Young House Love

Home Decorating & DIY Tutorials

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Dude, We’ve Lived Here An Entire Year

Which means this time last year, we woke up to a surprise snowstorm…

Old House Snow Storm

… that resulted in our UHaul slipping into the gutter of our old driveway (more on that here).

Thirteenth Truck Ditch

Man, it feels like that was just yesterday. John and I still remember every word of that truck-snafu conversation…

JOHN: Hey Sherry. Walk-through went fine. They’re off to go close and I’m headed to the new house.

SHERRY: Okay, be very careful. It’s snowy out there so drive as slow as you need, even if people are honking at you. Just take your time.

JOHN: I will. Don’t worry.

SHERRY: Great. I just don’t want you ending up in a ditch or anything.

[HANG UP, SHERRY GOES TO PUT HER PHONE DOWN BUT IT IMMEDIATELY RINGS AGAIN.]

JOHN: Crap, the truck is in a ditch and I think I knocked over the mailbox.

SHERRY: You’re kidding right?

[END SCENE, FADE TO BLACK]

On the other hand, it kinda feels like we’ve lived here forever. And sometimes we forget little things about the old house (like where a certain light switch was located, or whether a door swung in or out to open). And that makes it feel like we haven’t lived there in a very very long time. Then again, there are a few light switches here that are still a complete mystery to us, so this house can’t be too “old” to us yet, seeing as there are probably going to be more discoveries as we renovate and decorate and spread out into a few rooms that we haven’t even started to really live in yet as our family grows (like the sunroom and the playroom for example). And no, that’s not a baby-on-the-way hint Mom! But back to reminiscing… it’s so weird to look back a year in our archives and see what our first house looked like empty:

Old House New Liv 1

Old House Den New1

Old House New Bedroom

Old House New Sunroom

Some of the angles that we shot it without furniture were never possible with furniture, like this one (I stood where the media cabinet used to be)…

Old House New Doorways

You can check out more empty first house pics here. Now let’s take a look back at how our current house looked exactly a year ago on move in day (I literally ran around snapping these pics with our rented UHaul waiting to be unloaded in the driveway):

NewEmpty Exterior Front

NewEmpty Living Built Ins

NewEmpty Kitchen

NewEmpty Family Room 2

NewEmpty Sunroom

NewEmpty Master Bath

NewEmpty Playroom

NewEmpty Guest Room

NewEmpty Laundry

You can check out more empty house pics here. The funny thing is that a few of those spaces have come a looong way in 365 days…

Exterior Prog1

Dining Room Prog1

Office Progress1

Hallway Progress2

Liv Room Prog1

Counters View To Stove

Sink Nook Prog

Guest Bedroom Prog1

Laundry After1

Patio After11

… while others are virtually untouched (like all of our bathrooms). And a few other rooms haven’t been tackled at all except for plopping down furniture or using them to store a bunch of stuff that we have to garage sale/craigslist (like the sunroom and the playroom):

Sunroom Prog 1

Playroom Prog

You can see a full play by play of “before” and “progress” pics here (and all the before and after pics from our first house here). But enough looking back, let’s attempt to peer into the future. We thought it would be fun to list a few of the projects that we have in mind (after we wrap things up in the kitchen in a few months of course), just in broad strokes (there have been a bunch of requests for an updated Listy Mclisterson post, so we’ll have to do that soon for ya in more detail with some fun red cross outs). In the meantime, here’s what we have in mind for taking this still very much in progress house a little further in year two (and beyond!):

