Violet Potting soil. Keep in the sunlight and water daily. I also used Neptune Harvest Organic Seaweed Fertilizer occasionally, at my grandmother's recommendation. The bottle says to fertilize them every 2-3 weeks. To be fully honest, I think I only used this every 2-3 months. Luckily the plants are still alive!

5. Be patient, keep waiting. This whole process literally took 8 months for me, and I still don't have a full plant! Once your newly sprouted leaves have created a bit of a cluster (more like a normal plant) and look they they are outgrowing their pot, repot into a larger pot. I just did this today, and used the African Violet potting mix again.

This guy clearly needs a new home. 

The other guys are still working on it (the fuller one shown above is in the bottom right in this picture). 

I now have one plant that has been repotted into a larger pot, and three plants that are still growing. You'll notice in the photos that the original leaf dies in many cases. For one of my plants, the leaf actually died before the new leaf pushed through the soil, and I almost dumped it out as a failed attempt! However, I was too slow to get around to cleaning up the "dead" plant and the next thing I new there was a new leaf. Like I said, keep waiting! I am hoping that these continue to grow and that eventually I will have four healthy plant cast offs! I'm pretty excited that I was able to keep these alive for so long and salvage a plant that I had otherwise thought was a lost cause. Perhaps there is hope for me and gardening yet!

The newly potted plant cluster. A much better fit! 

The African Violet potting soil that I used, purchased from Home Depot. 

If I ever see a flower one of these guys, I'll be sure to share again! I'm keeping my fingers crossed. At this point, I honestly don't even remember what color flowers this African Violet produced... Does anyone have any great gardening or African Violet advice to share with me? Has anyone rooted a plant using a different technique? 

David the world traveler, once again

Typically for his job David leaves early Monday morning to visit the client, and returns late Thursday night or early Friday morning. This means that a lot of our house, family, friend, and hobbies are jam packed into just a 2.5 day time period. However, David worked in the Marblehead office from September until April, so we got to experience "7 days a week" life together. I know that both the doggies and I enjoyed having him around more! We were both happy to discover that we didn't have any new squabbles about being around each other more and sharing more of the house tasks :)

David was able to get more small things done around the house and schedule doctor's appointments more easily, and the two of us enjoyed more dinners and TV shows together, were able to schedule dinners with friends easier, and were a touch more involved in family events. However, we both distinctly noticed that we got less done work wise in the evenings because we were enjoying the time together rather than working through our own "individual" to-do lists. In the beginning of his time in the office we didn't worry too much about this as the extra time together was a rare thing, but as the weeks and then months went on we started to make adjustments so that we could both keep a relatively high level of productivity.

Alas, the traveling hiatus has come to an end. On Monday David left on an airplane for the first time since September to work at a client in Alberta. He was actually very excited to be traveling again, even if a little sad to be leaving Ash, Pepper, and I back home! David really enjoys the challenge and the pace of the work while on site. In some ways this was good timing for him to start traveling again as with him gone during the week I'll have even more hours to pour into my thesis - hooray!

While in Costco last weekend we spied this luggage set that seemed like a great deal - we purchased it for just $99, which is $100 less than it is listed for on Amazon. We have been looking for a nice lightweight luggage set for awhile now as the only luggage we have is my 8ish year old set, which has started to show its age. The Costco deal seemed perfect, and awesome timing as David can now use it on his trips. It's a polycarbonate set made by Ricardo, and we purchased it in slate even though green is pictured here.

I couldn't help but laugh (though I felt bad doing so) because David really just didn't have a great first day back to traveling. He got up early to meet with a contractor about potentially adding a dormer to our 3rd floor (stay tuned for more details on that!), and then left for work driving his Toyota MR2 for the first time. I got a phone call not long after that the MR2 was acting up and he'd be returning home to trade it for the truck. After the swap I got another phone call that he had just realized that in his haste he left both his luggage and his laptop bag in the MR2. Luckily he was able to use a different computer at work (he was flying out Monday night) and I met him on his way to the airport to hand off his things. He managed to get to Alberta safe and sound, though he did have one missed connection that resulted in him getting in a bit later than expected. 

