Poison Ivy saga: conclusion. Since Matt's arms are now covered with PI, and our efforts barely made a dent in the backyard, we decided to cave and call in the reinforcements.

Julio and crew came prepared with saw, axe and machete, and in 5 hours had the entire area clear. I was being stalker-ish and taking pics of him out my window. :-P

We now have about 10 extra yards deep of usable space!


Most of the rooms of the house are still in progress. All the kitchen needs yet is the bar stools for the island, and our breakfast table, which we've ordred and are just waiting for. I've started adding accents, such as the valance and the sign above the pantry door.

The family room has furniture, it just needs accents yet. I still haven't decided what kind/color of curtains I want to do, and what exactly I want to put above the fire place. I would LOVE to put the tv above the fireplace, but unfortunately it's not wired for it.

The room that is closest to being 'finished' is my office! I figured since I spend 8+ hours a day in there, it should be a top priority. My favorite thing - the bullentin board behind the desk. It was a plain old bullentin board with silver frame. One thing I've learned from watching a ridiculous amount of HGTV - make use of what you've already got! A little spray paint, a bit of fabric, and a touch of ribbon...and wa-la!

the bullentin board: pre-clutter!

And the craft room...still in progress. Need to put up my shelves above the desk, and I'm getting a new bookshelf for the opposite wall.

Master bath being prepped for paint. We wanted something to contrast the tile and white tub/counter.

So we chose dark brown. I was scared it would be too dark, but I think I actually like it! It does make the tile stand out. And the towels that I have for this room are a kind of teal color which looks really good in front of the brown.