Thanks for the compliments everyone. My husband didn't use any plans or pattern. He just copied what he had seen in the past on regular docks. He grooved out the frame underneath to make it securely fit on the skimmer (I had asked him to somehow keep it secure so that it wouldn't accidently tip if our cats stood on the edge to drink or look down at the water). Basically, the 'dock' is just a nicer replacement cover and is very light and easy to remove. The original plastic cover has been removed (its not underneath) and is now stored in our shed; I will switch them around when the snow and ice arrives in the winter, this way protecting and preserving the nice cedar color of the 'dock' instead of leaving it buried under deep snow.

Thanks so much for the kind words! It's nice to get nice comments from people outside of my family (who are obligated to say nice things). I'll try to post photos from our better camera later. On top of the hill is a red barn and silo. On the hill are some hay bales. I knew that I wanted to do a farm landscape bc that's the landscape in our area. The sky was the trickiest part, in terms of getitng it to look somewhat realistic; so, I watched a couple fo YouTube videos of "how to paint a sky." I actually re-painted the sky a couple of times to make it look right. Who knew that something that simple looking would be so challenging to paint? Before I tackled the huge painting I did a tiny (8x10) loose mock up, just to make sure that I wouldn't waste my time doing a huge version if the small one looked like hell. The small one looked ok; so, then I did the big one. It was definitely more challenging doing it on a huge scale bc when you blow things up, the lack of detail in the painting is more obvious. Anyway, the whole thing was a learning process bc as I painted and made mistakes, I figured out what didn't work and what worked better. I definitely had moments of frustration while painting it bc things just didn't look right, but I think I eventually fixed them to a point where it looked better. I found myself saying to myself several times during the process, "Why do I think that I can do this?!?" At the end of it though, I am really pleased with how it turned out. Anyway, if you are contemplating anything that seems kind of daunting, I have found that in general, if you break it up into little manageable parts, you can usually accomplish it to a passable degree. The worst that could happen is that the project fails, but in the grand scheme of life, that's not so bad. And on the flip side, you might suprise yourself!

I love the mirror and its frame, but its not my first choice for that space. My first thought was to get one of those faux type looking stone wall sculptures....that might not be the right name. They are usually and inch or 2 thick, made out of resin, but looks like plaster. They are sold like art. Here is something at Ballard Design, I dont know how to post the picture so here is the website http://www.ballarddesigns.com/Wall-Decor/Paintings-Prints/Whimsical-Prints/Individual%20Stones%20of%20Florence%20Giclé%3Be/p/6362?code=SHOPZ07 Its not that I like these from Ballard, its just to show the idea. I really liked the iron scroll idea too. Another thought is a framed print. There are tuns of framed art that have that kitchen flair to them....that fat cartoon looking waiter, fruit, roosters, etc. I see those items better suited in that spot than the mirror. Did you ever consider faux painting a stone pattern for your backsplash? When I googled stone art to post a picture, I saw some DYI Learn to faux paint stone. Kind of neat.

Thanks, everyone! Glad you enjoyed the pictures. Bebe, you called that one right. Those strands took me 15 mins. apiece, and that was if I didn't make any mistakes (I made a lot of booboos since each strand had its own pattern). The math/pattern alone on that was tough enough to figure out. I started out thinking I'd bead fringe for the whole thing, but quickly changed my mind. If you're not insane already, doing that job will put you there. lol I'm putting the surgery off till I finish the toy box. Both hands have bad osteoarthritis in the thumb joint, and hurt all the time, so I'm eager to get them fixed!