Room Makeover- The Playroom... almost done!

Guys, my computer has been so super slow lately. It's taking forever to edit some pictures to put in this post. It is very annoying and I am very frustrated and I have no idea what to do about it. Any computer helpers out there?

Anyway, the playroom is *almost* done. I have one more set of letters to paint and hang ("Laugh"- Target just couldn't have all the letters in stock at the same time!) and the shelf/ bench to put in- Husband is working on it this week- he needs to take all his stuff off and find a replacement.

Other than that, we're done! The chairs are in, the toys are set, the other words are on the wall. I have one puzzle to hang, but that takes only a moment.

This is where we currently are:

The shelf/ bench will go where those bins are now, hopefully with new bins to hold more of the toys.

"Laugh" will go to the right of the windows, at the same height as "Play".

We decided against the floor cushions for now. Booger still loves to run around and kick balls and generally be a dork, so we want the extra floor space. When the kids get bigger and do more video games/ movie watching in the room than toy playing, then we'll add the cushions. For now, the chairs work well (and are mainly sat in by me anyway while watching them play).

Then we'll be done! I'll post a before/after post later this week, if we get the shelves in. Maybe this weekend as I work a few nights this week. For now, here we go:

We're also decorating for Halloween this weekend, I'm going to review all the new shows I'm watching this season, I have a Book Review on tap and homemade applesauce to share (not literally, just the recipe. But make it- it's delicious!)

Room Makeover- Playroom Update

Hi all!
What a crazy week last week was. Husband was out of town for a work trip from Tuesday through Saturday, so I was on my own with both kiddos for 5 days.... I'm happy to report we all survived with minimal scarring (Serious about that.. Booger did manage to get her first bee sting while at the zoo on Thursday. Luckily it doesn't look like shes allergic- it barely affected her at all!)

So the playroom took a small back burner last week. We did get two things done- moved all the toys in and paint some letters for the word PLAY. Since the walls are dark, I'm going with lighter colors- pink, white, blue and sea green.

I moved the toys in there last Monday when we babysat my two nephews. It was way easier to have all the kids in one room with a door! It cemented the idea that the playroom was a good idea-- see Husband? I said you were right...

So, the update. For now, this is the configuration we are having. We do plan to add two small chairs in the corners (the tub in the back corner is leaving eventually) and possibly a small bench with storage bins to the back wall.

Booger has spent almost every waking minute in this room. Remember, its all the toys she had out in the living room before... so nothing new. But for some reason she is loving this room way more. I do enjoy that there is enough room to put Chunk on the ground to play while room for Booger to run around and go crazy at the same time.

What is left?

** rearranging wall items- we have two Star Wars posters and three puzzles I've completed. I'd like to put the puzzles more around the room instead in the back corner by the weight bench.
** adding a few clipboards to the walls over the bench (when that comes down). That way we can hang some of Booger's artwork, and swap them out easily.
** adding fun painted words-- PLAY, CREATE, LAUGH around the room
** buy or make 1-2 floor pillows (one for each kid to relax on- for Chunk when he is big enough).  Boys and Girls links
** get two small chairs for the corners to relax on, and use when playing the video games (found here)
** bringing in the bluetooth speakers so we can play music!

Room Makeover- The Playroom

Update time!

We sold the two couches earlier this week, and they were picked up yesterday.

Once they were gone, and the room was vacuumed, we realized just how much SPACE there really was! Booger has played in there every time we've been downstairs in the past 24 hours. As much as I loved those couches, they really did take up way to much space for that room to be a decent play room.

Here is how the room looks now (no judgement!)

 panoramic view

 

We've moved the weight bench to the back next to the dresser. When we use it, we can move it out, but most of the time it'll stay out of the way.

Next up:
** clean out junk that doesn't belong
** sell TV stand; find taller/ more storage option (TV mainly for DVD's and video games)
** find 2 comfy chairs- one in each corner that can be brought out when using for gaming
** find/make floor pillows or cushions for the kiddos
** bring down or buy new shelving unit; make bench top
** organize, decorate, enjoy!

I'll be posting a mood board for the room later this week, as I wrap up finding all the items we are looking for! Our budget is strictly set to the items we sell from this room (couches, TV stand, old teacup shelving unit), so we have to find items that fit within that.

