Monday, July 2, 2012

Our New Deck including a 'Bird Kitchen'

Wood for the new deck
Many of you know by now that we are doing some home renovation around here... First,  we now have a new deck.   We love our wrap-around deck ---but we knew that it was old (over 25 yrs. old) and some of the boards were beginning to warp....

We also made a huge mistake about 5-6 years ago when we did what we thought we needed to do at the time ---and that was to have it stained....   Little did we know at the time but the different colored stain is nothing more than PAINT....  We were happy to choose a gray stain ---which turned out to be too BLUE  (which was not pretty with our green house)...   I hated the stain from the beginning --but we had it,  so we lived with it... And then (because it was a paint rather than a real strain) ---it started peeling off ..  I hated it ---and spent many hours each spring trying to clean it with our power washer...

Bottom Line:  IF you ever get a new deck put in,   do what we've NOW learned to do :  put the wood down and then wait for 9-12 months before getting it stained...  That way,  the wood has a chance to 'season'.  Have it stained with a 'real' stain ---and then it will last for years and years and years....   We are very happy with this decision.

Hope you enjoy the pictures!!!!  The first 3 pictures were taken on June 15 and the last four were taken on June 28....  Be sure to click on the pictures to see enlargements.




Here you can see where they were taking the old deck apart... Luckily,  they were able to use quite a bit of our old deck since it was still in good shape... They will sand all of the posts to look like new--when they stain the deck next spring...




This is what our backyard looked like for a couple of weeks...  You can see our deck furniture there ---and also George --trying to hide from the camera!!!! ha..... (NOTE though that our grass was still green on June 15.... That grass and all grass in this area is now BROWN due to the heat and drought.)

Our deck man and his team did a GREAT job ---and finished everything within a couple of weeks total --while working off and on.  I provided the team with some cold drinks each day since it was HOT...




Here is our completed deck.   This picture was taken on June 28 ---and we are ready to enjoy our deck (if only it were cooler)...  We are enjoying it early in the mornings and in the evenings around sunset.   Want to come and 'sit a spell' with us?????




I am thrilled to show you my new "Bird Kitchen".....  As you probably know,  we have been using a clothes line for some of the bird feeders.    SO----our wonderful deck man built an ARBOR for my feeders.   (It would also be good for hanging baskets if someone would prefer to do that.)        I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!!!!!!

My bird kitchen contains seven feeders total.  First, there are 4 little hanging feeders above the sliding glass doors.   Three of them have black-oil sunflower seeds and the fourth one contains Nyger (for the finches)...  On the Arbor so far is a little house (with the red roof)... That house contains black-oil sunflower seeds and  suet on both ends.   Also, the big plate is one of the most popular feeders ---since it contains a fruit and nut combination...  Most birds --even woodpeckers like that plate.  The nuthatches and bluejays enjoy the nuts, and they wait for me to refill that plate most every day!  Then there is a hanging suet feeder ---enjoyed also by many of the birds.   Don't you think this is a pretty nice kitchen for my birdies??????   Don't you like the arbor?

By the way,  we have a big container which can be seen in the picture below this one,  that we use to put away all of our bird feeders each night... Since we have night critters (like raccoons, possums,  skunks, etc.) who will eat it all ---we have to put it all up each evening.




Here's another picture of the deck looking the other direction ---while standing at the bird area...  You can now see our swing in the distance... Since we lost the cover over the swing two winters ago when too much snow/ice ripped it, we now have an umbrella over the swing also.  George and I read our devotions on the swing most every morning.




Finally,   while standing out in the backyard ,  I took a picture so that you can see the entire wrap-around deck.  As you can tell,  we have 3 sliding glass doors which open out onto the deck.    Now I'm sure you can understand why we love our deck so much!!!!

On another note,  like so many people,  we are experiencing a terrible heat wave here in Tennessee...  AND --to make things worse,   we are also experiencing a major drought... Can you see how BROWN our grass is in this photo, and in the one above?  (Compare it to the 2nd photo from the top of the page.)  We are desperate for rain!!!!   George and I are both keeping the flowers watered --but the grass will just have to suffer...  Kinda Sad!

