Meet the Meaney’s!!!

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Hello! My name is Angela Meaney. My husband, Brad, and I have been married for almost 16 years. We have two beautiful daughters, Alexis (20) and Alyssa (18), and our nephew, Morgan (16). We are loud and crazy and live a very hectic life. Over the last 20 years we have renovated four older homes for ourselves to live in and flipped several others. Real estate is a passion of ours. We currently reside in Ohio and Florida (Brad for work). Alyssa recently chose a college in Florida and we are all moving down to Florida this summer. Our offer was accepted on a pretty sweet house and we are ready to go! We love farmhouse style and are excited to infuse that style into the Spanish style Florida house!

I am a licensed cosmetologist and nurse but am currently doing insurance work for a construction company. I absolutely love designing and decorating comfy, cozy spaces. The best compliments in life are to be told that your house looks like it came out of a magazine. I love wine, shopping, Grey’s Anatomy, and spending time with friends. I am social when I know you but can be a little shy when I first meet you and prefer to be the hostess. It can be nice to let someone else do the work but there is no place like home. My greatest accomplishments in life are my family. I love them with all my heart and believe we are truly blessed.

Brad is a former Marine (before I met him) and spent most of our lives as a heating and cooling technician. He is now working in the roofing industry thanks to Hurricane Irma which is quite funny since our first grown up vacation in years was cancelled when it hit (we were supposed to leave on a cruise out of Miami on September 11th, 2017). He is a very talented carpenter and I am not sure of there is anything he can’t do. His family is everything to him. He loves mowing the grass (we have 35 acres in Ohio), running, hunting and fishing. A move to Florida is something that he thought he would never do until we bought a boat 6 weeks ago and now he is hooked and ready for us all to be here.

Alexis is the first person I ever loved. She is in many ways a carbon copy of me. She got my stubbornness, my love for shopping, and my great big heart. She has stumbled a little finding her way but will hopefully be heading back to college in the fall after taking some time off. She wants to be a nurse anesthetist. Last summer she made the scary move to Florida for a job leaving all her friends. She definitely is one of the smartest people I know and of course can be air-headed which comes with her level of intelligence. She’s always good for a dumb joke and definitely laughs the loudest when she tells it. Her ability to do makeup is something everyone envies and she is so beautiful. In high school she ran cross country and swam competitively and was was awarded a Varsity letter all 4 years in both sports.

Alyssa is the baby. She also has a big, beautiful heart like her sister and inherited our shopping gene. Over-achiever is her middle name. She came into this world 8 1/2 weeks early and hasn’t stopped impressing people since. She  will “finish” high school in a few weeks with close to a 4.0, 17 Varsity athletic letters (cross country, cheer, swim, and track), 3 academic letters, and 3 band letters. She was also her class secretary and we are praying for a real graduation ceremony where we get to hear her speak…a prom would be nice too! She is very passionate about horses and is a talented rider. Being quarantined in Florida she has become quite the boat captain too! In the fall she will begin her college journey by running collegiate cross country and pursuing a degree to be an exotic animal veterinarian.

Morgan is an easy going kid. For the most part he just goes with the flow. He loves football, video games, and really just sports in general. This winter after a football injury that took half of football season he decided to spend his winter on the swim team. And he was GOOD! He is a naturally talented athlete and with a little more drive he would be the best. He is a little unsure about our move to Florida because for him it means a new high school, new teams, and new friends.

Hiking Mt Kilimanjaro…Can I Do It?

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So my husband was presented with the opportunity through working with Haven of Hope to hike Mt Kilimanjaro along with visiting several local orphanages and has asked me to go with him. But here is the kicker….IT’S IN SEVEN WEEKS!!!!

We have spoken with the organization and they have ensured me that if I workout over the next 7 weeks I will be fine. However I am scared as hell as I am DRASTICALLY overweight (in my mind) and out of shape so it leads me to the question “Can I do this?” Well I sure as hell am going to try. I have no idea where to even begin but I have been doing some research and am working on a fitness plan to try to get me in shape to accomplish this!

