Mister Monty

Remember Monty and all of his adorable puppy-ness? And our DIY Crooked Doghouse?

Want to know a secret? Our little Monty puppy is not so little anymore. :( At five months old he weighs more than our almost 7 year old son!

And another secret.... he doesn't use his doghouse!!!! He still manages to somehow squeeze underneath the steps of our deck. The same steps seen here when he was all adorable and only about 8 weeks old. How does he do that?!? Lots of wiggling, that's how!

The only time he can been seen entering his doghouse is when is eating or on the rare occasion that we tie him up while the kids to play. So when I found him in his house the other day I had to snap these photos through the bathroom window. Aww.... he looked to comfy!

 Isn't he great?

It is almost September. So that means it is almost time to make sure his little house is ready for the winter. I'll be closing off the roof gaps, maybe adding insulation, putting on a door, and maybe even adding a little porch.  Brrrrr... wish I had not just thought about winter. YUCK!

Love him.



Crazy Kitchen: Part Three: The Power of Paint

To give myself a little credit, when we bought this home we were moving from an old house where primitive styling was perfect. Everything I owned was county, primitive, or Americana. And that was what I liked, at the time. So that is how I decorated our new home. (I actually have zero photos of the whole space. Strange.)

Fast forward about 2 years and my 1970's ranch was screaming at me about not being primitive. My taste and style had evolved with our home and it was time to get rid of the oh so yellow and maroon kitchen!

Something you may not know about me; I am an oops paint addict! I mean it. I have a true addiction. No one even questions me now. As soon as I enter Lowes my first steps are towards my oops paint. And my husband barely even grumbles about it anymore. But with well over 30 gallons of miscellaneous colors, I had to do something! So I mixed and mixed and tested it on the wall and mixed and mixed and tested it on the wall.... you get the idea. So I had a kitchen wall that looked like this for a couple of months...

Then FINALLY the day came that the ceiling was finished and I was ready to get onto the walls! Check it out!!!

What a breath of fresh air!

And all my oops paints (mostly Valspar, all semi-gloss) did an AMAZING job! No primer and just two coats of paint. Ahhh, MUCH better!

Another thing; I argued with myself over whether or not I should paint the ceiling in my dining area and hallway. I LOATH ceilings. But I knew it must be done. And I am so glad I did it. I used a Dutch Boy Ceiling Paint and was really not all that awful and I only had to do one coat. Score! I highly recommend painting your ceiling. It will really brighten up your space!

So that ends my Crazy Kitchen Posts (for now, you never know when something might come up)! I am excited to get onto some building projects for this space!

More from the Crazy Kitchen Series:

Crazy Kitchen: Part One

Crazy Kitchen: Part Two (ceiling details)

Meet Monty...

Meet Monty, our newest family member. He joined us a few weeks ago and is growing FAST! After about a week of him wanting to live under the deck all the time, we decided we had better get on top of building him a home. He is nearly as big as our full grown cocker spaniel already and he'll be pushing 100lbs or more when he is full grown. This little guy will not be little for long.

So I pinned some dog houses and realized I had a theme going. I like a crooked dog house! They are so fun and whimsical, don't you think? And I knew I could not figure this one out on my own so I emailed my buddy Ana White  and she  already had something similar drawn up! It was meant to be!

The build: This was the most challenging thing I have ever built. Not hard, just challenging. I really had to use my thinker. But, in about 12 hours time, sometimes working with a helper, I had this beauty finished! The key to all the wonky angles is to mark mark mark your boards and keep them organized!!! Mark and Organize!! Got it?

Start with the frame cuts, which consists of 5 different boards. For me I like to get one cut figured out then use that board as my template for the remaining cuts. Then move on to the next size/cut. Once they are all cut, assembly is of each frame section is pretty simple, but grab a helper to help hold.

Next cut your plywood for the floor and attach. If you got through the first step okay then this one is easy peasy.

Now, Ana's plans say that if you'd like to you can add ridge poles between the trusses if you feel the doghouse needs the extra support. I did add these right after we attached the floor. It just helped to keep things square. I attached with pocket holes. At this time I also decided to add 2x2's to the floor between each section. This will help keep bedding in. Note: down the line you'll notice that the same gap between sections is at the top as well. For now I will keep that for ventilation in the summer months and when it is cold again I'll attach plywood in that area to keep it a little cozy (as well as some sort of door for the winter).

Next, add your 2x2 frame ends to the trusses. Then cut your side sections from the plywood and attach.

Now it's time for that big scary wonky cut for the front and back. But I promise it is not that bad! I just started measuring from the right corner (make sure it's square) and worked my way around. It took me about 20 minutes to get it all mapped out. Then cut it out with your circular saw and use that as your template for the other section. And attach!

After that you can cut and attach all of the trim. Then add the front and back overhang trusses. Now, I am not perfect and something got wonky along the way. I did not have room on the back for a 2x2 overhang truss. This was probably builder error. I went ahead and attached  1x2's instead.

And now it's time for the roof! Cut and attach your plywood. You can then paint it with a quality exterior paint or finish off the roof as desired. We went ahead and used shingles. Then it was time to introduce Monty to his new home.

And I have to show a shot that has our first born dog, Twinkles. We had to use her for bribery to get Monty inside. She approved.

So, who has a furry friend that needs a fun little house? DIY this Crooked Dog House! You won't regret it! Follow Ana's step by step plans and your pup will be home in no time.

Looking for a Monty update? See how our boy is growing here!