I'm excited about the room already and can't believe we didn't do this sooner :-)

Room Makeover- September Edition

Does anyone remember that home makeover show with Hilde and Vern and the neighbors who swapped houses for a weekend to re-do a room? Remember how horrible most of the rooms turned out? Man, we've come a long way since then. Now we have shows like Fixer Upper (obsessed!) and Property Brothers and Flip or Flop that actually make homes liveable and nice...

Anyway, small detour there. This month's Room Makeover is going to be....

The Addition!

 Or, soon to be known as

The Playroom!

I struggled with the function of this room since we moved in 3 years ago this month. Its a fantastic space-- a rather large room with a closet and large bathroom (handicap accessible bathroom). There are lots of windows on the front end, with gorgeous plantation shutters. However, the space is off in its own "wing" if you will, so it's not very accessible for every day use. Plus, it was built way after the original part of the home, so it has its own heating system, and no A/C, so we normally keep the door closed so we don't have to heat/cool it.

All those reasons lead this room to be a glorified storage area. We tried to make it a movie/ hangout room. But with no cable box, it didn't work like we wanted (we watch a lot of movies off of HBO, or Netflix on the Xbox). We tried to make it a game room with Husband's vintage gaming systems, but we usually forgot it was there. We tried to make it a workout room, but we became lazy.

When we decided to do make this room the Room Makeover for September, Husband threw out the idea of making it the kids playroom. We knew when the kids got older that we would make it into their hangout (and be the cool parents, right?) and Booger's big toys were taking over the living room. I was a bit hesitant at first, as it is a closed off room and away from our normal living areas, but in the end, it made the most sense.

So! We have a lot of work to do! Luckily the room is already painted, so we are not changing that.

What we are doing:

** clearing out the area-- selling the couches, the shelving unit and the TV stand
** replacing the TV stand with one a bit taller with more storage
** adding two comfy chairs that can be moved to use to play video games, watch movies, etc
** adding floor pillows for the kiddos
** moving the weight bench and weights to the back of the room
** adding a storage bench for toys and reading spot
** moving Boogers toys (slide, trampoline, tunnel, etc) into the room
** adding bright colors to the walls and fabrics

Follow my Pinterest board for some of my ideas!

I'll post later this week with our first updates!

Room Makeover- Chunk's Nursery finished!

Welcome to the final edition of Room Makeover- Chunk's Nursery!

While this will always be a room that evolves, I couldn't be happier with how it finally turned out.

Adding the artwork to the walls instantly added some color and visual interest.

The shadowbox still makes me smile every time I enter the room.

Organizing his closet allows me to make sure I keep on top of his clothes-- adding the too small ones to the box and rotating in the correct sizes.

And finally, I bought a small drawer organizer for the corner to hold his books and toys. I debated between a shelving unit with baskets and a drawer set, but ultimately the drawers won. I wanted to stick with the gray/navy theme, and felt a white shelving unit would stick out like a sore thumb, especially next to the wood furniture.

My original thought was to put it under the window, however with the air vent and the curtains, it didn't make much sense, so next to the dresser it went.

How cute is the black box on top (it has Darth and a Storm Trooper on it)?? For $5 at Target, I couldn't pass it up. It doesn't hold anything yet, but I know it will be useful in the future. It matched his little Star Wars theme perfectly, so I had to get it!

Oh, and his window. We painted the windowsill finally, but the screen may take a bit more work. The only thing we can do to it right now is tape it back together until we get a new window :-( It won't look all that nice, but it should be functional enough for the nice cool fall nights.

 (a panorama picture, so it looks way smaller than it is)

Some things I might still add: possibly his name with wooden letters like Booger's room (maybe by the light switch or hanging behind the crib?) and eventually changing the closet and adding more storage for toys and books as he gets older (though Booger is so good at sharing with him, he'll probably just use her toys in her room!).


And now.... you get to choose the next room for Room Makeover September!

Will it be:

A) The addition: 

This mother-in-law suite was added to our house between 10-15 years ago (so not part of the original home). It is a rather large, open space with a full bathroom and closet. The plantation shutters match those in our living room and are absolutely gorgeous.... but we never use this room. It has become more of a dumping ground.
What do we want this room for? Multi-function. It's right off of the living room, so if we have people over, we open up this room (especially because of the bathroom). We also like having the small weights and bench in there. It houses some of Husbands game systems and toys, as well as all of our movies.
I want to get rid of the baby toys (though they have to wait for Chunk to grow out of first), the shelving unit and possibly one of the couches. This room needs some direction and help! The hard part is the fact that it houses the crawl space opening, so nothing can go on top of that, and next to the closet is a weird nook too...
(These pictures depict the room as is in this current moment. I like to call it crazy chaos.)

