Bathroom Bump-Up: Scariest DIY Project EVER

Our humble abode has come a long way in the past three years. The deck went from being a serious health-threat to being completely lovely, the basement (oh, the basement) went from pathetic to sob-fest-inducing to sheer perfection, and the other rooms have all stepped up their game a bit, too. But, one room remains untouched and ever-so humble, keeping our home from being the shining star she should be. The room that is the zit on the face of our beauty queen?

The bathroom.

Notice I called it “the” bathroom. As in, not the “master” bathroom or “hall” or “guest.” This is it, people. Our sole powder room.

And we’re gutting it.

And God-willing, we’re putting it back together before anyone needs to take a private moment.

Behold, our official before photos:

Eight feet of 1970s-era lighting. Paaaarty!

Oh, my.

The previous bathroom-renovator forgot to seal the grout. And so, no amount of scrubbing or noxious chemicals has helped. The shower will be de-grouted, re-grouted and left alone, lest we rip out the tiles and find some big, ugly plumbing problem. Tearing the basement down to the studs taught us at least one valuable lesson: If you don’t see the problem, it’s not a problem. Ignorance is bliss in this household.

The toilet is original to our 1955 bungalow, which makes me shake with fear every time we have houseguests or a party.

The mirror is huge and extends over the toilet, which I imagine, is kinda awkward for dudes.

The countertop is tile and impossible to keep clean.

One thing I love: lots and lots of storage.

Stay tuned, this project is sure to be ridiculous. 

Des Moines, I'm wearing your clothes

This summer, we're lucky enough to get to celebrate with seven of our pals as they tie the knot. Of course, with seven weddings comes a smattering of engagement parties, showers and other festivities. This, of course, requires a gal to be lookin' good like all the time.

Which is really, really pricey. Especially when I prioritized spray tans and bought a six-pack of them because really, no clothes are gonna look good on a pasty blonde.

Luckily, Des Moines is home to at least two super delightful consignment shops, a category of boutique I have only come to recently appreciate. Basically, when Des Moines hoit-iest and toit-iest tire of their Vera Wang, J Crew and other swank attire, they pass it off to these shops where bargain-hungry wedding guests like myself scoop them up.

I've found myself stopping by both Francy Pants and Worn (which is now expanding to West Glen!) about once a week to see what new steals I can find. So far, I've got two wins beneath my belt:

This yellow Banana Republic dress, which I got for $34.

And this simple black dress from J Crew which was my very favorite buy at $14 - tags on. 

Trust me, it's super cute, even when I'm not posing with my sister's leg.

What consignment deals have you found? 

Keeping up with dudes

Holla!

I spent last weekend doing the following:

• Camping! In a tent! That I pitched! For two whole nights! With no potties for at least 100 yards!
• This is truly a fact worthy of five exclamation points, as you see, I was raised a Girl Scout, but Troop 1050 of Henry Elementary were hardly the Red Feathers of Culver City, ifyouknowwhatI'msayin.
• Keeping up with Hubs and his pals on a 110-mile bike ride, even though they all have much (MUCH) nicer bikes than I. Thank you, Body Pump, for the quads of steel. Even with relatively little training, this ride was ten bazillion times easier than our little trip to Winterset last year. 
• It seems having a little less chunk to haul around makes a heckuva difference! I'm guessing all that running helped my endurance, too.
• Also, this was not a race. But I want all you fine people to know that I passed many, many riders on nice bikes, with fancy, unflattering bike shorts and $100 helmets. It seems looking like a biker does not make one a biker. Who knew?
• RAGBRAI, which for those of you who are not familiar is:
• A bike ride across the state of Iowa, in which I rode the final two days from Cedar Rapids to Clinton on the river.
• 
• Street parties galore!

• 
• 20,000 riders deep.

• 
• A little of this. 

• 
• Adorable local om-pa bands! 

• 
• PIE. Lots and lots of pie. 

It was so fun! My cell phone broke right before we headed out, so I was free as a bird all weekend, which was delightful. We're already plotting our return for 2013. Hopefully with slick team t-shirts and custom koozies. 

Were any of my lovely readers on RAGBRAI? I actually met up with an old college friend who randomly found me on the street in Anamosa. I was shocked because I had sunglasses on, and I can never recognize people when they wear sunglasses, particularly when I haven't seen them in seven years. Can you?

Related: your favorite type of pie? Mine is berry. With ice cream.

About that break...

It was just three weeks ago that I declared that this would be a project-free summer. No major overhauls, no weekends spent chugging Fraps and darting back and forth to Home Depot, no stress, no nothing except pool days, weddings and rum.

Well, I'm a huge stinking liar.

