DIY Outdoor Fountain

I love the soothing sound of water.  I have wanted a fountain for a few years but they are just so expensive… that is unless you make your own.  

I also love Craigslist! You can find so many great things on there. I was looking around on there last weekend and decided to look up large pottery.  To my surprise I found a listing for a new and very nice piece for only $5.  Here it is.

I couldn’t pass it up so I went and picked it up.  When I got home I looked up a few DIY fountains.  I took a little from one design and a little from another and came up with this fountain.

The whole project only cost $40 and took around two hours.  Here are the supplies:

1 – Large pot -$5 if lucky like me

1 – container fountain kit (this comes with the pump, extender pipe, fountain nozzle, Epoxy, and pump filter) $19 at Lowes

1 – Bag of river rocks (I probably would have gone for the nicer looking rocks if so keep that in mind) $4

1 – Plastic Plant container/bowl (the size will be determined by the mouth width of your planter, mine was 18” wide) $9

1 – Spray can of clear acrylic sealer - $3

Plus bowls or additional planter to hold up the fountain pump so that it reaches 2” above the rocks – I had these in my garage

Drill with a large drill bit

I should have taken a picture of all the supplies together but I didn't...

First seal holes (if any) in your planter.  I used the Epoxy that came in the fountain kit and so far it is working great. 

After the sealer dries, spray a couple coats of acrylic sealer (according to package directions) in the planter to protect it from any water damage.  I did this the day before I built the fountain so that it had at least 12 hours to dry.

Drill multiple holes in the bottom of your plastic plant container.  This allows water to fall down and get re-pumped.   Drill a hole large enough for the pump extender pipe to fit through. Also drill a hole in the side of this container to hold the power cord.  I also made a slit with scissors.

I drilled a few more in the outer edge before I assembled the fountain

Play around with the height of your pump and make sure it works before you go any further.  Just make sure the extender pipe reaches ~2” above the rim of the pot.

Wash your river rocks… they are usually pretty sandy and gritty out of the bag

Once you have your pump where you want it.  Place the plastic planter to fit over the pump and sit on the rim of the pot.  Situate the cord in the hole you drilled in the side of the plastic planter.

Fill the plastic container with your river rocks.  I will probably add more rocks just to make it look prettier.  Fill the fountain with water to about 2" below the rim of the pot. Place a nozzle of your choosing over the extender pipe and plug your pump in. 

TA-DAH you have a fountain that sounds and looks awesome!

I spent a few hours on my patio yesterday just enjoying the sounds and reading a book.  

Week 21 of Pregnancy

I’ve had a pretty crazy week and I am sorry for the delay of this weekly update. 

We did our anatomy scan this week and had a glimpse at our future.  I think we were disturbing the little munchkin because it wasn’t moving a whole bunch and had its hands in front of his/her face pretty much the whole time.  Everything with the scan went perfectly.  Our baby is growing flawlessly and is even ahead of schedule by a few days.  We are very happy and blessed.

This week has been quite a whirlwind and a little hectic.  I’ve been dealing with refinancing the house and trying to figure out the budget for when baby comes.  It is quite stressful.  Luckily, we get to close on the house tonight, so that will take a whole bunch of stress out of my daily life. 

Our baby

Our baby is now as long as a carrot and is supposed to be weighing in at 10oz, however at the ultrasound, our little jelly belly weighed in at 13oz. 

We felt our little one kick through my belly for the first time this week.  I can feel the baby doing back flips and flops usually at night around 8pm, it has even woken me up a few times in the middle of the night!  It will also start moving a bunch if it is around the time I should eat.  I know that once the baby starts moving, I better get something in my stomach fast or else I’ll get nauseous and lightheaded… and very, very cranky.

How I’ve been feeling:

Other than being stressed, I’ve felt really good this week.  I’ve been working in the yard almost daily and I planted some colorful flowers that make me smile every time I look at them.  I even built a fountain for our backyard… all by myself (Mike did help with the bag of heavy rocks, though).  Mike got our garden boxes in the ground this week and we will be filling them with soil and lots of veggies when we get back from our anniversary trip to Seattle. 

I have started to get daily headaches but I think that is more attributed to spring time and being outside a lot.  Sleep on the other hand hasn’t been great but it comes with the territory.  This has been about the easiest week as far as the pregnancy goes. 

Physical Changes:

None that I can recount from this week.  I gained one pound, so I am now up 9.5 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight.  The doctor said I was gaining weight perfectly and to keep doing what I am doing.

 

What I am eating/craving:

I still am not in the mood for food too much.  Sweets have been my go-to lately and I am still craving crumb cake with orange juice (though I haven’t really had orange juice due of heartburn) and cheesecake.  I could eat an individual cheesecake everyday at this point.   I also still cannot get enough peaches, nectarines, or apricots. 

It is amazing how fast these last five months have passed.  It seems so long while going through them but looking back, they have flashed before our eyes.  I’m just hoping the next 4.5 months go just as fast if not faster.  

Our dogs are carrot fanatics, so they were swarming around me during this photo shoot

Half Way There - Week 20 of Pregnancy

We have reached the halfway mark!  20ish more weeks and we get to meet our little monkey.  

Our baby is now as big as a small cantaloupe and as long as a banana; weighing in at 9-10 oz and measuring 10 inches from head to their little toes.  This week marks the time when the baby is measured from head to toe rather than head to rump.  

 I can really tell that this little one is on the move during the morning… no more sleeping in for this lady once he/she is born. 

How I am feeling

I think round ligament pain is here to stay for a while.  Other than that, I don’t really have any complaints.  I’m sleeping pretty well, but I’m not sure if it is a good deep sleep ever.  My emotions are still wacky too.

Physical changes

My belly is starting to pop out even more.  Yesterday, I got the first, “When are you due?”  I was a little taken back and speechless for a minute but it felt good to know that I’m not in that awkward phase anymore.  It was actually a pretty funny encounter, she had just found out that she was a getting a nephew and she was on the biggest high and could have talked about it for hours with us.  Babies bring out the best in almost everyone!

Another change occurring, my boobs are again growing… and this time it hurts!

I am up a 1/2 pound since last week, which makes my weight gain at +8.5 pounds.

What I’ve been craving

Stone fruits.  Our grocery store finally got in their “first of the season” summer fruits.  I think I was dancing around once I got home eating the first peach of the year.  I guess I know where our grocery budget will be hit this summer.  I’ve also eaten almost an entire watermelon this week.

Fun Facts
-My wedding ring still fits but I can feel it getting snug late in the day

-I’ve never liked the smell of garlic but I think its about 10x as worse pregnant

-I crave a Ginger Ale at lunchtime everyday

-We have two names picked out (one for a boy and one for a girl)

-Mike loves my pregnant belly and smiles and laughs a little every time he notices it

Previous Pregnancy updates

Weeks 4-15

Week 16

Week 17

Week 18

Week 19