Embarking on our latest home project – renovating our living room

We’ve been in this house for slightly under three years, and we consider the living room a minor eye sore. We have the previous owner paint colors, worn-out window treatments, and original carpeting. We’ve got still-comfortable furniture purchased back in 2003, but it’s been twice slip-covered. We’ve got tables that we picked up second-hand. Two old table lamps light the room. The kids primarily use the room for reading, and we celebrate Christmas in there annually. It’s more of a “spare” room than a “living” room. I do think the cats spend more time in there than we humans do.

Time for a change.

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After a few weeks of discussions, we’ve committed ourselves to making it a real room. We’ve been consulting with an interior designer, and turning it into a library or den where you can also hang out and relax. It’s going to be a few weeks before it’s closer to the future state, but here are some ideas of what we have scheduled, planned, or still considering:

  • Hardwood flooring (Purchased! Measuring and installation to be scheduled)
  • Area rug (We have something in mind.)
  • Paint (Color selected)
  • Built-in bookshelves (To store our favorite books to curl up and read)
  • Furniture (Still deciding, but looking at one loveseat, two comfy chairs, an ottoman / table, a built-in window bench, and maybe a bar)
  • New window treatments
  • New artwork
  • Recessed lighting (and a new ceiling mount/box for when we eventually find a really cool light fixture)

It’s all exciting and expensive, but long overdue. And I’m glad we’re not waiting 10 more years to get it done.

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Tonight’s theme is “Fire!”

I worked from home Monday, which gave an opportunity for some free time (which I usually have to spend commuting.) The kids and I had some initial difficulty but we eventually got the fire pit going. It took three Ipes to start a fire!

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Next we prepared ribeye steaks and sides for dinner.

Lastly, for dessert, we broke out the graham crackers, Hershey milk chocolate, and marshmallows.  Delicious!

 

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Lily’s first time on a major roller coaster — The Joker at Six Flags Great Adventure

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Sometimes Lily forgets how to eat a donut

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The Ipes are gardening again

We gardened in 2015, took a break in 2016, and now we are gonna try our hand at gardening again in 2017!

We wanted to keep our garden-related shopping at Home Depot cheap (seeds and weed-blocking tarp), but we didn’t walk out with our two carts for less than $200. That’s the Home Depot / Lowe’s story, isn’t it?

The four of us got the garden plot in a decent shape by the mid-afternoon, after many hours we had the garden cleared of weeds, tilled, old fencing removed, and ready for planting.

This year, we’re gonna try to grow melons, cucumbers, spinach, broccoli, tomatoes, and something else I’m probably forgetting. It’s probably green peppers.

The kids are also trying to grow cilantro and parsley in the house. It’s gonna be an interesting gardening year. Wish us luck!

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Steak with chimichurri sauce

We didn’t have skirt steak to make it authentic, but we made NY strip steaks with homemade Chimichurri sauce, fried plantains, and grilled carrots.

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My 41st birthday weekend

The Ipes dine at the *new* Steak N Shake in West Windsor

The Ipes dine at the *new* Steak N Shake in West Windsor

This year I wanted to keep my birthday pretty low-key. No big parties. No dressing up.  No big fancy dinners. No polite debating whether the 40-year-olds should go to a club, and see who drops out before we get to the sidewalk.

During the day, I was running around during errands, but the four Ipes met up for lunch — specifically, burgers, fries, and milkshakes — at the new Steak N Shake that somewhat recently opened up in West Windsor. Yes, you heard me. A Steak N Shake located above the Mason-Dixon Line. I can’t believe it, and they have the hats!

In the evening, the brave / fun people met up at Air Trampoline Sports on Rt 35 in Cliffwood NJ. We were going to dress comfortably, and act like kids again. For an hour, we jumped on trampolines, played dodgeball, and jousted like American Gladiators.

20170422_183752.mp4 from Joel Ipe on Vimeo.

While they also had a rock wall available, I decided to try to conquer this thing called the Walking Sticks, where you climb successfully higher on these wobbly podiums. It gets high, and you can easily lose your balance. You know what, I’m 41 years old. At this point in my life, the only thing I have to be afraid of in life is quitting. And I ain’t no quitter. Never have been. Never will.

Joel Conquers the Walking Sticks from Joel Ipe on Vimeo.

After we all got hot and sweaty, we met up with our friends Lenny and Evanessa at Big Ed’s BBQ in nearby Matawan for endless all-you-can-eat ribs. My God, there was a lot of food.

Lazy Sunday afternoon with the Josephs

Lazy Sunday afternoon with the Josephs

On Sunday, I went to the gym, we all went to church, and had lunch at home. After lunch, we drove down to my south Jersey to watch my niece Abigail play soccer, then we hung out at the playground, and around my sister’s house. We later had dinner, had some birthday cake, then got on the road home.

Oh, in case you were wondering about birthday gifts…

  • a couple Amazon gift cards (always appreciated)
  • a new Polar H10 heart rate monitor for when I go cycling or working out while traveling
  • a new lens hood for my Nikor 55-200 mm lens
  • a replacement copy of Star Wars Episodes IV-VI on blu-ray, since no one knows what happened to my original set

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This is how you celebrate being 41, people.

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Sometimes it’s hard to get work done around here

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Spring time in Zuccotti Park

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Happy Easter!

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