Right now my plan is diet to lose pounds (this my knees will thank me for) and weekly moving myself up to a more intense workout regime.

Tomorrow I am going to go ahead and start with the 21 Day Fix because that it usually my best bet when starting a workout routine. And then add in one of the more muscle building routines after a week or two (depending on how I am feeling). Along with this I am going to get up early (with the exception of tomorrow bc I have to leave the house at 6 am) and start walking. The first day I will walk as far as I can and then be sure to add a quarter of a mile each day. And the hubby and I will definitely be finding some fun places to go on LONG walks on the weekends.

Once I am settled in one place, for those who do not know we live between Fort Myers, Orlando, and Ohio, I will get to Planet Fitness and start attacking the stair climber. This I will make sure I do no later than 2 weeks from today , but will be back in Ft Myers on the 5th of August so that will most likely be the day. For now I am in Orlando and since making this decision I have been running up and down the stairs about every 15 minutes a couple times. This I will do through the rest of the weekend and then continue while we are in Ohio for the weekend.

And here is the kicker!! NO ALCOHOL (I really am going to try) until after I get off that beautiful mountain! I am in no way an alcoholic however when the hubs and I are eating dinner I almost always have a seltzer or a glass of wine and I like to get a little tipsy when I go out with my friends and will be tested this Saturday when I go out with my girls. BUT it is 8 weeks…should be a piece of cake.

Lastly…water, water, and more water! I have been doing a lot of research this evening and one of the biggest things I am seeing is how much water I need to drink during the hike so I am going to start that now hoping to get my bladder trained because let’s be real the lack of uterus holding it can be a HUGE problem!

As I am typing this I am thinking the same thing that most of you are thinking “There is no way I (she) can do this!” but how disappointed would I be if I didn’t even try. I mean if you heard my kids on the phone when I told them, they were so excited I have to show that I have at least what it takes to try. I am going to try to document as much of this journey as I can because I need your encouragement and I hope that at the end I will be successful and cherish these thoughts that are going through my head for years to come.

So I would love to hear all your advise and encouragement! I am going to need it!! And honestly negativity helps too, I love to prove someone wrong! Wish me luck!

My First Solo Renovation!

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I guess this title is a little misleading as before I was married (a lifetime ago) I did lots of DIY projects that included tearing out carpet and refinishing floors, changing electrical fixtures, painting, and a few other minor things that I could handle without using a saw. However once I got married my hubby was so handy that my part in things has been pretty much watching, holding, help carrying, and being the inspiration behind the design. We have been renovating and redoing homes for the last 19 years and I don’t think that there is anything that he can’t do.

So as some of you know we relocated to Florida slowly over the last 2 years. As of right now this is a temporary move for our jobs but after a year of paying rent we found a great deal on a house and felt that it made more sense to buy especially since it would double as a headquarters for our business. We had initially put an offer on a different house but when it fell through and I was in Ohio the hubs had to find something himself as we were running out of time on our rental. I found the house on Zillow and he went and looked at it. He wasn’t sure if I would like it but I had seen the photos and the price was right so I told him to go for it. Not to mention this was the first house we looked at in Florida that he mentioned being ok with some renovations so that sweetened the deal.

Fortunately we were able to come to an agreement and by the time I was ready to make the move (I had to stay in Ohio to plan and execute the daughter’s grad party) our daughter was so nervous when she picked me up from the airport, she thought for sure I would hate the house. Well to everyone’s surprise I loved it and I mean LOVED it! The layout is perfect, other than I would like a bigger master closet. Plus it was so reasonably priced and is on the water!!

Over the last year we have painted and changed out light fixtures and just brought the house into this century and the results are night and day! We just purchased all new windows and doors but thanks to Covid delays they won’t be installed until January. However there are so many “little” projects I want to do but the hubs is working so much that he is just exhausted when he gets home and has not been feeling it.  So there are a few things I REALLY want to do that he has just not been feeling so I decided while he is in New Orleans for work I would try to accomplish a few of them.

