Home Improvements

Part 4 of Summer 2011

Since moving into our new house, we've made a few improvements and some exciting purchases.

Our first big furniture purchase -- a dining room table and chairs! Delivered late, but finally here.

Our finished guest bedroom, with Ikea furniture. We haven't yet decided what to put on the walls. As a reminder, here's what the room looked like when we moved in:

. . . a color we like to call "Cookie Monster Blue." It took three coats of primer plus paint to cover this exuberant decor!

Here's the attic loft, which is not quite assembled. It will be our home office, once it's all done. We have made significant progress. Here's what it looked like when we moved in:

Wood paneling from floor to ceiling! We put three coats of primer plus paint on these walls, and we're really happy with the "Mild Lemon" color you now see throughout the room.

We love our house, and home ownership continues to be an adventure. We have many more plans for small improvements, but now that fall semester is coming on, our pace has slowed considerably. Come visit us some time!

Our pretty yard

Part 2 of Summer 2011 Update

Mike and I have spent a little bit of time working in our yard this summer. Luckily, it's fairly low-maintenance! We both enjoy having our own little piece of Laramie to take care of.

Here's our front flowerbed

A rosebush -- we just had 3 or 4 roses this year, but hopefully there will be more next year!

This lovely hanging basket was a house-warming gift from a good friend. (Also note the bright blue porch swing.)

I don't know what these purple things are called, but they're pretty, growing next to our garage.

Columbine at the back of the house

Lilac trees on either side of the bay window

Bright pink daisies in the front yard

Homeowners!

Mike and I bought a house in Laramie, and we just moved in two days ago. We love the house, the neighborhood (we're across the street from a city park), and the yard. My amazing, fantastic parents came from Idaho and spent two and a half days working their tails off to help us get moved in. Seriously -- they put in two 10-hour days and a half day today, and the place looks awesome. I'm so blessed to have two very healthy, energetic, and generous parents. They scrubbed the floors and the stove, hung light fixtures and shelves, pulled weeds and mowed the grass. Plus dozens of other things -- my dad even put in an electrical outlet outside the house. I think Mom and Dad know how to do just about anything.

World's Best Parents

So here are some photos of the process. The pictures don't quite show just how charming the house is, so you'll have to come and visit us to get the full effect.

Here's the dining room on Day 1.

Here's the living room and dining room today (our dining set has not yet been delivered, so you're seeing a temporary set up here).

Here's the kitchen on day 1

Here's the kitchen today. It's back-lit, but as you can see, all the boxes are gone. :)

Here's the entry on Day 1, with plastic on the floor and lots of furniture.

Here's the entry today. We still have lots of books to unpack.

Our bedroom on Day 1.

Our bedroom today -- box-free, and the cat is making herself at home.

I'll post some photos of the yard later, once we've had a chance to pull more weeds and do some planting. Here's one final photo. This is the view from our dining room window -- we have lilacs framing the window and it looks out on one of the city parks. And yes, we have a white fence around the yard. We're living the dream.