#30: Home Remodel

My husband and I recently decided to invest in updates to our home. We had tossed around the idea of moving to a larger place but decided we liked our location, neighborhood and schools and could make the space work with a few improvements and some efforts to remove many 1980's remnants. Those included several once popular features such as seashell shaped sinks, lots of gold trim and full wall mirrors - including one in the half-bath downstairs. Yes, for the past seven years we (and our guests) have enjoyed a full wall mirror right beside the toilet.

After meeting with a contractor and balancing our wish list against our budget, we decided to update all of our bathrooms (including two gut jobs), convert the wet bar to a pantry, update the wooden stair balusters, paint the exterior and invest in some much-needed yard cleaning and landscaping.

We've done minor things to the house over the years such as new flooring and paint, but this was our first time tackling such large projects and all at once. I'm happy to report that we survived the six-week long construction zone with only a few mishaps along the way. I learned lots of lessons though that I'll share for anyone considering a renovation/remodel:

• Hire a designer. We were referred to a general contractor who was great at getting things done, but had little to offer in the way of design advice. We managed to fumble through with the help of Pinterest and some consultations at a tile shop, but having a designer on board from the start would have saved lots of headaches and frustration.

• Move out. If we ever do something like this again, we will factor alternate living space into the budget - at least during the demolition phase. For about three weeks, EVERYTHING in our house was covered in thick dust. Every 2-3 days I went thru a 5-step cleaning process on the floors (dust mop, vacuum, wet mop, steam clean, Swifter) only for the dust to return the next day. But I physically could not live there without at least trying to address the dust and I hated that my family was breathing it in. The sanity and peace of mind alone would be worth the expense of a hotel. 

• Cover your belongings. And then cover them again. Furniture, electronics, clothes, shoes, carpet, etc. We had friends reinforce the importance of using plastic over upholstery, but we should have done more. That dust is deadly! One sheet of plastic over our clothes was not enough to protect them. 

• Plan for essential functions. Our contractor did his best to make sure we always had at least one working toilet, but there are things you take for granted like sinks, counters and mirrors. In hind sight, we would have staggered the process a little so there was always a place for doing hair and make-up. My husband was fortunate that the work took place during No-shave November since we were constantly without a functional sink/mirror combination.

But the final results were worth the dust and other inconveniences. We've never had a walk-in pantry before, so that's been amazing. I love the freestanding bathtub and larger shower. Even the kids are working harder to keep their bathrooms cleaned with their new sinks, countertops and mirrors, and although we'll never be up for yard of the month, I'm less concerned about the neighbors hating us for our unkept exterior.

Managing the process and constantly having people in our house was a little draining, but overall experience #30 was much needed and fun to watch unfold. 10 to go...

#29: Top Golf

My Dad

For years I've heard people talk about Top Golf, a driving range-inspired entertainment center, and I finally had a chance to experience it myself while visiting family in Houston over the Thanksgiving holiday. My husband, kids, parents, sister, nephews and I opted to skip the Black Friday shopping madness and a enjoy a friendly golf competition instead.

The Top Golf concept is very cool. The set-up reminds me of a bowling alley with players assigned bays with electronic scoring screens, but instead of rolling balls at pins you choose a golf club and hit balls onto a large green with various targets. Aside from putt-putt I have very minimal golf experience (although I did consider golf lessons as a potential 40x40), so actually hitting the ball was my biggest challenge. I did manage a few good swings thanks to some coaching from my dad and husband and actually ended with one of the higher scores in our group.

Cousins

But the game is really just a small part of the Top Golf experience. I loved the fun, social atmosphere. We were there early in the day to to beat the crowds and get the half price hourly rates they offer before noon, so didn't take advantage of the full service restaurant and bar aside from hot chocolates for the kids, but next time I'll go later. Maybe a couple glasses of wine will help my golf game.

Experience #29 was a fun family outing. I look forward to trying the Dallas-area Top Golf locations soon. Only 11 experiences to go!

My Sister, me and my Mom

#28: Carve the Thanksgiving Turkey

This may not seem like a big deal to some, but since I’m only at 27 experiences with just over 80 days to go, I will pretty much take anything I can get.  And carving the Thanksgiving turkey is an honor, right? Growing up, that job typically went to my dad.  When my husband and I host Thanksgiving at our house, the task of carving the turkey belongs to him.  I had begun to wonder if there was something magical about carving a turkey that only a man could do.  This year, both my dad and husband had icky colds so there was no way we were letting them handle the bird. My nephews were out fishing and my brother-in-law was exhausted, so I thought it was my time to step up. 

It was a completely new experience for me as it was also my first time to use an electric knife.  My mom seemed a little nervous about me attempting both things, but I handled them with ease! It turns out that carving a turkey is a lot like cutting the meat off of a rotisserie chicken.  There was really nothing special or magical about it, but the carved turkey eventually joined the Thanksgiving buffet of ham, dressing, green beans, macaroni and cheese and cranberry sauces (including my contribution of Rachel Ray’s cranberry lime relish).

Our family joined in a circle holding hands, but before the prayer my dad asked if anyone wanted to share what they’re thankful for. Of course we all expressed our gratitude for the food, our faith and family. Although unspoken, I know we also shared the sentiment, this year especially, that we’re thankful to simply be together in good health. It’s been a tough year as my sister dealt with a serious ovarian cancer scare and my mom continued to deal with Parkinson’s disease, but God has helped us through.

Carving the turkey was a fun new experience for me, but Thanksgiving is clearly not about the feast. It’s about spending precious time with those we love…and treasuring every moment.

Experience #28 is complete…12 to go!

