House Projects

Okay, this is probably too much to tackle in one post, but here we go...

The entry used to look like this:



but with some paint, this:




became this:

And with a few gymnastics and a balancing act, this...



became this...

And all together, along with some moulding around the door and a few pictures, we get this:



The door itself still needs some work and someday we'll change the tile to wood. But that someday is some days away.

Here is the how the front room was...

Add some paint... (this paint, by the way was a steal! We got a tip from some friends about a Sherwin-Williams store that had a couple thousand gallons of mis-tinted paint. We went in and had them tint the paint to a darker color in the same pallette and we get it for $3/gallon - we bought 40 gallons for under $130 - this may seem fairly insignificant unless you know that a gallon of paint usually costs about $20-25... It will seem VERY significant if you knew that I bought a gallon of the same color from SW in a semi-gloss (rather than flat) for $40 this very morning for the stairs and lower areas where little hands like to scribble and rub.).

This wall...

becomes...



Again, add some moulding and furnishings...






In the kitchen, I have only just begun...

But here's what we have so far with a little wainscoting and paint:

The picture above makes it look a little darker than it is. I'm hoping that some nice granite and more crown at the top at some future point will pull it all together.

Remember the family room?

Same story... add paint and moulding and furnishings... and you get this... (ignore the laundry please)

Here is some detail on the fireplace/tv area. Joe and I had a good time with this part.

I don't have before and after pictures of the loft yet but we have painted and I hung my Christmas/Birthday gift from Joe's parent:


We had one of these (they are huge) hanging in every house that I can remember growing up - even in the trailer on the hall wall! I think it has fostered a love of maps and geography in all of my siblings and myself. I love it!

And here is my most recent project - a table I built from scraps for the wet-bar-turned-craft-area...

Yard Pics - finally!

Just a reminder of what it used to look like...

Some pavers, sod, seed, blood, sweat, tears, 4 fruit trees, and a garden box later...

It is still definitely in the works, but at least the kids can play outside now!

Bella at two months

We have been very blessed with Bella - she has been a great baby, just as a fifth ought to be!

Some Updates

Can I say that my life has been busy? I was just looking through all the great photos we've taken over the last few very busy months and want to get them posted - just to have them on record. We've had several significant events - moving to our new house, Bella's birth, Christmas, Emma's baptism - in three short months. The things that would have otherwise received more attention, have fallen by the wayside. Here are a few fun pictures of life as we know it:

The girls are watching one of their favorite shows - I thought it was fun how they were all lined up.

Here we are making dinner - Sara is cutting the peppers for fajitas and Hannah is keeping us entertained.

Our very creative Emma came up with a way to keep her eyes from the onion tears.

A typical breakfast scene - toast and scrambled eggs. Sara already has her backpack on.