  • build a wooden deck for dining (beyond the glass sliding doors in the hallway right next to the kitchen)
  • convert the carport into a garage (that’s going to be one of those big with-the-help-of-a-contractor projects)
  • build a trellis arch/pergola around the new garage door so it’s all lush and pretty
  • build a big media cabinet to balance the large console table that we built on the other side of the room (and a bench for the foot of the bed and a cabinet for the inset-wall in the master bedroom?)
  • refinish the floors in our bedroom (along with the other wood ones in most of the house, but we can’t do them all at once since we need a place to offset furniture)
  • add wainscoting to the hallway that leads to the nursery, playroom, and guest room
  • actually paint/furnish/use the sunroom
  • actually paint/furnish/use the playroom
  • redo/update/spruce up all three of the bathrooms (with varying degrees of actual renovation – some just need a little cosmetic stuff)
  • continue tweaking rooms like the living room, dining room, nursery, bedroom, guest room (all of which have entire walls devoid of frames and key items of furniture missing)
  • create a defined entryway with a large buffet, art, and a rug by the front door (among other things)
  • add crown molding to a bunch of spaces (like the playroom, nursery, guest room, etc)
  • double side the fireplace in the kitchen so we can enjoy it in the living room as well
  • build a backyard swingset/playset along with a pimped sandbox for the bean (and a play kitchen, and a dollhouse – so many bean plans)
  • paint the siding/trim/shutters on the house along with framing out the porch columns so they’re chunky and square (and add another light near the door, stain the concrete, etc)
  • take on tons o’ outdoor landscaping stuff (in the front, side, back, and beyond)
  • build in the master bathroom vanity so it’s symmetrical (for more concealed storage since we don’t sit there and use it as a vanity)
  • build some raised beds in the side/back for an edible garden
  • retrofit the daybed in the playroom so a trundle bed can be slipped under it for future bean sleepovers or overflow guests
  • add french doors between the dining room and the office (for privacy and added architecture)
  • change the roofline out front (add some peaks for dimension and to make it more cohesive with the house’s shape from the back)
  • DIY a pool someday (John thinks this idea is insane, mind you)

Of course we’ll do a lot of this stuff over the course of the next few years (our first house took us 4.5 years to finish) so there’s no rush. We just like to remember to relaxxxxxx. Seriously, you can get all crazy and stressed and frustrated if you rush through things instead of taking projects one day and one small victory at a time and remembering to enjoy the ride. And we couldn’t ask for more amazing people to have in the car (the house?) with us. Wait, that sounded weird. We just mean that we’re so honored and excited to have you guys drop in and encourage us as we go. So thanks! You all have a huuuge part in keeping our morale and our momentum up, so we owe you at least ten holiday cookies each. With extra icing and sprinkles. Picture yourself enjoying every last crumb (remember, fantasizing about eating ten cookies = zero calories).

Oh and as for the method to our “project order,” we don’t really have one. We jump around from room to room to stay excited and keep things from feeling monotonous or overwhelming. After a big project (or a string of big projects) sometimes we’re happy to take a breather and tackle the little stuff for a while. And other times we’re psyched to keep our momentum up and start planning the next big undertaking right away. Who knows what’s next. Gotta keep trucking on the kitchen for a while, so who knows what we’ll be in the mood for when the renovating dust clears in there. But one thing’s for sure… if year two is half as exciting and rewarding and memorable as year one in this house, we’ll be over the moon. Is it weird to love a house like it’s a member of the family? What do you guys hope to tackle in the coming year (and beyond!)? Every time you read “and beyond” do you think of Buzz Lightyear, or is that just me?

Psst- Clara is obsessed with big dogs and has no concept of personal space. More on that here.

Comments

  2. Meg@Keeping up with the Jenks' says

    Ha! I was just reminiscing about our former house last night (thinking about Christmas memories and decorating, etc.) and was wondering on how ya’ll are handling the “new” house. You know, if holidays bring on the nostalgia?
    I think when we are finally in our new house I will be ready to move on.
    P.S. Congrats on your anniversary! What a year it has been!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      I think a few holiday “firsts” (like a real tabletop tree and adding lights outside for the first time ever) are helping it feel really special to be right where we are. Of course we always look back with fond memories of the first house though. That was our first love!

      xo,
      s

  6. Katie says

    Congrats on a year in your house — so exciting! Also, I think in this point you need to take out “future” — it really is your dining room now!! “add french doors between the future dining room and the office (for privacy and added architecture)”

    Reply

  8. Zerique says

    congrats on one full year!!! you guys have done more in your house in one year that I have done in 6 years! :) great job!!! I love watching it all go down!!! and thanks for being a DIY inspiration.

    Reply

  9. Sam says

    I can’t believe you’ve done well that in a year! I had a tin of paint sit around longer than that for my bathroom and I’m pretty sure I’ve been meaning to paint my bedroom for two. I’m also pretty sure I’ve been following your blog for nearly 2 years now, which is quite scary. I’ve “known” you guys longer than a few people I know in real life!

    Reply

  12. Melissa says

    “… while others are virtually untouched (like all of our bathroms)”

    Typo alert. :)

    It’s amazing what you’ve done in a year. Makes me feel like a total slacker! Love watching the progress.

