kilnashee

I decided to move my journal over to blogger.  I like the features and layout better there.  So, all future posts from me can be found at:

To A Pretty Life

See you there!

This was my backyard on Saturday, the day after I was outside with a t-shirt and no jacket.  Oh well, at least I know my bulbs are still under all that mess.

On a more cheerful note, I want to show off my kitchen curtains.  They make me happy.





    

The ties are just wide satin ribbon tacked to the wall with upholstery tacks.  Thanks to The Nester for the idea of upholstery tacks.  She's very clever and has a beautiful house.  I wish she could come "mistreat" my house.

And here's what's hiding behind my curtains  (my first successful seed-starting):



If I don't end up killing them, I will have fresh basil this summer!  (and some marigolds)

PS: I'm considering switching to a different blog server.  There are several things I don't like about livejournal.  What I do like is that my friends (all two of them) can see my updates...that's why I'm hesitating.

We have had such nice weather here for the past 2 months that I have had to keep reminding myself that it's not spring yet.  We should get at least one more significant snowfall.  Even though the spring equinox has passed, I still have a hard time believing that we are getting such an early spring.  Until yesterday when I happened to look at the snow-less parts of my front garden.  There, lo and behold, I discovered that some of my bulbs are sprouting!  Wow, it really must be spring! 





And for fun, there is the upside-down view out my living room window on a cloudy day:

JK was not very happy on her first Easter Sunday.  I'm afraid that all my family thinks that she is always cranky.  She's not, she's just teething. 

"A house should have nooks and crannies about, where one would love to linger" - Alexander Jackson Davis, architect

"Every house must have something in its aspect which the heart can fasten upon and become attached to" - A.J. Downing, architect

Summertime,
And the livin' is easy
Fish are jumpin'
And the cotton is high

Your daddy's rich
And your mamas good lookin'
So hush little baby
Don't you cry

One of these mornings
You're gonna rise up singing
Then you'll spread your wings
And you'll take to the sky

But till that morning
There's nothing that can harm you
With mama and daddy standing by

Summertime,
And the livin' is easy
Fish are jumpin'
And the cotton is high

Your daddy's rich
And your mamas good lookin'
So hush little baby
Don't you cry

- by George Gershwin (the version I like is recored by Theresa Sokyrka)

My husband and I were talking about what kind of home we want to eventually live in.  He doesn’t understand my aversion to modern subdivisions.  I don’t understand it completely either, so here is my attempt to understand why driving through a brand new subdivision with its rows of shiny cookie-cutter houses and baby trees just makes me shudder to think of living there.  (Note: I’m sure my thoughts won’t be organised, since I’m writing each point as I think of it.)

Why can’t modern architects design houses where the front door is the focal point of the exterior?  The garage door is all one can see from the street, and the timid front door seems to be afraid to have anyone come for a visit.  It’s unfriendly.

 Why can’t they design houses that look good from the back too?  Sure the front needs to look pretty, but the thought of a plain square backyard, and a plain rear elevation with no thought to window placement or aesthetics just gives me chills.

 In this area, builders often include nice details borrowed from older styles (Victorian, Craftsman, etc), like 5-inch baseboards, nice doorway mouldings, and hardwood floors.  But such things in homes with vaulted ceilings, 2-story windows, and unfriendly garages just seem like a costume…rather like a stage set.

 Speaking of vaulted and cathedral ceilings, I think they make a room seem cold and impersonal.  The huge windows have the same effect…except when the south-west sun shines in during the summer…then it’s unbearably hot!

 I don’t like neighbourhoods where every house is a slight variation of the same three plans.  I don’t want all my neighbours to have exactly the same home layout as I do!  This is said by a person who currently is enjoying living in a townhouse-style condo.  I think I don’t have a problem with our townhouse because I know it’s not my forever home.  We’ll be here for a few more years and then move on…providing we can afford to buy a house at whatever the prices will be by then.  We may be stuck here forever unless we move to another province!

 I don’t like cramped entryways.  I don’t like having only 5-feet of space between my house and the next.  I don’t like such open plan layouts.  I don’t like having no windows on the sides of the house.  I don’t like small backyards.  I don’t like useless fake porches (they’re about 3-feet by 5-feet, and not good for anything).  I don’t like wasted attic space or fake gable windows.  I don’t like too-high windows or horizontal windows.  I don’t like a tv-niche over the fireplace.  I don’t like puny fireplace mantles.  I don’t like home-owner’s associations, or rules about what colours the fence has to be, etc.

 Just so that this post is not completely negative, here’s what I do like about modern houses:  I do like large bathtubs and walk-in closets.  I like the lower maintenance and no renovations.  I like large shiny-new kitchens and stone countertops.  I like main-floor laundry rooms.  I like attached garages (which should be at the side or back of the house).

 I’m not sure if I’m finished with this topic yet, but I have several things to get done this afternoon.  I may write another post about this once I've done more thinking.

(picture is from www.ballarddesigns.com)

I came across this picture on someone's blog, and these lovely moss eggs that sell for $79.95 for a set of three just looked so easy that I couldn't resist trying to make them.  I didn't have any styrofoam eggs, but I didn't really want an egg shape anyway.  A sphere is way more versatile.

My first attempt took me 5 minutes to make, and I used only material I already had in the house.  I have since made another one and paired the two balls with a clove ball (that took me 5 hours to make)...they make my bathroom look and smell so lovely.  I love saving $75.00 this way.  It makes me feel so clever!

I love yellow tulips.  Especially in my turquoise kitchen!

I like what Lindsey has to say about Christians celebrating Halloween:

"I know many Christian families do not celebrate ANY part of Halloween, and I don't particularly want to open this post up for a bunch of arguing, but in our family, we do participate in some Halloween activities. It is just one thing we do and we don't do it because we're evil or want to celebrate something unnatural or evil. We have fun with it and we redeem it for the real reason---God created EVERY day. The devil doesn't get a day of his own! I always roll my eyes when some good-intentioned person tells me that Halloween is the devil's day. Not for us!"

http://justenjoythejourney.blogspot.com/2007/10/celebrating-autumn.html

We carve pumpkins and hand out candy on Halloween.  We had about 45 kids come by last year, and 32 the year before.  I love costumes (particularly historical ones), but I never actually dress up for Halloween...it's too much work for something that's not important to me ;-)