Progress...

 Been busy painting the house, I
decided on an adobe color...
with the awnings the same rose terra cotta
as the carport...

 Painted the floor the same adobe, but
wanted one wall to be different and I
needed to pull a pink color in as well,
but didn't want the whole house pink...

 All of the trim is painted, the dormer too
and all the trees around the house have been
trimmed back...I came to terms with my fear of
heights, as I scaled the walls to paint the gable
and trimmings...it wasn't so bad...

 I'm going for a SW feel with a touch of Tuscany,
the floor looks so much better
painted adobe...

 Planted bunches of hibiscus,such
amazing blooms...

 The air unit on the right will eventually
come out and as the plants grow I'll
have some privacy, especially from
my olive tree in the huge pot...

 Finally got the lanai wall and floor painted,
I love it out there...

 And spend a lot of time in it...

 The other side of the room is my studio,
I hope t get some painting done out here...

And in the meantime I'll have an awesome view
of the lake while I work...

Survived...

 Well, I thought I'd better update y'all
on the hurricane damage...I ain't skeered...

Well, this is my mum's place, as you can see
she lost her roof, but the inside was OK,
till we had more rains, then she sprang leaks
on the West side of the ceiling...but good news,
she has her new roof and tomorrow they start on
the drywall inside, then in a few weeks the contractor
will come back and do the carport. It's important
to get people's roofs on before a carport. Our
contractor is booked until February...
we were lucky...

 My hurricane preparedness kit...
since I knew we would be without power
and the refrigerator would be off, lots of fruit
was on my agenda...

 Then, the power went out...
I truly know the meaning of hurricane lamps...
actually, we were without power for eleven days,
WOW...it sucked...however, I was lucky,
 I still had water...but, with so much rain,
the drain field was saturated...I truly know
the meaning of the term,
'thunder bucket'...it was like camping...
right...but as it turned out,
my awesome neighbors had a generator
they weren't using, so I was saved, at least I
could run a fan, keep the frig cold and have a light...

 But my home had no damage, luckily...
however, my yard was a mess, but no trees down
just denuded, the moss and branches were
churned into mulch which I am still not
finished raking. But my banana tree went down
because of the weight of the bananas,
it didn't recover and the top was blown
out of my mango tree, but it's recovering and
my papaya trees were stripped of leaves,
but are recovering...all in all,
I was lucky...!

 It was a mess, but doable...I now own a
chain saw and a generator...lol...

 The water in the lake was up a foot,
covering my two decks and gillions of pine cones
and branches litter the ground, but all is now
back in order...

 The ditches were flooded by the road
for two weeks, but, beauty is fleeting
in the aftermath...
my neighbors across the street...that carport
was in the back of their yard...they like it's
new location better...lol...win, win...

All in all, we're alive, we survived
another hurricane, it's added to the annals,
just another day in paradise!!!

Thanks for your concerns guys!

Progress in paradise...

 I love my little kitchen, sunshine every morning...

 Perfect lil' stools found at Good Will,
two inside, two outside...

 Must have farm table for the carport,
loving it to work on...and the painting
has begun, as the Lil' Pink House saga continues...

 The Doobs loves the upstairs bedroom, it has
become my 2nd level studio...or the place that
hides all my crap...

 A fun score at a shop in Arcadia, gotta
love rusty stuff...

 Needed a cupboard for my undies,
this one was perfect, painted aqua, it adds
that Mediterranean feel I want...

 Doobie spends a lotta time in the porch,
lots of lizards to keep her focused...lol...

 One wall painted, 3 to go...ugh...

 A gator on the lake...come on...
it's Florida...

My lil' piece of paradise...home...

It's happening...

 Well, here I am all over Pinterest trying
to find the colors I want to paint my house...

 I absolutely love the colors of Tuscany,
the terra cottas and the golds...

 But I am so drawn to the pinks, I wonder why...
and this is how I want to transform my
back lanai, isn't it amazing...

 I'm in love with this color...

 I've removed all the carpet, painted the walls a
beautiful gold, to which I will be covering
with a whitewash, then wiping it down to
give it a weathered look...the floor is concrete
to which I rag rolled with two floor paint colors...

 The bedroom is two toned, gold with an
Apricotta color on bottom...

 The built-in I've painted the same as the door,
however I will be doing a finish like the
cupboards below, aren't they amazing...

 To die for...

 My tiny kitchen will see may changes...

 I love this look for the back screened in porch...
many days with my feet up and margaritas
going down...can't wait to get back...
I'm back in Iowa for two weeks packing the mover,
then mio Bramasole will be a reality...

And so it begins...

 Well y'all...my adventures begin...
Soon to be my forever home...
I have become the Tasha Tudor of the swamp.

 Not a great photo, but one of the reasons
I said yes...the fireplace...

 I am a gardener from way back, so this
tropical paradise really appeals to me,
especially the fact that it's here all year long,
12 months a year, REALLY appeals to me...

 This funky oak tree will be perfect to hang my monkey
bird feeder on, it's big so it needs sturdy limbs...
an oak should do it...

 My monkey bird feeder...

 Little grottos are everywhere, the former owner
was a gardener and was thrilled that I loved his plantings...
and grottos...

 My tropical bar, the deck out in the yard,
who needs a trip to the islands when I can
walk right out my back door...

Now I ask you, could you resist...
a tropical paradise, on a lake, in Florida,
in the jungle...I'm home...
the closing is the end of March...SIGH...