Sometimes I forget...

I often look around our house and think about all of the things we haven't done and spend little time realizing what we have done and appreciating that. So, I decided to flip back through some old photos of when our BIG project first began. I think one of the best examples is the kitchen, so here are a few before and after shots.

The kitchen in its current state.

Another shot.

Ripped out...

And, here's the kitchen just as we bought the house. Yeah, this does look different now!

Bird tile

I wanted to break up all of the white tiles behind the stovetop and I was in Sophie's (surprise, surprise!) a couple of weeks ago and found this adorable bird tile. I thought it might match the McCarty perfectly, and it did! There were 2 other birds in the same colors that I didn't buy, and of course now they're calling my name. I might have to go back and bring home 2 birdy friends to keep this one company!

Bird tile!

And, see how it matches the greeny-blue color!

Fun with leveling compound!

I know all of you are THRILLED just seeing another boring post about the mudroom. But, it has taken up a lot of our time lately. The floor in the mudroom is very uneven and before laying tile, it must be even. So, we bought 4 bags of leveling compound to pour. The compound is a very thin cement that runs to the lowest point, hopefully leveling out the floor.

First, you must prep the floor by priming it with Kilz.

Almost done being primed.

And, then you get to layer on the cake batter like substance.

And, but of course, a road block. We were all ready to begin tiling on Saturday morning (our fun Valentine's Day treat!) when Brooke noticed some of the compound starting to crack. He started peeling away and noticed that all of the compound in the middle of the mudroom was coming up. We realized that because this used to be a garage (in the 40's), cars sat right down the middle spilling oil. So, we bought de-greaser, scrubbed the floor, bought more leveling compound and are now filling in the gaps. Hopefully, we'll be able to lay tile this afternoon after the new compound dries and I can report in on that fun project!

to Reno to see Georgia...

I was excited to be able to get out to Reno to see my dear friend Ali, her husband Ryan, and their sweet new baby Georgia. It was a wonderfully relaxing long weekend and a treat for me to be able to spend time catching up with Ali and meeting Georgia!

Ali and I with Georgia!

Getting out of PJs and ready for some shopping with her Mom and Cat!

Reno is very close to beautiful Lake Tahoe. We were able to take a trip to the lake one day and eat on the water. Gorgeous!

Sqauw Valley ski resort in Lake Tahoe (no we didn't take to the slopes, but sipped our Starbucks and watched the action!

Ali and I after lunch on the lake.

Stairs and blinds...

Well, it's been cold here. REALLY, REALLY cold. 5 degrees on Friday morning. I'm ready for Spring! Needless to say, I don't feel we've been very productive the last couple of weekends...much more interested in hibernating. But, I do have a couple of shots below to show that we've done a LITTLE work.

Here are the stairs (going from the mudroom up to the kitchen) that have been unfinished since last Summer. This project did actually take quite some time---I helped with the mitre saw and we had to get exact cuts to make the handrail fit just right. More work than one would think!

Drilling the holes for the spindles.

And, the finished product! Well, a bit of touch up paint and staining, and finishing out the back of the stairs. But, at least we now have a rail!

And, here was the most rewarding project of the weekend---these are the curtains that have hung in our bathroom since we moved in. They look like old sheets with these tacky flower holders on top. Seriously, I'd like to burn these in the backyard. UGH! So, this is the before...

And, here's the after! YEA! We put up the same blinds that we now have in the guestroom and downstairs bathroom. Oh so much better! It's the little things that make me happy. :)

For Trey...

No, I didn't take this picture of my husband's rear for the blog. This was a special request posting by Brooke for his friend Trey. He wants to make sure Trey knows that he's working ALL Winter to get into shape for Springtime cycling. So, from Brooke, here ya go Trey!

La-Z-Boy

Happy New Year, everyone! Is this really the beginning of the end? I've let my husband buy a RECLINER! We needed another chair in our living room and both agreed that a nice leather chair would be great. I did concede a recliner, as long as it looked modern and not like a puffy-armed, oversized monster with a cup holder and magazine flap. Granted, I'm sure those are extremely convienent and comfy, it's just not my taste. So, after looking for several months, we actually really did find one at the La-Z-Boy store. Fantastic deal and just what we wanted.

Here's Brooke in the new chair...doing what guys do best!

And, an up-close of the new purchase. Not too bad for a recliner, huh? Oh, and we finally hung the prints above the chair...only a year and a half after moving, but hey, it got done! :)

And, the other project this weekend was FINALLY getting the chandelier hung in the breakfast room. I purchased this chandelier at the Ballard Designs Outlet store in Atlanta...probably 6 months ago! It just hadn't been a project that we'd gotten done. It retails for $140, got it for $60. Great deals if you have the time to get there. Above is the old chandelier.

And, here's the new one. I might get one of those chandelier chain covers for the chain, just haven't decided yet.