I'm Back!!

Yes, that's right...I've started up the blog again. It's been awhile, but the only thing thing that's happened around here was that I finally removed the coffee table from the middle of the living room to the garage. I haven't been lazy though. I started college! It's proving to be much harder this time around so all my free time has been spent studying my ass off. But a few days ago I realized that Thanksgiving is not that far away and for the first time ever I'm supposed to be having dinner here in a dining room that looks something like this right now...
This just isn't going to work for the first time my family sees our house. And this picture doesn't even show all the crap that's covering the table or the ceiling tiles that are still stacked 6 feet high or the paneling that's leaning against a wall because it still hasn't made it to it's final resting place in the burn pile.

Here's what I have to do before Thanksgiving:
Remove the rest of the paneling
Take the panels and the ceiling tiles out of the house
Figure out something to do about the curtains (they're pretty gross...they came with the house)
Sand the glue off the wall (otherwise known as removing the artwork seen in the picture)
Fill in about a thousand nail holes
Paint walls, ceiling, trim
Maybe figure out something to do about where the plaster is crumbling from where they removed the top trim pieces to put the drop ceiling in. I have no idea what to do though...any suggestions?

I really don't want to paint the trim, but it's going to be awhile before we have the time or money to strip, repair, stain, and poly the trim so paint is the only reasonable short term solution. We already have the paint so the cost will be $0...which is in our budget.

I'm thinking about gray walls...any input? Other suggestions? I'm clueless about paint but I'm loving gray walls with white trim.

Oh, and that's our new chandelier. I don't think I posted any pictures of it since it's been put up. We were trying for a look that fits our little Victorian farmhouse. I think it works. As I make progress I'll show more pictures...it really looks better than it does in the one. And I can't help the bulbs, we only use the long life fluorescent and they stick out the bottom. When they burn out I'm hoping to find the new ones that aren't as long.

Organization and Spring Cleaning

I have said before that I love my closet. And I really do. Isn't it pretty? The problem is that it is the only closet in the house. And it only has a hanging rod and a short shelf (the height of a shoe box). I have decided that it's time for an intervention. I've been looking at closet storage systems and think I have decided on the Rubbermaid Customizable 4'-8' closet system. It will fit the odd length of the closet so there is no cutting and it comes with all the rods, shelves, and hardware for only $99.97! Then I'll have plenty of room for my 50 pairs of pants (not kidding...a downside of working in a clothing store for 5 years), tops, shoes, bags, and I may finally be able to get some of James clothes into the closet. I decided all this while trying to get all the laundry caught up and ran out of space again. Now I just have to convince James that this is a good investment. Oh, and I'm buying storage totes for the top half to hold out of season clothes, James collection of Nascar crap, and my toys left from when I was a kid (they've made it this long so they're not going anywhere)

I have also started spring cleaning. We have way too much crap and nowhere to put it, so I'm getting rid of a lot of it. I started getting things together for a yard sale last year, but it never happened, so I am adding to it. And I decided whatever doesn't sell is going to Goodwill the same day so it doesn't find a way back into the house. I am tired of all the clutter so I'm going through everything with the "if you haven't used/worn it in 2 years get rid of it" approach. With a few exceptions. And I've been doing actual cleaning too...windows, scrubbing floors, TONS of laundry, and I even cleaned the pets (and no, the kitties didn't like it!).

Short term ADD?

I am realizing that I am having some kind of home improvement ADD. I can't seem to finish one thing with out moving on to the next. Wednesday I got the front bedroom to a point where its about 75% cleaned up. All I have to do is finish 1 more box, clean the floor, and have James set up the bed. Well, I decided to do a load of laundry while taking a break before starting on that and ended up working on the laundry room! And then this weekend we are back to the dining room. I just can't seem to focus on one thing. Maybe because since I'm home all the time now I am realizing that there is so much more that needs to be done than I thought. Or maybe its because I'm being thrown off because I can't work on the dining room, which is the main priority right now. Hopefully Monday I'll be back on track with the dining room, and I won't have this problem any more. As long as James gets the ceiling done I can do everything else myself. And i have a new revised to-do list. Since I have found more things, I have decided to just start the list over.

Renovation To-Do List

Here is a list of all the things I want to do to our house. Pending Knox County's decision on the tracks (see rant...I really don't want to explain again or I might cry) Anyway...here it is my top 20:

1. Pull carpet out of bathroom Done

2. Renovate bathroom...trade formica walls for drywall, tile, trade stand up shower for tub, etc.

3. Renovate kitchen, well kinda... I really don't want to gut it. Tear out linoleum, refinish floor, find a way to make the stove fit that not in front of a floor to ceiling window, and refinish cabinets...may have to be gutted after all

4.Renovate dining room...remove drop ceiling, cheap paneling, carpet, redo shotty electric, remove florescent light.

5. Redo plaster support wall in living room...plaster is in such bad shape I accidently hit it with my elbow and it crumbled, so now there's a small hole

6. Find replacment hardware for transom window in door to 2nd bedroom

7. Find the original attic opening...we think its in the dining room ceiling Done...Discovered there is no other opening, just the small square that doesn't fit the style of our house

8. Replace storm doors in front

9. Fix the original door bell...you push a button and it actually rings a bell on the other side how cool is that!

10. Refinish all floors

11. Move washer and dryer to basement Decided against because I can't open the trap door

12. Renovate the backporch which is now a laundry room and our main entry to the house, and is in such bad shape you could see outside in a couple of places (fixed that with a can of spray foam)

13. Fix morter in the brick foundation

14. Figure out why the front bedroom is so drafty...and fix it

15. Repair the back side of the barn, and the sides

16. Level the backyard where laterals were replaced (got first load of dirt) Added 3 more loads

17. Regravel the driveway (got a load of rock already)

19. Build an armoir style closet in 2nd bedroom that matches the one in Master bedroom

20. LEARN TO STOP PROCRASTINATING!!! My husband just call it being lazy!

By the way, I'm still working on pics...I haven't been able to find my memory card reader since I moved here and I need to get a new card so I don't download all 200 pics I have on my camera everytime I add a new pic. About ready to steal DH camera because our computer will read his card but not mine (damn smart media) and he hardly ever takes any pictures.