The first is this half bath. Below is the picture from the listing. Nothing terrible just boring to look at.

I had big plans for this and initially bought a new faucet, light fixture, mirror, and towel holder right after we bought the house. I wanted a swanky, coastal feel with gold fixtures (I am dying to try gold somewhere). But we still have not got around to it and everything is still in boxes in the garage. Below is where we are at now….I hung a picture, put a small cabinet (plastic) in the corner and a rug. I pretty much dislike all of it. I dislike the pedestal sink, the drawers on the mirror are useless, the light is not my style and the faucet leaks, continuously! Not to mention the floors in this house are AWFUL!

So here comes my ideas…..

I would have loved to do a wallpaper accent wall but there is too much moisture in Florida and that turned out bad for us on another project, I thought about shiplap but that would be a HUGE project to do by myself, so I decided to paint an accent wall. The pedestal sink HAS to go along with everything around it and if I can figure out how to execute it then I’m planning on doing something with the floor. So this post will be written day by day so that I can share this experience as accurate as possible.

Day 1

So I started actually over the weekend and found some things I like and picked a paint color…here is the inspiration board.

Today after work I went to Lowe’s and picked up a paint sample (this is the perfect amount of paint if you are doing a smallish accent wall). Once I got home I painted a small area to make sure I liked it and I loved it. So now to figure out how to get the sink out…. A quick internet search and I found a YouTube video and it was surprisingly easy, with the help of my oldest daughter that is. And other than tripping over a case of water in the garage we looked like pros! Don’t worry I have been stripping all the beds to do laundry so I had a nice soft landing. Then I removed the light and started painting. I love it so much I wanted to go back to Lowe’s to get the vanity and a box of flooring but that would be dumb because I still have to get rid of the ugly peach color in the rest of the room. I am not going to lie I am so excited that I made it this far and am dying to send a picture to the hubs but it will be way more fun to see how long it takes him to notice and to see his face in person. He is a pretty observant, like in I got extensions once and he asked me within a few minutes if I got a haircut, so he will definitely notice pretty quickly. And I am praying his response is positive.

Day 2

So my first break of the day (I work from home) I ran back to Lowe’s for some supplies…

  • A roller (to paint the 3 remaining walls)
  • Joint compound (to repair the holes in the wall from the old toilet paper holder)
  • 2 boxes of flooring
  • A jigsaw (to cut flooring)…I barely used this.
  • A contour gauge
  • Caulk

The trip took a little longer than expected so when I got home I had to work for a few hours before I could go back to my project but I did pull the joint compound out and repair the holes real quick. The cool thing about living in Florida is all the walls are textured so repairs are super easy!

 

During my second break of the day I put a coat of white paint on the other three walls and touched up the blue wall where needed and then back to work.

When I was finished working for the day the logical thing would have been to put a second coat of white paint on the walls but I was so excited to get the floor going that I started that. I watched a YouTube video on how to install the specific brand and between that and all the times I watched my husband I was surprised how easy it was. I did mess up my first cut around the toilet but it was such a small cut I decided to redo it and save the mistake piece for somewhere else. I got about halfway through and realized I really needed a rubber mallet so I took a break and ran back to the store. I also found that it was way easier to score the floor cuts with a razor knife and then use pliers to break the unneeded parts off and the contour gauge is literally the greatest thing ever invented! I also opted not to remove the trim. Our trim is caulked very well and I am pretty sure if removed it would make a HUGE mess so I got the floor as close as I could and then will most likely run a bead of caulk around the edge or wait for the hubby to add corner round.

Upon returning from the store I took the door off and finished most of the floor…here is what it looks like right now! And I do have to say I did pretty good around the toilet! If the hubby decides to pull the toilet then it will just be 3 pieces that need replaced but I do not really see a need to do that.