One reason we moved to Fairfield Glade here on the Cumberland Plateau was because the summers aren't supposed to be nearly as hot here as in the valley areas.   We are 2000 feet above sea level ---and since buying our home here in 2002,  this past Friday was the hottest day we could remember... LATER that evening---we found out that we set a new all-time record with a high of 102 degrees that Friday, and again on Saturday.    I am not and have never been a summer-lover ---so,  as you can imagine,  this is NO FUN!!!!!

Back to our renovations,  we are not finished... The next thing on the agenda is to paint our house....  I'll share pictures of it after it is completed.  The same wonderful crew will be doing this also.  We decided to stick with this mossy green color ---so it probably won't look alot different than it does now.  But---it hasn't been painted since before we bought the house in 2002--so it's time!!!!

Sorry this is so long ---but  I just had to share!!!!  Have a great day,  and stay COOL wherever you are.

Hugs,
Betsy

85 comments:

  1. The new deck looks really nice Betsy and I like your bird kitchen idea. I'm with you on the heat and I'm ready for fall. We have a lawn watering system, but still brown spots where a tree blocks it. I haven't checked the gauge yet, but had some rain last night and hopefully it got you as well.

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  2. The new deck looks great, wish I had one. I hear you on the heat, we're roasting. We did get some rain, which cooled things down... just before it got steamy. But, oh boy, you sure will enjoy that deck, come fall!

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  3. Betsy, I love your new deck and the arbor. It is great for hanging the bird feeders and hanging pots.. My son built a pergola on my deck and I like to hang chimes and I put a bird house on it too. You have to watch the mess from the Black Oiled Sunflower seeds, they drop everywhere. I try to use the no mess kind of feed on the deck and put the BOSS feeder on the ground or hanging over the deck. Enjoy your deck, it looks lovely. BTW, I hope it cools down soon, it is WAY too HOT out there. Take care and have a great week!

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  4. lovely new deck. Ooo i didnt know that we have to "age" the woods prior to using it.

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  5. Gorgeous deck and I'll take you up on that offer to sit a spell, but let's wait till we have a cool down to at least the 80s!! LOL!

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  6. Hola Betsy, se saca buen provecho de la madera, gracias por compartir las imágenes.
    que tengas una buena semana.
    saludos.

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  7. love it. i hope you get lots of bird views & can enjoy the quiet for a while or two. (:

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  8. Your new deck looks great, Betsy, and the bird kitchen is so neat. That's just what you needed for your birds that you like to watch. Hope you get some rain soon.

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  9. Looks great, love the bird feeder area! And yes, I am watering my garden right now at 7am in the hopes that they flowers can get a good long drink before they wilt again today!

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  10. Very nice for you and the birds! I'm with you on summer--it's not my favorite season. We have had very hot weather but storms the past three days have benefitted the grass and flowers. Very frightening though.

    Best,
    Bonnie

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  12. They've done a fine job on your new deck Betsy, many more years of outdoor living and birdie watching :)
    What a great idea to have a birdie kitchen, all neatly hung in one common place...
    It looks like we are in for more of the same weather-wise, no rain for a month now, and watering every day, but that may soon grind to a halt if the lack of rain continues, I've never seen it so dry.
    Stay cool, and let's pray for rain.
    ~Jo

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  13. YOur new deck looks fantastic, your deck man and his crew did an excellent job! Love the idea of a bird kitchen, you should get some great photos this winter.

    I know exactly what you mean by drought! Our front yard looks like a brown desert wasteland and the backyard crunches under my feet when I walk across it! Temperatures here have been in the 100s all week with wednesday reaching 109! WE NEED RAIL!

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  14. It does look great and inviting especially with all the trees surrounding it.
    We're having a drought too in this part of KY. Had storms go through this week-end they all went around us. seriously, we were following the storm on radar, and when it came time to reach us it either went around us or it was so hot, it evaporated before it reached the ground. :o(

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  15. No wonder why u love and enjoy your deck! It’s a retreat completely, listening to nature’s calling of birds on feeder, green lawns and canopy of trees aside… and nature close by singing while swinging and watching the flower beds bloomed.

    It’s an interesting account on the new deck and it well replaced! Have fun relaxing days on deck :) Ya, it’s too hot everywhere unlike ever and it touched 110 deg. F here!

