We did the basics right when we moved in - repainting the entire interior and exterior of the house. EVERY SINGLE ROOM IN THE HOUSE.
Likewise, I did small projects like adding a shelf in the laundry room, fixing plaster cracks, paiting baseboards white, etc. The hubby has been tackling painting all our ugly yellow-brown raw wood doors to a lovely bright white. Poor thing - that's an insane job. Both sides, 3-4 coats each. He's so tired of painting I might never again get his help with anything.
A few months ago we tackled remodeling our kitchen all by ourselves on the cheap. I think we did AWESOME! Those are the before and after pics I've included of just one part of the kitchen. Excuse the mess in the before pic! :)
So why am I mentioning all this on a book blog? Well, all these projects have cut into my reading time and it's starting to effect how happy I am. I can always tell when I start getting cranky it's because I haven't taken time for myself and read a good book. That also means I haven't had time to write reviews to post here. I HATE THAT!
Last weekend I gutted the only room we haven't laid a finger on - the Florida room (Sun room). We've never spent a second out there becuase it was HORRID. Bright Neon yellow walls and ceiling, indoor-outdoor carpet that had been obviously well-loved by the past owners pets. (Yes, I do mean THAT when I say well-loved). I ripped out carpet and padding, tore up wood carpet strips, patched concrete from the nails, painted primer over all that crazy yellow and then painted the ceiling white and the walls a lovely shade of blue-grey. The hubby came out and replaced the 80's brass gaslights on the sides of the sliding doors to these amazingly modern brushed nickel ones with frosted glass (A STEAL at only $26 for a pair!).
Then, I cleaned and cleaned the concerete floor and painted it this luscious dark chocloate brown oil-based paint color. I'm waiting for that to dry and then I can move all the furniture back in and decorate!
So why all the rush on getting all these projects done now after a year? We invited the Hubby's family to stay with us in August. We thought "how awesome...this will give us a good deadline for tackling all those "small" projects." So, here we are now, racing against time to get as much as possible done before the 2nd weekend in August.
And all I want to be doing is reading a book!
Do you feel "withdrawls" when you get busy and don't have time to read? How do you keep your mind off it, or if you can't, do you make a big deal out of the first book you get to read when you have free time again?
I do feel those withdrawls when I get busy and can't write or read. We have been doing little DIY projects over the last few months. It's not a labor of love in our house though. We want to build and move as soon as possible, but we've done little things to make our house much more tolerable in the meantime. I'm loving the changes and it's amazing how busy you can be and sometimes not even realize it. Love your kitchen make-over. Love your little countertop wine fridge. I've been wanting one, but hesitant...
ReplyDeleteI absolutely do!
ReplyDeleteBut I also have the problem where I am very often reading when I should be doing something else!
I love what you are doing to your house, it sounds awesome!
Good for you! I think having a deadline is the best way to get projects done, and it sounds like you've been knocking things off the To Do list in a huge way. :)
ReplyDeleteI started working full-time again a few weeks ago, and it has really taken away from my reading time, which wasn't huge to start with (since I'm also writing). It's hard to squeeze everything into a single day, but I try, since reading is a treat as well as inspiration. :)
@Lissa Matthews We love that little wine fridge! We got it from Wine Enthusiast but we waited for a big sale ad had an extra % off coupon. I think we paid like $40 or something. We've hever had a single problem and we've had it about 5 years.
ReplyDelete@Natasha A. Thanks! We've been working hard on little things here and there are are mostly really proud that we were able to do them. A few times we've wished we would have hired someone!
ReplyDelete@Donna Cummings I miss my reading! Thanks for stopping by!
ReplyDelete@CheekyGirl LOL We did our own backsplash in the kitchen. We were very proud of ourselves once we were done... but promptly decided that we would hire someone to do it next time!
ReplyDeleteI feel your pain. I hate when DIY stuff leaves me too wiped out to read let alone write. I tend to get very grumpy when that happens. LOL!
ReplyDeleteWe practically remodeled our entire home a few years ago - I totally understand how much time is sucks from your life. :)
ReplyDeleteNothing strips my reading or writing time away from me. And this is why clutter rules my house, weeds reign out in the yard and my car is a ruin of discarded paper and trash.
ReplyDeleteAm I proud of this? No.
I figure I'm going to reach the point of going mad or that winning lotto ticket will come in...and I'll hire a team to tame the clutter, a crew to attack the jungle and buy a few new cars. ;-)