Weekend Happenings
Many of you have asked how my mom and stepdad enjoyed their stay at Casa Petersik after driving seven hours south from NY to pay us a visit.
Well, true to grandparent form they barely noticed their surroundings. All eyes were on the beanette of course.
But when Clara was napping or asleep for the night they definitely made a point to say how much they liked the guest room and the rest of our house for that matter (it was their first time seeing our new place) which was really nice to hear. The weekend consisted mainly of oohing and aahhing over everything that Clara did, eating our way around town (we went to The Boathouse and Crab Louie’s along with getting takeout from Joe’s Inn), exploring the petting farm and zoo at Maymont, hanging out at Stony Point Fashion Park…
… and doing our fair share of yard work.
Yup, my mom is one of those people who can’t sit still. So if Clara was napping, mom was outside raking. I kid you not. At one point I stuck my head outside to see her raking the neighbor’s yard. Seriously, it wasn’t even our property. So I gently redirected her towards our house and counted down the seconds until Clara would wake up so I could lure her back inside using my offspring as bait. It was pretty much one of those sitcom worthy situations. There was even a random neighborhood dog who came by to see what mom was up to.
And yes, she’s wearing heels while she rakes. My 4’11″ mom is never caught in flats. Ever.
For a bit of time during a particularly amazing nap on Clara’s part, John stayed inside while she slept… which gave mom and I the opportunity to clean out the area to the right of the carport:
Here’s what it looked like before:
And here’s a close up of some of the things we “discovered”:
Pulling out all of the random items in the dirt (in the hopes of planting something pretty there someday) was like an archeological dig. Here are a few things that we found among the dirt and leaves:
- An old trophy with the arm broken off
- Hunks of glass and broken pottery
- Small empty plant pots
- Various metal yard ornaments
- Homemade concrete mushroom statues
- Various shells and coral pieces
- Slabs of slate and other rock fragments
We also found fishing line weights, 41 cents, three bricks, two arrowheads (which I totally want to save and frame in a shadowbox) and a giant steel arrow along with the number 29 stamped out of metal. Here’s what it looked like after my mom and I finished cleaning things up:
Go Team Shorty.
Here’s an after shot of the whole carport after we did some decluttering in there too:
It’s amazing how just cleaning out that area to the right of where we park makes the whole space feel a lot less crowded and tight (and tucking the big garbage pail into the fenced area that was built behind that walkway to obscure it definitely looked better than keeping it out in the open). Although the real change will definitely be converting the carport to a garage sometime down the line.
Oh and we realize that we haven’t shared pic of our house’s gorgeous cobblestone driveway yet (we still have so many unseen nooks and crannies to share with you guys!) so here’s what it looked like after mom was done with her crazy raking spree:
We still have to cut back all of that liriope (also known as Monkey Grass) that lines both sides of the driveway, so it’ll grow in all fresh and green in the next month or so.
John’s sister Emily, her husband Todd, and their 16 month old son Emanuel also dropped by one night for dinner after their power unexpectedly went out. And guess what we got to take for a spin? Our new dining table. John, mom, Jack, Clara, and I added up to five, and with the addition of Emanuel, Emily, and Todd we were a group of eight! It’s funny how quickly our family multiplies, which is exactly why we wanted such a big honking table to begin with. So we brought in all six of our dining chairs from the kitchen along with our two thrifted office chairs and this is what we were left with:
Of course the room is only about 5% done, but that didn’t matter. We had a blast gathered around the new table eating take-out Italian food (from Joe’s Inn) and watching Emanuel toddle around (that’s Emily chasing him in the background).
And those of you who mentioned that round tables are great for conversations were totally right- everyone talked to everyone! So our weekend with mom and Jack could best be summed up as a rootin’ tootin’ good time. It was really fun to “break in” our house (give our guest room some traffic, test drive our new table, and even squeeze in some much needed yard work). Some of the best memories in our last house are tied to times when it was full of people – and stuffing this house with laughter, food, and family definitely made it feel even more like home to us.
