The carpets have needed a good cleaning for some time, but we seem to keep putting it off for one reason or another and I guess now we really need to get them professionally cleaned before Memorial Day since we will be having our annual Memorial Day Weekend bar-b-q with over 20 people attending. The wife would be very unhappy with me if they all were to come over and see the house in such disarray and I don’t think that I could do the job justice with the home carpet cleaner that we have owned for even longer than our dog.

So they are busy with looking at the current Calgary listings and searching for a good reputable Calgary Realtor so that they will have a place lined up for them upon their arrival, which they are expecting to happen by the end of June. That doesn’t leave them with much time to get all the things that need to be taken care all done. Relocating is one big pain in the rear and with a new baby makes it all the more of a challenge.

It really bothers me that they will be so far away and that non of us will be around to be involved in their new sons life as much as we would like. It will be strange, indeed.

So I was very excited about how solar energy was going to actually be a reality in my lifetime, and not just some fantastic imagineering project from the imagineers at the DisneyWorld complex! And I’ve been glad to hear that tax credits have been made available to help the homeowners recover some of the expenses of installing solar powered devices and equipment. However I have been discouraged over the harsh financial reality that in this economy, retrofitting existing buildings with solar panels is probably not going to be high on the priority list of most households. I’d like to see the economy improve as more and more people and companies get behind solar energy.

I’ve been told that in the next few years I am going to need to replace my roof. I’m wondering if that would be a good time to look into installing some type of solar energy system. What do you think?

I have to say that I agree that these are some good looking sink options and I’m not surprised that they are becoming popular. They come in stone, glass and copper, the stone ones are my favorite. Check out the one that I really felt was a good looking specimen, it’s called Eden Bath Natural Stone Sink – Jurassic Onyx.

They have been working on this kitchen make over since the end of the year and they really want to wrap it up and move on to other outside projects that they could be getting into while we are having perfect weather for outdoor projects. I’ve been getting a lot done outside, you have to take this perfect 70 degree weather, with no humidity, while you can. I’m ready to drag out the tiller and get started on tilling our small vegetable and herb garden this weekend.

I had called an electrician and asked him how much he would charge to re-wire it and he had told me it would cost over $100! The rewiring supplies cost me less than $20, so I’m thrilled that I saved $80 by re-wiring it myself! And I’m thrilled that I kept the lamp from going to the junkyard, so I did my part to save the environment today!

I was really surprised when she called me to talk to me about that because the last time I had heard any mention of her putting in an in-ground swimming pool no one else in the family wanted her to put one in. She said that she is putting it in for her own health, but she is putting in a very large 20′ by 40′ in-ground pool! Seems to me that if she was doing it for her health then just putting in a lap pool would be all she would need. But she has got a stubborn side to her and she has insisted that she wants the whole thing and since she is paying for it out of her own pocket then nobody but her has any say in it at all!

She has also mentioned that she wants me to take care of the landscape lighting installation around the swimming pool. I think that for lighting I will suggest some solar powered lamps, on both sides of the privacy fence that she will need to have installed. She sure is going to be spending a lot of money! I hope that she gets her money’s worth of excitement out of it! I just cannot imagine putting in a full-sized swimming pool after the kids have grown up and left home.

I have ordered some irrigation supplies that I need to get the yard ready for. I have wanted to get lawn sprinklers installed for some time now and when I got my tax refund check deposited into my checking account I went online and found just what I wanted and needed and put the order in in just a matter of minutes.

Working out in the yard is something that we take seriously around here. We like having a nice backyard that we can spend good quality time in all year round, which we have basically been able to do with this extreme warm winter weather that we have been blessed with this year. But during the summer we entertain a good bit and it always helps when people can relax and enjoy being out in the yard, front, side and/or back.

Our retired neighbor that lives across the street is starting to get to work on his backyard swimming pool, since it won’t be long until people are wanting to take a swim and cool off from the heat of the day. He was looking at new swimming pool liners to use this season as well as a new pool cover. I haven’t talked to him in a while to see if he was successful in finding all the pool supplies that he needs and if he needs any help with anything to get it ready. He is a really nice fellow and always extends an invitation to the neighbors to come and enjoy his pool, which we have done a few times a years since he had it built. It is a very nice pool that he takes much pride in and he certainly deserves it after working hard in the E.R. in town for so long. We are certainly blessed with good neighbors.