Sprucing up for Spring!

Such a glorious Sunday! The Lord really celebrated His day with some awesome previews of Spring. Temperatures were still in the 30s but the sun was shining bright and warm. The drive to church was dotted with Japanese Tulip trees and Redbuds and Bradford Pears filled with bright green leaves and fragile pre-Easter blooms. Turning off the parkway I passed by a wonderful garden that is one of my very favorite scenic spots in the city. It is there that a townhouse, owned by a true Master Gardener, is absolutely surrounded by masses of every kind of flower imaginable! They form a crowded carpet across the entire yard, running right up to the curving service road that winds around the townhouse group; even the trunks of the shading pine trees are adorned with bright flowering vines. Stepping stones weave paths through various sections of the garden and surely there is a pattern to it all, but to this observer it simply appears as a wonderful riot of color. The gardener was out working among the plants this morning (his faithful little dog by his side) so I pulled onto the service road, rolled down the window, and asked him the name of a spectacular electric orange vine that I had admired all last Summer. It isn't in bloom at the moment but it was such a memorable sight - full of fiery flowers spilling up and across an arched trellis. Having received his answer I needed to leave so as not be be late picking Mom up, but first I made sure to tell The Gardener how very much his garden is enjoyed by those of us who pass by it almost every day. I also made a note to self - start carrying your camera in the car so you won't miss photo ops like these! I'll be returning to see what magic the Master Gardener has worked and I WILL have the pictures to prove it.

After church and lunch it was time to finish up errands started yesterday. Determined to usher Spring into the house, I'd purchased a pretty and yummy smelling hand soap and lotion set for the guest bathroom (a/k/a Matthew's bath) in a scent called Green Tea and Lemon and a candle called Spring Garden - who could resist?! So today, continuing the effort to "brighten up" the guest bath decor, I hit BB&B's Clearance Sale and found a great Nautica shower curtain in light, neutral stripes (sorry, Honey, the dark hunting-themed one has gotta go!) a new bath mat and at 50% off I picked up some new washcloths and hand towels. A classy new hand towel holder and soap dish, also on sale, and voila! These will make a nice start to the bath re-do.

The next step will be the best part - building a new vanity to replace the big, clunky one with the fake marble top that has screamed 80s! since we've lived here. Yes, I'll be building it myself. My Daddy always did all of DYI stuff around the house when I was growing up, so guess that gene passed down to me. I even have many of his original tools and the memories that go with them - he would let me use the little keyhole saw to practice on lumber scrapes, but first I would measure with his nifty folding wooden ruler and mark where the cuts would go using one of the broad, flat carpenter's pencils. Eventually I was allowed to graduate to power tools - awesome! So, the bath vanity project will be lots of fun and here's somewhat how it will look when I'm done (hopefully!) A vessel sink (a bit different from the one pictured) was purchased at Overstock.com a year ago, so that sits in a box ready to become the crowning touch. And while removing the old vanity it will be my great pleasure to also remove the bulky built-in "tower" cabinet beside it! Still looking for a smaller, free-standing piece to replace that but I'll find just the right one yet.

As in the picture, after a fresh coat of paint on the upper part of our bathroom wall, I'll then cover our existing wallpapered wainscoting with beaded board painted a crisp cream. The final project will be to lay new laminate stone tiles (real stone on top of laminate board that makes it a snap and lock process just like laminate flooring - how long did it take someone to finally think of that?!) Later, when budget permits we'll have the old fiberglass tub/shower unit removed and in its place will be built a custom tiled shower with seamless glass doors (the pros will do that one - not me!) For now, though, the new shower curtain will be an instant cover-upper and picker-upper for that area.

My final stop today was at Michael's (also having a 50% sale - yea!) to choose the frame and matting board for my fleur-de-lis art piece. That meant going right by the aisles of half-priced Spring silk florals so I HAD to gather up an armful of life-like golden yellow forsythia and creamy apple-blossom branches - pure sunshine and smiles that will fill my vintage sap bucket on the porch once the Mardi Gras bead bedecked twigs have been dismantled.
And then I passed the Easter section so of course I HAD to pick out a few special things to fill a little basket for grandbaby Liam! Found some things too for great-nephew Deacon who is now walking everywhere (look out Mom and Dad, running is next!) Yes, I did finally make it back to the frame department and collected the necessary supplies to finish the fleur-de-lis. If it will be completed this week remains to be seen...

Whew! So ended a wonderful and productive afternoon. Can't believe it is time to gear up for another Monday work day already. Ah well, I'm blessed to have the job, and it is one I enjoy. Playtime with flowers and remodeling will have to wait until another weekend rolls around.