Dear mom,

(I’m starting this blog that way because I can’t imagine that anyone still checks back – except my mom, and my buds with the Google Reader – since I last posted when Michael Jackson was still alive, we were all still worried about swine flu, and we still thought Pluto was a planet.)

But I’ve digressed before I’ve even begun.

In three days, three different people told me I need to post house updates to my blog. Never one to resist peer pressure, here I am! And finally, with befores-and-mostly-afters!

So let’s get started! Welcome to our foyer! You’ve seen this picture before. This is what the entrance to the house looked like when we first bought it:

And today it looks like this, courtesy of new flooring, new trim, stained handrails, new iron balusters, lots of paint, one very handy husband and lots and lots of sweat.
Another shot of our brand new balusters. I’m pretty excited about these! While he was installing them, Andy kept giggling going “it’s so fancy!” But it sounded much more manly in person than you’re imagining it. Here’s the before:

And the after. Well, mostly after. We still have some work to do here, but it’s getting there!

Our dining room before. This was a rough, ugly little space that was just crying out for some love and affection.

… so we gave it some tender-lovin’ care, scrubbed and painted and removed and installed… it’s not finished yet, still needs lots of decorating, but the major construction work is mostly complete.
And just for good measure, a nice little shot of our finished floors. Wait, what did I just say? Finished floors?! Kelly and Andy actually completed installation of the hardwood floors that they only began back in… oh, September of 2008?! (Seriously. It took us almost an entire year to install these babies. And it’ll take us no time to destroy them!)
We’re probably about 90% complete with the downstairs, with lots and lots of decorating left to be done, preferably by someone much more creative and talented at that than I am! But Candice Olsen hasn’t volunteered yet, so I’ll keep working away at it until she shows up on my doorstep. (any minute now!)