    Reply

  13. Kate says

    December 1st marked 6 month of us owning our house! Here’s my list of 2012 projects:
    – Spray paint the two older lights in the bathrooms, plus the outside garage lights
    – Overhaul our (kind of rusty) mailbox
    – Paint the wood trim on the house
    – Build a garden
    – Do something with the finished but largely unused basement
    – Build a farmhouse bed ala Ana White and finish out our bedroom a bit
    – Insulate the garage
    – Paint a couple walls that I don’t like but didn’t get painted before we moved in
    – Get things all put in the right place!

    And the “someday” projects:
    – A patio in the backyard (maybe with a hot tub!?!)
    – Replace the sort of worn out carpet
    – Replace the kitchen floor (and maybe new counters and a tile backsplash)

    Reply

  14. Sarah @ w30 says

    This is AMAZING! It’s crazy to see the progress in one fell swoop (rather than the day-to-day, even though that is impressive, too). I can’t wait to see what the next year brings! Oh, and I prefer gingerbread cookies, if you have any thankyouverymuch.

    Reply

  15. Sarah @ Redhead in Ruffled Flats says

    Awww – so sweet! I can’t believe a year has flown by that fast! I still miss your old house and I have never even been there – I followed your blog probably ever since you were a year into it, so I’m still pretty attached to that house, but I love what you’ve been doing with this one. It definitely has a lot of options and spaces yet to fill up.

    As for what you plan to do – I nearly choked on air when I saw that you are planning to do a trellis around the garage! Is this what you are thinking: http://pinterest.com/pin/201043570835209099/ I pinned that a while ago and have been dreaming of it ever since. I hope you do it because it’s so gorgeous!!! Plus, then I can have a tutorial for the day when I have a house (and a garage) to build one for!

    Oh…and what exactly is a “pimped” sandbox? hahahaha

    Can’t wait for the upcoming years (I love reading about them without having to do any of the work :P but I’d gladly come out and help if you needed any helpers)

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Yes, something like that! I have it pinned too! Haha. The funny thing is I saw something like that five+ years ago in Better Homes and actually tore it out and put it in my inspiration binder and even wanted to do one in our first house (just never got around to it). As for a pimped sandbox, I’m not sure. Haha. Maybe bench seats or a cover to keep cats from thinking it’s a litter box? Maybe it’ll be in the shape of a P or a chihuahua. Haha.

      xo
      s

  17. Lori says

    In a year from now you are going to look back on this post and see that in progress kitchen picture and you aren’t going to believe the change from present right now to future right now. It’s going to be an amazing looking kitchen! can’t wait to see what you guys have your sleeves in the coming year.

    Did that make sense, present right now and future right now? I know what I mean, I hope you do too!

    Reply

  18. Bethany says

    awesome work for 365 days you guys! we moved last fall. it is weird that you forget those little details of your previous place in just a year. crazy how fast time flies!

    Reply

  19. Rebeca says

    You guys are truly an inspiration to help me tackle projects in our first house. Your blog is my go-to resource. Can’t wait to start, we just moved in this weekend!

    Quick question: I noticed you guys don’t have any blinds other than in the guest rooms/office. Do you plan on putting any up and does the lack of privacy bother you? I tried living without blinds for less than a week and couldn’t stand it (felt like I was being watchted) so I ran out to Lowes and cut some custom cut for the main living areas and even though their bamboo and offer little privacy, It still feels SO much better than nothing at all.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We actually have white faux wood blinds in all of the bedrooms (our master, the guest room, and Clara’s room) which we use all the time to block light when we sleep! We don’t tend to draw blinds in common areas like the living room or dining room, but since we do most of our hanging out in the evening in the back of the house that’s not visible from the street or by neighbors (in the living room) it feels like we have a nice amount of privacy!

      xo,
      s

  21. Julia @ Chris loves Julia says

    I almost teared up looking a photos of your first home. What a different feeling I got as I remembered reading about your projects sitting in our little basement apartment with a newborn. And now life is so different! You have a new home–we have a new home, too! And your daily posts keep us motivated to keep working, too! Seeing the before and after of your current laundry room reminded me of how much I LOVED that project this year.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Aw, now your comment is making me almost tear up. So crazy how we both were in a different place with a newborn and now so much has changed and we have bigger kids and different houses to spruce up!

      xo,
      s

  22. SJ says

    You guys are workhorses!! I love keeping up with all your progress and the ins and outs of daily life. We are closing on our house Friday and moving Sat. Crossing my fingers that we avoid a surprise snowstorm! :)

    Reply

  25. DebInNYC says

    WOW it has been a year already I cannot believe how fast that went. I remember sitting here and reading that John put the truck in a ditch!