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  16. The new deck looks beautiful - wouldn't mind sitting there to chillax :) And some nice sunny weather would be welcome too. Have a lovely day!
    Hugs,
    Eva

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  17. Your new deck is great. I know you (and the birds) will enjoy!!!

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  18. Love your wrap-around Deck, Betsy! I hope to see lots of pictures you will make of your birds enjoying their own private 'kitchen'!

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  19. I agree! I hate summers. I go crazy when people declare that global warming is a myth. Tell that to the polar bears.

    But I LOVE LOVE LOVE your new deck. I've always wanted some kind of a porch wrap-around. It looks beautiful.

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  20. What a great deck. Yes I would love to sit and enjoy the view with you and George.

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  21. What a great deck. Yes I would love to sit and enjoy the view with you and George.

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  22. the new deck looks great. i am thinking with that many bird feeders hanging over the deck you will have it stained for free.

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  23. Looks great. I really like the idea of the Bird Kitchen.I am sure the birds like it as well.I do hope that heat lets up soon. We too are in a heat wave and that is not my kind of weather.Stay cool.

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  24. I really like how it is a wrap around deck with plenty of room. I can see you and George sitting out in the swing each morning. That is a wonderful tradition. I too have been watering the plants but with the drought conditions, I have went around the yard practicing Obama Care. Yep, I have told those I will no longer water, "Goodbye." I just hope we are allow to continue watering some of the newly planted perennials. Friday we hit a record keeping high here 109 degrees. Peace

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  25. The new deck looks wonderful, Betsy! I love the bird kitchen! I hope the temps cool down and you and George can enjoy the deck more. It's so hot and dry here, too. We broke records the other day. More 100 degree plus days are in the forecast. Ugh!

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  26. Betsy, I just LOVE your deck. Just wish for your sake that it wasn't so darn hot that you can only use in mornings and evenings.
    Got the same problem here though mine only gets used in the AM.
    My grass looks like yours and cracks when you walk on it.
    Even with water, the flowers here are suffering. We all need relief.

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  27. New is always nice. I would have a hard time taking down feeders, I have had a few late night eaters, but put up with them. I was told I have a photo in the new Birds and Blooms hardback book out.

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  28. With that beautiful deck overlooking your beautiful yard, I don't think I'd ever want to leave. It's like an permanent vacation site.

    Our temperature hit 106 last Thursday. Then, on Friday, we had the worst thunderstorm ever seen in these parts, with wind gusts exceeding 90 mph. A hundred thousand people lost electrical power. About half of those are still without it. The authorities are saying it could be Wednesday before power is restored to everyone.

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  29. congrats to you! looks great! try to stay cool!

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  30. NIIIIIICE deck, very cool! Ya'll are going to really enjoy that... in all seasons! =)

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  31. The renovated deck looks delightful! It's such a relief to get these major projects done, isn't it? I adore the kitchen for the birds! You should be able to get lots of pictures of the tweeters from inside the house too. We'll be glad when our staining project is done later on this month! It's hard to believe that we've only been here for 2 years and our shutters/columns are looking awful. The painters the builder used were terrible.

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  32. Looks very inviting Betsy! I'll have a glass of Sweet Tea please:)
    We finally got a little rain last night. The temperature dropped from 92 down to 66 degrees!! That felt good!!!! But we are going to be back in the 90s again today.
    Hope you get a break from the heat and some rain.

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  33. Nice job on the deck! I love it. You two love birds will really enjoy being together on this beautiful deck. I was really touched to read how you do your morning devotionals on the swing on the deck. You are blessings to us all.

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  34. Your bird kitchen is really a neat idea!!! Your deck is very nice. I'm sure you will really enjoy it. Our deck also wraps around two sides of our house, but has a screened in porch between two decks.

    I found what you said about stain was very interesting because we have had the problem of it not staying nice very long also. However, I have attributed some of the pealin and scratching of on the rails to the many birds and squirrels and raccoons that are constantly climbing and clawing it. I so understand about needing to take the feeders, etc in each night. Last summer I finally found a bench that has a seat that opens up in which I can put my bird feed and some of my feeders, etc. It has really worked well. Before that I had squirrels actually tearing through the screens to get to the bagged food on our screened in porch. Needless to say, that was not good,.

