We moved into our house in September 2004. When we had the house built the builder was helpful in what upgrades to purchase through them, and which ones we would be better off doing on our own (price and selection).

Nearly three years later, we are still working on these upgrades. After having the floors done in February, here is what is up on our project list for the Spring:

• New kitchen countertops. We went with the cheap standard when we moved in, and considering we have nice upgraded countertops they really detract from the kitchen. We’ve ordered Zodiaq quartz countertops, which have the nice look of granite but are apparently more durable.
• New kitchen appliances. Out with the white, in with the stainless steel.
• Paint. Right now our house is pretty sterile with everything being a nice, calm tan. After much deliberation we’re going with some bold colors that will hopefully add depth to the house.
• New bathroom light fixtures. What we have now is probably the cheapest item in our house. We’ll be moving away from exposed light bulbs to something more soothing to the eyes.
• Landscaping. This likely won’t all happen this year, but we’ll be putting in some flower beds and a ceiling fan for the porch. More on this one next year, I think…

We’ll see how far we get before the summer, and I’ll post some before and after photos as we go.

Technorati Tags: home improvement, remodel

Recently we had all carpet in our house removed and replaced with Marmoleum, an all-natural flooring product made from renewable materials that also happens to be anti-microbial and has anti-static properties.

We’re really happy with the finished product.

The library…

A guest bedroom (the other bedroom has the same color)…

The office…

The master bedroom…

Now onto having the house painted so that it doesn’t clash with the floors.

Technorati Tags: marmoleum, green living, renewable materials, home improvement, floors

Last spring I bought a new bike to ride around the neighborhood and help save the planet. New restaurants and stores keep opening in our neighorhood, and it seemed silly to drive everywhere.

I had my heart set on a cruiser, but quickly learned that they are too heavy for small people with bad knees. I instead opted for a Jamis comfort bike which has some of the same features as a cruiser (such as sitting upright instead of leaned over) but is much lighter.

Still wanting the cool look of a cruiser, I set out over the next month to accessorize. Below are some photos of the finished product, complete with bells, baskets, and lights. It still looks like a comfort bike, but with a little attitude and much improved over what I started with. Plus, I can carry a six-pack of beer in the back… how cool is that?

Technorati Tags: bike, bicycle, comfort bike

On Wednesday we went with our two-year old nephew to build a custom stuffed animal at the Build-A-Bear Workship. This is a great little store where you can build a stuffed animal of your choice from scratch, complete with clothes and a birth certificate.

The whole process starts with you selecting an unstuffed animal. You can then select a sound you want your animal to have. Next you take it to the stuffing station, where an associate helps you stuff your animal to your liking. You select a heart and then your animal is sewn up.

The next step is to give your new animal a bath, which is a stream of air that helps to fluff your animal’s fur. Next comes clothes, which come as complete outfits or mix-and-match. Here you can choose from everything from t-shirts to baseball uniforms to firefighter outfits.

But no animal would be complete without a birth certificate. Here you name your new friend and are presented with a birth certificate that gives the specifications for your animal and its name. They pack your new friend in a box that looks like a cage, and off you go.

The whole process will run you about $30-35 for the largest animals, and takes about 30 minutes for kids. It’s a lot of fun and makes a great gift for both children and adults.

I built my own bear last fall. We came across the store while shopping and decided to check it out. This is Howard:

technorati tags: family, toys, bears, shopping

About 18 months ago I read Fast Food Nation, which is as much about consumerism in the United States as it is about fast food. It started a chain of events that changed how I live.

I had seen Super Size Me when it was released and while I stopped eating fast food in my early twenties after finding out I had a genetic disposition to high cholesterol and heart disease, I was still thoroughly disgusted at the overall mainstream food industry. Only adding to this distate was the scene in Napoleon Dynamite when Napoleon gets the job moving chickens from one coup to another. While a lot of the audience was laughing, I leaned over to my husband and said, “I’m never eating chicken or eggs from a non-free range farm again.”

Needless to say, after reading Fast Food Nation I became an organic and earth-friendly convert and I began regularly bonding with Whole Foods Market.

With this change in lifestyle came an added bonus: It’s quite fashionable to be green in Austin, Texas. In Austin it’s hip to drive a hybrid, hang out on the patio of Central Market on a Friday evening sipping a microbrewed beer or glass of wine, ride your bike to work or happy hour, eat a healthy and low-fat diet (to make room for all the awesome Tex-Mex restaurants), or to jog on Town Lake with your dog.

We love our pets in Austin. We make house and car choices based on the needs of our pets. We have dog-friendly restaurants, such as BB Rovers, that will bring a bowl of water for your dog while you enjoy a beer and bar food on the patio. We even have several no-leash parks that let your dog frolic with other dogs in a closed area.

And, we pay attention to their health like our own. We have specialty hospitals for our pets that need some extra help. Hell, my cat has an internist who treats his diabetes and arthritis, and one of my greyhounds sees an allergist.

We started giving our dogs vegetables in their food to encourage them to eat at one sitting. Our veterinarian confirmed that veggies are actually quite good for dogs if you can get them to eat them, and our dogs love them.
Animal Wellness magazine recently published a list of superfoods for pets:

1. Carrots
2. Broccoli
3. Green beans
4. Pumpkin
5. Sweet Potatoes
6. Tomato
7. Apples
8. Blueberries & cranberries
9. Cantaloupe
10. Watermelon

Of all things, canatloupe has become quite the hot ticket item at our house, and we can even use it as a training treat. Go figure.

technorati tags: life, austin, pets, dogs, organic, green