Ramblings of all Sorts

Air Conditioning

2009-07-12T08:33:00.000-07:00

We live in a two story home. Our air conditioner has never worked the way it should. You can feel the temperature change going up or down the stairs. Our upstairs is about 20 degrees hotter than our main floor level.

Every summer we shell out a bunch of money trying to get our air conditioner to work properly. Last year we called out a bunch of different air conditioning contractors to get bids on how to fix the dang problem.

We said, "give us your best options, no matter what the cost! If we have to move ductwork, replace the entire system, install a seperate system for the upstairs, or whatever, we will consider it. We want to know how to fix this problem once and for all."

Well, our options came in and yikes! They were expensive, but then, I was kind of expecting that anyway.

One thing that has always intrigued me though is passive cooling techniques. Its something we've been trying to do to help relieve the summer heat anyway but I have a feeling we could kick it up a HUGE notch or two.

So I've been doing my research and came across this amazing article written by the Arizona Solar Center . {Hang on to your hats kids, this is where I get geeky and giddy about building design!}

What I love is that a lot of aesthetically beautiful things actually have their roots in functionality. Just like the canopy beds I blogged about during the winter, there are other design elements that actually serve a purpose! Imagine that! Of course, that's my favorite kind because I am after all a pretty practical sort of person and have a hard time with non-functional things just for show.

So anyway, back to this article, as I was reading it I realized that a lot of the things they were talking about were some of my favorite architectural features from the St George Parade of Homes. I just never thought about them beyond their aesthetic beauty. I mean, it makes sense once you think about it.

Courtyards, even fountains, actually serve a purpose in the hot dry desert. They are great aids in thermal decompression, where you gradually cool the surrounding air as you get closer and closer to the house. Want the more technical aspects of it? Here you go:

Mitigation of undesirable summer direct sun and thermal impacts is achieved through use of vegetation i.e. deciduous trees which interrupt the summer sun's direct path, and ground covers which prevent ground reflection as well as keep the earth's surface cooler thereby preventing re-radiation. One moves out of intense direct sun and heat through vegetation that filters sunlight and shades the ground; then through a more densely filtered zone with ground covers; then through a patio area with vegetation, trellises and water features; into a tempered building entry ("thermal lock"); and finally into the building proper. This movement, 110 degrees stepping down in stages to 78 degrees, allows the body to adjust properly, and provides the best means of arriving at a lesser differentiation between the building's perimeter wall interior and exterior surface temperatures.

It's brilliant, isn't it???

Of course there are lots of other cooling techniques beyond these ones, including proper overhang heights, things you can do to cool the buildings exterior temperatures, using cooling towers and using earth tubes to create cooler air flows, blocking light and heat from windows and a whole world beyond just your average evaporative cooler sitting on the roof. I feel like I've just barely scratched the surface.

So without getting too geeky on you, I will just stop here, because you probably don't want to see or hear about my charting monthly highs and lows of temperatures and humidity levels to determine the best cooling methods. Though if you really do, just let me know and it can be arranged!

When Steve Grows Up He Wants To Be . . .

2009-06-28T07:39:00.000-07:00

We like Steve the best on Blues Clues. He was effortless and really believable. Not to mention I loved to hear him sing. We were sad to see him go off to college.

Joe over acts in my opinion but then if I was on the show I'd probably act more like Joe too. I guess that shows you what kind of actor I'd be.

Anyway! So Steve went off to college and became a . . . .

Rockstar!

Seriously kids. Check him out.

Yes kids! Thats really him!

I always did love to hear him sing.

Rain Celebration

2009-06-20T08:06:00.000-07:00

We have had an unusually wet beginning of June. It has pretty much rained for about two weeks. Some people feel like a duck, some people feel like they need a boat. But I've loved it!

Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential and fight for your dreams.

~~Ashley Smith

I believe in running through the rain and crashing into the person you love and having your lips bleed on each other.
~Billy Bob Thornton

via Flickr

Loving the top right photo and photoshop!

Thank you weather gods for all this rain!!!

Banana Boats

2009-06-17T14:04:00.001-07:00

One of our favorite campfire treats to make are banana boats so I thought I'd share just how to make these yummy treats.

First, you peel back the skin on top and scoop a teeny bit of banana out.

