ETC..., House Updates

First pool day + protecting your backyard furniture

pool after

Happy Tuesday! My week is off to a wonderful start already. Don’t you love it when you can check some things off your to-do list? I know I sure do. One of the items on my to-do list for the month of May was to get our pool ready for the summer. Because it was covered all winter, it needed a bit of TLC. So, we had Walter come out to make sure all of the chemicals were balanced – and to give it a good deep clean before the summer. He came out last week, and he got us ready to go in about two days. He is wonderful. Here is what the pool looked like before. We had some heavy rains – and it just wasn’t as clear as we would like.

Before | pool

See? It was just really murky. So, Walter got us back in business. Here’s what it looked like this weekend:

pool after

It’s just much more clear. He also deep cleaned our filter, which helped a lot. We’ve got Walter coming out every Monday just to make sure the pool stays in optimal shape. I never thought of all the tiny things involved with owning a house back when we bought in September. It’s a lot of work, but I’m so thankful we bought when we did. There was no way to predict how crazy the housing market would become, and we had the best team on our side.

Inaugural pool day

All that to say, Aaron and I had our inaugural pool day on Saturday. We had plans Saturday early evening with some friends, so we spent the afternoon just relaxing and hanging out.

pool day | Houston Texas

And, I promise I won’t grace you with too many “hotdog leg” photos this summer. But, I didn’t have makeup on, so I promise this was the better option of the two photos. I love, love, love our lounge chairs. My husband is a big fan also, which says a lot.

safavieh chaise lounge chairs

My favorite thing about these lounge chairs (you can read all about our backyard furniture here) is that they have a built in mini tray that slides out for you to put your drinks, snacks and sunscreen. I really didn’t want an extra piece of furniture that I would have to lug around our yard, so the fact that they came with built-in tables was a huge bonus for us. And, it’s really the perfect place to put all your goodies. Now, here is my annual sunscreen PSA: wear it. Apply it frequently and encourage your loved ones to wear it as well. It’s the easiest way to prevent skin cancer. I prefer the lotion over the spray because I feel like I can control where it goes. I’ve gotten lots of sunburns with the spray sunscreen, so I gave that up awhile ago. I’m a lotion-only girl!

Outdoor furniture covers

patio furniture covers

Now, if you are new around here, I live in Houston, Texas. Which means that we get a lot of rain. During the summer, it’s not uncommon to have some brief afternoon showers. That being said, I knew that I wanted to protect our patio furniture against the elements. It took me a long time to pick exactly what I wanted, and I want to make sure it lasts.

So, patio furniture covers it is. Are they the prettiest things? Definitely not, but I know I’ll be happy to have them when my furniture isn’t getting damaged by heavy rains/wind.

I have two different brands because the lounge chair brand did not a make a size that would fit my table. I like the quality of the lounge chair covers much better, but the table cover is doing the trick so far. Both options are fairly easy to take on and off, and they are secured by straps and hooks so the wind isn’t an issue. Our plan is to keep them covered during the week and uncover them on the weekends. They’ll be covered permanently during the winter!

And, that little green and blue outdoor rug was the best World Market find. I purchased that about five years ago for our little patio at the townhouse. It came with me to the new house, and I still love it. It was about $30 at World Market, and it’s held up well – it even made it through Hurricane Harvey. So, if you are ever at World Market, I can vouch for their outdoor rugs!

That’s all I have for you today. I’m trying to get ourselves ready for our upcoming vacation – and I’m trying to see if Aaron and I might be able to take an anniversary getaway at some point in August. Not sure if it’s going to happen, but I’m sure as heck going to try.

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