    We finally got a little rain, but it came with a big, big storm last Friday. Fortunately we were not without electricity very long, but there are some people who may not get their's restored until Wednesday. Our yard looks like a war zone--We lost some big trees, but fortunately they were in the valley and not on our new roof. 90 mph winds definitely can pack a punch.

    So far this morning the temperature is comfortable, but I think it is back to the 90s this afternoon...and still we NEED rain.

    Hope you cool down a little too so you can enjoy your new deck.

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  35. WOW! Wonderful! And your header...took my breath way it was so neat!!!


    Linda
    http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
    http://deltacountyhistoricalsociety.wordpress.com

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  36. You never cease to amaze me with your beautiful pics..That deck is so awesome..You and George will have lots of enjoyment...I have one too, but it's been to hot to enjoy..Those pics you asked about came from my neighbor and she got them from a friend..She gave me permission to post them..She's already been to my blog..I hope you have a nice week and a nice holiday, Hugs, Susie

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  37. I do love your new deck and bird kitchen!! What a wonderful place to spend quiet time -- when your weather gets COOLER, that is!! I know I whine a lot about our gray, chilly weather here in the northwest, but I do prefer it to the heat most of the country is having this year -- not to mention the storms!! Hope your summer goes well and beautifully on your new deck, Betsy! Enjoy!

    Sylvia

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  38. So nice Betsy....Enjoy and enjoy some more! It's a lovely place to relax...of course, I'm not sure when you will have the time to do so. You two are always on the road, enjoying life wherever you go...This is a wonderful blessings...
    I know the birds are loving it;/
    Shug

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  39. Your deck looks like a lovely place to spend time watching the backyard birds. And what a lucky bunch of birds they are to have you feeding them! We haven't stained our deck but hope to do so soon. I'll be sure that it is stain and not paint. Thanks for the tip!

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  40. You are so right about the stain and paint issue. Years ago hubby did ours with stain and it stayed beautiful and weathered well. Love your deck - I've always enjoyed the outdoor living during the 3 seasons! Your heat wave is certainly frustrating your enjoyment this summer! So sorry! Love your bird kitchen idea and that you are able to store the feeders away for the night! Hope you have a fabulous July 4th around your parts! Wishing you a wonderful rain!

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  41. What a wonderful new deck! Looks fabulous. Hope you get some longed for rain soon.

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  42. I really love your new deck very much!! If I strike lottery this weekend, I will be there lying on your swings next weekend, sipping lemonade soda. I miss the tiny deck I enjoyed when I rented an apartment in Piitsburgh's Shadyside which was a swanky place. Guess what? Mine overlooked the entire view of a funeral parlor. Goodness!

    If the birds could talk, they would chirp - Betsy we love ya and thanks for the marvelous kitchen!

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  43. I love your deck. I would spend every morning and evening on such a pretty deck. I like the bird kitchen. I will have to think about making one. We have all our feeders in the trees. Hope you have a great week.

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  44. I would LOVE to come and sit on the deck with you and George! I also like the bird kitchen, what a great idea! One day we hope to have a deck built along the side of our home...and I would love to have my own bird kitchen. We are having lots of rainshowers off and on the past week or so...so the grass is still a gorgeous green and growing fast! Hope that you have some cool weather soon!

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  45. I love the idea of the arbor for the bird feeders. Your birds must be very happy about now.

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  46. Your deck is really great! I love the wrap around and the "bird kitchen." That deck is going to be AWESOME in the Fall!!! What a wonderful way to relax.
    Hey, tell George we saw him behind that tree...haha.
    Great pictures!
    Brenda

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  47. It is a lovely deck and has such grand views of your beautiful yard. I would love to sit and relax and watch the birds with you! So happy you are pleased with the work and I know it will be nice to get the house painted, too. Have a safe Fourth.

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  48. The deck looks wonderful and I love that bird kitchen ! It's nice you have found a crew that does good fast work. Praying that the heat wave will soon pass and take the major storms with it. We did get some rain in the wee hours of the morning but the thunder and lightening kept us awake for quite awhile.
    Blessing
    Marilyn

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  49. Your new deck is beautiful, and I love the idea of a bird kitchen!

    It IS horribly hot and we're among the unfortunate without power. Or water, since our well relies on power to work. Not so fun right now.

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  50. Betsy, I love your deck, and the bird feeder arrangement is super! It's good that you store them overnight. At a nearby complex, residents were asked to stop feeding the birds because raccoons were causing so much trouble at the feeders.