Then you fill it with small chocolate chips and marshmallows,
put the peel back on,
then wrap them up in tin foil.

Place them on the fire for a few minutes
until the chocolate and marshmallows get all meltey and gooey
and the remaining banana is nice and warm!

Then enjoy!

2009-06-13T15:52:00.000-07:00

Still having fun with the rainy weather {and photoshop} we're having! Now here's a little something to listen to while you're safely cocooned inside your house!

Spotted

2009-06-13T15:09:00.001-07:00

Hooray for the Red, White and Blue!

Cute red, white and blue things are popping up all over the place! Check these cute accent pillows out from Walmart for $6 each! I know MiniG isn't quite as into the whole polka dot thing as I am, but there may or may not just be one of those popping up in her room soon. And a few of the others? May or may not be debuting in MiniB's room once the denim quilt is finished {which could be a long time because I'm still accepting jean donations to finish it}.

Rain, rain . . .

2009-06-11T14:39:00.000-07:00

That's what our forecast has been lately. Rain, rain, rain! A lot cooler than normal for the begining of June. This moring I woke up early and just sat listening to the pitter patter on the roof and windows and smelling the sweet crisp air through an open window. In a quiet house all to myself it was pure heaven I tell you.

After a while I crawled back into my cozy bed and went back to sleep dreaming of having an entire rainy day to myself. I would sleep in late then stay in my cozy jammies and fuzzy slippers all day long. I would curl up by an open window with the breeze fluttering the curtains while I drank hot cocoa and browsed through British decorating magazines while wrapped up in a blanket. I think there was a nice long soak in the tub during this dream too. And a completely clean house, no noisy children, phones to answer or dishes to do. Ah yes! Sheer heaven!

Even though I didn't get my rainy day dream come true exactly like I wanted, I'm still enjoying the cool air. Pretty soon it will be way too hot and we will miss these days.

2009-06-05T14:48:00.000-07:00

Caught On Tape!

2009-05-29T06:32:00.000-07:00

Yes!

I always knew it!

Manny IS in love with Kelly!

Look how goo-goo eyed he is!

And look!

They're even holding hands!

It's about time they admitted that they are perfect for each other!

Flying Around the Neighborhood

2009-05-28T17:57:00.000-07:00

Look what was flying around the neighborhood today! It was so close to the houses you felt like you could just reach out and touch it!

But oh the joy on the face of my two year old boy!

I wish I'd had a picture of that the first time it made its rounds over our house!

Priceless!

We're definitley going to the Air Force Air Show in a few weeks! MiniB will be in sheer heaven!

Inspiring...

2009-05-28T10:10:00.000-07:00

I'm so sad I can't embed YouTube videos into my posts anymore. So just trust me on this one and click over to listen to

Jon Schmidt's Love Story meets Viva La Vida.

You will be so glad you did.

Trying the embed thing again--cross your fingers!!

Good Morning!

2009-05-16T08:21:00.000-07:00

This morning I woke up bright and early again {because I'm trying to be a good mom like that but more on that in a minute} and headed off to pick up this weeks share from BountifulBaskets.org.

This week it featured a lovely assortment of mangoes, bananas, pears, apples, oranges, honeydew, broccoli, cucumbers, tomatoes, red peppers, spaghetti squash and romaine. I think that's it. Oh wait, red potatoes too! Plus I ordered a side of 5 Ciabatta loaves that look sooo yummy!

So because I'm trying to be a better mom these days and actually feed my family better because I'll be honest here, I have been busy and my poor family has had to scrounge around the house for whatever they could find or live off a bunch of leftovers for far too long. It's been pretty sad and pathetic it's true. But I love them and we all deserve to eat better. So! I'm turning this baby around and this weeks menu will include things such as:

Steak fajitas with mango smoothies
Homemade All-American pot pies
Panini's
Steak salad
and more!

Family o' mine! You can look forward to it!

Joy In The Journey

2009-05-09T08:02:00.000-07:00

Trying to set things in order in my house

with joy in the journey!

Yes, even with the laundry!

Labradoodle

2009-05-07T14:25:00.000-07:00

This cute little guy was following me around while I took pictures at a clients house the other day.

He was so cute and well behaved. Would make even a non-dog lover {like me} want to bring him home!