#27: Archery Adventure

Maya, Me and Luca

Some people might think my 40x40 project is sponsored by Groupon. The detoxifying bodywrap, salt cave, fitness boot camp and family trail ride posts were all inspired by Groupon deals, as was this one. I recently purchased a four-hour archery adventure for four at Cinnamon Creek Ranch in Roanoke, partly because of the great value from Groupon, but also because I knew my oldest daughter, Maya, an avid Hunger Games fan, would enjoy playing Katniss for an afternoon.

This was a little difficult for me as I detest weapons. I don’t even allow my kids to play with water guns and they know to steer clear of any shooting games at the arcade. So I had to look past the reality that bows and arrows can kill and think of archery as a simple sport to be ok with it. To my surprise, our entire family (even me) really enjoyed the adventure. After getting sized for bows and arrows, we spent about 20 minutes in Cinnamon Creek’s indoor archery range receiving some basic instructions and practicing shooting at targets.

Rick aiming at a bear target

After we mastered the indoor range, we headed to what Cinnamon Creek calls “The Zoo.” One of the employees described it as a mini golf course for archery, and that’s exactly what it was – a series of archery targets spaced for safety through the woods of Roanoke. Most were what I think they call “bag targets” with pictures of multiple animals to aim at but others looked like real bears, foxes or deer.

Experience #27 was definitely a different one for us, but we would do it again and recommend it to others!

#26: Hot Yoga

After being encouraged by a friend to try the hot yoga class at our gym, I persuaded my husband, Rick, and daughter, Maya, to join me in a session tonight. It's Thanksgiving week, so I figured it would be a lighter crowd than usual which might make it less intimidating for a newbie. I was right on one front, it was a relatively light crowd given the room was not as jam packed as I hear the yoga sessions at Lifetime Fitness often are. However, those who were there appeared to be regulars and incredibly good at yoga – which was a little intimidating.

But we jumped right in and pretended we knew what we were doing. I admit I felt a sense of relief when the instructor, Stephanie, announced that the heating system was not working properly and might not quite reach the target temperature of 95 degrees. I think Maya and I even smiled at each other when she said the A/C had been unexpectedly kicking on during sessions. However, as luck would have it, that wasn’t the case during our session and we were quickly sweating through our poses. That is the purpose of hot yoga though, so at least we got to experience it completely.

Stephanie guided the class through a series of increasingly difficult poses probably very entertained by our family’s inexperience – even joking with a light-hearted chuckle that Rick’s flip of the downward dog was one of the most interesting transitions she had seen. All joking aside, she was a great instructor and catered well to the various levels in the class.

Even with the sweating, I really enjoyed the experience. I deal with chronic lower back pain and it might sound strange, but at one point I could actually tell by the pain that what I was doing was helping. I’ll probably go back for that reason if nothing else.

Maya, on the other hand, is recovering from elbow surgery and had to take it easy. As a former cheerleader/gymnast, she seemed slightly disturbed and maybe a little jealous by the yoga experts in the room who effortlessly went into handstands and other unique poses. It might take some bribery to get her to go back with me.

Overall, experience #26 was interesting and enlightening. Only 14 to go!

#25: Christmas Wreath

This 40x40 experience is a little diferent than the others I’ve written about. I’m sure many of my friends are wondering what the big deal is about making a Christmas wreath, but for me it is absolutely a new experience. While I love seeing cute holiday craft ideas on Pinterest and I’ve always enjoyed festive decorations at people’s homes, I would not typically try to recreate something myself. Honestly, in the past I would either spend more money than I should to buy something similar or would simply be ok admiring from afar.

I decided this year would be different, so on a recent rainy Saturday I headed to Hobby Lobby with my two daughters with the idea that by the end of the day we would have a festive wreath on our front door. We started at the pre-made wreaths and almost snatched up a super cute whimsical one for only $95 (which seemed like a steal since it was originally $189.99 before the 50% discount), but we remembered our DIY intentions and headed to the holiday craft aisles.

It took about 30 minutes of dodging carts from some very serious crafters and trying to find just the right elements that all three of us cound agree on (well, Maya and I, really, as Luca was just patiently waiting to head to the Frozen-licensed section) to fill our cart with the makings for a perfect wreath. And all together, the total was just under $60. That’s $35 less than the pre-made one we considered purchasing!

We’re not crafters, so we struggled a bit when we got home to make everything fit just right. In full transperancy, we couldn’t find our hot glue gun (I think we have one), so all decorations were affixed with bobby pins, but it seemed to work and we were proud to hang our creation on the door. And, if the bobby pins hold up, we will hang this wreath on our door for years to come.

Experience #25 was an adventure in creativity. Only 15 more to go!

#24: ICE!

For years I have heard about the incredible ice sculptures at the ICE! exhibit at Gaylord Texan in Grapevine. It’s a few miles from my house, so I really have no excuse for not having been before except maybe the annual craziness of November and December and my apprehension to voluntarily spend 30 minutes in the nine-degree temperature.

I’ve had great intentions to check it out, but every year it seems to come and go before that happens. This year, however, was different. My dad was attending an accounting conference at Gaylord so my parents were staying there for a few days – a great excuse to enjoy the amazing holiday light exhibits and ICE!

After a nice dinner at one of the restaurants at Gaylord, we bundled up in our hats, gloves and the big blue parkas provided and headed into the exhibit. This year’s theme was Frosty the Snowman with more than two million pounds of hand-carved ice sculptures including two-story tall ice slides. Of course the kids loved the slides but I was pleasantly surprised when my both of parents opted to take the ride too –and enjoyed it!

Admittedly a little cold, we made it through the exhibit and finished the evening with hot chocolate for the kids and a group photo with Santa.

I have a feeling experience #24 may become a family tradition!