    Our high on Saturday was 105, the highest ever temperature for our area! Sunday was a repeat of the same 105! There was a very brief rainfall last night, and today isn't supposed to be but in the upper nineties.

    I, too, have never been a fan of summer weather.

    Thanks for sharing!

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  51. The deck looks great and the birds must be happy. We have a balmy 88 degrees in New York, which is cool compared to most other places.

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  52. What a pleasure it would be sitting on that new deck with you and George sipping tea. It really looks nice. I understand the heat very well. We have had up to 106 on some days. Cloudey today makes it feel cooler.

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  53. Your deck looks awesome. The crew you had did a great job. Three doors leading to the deck, I CAN see why you love it so much. It looks like a wonderful place to sit and relax

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  54. That is a very, very nice deck. When you do stain it you really want to buy a good stain that soaks into the wood.

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  55. Hi Betsy,

    Are you sure my blog isn't on my google page? I see it on my 'About' page, but how do I add it to the Google Friend page? I can't seem to get used to all this 'Google' business! LoL! =)

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  56. Your deck looks lovely and thank you for your hint about waiting 12 months to stain..What a beautiful out look on the world..so peaceful and happy..I had bird feeders in the USA also. and I would sit and watch the birds feed as you do with yours here. In Oz there are many native trees that the parrots come in to feed off, and of course our fruit trees. Much love to you Betsy.

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  57. It looks like your crew did an EXCELLENT job!!! What a wonderful peaceful place to enjoy nature. People pay big money on vacation for that ambiance.
    About the weather, never in my life have I experienced temps like this weekend - - - not even when I lived in Florida or Georgia. We finally got rain last night and none too soon. We are surrounded by woods and were afraid that a fire might start. However, the storm was wicked and there were huge tree limbs down all over our neighborhood this morning. God protected us!

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  58. Hi Betsym, Wonderful deck! Glad you did it! Glad you have a nice spot for the bird feeders. Yes, it poured and poured here tonight. We had a half-hour without power also just between 7:00-730pm. Glad for the rain as our yards were brown. Have a nice day tomorrow!

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  59. What a wonderful space and you are going to have rockin bird pics now too!

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  60. You are a lucky lucky lucky gal. I love that deck and ours is 26 years old too and we really really need a new one. It is beautiful. Love your header too. sandie

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  61. A bird kitchen?? What a great idea! I just love your new deck. You really got it right this time!

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  62. Betsy, I love your new deck. And the bird kitchen is a wonderful idea. The little birds are going to be thrilled with their new dining area.

    Sorry to hear it's so hot over your way. Our weather is still mild but it won't last much longer.

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  63. Love your new wrap-a-round porch. The birds will enjoy it too.
    Your hotter than we are here in the deep south.
    Hugs :)

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  64. Of course you had to share Betsy - renos are awfully exciting especially as this has enabled you and George to much better enjoy the wonderful outside. The Bird Kitchen is sensational!! Lots of people will be taking that on I reckon. Great tips about the staining. Will file that away. The heat you are experiencing is NO fun. Everything living suffers. Prayers for rain.
    xx

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  65. Im really glad that I treated my deck last year to help protect it, the wood was starting to become somewhat nasty.
    Happy July 4 to everyone and Id like to invite everyone to my post "Lancaster on 4 wheels part 2 this coming Thursday. Richard

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  66. What a terrific deck Betsy! And that bird kitchen is wonderful! Your birds are very spoiled. I love it! :)
    xo Catherine

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  67. The new deck looks so nice and inviting for a cuppa! I hope you lay back and enjoy, taking leisure breath and chatting with George.

    24 years is very long and still strong deck! A painting may enhance more... Take care and have fun!

    Hugs
    Shilpa

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  68. Hi Betsy, Your new deck is beautiful and the chairs make it look so inviting! I hope you get some cooler weather and rain!

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  69. This is wonderful, Betsy! You and George did a fantastic job of planning and you have an excellent work crew! You have such a peaceful setting and I love the birdie kitchen.
    It's hitting the 90s here which is unusual for June. Inside the house got up to 84 on the second day of the power outage of 50 hours. But initially after that horrendous storm, it was much cooler for about 16 hours, which was a blessing amidst the trials.
    Some areas still do not have power and it is going to be another scorcher.

