Cornelison

Diet Update: Week 1

2008-07-02T13:40:00.002-06:00

So it's been a week now since the beginning of the infamous diet for the non-dieters. I must say, it's going all right. I've already lost 9 pounds, and Mark is catching up slowly. Let me just say, purely for posterity's sake, that I am SO ready to be done! I hate dieting!

For clarification, we're on the South Beach diet, whose premise is to not limit the quantity, but rather the quality of what we eat. So the first two weeks, which we're officially half-way through at this point, are completely free of sugars and carbohydrates. That's right, no bread, cereal, hamburger buns, chips, crackers, tortillas, nothing. Oh, and no ketchup, barbecue sauce, honey, or FRUIT. It's nuts. However, once the two weeks are up, and our bodies have had time to "get back to the basics" and be free of refined sugars, etc., then we are allowed to slowly introduce those things back into our diets again. We won't follow the diet as strictly as is suggested, because, let's face it, we live in Idaho and there's no way I'm going to not ever eat a potato again. It just isn't going to happen.

Anyway, that's our update. I had just a few minutes and thought I'd give a First Week update. Has anybody done the South Beach Diet before? Has anybody found particular success with another diet? I would love to hear any responses you all may have.

Oh What Do You Do-oo-oo... When You're Dieting?

2008-06-25T15:02:00.002-06:00

You eat things like cottage cheese with cucumbers and tomatoes for lunch. And a mid-morning snack of string cheese. No more cereal for breakfast, and for dinner, lots and lots of veggies. I took some pictures yesterday of our totally transformed fridge, and plan to post a whole series of hilarious things about us dieting. Beginning, I hope, with a picture I took yesterday of the gallon of ONE PERCENT MILK that has replaced the whole milk in my son-of-a-dairy-farmer husband's world. And let me tell you, that little world all came crashing down when I brought home the one percent! Poor guy. The diet is strictest for the first two weeks, which began last night, then it gradually mellows out. It is only with the promise of the return of whole milk that I was able to convince him to even try it out. Anyway, this should be pretty funny for onlookers!

Have / Have Not

2008-06-19T15:10:00.002-06:00

I saw this exhaustive list on Missy's blog and thought it looked like fun... I thought it provided some good conversation pieces, at the very least. Anyway, thanks Missy for the fun list! The things I have done are in bold print.

