Awning!

So far this summer has been a scorcher! If you weren't convinced climate change is happening, it must be hard to be a skeptic these days!So with all this heat and clear blue skies, our south facing completely unshaded deck was like a grill. We couldn't go and sit outside until at least 6 pm or we would burn our feet on the hot wood and our skin in the unforgiving sun! Our umbrella just wasn't cutting it.

Photo from :http://www.aquasuperstore.com/outdoor-living-and-deck-accessories.aspx

It is very similar to the one pictured above and the shade provided was only enough to barely cover us sitting at our bistro set. So we bit the bullet and bought the awning we have been talking about for years. When we went to the store to check it out, the dimensions were a perfect fit for our deck...it was meant to be!

It is about 5pm in this photo so the sun is lower in the sky and starting to be shaded by trees.

We installed it ourselves on Sunday which in and of itself was an adventure! It took us a while to find the roof rafters, 3 hours to be exact. They decided to put aluminum siding over the cedar shingles, likely in the 1950s which meant they had to put another faceboard (with a small gap behind) to make it flush. So imagine our confusion when everywhere we drilled (4 holes) we found rafters...which was in fact the other faceboard. Lucky for us, Diego figured it out. So with a longer drill bit in hand we did in fact find the rafters and properly secured our awning!

Our celebratory beer after a long day of hard work in the hot sun!

We love it! Now we can use our patio in the rain too and not get a drop of water on us! I love sitting out in the rain! It also helps to keep our kitchen cool since it shades the window and door which is definitely a bonus in helping to keep our fishies below 30C!

Thank You!

I want to say a great big THANKS to my parents!! I got a phone message from a flower shop on Wednesday but because we were watching the Spain vs. Germany game in a sports bar, we got home too late to get the delivery on Wed. So we spent the rest of the evening and the whole day on Thursday trying to figure out who the delivery was from!! After various jokes about a secret lover, the flowers arrived and they were a congratulations on your first house gift from my parents!
My mom sure knows what I love! They are AMAZING!!
Gerbera daisies with 2 different kinds of lilies and they smell AWESOME!!
I will thoroughly enjoy every view and breath while in my kitchen! The lilies have a blueish hue because it is so hot that we have to have the canopy on our fish tank open to keep the hot lights from killing everything! I am wearing my sunglasses as I write! :) So far the temp has not crested 28C in the tank...anything above 30 = meltdown! Let's hope for some cooler weather!

BIG News!

Diego and I bought our House (ie: the one we are currently renting the second floor flat!). We are now the proud owners of a Duplex! Closing day was on June 30th and we had an adequate celebration of bubbly and sushi. Yesterday was Canada Day (Happy 143 Canada!) and we had a small BBQ with friends, with a toast to the new house and some lovely fireworks to top it off. Now the new garden and plants I have put in are not in vain!
New veggie patch in the backyard. I planted eggplant, carrots, parsnips, fennel, snow peas, dill and green onions.
Close up of zucchini and green onions.
Our side of the house garden with a jungle of cherry tomato plants coming back from last year's leftovers! I used the plants as ground cover over the winter and low and behold, they seeded themselves! :)
The radishes also seeded themselves, but bolted early on since we had some hot weather in early June. I will collect the seed heads this time and keep them for a cooler location next year.
There were a few leftover onions that have gotten huge and will be very tasty! I also planted some cilantro which is coming along nicely and some nasturtiums for a colourful and peppery salad treat!
Yesterday was a great day for some sun tea! Citrus mint sweetened with Honey. Refreshing! I will leave you with a couple of photos of our beautiful petunias!
Have a great weekend!