    Thank you for sharing your lives with us and congrats to another successful year!
    Deb

    Reply

  26. Jenn says

    Your sun room is GORGEOUS! Like it seriously doesn’t even look like it needs any work but I’m sure whatever you guys do will make it look even more amazing.

    Reply

  27. josiedelaney says

    Y’all have come a long way in one year!
    stuff to do in our house in the next 12 months? Ummmm…
    paint the master bed room.
    paint the kitchen/dining area
    New fridge, stove and microwave
    paint both upstairs bedrooms
    totally reno upstairs bath
    remove/replace all carpet upstairs
    do **something*** about the ceiling in the den (it’s ugly but not sure what to do)
    tweek the living room- it’s “finished” but feels stale. maybe it needs new accessories?

    no idea how much of this will get accomplished, but it’s nice to dream, right?

    Reply

  28. Brandi @His Shabby Her Chic says

    Wow! What a difference a year makes! Everything looks great and I can’t wait to read about your journey.

    Reply

  29. lisa says

    wow—1 year already? that time went fast and you got so much done in your new house……i was looking at one of your older house pics above, and it reminded me that i forgot to ask you(haha-it reminded me that i forgot)..the 2nd pic..of the brick wall room with the fireplace…was the shelf always leaning to the left? or does it just look that way in the picture? i wanted to ask you a while back since it always looked crooked in pictures, but i may be wrong and it just may be the picture. i know-silly question-but was just always wondering.:)

    Reply

  30. Marilena says

    Congratulations on all you have accomplished! Your hardwork has paid off–the progress is picture perfect.

    I’m curious–what exactly is that white “end table” piece next to your couch in your living room and also pictured next to the chair in the sunroom? Is it actually an end table or is it something else? And is that a little slot on the side of it? Thanks!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      It’s actually a little ceramic garden stool that we found at HomeGoods a long time ago. The little slot on the end is actually a hand hole (?) and there’s a matching one on the other side.

      -John

  31. Jamie says

    My mom and I made a play kitchen last year for my 5 year old, she still loves it (based on an Ana White design). Let me know if you are interested in photos or tips or whatnot.

    Reply

  32. Laura Hunter says

    We moved two years ago to an old brick rancher as well so we’ve had loads of projects. Although as a pool owner, I will spend my next year convincing you that DIY’ing a pool might be the cuh-raziest thing I’ve ever heard…even for y’all! I can’t imagine doing that! Think very carefully about that!

    Reply

  34. Urban Wife says

    You guys…this was such an awesome post to read through! It really gives me hope that one day (maybe before I’m 35?) my husband and I will be able to buy our very own home and spruce it up. Please don’t ever, ever stop doing what you do and sharing it with us to be inspired with! :)

    Reply

  36. Maddie says

    It is amazing how far you guys have come! It totally seems like that all could have been more than one year’s of work because you got so much done! Everything has been a major improvement!

    Did you guys just move out of your first house because you ran out of projects to do?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We moved mostly because we had a baby and both worked from home so having one room for an office/playroom/guest bedroom and only one full bathroom was just a bit too cramped for us. But having new projects and a new house to make our own was definitely a perk too!

      xo,
      s

  39. Lindsey @ arkadian belle woods says

    Aww…memories! It’s so amazing what you’ve both accomplished with the new house! Ya’ll are like magic or something! For us (the readers because I’m sure they’ll agree), it’s like we ‘lived’ there too! It makes me miss your old house seeing those pictures and remembering all of the amazing reno and projects, but then scrolling down and seeing the new house progress was like ‘oh yeah! I love this!’ It was the same feeling I had the day I read the post this time last year about the U-haul. I was sad! I’ll stop rambling now but it’s pretty awesome to be ‘a part of’ this entire process. You know like we’re family, the strange people you’ve never met lol!

    But to sum up my babbling….you and your family are incredible and I’m happy to have been along for the virtual ride for the past 3-4 years now! Wow! I can’t wait to see what’s up next….speaking of which (sorry) umm I was looking at your house pics this morning(strange because I didn’t realize it’s been a year) and I was like ‘whoa! I forgot about the basement! I can’t wait to see what you do with it but umm Sherry, I’m thinking a cool sewing/crafty space! hehe ok ok I’m done for realz this time :-)

    Happy House-iversary!