The week went fine - the doggies didn't seem too confused that he was gone, though Pepper almost looked like he was watching for David to get home a few times. I've adjusted back to my meal routine, where I cook just one or two things for the week and eat it basically every day. With Christine still in the hospital I actually have been going to see her in the evenings for a few hours and eating dinner there some. I've also quickly adjusted to having bedtime by my stopping point for work, rather than David getting home. David said that his first week on site seemed to go quite well, and he is really looking forward to the weeks to come! 

Welcome to the family Pepper!

Well, it's not Friday, but I wanted to make a post anyway - consider it a bonus! We officially signed the adoption papers today for Pepper! 

We both slowly came to the realization that we liked the idea of having Pepper be part of our family, and that he and Ash made a pretty decent pair. We thought it over for quite some time as having two dogs was never part of our "plan" for this time in our life - but hey, plans are meant to be changed right? We have grown so attached to the little Pepster, as has everyone in our family. Going back to being a one dog family seemed awfully quiet! We like how the two dogs run around and play with each other, and enjoy each other's company on walks. Since making the decision to adopt him and filling out the paper work, we have realized that our love and attachment to Pepper has grown even more - an unexpected change. We figure that before we always had a barrier up telling us that "he wasn't our dog" and "our time with him would come to an end," but now that he is our dog and we will have him for the rest of his life, our relationship has evolved and deepened. 

Some of the first tangible changes we have been making are that we train him and Ash on more equal ground now. In the last week we have taught Pepper "down" and "roll over". He knew how to roll over previously, but we didn't really have a good command and hand signal for it. We are also working on Ash and Pepper's door and street crossing etiquette, making them sit patiently at the door, not crossing the threshold until we say "OK!", and doing the same when we come to a crosswalk. Pepper has also started to act more relaxed when other dogs pass on our walks - something we have been working on for much longer. Finally, on Saturday we went to PetSmart to buy Pepper a brand new matching collar and harness, as an official "welcome to the family" gift. He looks so handsome now! 

Pepper is now blastomycosis free, though we will have a few follow up vet appointments that we will be responsible for in the coming months. We also had a belly ache scare this weekend - Pepper had a very reduced appetite, was trembling off and on, had pain when being picked up, and was generally very quiet and lethargic. We took him to the emergency vet as we were worried about internal issues, but they said to give him some Pecid and watch him for a day or so and not to worry too much so long as his appetite didn't decrease further and he didn't start vomiting. Today Pepper seems to be feeling much more like himself after a couple of "bathroom emergencies" where he waited at the door for us to take him out, so it seems like it was just an upset stomach. We will watch him carefully tomorrow as well, and bring him back to the vet if things don't continue to improve. Luckily, now that he is officially ours we can take him to a vet down here! 

Welcome to the family Pepperman :) We are so excited to have you. 

A condo complex moves in next door

Last December I wrote about them knocking down the dry cleaners that used to be across the street from us in this post. Since then there have been small bits of progress as they finished demolition, cleaned up the lot, tested the soil (negative I am told!), and built the foundation for the condos that are going in. I attended a meeting before the dry cleaner was torn down that told us there would be six condo units being built. We are pretty excited about it, because it will make the street and our area feel more residential. It's also fun to watch everything going up! They are building them as modular homes, and so large sections of house come in on a tractor trailer truck and get fit into place like legos. This basically means that in just 3 days we have gone from foundation to full 3 story building. Check it out!

Day one - all of these housing rectangles came in on a truck and were attached in just one day!

Another view from day one. 

Day two - we have a roof! 

This morning (day three) - looks like a real building now... and they are still out there working! 

We also always have resale and rentability on our minds. By adding in these condos, as well as the HUGE new condo/apartment complex they built down the street, we know that the area is becoming nicer and more developed. They are extending the awesome bike path  that we walk the dogs on and take down to Davis Square, and in the future they will be extending the green subway line to our area as well. All of these things are good things in terms of what we can bring in for rent, and what we could potentially sell the house for in the future! And in the mean time, we can enjoy the changes and the added amenities that the new housing options bring.