2012 Home Goals Update

It's been almost four months since I posted my Home Goals of 2012, and not much has changed or progressed, but enough to make me feel content and like we're on the road to getting there...someday anyhow. The goals I posted back then were highly ambitious, and at the time I posted them, I was keeping a secret that I later announced...

It should be taken into consideration that when I posted those goals, I was still overall feeling rather healthy and well.  Things quickly took a turn after that post though, and a permanent case of morning sickness took over my body that didn't leave me until well past 16 weeks of pregnancy.  This had a huge impact on our progress.  Things slowed down all over the place.  I couldn't watch the kids on the weekend, spending most of the day in bed while I had my husband home, so in turn he couldn't work in the garage as much.  We also made no progress at all during that time in regards to design decisions.  Shelly quickly realized she was just going to have to ride it out with me and things would just have to wait.

Overall we were very much at a standstill from late January-late March.  I'm not complaining, just explaining.  Quite honestly even though I was feeling like crap, it was nice to have a break.  When I look at the original list and pictures I feel like we've got almost nothing done.  But we've sort of just gone in order of priority, so the things that have been finished are the most important to me.  I'm happy with our progress and know that eventually, we'll get there even if it's not before the baby gets here.    

In the Family Room...Our fabric sat on bolts for over 2 months, and finally last week Shelly called and said she was going to the upholsterer and was picking up my fabric to finally get the pillows made for the family room.  As a designer it must have been torture for her to know that the fabric was just sitting there in wait.  The pillows came out lovely and do make an impact in the sparse room already.  An area rug has been ordered in a simple sea grass and we're still undecided on an ottoman.  Art work will be the last thing we worry about in here.   

(Fabric is Hot House Flowers and Bleeker from Schumacher, both in Spark)

The bar area is still in progress.  We finally got our stools and love having this as an added place to eat, do homework, or even write thank you cards from my birthday almost 4 weeks ago.  It's still very much a landing area, and eventually I want to move all the kids paperwork to an area in the entryway, but for now it's working out just fine.  We have the pendant lights to hang still.  Gotta finish the garage first though.

(Bar stools are the Constance bar stool in Chestnut from Ballards)

In the Living Room we've managed to get an area rug, and that's it.  It's amazing what a difference just a rug has made though.  It has pieces of suede and metallic silver leather woven throughout it and is neutral but eye catching as well.  Fabric for the chairs and coordinating pillows still has to be ordered, but we're pacing ourselves with the distribution of the funds.  That will probably be 4th or 5th down on the priority line for now.

(the rug is from Serena and Lily)

Finally in the Dining Room, we've ordered a new dining room set and area rug!  The chairs have arrived and are amazing.  They're a driftwood gray color of wicker and have such a great shape to them.  This is what it looks like there right now without a pretty tablecloth and nice flowers ;)  The dining room is the same dark color as the buffet, and should be in by the end of the week or next.  The table actually seats 8, so we are planning to order 2 slip covered head chairs for us grown ups, and to add interest, and the 6 wicker chairs will sit on either side of the table.  Still on the hunt for ones we love though.  When I posted these chairs last week I got lots of questions about them, which can be directed straight to Shelly.  She found them and ordered them, I just nodded and said "yes" those are good.

A reader had left a comment back when I originally posted the goals and said our house was great, it just needed a little love, and how right she was.  I know that theoretically the changes we've made so far are overall big, but even not having rooms completely finished, just partially done, has made me feel so much better and love our home so much more.  

We had a garage sale last weekend and afterwards I told Art that my new goal is to not need to have a garage sale anytime soon, for years in fact.  Clothes we outgrow can be donated, but other than that I want to only have things in our home from now on that I love so much I don't want to get rid of.  We're on our way people....we're on our way.  

Oh, and don't even ask about the garage.  Turns out it's been one of the biggest home project undertakings we've ever met.  In terms of DIY projects, we've met our match.  It's almost there, but we're bringing in reinforcements to help finish it.  Project goal deadline is May 19th.  Wish us luck! 

Linking up with Jules for the William Morris Project.