(Other) French apartment renovations, Day 215: Wallpaper layer 2

14,303 steps

Well, we had some complications with our re-wallpapering. On Thursday we ran out of our fiberglass wallpaper and went to buy more. Unfortunately, the store we had bought it from was out of stock. None of the other stores in town had the same pattern. Eric went all over the place looking for it. We ordered some online from a big box store, and it came yesterday morning.

It was close, but not the same. A bit more flimsy and less texture. We put it up hoping for the best...but it just didn't look good. It showed every imperfection. The whole point of appling fiberglass wallpaper is to hide imperfections!

I went to yet another home improvement store this morning and couldn't find the right pattern.

So we scratched our heads and decided to put a 2nd layer using leftover scraps. We very carefully cut all the scraps to have super straight edges and were able to just barely piece enough together to cover the kitchen wall. And as a bonus, with the 2nd layer, it's the same thickness as the original paper we're butting up against.

What else?

Inga and I went running together this morning. She is super wicked fast, but hasn't ever done endurance running, aka running without stopping for 30+ minutes. We had to stop a few times but that's okay.

Dio went running on his own. We couldn't persuade Zari to go out and exercise. This is getting to be a bit of an issue since she is otherwise sedentary and I want her to a) get outdoors enough and b) stay in shape, with whatever form of exercise she chooses. I'm not worried about her weight or any of that nonsense, but I do want her to stay physically active.

I told her that I'm trying to ensure balance: reading for several hours during vacation is fine. But reading or sitting around the house all day? Not okay. It needs to be balanced with physical activity and social interaction of some sort. (I know this all too well, because I do it, too, at times!)

Anyway Dio and Inga stayed home in the late afternoon while Ivy, Eric, Zari, and I went to the beach. I almost had to drag her out of the house but she ended up having a great time swimming and playing with Ivy and snorkeling. The water was the clearest I've ever seen it.

Ivy helped me make a tiramisu for tomorrow. Dinner tonight ended up being Greek by happenstance. I made spanakopita and grilled halloumi cheese. Dessert was "fake ice cream," as we call it: frozen berries blended with cream and a little dash of sugar.