Yesterday, Hubs and I came to a realization:

Tiling the kitchen floor would require us pulling up two layers of vinyl, laying a new subfloor and then - actually tiling.

Gag me with a spoon!

Laying a resilient floor, however, would require us vacuuming a bit, pulling up the trim (which needs replacing anyway) and snapping some plants into place. It'd also cost about a third of the price.

And so, instead of saving and re-energizing to do a tile job, we're on the hunt for resilient floors and plan to make progress this summer.

Grasscloth resilient planks - yes please! 

We just can't let the summer pass without making one tiny house tweak. It wouldn't be right.

Have you ever had to take a DIY break? Or could you not stay away?

Des Moines at its finest

Ahoy, Monday!

It was such an awesome weekend to be kickin' it in Central Iowa. Friday, I went and got my hair all done up, plus some big fun makeup, which I never do. Then, I hopped my newly chic self on a Bcycle and pedaled to meet Hubs and friends at the Art Fest.

I've finally hoped on the neon train. Hello, beach tan!

We tried out Host for the first time and I have to say, the curried chicken salad was delectable.

All dressed up!

Saturday, we ran errands like monsters and stocked up on groceries before getting all primped and primed for our friends' wedding. They held it at the Teachout Building in the East Village, which is the same place we had our reception, so it was fun to get back in there and party it up. Hubs brewed a special IPA ("Here's to the Hoppy Couple") for the wedding and it went over really well. Of course, lots of good beer led to lots of dancing and shenanigans.

Delicious!

Hubs and pal enjoying the hoppy goodness.

Any tips for taking better nighttime action shots? We never did get it right.

Sunday, we headed out to the High Trestle Trail and managed to power through 54 miles before calling it a day. We got a later start than expected, so we left from Ankeny instead of doing our planned 80 mile ride from our house to the bridge. With a heat index of 100, it was a pretty wise move on our part.

On our way to the bridge, we passed a little biking family - all on one bike! Ma and pa on a tandem with two kids hitched on a kiddie-tandem. My poor little heart almost exploded at the cuteness. One family - one bike! Could there be anything more freaking adorable in the entire universe?

Doubtful.

May and June in pictures

Bonjour, blog!

It's been a super amazing summer so far. Hubs and I trekked to Europe in search of cheese and beer, I ran my second distance race (Dam to Dam!), and we've been busy biking and ingesting as much rum and coconut water as possible.

Lemme catch you up:

A sunny ride down to Cumming Tap!

Our second annual trip to Swine Fest in Ankeny:

Kicking ass at Dam to Dam (12.4 miles!), thanks to Emily:

Miracle of miracles, Scott has returned to our yard!

Wedding in Chicago! (Did you notice that I've shrunk since last we met? Homeslice done lost 30 pounds, yo!)

!

Hubs, in our Parisian flat:

Belgian flowers! Cobalt walls! Love!

Hubs biking to West Vleteren, home of Saint Sixtus Abbey, and the best beer in the world. Like, literally.

Enjoying some West-Vleteren 12!

Me, biking through the Belgian countryside.

I'm standing with a giant brussel sprout. Guess where I am.

Mort Subite, a wonderful little 1920s bar in Brussels.

Hi! We are tourists!

FYI, the Louvre is closed on Tuesdays and if it looks like this, RUN to the nearest cafe, especially if you are wearing white pants.

Cats at Versailles.

FYI: Versailles closes at 6pm and there are two trains that head in that direction. Getting on the wrong train at 4:30 p.m. will lead to this being the extent of your Versailles experience:

Our favorite stop: Brugges!

We seriously love beer.

Instructions on how to pour this beer. Belgians have mad respect for the beverage.

Brugges from above! It's a fairy tale city.

Aaaand that about sums it up! Up next: Art Festival, friends' wedding, biking the High Trestle Trail, beirgarten fun, probable sunburns.

And that's just this weekend! This is the summer Bigger, Better, Best does what they want, when they want. That means we've scaled way back on DIY plans. Fun stuff only until cooler weather hits.

What's your mantra this summer?

In case you were wondering

I did survive my very first half marathon! What up.

I'll admit, while I was slogging through those 11-minute miles (for the record, it is not true what they say about slow and steady winning the race.  Apparently that honor goes to those who take it fast and ridiculous.), running the half sucked. Aside from seeing Hubs and my sister out cheering me on, that shit was not really my idea of a good time. I was slow and sore and cold.

But once I crossed the finish line, all that vanished. I can't wait to do another! Except, you know, faster. Less slow. Not sore. Neutrally temperatured. I'm looking at the next one for October in Mason City and am actively recruiting running pals and adoring fans.

Between this accomplishment and my new shorts with the built-in undies, I think it is safe to say: I am a runner!

High five me!