We're Moving On Up To The West Side,,,,,Oopppps

Well the old song was moving on up to the east side but we're moving on up to the west side of this great ole house.  Yep, the Sleep Room-Sleep Porch special place.  Below you can see it was a bit of a mess even from the outside but what an opportunity.

I imagine you don't remember but we had to remove all the west windows and replace the bottom sills due to rot.  It took all of us and a lot of "tractor machine" help as well but we got it rebuilt and replaced in almost exactly the same situation as Mr. WG had built back in the 20's.

Once we got the windows rebuilt and back in place we had to work on the other rooms and we have been awaiting the chance to get to this great ole room and remodel the entire section of the house.  The picture below was after the windows were replaced and after Jane had spent weeks cleaning out the old bird, mouse and Bat, (yes I said Bat) stuff.  But remember, Boy What An Opportunity.

Jane and I both have used the old room as a work shop all winter and it became a "catch all" for anything left over or waiting to be used.  What a mess.  Jane did get her kitchen tiles painted out here and  it was out of the cold and rain.  Thank you Jesus.

Just so you can see the "before" situation the picture below is an idea of the condition of the ceiling before we started our make over.  The entire room is made of "bead board" tongue and grooved plank.  The wood was installed over 90 years ago and its moved, changed in size and endured many coats of paint and less than perfect maintenance.  Since we were going to make this our main living area we took extra precaution to resurface the ceiling as best we could.  We actually put 16 tubes of caulking on the ceiling filling the bead board groves and trying to realign the boards to the original appearance.

Below is the finished surface area and I think we got it.  At least Mr. Donald has signed off on it and Kay has yet to see it and give a thumbs up or down.  The ceiling will be a focal point of the room and the house and it should last forever. 

The walls were in about as bad of shape as the ceiling but not quite.  The leaking roof had taken its toll on the ceiling but the walls were in a bit better shape.  However, we still had to caulk and nail many of the bead boards and try to close the gaps and fill in the openings to try to get the appearance the house once had.  The following picture is our starting point on the walls.

From the two previous pictures you can begin to see the great color that Jane picked out for the room.  It grows on me and I am beginning to really get into it.  Its a Sunshine Yellow, Green or something, Sherwin Williams mixed it for us and I thought boy this bad when I opened the first can of paint.  But, as usual the color will grab you and its perfect for the "Sun Room, Sleeping Porch" effect that we want to have.  The picture below will give some idea of the new paint. (By the way, this is the wall we plan to install several exterior boards from Uncle Cokes house.  We have to wait till the snakes leave the Coke house so we can get in there and get the boards.  Neat huh?)

Looks pretty good with the white trim and the new light oak floor will really bring out the entire room
The final picture below is another view of the partially completed room.  As of today, after over 50 man hours we have finished the ceiling, walls and some of the wood work trim.  Hopefully we finish the remaining wood work trim and then lay the new floors next week.

Boy are we grateful for the opportunity and the chance to help recreate the great old house to its original glory.

Stay tuned for more updates on the completed room.   That leaves the hallway and the "mud room" as the final rooms and then,,,,,,rest,,,,ahhhhhhh rest.

Ya'll come,,, we'll leave the light on for you......

Esau's Corn,,,,, No Kidding

There's a place just outside of Dumas AR that grows the most wonderful sweet corn in the world.  When you eat it on the cob, all you have to do is get it a little warm and add a little salt.  Its the best thing you've ever eaten, or at least we think it is.

The entire thing is a process and its the same every year.   Their fields are all irrigated and the corn stalks are treaded like movie stars I'm guessing.  They have to be happy stalks to make this sweet of corn.

Once your inside the process moves pretty quickly and the entire process is over less than 15 minutes.  Give you name and time and they give you your corn sacks. 

You have to call and order your sacks of corn in April or sooner if possible and you get a day and a time to come and pick up your corn.  Yep,,,,,be on time and come with the money because if you don't someone else will get your corn.

We got ours and we have it in the freezer waiting for you to come and enjoy, so come on down.

Curb Appeal,,,,, Its Getting Better

Well, the summer is here, the tomatoes are coming in and the flowers and grass are blooming.
Thought you might want to see an updated frontal shot of the place compared to the original pictures in the beginning of the blog.

We are so blessed to be here, we have enjoyed every minute of our efforts here.  Donald and Kay, Mark and Dawn, Donna and Lisa have all made us feel welcome and have been so gracious to us.

Lots of work left to be done, but, we're getting there.

Remember what it looked like back in November 2009?  Great opportunity and lots of creativity could be used.  Well, speaking for the work and leaving the creativity to Jane and Kay, the below is only the beginning or the before.

The front looks a little different doesn't it?  Jane's flower beds, new grass on the north side and a little paint on the front begins the process.

