Sprucing Up the House

Another weekend flew right by, am I right?! This weekend, despite living in Louisville during Derby weekend, was pretty low-key. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, but Kevin’s work schedule is the worst and he had to work during the Derby this year so I watched in on TV. We’re hoping to make it to the Derby one of these years!

Despite Kev’s work schedule, we did manage to have some fun. I kept up with the Couch to 5K app and the runs are getting easier and easier. I’m finally starting to feel like I’m getting back in shape and able to run without wanting to die. That’s a good feeling, I tell ya. While we were on our latest run, Grace found a tennis ball in the middle of the street and it’s now her new favorite thing ever.

This is my view when I run. Gracie first. Then Kevin. While I trail behind them. I just have to keep telling myself, “My husband used to play DI soccer” so I don’t feel SO bad.

We went out on a little date night Friday night to try a new-to-us restaurant in town, Havana Rumba! Time and time again, this restaurant is listed in the top five on Yelp and Urban Spoon, so we decided to finally try it out for ourselves. The restaurant is quaint and unique, serving authentic Cuban food. I don’t think I’ve ever tried Cuban food before but I’m ready to book a one-way ticket to

We kicked things off at the bar with margaritas, naturally. We both thought, “Hm, these don’t taste very strong.” Well, 30 minutes later and halfway through our margs, we were both struggling. I swear the tequila was hidden because they went down too smooth. I had to finish Kev’s for him so he could drive us home. Safety first, kids.

The bread was good, but the garlic/onion butter was amazing. Could have eaten it with a spoon. Don’t worry, I resisted. My husband already thinks I’m embarrassing enough.

I studied the menu very hard but decided on the Chimichurri Steak. This strip steak was served with green and red chimichurri sauce, sweet plantains (my new favorite food) and rice.

The green chimichurri sauce was my favorite so I gave Kevin my red sauce since he found his slow-roasted pork a bit dry and wanted to dip it in something.

Mine was also served with a side of the most flavorful black beans I’ve ever had.

Well done, Havana Rumba! We’ll be back.

I woke up early on Saturday and got busy with house projects while Kev went to work. I started by finding the old deck paint the previous homeowners left behind so I could paint the wood we used for our DIY String Lights project. I considered going to Home Depot to have them make a fresh can of this paint for me since the old one was from 2008, but I decided that I only needed a tiny bit and I wasn’t really going for protection or smooth covering, just a light coat to make it all match.

I also fed our grass. Told you: new grass is like caring for a baby. OKAY, I’ll stop saying that now. It’s not even close to the same, I’m sure. But it’s starting to grow and we’re so proud of ourselves. Grow baby grasses, grow!

I also decided to tackle all of the weeds in the front of our house and spread mulch around our trees. What a project!

Disclaimer to homeowners: do not plant flowers by your mailbox. I promise you that your mailman doesn’t like being stung by bees.

Our poor plants are struggling, but I remember they didn’t come to life until late spring last year so I’m hoping they do the same this year. If not, I’ll be diggin’ those up soon. HELP.

I also did the same around the two trees in our front yard.

Pull weeds. Have a mini heart attack whenever you see a worm. Prevent Gracie from eating said worm. Spread mulch. Repeat.

I also tackled the main area of bushes right in front of our house. SO glad we did. Can’t believe how much better it looks!

Here are some before pictures:

Aaaaand after!

The house just looks so much better, I can’t even describe it. I am mad that we didn’t do this earlier! Honestly, we just kept thinking “big picture” with so many projects and forgot that some simple tasks, like laying mulch, can make a big difference.

I also DEEP CLEANED our kitchen this weekend. I was on a roll with the outside so I figured I might as well take that motivation to the inside. Our kitchen desperately needed a top to bottom scrub down. Such a huge difference.

Perhaps not the most FUN weekend of all, but a date night house projects is sorta the norm around here and it’s kindof sorta the perfect weekend, in my opinion. Have a good week!