1. Touched an iceberg
2. Slept under the stars
3. Been a part of a hockey fight
4. Changed a baby's diaper
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Swam with wild dolphins
8. Climbed a mountain, but not all the way to the top
9. Held a tarantula
10. Said "I love you" and meant it
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Stayed up all night long and watched the sun rise
15. Seen the Northern Lights
16. Gone to a huge sports game
17. Walked the stairs to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
19. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
20. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Bet on a winning horse
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Taken an ice cold bath
28. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar
29. Seen a total eclipse (lunar)
30. Ridden a roller coaster
31. Hit a home run
32. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
33. Adopted an accent for fun
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Felt very happy about your life, even for just a moment
36. Loved your job 90% of the time
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Watched wild whales
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Gone on a midnight walk on the beach
41. Gone sky diving
42. Visited Ireland
43. Ever bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited India
45. Bench-pressed your own weight
46. Milked a cow
47. Alphabetized your personal files
48. Ever worn a superhero costume
49. Sung karaoke
50. Lounged around in bed all day
51. Gone scuba diving
52. Kissed in the rain, and snow!
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Done something you should regret, but don't
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Been in a movie(how about a TV show?)
60. Gone without food for 3 days
61. Made cookies from scratch
62. Won first prize in a costume contest
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Been in a combat zone
65. Spoken more than one language fluently
66. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone
67. Bounced a check
68. Read - and understood - your credit report
69. Recently bought and played with a favorite childhood toy
70. Found out something significant that your ancestors did
71. Called or written your Congress person
72. Picked up and moved to another city
73. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
74. Helped an animal give birth
75. Been fired or laid off from a job
76. Won money
77. Broken a bone
78. Ridden a motorcycle but I wasn't the driver
79. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100 mph
80. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
81. Slept through an entire flight: takeoff, flight, and landing
82. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
83. Eaten sushi
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read The Bible cover to cover
86. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
87. Gotten someone fired for their actions
88. Gone back to school
89. Changed your name
90. Caught a fly in the air with your bare hands
91. Eaten fried green tomatoes
92. Read The Iliad
93. Taught yourself an art from scratch
94. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
95. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt
96. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
97. Been elected to public office
98. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
99. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
100. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
101. Had a booth at a street fair
102. Dyed your hair
103. Been a DJ
104. Rocked a baby to sleep
105. Ever dropped a cat from a high place to see if it really lands on all four
106. Raked your carpet
107. Brought out the best in people
108. Brought out the worst in people
109. Worn a mood ring
110. Ridden a horse
111. Carved an animal from a piece of wood or bar of soap
112. Cooked a dish where four people asked for the recipe
113. Buried a child
114. Gone to a Broadway play
115. Been inside the pyramids
116. Shot a basketball into a basket
117. Danced at a disco
118. Played in a band
119. Shot a bird
120. Gone to an arboretum
121. Tutored someone
122. Ridden a train
123. Brought an old fad back into style
124. Eaten caviar
125. Let a salesman talk you into something you didn’t need
126. Ridden a giraffe or elephant
127. Published a book
128. Pieced a quilt
129. Lived in an historic place
130. Acted in a play or performed on a stage
131. Asked for a raise
132. Made a hole-in-one Only in mini-golf
133. Gone deep sea fishing
134. Gone roller skating
135. Run a marathon
136. Learned to surf
137. Invented something
138. Flown first class
139. Spent the night in a 5-star luxury suite
140. Flown in a helicopter
141. Visited Africa
142. Sang a solo
143. Gone spelunking
144. Learned how to take a compliment
145. Written a love-story
146. Seen Michelangelo’s David
147. Had your portrait painted
148. Written a fan letter
149. Spent the night in something haunted
150. Owned a St. Bernard or Great Dane
151. Ran away
152. Learned to juggle
153. Been a boss
154. Sat on a jury
155. Lied about your weight
156. Gone on a diet
157. Found an arrowhead or a gold nugget
158. Written a poem
159. Carried your lunch in a lunchbox
160. Gotten food poisoning
161. Gone on a service, humanitarian or religious mission
162. Hiked the Grand Canyon
163. Sat on a park bench and fed the ducks
164. Gone to the opera
165. Gotten a letter from someone famous
166. Worn knickers
167. Ridden in a limousine
168. Attended the Olympics
169. Can hula or waltz
170. Read a half dozen Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys books
171. Been stuck in an elevator
172. Had a revelatory dream
173. Thought you might crash in an airplane
174. Had a song dedicated to you on the radio or at a concert
175. Saved someone’s life
176. Eaten raw whale
177. Know how to tat, smock or do needlepoint
178. Laughed till your side hurt
179. Straddled the equator
180. Taken a photograph of something other than people that is worth framing
181. Gone to a Shakespeare Festival
182. Sent a message in a bottle
183. Spent the night in a hostel
184. Been a cashier
185. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
186. Joined a union
187. Donated blood or plasma
188. Built a campfire
189. Kept a blog
190. Had hives
191. Worn custom made shoes or boots
192. Made a PowerPoint presentation
193. Taken a Hunter’s Safety Course
194. Served at a soup kitchen
195. Conquered the Rubik’s cube
196. Know CPR, but need a refresher course
197. Ridden in or owned a convertible
198. Found a long lost friend
199. Helped solve a crime
200. Responded to a NJP newsletter

Excuses, Exchmuses...

2008-06-12T13:34:00.002-06:00

So we've been home from our lovely vacation now for over nearly two weeks. Has anyone seen any pictures yet? No. You haven't. You're probably talking to your computer monitor right now. I can almost hear you. You're saying "and why is that Dorese? Why have you failed us so?" With so much demand from my readers, I feel I must provide the excuse you've undoubtedly been waiting for. Ready?

We moved into our house! A circumstance arose which made it a quick decision, even though we have some little projects left to finish up around the house. So the week we got home from Washington, D.C., we moved into our house. Let me just say that is has been SO NICE to have our own space. We went for a bike ride a few nights ago and found ourselves saying "man this is nice! We don't have to report to anyone... we can stay out as long as we want and there's nobody to have to call and explain ourselves to!" Sounds like something you'd hear a bright and shiny 18-year old, first time renter, college freshman saying. Not us old pros at living on our own. And I have my own kitchen again! I choose what we eat... and when we eat... and if dinner was pretty gross and the leftovers have lasted the obligatory 3-day wait without being touched, I can throw them out or sneak them over the neighbor's fence to their dog. C'est la vie!

