30-somethings + home ownership = 50-somethings??

It seems that buying a house automatically ages you twenty years.  And not just in terms of increasing your maturity by increasing responsibilities, but in other ways too.  Over the past few months, I've noticed some changes - and I can only blame the bungalow.

1.  Gone are the days when conversations at barbecues start with "I'm so hungover.  Last night I ..."  Now my opening greetings are typically pretty boring: "Do you know how to control an ant infestation?" and "Oh, I see you recently stained your deck!" and "Did you get new windows?"  That's what I notice now ... paint colors, and window panes, and overgrown foliage, and roof styles, and kitchen counters, and light fixtures, and ... and ... and.  (It's so bad that when we go on bike rides together, the only words we exchange are "Look at that house.")

2.  We have a routine.  A routine!  I've prided myself on always switching things up, and before I knew it, we've been going to the same brunch spot every Sunday.  Which is ridiculous considering how many brunch spots there are in Portland.  We also bike to the Farmer's Market every Saturday morning to pick up that week's fruit and bread.  We've also found ourselves watching Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune every evening and playing a game of Scrabble every night before bed.  And let's not even talk about how EARLY bedtime is now!  Sheesh!

3.  I sit on the front porch admiring my mowing stripes.  If that's not a "more mature" thing to do, I don't know what is.  I take great pride in completed yard work. It's a good thing our porch is too small for lawn chairs.  If I was sitting in a lawn chair, I think I'd have to add more than just twenty years to my age.  Though I think back to the many hours my father and grandfather have spent sitting on porches, and maybe it's not the bungalow.  Maybe my porch sitting is hereditary.

Aged or not, we're loving our new lot in life.  (Lot, get it?  Ha ha.)  It's truly a blessing.

And here are some photos from our brunch excursions.  We go to a place called Slappy Cakes where you make your own pancakes at your table.  It's become a favorite because, guess what?!, they have gluten-free batter!

 

the bloke and his latte

 

the bird with her mouth full of flapjack

 

the bloke's creation - apple pancakes with chocolate syrup and sausage

 

the bird's creation - chocolate chip pancakes with bananas and whipped cream

 

the bird pancake!

 

the bloke pancake!

 

and the bungalow pancake!

(with the tree the bloke tried to knock down with the truck)

Love,

the bird (and the bloke)

Finally nesting!

When it's sunny in Portland, you are absolutely not allowed to be inside.  This is not a good rule when you're trying to do indoor household tasks, like unpacking and painting.  And it's been gorgeous here!  But thanks to help from mama bird and a few rainy days, we are finally done with the living room.

The valuable lessons we learned while updating the bungalow's common area:

1.  Never ever buy Ikea furniture if you plan to paint it.  After the arduous tasks of sanding and painting (which take WEEKS longer than you expect), you have to put it together.  And adding just a centimeter of thickness in paint makes this nearly impossible.  I'm sure it was an interesting sight seeing the bloke and the bird sitting on a shelf to add weight while trying to screw in the last piece.

2.  If I (the bird) feel really passionate about a paint color and the bloke is on the fence, I just need to make sure it's named after a food or drink.  "But this darker brown is called 'Cup of Cocoa.'"  "Oh, well if it's called that, how can we not choose that one?"  The red furniture in the living room is called "Cherry Tart."  The bloke said as long as I make him whatever food the paint color is named after, he's good with it.  The day we got done painting, I picked up two mini cherry pies from Starbucks and a 3 Musketeers bar.  It was close enough for his sweet tooth.

3.  When using toggle bolts, if the first one falls off inside of the wall, the next two probably will as well.  Yes, it took us three tries before we realized our screws were too short.

Now, for the fun part - pictures!

The Ikea shelves that we painted cherry tart red.

The bird and mama bird made these using fabric scraps and old frames.

One of the bloke's lamps that the bird got a hold of and painted cherry tart red.

 The other cute cherry tart red lamp.

A 360 degree view of the living room - I clearly don't have a very steady hand.

The next room to be finished - the dining room!

Love,

the bird (and the bloke)