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Do you redecorate or do major landscaping when dh is out of town?


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For some reason, every time my dh goes out of town I get a serious urge to do a project. Maybe it's because I know he's not going to be home in the evenings so I feel like I have more time to "work" around the house..or maybe I like that he's not here to provide his opinion, lol!

 

Yesterday I bought a new piece of furniture ($20 at the thrifty store) an I just got back from Lowes with a ton of topsoil and some new plants for the front yard. I'm finally ripping out the stuff I don't like and replacing it with things I do like. I fully intend on going back to lowes 2 or 3 more times today for more stuff. It's only a mile away so that is not a big deal.

 

This week the middle children have been at grandmas house so I've already reorganized the family room/playroom and donated a ton of toys. The school room has been redone, now the front yard is in progress and I have a serious urge to pain the deck.

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Yep, in our old house dh used to say that he never knew what color it was going to be when he came home. :0)

 

I can get so much more done, when the dh and dk are gone. I can leave messes, like paint cans in the floor and no one will trip on them.

 

I really don't like to redecorate when they are home.

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I'm not prone to doing it often, but it has happened. He came home once, and the wood panel wainscoting in the hall was painted cream. Of course, now he thinks I'm invincible and should just do ALL the home improvement instead of having him help me ;)

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My grandfather (who in some ways was more like a dad to me than my biological dad) told me once that he'd come home from work to find that my grandmother was always starting projects without telling him and how much he hated it. It was the only complaint I ever heard him make about her.

 

Anyway, I don't like to redecorate. I'm more than willing to leave that up to dh.

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Not here. DH has only been out of town three times in the almost 13 years we've been married. One time I kicked him out for the night so I could have a girl's night in party.

 

We usually enjoy DH's absence by being lazy and having fun. It's a time for staying up late, squishing into mom's bed, eating kid food and dessert, watching movies, and being loud (DH doesn't do loud).

 

ETA: I do, however, sometimes rearrange furniture during the day when he's gone though. This house doesn't have a floor plan that allows for much of that though, which is sad, because I love to rearrange rooms.

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My dh and I lived in a 1000 sq.ft. "shack" (literally) for 12 years. We have 5 dc. We had no place for a dining table, and I definitely wasn't going to eat in our teeny living room on tv trays every night. We did have a sizeable laundry room, probably 9x12. One year while my dh was hunting, I moved the laundry equipment outside to the porch (first mixing concrete by hand and pouring a 5x8 slab for it). Then I cleaned, painted, hung a new light fixture, and knocked down the wall between the laundry room and the kitchen. Lol, well, not really knocking down a wall. I knocked down the top section of part of the wall to build a bar counter & pass-through to the kitchen. Mind you, I had no particular expertise, lol! I didn't even have the correct tools for the job. What I did have was a *ton* of determination.

 

That was the biggest change dh ever came home to. On other years/other trips, I have painted, re-landscaped, laid new flooring, installed shower doors, etc. Six years ago we built a new house, and although it's a dream-come-true, I still kind of miss the feeling of making something old look refreshed. ;)

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I love doing projects when dh is gone and when the kids are gone too!

 

Both kids will be gone to camp for a whole week the last week of this month, so I'm re-painting the entire main floor, including all the real oak! :svengo:There's just toooo much oak here!

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I haven't redecorated when dh has been away, but that doesn't mean that I wouldn't. Rearranging furniture, that I've done.

 

Landscaping is a completely different issue. Dh is a landscape architect so I would never do anything in the yard without talking to him first. Potted plants, container gardening, sure. Major plantings, no way.

 

Now, of course, because he is an LA, we definitely have a case of "shoemakers son" at our house. He started a design 5 years ago and still hasn't finished it. Paying client's always come first.:confused: Not to mention, he says I'm his toughest client.

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