Ok, so enough about that. I get tired of always having an excuse for these things. It's really quite ridiculous, you know. But of course you know. And I know that you know.... that I know that you know. You know?

So I promise that I really do have pictures from our vacation. And I really do have pictures of House now that she's finally finished and being inhabited once again. And I must say, she's loving the company! The downside to all of this exciting news is that I don't have internet access unless I'm at work. And I wasn't working until I started school again this past Monday. So now I just have to get creative about getting my pictures figured out at home and then doing the posting side of things once I'm at work.... assuming I have time to post.

Anyway, there's not much more than that for news. I'm sorry to be so lame and lacking in this little venture. It's sad because I enjoy this blog so much, but lately I just haven't had any time for it. We'll just have to see what the future holds, I suppose!

[Though I know I'm jinxing myself in saying this, hopefully I'll have some time soon to do a real post (cross your fingers now, ya hear?)...]

.....And We're Back!

2008-05-25T18:56:00.003-06:00

You know I totally intended to write some "Hey, remember that vacation? It's finally here!" post by the end of last week, but it apparently just never happened. Oops! Anyway, we're home now, Washington, D.C. was a BEAUTIFUL, we spent some time with old friends, and overall had a blast! There is lots of bidness to attend to before I get to play, so I thought I would steal a second and sneak on here to let you know I didn't just cave in finally to all that is dry and brown down here, and crawl into a corner and die. Nope, I'm a trooper! Let the record show, however, that D.C. was quite a tease for me! That is all. I do promise to upload pictures and give you something with substance very soon, dear reader(s)! Stay tuned!

Muy Interesante...

2008-05-13T00:21:00.002-06:00

I just saw a link to this site on a friend's blog, and whadoyaknowit, I'm the ONLY Dorese in the whole United States! I wasn't really surprised to be the only Dorese Cornelison or Dorese Orlandi, but I was a little bit by the first name alone... Cool! Thanks Camille!

Just Some Bidness...

2008-05-09T23:53:00.004-06:00

Awwe, thanks friends! It's true, as many of you guessed, the battle for shorter hair has been 3 years of marriage in the making. I've been getting more use to it now and making it my own, so I'll have to post another picture sometime with it a little more how it really looks! : ) Anyway, I don't have much humor for my "gush of consciousness" we often encounter on here, but I couldn't see that I had 8 comments on my hair and just go to bed!

In the news, I'm officially DONE with my classes! My last final was Thursday morning and now I've got 'til June 9th completely free. (I'm taking two Spanish classes this summer, from June 9 - July 31). So plans for the summer include our trip coming up next week to Washington, D.C., then my classes... then I'm going to visit my family sometime in August! It should be a fun summer, with a few weeks off here and there to get some work done beautifying our house and yard. I'm so excited to finally have a yard, and to finally be done with this crazy semester!

Anyway, thanks again, "all you all," for reading my blog and encouraging my craziness further! Stay tuned for more updates on the house, which is almost done!!! We're planning to put in a full day over there tomorrow, so between a full day of trying to get out of work and not having any homework to make me feel guilty about piddling around on the internet, there will be pictures! Yeah!

Hello, Bob...

2008-05-07T23:53:00.005-06:00

Victory is mine!

Exterior House Pictures

2008-05-06T23:14:00.004-06:00

We have pictures of our house! Finally!

It's so pretty outside right now! The sun is shining, the clouds are so puffy and... stuff, and the grass is still green! I realize this is something I should not take for granted, which is why I insisted we take these pictures NOW instead of waiting for summer to make our yard all brown and icky.

This is just to give you some perspective... You know, in case you were curious how tall the fornt door was or something.

I love wide angle shots. They make the artistic side of my little soul just sing.

The Appliances Have Landed! I Repeat: The Appliances Have Landed!

2008-05-05T15:14:00.004-06:00

After taking nearly two weeks off due to illness and demands of work and school, Mark and I finally made it into town and put in a full day of work on House. And let me tell you - she missed us terribly! Kind of like the puppy that drags all of your belongings she can get to out into a pile on the living room floor (just to show you how much she misses you, of course). Except that House was a little less innocent in her assault. She dug deep into her crawl space under the house and came up with the meanest, most horrible sort of revenge she could bring herself to commit: House made my Cheetos stale. The horror! I was so saddened by this... and it certainly doesn't have anything to do with my recently bragging to an Ohio friend that a bag of chips left unopened will remain "good" for weeks on the counter due to lack of humidity... No, friends, this goes deeper. See, I'm kind of a sloppy Cheeto eater (I don't like to get that neon orange stuff all over my face, see?), and when I stopped in last week to eat some of my beloveds and look around the house for a few minutes, I dropped a few somewhere between the bag on the counter and my mouth.

