We have been busy

Prepare, this post is full of pictures.  We have been in our house for almost 2 years.  We have been busy making it not look like a short sale.  We have worked really hard with the help of various family, friends, and of course HGTV (He he, i love that channel.  But Eldon says it gives me too many ideas.)  We have made some significant changes to the house and it is looking alot more like my vision of it.   I love when people from the ward come over and see the house because they knew the previous tenants (it was a rental before we bought it).  Everyone who has seen the house before, has a hard time believing it is the same house.  So since we are so proud of our house, i thought that i would share some of the before and after pictures.  We are not bragging, but definitely beaming.  The first big change we made was painting every room in the house.  I dont like white walls and now no walls in the house at all are white.  We also tiled the kitchen and entry way because the disgusting blue laminate flooring definitely was not working in my house.

 

The next big step was putting in granite counter tops because the ugly blue definitely had to go!

 

Next was getting our entertainment center, couch and book shelf to make the living room look comfy, cozy and stylish.  

 

Then we decorated the guest bathroom and bedroom.  I am really glad to have a nice and comfortable place to offer family and friends when they come to visit.  

 

Next I got a desire to texture the walls of the master bathroom.  It looks like venetian plaster.  i love it!!!  And I am so proud that I did it all by myself!  

 

The office and the master bedroom came next.   The master bedroom is still missing some beautiful art pieces that my nephew is working on, but he is holding them ransom from me, so once he finishes them, the bedroom will be completed!  

I also have been working on the Shadow Memory Boxes for my baby boys.  They are finished for now, but i am sure with how picky I am, and how precious they are, that this may change in the future.

The next big projects came after we lost the boys.  I needed something to occupy my mind and help to bring some joy into my life, so Eldon let me do alot of the projects that had been on hold for a while.  So i textured the kitchen and with the help of friends put in fake bricks.  I got a buffet and painted our table.  

I got my coat rack and bench for the entry way.

Then we put in carpet because the old carpet was beyond disgusting!  

 

We also put in french doors where the ugly and annoying sliding door was. 

 

It made a huge difference.  I added curtains, new light fixtures in the kitchen and hallway and master bathroom.    

 

Most of our changes have been made on the inside of the house.  We really havent done much with the outside, but after the boys died, we bought baby rose bushes to go outside the house.  They have only bloomed sparatically, but they are still growing.  

 

We will do more in the backyard and front in months to come.  Most recently for Mother's day, Eldon bought me cupboards for the laundry room, so that was finally painted and the cabinets added.  I absolutely love it!

There are definitely more projects that i would like to complete like the nursery, changing the cabinet colors through out the house, tiling the bathrooms, changing the countertops in the bathroom, adding canned lighting in the living room and then moving to the outside for grass and a pool.  Poor Eldon :P  Oh well, its a good investment, and I am having a blast discovering new abilities and talents as we transform our house into our home and into something we can be proud of.