Unfortunately they are taking him with them! Goodbye little fella! You sure are cute!

Monday Inspiration

2009-05-04T03:05:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'll take two please! And I have the perfect spot for something like this! I may need to go rummage through the crafting supplies in the basement to see what I can come up with!

Bountiful Baskets

2009-05-02T07:49:00.001-07:00

Look what I got for $15 from the Bountiful Baskets Food Co-op! I'm not sure exactly what it would have cost me at the normal grocery store, but I have a feeling it would have been more than $15. Heck, we picked up some comfort food for the sick and afflicted at our house yesterday, so we're talking like Sprite, juice, saltines etc and it cost us about $30! Seriously! But for $15 we got the following:

1 bunch of spinach
2 bunches of red leaf lettuce
1 broccoflower
3 red onions
7 vine ripened tomatoes
1 bunch of carrots
1 small watermelon
1 cantaloupe
1 package blackberries
8 plums
7 apples
1 bag of green grapes
2 bunches of bananas

My mouth is watering at all the fresh yummy goodness! Especially those blackberries! If you want a divine blackberry drink, try this recipe for Blackberry Quench that I blogged about here--to die for yummy! I'm definitely doing this co-op again and again and again!

The {NOT} All Seeing Eye!

2009-04-29T17:00:00.001-07:00

I've had another frustrating day at the eye dr. My transplant still isn't doing well. And they say it looks like I have keratakonus back in my transplant eye already. My cornea is already super thin again. It has wrinkles and cloudiness too. And it hasn't ever worked the way that it was supposed to. And I'm frustrated.

I'd like to be able to see again, not necessarily in high def, but I'd like to be able to see in detail again, not just generalities. I'd like to be able to have a normal font size on my computer screen instead of the large print. I'd rather not have to have the notes when I give a talk be blown up to 28 point font just so I can see it at arms length. Go ahead, try it, see how big that is and you will know why I carry a huge stack of papers when I speak! I'd like to be able to hold books and papers at a normal length. I don't want to squint anymore. I'm gonna have permanent squint wrinkles on my face soon!

I'd like to be able to drive at night again, though thank goodness it doesn't get as dark as early anymore. I'd also like to be able to see names on street signs and buildings since obviously they don't like to make them large enough for people with bad eyesight to see!
And the lights! It would be nice to be able to see in normal lighting again. Things get too dark and shadowy for me sometimes at night even with the house lights on. I need lots of bright light to function.

I'd like to have my depth of perception back please, it makes things rather tricky sometimes. Oh and I'd love to be able to wear eye makeup again {I already do some of the time, but mostly I don't like to disturb my delicate eye area so I just don't wear it} and I'd love to be able to be expressive with my eyes again. That is something I really miss. I used to be so expressive and over the years as my eyes would worsen I couldn't do my crazy eye movements without popping lenses out. So I don't talk with my eyes anymore. And I feel bland and bla.

After so long without a working eye, it is beginning to feel more like a disability rather than an inconvenience. Not that I'm complaining or anything {ok, maybe I am a little}, but I hope you all realize how lucky you are to be able to see even if you see with corrective lenses~ at least you can see and that is such a blessing!

Easter

2009-04-14T21:07:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe I didn't take any pictures of our Easter festivities this year! Seriously cannot believe it!

We had the fabulous Sea of Galilee / Easter "Island" theme going on with the white tablecloths set out. My gorgeous shimmery emerald green napkins were laid on the diagonal and then sprinkled with seashells and white starfish. The tables were set with my seashell plate chargers and white plates. And my favorite green tropical leaf platters and serving bowls were brought out!

Thank goodness the weather cooperated so we could eat outside! We had a rollicking good time with about 35 of our favorite people! Sorry to all the neighbors if we got a little rambunctious and loud. And for all the rest of you that couldn't make it, we missed you!

Here is Easter 2008 and 2007--all variations on the same theme. Hey, what can we say? We love the tropics around here!

Hanging My Head In Shame

2009-04-11T05:32:00.001-07:00

For years I have apparently been spelling the word "definitely" wrong. And I just had to double check it right now because I can't get the correct spelling right most of the time now that I know I was wrong for all these years! And truth be told, I still got it wrong and had to change it for you with my spell checker.

