Moving On Up Part 1

Happy Ides of March, everybody! I am writing this post from our new crib/domicile/roost/house. We finalized our move on Feb. 26, 2011, and have been recovering ever since. Not coincidentally, I haven't blogged in over a month--moving to a new house tends to sap one's energy and time. However, we are finally starting to feel caught up on our lives...so it's time to start recapping the chaos (though probably not all in one night--it's late & I'm tired & lazy).

As you may remember, we closed on the house on Feb. 8th. We celebrated by taking Grandma & Grandpa Barrett out to lunch; after all, it was thanks to their help that we were able to obtain this house in the first place!! We gave Grandpa the honor of throwing out the big obnoxious "Auction.com" sign!

It was then that our real work began...moving over all our stuff, of which we have a lot. We had already moved over some "deep storage" items, such as our long-term food storage, etc. Now it was time to start moving over more and more of the "essentials," one minivan load at a time.

I probably don't need to say that it required many many minivan loads of stuff. I lost count, really. It was one of the many times when I was very grateful we finally have a big enough car to move some major items. In fact, I'd wager that more than 75% of our stuff was moved by minivan--that includes both our dressers, our entertainment center, and even our dining table & chairs!

I'm also grateful that we had a month to move...while it was still pretty tiring, it made the whole procedure a lot less stressful than a "weekend" move. We could set the pace ourselves. Best of all, it gave us time to "unpack" and organize our things as we went, so by the 26th (when we used a UHaul to move over our piano/beds/etc.), our new home was fully set up & comfortable! Hopefully, we can do more moves like that in our future! (just not soon, I hope)

We also managed to do a few decorative alterations before moving in:

This room was the largest bedroom outside the master bedroom; we thought it would be perfect for the girls to share. But first, it needed a little color:

...like pink! This was the first painting project Nathan & I had ever really done, and we got a lot of help from Grandpa Barrett. We made a few mistakes, but mostly minor ones...hopefully, nobody will look too closely!

Anyway, we were very pleased with the final result:

...and so were Lorelai & Celeste!

Another room I had a lot of fun putting together was the loft:

As you can see, it's a little odd-looking; most lofts are carpeted, while this one has a linoleum floor. Not to worry; we've decided to convert this into the playroom (for now, while the kids are young); they can tear up that floor and mark up those dull white walls all they want for years to come! Later, when we have a bigger budget, we'll make this a nice entertainment center for the whole family.

However, it was still lots of fun to decorate it and organize the girls' (many) toys. I think the end result gives kids of many ages lots of possibilities for fun!

Later on, I'll post some more pictures of other rooms in the house--including our living room, which we'll be painting next week when my parents come for a visit! However, there is one more major item we just had to deal with before moving in:

Namely, a ceiling fan which gives whole new meaning to the words "tacky" and "chintzy." This lovely number was in the front room, ready to greet guests as soon as they arrived! Doubtless, it was put there by the same owners who installed the similarly-themed metal door out front:

I wish I could sit down with the (doubtless well-intentioned) previous owners and gently explain that living in the Southwest does not require you to go overboard on loud, kooky, faux-Native-American decor. Sigh. I was willing to live with the door (such metal doors actually make homes safer, plus they can cost a pretty penny!), and I actually like the "Southwestern-y" tile around the fireplace, as shown...

...but that fan...that fan had to go! Luckily, Nathan and his parents were completely in agreement with me on this point:

In fact, Nate's father helped remove the offending accessories himself! The lightbulb covers were easily removed, as were the saguaro fan blades (shudder). However, the large sandstone ring covering the main fan motor wouldn't be removed, short of disassembling the whole fan. No, thank you, we said, and thus it became "hammer time"! CRASH...just like that, it broke into dozens of chintzy, tacky pieces all over the floor. We shed no tears as it took a trip to the Dumpster. As to the remainder of the fan kit, we gave it to a friend who actually liked the design (his wife, though...that was another story!)
Amazing what a few new light coverings (and a fan-blade kit) can do!

I think that's about it for tonight. We'll post more "home makeover" updates as they come! Hopefully I'll also get the blog caught up on a few other family-related topics, as well as some entertainment ramblings of my choice. Stay tuned!