Apartment Therapy's Renovation Diary // Demo Begins

It's hump day!  Get over that mid-week slump and pop on over to Apartment Therapy to catch our first Renovation Diary progress post  - we're diving in and tearing down walls.

So thankful for all the help we received on this project.  Definitely couldn't have done it without our family!

DIY: Replace Your Kitchen Faucet // Houzz

Can you say icing on the cake? (Mmm...cake.) Our basic kitchen faucet got the job done, but it wasn't grabbing anyone's attention, that's for sure!  With all the amazing changes we made to the kitchen and adjoining rooms it was leaving much to be desired.  So, when the amazing folks over at Moen contacted me about installing a new bathroom faucet from the 90 Degree line, which is gorgeous but a bit too modern for our traditional style bathroom, I shared our kitchen remodel and our need for an updated faucet and they were totally on board.  Little did I know I'd be getting the faucets of all faucets.

Our new Moen Woodmere faucet is in a classic stainless finish and includes a pull-down spray nozzle which eliminated our need for our old spray nozzle.  It also is a single hole installation model so we were left with three additional holes after we removed our old faucet.  We'd love to add a soap dispenser and a water filter at some point but for now three stainless hole covers from Home Depot will do.

Change Is Good // A Living Room Update

I'm in deep, folks.  My nesting urges are taking over and my home isn't safe.  I went a little crazy the other day and rearranged our entire living room.  Sure, as a 9-month pregnant lady I shouldn't be moving around heavy pieces of furniture but good luck trying to talk me out of it.

Our living room has always felt overstuffed.  Our sofa is too large and the chaise just doesn't work with our layout.  As it initally sat, it was smack dab in the middle of the room's flow between the front door and the kitchen.  When we first moved in we tested it out in every section of the room and for some reason we settled on that location.  We've had to weave our way through furniture to move from one room to the next and our available floor space is pretty much nonexistent.  Throw toys into the mix and whoa nelly!  On the flip side, the tv console is much too small for our 46" tv.  It should be about 6-inches or so longer on each side and it's placement flanking the fireplace is all wrong.

It's a room where nothing works and we're just living with it.  Oh but we have plans...future plans.  I won't even begin to start talking about busting through the walls - that's a dream for another day.  But with the addition of built-ins flanking the fireplace, updated carpet like this Comfortably Classic carpet from Mohawk or this Martha Stewart Living Shaw carpet, windows above each built-in to bring in more natural light and a smaller sofa it will be a more functional and better designed space. But it's going to be awhile until any of those changes are made.  So we're stuck...at least with the main elements of the space.

Apartment Therapy's Renovation Diary // Mudroom Renovation - The Budget

Our latest installment on Apartment Therapy's Renovation Diary is being featured today.  We're sharing our (measly) project budget for our mudroom renovation.  Check out how we broke down the budget and plan to tackle this project for as little money as possible.

Stay tuned next week for our very first mudroom renovation progress post!

Baby on Board // How to Prepare for Baby...Or Not!

On Friday I'll be ringing in 36 weeks of pregnancy and it just dawned on me that this little baby could arrive anytime. And we are not ready! 

Scratch that.  We're slightly ready.  In an effort to clean up the upstairs and make it usable, the hubs installed the infant car seat in the car and the baby stuff was located and haphazardly piled in a corner to get to later....hopefully before the baby actually arrives.  Luckily we saved a good supply of clothes and swaddle blankets so the only necessities we're lacking is a place for the baby to sleep and some diapers.  Kind of left the important stuff, huh?

The one effort we have made to get ourselves ready for baby was probably the least important of all - in terms of necessities - but it is one of the most important for this Mama. 

We replaced our little living room office area with "the best rocking chair in all the land" which we've been storing upstairs for the past 2 years.  Seriously, this chair blows your dad-chair out of the water.  It does it all - rocks, swivels and reclines.  Plus, it also has a matching rocking ottoman.  And my favorite of all....the head cushion is freaking comfortable.  Whoever built this chair found some way to capture a cloud and stuff it into a chair.  It's a miracle I don't fall asleep as soon as I plop down into it.  I spent many hours in this chair when Luke was a baby and I suspect I'll be spending just as much time with our new little one.  Although I guess I will have another kid that will require my attention...two kids?!  Is it strange that I still haven't fully comprehended what's in store?