The House: Before and After

I actually kind of love this photo below.  It makes me want to laugh and cry at the same time.  They say a picture is worth a thousand words and I feel like this photo pretty accurately portrays what our lives have been like for the past year and a half.  I know this is taken outside but what's going on here really was happening inside as well.  You can really take for granted day to day things in your home - like say a kitchen sink - until your doing dishes in your tub surrounded by tools and demo debris.  

The reno is pretty much done.  Well as done as it's going to be anyways! ha!  When we first bought this home I lost a lot of sleep over it (before AND after we moved in) and truth be told wanted to sell it and pretend like it never happened.  I hated the place.  I can pretty safely say I don't hate it any longer - I may even go as far as to say I LOVE it.  Pictures can't really do justice to the transformation that's occured but I thought I'd share some before and afters just for fun anyway :) 

(Warning - this will probably be A LOT of photo's)

Kitchen Before

Kitchen After

 

It's a little bit hard to tell in these pics but we closed up that wonky wall opening and moved the fridge out of the cutout - which Mike then opened up at the back, framed in a doorway, and turned into a pantry.  Since this photo we have put on the plate covers over the electrical outlets- ha!  Replacing the fridge to match the rest of the new stainless steel appliances was a pretty heated source of debate between Mike and I (you can probably guess who wanted a new one and who wanted to keep the old).  Mike won....  for now.

Living/Dining Room Before

 

This last shot is obviously part way into the reno.  We were foolish enough to think we could live there while all this was happening!  Thank-you again to dear friends and family who let us stay with them.  These pictures again don't show the knock-down ceiling in the dining room that had to be drywalled (who has knock-down ceiling on a main level??) and the big section of linoleum that was missing in the middle of the room.

Living/Dining Room After

The artwork above the dresser (the dresser which I might add was the only really great thing left by the previous owners amidst the hoards of junk) is a painting that was done by a Southern Alberta artist specifically for Mike's grandparents of a landscape just outside of Magrath.  It's probably one of my favourite things in our home and make's me happy whenever I look at it.  And isn't my little couch potato the cutest!?

Office Before 

 

Office After 

 

 

Bedroom/Hallway Before

Bedroom/Hallway After 

 

 

 

The chandelier in the bedroom is actually the old one from the dining room just painted gray.  And our headboard was a DIY that cost me about $40 dollars (and an evening of help from Emily!)  The trunk at the foot of my bed is an antique that my mom gave me for my highschool graduation - as well as the sewing machine that I left sitting beside it for the photo - ha! (I'm really going to get around to sewing a bow-tie for Carter someday soon!)  

Mike and I stayed up WAY too late last weekend finishing up the bathroom but this post is getting long and really after all the effort of the bathroom it deserves a post all its own!!

Thanksgiving Weekend

Can I just say how much I've loved our long warm fall this year!  Fall really is my favourite time of year.  I love the colours, the smells, and especially this year all the crisp sunny days we've had.  We took advantage of the warm weather on Thanksgiving weekend and hit up the Corn Maze.  We learned that even though Carter has no fear of horses, cows, sheep, or goats he's pretty freaked out by chickens! ha!

 I love all these little heads

 I like how Mike seems more excited to be on this ride than Carter

 And this was the best attempt at a family shot - sad I know

With how much we knew we'd be driving to Lethbridge we opted to stay in Calgary for the whole weekend this year.  We had the dinner here and with the help of my dear brother Trevor I attempted a bird for the first time.  (Well really he did most everything but it was cooked in my oven - does that count?)  I wish I could take credit for the pie we're holding but that was all Julie.  Our family does a pumpkin chiffon pie and in case you were wondering it's the best pie ever. 

 

Mobile Love

I love mobiles.  And isn't this one to die for?

The how to is here

(2nd image via) 

I have yet to join pinterest - by choice.  I feel like I have quite an addictive personality and would probably waste phenomenal amounts of time there.  With that being said I do keep a file on my desktop of saved images that I like.  This one below is from there and I feel bad not giving credit where credits due but alas I can't source it (or anything else in the whole file).

I'm thinking I could do this tree mural with fabric and imagine how fabulous that would be with my bird mobile!  It might get a bit busy so maybe I'd have to do the tree on a different wall than the crib.  (Now I just need the new baby to go with it! ha!)

Exterior: Before and After

It's amazing the difference a little paint can make.  

(Well really it was actually A LOT of paint to be honest)

Before

After

The day we moved into the house, not only had they failed to clean the inside (at all!) but there was a hoard of junk left outside, including my favourite - a car parked on the front lawn that remained there for a week.  We photo documented some of the junk - unreal hey!  Oh, AND there was a hole in the front window that they had used plastic and saran wrap to cover, super classy.  I felt substantially less embarrased walking into my home after the glass guys came to replace it.

It's pretty amazing to me the transformation that has occured and really I'm glad we have photo's to remind us of what it was like when we first moved in.

  

There are still a few projects, touch-ups, and clean ups that need to happen outside but isn't it looking good!? ha!  Here's a break down of what we did: painted the whole exterior, painted the garage door, replaced the eaves troughs, opened up the front porch, replaced the front light, re-stained the front door, re-painted the railing, new house numbers, replaced wrotted wood trim, dug up flower beds and removed dead bushes/trees, trimmed up the pine trees, bordered out the pines trees with brick and added mulch, removed the garden of weeds in the driveway and framed off the edge with pressure treated wood, leveled and re-graveled the driveway, removed the awning and broken deck in the back, removed metal clothesline, built a retaining wall and installed a stone patio. 

We had plans to install a fence next spring in the back (as it's just a chain link one currently) but here's the real kicker:

We're Moving.

To Lethbridge.

It's really very bitter sweet for us.  An opportunity came available for Mike to work part-time at the cancer centre down there, while still finishing his PhD, and I was fortunate enough to find a part-time job.  It's a great career opportunity for Mike.  And so it's happening.  Soon.  Mike starts work next week, I start the week after.  With all we have going on in the city and with reno's still happening we'll be commuting down for Thursday and Friday until January when we'll make the move permanent.  We're excited to be moving back home but will really miss friends, family, AND our home here.  Life has a way of really shaking things up sometimes!