We were blessed when we moved to our new home by all of the gorgeous plants in the yard. The previous homeowners definitely had green thumbs and took landscaping very seriously.
We have tons of beautiful azaleas all over the place. They are pink, white, red and purple.
By the time we moved into the home, it was too late to cut our azaleas.
The best time to cut them is after they have bloomed and before they begin to bud again.
You can imagine how huge they were. I bet our neighbors were a little annoyed by the obnoxious size of them. Oops.
All of the plants in your yard need tender-loving care. Be careful too. Many neighborhoods have restrictive covenants that require you to maintain your yard. Don't let mother nature take over. Take control.
I had the pleasure of visiting this excellent vineyard with some great friends over the weekend. It's only 1 short hour away from Richmond, VA. Their staff is extremely knowledgeable and the view is amazing. Can't wait to go back!
I cannot wait to go back and see the finished product. This was so fascinating and an excellent idea to help bring folks downtown. Well done Art 180 and Venture Richmond!!!
I need to vent… about the attack of cankerworms in Richmond, Virginia.
If you live in Richmond, VA, you are fully aware of the caterpillars that have taken over our City! They are out of control. Our storage shed is covered in these worms. I’m not kidding. I couldn’t turn the knob to enter the shed without squishing at least 10 of them. My garden gloves were in the shed! Yuck.
Spring arrived early this year, which experts say is the cause of this swarm of cankerworms. That’s all fine and dandy, but no one’s telling us what to do with them. Scientists tell us not to bother them because it’s all a part of nature. What about our trees? My oak trees are looking pretty sad.
What’s even more disgusting is that it’s “raining” caterpillar poop. When you stop and listen, you can hear it. I try not to go in my backyard without my umbrella. I’m sure my neighbors think I’m crazy. The other day, I did yard work while holding my umbrella. It was a must! When I got inside, I had 15 baby caterpillars crawling on my shirt. Gross!
My kids thought these creatures were fascinating AT FIRST. Several trips to the playground and we were loading up on adorable “inch worms.” They were cute and green and part of nature. My kids were learning how fragile life was because these insects were so delicate. Not anymore! Even they are bothered that they can’t play in the yard without choking on a bug!
I know these guys will follow their path and turn into the moths they are supposed to be. I wish it were sooner than later!
I would like to take this time to open up to my readers a little more about who I am and how I stand out as a REALTOR® in Richmond, VA. For one, I have created this blog as a way to keep you informed about maintaining your home. I have a background in the homebuilding business which pushes me one step ahead of your regular real estate agent. If I don’t know how to repair something in your home, I can definitely put you in touch with someone who can.
Secondly, I am a social media geek. I am very active via Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Empire Avenue, and SkinnyScoop, etc. If your real estate agent doesn’t utilize these important networks you need to reconsider your agreement. Everything is done on-line now.
With that being said, there are few generations that are more comfortable using old-fashioned snail mail. I continue to reach out to those individuals too. One of my favorite resources is online printing. I am excited to be able to share this great tool with those of you looking to take your business one step further.
PrintRunner approached me to do a giveaway for online postcard printing. This was a no-brainer for me! I wanted to share my love for this great marketing tool with all of my friends! Lots of you are business owners. Feel free to pass these out to clients or mail them to prospects.
How about winning the giveaway? Hurry, submissions close on April 11th!
This amazing facility has exercise classes for moms AND kids. Moms, you can bring your children with you and babysitters will watch while you play. Visit www.moms-treehouse.com for more info!
Can't afford an entire kitchen remodel in one fell swoop? You can complete the work in 5 budget-saving stages (and still cook dinner during the down time).
Cabinets and appliances are the biggest investments in your kitchen remodeling project. If you're remodeling in stages, you can order them any time after the plans are complete and store them in a garage (away from moisture) or in a spare room until you're ready to pull the trigger on the installation.
If you can't afford all new appliances, keep your old ones for now -- but plan to buy either the same sizes, or choose larger sizes and design your cabinets around those larger measurements. You can replace appliances as budget permits later on.
Here's where the remodel gets messy. Old cabinetry and appliances are removed, and walls may have to be opened up for new electrical circuits. Keep in close contact with yourcontractor during this stage so you can answer questions and clear up any problems quickly. A major kitchen remodel can take 6 to 10 weeks, depending on how extensive the project is.
During this stage, haul your refrigerator, microwave, and toaster oven to another room — near the laundry or the garage, for example — so you've got the means to cook meals. Feinberg suggests tackling this stage in the summer, when you can easily grill and eat outside. That’ll reduce the temptation to eat at restaurants, and will help keep your day-to-day costs under control.
If you’ve done your homework and bought key components in advance, you should roll through this phase. You've now got a (mostly) finished kitchen.
A high-end countertop and backsplash can be a sizable sum of money. If you can't quite swing it, put down a temporary top, such as painted marine plywood or inexpensivelaminate. Later, you can upgrade to granite, tile, solid surface, or marble.