Fall/Winter 2013/2014 Project: Basement BEFORE

We've been discussing our next project and have decided on the basement.  We live in a split level house, which has 4 levels, so when we say the basement we do mean the very bottom level.  Even though we don't really use this space at the moment, aside from storage, I think it makes the most sense for many reasons.  We are going to build an actual storage room so that all of the kids clothes and toys that we aren't ready to get rid of can go in there, not to mention my out of season clothes.  My closet isn't big enough to hold all of my clothes, so I switch them out each season. 

 

We'll also have a permanent guest area so that when my parents come to visit they will have their own area to sleep, keep clothes, etc.  We'll even have a living room with a couch and a tv.  I imagine I'll also move my treadmill down there, which means it will be a space that I use more frequently.

 

 

There's so much work to be done.  Can't wait to get started!



Railing: BEFORE & AFTER

 

We still need to either paint or stain the wood, but for now it's functional and safe for the kids.  We also replaced the chandelier that you see in one of the top pictures, but for now I can't find a picture of the new light we replaced it with. 

Living Room: BEFORE & AFTER

Kitchen: AFTER

Hello again!

Hmm, it seems to have been a while since I was last here.  Oops.  What can I say?  Life got a little busy with a toddler, newborn and home renovations.  :)

Speaking of renovations, I have a ton to update on here.  We finished our kitchen (yay!), updated our living room and even updated our railing to meet current safety codes.  I'll post some pictures but it's going to take me some time to find them all. 

Now that summer is ending we have decided on our next big project: the BASEMENT!  I'll post some pictures of this, too, once I get updated on all of the other projects we accomplished. 

Well, I'm off to find some "AFTER" pictures...

Project Season Has Returned

Wow, I can't believe it's been 3 months since my last post.  I was doing so well at posting on a regular basis, too.  Oh well, we've been busy this summer with so much, but now we're getting back into "Project Season".    It's like deer season, except at the end of the season we don't end up with deer meat in our fridge.

I'm fairly certain that our next project will be to renovate our kitchen.  We've discussed other rooms in the house, but we use our kitchen area the most, and it will probably be easier to renovate before Ruth becomes mobile and we'd have to chase 2 kids out of the project area.  So, here are the before pictures:

This is looking into the dining area.  We can also see John's Dad's new house out of this window.

Obviously this is the kitchen/cooking area.  The window in the corner looks out onto our barns and the back part of our driveway.  We can also see our neighbors barns in the distance.

I'm very excited to take this wallpaper off.  It really makes the kitchen look dark.

We'll be getting a bigger pantry area, which I'm really excited about!

Baby Girl's "Room"

As I've said before, since my parents are going to be here for a few weeks following Baby Girl's birth, we decided to keep the guest room as a guest room for now.  When Henry was a baby we had him sleeping in a small pack 'n play for the first 2-3 months of his life, so I can only assume that we'll do the same for Baby Girl.  With that in mind, there's no need to move Henry into his big boy room, just to have the nursery empty for a few months, and my parents sleeping in the living room.  

So, I've made room for her in our bedroom.  I cleared out half of my closet for her clothes that would need to be hung.  She has 3-4 drawers in my dresser just for her things.  The top of my dresser has now become a changing station.  And her pack 'n play (with bassinet feature) has found a home at the foot of our bed...We may have to move the location of the pack 'n play because as my son likes to watch cartoons on our bed, I can already see him trying to climb into the pack 'n play, etc.  We'll see how that works, though.  

In this corner, there is a small portable swing and play mat waiting to be used by Baby Girl W.

We chose an elephant themed room, bedding purchased from Carter's.  

This is the quilt that came with the bedding.  So cute, and I love the bright colors!