Sunday, October 23, 2011

Thanksgiving Day

Every year, we celebrate Thanksgiving Day on the second Monday in October.  It is a time to reflect back on all the things we are thankful for in the past year.  We are usually able to enjoy the beautiful fall colours and we celebrate this time with family and friends.  

This past Thanksgiving, October 10th, we experienced a beautiful weekend.  The weather was absolutely gorgeous.  On the Saturday, Brian, the girls, and I went to Brigden Fair.  On the Sunday, I cooked up a storm and had dinner for 7 between church services.  The menu included:  mashed potato, sweet potato, asparagus, corn, ham, and garlic parmesan buns.  That evening, we had a camp fire with a number of our friends.  Monday, we had a pre-Thanksgiving dinner at Taco Bell with friends.  The real deal was hosted at my brother's house later that afternoon...It was yummy!


I am most thankful for Jaelyn and Ava and their dad, Brian.  They are my world even when it might not seem like it to them.  I love spending time with them and hearing about the things they are learning in life.


I took the girls out during the afternoon on Thanksgiving Day and took some pictures of them.  Jaelyn and Ava chatted non-stop and went about the things little girls do.  Jaelyn is the collector, stones, feathers, etc.  Ava is the risk taker, climb, jump, etc.  Their different personalities are evident in these pictures.

Enjoy….


Ava and her kitty
Jaelyn


Ava's face and foot posture tell it all as she wonders about what is behind that door. 
Jaelyn sitting with her rock collection
Jaelyn loves to pose for the camera
(as long as she can see the pictures when we are done)

These last photos are my favourite.





 Happy belated Thanksgiving!







Sunday, October 9, 2011

Presenting Our New House

Finally, I have found the time to post about our new house.   We moved into our new house July 29th.  I will do a before and after photo of our major changes.  The upper level is pretty much done for now.  The lower level we still have plans.  So here we go, buckle up, the tour is about to begin…
Exterior view taken from the road
The front entrance:


BEFORE:


AFTER:


New colour on the walls is Rocky Road by Benjamin Moore  (which used to be my family room in my basement).  New lighting fixture is from the Lighting & Accent Gallery  which we purchased through the Chatham Daily News Auction.  Not in picture is my desk/table that I purchased off of Chatham Kent Mom Swap on Facebook.  See picture below for desk with my fall display.




The Living Room:


BEFORE:

I loved the former owners' furniture in this room!   I also loved the grey wall.  Unfortunately, the grey did not match my living room furniture.


AFTER:


Do not mind the stuff on the floor.  New colour on the walls is again Benjamin Moore Rocky Road and the dark wall is Mink.  This was taken before pictures were hung.  




This light was in the house when we purchased.  I wasn't too sure about it at first but love it now!  It makes a great reading light.


The Kitchen:
The only thing we have done in the kitchen is add the over-the-range microwave that we purchased from our dear friends down the road.




I guess we did add white faux wood blinds to the 2 windows in the kitchen/dining area when Bouclair had a sale a couple of weeks back.  They are not in the above pictures.
We are using the above area as a play area.


Future plans are to redo kitchen area and add hardwood flooring in living, dining, hall, and kitchen.  New light fixtures are also in the works in the kitchen area.


Master Bedroom:


BEFORE:


AFTER:





The room is painted with a colour called Ranchwood and the accent wall is Mink, both by Benjamin Moore.  We purchased the carpet as a remnant from Sacwal Flooring Centres.  The curtains came with the house and my sister-in-law, Crystal, thought I should tie blue from my duvet into the room somehow.  I have to say, the blue curtains are starting to growing on me.  We also put a ceiling fan in, not pictured.


The "Girls"  Bedroom:


BEFORE:


This room probably had the greatest transformation.


AFTER:


Jaelyn's bed

Jaelyn's side of room

Ava's bed


The colour of the "girls" room is again from Benjamin Moore.  2 walls are rhododendron and 2 walls are peony.  I wanted to bring a colour that would match both quilts and I went girlie and selected pinks.


Upper Level Bathroom:


BEFORE:


AFTER:



You will notice that Ava has put herself in this picture.  I painted the bathroom before I went back to work.  As you may have guessed it, it is from Benjamin Moore and the colour is Desert Twilight.  The light came from the Lighting and Accent Gallery.



Future plans include a new counter top and flooring.


Warning the lower level has not been updated …YET that is….


Family Room:
Future Plans:  Paint and Flooring.  I would like to get something similar to my old house family room carpeting.  See below.



Old House Carpet
Office & Craft Room:
I am super excited to have my own library, craft room, and office all in one!  It does need to be organized a bit more but it is slowly coming.
Future Plans:  Flooring!






Lower Level Bedroom:
My niece, Janelle, is living with us for the year and this is her room.


Future Plans:  Paint and Flooring.




Laundry Room:
We have added 2 cabinets and moved the hot water heater.


Future Plans:  Paint and flooring.  We also want to move the wash machine beside the dryer.




Lower Level Bathroom:
Future Plans:  More paint, new flooring, and a lighting fixture.



Exterior:





Well that's the tour.  I hope you enjoyed it!  Until next time.