Looks Like Home Again!

For several years we've had a beautiful palm plant at the front door, along with several other potted plants near the porch. Since things are beginning to get back to normal, we replaced our palm this weekend! Nothing in the flowerbeds yet, but it does look a little more like home with the return of our palm.



Progress continues with hardi-board closing off the exposed concrete pilings around the front door. It took a little creativity to figure out how to seal off the hardi with the remaining stucco, but they're on the right track.



Check it out ... we no longer have a gaping hole above the door frame.



What's this? Privacy lattice work between us and #2?



New this week ~ more open lattice across the back of the garage. We've got a working gate, even though it's crooked & doesn't line up with the latch. All minor things that Juan can fix once the Galveston guys are finished.




The view from out back is a dose of reality. You'll notice the missing sections of stucco.

These make-shift walls are a real bummer, but the Association is getting closer to approval on an SBA disaster loan. That will allow us to complete the repairs while the lawsuit is being processed.

Landscapers have been working for the last two weeks, planting grass and trimming trees. All of the large palms look great, although Denny will be sad that he can't hang over the balcony and see the bugs, lizards and tree frogs on the palm branches brushing against our house!

A number of people have asked me about The Waterman and I've been so self-absorbed I hadn't been over there to shoot any photos. As expected, it's a mess.

Here's the area between the restaurant and the marina where a beautiful deck and atrium with plants was located before the storm. The door to the restaurant is on the left.

This is the original pier and the area where the boards go straight across is where the bait shop was located.

This shot shows where that nice, wide deck ran down the side of the bulkhead with stairs that went up to the balcony dining area. All removed courtesy of IKE.

The Marina is another story entirely ~ it was completely destroyed since it was a "ground level" building.

As you can see, there is only the front wall standing. Everything on the water side was destroyed.

The blue area is where the bathrooms were ~ you can still see one mirror on the wall that survived.

The bay windows on the remaining wall.

View from the East side ~ a sad reminder of the power of moving water!

Golfing with Grandpa!

Hmmm ... who's driving?

Uh-Oh ... it's BRADY!

Putting with Dad

Not entirely sure what is the most UNsafe element of this photo ... a 22 month old driving OR a 65 year old hanging onto the back of the cart!

Needless to say, Galveston is F-U-N!

Luke, Zach & the BrewZoo

We had a good day with Jason, Melissa, Luke & Zach on Monday of that week ~ highly recommend the Shrimp 'n Stuff for a little "fried on fried". Can't beat those shrimp po-boys & hush-puppies! We also had a fun outing to Mario's Pizza later in the week.

Ike REALLY enjoyed the boys spending time with him ...

Elvis ... not so much!

Little got in on the action with both Luke & Zach. Denny was probably baking himself on the balcony since he didn't make it into any of the photos.

Watching Scooby-Doo with Grandpa ...

"Happy Birday, GrrraNan"

... well, that's how Brady says it anyway!

After my July 11th Kelsey-Seybold event, Jerry and I packed up the cats (all 4) and headed for the bay. With Jason, Melissa, Luke & Zack in Galveston for their second week of vacation we had hoped to get in some "grand-kid time"! As it turned out, the Dallas crew had guests for most of the week and I worked a lot. I did take some time to enjoy my birthday with Jerry, Jeff & Brady at the Country Club.

Sun's coming up over West Bay ~ it's going to be a beautiful day!

Brady trying a pool-side Pina Colada ... VIRGIN Pina Colada for those of you headed for the phone to call CPS!

Brady likes to "get you" and play "ticka, ticka" when bare feet are within reach.

It's always best to practice your yoga "tree pose" before jumping into the pool!

Fun with Grandpa ...

Squirrel Mania

You guys may have wondered why I haven't posted to the blog in a while (or not!), but I've been working, working, working. That's a good thing when you're self-employed! Anyway, here are a few snaps to bring you up-to-date on the Trianon Street Wildlife activity.

One of our squirrel friends eating birdseed from the feeder.



The Velvet Elvis Squirrel Hunter



As you can see, our squirrels are quite comfortable snacking away while Denny paws furiously at the window.



They're even comfortable enough to come look in the window to get a good look at who is watching them eat!



I'm sure there are 1000 reasons why I shouldn't be feeding these squirrels, but they're too cute and ~ unlike the bats next door ~ they are content to STAY OUTSIDE!

The Long Road Back

It has been quite a journey recovering from Hurricane Ike and as you scroll through the photos you'll notice that there are NONE from the outside. Still missing walls ~ attorney going to court as the settlement offer wasn't acceptable. More on that when there is some progress.

Elvis did NOT get involved in any of the work this weekend!

Little hung out on the patio and gave himself heat stroke on Saturday. He and Denny LOVE the balcony ~ they don't care how hot it gets.

The kitchen looks brand new with the new dishwasher (works great ~ very quiet) that kicked off the counter top replacement. When the 25 year old dishwasher finally died, we learned that the last idiots who installed the tile floor just tiled across in front of the old dishwasher. When it went out they had to cut the legs off with a metal saw to get it out of the hole. New counter top had to be raised so the new dishwasher could slide in once they tiled underneath it. There's some real quality work going on in Galveston ~ I'm always amazed.

Woo hoo ... check out Jerry's new TV! It's on the wall and now when you come up the stairs you don't bump into the old BIG TV stand. Also replaced the "almost new" fireplace tiles because they were cracking off the wall from the storm. Or possibly from faulty installation because the same guys installed the kitchen floor ... ;)

Love these 1x1 tiles ~ they're a mixture of travertine, frosted and clear glass and some little decorative ceramic ones. Connected by mesh so they should hold up. Took a gamble and ordered them off the internet for 1/2 price ... gotta love that.

Furniture moved around to accommodate the TV over the fireplace. Had to give up the tile work under the bar because of the kitchen counter tops, but it looks nice without the old wall covering ~ it's just textured and painted sheetrock now.

Denny was recovering from his heat exhaustion earlier in the day. Both he and Little fell asleep for several hours outside and when they woke up they could barely walk inside they were so weak. You'd think they'd be smarter than that!

Several improvements made to the 2nd Floor bath ~ removed the wallpaper and textured/painted the side wall, also removed the old rusted medicine cabinet. Replaced the mirror with a framed one from Target (looks pretty good) and designed a special enclosed cat box/pass through from the bathroom to the master bedroom closet. More on that later as it's not finished out yet.

Master Bedroom painted blue and, as an added benefit, the missing chunks of the water facing wall have been repaired.

Jerry's "office area" in the extra bedroom ~ no changes.

New queen-size bed to replace the 12 year old twin beds. This will be much more comfortable for guests. We do plan to move the art around so it's in the right place ... and straight!

Never mind those "leopard look" walls ... they'll be painted one color very soon!

Ike just kicking back and enjoying his beach weekend too. He seems to enjoy looking out the window at his old stomping grounds in the comfort of AC.

The Cheeto Incident clean up ... in the new kitchen sink.