Chimney

You that beautiful fireplace that Toddles and I installed a few months ago?  You know this one.

Well it is about time we make our chimney just as quaint as our fireplace.  I know, I know, it is not a real fireplace, but it is still cozy.  I love those small projects that you start and finish in a day or two.  Not too many of those exist and when you think of one, you jump on it.  We stumbled on a sweet deal on the cobblestone type of rock we used on our pillars.  We still have leftovers so that is what we used on our chimney.  All together maybe a $200 project if that, not to shabby!  We also got both of our roofs replaced this week due to the storms.  Remember what our home looked like in the beginning...

Lucca before

Lucca in progress

It really does not look like the same home.  Todd and I are proud to have chosen such a lonely place and turned it into a quaint cutie!  Oh yea, back to the chimney.  Whola!

If you ever see smoke coming out of this chimney call 911.

It's my birthday

Ok, this is late.  But Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me, happy birthday Julia Marie, happpppy biiirrrthhhdayyyy tooooo meeeeeeee...cha cha cha.  Every year the nation stops and all turns to me to make my birthday the very specialist...ok well I am not that important but I do have the greatest boyfriend know to mankind.  Todd always does everything he can to make my day the greatest.  His soul is sweet.  So I was showered with presents, taken to Station 220 and got a trip to Starved Rock and a local b&b!  My younger brother Luke and his wife Becky joined us for dinner.  We enjoyed a seven course dinner with wine pairings.  Oh and I baked a cake for myself...I mean for Todd and I...strawberry cream cake anyone ;0)

Out with the old in with the new Patio

When we moved in we had all of this big hopes and dreams...and they are slowly coming true!  Not saying the storm was a good thing but we have treated out yard much better since it happened.  Since the fence blew away to never never land we figured hey why not tear out that ghettolicious of a concrete pad that is in the backyard and get a new and improved patio.  So Todd and I started prying and sledge hammering and using the tiny bobcat to tear piece by piece away.  We got all of the old sidewalks and all of the concrete pad loaded in our dump trailer (about 25 loads) and hauled down the street.  We had the concrete crew use some of our leftover cobblestones to outline the patio.  It looks gorg!  Now all we need is grass.  Three Dalmatians and a muddy yard does not agree with the house!

Stormy Weather

What a beautiful day to blog.  Fall is here, or at least it feels like it today.  About a month ago a crazy storm blew threw Lucca Forest.  It was kind of a Desperate Housewives moment.  You know when a tragedy happens and everyone floats out in their backyard seeing the destruction.  Although on my block it is mainly senior citizens.  But damn nice ones that have good hearts.  Everyone was nice enough to check on our bubby chubbies.  Luckily Todd and I were home and the dogs were in our basement with us safe and sound.

We had gotten home early that particular day.  We never get home early.  Luckily Melody was home, one of my childhood friends and all of us girls were getting together at a local wine bar.  As we pulled into the drive it started thundering and raining pretty good.  As I always remembered growing up mom and dad would never let us shower in storms, you know the lightning could strike you dead in the shower!  Really could that ever even happen?  Well I'm running late and I neeeeeed to cleanse my dirty little pores.  Off to the shower I go.  I had conditioner through my hair and look out the bathroom window...I was terrified.  You could not see anything besides leaves, debree and large amounts of hail.  I heard the hail pounding the side windows of our small brick ranch home.   I grab a towel and run out screaming!  Oh yes I am quite dramatic.  Todd, O'Malley, Zara, Lucy and I went barreling down the basement steps.  It lasted for maybe a minute,  maybe less.  Then it was just still.  So quiet.  This is what we came up to.

A very day for the forest.  A very lucky day for Lucca residents and our furry friends.