    Reply

  40. Lori says

    Wow! What great progress!! I am a new follower of this blog, and boy howdy… You guys are putting me to shame ;). I made a goal to be finished with our town home by the end of this year. I painted my powder room and that was it! I also have an 18 month old (little man) so my DIY’ing is relegated to nap time. You two have great style and I love seeing your before, during and after photos. Keep up the great work!!!

    Reply

  41. Teresa says

    So this may sound like a somewhat silly question, but does that mean that some of your rooms appear “put together” on camera, but are in fact, not done at all? DO you go into rooms of your house and sit down and think, “I need to do this, and this, and oh, what about this?” I know that sounds funny, but I look at the wonderful shots of your house that you post, and everything looks so put together and complete… are you doing a heck of a good job in some of those rooms of showing only what you want us to see? (I’m thinking about my own home, and how even when I complete a small project, it seems I am so far from getting it all put together).

    Reply

    • Teresa says

      Oh and so it doesn’t seem like that came out of left field… I had that thought when I read this bullett that you wrote – “•continue tweaking rooms like the living room, dining room, nursery, bedroom, guest room (all of which have entire walls devoid of frames and key items of furniture missing)”

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We basically have certain angles of rooms that look much more “finished” than others (ex: our living room shot looking back at the kitchen = no art at all on the wall and no furniture against that wall – so it’s completely undone). So it’s not any sort of “cheating” with moving things around or faking things, it’s just sharing angles that make the most sense and addressing those other bare areas as we go (ex: we might shoot that wall when we add art or furniture and talk about how it was looking so bare). Hope that makes sense!

      xo,
      s

    • Teresa says

      Oh yes, that makes total sense :) It makes me feel better about the unifnished areas of my home. lol I feel a little slow catchin onto some of this stuff…first it was preggo brain, now it’s mommy brain.

  42. Heidi says

    You certainly have done a lot and what a great post to celebrate the anniversary! Thanks for explaining your momentum/project order/method to the madness – while I have no ambition of tackling as much in my next year, I agree that mixing it up little/big or powering through big projects back to back can both be invigorating. Thanks as always for the inspiration!

    Reply

  43. heatherkathryn says

    Hearing about the currently unused spaces in your house like the playroom and sunroom makes me feel less guilty! After six months in my house, the third bedroom (which is supposed to be an office) can only really be described as a holding area! At least I painted it?!?

    Those calorie free cookies sound fantastic. ;)

    Reply

  44. Renata says

    It’s funny to see that from all the pictures of the new house you posted all of them have the “in progress” tag to it and the one that is very obviously still in progress doesn’t. I know you guys just borrow pictures from other posts, I just thought it was funny how it turned out.
    Congrats on everything you guys have accomplished so far, you guys are such an inspiration, hopefully when we get our house we’ll be going from one project to the next like you all do :)

    Reply

  46. Neyir says

    Thanks for that lovely post – so fun to see all the progress shots, my son was entranced by the shots of the old house with the U-haul (he’s four). We’ll take your 10 cookies and raise you another 40 or so as we are starting the holiday bake-off this afternoon. We’re still visa bound in the spring so still no house buying for us but we’re sure to keep busy swapping rooms in the rental house as we’re expecting another babe in the spring :-).

    Reply

  47. Linda says

    Not gonna lie – the list part of this post made me super happy. I think it’s easy for your average DIY-er (like me) to get overwhelmed seeing all of the AMAZING work you guys have done already…but it’s also easy to forget that things take time, and there’s still more to go!

    Congrats on your first year in your gorgeous home, and here’s to many more (and to taking all of your readers along on the ride with you!).

    xox Linda

    Reply

  48. Tracy says

    I would LOVE to see the master bath vanity. We have the same problem in our new house and right now I have an really ugly plastic dresser under there for much needed storage!

    Reply

  50. Devon @ Green House, Good Life says

    Happy anniversary!

    On an unrelated note…have you looked at interest rates lately? They’ve actually come down a fair bit even since last year, and refinancing could be a good move. (No, I’m not in the mortgage business — I’m just a regular person who’s looking at refinancing myself to take advantage of unreal interest rates and wanted to spread the word.)

    Reply

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