In February, we took a quick trip up to see the beautiful Provo City Center temple. I was so glad that we were able to make this trip for the open house and have the opportunity to walk through this beautiful building. After growing up in Orem, and attending BYU, I just couldn't miss it. It was truly amazing, and extra special when you consider the story behind it. As an added bonus, it was really nice to spend a little bit of time with my family while we were there.
Drake had his Patriotic program at the school last week. He and the other kindergartners did a fantastic job.
This is the only other remotely interesting picture I have taken in the last four months. Sad huh? My boys love playing with their blocks and Angry Birds plushies. Those little plush toys are ridiculously expensive, but my little boys wanted them so much I broke down and bought a set of twelve. It was totally worth the money. They spend hours playing with them creatively pretty much every day.
I am going to share a few pictures of a couple spaces in my house now that we are in. Please keep in mind, that these spaces are not even close to being finished, but I thought it would give you a little better idea of what the house is like.
First up - the kitchen.
I really love this room. I know it may not be to everyone's taste, but I am a firm believer that you need to make your home a space that you love and where you feel great. It doesn't matter what anyone else thinks.
I love my new gas stove. It is actually dual fuel - so the cooktop is gas and the ovens are electric. I wanted double ovens in the kitchen and the original design had them, but when it came down to it, double ovens and a separate cooktop put a real strain on our budget, so I settled for this stove which has a convection oven and then a lower baking drawer. Surprisingly the baking drawer works great, and I have been really happy with this choice. The vent hood was another compromise. I wanted something a little more built-in, but that was a bit too costly, so I went for a more industrial looking hood. I think it goes great with the stove and it is of such good quality. I didn't know what I was missing before with my little standard hoods, or over the stove microwave vent systems.
This area was another compromise. I really wanted my island to be all one level. I also wanted quartz countertops. Since quartz was too expensive, we went with butcher block, and the cheapest easiest solution for the island with butcher block was to make it two levels. I like the butcher block and eating bar, but I don't love them. Hopefully someday we will be able to upgrade. I do, however, love my farmhouse sink, faucet, dishwasher and pendant lights. Everyone comments on the pendants. I will have to take a better picture of them someday and post them, so you can appreciate a little better how pretty they are in real life.
Finally, I also really love all my big lower drawers. I was a little afraid that after moving in and using them I would decide that they weren't all that I thought they would be, and wish I had saved my money, but happily, they are awesome and I am so glad that was an upgrade that I didn't give up.
Finally, I have to share my cute bar stools. My brother, Russ, was here with his family last week, and asked if the bar stools were assigned seating. Honestly, I just saw the idea on Pinterest a few years ago and thought it was cute, but when we moved the bar stools in, the boys automatically assigned themselves to the stool with their number. It has been nice and has definitely cut down on the fighting over which bar stool they want in the morning.
Obviously, I have done nothing with this room except move the old, beat-up dining set into it. I have big plans for this space though, so I am sure you will be seeing it in the future.
This is the family room with our old beat-up furniture in it. I picture a nice, comfy sectional in here, but it will have to wait until the house is all the way done and the budget recovers a little.
Here is another shot of this room. I am surprised I didn't try to get more of my beloved ceiling in the shot. At least you can tell that the wood floor did finally clean up. It takes some maintenance, but I am happy with it after all.
I am sharing this shot of the front room. I wasn't lying about having no furniture for it. The stuff on the piano, is just sitting there mostly to keep it off the floor, so don't judge my poor decorating choices here.
This is the entry. The light fixture for it is my favorite in the whole house. I need to take a close up of it to share soon too. Obviously, our front door rug is just a remnant of carpet. Our front yard is still not landscaped, so a lot of dirt and mud still gets tracked in and I don't want to get something nicer until we at least have a front walk.
That is it for today, and honestly, if you have read all of this, you are a dedicated friend.
1 comment:
I just got a chance to check your blog. I love all of the pictures! What a beautiful house--and I'm so glad to see you finally in it after all of your waiting and patience! Hopefully someday I'll be able to visit in person!
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