home stuff | The life of Rylee

Deck Deconstruction

The DIY project of Spring 2012 has started. We are taking down the 20 year old deck including the hideous railings and will rebuild the second-story deck to have a more modern flair. The posts and the redwood floorboards will be repurposed for an arbor and pergola along the side of the yard. More photos to...

Posted on Apr 7, 2012 in DIY, home stuff | 0 comments

December catch-up

December has been filled with food, family and a snow-less warm Wisconsin December. Here a just a few random photos from the month. Above is a veggie-potato soup I put together for a quick dinner. Had lots of leftovers from a veggie tray. It’s a great way to use up those last handfuls of broccoli, cauliflower and carrots. I sauteed them with onions and a little garlic, added chicken broth and some red pepper flakes, added some raw potato, cooked, pureed and it was yummy. This prime rib roast was served for one of the family gatherings. It’s so simple and delicious. Before putting the 15lb roast in the oven – rub with a salt, pepper, powdered onion and garlic and chopped fresh rosemary....

Posted on Dec 28, 2011 in home stuff | 2 comments

Maybe this will change your mind about bats

Living along a marsh since 2001, I’ve come to appreciate the beauty and amazing nature of bats. But that wasn’t always the case…. When we first moved in – we didn’t realize that the house came with bats. The first spring was quite a surprise, when the bats came “home” for the summer to give birth to the next generation. And they were everywhere. Under our decks, in the doorways, in the basement, under woodpiles. OMG – I was scared sh*tless – because they were everywhere. And I was sure they were rabies carriers to the first degree. I wanted them gone. Here’s a post I wrote a few years ago about the Bat Education of Rylee. Over time, I’ve learned to...

Posted on Dec 11, 2011 in home stuff, wisconsin | 3 comments

Make lemonade…..

Remember back in 2009, when we lost the beautiful 40 year old Locust from a nasty lightning strike? Well, we cut the tree down ourselves later that fall and stacked it next to our house to let it age for a year. That bonus pile of wood inspired us to retrofit our drafty fireplace with a wood-burning insert the next year. Since we had all this free wood now, might as well burn it. The wood burning stove was one of the best investments we’ve made with the house. What a difference it has made on our heating bills. The beautiful Locust kept us nice and toasty warm last winter and provided us with beautiful fires. The last two logs of the tree we decided to do something different….. If all goes well, we’ll have lots...

Posted on Dec 4, 2011 in DIY, home stuff | 0 comments

A new room

Todd and I purchased our first dining room set ever and set it up in what used to be a living room in our house. Since the living room was never “lived” in, we decided to start over and make it a room for eating, crafting, thinking and talking. We think this will be a great addition to the house. Bonus, I now have a place to actually put the cranberry glass I started collecting when I was 13 years old....

Posted on Nov 5, 2009 in DIY, home stuff | 0 comments

That was a close one…

Seriously loud thunder and lightning brought both Todd and I out of a sound sleep in the middle of the night. We had no idea until this morning how close the lightning really was. Holy Cow! It totally stripped the bark off of our tree and took a whole branch down. Not sure if the tree can be saved or not. ...

Posted on Jun 8, 2009 in home stuff, madison | 0 comments