Adding insult to injury, I left them on the floor. Then I forgot all about them... until I stepped on them, making a pile of crumby mess. Did I clean it up, I hear you asking? Of course not! We didn't yet have a broom in the house. And so, your Honor, it is for this reason that I believe Ms. House did it, in the kitchen, with the candlestick! Er... I mean, with the humidity! Don't worry though, I got her back. I realized today that we left the porch light on when we left Saturday night. And it's still on. (Commence evil cackling...)

Anyway, all this to say that we have finally moved the appliances from the garage into the kitchen. That's right, folks! And what do you suppose were the first things to go into the fridge and freezer? Those who know me well will not be surprised in the slightest. I raced to the store and bought: a frozen Red Baron pizza, a tub of chocolate/peanut butter/caramel ice cream, and a bottle of ketchup. And ice cream cones. The jumbo kind. Not that I am promoting that these fine items should all be consumed together, under any circumstances.

Oh yeah, and because I'm a loony, I forgot to take the camera in with us... so no pictures this time! Stay tuned though!

"The High Country"

2008-05-04T21:15:00.001-06:00

As some of my readers may be aware, we're not too far from Yellowstone National Park down in this neck of the woods. For a desperately needed vacation a few weeks ago, Mark and I took a trip up to Island Park, which is a town in Idaho pretty close to the West entrance of the Park. We had hoped to visit the Park while we were there, but demands of work and school kept us from staying longer, and all total we were gone from home less than 24 hours. However, that night away was just what the doctor ordered. And we wouldn't have been able to stay much longer anyway, because it was on the drive home that Mark's illness began to manifest itself. Anyway, amidst all of the weirdo weather we've had around here lately, I wanted to share some pictures of our trip to "The High Country" as locals call it. After spending my few short hours up there, I will no longer complain about the snow we've had down here.

This first picture is to show the enormous pile of snow. They had no less than 8 feet on the ground up there, and this was the end of April, mind you!

(You will notice the pained expression on my face... it was COLD!)

This is the view from the balcony of our little abode. No sign of man's impact on this land anywhere in our view! It was so nice for Mark to be able to just set up the tripod and shoot away while I cooked dinner, without having to call him (and hope we had cell phone service up there) to tell him to come home when it was done!

Mark says he'll never take glamor shots of me again if I don't post the following picture...
I'll have to write a post sometime about being chased around your house with a camera. It's a joy no woman should go without.

In an effort to clear the above image out of your now-troubled minds, here's one of me, bed head and pained expression free...
Yes, that really is the same person. I clean up pretty well, don't I?!? A little too rosy though... don't you think? And what's with that twinkly, though not quite amused expression? I even seem to recall having been a little on the grumpy side that day. Something to do with being chased around with the camera before I even had a chance to make myself pretty (see above). Hmm...

I love this picture. We stopped at a grocery store on our way up to Island Park and purchased a few apples and oranges, among other things for dinner that night and breakfast and lunch the next day. This shot is just of the fruit sitting on the counter before we ate it for breakfast. Isn't he good?

Yes, Dorese. Yes, he is. He's amazing. Excepting only when he chases me with the camera. So, every fourth, twelfth, and twenty-seventh day of every month, he's amazing. (Ok, ok, that's not really true. He chases me every time he even thinks of picking up the camera. And even then, he's still amazing. It's the subject matter that brings him down... (see above)...). See the explanation for our flowery header picture here in case you need further verification.

Thanks, Debi!

2008-04-26T18:38:00.004-06:00

I want to tell you about my friend Debi. First of all, she and I met several years ago when we were both basically engaged but not telling anyone yet...and we found out we had quite a few things in common! It was just too easy to be friends after that; we each got married a few months later, on the same day, in the same temple, only an hour apart... and that was only the beginning! Mark and Rob both graduated from U of I last May, and they moved to Montana while we moved to Blackfoot. Sad, I know. Three cheers for Google Talk for helping people keep in touch across the miles! Anyway, Debi is so friendly, loving, talented, caring, and hilarious. She's just one of those make-you-feel-good-no-matter-what types. Know someone like that?

