We are still remodeling our house over here. It’s going slowly, but it’s going. The most exciting thing that happened lately is that Kyle put in our dishwasher!! I can’t tell you how wonderful dishwashers are. They are the best invention ever. I had the dishwasher and the Roomba (robot vacuum cleaner) and my clothes washer running all at once yesterday. I felt so luxurious. Go give your dishwasher a hug.

Putting in the dishwasher was an ordeal. Kyle had to cut a hole in the cabinet, wire a new outlet to plug it in, and plumb the whole thing. It was way more involved than I realized, and he did a great job. He probably saved us hundred by installing it himself.

The dishwasher when it was first installed. I will take a final picture of it once he does the cosmetic work and gets it all spiffed up. (It is not purple–this was taken before we removed the plastic shield from the front. It is stainless steel and black.)

Kyle also put in two security cameras. We aren’t worried about being robbed, but they are cool to have.

I, on the other hand, have been concentrating on landscaping. Kyle’s Dad gave us a lawnmower for Christmas, so we gave the yard its first mow a couple of weeks ago. It made a huge difference! I also pulled up the trash and ugly ground cover from the side and front of the house, cut down all the ivy in the backyard, and put in my vegetable garden:

I was pleased with the quality of the soil in my garden. It is swimming with worms, rich and loamy, and high in nutrients. It only needed some nitrogen and organic material, and it was ready to go. (At least as far as I could tell. I’m still a novice at this.) I wanted to use bricks as a border for the garden, but didn’t have the extra cash that would take, so we used the old baseboards from the house instead. This weekend, I planted the early spring crops: peas, beans, spinach, carrots, beets, radishes, and raspberries.

We also planted three fruit trees: a grafted cherry, an apricot, and a pomegranate. They seem to be doing well so far. I plan to plant a dwarf orange tree sometime this month, and that will be the end of the fruit trees for 2008. (In the future, though, I want to put in a fig, kumquat, and possibly an olive tree.)

Blossoms on our baby apricot tree

Still to come in the immediate future: remove some unwanted stumps, plant the citrus bushes, put in an herb garden, remove all signs of ivy from my backyard, and paint the hallway. That’s just me. Kyle is going to put in an irrigation system to save us water and keep me from having to water every day. Then we will focus on tiling the half-bath.

So there’s a remodeling update for you. Eventually the house will be at a place where I can have a house-warming party, but not quite yet.