How could this happen to me??? To me!!! I was the sixth grade spelling champion!!!

I feel like my whole world has irreversibly changed.

I'm Cursed!

2009-03-31T15:17:00.000-07:00

Remember dear ol' Cocoa?

Well, she keeps coming back!

No, not the ghost dog in a dream this time, {though I SWEAR it WASN'T a dream!} and not showing up on my porch again.

But this time, THREE YEARS AFTER we got rid of her, {ok well actually three years + one week to be exact!} the animal shelter is calling me saying that they picked her up and she is still micro-chipped to us.

See??? I'm cursed by this dog!

Luckily when I called back the current owners had found her and picked her up. The shelter gave them the info to change her micro-chip especially since they are moving to North Carolina next week.

Phew!

With her in North Carolina do you think she will finally stop haunting me?

Miss Spider

2009-03-28T05:59:00.001-07:00

This is one way I create. I get crazy ideas in my head and run with them for a while. Clearly I hang out with toddlers a lot because now I want a house like Miss Spiders and dream about how to create one. I mean check out how cute her house is! Now let's take a closer look at how she has decorated.

Miss Spider is great at using items from nature, of course, in her house. Check out the lovely spider web curtains with twig curtain rod, twig furniture and use of leaves in the chair backs.

Leaves are used not only for the chair backs, but also as towels and in some places as area rugs.

The leaves are also used as blankets and pillows and who wouldn't want to sleep in such a cute little nut shell bed???

Now if I could just get my hands on a cute flower night light like that!

Very cozy flower petal blanket for the mom and dad!

And a cute flower nightstand!

Oh yeah! And look at the headboard--leaves again!

Now if you would like to add some Miss Spider elements to your own home I would suggest using things like:

Twig and Log Furniture

via Rising Moon Rustic Furniture

via Twig Factory

via The Log Furniture Store

Fun Things To Sit On

(photography props are awesome!)

via Backdrop Outlet

Mushrooms via Backdrop Outlet

Rock wall via Backdrop Outlet

More Photography Props

like petal blankets

(we could stitch a bunch together for curtains, blankets, area rugs etc).

and they don't just come in petals either!

They even have leaf versions!

Petal and leaf mats via Backdrop Outlet

You could also make green leafy things out of green felt quite easily too.

And I'm not sure if Ikea still sells those giant leaf canopy things in the childrens section--but those could be fun too!

And for our spider web acccessories think CROCHET! Crocheted curtains, tablecloths etc.

And lastly, Miss Spider has a fireplace (not shown, sorry) with a pepple surround and twig mantlepiece. How easy would it be to create a rock surround with a gorgeous rustic mantlepiece!

Yeah, I think a house like that would be super fun!

Go Forth and Create!

2009-03-27T11:48:00.000-07:00

Wow, if this doesn't inspire you to get creating, I don't know what will!

GO FOR IT!!!!

Blogging the Parade of Homes

2009-03-04T09:22:00.000-08:00

Just a quick note to say I'm blogging over on my real estate blog about the St. George Parade of Homes. I'm trying to keep it strictly real estate related and not discuss the decorating. But all those pics will probably provide me lots of fodder over here in the decorating dept.

So hop on over and take a look. We're working our way up to the grand finale ~ a 15,000 square foot home scheduled to post on Saturday!

Public Service Announcement

2009-02-15T02:33:00.000-08:00

Last night I was boiling some chicken bones and veggies for some yummy homemade chicken noodle soup. I left it to simmer and went upstairs to watch romantic Valentine movies. And promptly forgot about it, until . . .

We started smelling something funny and I all of a sudden remembered I had something on the stove!

I raced down the stairs to a completely smoke filled kitchen and family room!!!! And I mean, can't see the pictures on the wall, burning your throat smoke filled room!

I freaked out! But what freaked me out the most is that none of my smoke detectors were going off.

NONE!!!

And they definately should have been!

So everybody! Check your smoke alarms. We're lucky my house didn't go up in flames!

And if anyone has any tips on how to get the smoke smell out of my house, please let me know! We can still smell it. It has permeated everything!! I will probably need gallons and gallons of Febreze or something!

Happy Valentines Day

2009-02-14T03:44:00.000-08:00

Hope your day is filled

With Fun and Laughter!