Psssst- We’re answering one of our most commonly asked questions over on BabyCenter. What do you do when you get a home related gift that you can’t stand from a friend or family member? It’s not an easy situation, but we’re sharing how we handle it – and we’d love to know what you guys do.
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looks like a great time! i was one of those people wondering :-)
maybe someone already asked, but is that a Southern Magnolia tree in your front yard, to the left of the driveway?? if so, you are in for SUCH a treat in the spring! talk about “budget blooms.” OMGoodness. I hope it is one!!!
Yup, that’s a huuuuge magnolia. Can’t wait to see the blooms!
xo,
s
i don’t understand how you found real arrowheads in the dirt on the side of your carport. i mean, it’s super awesome, but… how?
We definitely don’t think they originated there- they were just tossed there with the fishing lures, shells, old pottery, and lawn ornaments, etc. They seemed to just store little odd things that they picked up along the way in that area (even a trophy, haha).
xo,
s
Love productive family pow wows!
Btw, I have to confess to you that I just discovered your blog last Thursday and literally spent from Thurs through Sunday reading through tons of your posts! You guys are just fantastic and so inspirational. My boyfriend and I are in the closing process of purchasing my/our first home and I have been brainstorming all sorts of fun ideas for the new place – can’t wait to put some of your ideas into action.
I only wish you guys were still doing mood boards.. .I need some serious help with my dining room! Especially since we don’t have a dining room table, and who knows when that purchase will happen!
You can always post pics of your house and ask for advice over on our Facebook page! Lots of readers usually chime in (and we try to when we can too!). Good luck with your first home- and have fun!
xo,
s
How adorable is your mom raking in heels, love it!
So I LOVE the round table. I’ve been thinking about them because they look so cozy and inviting and it’s great to see you guys lovin it.
Wow! The driveway is amazing! I would have bought the house for that detail alone.
Quite jealous you are able to dig in dirt and wear spring jackets. Still sitting under piles of snow here in the Midwest. Looks like your weekend was a blast!
Love the driveway! We have lariope lining our front walk. In early spring we set the lawn mower on high and just mower over it. It’s the easiest way to trim it-takes 5 minutes and within a couple weeks it greens all up and looks great BUT, it is invasive, sending out underground runners all over. I usually wait until the day after a rain and pull the stray while the ground is soft.
Who’s the big friendly pup!?
Haha, he’s a random dog friend from up the street who stopped by to see what was going on.
xo,
s
You sure do look like your Mom and that’s a total compliment, Sherry. The outside of your home looks very fresh and savvy.
Go Team Shorty! That made my day!
I laughed when I read about your mother raking leaves on the neighbor’s yard. When I was a child, my parents definitely benefitted whenever my mother’s parents visited from Germany: backyard fences were replaced, walls repapered, shelves installed. But my favorite memory is walking in the front door after walking home from elementary school to find my grandmother in her underwear on a ladder in the livingroom vacuuming the ceiling (and this was with an upright cleaner; she was sans clothes because she didn’t want them to get dusty). My grandparents had major energy, playing tennis through their 70s. They have only just begun to slow down as they enter their 90s. I hope I inherited their good genes; I know I didn’t get their industriousness.
I was thinking about your future garage and how sad it would be to lose the light from the windows on that side of the house. (I’m a sunshine freak.) I’m sure it would be cheaper and easier to turn the carport into a garage since it already has a roof, but since you’ve got such a nice, long driveway, have you thought about building the garage in front of the carport (you could do an exit door at the back and still enter the house from the laundry room). Maybe turn the carport into another patio? Or maybe just put doors on the front of the carport and still leave it open on the other two sides? My kitchen doesn’t have any windows and I hate it.
