Remodeling--Part 1

I love to remodel.

Our house was pretty cool when we first bought it--dark wood trim, wood floors, high ceilings, many many rooms. But all the walls were white. And we had dropped tile ceilings in the kitchen and the dining room. And the first floor bathroom only had a toilet. (and a towel rack, go figure)

So we are always on a quest to improve our home. Inside and out.

Our first project was the kitchen. Since it had dropped tile and industrial florescent lights, neither of which am I a fan of, we started there as soon as we signed the loan papers. Down came the tile. We discovered that this was insulated tile and therefore our kitchen was rather chilly that first spring. With the tile came the millions of pellets of styrofoam insulation. That was fun. *note sarcasm* But my husband (the amazing handy Andy that he is) hung new ceiling studs, real insulation and drywall. After mudding and sanding (not done by us) a few coats of paint and new light fixtures, the kitchen is spectacular. Hurrah!

Our second project was the living room. Nothing wrong with it to start, but I can never leave anything in its original state, so off I go. New paint, take down the mini blinds and hang new curtains, stain and hang crown moulding and a new ceiling fan. It's perfect!

Then we decided to tackle a really difficult job. The attic needed a bathroom and the basement should be finished off. You see, after several years of harassment, I finally cajoled my brother to move from Ohio and come live with us. We have a large basement and attic that he has since taken over in the past year or so. The process: we first put in a full bathroom for him in the attic where it was once just a big open room. Then we changed the open basement into a laundry room, utility room and living room for my brother. (he has painted this room Mets' blue & orange--not as bad as you might think!) He also has cool fish tanks, scorpions, turtles and frogs to keep him company down there with his TVs and couches. It's quite the happening batchelor pad.

Deep Breath. That was all just in our first year of living there. I believe our house was in a constant state of upheaval and construction. But oh, so much fun!