So here's the thing: I had wanted to incorporate more of Mark's photography into the blog somehow, but only while talking today to Debi did the idea finally come to me: make my own header! So, with much thanks to her tremendous talent and wonderful help, I offer you the new and improved blog, featuring more of our own talents and less of some teenager who gets paid by Pyzam. Debi is a graphic designer, and she is always full of ideas for beautiful and creative things! Thanks again Debi, for all of your help with so many projects, and again for your assistance this afternoon!

So what's the consensus on the new layout? I think we're going to leave it here for a while, or rather, leave the general style, but maybe just change out the picture in the header. For some background information, this is a picture Mark took last Spring of some lilies he bought me for Valentines Day. He was doing some artsy-fartsy stuff with super long exposures one night when he couldn't sleep, and, if you can believe it, this picture was an accident! He hated it, naturally, but I convinced him to keep it. He was setting up for another shot at the time, so the flowers moved a bit during the exposure, giving the picture a dream-like haze and softness. I, naturally, loved it.

Let us know what you think... and if you happen to see a shot one day while you're perusing Mark's stuff on our Flickr site that strikes your fancy for a new header idea for us, by all means, let me know! I'm sure you can see my somewhat erratic mind in how often and how drastically I've changed this thing around the the few months we've been doing this, so indulge me! :D

Cheetos and House

2008-04-25T08:41:00.005-06:00

There have sure been a lot of things going on around here lately! Debi asked me if we've moved into our house yet, which reminded me "oh yeah! We DO already have a house!" We just haven't had any time lately to do anything over there. My joke from before Spring break ("I swear, if we don't get moved in over my break, it won't happen 'til I'm done with finals!") is really coming true! I did stop in one day last week on my way home, just to walk around, say hi and ask poor House how her weeks have been faring without our cheerful company. For the record, she hasn't missed us at all. Doesn't look or smell any differently. My Cheetos are still there though, so I savored old times by standing in the kitchen and looking around, while chomping down and turning my hands and mouth bright orange. I don't think House likes it very much when I drop Cheetos on the floor between the counter and my mouth, though - she always was a little on the edge of spite - and especially after being left alone for so long!

In other news...
I'm happy to report that my biggest projects for the semester are done and gone. It's Friday, next week is "dead week," then finals! I am so ready to be done this semester! I have a few projects and presentations left, but those will be cake with my new optimistic I-can-see-the-light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel outlook! I'm feeling much better, but now Mark is the one keeping the house up at night coughing. Awwe, just kidding. : ) He is really sick though. We've even been to the doctor this week (a first in the 4 years I've known him)... and we've been there twice. With another appointment next week. Poor guy!

Well, I guess that's all for now... I'm sorry we're so boring lately! We're going on vacation in a few weeks, so we should have lots to talk about and many pictures to share with that coming up!

If I could stop coughing...

2008-04-12T20:07:00.004-06:00

...I would have something...ANYTHING to write about! I'm sorry friends, I've finally caught the nasty cold that seems to be sweeping the country this year. I woke up last Sunday with a terrible cold and it hasn't even started to get better yet! Other members of the household have the week-long flu that is also wreaking havoc this season. I don't know if I spelled "wreaking" right or not... I had to stop and think about it as I was typing, and now I just don't know! Do you ever have that happen to you, where everyday words, like "kitchen" or "ketchup" just don't look right? Well I do! Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go cough up my other lung. I don't think I really needed it anyway.

Finally!

2008-04-06T19:48:00.018-06:00

This is it, friends, after weeks of waiting and all of my previously mentioned promises, we now bring you the next installment of Tours with the Cornelisons! Let's take a look!

Remember that doggie door that was so thoughtfully carved out of our wall?

Do you see even a hint of said hole now? (Its previous location had been to the right of the french door, seen above.)

In case you may have forgotten.....

This is a shot that I do not believe was included in any previous post. The door on the left of the picture is to the upstairs bathroom, you're looking down the stairs into the living room (right) and kitchen (left, with wood floor) area. You can see the cream/beige color we painted the walls fro this view, too. (It's technical name is "baked scone".)

Remember this vanity? (This is the upstairs bathroom.) You can see here the color we painted this room, the master bedroom, and the downstairs bathroom with. The actual name of this color is "approaching dusk".