 From doorway looking straight in

(see the odd area in the back? The door is the bathroom, and in the weird space is the hatch to the crawl space under the floor...)

 (I promise I don't normally display our teacups on the weight bench...)

 (Panorama shot taken from bathroom doorway)

or

B) the Kitchen: 

Husband does not want to do this, but I do! We are no where near able to do a full kitchen remodel for at least another few years. In the meantime, I think it would be nice to paint the cabinets white again (they are so old and dingy), put some nicer paper on the shelves, get some new hardware (drawer pulls, handles), redo the pantry shelving, and potentially replacing the counter top (such a small area, it shouldn't be too expensive).

 (yes, this is my entire kitchen... the door on the left goes to the backyard, door on the right is the pantry and the door at the back is to the dining room)

Husband says we should save time and money for the remodel, but knowing us, it'll be at least another 5 years before that happens (he says next year, but no way!). We have big plans for it, including opening up the wall behind the fridge into the dining room, relocating the sink to the back wall (which means replacing that window which is huge, but too low for cabinets) and adding a small island.



Leave me a comment with your choice, and tune in next Wednesday for the result!

Room Makeover- Chunk's Nursery Part 3

This week, I finally tackled his closet and got it nice and organized.

The problem with his closet is that it was custom made for my husbands militaria collection, which includes numerous shirts/jackets. Husband and his dad made shelving and re-did the closet just for his collection. It has two bars with a shelf in the middle, which is unusual for a normal closet. We chose not to change it at this time, as it is usable. Once Chunk is older and using the closet on his own, we may change it (I can barely reach the top bar myself, and I'm 5'7". Husband is 6'4" so he was able to use it easier).

Also, when we replaced our upstairs carpet a few months back, we did it in stages-- the kids rooms/guest room first, then the hall and master bedroom second. When it was time to do the master, we moved some of our items from our closet low bar into Chunk's room so they could access our closet floor easier. And there the clothes stayed for months. Husband actually thought I had donated some of his shirts he was looking for the other day (we did a small closet purge on Sunday), and lo and behold, mama found them in Chunk's closet! Whoops!

Now that our clothes are out, Chunk's have some more room on the bar. Since it's summer, he only has his little t-shirt onesies hanging. I'm not a huge fan of hanging every size (though there are some super cute clothes dividers out there!), so I only hang the size he is currently in. That also helps when Booger or Husband is getting him dressed. Yes, Booger picks out Chunk's shirt every morning :-)

I organized the other items in his closet as well: on the floor holds two toy bins with toys he is no where near ready to play with (but Booger would take out constantly, which is why they are in the closet for now), a large tub full of clothes (I was blessed with a family I taught swim lessons to that gave me a ton of boy clothes from their child for Chunk!), and a "too small" box. Did you know diaper boxes make great additions to any room of your house? More on that later this month! I have a box in each kid's closet, so as soon as I find something that is too small, into the box it goes. Once the box is full, the clothes get taken out.

Now that I have one of each- boy and girl- I don't have to store the clothes anymore. I either try to sell them to other moms for cheap (which is how I get a lot of the kids clothes), give them to friends who have kiddos, or donate them. We will be purging all the clothes in storage by the end of the month for sure (that garage sale we thought we would have never happened...)

Anyway, I didn't take a before picture because I did all the organizing while also helping Booger do other things and Chunk playing under his play gym, and I totally forgot. But here is the after! It looks so much cleaner, neater and more pleasing to the eye. 

Left to do:

** paint inside of window frame
** fix window screen (to the best of our ability so we are able to open the window in nice weather-- the whole window needs replacing, but we are not at that stage yet)
** fix closet doors (when carpet was installed, the doors became too long, so they drag on carpet)
** install shelving or some sort of organization for books and toys

Stay tuned: 

Next week is the last Room Makeover- Chunk's Nursery addition. I'll be posting two options for September Room Makeover for you to help me decide which room is next!

Also, I'll be posting more Kiddo Krafts, the final reveal for the family room bookshelf (the trip to Ikea earlier this week helped finish it off decor wise), and *hopefully* my likes/loves/needs from the new Ikea catalog-- if it ever comes in the mail!