And Back to Wisconsin Again...

Our family loved living in the Pacific Northwest.  Two years on beautiful Bainbridge Island were a wonderful adventure.  We had lots of fantastic experiences and forged some lifelong friendships.  A chain of events this past summer led us to decide that despite our love of Bainbridge Island and the greater Seattle/Puget Sound area, we wanted to be back closer to our families and back to truly small town, rural living.  Lincoln took a job back at Lands End and we moved our family back to Dodgeville, WI.  We knew that this time around we wanted at least a few acres and I wanted to be in an old farmhouse.  We were very excited to find that a house I had always loved, on the very edge of town, was for sale.  Coming in at 4 acres, with a barn and a wrap around porch, this seemed like the perfect compromise for our family.  If it was up to just me, we would be on 40 acres, far from everyone.  The kids, however, wanted to be close enough to town to walk or bike to the library and the pool, and be close to their friends. This is a win-win.  After a long and agonizing negotiation, we closed on the house on November 21.

Because our new home is actually a very old home, there will be enough home improvement projects to last me a very long time.  To get started, we decided it would be easiest to tear out all the carpet before moving in all our stuff.  We knew that we wouldn't refinish the floors immediately, but I was anxious to just get the carpet out.

We were also told that not only were there hardwood floors under the carpet, but also pocket doors preserved in the wall between the family room and living room.  That became our next priority.  With the wall closed off, the house did not flow very well,  We determined that it would be a lot easier on our movers if the wall was opened before move in day.

We closed on Friday morning and by evening the carpets were out.  By Saturday afternoon the wall was opened up.  Unfortunately, the pocket doors were not still there.  Despite the missing doors, we proceeded with opening the wall and for now we will just finish it off as an archway.

For this post, I will share lots of pictures of the house on move-in day.


This first view is from the front door.  The closed door goes to the mudroom.

Straight ahead from the front door.  The wall to the left is the one where the pocket doors should have been.

Another view, from the other corner.  Daisy is managing to photobomb each shot.

And one more looking back at the front door.  The old windows are gorgeous, but sadly you can't really see them because the curtains cover them.

The dining room has this beautiful built-in hutch/buffet.  

The floors have already been done in here.

The kitchen photographs pretty well, but there are a lot of issues here.  There is very little counter space, the cabinets are kind of nasty, and the tile is not at all my style.  The appliances are older and the microwave is a counter top style and takes up lots of prime counter real estate.

The family room has a falling tile ceiling, an awkward light fixture, and that wall with the shelf is the one that has the doorway to the living room enclosed in it.

The woodburning fireplace has no mantel and a dated insert.

The final room downstairs is the powder room.  It needs to be completely gutted.  The sink takes up a solid half of the doorway.

We have our work cut out for us.  Upstairs tour another day, since this post is getting lengthy.

I am so happy to be living in an old house.  The previous owners lived here for 45 years.  I love living in a house with a history.  I love knowing that a family was raised here.  This is the kind of place where you can put down roots and raise a family.  I'm looking forward to the journey.

Christmas Come and Gone...

I can't believe that Christmas has come and gone already! It goes by way too fast! I love the day after Christmas, though, I must admit. I have tons of leftover food to give my family, so I don't have to spend any time cooking. I don't have to wrap anything, come up with any last minute gifts, or think about crafting one more project before Christmas. Basically, I'm all done making Christmas and I can just sit around in my PJs enjoying the quiet. I did have to get up and get dressed today to go to church, but that just added to the joy of the day. I got to sing with the choir in the Christmas program, which is always enjoyable.

This is also a great time to reflect on the past year and look toward the coming one. My mind is brimming with ideas for the house. I recently found a house that seemed just perfect for us. I called my realtor and asked her to take us to see it. I started imagining all the wonderful things i would do with this amazing fixer-upper. Then, a couple days later, my realtor sent me a message telling me the house was already under contract. I was unbearably disappointed. I have watched four fantastic homes in the country come on and off the market in the last couple of years. This was almost more than I could take. But I have been trying to stop looking elsewhere, stop trying to force it. I realize that I need to try harder to be content where I am. But what that means for me is a lot of changes to the home I have. And so the wheels are turning. One of my big issues with this home is how generic it feels. I am hoping to make some changes that will make it feel a little more unique, a little more me. So that's what is on my mind. Here are some inspiration pictures.

From Nikki at Grand Design:



This bedroom is so light and bright, without being colorless. I love the look of all white rooms, but I know I'm not the kind of gal who can actually live in them. One of my goals is to lighten up our bedroom. It currently has a very similar color scheme, but many many shades darker of each color.

I've also been wanting to lighten my dining room. I love this inspiration for the table and chairs from Miss Mustard Seed.


As part of my dining room plan, I intend to paint my china cabinet. Ten or so years ago we purchased the hutch at a yard sale. I painted it in a crackle finish, back when crackle was all the rage. I LOVED it. However, I think it's time for the crackle to go and a cleaner, fresher finish to take its place.

I'm considering painting my piano as well, but that might be a bit ambitious. It just seems like the big brown elephant in the room. I want to paint my great room area, the open kitchen, dining, and living rooms. And, as if all that isn't enough, I'd like to put up some shelves in my laundry room, install a countertop, and replace the light fixture. Oh yeah, and come up with better storage for my mudroom. Oh, and did I mention painting all the trim? As in, throughout the whole house? That should keep me busy, eh? Obviously I won't get to all of it, but I'm excited to see what I can accomplish.