Below is a nice "short"bed on the north side of the front yard.  You can see the new bermuda grass on the right side of the flower bed.  Takes a lot of time to  cut and rake that puppy but it sure is pretty.

Just in case you couldn't see the sunflower plants in the aboe 

Looks pretty good from the road too.  A nice semicircular flower bed divides the large front yard from Curry Road. A lot more flowers down the north side, roses down the south side and "Wa-La",,,, pretty.

Pink Tomato Festival Brings Out The Real Local Spirit

Warren, Jane's home town is in Bradley County and is known for their wonderful "Bradley County Pink Tomatoes".  And they are delicious and juicy and wonderful.  They are with out a doubt the best tomato you will ever eat.  The first are now coming off the vine and its like a fire drill for every one top get some.

The town has a festival that lasts for a week and they really do put on some great events to honor their crop.  The area has lots of local artists, singers and general characters so its a great time to enjoy the area.

A little town just north and west of Rye is called Rison and its actually the county seat for Cleveland county.  Every year some real authentic county people hitch up to their horse drawn wagons and travel the 25 miles or so south to Warren for a day at the Pink Tomato Festival.  This year, Kay gave us a "heads up" that they were coming down Curry Road and allowed us time to get the cameras out and catch the wagon train on film.

This first picture is of part of the wagon train coming down Curry Road with riders clearing the way and meeting anyone interested in the wagon train.  Can't you just imagine this as a way of life back in the days of Dick and Vera Curry (Robert Donald's dad and mom)?  This was some special treat for us.

We followed them around the bend of the old Curry home place and down in front of the WG and Erma Curry home.  (That's the one Donald and Kay are letting us remodel for family use)

Couldn't help but stop the authentic chuck wagon model in front of the house and get a picture.  This wagon is built completely to the original specifications and is considered a trophy winner at all wagon events.   I don't have the owner's name now, but when he sees this if he'll email me I'l give him the proper credit.  Great people, remembering the old days and extending the memories.  

I bet ole WG and Erma would have gone out and given them some pink tomatoes and a cold drink of water.

Man, this is just getting too good for my emotions.  We love it here, and we are so glad to be a part of Donald's and Kay's interest in restoring the old place.

If you like some of these last few blogs, call us and come on down.  We'd love to have you.

Pick'n Time At Tinsman

There is this farm down at Tinsman that grows peaches, blackberries, blueberries, plums and all different varieties of peaches.  My favorite.

Jane, Kay and Donna spent took a day and went to pick some of the special fruit for eating now, canning and freezing.  Boy is this stuff great or what?  Jane didn't want her picture included as "eating while you pick, before you weigh out" is an art and she just didn't have her game face that day.  Next year, Jane is going with her pockets lined with alum-foil just to be competitive.

The blue berries are sooooo good and soooo sweet.  Makes you want to "slap ya momma" there're so good.   

They grow them every year and have for years as I understand.  The prices are unbelievable and the freshness is unbeatable.   Plus, it don't hurt to have some excellent Pickers to go them either.

They have a number of different types of peaches and they come in at different times of the year.  All are excellent and the juice just drips off your elbows when you really get into them.

Just another "perk" for being in Rye.  Boy it just don't get much better than this!

Check Out The Landscaping and "Yard Work"

Remember this picture of the Curry Home the day we we blessed to come down here?

Well, Jane's been busy and I've been a help'n and boy does the yard look alive.  As you can see below we added two flower beds down the main entrance walk and you may not be able to tell but we added Zoysia grass on both sides of the walk.  This part of the front yard doesn't get enough sunlight, thanks to the 90' plus tall Oak tree, so we sowed the Zoysia grass for this part.  The mulch was purchased from a local saw mill that mills Cypress wood and has a huge chipper.  Pretty good stuff and we don't get it from Walmart.

Jane also required a flower bed on the north side of the front yard so we just put'er in.  Soon, all these flowers showed up and popped right out of the ground.  (Ya right)  Hours of digging, scratching and stuff later, its looks very good.

In front of the tall Oak tree and just off the road we also built a semicircle planter bed to help define the drive way and to add a special appeal for the often discussed "Curb Appeal".   Only problem is the only curb we have is when "Tubby" comes by with the grader to smooth out the road.   Oh well, it looks great anyway.  Where's Tubby when you need him.

We also gave Jane another area to work on to help cover up the butane tank.  She's well on her way and the result completes the north side appearance.  She's really pretty good at this stuff!

Shoot fire, we like flowers so much, we put them in the garden.  The tomato plants like them too I guess.

A lot of hard work and creativity has gone into this part of the remodeling.  Jane has worked very hard and done an excellent job.  

So,,,, come on by and see us,,,, we'll keep the light on for you!