So now I am going to do my billing and then if I am not exhausted put a the last coat on the walls and maybe put in the last three pieces of flooring. If not I will do those in the morning prior to going to get the new vanity!

Day 3

Well last night I did end up putting a second coat of paint on the walls so today should have been a pretty easy day. I took the door and propped it on some stools and gave it a couple coats of fresh paint. Fridays are usually a day I only answer calls for work and try to clean and get everything done so that the weekend can be free HOWEVER today my phone did not stop ringing! I worked all morning and only accomplished painting the door.

I took my “lunch break” around 1 and planned to head back to Lowe’s. When I was pulling down my street I decided to take a quick detour to go to Homegoods to grab hopefully a cabinet or shelf for the corner and some accent decor pieces. Well I succeeded with all plus found new end tables for the living room so by the time I made it to Lowe’s I was pretty full and actually had to take all my purchases out of the car to get the vanity in and then rearrange everything…I wish I could say that this did not happen all the time when I am shopping!

When I got home I decided to get this done so I got the vanity out of the box (this was actually the hardest part of this entire project) and went to work. Within an hour I had the vanity installed with the faucet. I watched a YouTube video on how to hook up the faucet, which I did, but in the end decided not to turn the water back on and wait for the hubby (plumber by trade the first 15 years of our marriage) to double check everything. Unfortunately the mirror for the vanity came broken but I just opted to put it on Marketplace because I really did not like it anyway. So I decided to go shopping!

Well I decided to work a few more hours and then this evening I went shopping AGAIN! I started at Hobby Lobby where I got a mirror and a canvas to hang over the toilet, then went to Lowe’s and grabbed a light because at this point I could not wait for the one I ordered to be delivered on Sunday, made a quick stop at Target, grabbed a bite to eat to take home, and then headed home. Hanging everything and installing the light took no time at all but I did not like the shades I bought so a quick trip back to Lowe’s and I swapped them out. Finally I hung the door and installed a new handle! AND we are done!!!

The Finished Project!

The Reveal

Well we (my daughter and I) were so excited that we could not wait to show the hubby so we Facetimed him and to my surprise he liked it!! In my head I was so worried he would be mad but I think he was very relieved that it was one project he did not have to do! It has been a week and everything is still holding up (slight fear I had) and the hubby had made it home and even liked it in person!

I hope what you take away from this is that you can do anything you want! I did have lots of experience watching the hubby over the years but the YouTube videos explained everything so well I truly think that anyone can do it!

The Tools

So I am not an every day DIYer however I like when I need a tool I have it (specifically a battery powered screw driver) so a few months ago when I was hanging some pictures I took a trip to Lowe’s because some how all the house tools ended up in the hubby’s work truck and stocked myself up pretty good. I decided to by a jigsaw for this project however I barely used it but I am in love with it so it was a win. Here is what I used…

  • Cordless Screwdriver
  • Putty Knife
  • Rubber Mallet
  • Hammer
  • Razor Knife
  • Pliers
  • Channel Locks
  • Pencil
  • Level
  • Stud Funder
  • Contour Gauge
  • Joint Compound
  • Mini Prybar

The Cost!

I swear this has to be a record for a bathroom renovation!

  • Flooring (Lowe’s) $39.02
  • Paint (Lowe’s) $3.58
  • Paint Supplies (Lowe’s) $7.18
  • Vanity (Lowe’s) $269.10
  • Vanity Light (Lowe’s) $35.95
  • Vanity Globes (Lowe’s) $40.20
  • Mirror (Hobby Lobby) $29.99
  • Under the Pier Canvas (Hobby  Lobby) $16.49
  • Seashell Hook (Hobby Lobby)
  • Faucet (Amazon) $48.99
  • Toilet Paper Holder (Amazon) $11.20
  • Door Knob (Amazon) $15.64
  • Corner Cabinet (Homegoods) $89.99
  • Misc Decor (Homegoods) $20.97

Grand Total = $631.29

Our Family Has Grown!

