Picturesque Home Magazine

Rather than take one big vacation this summer, we opted instead for a few short trips so we could experience more new places. We kicked things off with a 3-night trip to Charleston, SC, we met up my parents in the Georgia mountains in July, and then capped off the summer with a getaway to St. Petersburg, Florida. Sherry and I had only been there very briefly during this 2008 beach vacation, so we were excited to spend more time there and explore it with our kids. So here’s a quick recap of what we did, where we ate, and why we’re excited to go back. Where Did We Stay In St. Petersburg? St. Petersburg is located on Florida’s Gulf Coast, across the Tampa Bay from the city of Tampa. The area has lots of great beaches, but we specifically chose St. Continue reading Two Days In St. Petersburg Florida With Kids at Young House Love.

We’re dropping this random pop-in episode to share one of the most embarrassing tales Sherry has ever told on this podcast. Of course it had to happen in the nicest house we’ve ever been in (in front of one of Sherry’s personal heroes). We’re also listing what’s left on our to-do list, and answering the much-asked question: what’s your next big project? Plus, we break down what feels different to us about this house compared to our last one (and the varied impressions you might get about us if you walked in without us being there). Lastly, we each share some recent home-related purchases and the books & tv shows that are keeping us laughing (or biting our nails, but in a good way). You can also find this episode on your favorite podcast listening app, like Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, TuneIn Radio, Stitcher, and Spotify. Continue reading #183: What’s Next, House Vibes, & Yet Another Embarrassing Moment at Young House Love.

As we mentioned in our post about making a bigger backyard pool area, we’ve also made some big changes out front. Namely, we now have a legit front walkway and driveway! Break out the champagne! Release the doves! Rewatch the #Scandoval episode of Vanderpump Rules (or whatever else people like Sherry do to celebrate). I know this may seem unworthy of celebration – a driveway? cool story, bro – but when you live without one for THREE YEARS, it feels like a major win. Why We Needed Parking & Pathways I know most houses come with a place to park your car and some sort of path to the front door. Every other house we’ve lived in certainly did. Some even had garages! But this particular house had no such thing. The entire property, apart from the house, was just pine straw, dirt, and leaves. Continue reading Finally! Real Walkways & A Legitimate Parking Spot For Two at Young House Love.

For nearly a year, we’ve been in the process of reimagining our pool area as a bigger, more multi-functional space. You first saw it two years ago when we posted this behind-the-scenes of putting in a pool, along with lots of before & afters. We LOVE our pool and this area quickly became our go-to outdoor family hang-out spot. So back in Spring of 2022, we realized we could make it work even harder for us if we did one somewhat simple thing… moved one section of fencing back (thereby doubling the size!). lounge chairs | adirondack chairs | firepit | similar table | dining chairs | nest chair | solar lights | umbrellas | pillows It ended up being a bit more than just that, so I’ll take you through the various steps we took to maximize this yard. In short, here’s what we did: Moved a section of fencing Built a platform deck to create an outdoor dining space Poured concrete walkways, stairs, and retaining walls As part of this overhaul, we also added a driveway and pathways along the front of the house too, and we’re in the process of putting all of those details and photos into another post. Continue reading How We Doubled The Size (And Function!) Of Our Backyard Pool Area at Young House Love.