a new place to play

Jubal and I worked all weekend long on the basement.  We got a TON accomplished...he also fixed my broken dresser, wobbly toilet, and broken closet doors!  I honestly didn't think he would be so driven to get this stuff done, but for some reason he was (the fit I threw on Friday might have had something to do with it ;)

I still have a few more decorative touches to add and few other items to place (they'll receive those for Christmas so some things will have to be rearranged), but here's how the playroom turned out...

Now they have a lot more room than they did before and I can add more storage pieces as needed.

Here's a pic of the family room area...

I still haven't found the "perfect" couch yet, but I broke out the crazy, decorative pillows anyway :)

 These pillows came from Pier 1 and the green throw came from West Elm, as well as the pillows in the picture below.  I'm still patiently waiting on my new area rug (it won't be in until January).

The family room area is not quite what I've had in mind these last few months, but it'll do for now.

All in all, I really like the area flip-flopping we did down here and the rest will fall into place as it's supposed to eventually.  I'm thankful for all the help my husband gave me, I know this kind of stuff is not his cup o' tea, but he was a real trooper this weekend :)

Hope everyone is having a happy Monday!

a little progress

For me last week was like getting in your car, driving all the way to the store, spending an hour filling up an empty shopping cart with two whiny kids, and then realizing you forgot your wallet when you reached the checkout lane...um, yeah...it wasn't good.

Yesterday, however, I FINALLY received my brand new Kenmore Elite washer and dryer (insert squeal and happy dance here ;)  I've been waiting a month for this people!

 

Not black...blackberry

They stood there watching that thing for over 30 minutes!  

(You can really see the purple-y color in this pic.)

Last night and this morning the hubs and I started attacking the basement.  I've had shelves, tables, chairs, and playroom decor in boxes for months now.  I was waiting for the new paint and staircase to be completed first but, for reasons I couldn't control, we had to put the paint and steps on hold...at least for now.  So I decided to just do what I was going to do anyway, new paint or not!  

 The kids jumped right in on the new table with attached paper roll while Jubal and I assembled the shelves.  BTW...the table, chairs, and shelf came from LandofNod.com.  The quality and prices are amazing!  

This is what Garrison ("Mr. I hate art class") drew and stamped.  I teared up a little on this one :)

I will post more pics of the playroom on Monday because I still have some arranging to do.  I'm also three days behind on my December Daily album, so I'm hoping to do some catching up on that, too!  For more info on the December Daily album, check out this blog www.aliedwards.com, it's super cool!

a messy Monday

So we've decided to give our basement a makeover/facelift if you will.  Nothing major, just some new paint, furniture, and a whole new play area for the kids.  It's going to be part of their Christmas this year.  The electricians came today to do a little work so we can move our TV to a different area, next Tuesday the painter should be here.  Things are moving along quicker then I expected and I'm a bit overwhelmed by the mess (if you know me then you know I have OCD when it comes to cleaning and organization).  

Here's a peek at the BEFORE part of this project:

I know it doesn't look too bad, but my vacuum cleaner just broke so...

 Here's two of the four holes I now have in my ceiling :(

Ugghh....

On a happier note, my wonderful brother-in-law came down this weekend and helped me start construction on my daughter's play kitchen.  I just wished he and my sister lived closer because I could probably give him a part-time gig with all the projects I want to create :)

 This is going to be the sink.

 My hubby and brother-in-law working hard on the faucet :)

This chest of drawers will be the stove and oven.

I also have an armoire that will become the fridge, I'm just waiting on the hardware to arrive from Ikea...

Lots and lots of things going on around here...and just in time for the holidays :)

Happy Monday!