Virtual Tour - Bed and Bath

This is our master bedroom. As it's just DD and me, the other 2 bedrooms are being used as an office and a library. Our bedroom has not been redecorated since we moved in 12 years ago. LOL! As you can see the walls are very white. I haven't really decided on a color for the walls, but I usually stick with earthy neutrals as a rule. I'm planning on replacing the bed frame with a platform bed with storage drawers underneath in a dark wood with a wood slate or leather headboard. (This house was built in 1953 and is obnoxiously short on storage.) I'm going to refinish the bedside tables to a dark mahogany.



This is the wardrobe I got from my Nannie and Grandaddy. No improvements needed here.

This is the matching vanity. Again, no improvements needed.

And this is our bathroom. There is only one picture as there is only one angle to take a photo from and that's the hallway. Did I mention the house was built in 1953? Not big on the luxury home spa in the 50's evidently. LOL the tub/shower is to the right of this picture. My plan is to replace the tub with a show stall with floating glass doors. The pink wall tile and the black/white floor tile will be gone as will the pink sink. My plan is to drywall the walls, and use matching 12 X 24 faux marble tiles on the shower walls/floor and continue them onto the floor of the room. the walls will be a pale see glass green and the sink will be on a small mahogany colored vanity.

Last but not least, let's look and the 'library'.

Virtual Tour - Dining Room

These are the steps from the kitchen to the dining room. We built these after we took down the wall that separated the two. The tiles on the end are ceramic and made to look like travertine, the smaller ones are slate. The ugly carpet will be replaced with wood some day.

Beside the stairs is the laundry nook. That's too sad to photograph now, but I have plans for that little room, too.

This is the view from the kitchen. Table is a family heirloom, and will showcased in the "new" decor.

The wood stove will be replaced with a wall mounted gas fireplace. The brick will be glazed, and we'll add a mantel and cabinetry.

This is the far corner. The hutch and the coat tree will be replaced with built in cabinets.

This whole end of the room will have built in cabinets. (That stack of boxes in the floor is the laminate for the floor.)

Next, we'll look and the bedroom and the "library".

Life Happens.

DD's mom, MD was taken back to the hospital last night. Her UTI has flared up again. The good news is the tests show that the bacteria is strep and not MRSA, so her latest round of antibiotics have been effective against the MRSA. Now we just need to get rid of the strep. She should be home in a couple of days.
I hate this for DD. This past year has been so very hard for him, his mom, and his brother and sister. She's been in and out of the hospital, numerous times,and because she's 84 years old, diabetic, and has congestive heart failure, everytime she's down for more than a few days, she has to go back into a rehab facility. It's just so scary for him.
We are thankful that this episode isn't more serious, and the prognosis looks very good. It also reminds me to be thankful for the health of all of our other loved ones.

Sorry for the sad news on such a happy day, and I truely wish love, light, health, and joy to all of you and yours this holiday season.

So, this is the kitchen. As you can see, this is a work in progress.

Unfortunately, we won't be able to save the cabinets. The house was built in 1953, and they are original. They have given their all. So the fridge is going to go where the dishwasher is now, and the dishwasher will be moved to the right toward the sink.
I'm hoping for a solid surfice counter. Quartz would be nice, right? I'd like to trade out the stove for a double oven. That pantry's going bye-bye. I know, it's a lot of storage, but it's very "un" user friendly storage.

This fridge will eventually be replaced with a french door/freezer on the bottom model, and that wall, that's between the kitchen and the living room will come down. I'm transforming it into a peninsula with a gas cook top.

This is the corner between the living room and dining room. It will become the new pantry.

Well, that's the kitchen. Let's head into the dining room next.

Virtual Tour - The Living Room

Hi, all and again: Welcome to our home.

Now that you've met the family, let's take the 50 cent tour. We'll start with the living room.

Inside the front door, you'll see the fish tank turned candle display. And these are the "Mama and Papa's" chairs. I'm hoping to replace these with a double-recliner-love seat type thing, so DD and I can snuggle together while we watch TV.


