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Progress is in the Eye of the Beholder (of the pictures)!

My sister stopped by the other day on her way through town. There were still boxes in corners and not really any official decorating done. She commented in the not-so-subtle that only a sister can, that she was very surprised with how nonchalant I have been about taking my time in putting the house together.

Not exactly sure how to run with that, but I'm going to take it as a compliment! It means I am being calm and patient. Thanks sister :)

In fact, I just put my first screw in the wall of the addition the other day to hang a mirror. I was terrified of messing up and having to do it twice. In the old house it didn't really matter, if I missed a stud it was just fake paneling, so I didn't care, but in this house, I don't want a hundred holes in the new sheetrock!

Luckily it only took one try. I used my stud finder, took a couple measurements and bada-bing I have a mirror hung!

Elsewhere though, its another story!

The walls in the existing house are all plaster, and it takes a bit more finesse to hang stuff, so for now, I am just finding random nails in the walls and hanging stuff on them!

Therefore, there is artwork in weird places, and mirrors that are too low, but at least they are no longer leaned against the wall or piled on the floor within reach of small children!

There are still plenty of boxes and things scattered about, but I thought I'd update you on what things look like now, compared to two weeks ago. I did the same as before and just grabbed my camera and took pictures this morning of exactly what the house looks like. No need to be perfect, we're all friends here, right?

I thought a side by side comparison might be fun! Let's get started!

Entry before...


Entry now... 

Granted its from a different angle, but we now have a temporary bathroom door (the door is too narrow, so I have to find another one), a rug and all of the boxes are out of the main walkway!


This end is still pretty messy though. I need to decide where or what I want to hang our coats on. I'm deciding between racks hung on the wall or a piece of furniture that I can move around as I want. Ideas anyone? 


Kitchen before...


Kitchen now... 


It's cleaned up a bit in places and we got the hutch moved in. The butcher block countertops are mounted and oiled (I"ll tell you more about that later!) Still waiting on hinges for the cabinet doors, but with them open it's been great because the kiddos and the Hubs can see everything and learn where it's at. This way, when we add doors, they won't be looking for everything. Easier for me!



Pantry before... 



Pantry now....


More organized, but a long ways to go! (Yes, that's a kickball on the floor. Why wouldn't a kid play kickball in there?)


I now have the countertop installed, so the microwave, toaster, coffee maker, and toaster oven have a home! I love this set up soooo much! 


And nothing says home like a drawing of the family on the fridge... oh how I love that little girl!


Dining room before... 


Dining room now... 

Most noticeable is we have a table! Woo hoo! A friend found it for me at a school sale and I bought it for $25! It seats ten people comfortably, and twelve people that are willing to be really friendly! 

I've cleared out all but a few boxes and pushed the electric fireplace against a wall.  We are still adjusting to having such a large table and figuring out where everyone in our little family of four wants to sit. Each meal is a musical chairs fiasco! 


Living room before...


Living room now.. 

We moved the smaller TV into the toy room, and put the world's heaviest TV in here. Someday we'll upgrade to a flatscreen, but for now this beast will remain. In here you can see an example of a randomly hung mirror and art. This room is free of boxes! Just a pile of blankets that needs to be folded and a lot of decorating to go! 


Office before...



Office now... 

We rearranged last night and got the bookshelf where I can use it. I also carried out all of the leftover wood pieces from the construction projects and got most of the boxes put away. 


This side of the office is looking way better than before. I have my sewing desk set up and can't wait to use it! As you can see I still need to paint all the edges of the room, but I love it anyways! 


Toy room before...


Toy room now...

Yep, messier than before. Isn't that what toy rooms are for?! 


So with the inside balancing between getting there and a long ways to go, I thought I'd share with you something beautiful.

This was the sunrise from my kitchen window the other morning. 
See why I'm not in a hurry to put things away? I'm too busy staring out my window. 


And a few mornings later, we had visitors! This is only half of the mule deer that came through the yard that morning!


So that's it. 

That is why it doesn't bother me that there is still things that need to be put away. There is still plenty to do, lot's of little things and a couple of bigger projects (finish painting dining room and office), but overall I am satisfied. When I don't want to look at the mess inside I just sit down and look at the view out my window, and it feels just right!

Happy Tuesday friends! Hope you have a wonderful day! What projects are you working on or are you just counting down till the weather starts warming up? 

Till next time... 


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