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Well, it has been forever since I have sat to down to compose a post….and ALOT has happened in our lives! However I am not going to get into everything just the MOST exciting thing! Last August our lives were slightly derailed when we found out that we were going to be grandparents!! Not going to lie our first thought was not excitement but as soon as we saw that first photo we were head over heals in LOVE! And it was not that we were not happy just a little stunned. I mean we were less than a year away from being empty nesters…but let’s be real we would not have known what to do with ourselves!

Luckily there was no time to even dwell because we, well I, had a gender reveal to plan! And I sure do love an excuse to put my party planning hat on! Lexi came at me with a theme “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, How I Wonder What You Are” and my good friend Pinterest and I went to work! In no time at all everything was planned and we just needed the date to arrive! When it arrived we had such a beautiful day and had a great turnout!!! We had all the guests wear pink or blue (whichever gender they thought the sweet bean was going to be.)

 

And every party needs sweet treats! As per usual I made some of mama-to-be’s favorite cupcakes (Churro Cupcakes) and a dear friend had recently started a cookie business and made us these AMAZING sugar cookies….for real if you need cookies you have to give her a call! The BEST sugar cookies I have ever had!! A Magically Made Cookie Co.

              

Sweet mama was convinced she was having a boy BUT we added another princess to our crazy clan!!

 

And while I would love to share a picture of our sweet girl there are just too many more exciting things to share before that! Hopefully I will have another post up VERY soon!

The FIRST Post Corona Shop!!

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So I am wholeheartedly a shopaholic! I can’t help it. Give me shopping and wine and I am a happy girl. We spent most of our coronacation in Florida. The only “shopping”, like pretty much everywhere else, was Target and Walmart. Every time I went grocery shopping I would browse various aisles but didn’t find much. In fact when the puppy ate the curtains after being locked in her cage (she has some serious separation anxiety) and I had to get new curtains at Target I “settled.” Not that I don’t like Walmart and Target I am just a Homegoods girl. I also like to shop the faves of everyone else, i.e. Michael’s, Hobby Lobby, etc, but at the end of the day I feel like no matter what I am looking for I always find it at Homegoods. So the hardest part of this corona virus for me was not being able to browse my stores.

Today in Ohio they started letting some stores open and I was able to browse two of my favorites that I like to call my Ashtabula County “Homegoods” stores as I feel like if I am looking for something extra special (antique) and don’t want to make the 40 minute drive to the larger surrounding areas.

I started at Farmhouse Vintage which recently relocated to the Ashtabula Harbor. It was the highlight of my year. I do love the store that took over for her in Jefferson but I love Lisa’s vision and was so excited to hear she was opening a new store. I was actually drawn there because I had purchased the table set below over the weekend just minutes after she posted it knowing it would not last long!

Now in the picture it looks grey and I was a little surprised to see that it was actually  a tan color but it was just so beautiful I couldn’t pass it up! This set, table and two benches, was saved out of the Warren Sanitary Dairy and Lisa refinished the top. Ultimately it will come to Florida with me and go in a breakfast nook but in the meantime I would not dare put it in an outbuilding for storage so I had to rearrange a few things to find a place for each piece in the house.

 

                                      

I am very pleased! The first thing that caught my eye as I walked through the store was this next beauty! The photo does not do it justice as the finish is a dry brushed light blue-green. And believe it or not it was $100!!!! It will also come to Florida with us as it has the most perfect coastal farmhouse vibe!

So after finding these two AMAZING pieces of furniture, I checked out and then while waiting for them to load up the truck I found a few more things! Pictured below is actually two light teal planter boxes. For easy storage I have them stacked until we make our big move but how perfect are they? I had a vision to put some fake plants in them as I kill all living plant life in my house and as I was walking through Walmart, not looking for them, how surprised was I to find these adorable faux lavender plants on clearance for $4!!

And then how perfect is this sign? I by no means feel like my life is perfect but I do feel the days of discontent are gone. I may not have everything but I have everything I need. This sign definitely hits perfect.