This is a closeup of part of the closet in the spare upstairs bedroom, which I have affectionately staked my claim on and dubbed "my office," although I really have no need for one. The top portion of the closet needs paint still, because we ran out of the green ("green tea"). I'm trying to decide between the white color we're using on the trim and ceilings ("clear moon") and the baked scone color of the rest of the house. Any suggestions? Please post your vote in the "comments" section. : )

Now, if you look very closely, you can almost tell that we painted one of these spindles baked scone, while the rest remain white. We had planned to leave them all white (paint them clear moon). However, Mark had the idea to paint the casing around them clear moon, but paint the actual spindles baked scone. I'm not sure which I like better, so please cast your votes on this matter, too.

This room makes my soul cry. This, friends, is the laundry portion of the downstairs bathroom. When we first had the water turned on a few weeks ago, there was a huge leak in the sink of this room. Much flooding ensued. We have been hesitant to even patch the wall up yet because we don't know that we won't need access to the plumbing again in the future.

Here's a close-up of the ceiling over the laundry area, just in case you were curious.

Ahhh, art.
(I was taking a picture just to show the little area where the toilet is before we painted it, and realized how artsy the toilet paper looked sitting on the tank. I know it, you don't have to tell me... I'm a nerd.)

Remember the water damage I told you about? This is that hideous red bedroom, whose closet shares a wall with the laundry area of the bathroom. we pulled the carpet up to help it dry out better.

This is the little hallway between the bathroom and that bedroom. The lower third of the wall was rotted out, and this picture shows where Mark had just begun to tear out the rotted sheetrock. We ended up taking out the entire lowest third of the whole wall.

Remember the nasty, chunky, trashy looking fireplace area? Here it is post-Mark's patching. Doesn't it look wonderful?!?

And that is all, friends. I promise to be a better correspondent, and intend to take lots of pictures over the next few days, hopefully to post this weekend, showing our progress since these were taken last week. Thanks for coming along for the ride!

Apologies, Apologies...

2008-04-06T19:42:00.000-06:00

***If you read this post Saturday (4/5) or before 7 o'clock p.m. on Sunday (4/6), please note that it has been updated and pictures have been added. I repeat: we have pictures! Now go read it again! : )

My dear friends, I have need to apologize to you, after tens of days, and tons of promises, that I still don't have a good post to share with you. I opened up the folder of pictures I took a week ago today, and just now finished sorting through all 158 of them in an effort to select just a few which would be a reasonable amount to share with you on this blog. Did I mention there were 158, after taking out the hoards which were shaky or otherwise unacceptable? Anyway, I have now narrowed it down to 96, but this process takes time! And, of course, since these were taken a week ago, much progress has been made, and it's time for new pictures.

The house is nearly done now! We bought all the trim last week, then rented a paint sprayer over the last few days and painted all of the trim and all of the interior doors with it.

I painted all of the ceilings last week, and with the exception of some touching up, we're almost done with the paint altogether. Once the trim and molding is all done, we will vacuum all of the carpets, then shampoo them, and then we're ready to move in! Oh, and we assembled our bed this past Tuesday. Yes, although it is just a mattress sitting on plastic on the floor, covered by more plastic, assembled was the best word to describe setting it up. See, it came in two boxes, and it took about an hour for Mark and me to put it together. Maybe with this post I'll give you a picture of the boxes the mattress came in. Yes. See below.
We put door knobs back into the interior doors last night, and I did a lot of touch-up painting. So the rooms no longer look like this:

The plan for today is to vacuum out the edges of the carpet and start putting up the trim and molding, beginning with the kitchen, so that by this afternoon we can go pick up our appliances that the furniture store has been holding for us now for over 3 weeks. Yeah, we underestimated the time involved in this little project by just a smidgen wouldn't you say?

I may have found the culprit for such a delay in completion of our remodeling project. Let me know what you think....

Busted!

2008-04-02T14:37:00.002-06:00

In addition to being busted by my faithful reader (no, it is no mistake that "reader" is in the singular form) for not posting anything for so long, I was also busted when Mark saw the new blog layout and how YELLOW it is. Have I mentioned I love the color yellow? And with that, have I mentioned that Mark detests said color? Victory was mine for a few days at least, but stay tuned for updates on the house and the blog layout. I promise the next one will be easier to read, too.

Lasagna

2008-03-27T15:02:00.001-06:00

Doesn't this current layout just make you hungry? : )

House, Part 3: A Sampling

2008-03-21T16:10:00.000-06:00

Welcome back, friends, for the next installment of Home Improvement with the Cornelisons!