This is the new dog couch, (Happy Boxers!!), and my little jungle. Look closely. This is the closest thing I'll every have to a garden! Some day this window will be replaced with an insulated one that can be cleaned from the inside.

On the opposite side of the room: Extra seating and the door to the kitchen. The wall to the left of this photo will eventually have built in cabinets to surround the TV and console. They'll be white to match the trim.

The door to the hallway. This door will be replaced with a 4-5 glass panel door reminiscent of a Shoji screen.

This is a piece that my grandmother left to me. I have no idea what it was originally but it's my TV console now. I love it.

Well that's the living room, and our plans for it. Lets head to the kitchen next.........

My Day

This is why I wasn't able to continue with the virtual tour today.

I was at Mom and Dad's house helping them get ready for the holidays. Mama and I spent the day putting up her Chistmas tree. Didn't it turn out awesome? She's so good at Christmas trees.

The Devil's in the Details

I was waxing nostalgic today.

Any one remember this one?

For the want of a nail, the shoe was lost.
For the want of a shoe, the rider was lost.
For the want of a rider, the battle was lost.
For the want of a battle, the kingdom was lost.
All for the want of a horseshoe nail.

We Are Experiencing Technical Difficulties. Please Stand By.

We interupt your previously scheduled Virtual Tour for this important anouncement:

Do to some camera issues, I don't have the promised photos of the house to post. I'm very sorry, and I promise we'll continue the tour as soon as the issues are resolved. Thanks for your understanding.

A Glitch In The Matrix

Over the past few weeks, I've been experiencing multiple déjà vu episodes. Considering until recently, I've only experienced déjà vu a handful of times in my entire life, this is just strange. To make matters worse, it seems to be revolving around DD.
Since I have no information to pull from, I thought I would throw this out to you guys. Any advice?

My Home - The Projects

In celebration of my new friends/followers, (13 - How cool is that?), I wanted to have a little get together. I know this isn't feasible since we live all over the place, so I did the next best thing. I'm putting together a virtual tour of my home to share with you. We have quite a few remodeling/redecorating projects in various stages of planning/working, so thought I'd go one or 2 rooms at a time.
I'm taking pictures and learning to post them now, so I should have the first room of the tour ready for company in a day or two. I'll see you then.

Virtual Tour - Meet the Family

Welcome, and thank you all for coming to my first house party. Let me introduce you to the family.
This is my husband of 13 years, DD, and our 2 Boxers (More on them in a minute!) We met at work and quickly became best friends. We were married a few years later.

This is Laredo. He turned 5 on March 1st. We adopted him 2 years ago in November. He was a "spur of the moment" rescue situation. Normally, I would advise against something like that, but this has been one of best uneducated decisions I've ever made.

Next, please meet Layla, she just turned 1 year old on July 1st. She was rescued from a very bad animal shelter by Boxer Rescue. We decided to adopt her after we lost our elderly German Shepherd, Simba. We realised that Laredo was definitely NOT a one dog family kind of guy.

They were very happy with our decision to expand the pack.

We also accidentally adopted 2 cats last year. They were kittens found under a friends porch. Both she and her husband are dangerously allergic to cats, so DD and I decided to rescue the liter-mates and foster them until we could find a no-kill shelter to handle their adoptions. Yeah, well. Who knew all the shelters in the mid-state area would be full for the next 6 weeks?

First, please meet Fred. He's the lover (and talker) of the feline branch of our family tree.

(He has a thing for terrycloth.)

And last, but not least, meet Ginger. She is our little "feral kitty". She's the main reason we decided to keep the cats. It took her 2 weeks to work up the courage to come down the hall into the living room with the rest of us. She made about 6 inches a day. I didn't have the heart to make her go through that again with another family, and we certainly couldn't break up the set.

The great thing is all of our "kids" actually met each other like it was a reunion, not an introduction.

Well so much for the introductions. we're all so glad you could make it. Help yourself to refreshments and we'll start the house tour soon.