We’re just planning to add some large windows to the future garage (on the side and back along with some right within the front door) so we still get some nice light in there like we currently do. One thing we’ve learned with the one living room approach to this house (we never used our second “formal” one in the old house) is that we don’t need two patios or two sunrooms. But it’s definitely a personal preference thing!
xo,
s
Back to the liriope conversation, when is the best time to cut it back? We didn’t know that last year and ours is definitely looking rough. Also, I am in need of some good online sources for gardening advice, any recommendations?
Thanks!
We’ve heard lots of different things (like Superbowl Sunday) but it might depend on where you live, how long of a winter you have, etc. Someone up the street from us cut theirs back this weekend and they have lovely landscaping so we trust them (haha) and plan to follow suit! As for online gardening, bhg.com has some awesome free garden plans that you can download. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Looks like you all had a great weekend! And it’s great getting to see your house in use with guests.
And this is too funny: I clicked on the Joe’s Inn link because we love Joe’s, and my fiance is the guy in the picture at the buffet and my future father-in-law is the one throwing the pizza. I had no idea their pictures were on the website and neither did they! Thanks for posting!
Hahahahahaha, that’s awesome. I love when things like that happen.
xo,
s
Love that you got to take your big family table for a spin!
And speaking of that lovely round table, what are the chances of a future post about tablescapes/settings for round tables? I’m always stumped with mine! Maybe a project for the next Katie Bower visit? We definitely need a 3rd installment of “Table Settings with Katie and Sherry: New houses, New Tables”! :o)
Yes! It’s the perfect Katie Bower visit activity!
xo,
s
Don’t you love cracks in the ceiling? When we moved into our house there were a few. I walked down stairs one day to a steel beem being installed. Not longer after while upstairs cleaning I heard a large “ccrracckk” noise and the floor shifted. Sure enough Mr.A downstairs had jacked the house up to level. We now have a lovely larger crack through out living room ceiling (or whatever room it is, its just sort of…there). Thankfully it is a super duper awesome popcorn ceiling which will be replaced during renovations!
P.S) Lovin’ the Mama Dukes in the heels. Cracked me up. My MIL came over one day during a power outage and couldn’t sit still, so she got a large pot of snow from outside, melted it on the woodstove and then did dishes in the sink with it. Resourceful Mom’s are the best.
Which P.S. I realize this post has nothing to do with cracks in the ceiling. Thus what happens when I combine reading way too many posts at once on my lunch break.
Haha my mom is the same way! Anytime she comes over for a lengthy period of time she always ends up going outside and does some yardwork. It’s her way of de-stressing, let’s her focus on something else.
Great post! I agree with another poster — You and your mom look so much alike. And I thought my sister was the only one who wore heels all the time. :-)
Wow, it’s easy to see where Sherry got her good looks! And I notice that Lil’ Bean has the same gorgeous smile. If y’all get any cuter you’re going to explode!
So many fun things going on in this post! That cobblestone driveway is gorgeous!!! I love it. And how fun that you got to break in your new table. I think round tables are the best.
Hey Y’all!
Loved this post…. my mom is also small of stature but big of rake. However, I’ve never seen her in heels… hahahaha. Your mother’s work on the carport area, amazing transformation. Also, serious driveway envy. We plan on using our tax return to improve our curb appeal and also give us a “patio” area for spring and summer cookouts and homebrewing! Wifey got me hooked on your posts just before you discovered beannette… and we love all your posts about her. We plan on expanding our family soon….
Lots of love to y’all, the Beannette, and Burger (tell him Jack and Riley say “hey”).
Stan (aka NW Bearded Brewer, Hubs)
Aw thanks for the kind words Stan! We’ll have to pass your complements on to mom (love “small of stature but big of rake” – haha). And good luck with the family expansion. It’s the best thing we ever did. And good luck with the curb appeal makeover too!
xoxo,
s (& fam)
May I please ask where you got that lovely blazer from? I LOVE IT!
Sure! It’s from Target (on sale) about four months ago. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
So great! Those are some of my favorite restaurants in The River City!