Sleeping Beauty, Awake!

A beautiful chestnut tree on the property...beautiful but dangerous! Those little prickly pods holding the nuts are finger-killers!

For those of you who are following our renovation shenanigans... they have officially begun! I hope to bring you the play-by-play action of our most recent renovation, complete with some belly-aching (I'm quite sure), lots of photographs (definitely), and a good dose of fun (what's life without some fun?).

This past weekend marked our official start on the Sleeping Beauty renovation. I've named it this for the sake of the blog because I am convinced that this house has beauty that has not been awakened in quite some time. It has been sitting quietly desolate for close to a decade now and, although it has fallen into disrepair and it's quite sad to see its melancholy state, I am absolutely sure there is beauty to be revealed behind the years of neglect. As most know the term used often in the housing-reno business, this house has "good bones." But even good bones get a little tired when they haven't had the proper nutrition, right? We need regular calcium and vitamin D to strengthen our human bones and ditto for houses. Regular maintenance and a daily dose of vitamin TLC (as in fresh air, housekeeping, yardkeeping, and the like) go a long way in maintaining health and longevity. A house is just like a human being in many ways. It starts out fresh and complete with everything in good working order in the beginning, but within years can become quite needy and equally rundown from a lack of upkeep. But from the first time we laid eyes on this house we knew it had potential.  Follow along as we wake this sleeping beauty and bring her back to the land of the living...

Week 1 ... Bulldoze the Land!
Our first incentive for progress was the need to deliver this house from the years of -- horrors of all horrors -- NO YARD MAINTENANCE! As my sis stated and I wholeheartedly agreed: "We need to let this house breathe!" And giving it back some space to breathe is exactly what we did this past weekend. We had our first official workday where we began the long grueling task of cutting down thigh-high grass, overgrown shrubs and trees, (a true understatement), and just generally delivering this wonderful house from all the overgrown mess that threatened to suck the final bit of life out of her. It's good we came along when we did; I am convinced another five years and the house would not have been visible at all, completely choked off by all the overgrowth.

The first evening we had our team assembled but absolutely no plan whatsoever. Where to begin when you have such a daunting task ahead of you? Well, first of all, you show up. Second, you just start...somewhere...over there...anywhere! There is no official place to start a yard renovation when there is so very much to do, so you just grab a trimmer, a chainsaw, a hoe, a rake, a shovel, a mower, something of cutting or digging ability, and get to it! It doesn't matter if you start on one end or another, because eventually you're gonna meet in the middle and see amazing change taking place. We did choose to begin in the front of the house and work our way back because everyone likes to have a good front view! This house is nestled on almost two acres, surrounded by a preserve, and mature magnolias, chestnut and pecan trees.  It will afford a future family beautiful views, a great deal of privacy, and space to spread out and enjoy life. I can't wait to see which lucky family will end up with this house.

The second day was a full-on, show-up-early-and-get-it-done kind of day. We pulled out all the stops and our team accomplished more than we thought possible. Having a good team of folks who work well together makes the job so much easier, and having the right tools is essential. My hubby, brother-in-law, and nephew showed up in their snake boots and shorts (a true sight to behold). Two of the three (I won't say which) had pistols on their hips. I couldn't decide if they looked like true rednecks or urban cowboys! They were prepared to confront any rattlesnakes that dare raise their venomous heads near them. My brother showed up in a good pair of work boots and jeans. I'm sure he felt a little left out with no snake boots but he is an electrician by trade so no snake boots are usually needed! My sweet nephew ran the bush-hog literally all day and, as he drove and cut and pulled and hauled debris, I was amazed at the total transformation, revealing that there really was a house behind there! We cut grass, cut back shrubs, removed limbs from trees, trimmed hedges, swept, raked, blew, and generally gave it that breathing room, awakening her from her deep, decade-long sleep. My sister and I hauled five million and two limbs to the burn pile. I see a huge bonfire in our future when burn restrictions are lifted in October. Bring out the dogs, s'more fixin's, and a cool drink, please. By day's end, we were all filthy, a layer of red Georgia clay dust covering our sweaty bodies, our hair stuck to our heads in goofy formations, scratched and limping, having survived the 90-degree heat, and tired as ol' cowhands. But we felt good about the work accomplished on our very first workday of many to come. We said our goodbyes, each headed back to our own corrals in various parts of the state, hit the showers, and bunked down for the night.

More awakening to come...stay tuned!

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Before the haircut...

Before a mustache trim...as you can see, a new roof is in the very near future

After the haircut (mostly...still a lot to be done)!

After main trim, but before a final trim! Well, I'll be doggone, there ARE windows there!

My sister is one of the hardest-working women I know...she can work circles around me (ugh!)

My brother is a cut-up...sword fighting with a 15-foot stalk of bamboo

My sweet nephew, running the bush-hog

Hubby in his sexy snake boots (with shorts...now THAT'S a fashion statement!)

You know me...always looking for a critter to capture with my lens...btw, I DID work too, I didn't just take pictures!

We were relieved at the end of the day to have not come face to face with a rattler (eeeeek!)... just a rattler snakeskin... and a poor little field mouse which we scared half to death (double eeeeek!)

After almost a decade of being in a deep sleep, Sleep Beauty is beginning to awake...