Our extremely affordable apartment makeover...the reveal

We have finished furnishing our apartment, so I thought I would post some pics. All the furniture, furnishings, and decorations we either found for free at the Take It Or Leave It or bought at a bargain at garage sales...all for around $500.

For the "before" pics click here and here.

The living room:

The spare bedroom:


The office:


And our master suite:

Nantucket Limerick Challenge

Here is the Nantucket Limerick Challenge. Pawtucket and Manhasset are actual places.

There once was a man from Nantucket,
Who kept all of his cash in a bucket,
But his daughter, named Nan,
Ran away with a man,
And as for the bucket, Nantucket.
—Princeton Tiger

But he followed the pair to Pawtucket,
The man and the girl with the bucket;
And he said to the man,
He was welcome to Nan,
But as for the bucket, Pawtucket.
—Chicago Tribune

Then the pair followed Pa to Manhasset,
Where he still held the cash as an asset,
But Nan and the man
Stole the money and ran,
And as for the bucket, Manhasset.
—Exchange

Nan had it sent up to Alaska,
It’s farther, she thought, than Nebraska.
Did she and her man,
Fool her Pa with this plan?
The next time I see her, Alaska.
—mailed to us by 'A California Dale,' who credits
his inspiration to Margaret Dale, whose contribution
to this tale appears at www.yesterdaysisland.com

Let’s be clear on Miss Nan and her mate,
The bucket of cash sealed her fate,
Though her motives were pure,
And the good life seemed sure,
‘Twas a community property state.
—Peter Homes,Washington, DC

Okay! Who's got their own limerick? Post it here!

Welcome Baby Emma Louise Potter!!!

Christy and Brian are now the proud parents of a second girl. Christy went in for her scheduled C-Section on Thursday morning and delivered a beautiful, healthy girl. Emma Louise Potter was born Thursday, August 20th, at 8:40 am and weighed 8lb 5oz. Over the course of the pregnancy, Christy's doctor was unable to determine the sex of the baby, so when the baby was born it was a complete surprise to see a baby girl. Kind of romantic, in my opinion. Congratulations Christy & Brian!!!

Hurricane....Shmurricane....

Well, my first hurricane was one big fat disappointment. There was none of the running to the plywood store for the covering of the windows....or the stock-piling of the flashlight batteries and the bottled water for the power outages...or any ensuing panic whatsoever. In fact, if it hadn't been on the news, we wouldn't have even known there was a hurricane. It passed several hundred miles out to sea. This is what our friend Eric (aka Big Daddy) had to say about it: "Hurricane Bill? Hah! It didn't even blow hard enough to knock over the gnomes in my garden."

That being said...a few people were washed out to sea at Acadia National Park. I hope they are okay. "Hurricane Horror: Two Missing After Young Girl, Others Are Swept Into Maine Sea"

Oooooo! There's a hurricane a comin!

Check it out. Hurricane Bill is forming in the Atlantic and is heading our way! Crazy, huh? we're not sure how bad it will be. Probably just severe storms. Michael and I agree on our emergency plan....we're just going over to Brian and Christy's. They have food!

Check out the hurricane at Stormpulse.

Afternoon at the beach

Our group beach self-portrait...guess who's foot is who's...

Here is Michael making new friends on the beach. They are apparently relatives of the Kennedy's. Later, after much wine, Michael would not remember meeting these guys or asking them to be in a picture with him...but I have the proof!

I've got my binoculars and my beef jerky. All set!

Doesn't this look fake? Like he's in front of a painting or something?

Check ONE item of MY bucket list

When I grew up we only had 5 TV channels. The three major networks and two PBS stations. So, I watched a LOT of PBS! My favorites were the movie musicals, the after school shows like "3-2-1 Contact!", and the live concerts. Nearly every weekend Mom, Dad and I would watch the Boston Pops in concert. I idolized them. And Saturday night I got to see them LIVE on Nantucket. It was a thrill for me and an item that is now crossed off my Bucket List.

This is an annual concert and from the way those around us prepared for the evening you could tell they do it every year. These people brought racks of folding chairs, collapsible tables, enormous coolers, candles, gas lamps, and lots and lots of food. As for Michael and me....we had 2 bottles of wine, a bag of jerky, some corn chips, and a huge blanket. Just what we needed to sit on the beach, watch the sun set, and enjoy one of the most entertaining orchestras in the business.

Can I first say that Keith Lockhart is short. I mean, I knew he was short. I remember when he auditioned to replace John Williams as conductor how energetic, cute, and well...short... he was. Seriously, the guy is tiny.

The show started with an introduction by Chris Matthews, who is host of MSNBC's "Hardball" (Boo! I can't stand that show). He was surprisingly charming and funny. Then the National Anthem was sung by a local high school girl with a lovely voice (Lucky girl! I'd give and arm an leg to sing with the Boston Pops). Then Keith came bounding onto the stage proudly wearing his Boston Red Sox Jersey and launched into a series of baseball and Fenway Park themed songs. (Lisa, you and Anita totally should have been here!)

The second half of the show featured Michael Cavanaugh. Michael is the star of the Broadway Show "Moving Out", which features incredible choreography by Twyla Tharp set to the music of Billy Joel. He was FANTASTIC!




Oh! We had a celebrity sighting too! We just happend to sit down 10 feet from John Shea and his family. John Shea I know best as Lex Luthor from the 90's TV show "Lois And Clark". He was also on Mutant X, Law & Order, Sex In The City, and Gossip Girls. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0790291/

This concert couldn't have come at a better time. The last few weeks have been trying for me. I thought coming out here would be refreshing and exciting. But I've been kind of depressed. We have been working so much that I rarely have energy for anything else. And to be honest, cleaning houses isn't my favorite activity. Plus in the back of my mind I can't help but worry about being so far away from my family in Idaho and my dad who is still in the hospital. So, I've been questioning why we came here. But here now is a perfect reason:

Where else am I going to so easily see the Boston Pops live right on the beach?

Cheers,
Ernest