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  70. Thanks Betsy for sharing the progression of your lovely deck and kitchen project! I love it! It looks very inviting! The colors are cheery so you KNOW I'm gonna love that!

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  71. What a neat deck Betsy, you must be thrilled with it. I took special notes because ours is a little older than yours was and we really need to start thinking about getting a new one. You made some excellent points that I will follow when our time comes.

    We have our electricity back now, as well as our phones and internet after the bad storm last Friday. The heat is pretty bad up here too and there are still thousands of people without electricity. I really feel for them in these awful temperatures.

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  72. What a beautiful deck, Betsy...they did a great job on it! I really love that you re-used some of the wood from your old deck---that is true recycling! I love your bird kitchen---what a great idea! Now if you can just get those birds to clean up after themselves, haha.

    It's terribly hot and dry here in the NC mountains, too. We had a bit of rain two nights ago, but we badly need more. Hope you (and we) get some soon!

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  73. Well now I know why the boards on our deck are not staying flat. We bought treated lumber and it needs to be redone already (about 5 years old). We stained it when it was completed. I love your deck and I know you will get so many hours of pleasure from it (when it cools off)

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  74. Theres room for a party on your deck, get the band sorted and I'll bring the booze,lol.

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  75. Your deck looks great. I love all the ways to access it. Good idea on the bird kitchen. Here's hoping we all get some real rain soon.

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  76. Hi! Saw you were from Tenn and thought I would say hello. Our son lives in Cleveland, Tenn and works in Chattanooga. Love your deck...sure you will have many happy times there!

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  77. Your new deck looks great, Betsy! I'm sure you and George will enjoy it a lot. No doubt the birds are thrilled, too, with the kitchen addition.

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  78. Betsy....that looks great!!!! I love the ideas here for the deck. The bird feeders are a great idea and I agree with you on the stain.....what a tricky mess that can be! But you have a great spot and it is really nicely done.

    As for the heat. So sorry you have to endure what we do during the summer here. We are around 90 degrees today and tomorrow. We have rain in our forecast for the next several days. It's such a crazy system going on right now. Unfortuneatly you all have plants that can't endure those extreme temps. Here at least our plants smile at those temps with a watering every 3 days or so. Stay cool my friend and have a cool fan nearby:)

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  79. What a beautiful deck Betsy! Good to know about the stain vs paint. David and I painted our deck almost every year - it really was a tedius job! Wish we'd stained it instead.

    This heatwave is a killer! Hope it cools down soon and you can spent more time on your lovely deck.
    Hugs

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  80. The deck is gorgeous and so large. The Bird Kitchen is a wonderful addition and am sure the birds agree! You don't have squirrels that get into the feeders? We bought a Smith and Hawkins bird feed a few years back. Susposed to be "squirrel proof" so we spent the extra money and it looked lovely. Sittin on our side porch, I watch Mr. Squirrel over the periods of days or a few weeks, I guess and saw how tricky they are. He managed to finally go out as far on the limb as possible, dangle in the air, but still use his bushy tail to open the trap door and then whack the feeder, so all the seeds fell on the ground! Suffice it to say, after awhile, with our two large Oak trees and the squirrel, we gave up the idea of a feeder. We wanted it there so we could watch from our porch. So, I am curious. Did all the little birds and momma survive this time? I think, I did see a post where they flew away, come to think of it. Sure hope they were all ok. Happy 4th of July, enjoy Dad Adams and your family day. Blessings.

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  81. Your deck is gorgeous...I love it. What an undertaking for your 'workers'! The bird kitchen was a fantastic idea too...so clever.
    Best of luck with the painting; once it is all done you will be so happy.
    Happy fourth to you and George!
    xo

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  82. wow, the new deck looks great, they did a great job on it.
    good idea on the bird kitchen, too.

    enjoy your new lovely deck!

    big hugs!

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  83. I bet you spend a lot of happy hours out there...I know I would. I love that it is wrap-around!

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  84. The new deck looks great, Betsy! I’m sure you’ve been spending a lot more time outdoors now that you’ve got a new wrap-around deck. Any idea yet what color stain you’d like to apply to it once the time is right?

    Angelina Garcia

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