In this issue, we wish to share with you a sampling of the work we've been doing over the last week. Check it out!

These are the rosettes, freshly painted, which will adorn all of the doorways and windows. You may need to use all of your toes as well as your fingers to be able to count all of those babies! (We bought 90 of them.)

Oh look! Mark is tapin' and muddin' the wall we sheetrocked earlier that day. Good thing he doesn't know I'm taking his picture right now, or he would know I was goofing around taking pictures of everything, instead of cleaning up the mess I made.

"We Haven't Forgotten Who Keeps Us In Business."

I'm considering writing poetry about my affinity for joint compound.

Beautiful, beautiful joint compound

My soul sings for thee...

Ok, I'll stop now.

Remember this? Yeah, it won't be that hideous color much longer. I think we're painting tonight.

See that beautiful texturing? You know what makes that, don't you?

(If not, see the Ode to Joint Compound above.)

Cool lookin' light, huh? I love Autumn. : )

This is the MDF trim we have begun to stockpile. It will be painted to match the rosettes in the first picture, and used to case in the doorways and windows. Similar trim boards will be used around the bases of the walls, though it will be taller and thicker.

Mark is finished for the night. Doesn't that look nice? This job would put a contractor to shame. He does such a good job with his projects, and this one was certainly no exception. I'm so lucky to have found such a well-rounded guy with so many talents he is so good at!

More Favorites

2008-03-19T12:56:00.005-06:00

This, friends, is a disgusting, dirty, nasty looking

toilet bowl.....
.....Cleaning itself.

Yes, you read correctly - it's being cleaned. And do you see my delicate hands anywhere near said toilet bowl? No. How, you ask, is such a thing done? I will show you!

The Culprit:

Just measure some powder from the jug into the cap, then dump the powder into your dirty toilet bowl. If the foam doesn't reach the rim, just add some more. Don't be like me and get too excited about this now, or you'll have a mess on your hands. Just don't be like me.

Once the foam begins to break down (it's already to this point in the above picture), just flush and walk away.
But don't forget to take that toilet brush with you, and toss it into the nearest dumpster, 'cuz you'll never need to use it again!

If your toilet is particularly dirty (like this one), you may need to scrub. So maybe you should save that last step until you've got your toilet glistening and made a firm commitment with yourself to pro-actively "freshen" your toilet often enough to not need scrubbing. (The directions suggest weekly application, though I think it should remain at the discretion of personal preference.)

Favorites

2008-03-17T12:49:00.006-06:00

Ok, just one favorite, really. But it is the awesomest, best, most wonderful stuff I have ever come across. This, folks, is the new best friend. Ok, maybe not that... but how can you go wrong with something so...divine? Allow me to introduce you to the hottest item on today's market: Joint Compound.

I tell you, this is the stuff dreams are made of. Ok, ok, I'll be serious now. I'll try anyway. No promises, though. So have you ever used joint compound before? I'm pretty sure there's not a job it can't do. It covers holes, fills cracks, joins and smooths the gap between sheets of sheetrock, curls your hair, washes out of clothes like it's nobody's business; it even comes right out of a paintbrush after sitting and drying all weekend. How do I know this? Because I was bad last week and forgot to wash out the poor brush. Poor, poor brush. But who can tell now that the brush suffered so last weekend? Nobody. Because, though I may have been kidding a little bit about how well it curls your hair (in reality, it just clumps up and makes it stiff... until you wash your hair, at which point it instantly disappears), it is amazing. That is all. But stay tuned for more pictures of behind-the-scenes footage of our extensive work on the Cornelison Mansion!

We have appliances!

2008-03-14T12:54:00.003-06:00

That's right, folks, we're real live appliance owners now! We went to a big sale last night at one of the appliance stores in town and found good deals on everything we were looking for that we left without needing to do any more searching. Whew! They're black (not stainless steel, as pictured below) and lovely and my refrigerator has never before been home to anything slimy, sticky, or moldy! Victory is mine!

New Home, part 2 (with pictures!)

2008-03-09T22:54:00.022-06:00

Welcome the first-ever private tour of the reclusive Cornelisons and their new mansion house! (Note: These pictures were taken on our first work-day, and will soon be replaced, showing the place in a little better repair and with a more tasteful color palette!)

This shot is from the end of the living room; you can see the front door at the far left corner; the kitchen and dining room are on the other side of the wall to the right. Straight ahead are the stairs going upstairs or downstairs (this is a classic 70's split level home, folks!)

