Romance in the backyard...





Mike and I have been talking for weeks about screening in our back porch. We didn't like the traditional approach to screening in but really had no ideas. That was until I picked up a magazine this month and saw a great idea! It was this kit you could buy that essentially put mosquito type netting up on tracks and it drapes yet keeps the bugs out. The problem was the $500 price tag for the kit. YIKES!
This is where I really get my ingenuitive juices flowing. I love to figure out a way to take something expensive and do it for cheap!
So this weekend, while at Ikea, I found these pkgs of netting type drapes. They are huge and come 2 in a pack for $4.99. We have ended up only needing 3 packs (I had bought 5) so we were up to $15.00 for material. Then Mike went to Home Depot and bought beautiful white crown molding that we used to secure the netting to. All in all, $37 for a newly screened in porch. It totally matches the feel we had going with the chandelier we hung out there. Now we just need to find some outdoor furniture. We'd love to actually hang a bed mattress out there as a swing (sounds weird but looks so cool and is amazing).
Anyhow, it was a great night last night. I love that we live in a house with a gorgeous backyard that actually has lightening bugs everywhere at night! I love to look out and see them lighting up all over the place. We let the boys stay up REALLY late (10pm) to play and try to catch the lightening bugs. They had so much fun---and so did mommy and daddy :)
We came in to the smell of bagels baking in the oven. That is another post though.....I finally made homemade bagels!