Next we went home to unload the truck and then I took a trip in the opposite direction to The Refindary Vintage Market. This store is two stories of antique heaven! They have something for everyone! I had to pick up a few items I purchased through their awesome online events and of course found a few more things to bring home. Not pictured are there awesome soy candles!!!

                                            

Lastly a stop at Dollar General where they had some adorable items with a nautical vibe at 70% off, ranging from .75 to $1.50.

It definitely was good for the soul to get out and do a little retail therapy! Homegoods better be ready for me when they open!!!

I hope everyone is staying safe and getting their retail therapy as needed. I am going to leave you with one more pic featuring one of my new finds and one of my all time favorite pieces! The headboard is not my find but one I will forever treasure. My parents found it antiquing in New England and then my mom gifted it to me. It is just priceless! (All bedding is from Homegoods)

Happy Mother’s Day!!!

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Happy Mother’s Day! I hope everyone had a wonderful day. Mine started off a little rough. The hubby was super kind and let me sleep in and Dakota (our one year old puppy) stayed with me and snuggled. He made me coffee (I love when he does that) and we had to have a serious conversation (I will get to that shortly) before he had to head back to Florida. Alyssa and Julia picked up the entire house and with us just getting back to Ohio from Florida we still had a few things that needed put away so that made my day. They took a trip to Tractor supply and brought me flowers and candy!

Then started the dreading packing of the house… This is how I spent most of my day. Going through my kitchen and trying to decide what I need in Florida and what I should leave in Ohio. We plan on spending most of the holidays in Ohio so stripping a kitchen that prepares meals for sometimes 30+ people isn’t really an option. And while I am super excited to move to Florida we have built this beautiful house for our family and it is going to be hard to leave. I have to admit that there were lots of tears today, partly because I didn’t unpack properly when we FINALLY got our kitchen finished in this house (I came across some pictures of the kids when they were little) but mostly because I kept thinking about the conversation Brad and I had earlier this morning.

So now I am going to share the upsetting decision we decided to make today. Wednesday we had the home inspection at the new house and there were a few unsettling things but nothing too crazy. We had a small list of things that we had asked the sellers to provide and they were very forthcoming. We had discovered that they had filed a claim after Hurricane Irma, this in our line of work is not really a big deal, so we wanted to see the details of the claim to ensure that they had completed all the work that had been approved by the insurance company. I mean who wants to buy a house and then not be able to get insurance. One of the documents they sent over outlined the extent of the interior damages from the storm and the images were a little unsettling. And while it appeared that they had properly fixed it, there was a slight musty smell that made us rethink things. Regrettably in the end we decided to walk away from the house and start house-hunting again. This is something I am NOT looking forward to but back to Zillow I go hoping that while I am in Ohio for the next three weeks I can find a few good options to look at. We really have looked at EVERYTHING on the Market in our price range so I am hoping to catch some new listings. Wish us luck!!

I finished my day with four of my favorite kids and some delicious take out from one of my favorite Mexican restaurants and the kids wanted to take a pic (since we have so few together). I am very frustrated about the house situation however what is meant to be will be. And at the end of the day I have this wonderful family so how can I not feel blessed.

And just like that I became a Pampered Chef Consultant!

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So I was attending a Pampered Chef virtual show last week and started thinking about not wanting to strip my Ohio kitchen to fill my Florida kitchen and was like I can sign up to be a consultant and get some great deals!

I am so excited to say that due to my awesome friends and consultant I had an AMAZING party of my own and got lots of my favorites and decided that being a consultant would be so much fun now that everything is online. And SCORE!! PC is offering the starter kit for FREE with qualifying sales and I have no doubt with the awesome hostesses I have lined up for May I will reach that goal!!!

So remember to think of my for all your Pampered Chef needs!!!

https://www.pamperedchef.com/pws/angiescoastalkitchen

And if you have ever thought about an exciting career in Pampered Chef this IS the month to do it!!!

 

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