This is shot from the dining room, though to get to the kitchen, you would walk straight in from the front door and you're at the sink (below the window). The fridge goes on in the far left of the picture, between the counter you see and the wall behind it. And yes, the pantry door really is that skinny. Any suggestions on finding a new one so small without spending $200?

This is the dining room, from the view of the kitchen. 'Nuff said.

See that hole in the wall next to the lovely french doors? Yeah, the brilliant folks who lived here before us thought that instead of going the conventional route and putting the doggy door into another door, they would just take it out of the wall instead. And right above the heater vent...? Project No. 1: Fill That Hole! Oh, and don't mind the propane tank; we felt like having a barbecue indoors to for fun. Nah, just kidding, though that does sound like fun, doesn't it? We had a monster propane heater in there to keep us warm while we worked, since the gas won't be turned on until tomorrow.

This is the back patio and back yard, if you walk out the french doors. Ah, winter in SE Idaho, in all of it's brown glory!

And, to bring us back around in a circle, this is the view of the wall separating the kitchen/dining room from the living room (and the gaping hole where a refrigerator belongs).

This is the view leaving the kitchen. (The dark on the right of the picture is the pantry door; the fridge would be on the left.)

Heading upstairs, the bathroom is the first room you come to. You can walk through it to the master bedroom, which is the doorway on the far right of the picture. Nice vanity though, eh?

There's nothing significant about the master bedroom; it's really boring looking if you don't count the holes in the walls, which you can't see in the pictures, anyway. So I'll just cut to the chase and show you the other two upstairs bedrooms, which are.... interesting, to say the least.

This room was themed in purple and lavender, with black trim. Yes, black. The light shades on the fan are even painted black. Yikes.

Back downstairs again, and help has arrived! Poor Benji looks terrified! C'mere little guy, don't be shy now!

"You listen here, lady. I didn't sign up for this. Oh, and can I go home now, since I'm such a good boy? Can I, can I?

And since we've got the front door open, let's take a peek out at the front yard, SE Idaho style!

Since we're all about staying on task, we'll head downstairs now to see what we haven't gotten to yet in your very own private tour of the Cornelison Mansion. This is the family room, or, as Mark is already referring to it: the theater room. The little window thing looks up into the living room, and below that, do you see that open cupboard thing? Let's have a closer look...

There we go... This my friends is where the hobo spiders live. I mean, the crawl space below ground which houses the water heater, furnace, water softener, and the hobo spiders. We can't forget about them!

This view is of the other end of the family room, where we were standing before. Notice the groovy stove-less woodburning stove area! Those logs, followed by the hideous hearth have got to go. And then there can be peace in my heart once again. See my prowling toward them? I'm about to exercise my mammoth strength and tear the hearth out with my fingernails. Just kidding, though I did make that threat yesterday until destruction of the stove-less stove area began. Ahh, persuasion!

This, my friends, is the laundry room. Hard on the eyes, I know. Have no fear, it will be made pretty, or my name's not Queen! Wait a second...

And that brings us to the last, though certainly not least, room in the house. This is the only bedroom downstairs, and the first one I think I'll paint. This picture really doesn't do the exact shade of red used here justice. It even looks nearly decent! Be warned, however, it's not. It's hideous, darling, simply hideous.

Chocolate = Love

2008-03-09T15:35:00.005-06:00

I have been pondering of late, something along the following lines: "Why is it that you hear women talk about how they can't live without chocolate? The same women who have "Chocolate=Life" magnets on their fridges, and bumper stickers on their minivans?" The thought pattern most recently evolved to "oh my heck, I've become one of them! How does such a thing happen?!?" And then, just a few moments ago, I found the most perfect quote, that until recently would not have merited so much as a passing glance from me...

"You didn’t know that chocolate has a look? Oh yes, it is one of unadulterated satisfaction coupled with relief, and a smidgen of unconditional love; a little dab’ll do ya."

I tell you, simply fabulous. This was written by a woman who was writing a blog about bribing her children with chocolate to get them to do what she wanted. She had the most hilarious picture of her teenage daughter, whose face matched the quote exactly. And she described my thoughts of late to a T.

We have a home!

2008-03-07T12:25:00.002-07:00

After seven long months of searching and waiting, we closed on a house Wednesday morning! It needs a some painting and other minor projects done before we move in, but I just couldn't wait to share the news. We're going over tonight to take some pictures, so stay tuned for updates!