THIS is the year

Hey hey! I’m writing today from under six inches of snow – with absolutely FRIGID temps coming next week. We’re talking feels like negative 50 degrees in Indiana. What?? So serious question here – what do you do with a Chihuahua dog who hates the cold already in those kind of temps? I mean, that’s not safe for a person, let alone an animal. We’re trying to figure out what the heck we’ll do to take him out?

Anyway, other than the insanely cold temps, I actually quite LOVE this time of year. It’s one of my favorite times really – it’s a new year and everything feels fresh and new and full of possibility. And I fall in love with my house all over again right about now. I get giddy with all the plans in my head.

I can even stand the cooler temps for about another four weeks. I love being warm and cozy in our house…till about mid-February. Then I’m D.O.N.E.

It’s funny because we’ve been in this house almost ten years and I still have a list a mile long of things I’d like to do. A couple of them are dream projects that I would need help with, but most I can do on my own. And that’s why my head feels like it may explode in early January – my list is long. Let’s talk about future plans shall we?

THIS will be the year that I finish painting all the doors black in the house:

The basement doors are done (well, one more door to go to the storage room) and I LOVE THEM. It is a long process because I’ll have to prime every door, but the end result is worth it. (You can see my latest black door here.)

There are two rooms in our house that are a pain in my rear. I can’t figure out a good set up for either one – the loft/former playroom/craft room is one:

My plan for years now has been to build in storage and a window seat along that wall with the window. I keep saying “this is the year!” and it’s never the year…but maybe this one will be the year. We’ll see.

That room is HARD because it basically has one usable wall. The wall with the windows isn’t really functional, the other wall is a half wall and then it’s open on the other side. I want tons of craft storage but also want to make it a bit more of a lounge space again. We don’t really NEED another lounge space but we’d use it more if it was one. It drives me batty not to make good use of a space so I want to make this room more functional this year.

The other room that gives me fits is our living room. Again, with only one useable wall:

At least one of you noticed in the Christmas tree post that I took the drapes down. You’re good! I’m planning a big DIY project on those windows – I wanted to try and tackle it in the month of December and then got my brain function back and realized this year may be better. :)

A few months ago I made a decision about this space. I’ve hated the sofa for seven plus years and I decided I’m 38 years old dangit and if I hate it I’m not going to keep it. I find it hard to replace something that’s functional but not my favorite thing – I feel guilty, like I shouldn’t spend on something when we have something that technically works just fine, you know? But I think I’ve found a really inexpensive option for this room, I just need to go test it out first.

Of course I will continue my record of taking years to finish a space – this time in the mud room. It’s been half way done for two years now:

I shared the latest paint and floor updates to the room earlier this week. I was planning on taking a trip out to Lowe’s today to start the bench but it may not happen with the snow.

I’ve had BIG plans in mind for our kitchen for years now – and yes it involves painting the cabinets. I know there are so many that love wood cabinets and I do too – but ours have some major wear and tear and there’s nothing we can do to fix it, other than sanding them down and restaining. That’s not happening. So, I have little plans that turned into bigger plans and those bigger plans are what are holding be back from starting the whole thing:

But I think I can move ahead with most of it so I’m determined to make that happen this year. I can see it all in my head – it’s been sitting in there for a while now. ;)

The master bedroom redo will continue this year and when I say continue I hope I mean finish:

There’s only one wall painted (it’s been like that since the summer) and I need to get going on that. The bed will get new pillows (most likely a DIY if I can find the right fabric), the bed wall may get some kind of special treatment and sometime this year I’d like to get new floors in there. The carpet is DONE.

Another project I’ve almost started numerous times is painting the family room and kitchen:

Our current wall color is Sisal from Ralph Lauren (one of the top questions I get her on the blog) and we’ve had it up since the day we closed on the house. I came over with the brand new keys and paint and worked for hours on it. :) I’ve been planning something a bit lighter, but then I see a dark, cozy color and fall in love with that again. So we’ll see.

I’m also contemplating a large built in unit where our entertainment “dresser” currently sits:

I’m pretty sure I think I’m five people instead of one, cause I don’t know how this girl (who works like molasses) will be able to accomplish all of this in a year, but it’s fun to daydream, right? I’m hoping to get most of it done!

AND I told my husband the other day that THIS is the year our closet will become a spotless, organized, magical place where stars burst out of your eyes when you walk in. If you could see it you’d know why he laughed and laughed and…laughed some more at me. But it will happen. You can’t see the before pictures though – not until I clean it and even then you’ll be mortified. And when I say that I’m so not being all, oh it’s kind of messy and I’m acting like it’s horrible. NO. It’s horrible. So, there’s that to look forward to. ;)

So do you love this time of year as much as I do? Do you have any fun plans for your home, or at least ones you daydream in your head? Any organization projects you want to tackle? Do tell!

I’ll be back next week and back to a regular posting schedule! Have a great weekend and stay safe if you are getting this weather too!