Tuesday, July 18

Dining Room Photographs

Well, here it is, the dining room. This is, perhaps, my favorite room. Not that I'm knocking the bath, which was our first encouraging hint that we would not, contrary to our most terrifying nightmares, still be living in a half-baked shack for the rest of our natural lives. I still love the bath. But I really like my spring-grass green walls in the dining room now. It's about as far from the color of mold as you can get and still be green. This is the abridged version of the visuals, mostly because it's late and I haven't the mental integrity to come up with captions for all of the images that belong to this montage. (That, and I just don't want to relive it right now. I hope you understand.)

So, without further ado, I give you The Dining Room:
This was what it looked like when we bought it. Remember, that carpet is supposed to be platinum white, not, as mere visual input would indicate, taupe. Ew. Low ceilings - not much we can do about those. Light-sucking holes there at the end. And you can't see it in this photo, but everything was fuzzy and the smell - if I could somehow get the smell put into a scratch-n-sniff sticker and sent out for everyone to use as they read. Well, I wouldn't. That's just wrong.

And yet, we fell in love with the place... it still boggles the mind. So, we took to gutting it while the weather was still nice enough to keep the children outside. Here it is, as we rip out the walls.

And here, with the source of the smell, all piled up into one stench-filled pile. Have I mentioned that I hate carpet? I mean, I really, really hate carpet. At least, now I do.

I think it was about mid-November that we had the new subfloor in and Zorak found the table. We could allow the children inside the home, now. (Note how incredibly brown Smidge is, there in the middle. That's what happens when you live outside for two months. James is not brown because you must have pigmentation in order to turn brown and he, evidently, has none.) However, everybody can eat inside now! Yippee!

And then, *poof*, *poof*, *poof*, two Federal holidays and one additional child later, we finally have the dining room relatively finished. Still lacking a floor, trim, and a little detail work. But just look at the difference the paint made on those windows! (Imagine what they'll look like when I get around to cleaning the storm windows and screens.) This shot was taken from about the same place as the first image.

This next image is a slightly closer shot, to show off the two little photo-helpers who helped out. Also, to point out that when the dining table and that corner hutch are refinished, they'll be close to the same color as the curtain rod. (Zorak wants me to mention that he does know the rod needs to be trimmed, but that zany wife of his was literally jonesing to hang the curtains now-now-now when he brought the rod home. I've mentioned it.) Also, I'd like to mention that John dressed himself, and I had nothing to do with the sock selection for today. Thank you.


I'll post the living room shots in a separate post. It's late and I have a TON of sleep to catch up on. One of the wonderful things about photographs is that they can help you regain your perspective, and remember what you've done, and why. I think this is true of many things: loved ones, favorite places, and special times; the things and parts of our lives. There is so much beauty to soak up in each area of our lives, but sometimes we need a little reminder about the things that are beautiful. The things that motivate us. The progress we've made, and the growth we've experienced. So while the paint and the drywall and the safe wiring is one thing, I've got to say that this last picture is a better descriptor of what motivates us and makes us smile.



Kiss those babies! And thank you for sharing our Forever Home adventure with us.

~Dy

14 comments:

Needleroozer said...

Oh, I just love the dining room! What a wonderful place to be.
I also cannot believe how much Smidge is changing! He is looking like such a BIG BOY! Wow!
Smooches,
LB

Dee Paolina said...

When you get there, make sure to post pictures of the floor. It's the new hotness.

Amy said...

I just can't say enough how much I love what you an Zorak have done with the house. And, in such a short time. I really amire y'alls ability to get up and get stuff accomplished (she says months after they decide to remain in their home and remodel and nothing has been decided-much less done.) Your eye for decorating has really made that place a home.

Can't wait to see more!

Peace,

Amy

Kim said...

Be-yew-ti-ful!

I love the color of the walls!

J-Lynn said...

That last picture is John isn't it? Or is it really Smidge? ACK! Can't be! No! Please tell me time doesn't fly by that quickly? *sigh*

Your dining room is BEAUTIFUL Dyan! Elegant, spacious, warm. Beautiful. Forever. I LOVE IT! Thanks so much for posting the pics.

OK it's 7:20am and I'm debating whether I should go to sleep or just stay up. I'm not even done yet! yikes...

({({({(Hugs)})})})

Anonymous said...

Wow! What an unbelievable job! It's beautiful! Can't wait to see more pics.

Anonymous said...

Oh Dy, it looks wonderful! We're in Picture #4 stage here, so to see your progress is so encouraging. I agree with Needleroozer, he's looking much more boy than baby, now.

Anonymous said...

What a great dining room, and such wonderful progress.
We are currently trying to do all the stuff we have to do to get our house ready to sell so we can buy our version of the "forever home."

Staci Eastin said...

Bee-you-tea-ful!!!

What vision you guys have!

Staci

Emily said...

DR looks great! And you have the dining room table set that I want!! I love the bench seating.

The pic of Smidge is just too cute! He has gotten so big.

~Em

H said...

Oh! that dining room looks fantastic! The color is perfect.

And Smidge looks like such a little boy. Not so much a toddler anymore. *sniff*

Thanks for posting!

Jules said...

What a difference!!

I love the color of the new room- I can feel it's warmth and coziness through my computer screen!

I also love, love, love the dining set. Derick says he is going to build me one like that someday. I'm not holding my breath! ;)

And I can't forget to comment on how handsome your little guy is. What a cutie!

Amber said...

Oh, that turned out wonderfully!! I love that color, and the window (wow, I just typed winder - and I'm from California... where'd that come from? LOL!) looks so much better now! I can't believe how big Smidge is looking now, I wasn't even sure that was him at first but I figured it had to be. I know I've said it before, but I'll say it again - you two have an amazing amount of vision!

Dy said...

Thank you, guys. Smidge really has just sprouted into full-blown Little Boy mode this summer. It's amazing. He's still Very Two, and still a Little Guy, but not for long... *sniff, sniff*

We've had fun with this, but as you can see by the before shots, we didn't want to share them until we had something to show for it! Thank you for your encouragement and enthusiasm as we've taken this on. My Invisible friends have really helped in so many ways.

Dy