Shout-out to the fam

NOTE: "Before" pics were taken during inspection, when the former owners were still living there
Jennie, the woman we bought the house from, moved out on December 22nd and Chris and I moved in on December 28th. In theory that gave us 5 days to fix the place up. In reality, that time fell over the Christmas holiday, when his parents (John and Gloria) and my sister, Lisa, were in town. Initially we'd only planned to show them the house and enjoy Christmas back at 6316 23rd...but when they offered to help out, how could we refuse?

The top priority was putting the fence up and the doggie door in so Cass and Paco could continue their self-service lifestyle. The second priority was painting the two areas that would be hardest to fix once we moved our stuff in - the upstairs bedroom/sitting room and the living room. To our delight, everyone pitched in and went to town, getting the living room totally prepped and painted, including knocking out the ridiculous plywood & styrofoam partition that had been been placed in the archway between the living and dining room. It was wonderful to move in and be able to put up bookcases without having to worry about moving them again when it was time to paint!

During this process I also learned a few lessons:
1) Our family rocks and we are truly blessed
2) Removal of the last person's clutter does wonders for a room
3) So does covering old putty-colored paint
4) Don't forget the ceiling - it matters more than you think
5) Trying to kick out a partition, even a plywood & styrofoam one, is never a good idea
6) Spackle is your friend

Good day, Sunshine!

It is truly amazing how color can effect a house...it sets a mood, defines your style, adds light or creates darkness.

Of all the rooms in our house, the kitchen was the color eye-sore most in need of change. To begin with, our kitchen is small. We want to eventually remodel it and open it up, but until that happens we need to make the best of what limited space we have and don't want to feel like we're in a cave. That brings up the second point. When you have a small space, adding a dark color makes it smaller. And the final point - mauve is ugly. Not pink, not purple, just pure hideous.

So what should a kitchen be? A kitchen is the heart of the house. It's more than just the place where food is stored and prepared...it's where friends and family gather, it's where the events of the day are rehashed, where sooner or later everyone ends up during a party. In our case, it's also the first room we enter when we come downstairs in the morning, the doorway to our deck and where Chef Chris creates his masterpieces. The kitchen should be a happy place, darn it, and what says "happy" better than sunshine?

Armed with plenty of primer and Ralph Lauren "Surfboard Yellow," Katie and I went to town on the kitchen. The old owners had not only painted the walls a dark purple/pink (kinda like Pepto gone bad), they'd also painted all the trim and built-ins dark purple. A true travesty. Needless to say when the first wall was done it was like the clouds parting after a month with no sun. (Strangely enough, the sun was shining for the first time after 26 straight days of rain. Coincidence? I think not!) Paco was so impressed he decided he, too, wanted in on the fix-it action. Sadly, all he accomplished was the placement a large yellow spot on his side.

As Chris is off work today, he has the uneviable task of finishing the job. Katie and I got the main sections, so he's stuck with the walls behind the stove and fridge. He's already called to report on his findings behind both. It was too awful for me to even post about, so instead I will end with this compare/contrast of old/new to highlight the dramatic difference. I can't wait to get home and see the finished product!