Home is the town of Grey Forest, just northwest of San Antonio, Texas.

I like where I live, which is on a hilltop outside the city. It's quiet, rural and now is home office to me and Andy, which is probably about the best setup possible.

Best seat in the house.

June 15:

We recently had the house stained. When our contractor friend suggested a colored stain, I was initially resistant. But once they finished the work, I loved it. What's particularly amusing to me is the fact that it looks like we're living in a national park. Excellent.

At last, after only one experimental color scheme, we found one that works in the bathroom. We added a frame to the mirror (saw it on a home show), changed out the fixtures and everything looks great.

Here's a shot of the mirror frame and new lights, along with a shot of the cabinets below the mirror. Andy chose the color scheme, and I was forced to admit it worked much, much better than the mint green walls I had just painted a month or so earlier.

On the left is the rest of this tiny, tiny room, featuring the graduated candleholder idea Pat came up with. In that space before looked like it was left over from the '70s, something reminiscent of stairway balustrade. Yecch. We cut them down, and now use them for candles. On the right is a closeup of the mirror frame. I used red and green stain on bare stock, then black stain over the whole thing to tone it down. I used a little gold leaf pen to touch different areas, then rubbed it to disperse. The colors aren't this bright when the room is lit, the flash emphasizes the color.

Next up is our adjoining bedroom. Carpet's moving out in favor of more hardwood and paint scheme will be similar to the bath. I'm planning that for August, but who knows when it will actually happen?

Much earlier than the above post: After living on our little hill for six years or so, the desire to do some landscaping finally hit me. It's an expression of genes, I would guess, since my mother is an inveterate improver of everything around her. It just took a little longer to develop in me. Andy builds things, and I fill them up with plants.

This fall, we've installed (or had installed) a paver patio around back, a hot and cold tub (depending on the season) and some flower beds that still contain living plants. Amazing.

We have no shortage of rocks, large and small, on our hill. We used that to create raised beds. As you can see in the fire pit patio shot, our yard is made up of about an inch or two of tough clay soil and rocks. Lots and lots of rocks.

Our intrepid builder friend, Colin Smith, installed the interlocking paver patio. He's the owner and sole proprietor of Acorn Interlocking Paving, and if you like pavers, he's just the guy to do it.

The photographic proof:

View of the new paver patio.	Same view, from the side door of the house.
A brand new bed awaits inhabitants.	Shade-loving plants in the new bed.
The new 'patio' around the fire pit. Andy and I collected all the rocks and laid this ourselves.	Patio viewed from the corner of the house
Jack likes the new patio, and we like the beer.	Another part of the new bed.
A little planting spot for Azuca next to the old and huge Rosemary plant.	Paver walkway between the house and the garage. That's an old well house in the background, for those who haven't been up to visit.
Me, Andy, Colin and Jack celebrating the end of the workday.	A better look at the drystack retaining wall that another of our friends, Wade Gray, built.