Wee Patio - No Farmer's Wife Here

This is our patio in our new house and this is our first Spring in the new house.

It's small, compared to the huge back yard we had at our old house.

We have a new George Foreman electric grill. The old barbecue grill that we had for years and that used propane gas we dumped. It was all rusty and falling to bits.

The fence doesn't go all the way around the wee patio. Apparently it's because of all those odd things sticking out from the ground. I really don't know what half these things are, but everybody has them. Could be for electricity? Dunno. Our patio backs on to the road, which is odd, I know. We had so much privacy in the old house, and here we have very little! But, c'est la vie.

All those tools that I used in the old house.  The famous de-thatcher!  I used that every spring. Yikes! I yanked on it pulling it and pushing it to get up dead grass. Won't be using that anymore!  Ha ha. Part of the deal here is that we pay a homeowners' association fee which covers outside maintenance.

The equally famous edger. That was hard to use, so it never really did see the sunshine that much at all.

The rake! I used that a lot to gather up the leaves as well as any grass clippings that somehow got loose whilst cutting the grass.

This is just part of our back yard at the old house. There's a section to the left that you don't see but which goes downhill on a steep slope. There was also a substantial front lawn that I took care of too. Many times I felt like a farmer's wife when I spent hours working away outside.

Do I miss the big yard?   Absolutely not!!  I'm more than happy with my wee patio.

The Saga of New Construction Woes

Wondering why I have posted this photo?  Hmm.  Guess!  

Our beautiful brand new hardwood flooring has been coming unstuck since the month of January! Sooo glad we're still under the warranty.  The installers came out in January and again in March to re-stick the sections that were loose.

Okay, so far so good. Until, guess what?

Even more flooring came loose. It was non-stop. The level shows that the floor wasn't flat. Apparently 3/16th of an inch over a ten foot section is permitted. On some sections of the floor is like walking up a slope!

The blue tape is where the floor either had a hollow sound, or was actually loose.

In the end, the powers that be announced that the concrete subfloor wasn't flat. Ha ha. Didn't you know it wasn't flat BEFORE installing the floor?

We ended up in a hotel for three nights whilst large sections of the floor was dug up. A large crack was found in the concrete, which just added more spice to the mixture.

The crack continued from the hall into the master closet.

Here's hoping that the saga of new construction woes is over. Surely the floor will no longer come unstuck?!   They put down a levelling agent to try to make the concrete flat. That should help. I really do hope so.  The section which is like a slope?  Well, they said that since the wood is not moving there that they don't have to fix it. Oh dear. 

New Houses

Please note that all photos and written work are copyrighted sstaas.  All rights reserved.


They're doing a lot of construction all around us.  The reason we chose the location for our new house is that it was the last one in the group, which meant we wouldn't be disturbed by construction right next door. The other reason we chose this location is because it's the last of the beige coloured houses.

When we first had to decide on which location to build the saleslady suggested this place below.

She was referring to the first house you can see. I think its driveway is longer than ours, but not by much. And the siding will be white, which we didn't want. But, still, each time I walk by I wonder if maybe we should have chosen it after all.

Down the road, you can see all the new construction going on. I think there's a rush to get things completed before the winter sets in.

There's a constant stream of workmen and their trucks coming and going.

It will be strange when all the construction is finished. It will be so quiet!

Short, Fat Driveway - be careful what you wish for

Our former house had a really long driveway that meandered its way down to the back of the house. What a pain to shovel the snow!   Consequently, one of my top priorities was to move to a place with a short, fat driveway.  Ha ha.  Be careful what you wish for!

The middle part of the photo is the communal driveway. Four houses share this driveway. To the left is our teeny, tiny driveway. You'd need to be on roller blades to enter the garage, that is if you don't want to bang into anything. It is a two car garage, but with such a tight turn around to get in...well you get the gist.

Time to speak up and complain BEFORE purchasing the house. What to do?  Hmm. Well, to the right they added and extra four feet. So, all added up, our teeny, tiny driveway, the communal driveway and the added bit, come to 24 feet in length. They're supposed to come back next year and put another coat of asphalt, that way everything should like nicer? 

We're the new kids on the block. We're the new kids on the block with the smallest driveway in the whole subdivision. 

Settling In - New House

How long does it take to settle into a brand new house?  Ha ha.

Midst such odd circumstances - magical outlets hidden behind drywall, a garage door that derails, loose bricks, brand new dryer that quits after two weeks, are we settling in?

Well, with a double rainbow spanning the evening sky in front of our house, maybe we are!

And that nice swimming pool and fitness centre are just beckoning us over.

Evening is also pretty here.

Yes, I think we're settling in!