My Big Fat Greek Vacation

Here is the pretty post I promised last week! I'm getting ready for an almost two week trip to Europe and I can't wait to show you pictures of the places I'm going. If you follow me on Pinterest you probably knew something was up with my pins of Europe. My husband's boss and wife took us out for dinner and a play right before Christmas. As a gift they surprised us with a trip to Europe! The funny thing is my husband surprised him with a fly fishing trip. I think these guys know each other very well! It took a little while to figure out where to go on our trip to Europe, but we finally nailed down a plan.

The guys have a business meeting in Chicago right before we start our trip. We will only be here one night, but we have exciting plans. We will leave early from Houston and have a full day of sightseeing. That night we will have dinner at Alinea. It's supposedly the best restaurant in Chicago. I'm not a foodie, but the pictures are very cool.






I present...the scallop. Dun, dun, dun.

I'm excited to shop on the Miracle Mile, but it will be in vain since I can't fit anything else in my suitcase. If you follow me on Instagram and saw my pared down shoe wardrobe you know what I mean. ;)

We leave the next day for Munich. We will have a few days to explore the area and I can't wait to visit some of the amazing castles.





It's just like the movie "Frozen." I will be hearing, "Let it go! Let it go!" the entire time I'm here.



Then we'll be heading to Berlin. The guys have another meeting there, but we have a few days to explore.


The Potsdam area looks so pretty.

Now, this is where the Greek part of the big fat Greek vacation comes in. We'll be leaving Berlin for Athens! I'm very excited about this because it is a place I have always wanted to visit since my mom and her entire side of the family was born there. On this part of the trip it will just be my husband and I, but we hope to meet up with my extended relatives. We will be staying in the Plaka area of Athens. It's known for great shopping and cafes.




We will leave Athens for a night in Santorini. I think this is one of the most photographed areas of Greece.

I'm especially excited to see the lighthouse on the island.



Why? My great grandfather was responsible for this light house when he was a captain in the Greek Navy. My grandmother used to tell me stories of living on Santorini. I think some of them were a bit embellished. I swear she loved scaring the bejesus out of us grandkids with her spooky stories!

From here we will fly back to Athens and catch a flight to Istanbul. We will catch up with our friends here for two days.

The family history does not stop here. My grandmother's family is originally from Istanbul when it was Constantinople. It wasn't a pleasant time when they had to leave this city, but there is one thing that hasn't changed. This cathedral was originally a Greek Orthodox church. A family member of ours was a Bishop here at one time.


Isn't it beautiful?!

I have always been proud of my rich family history and I can't wait to see it come to life. Of course, I will be updating you with pictures of my trip on Instagram and Facebook. I will also do a recap of our trip when we get back. I know it will be a whirlwind since we will visit three countries in 12 days!

I am thankful for my family that will be able to watch our boys (including Mario). They will be staying at our home part-time so the boys will feel comfortable and able to play with their friends. I am so grateful to have family close by so we can travel to these amazing places. Each city and country we visit enriches our lives in some way. I have a feeling this will be a particularly special trip as I see the places my family has once lived. I can't wait to share it with you!

An Unexpected Boys Room Makeover

I promise I haven't been hiding this makeover from you! All of my boys' rooms need a little TLC, but I really did not plan to work on them until later in the year. But, then I needed to replace my youngest son's worn out quilt and it snowballed from there.

 

I found the madras quilt on sale a couple of months ago and then bought him the kid chair for his birthday. I guess his room will be navy and red! Since he drew stick figure families all over the walls I decided to paint his room with the left over white paint from the boys bathroom makeover. At least it's clean and fresh. It will also be easy to paint over if I decide to change it.



It's a little bare looking in here right now since I decided not to put his train artwork back on the walls. I decided to go ahead and finish his room since I'm halfway there anyway! I'm considering a few different ideas. As much as I would love to add a planked wall or board and batten, it's a lot of work for the caulker of the family. That would be me. I may build a shelf with hooks that will run the length of the wall. Or, I may go with large scale artwork and a book shelf over his new kid chair. That would be even easier. Hmmm...you know I always choose the difficult route, right?

It would make sense to ask my son what he wants his walls to look like. He said he'd like to paint them all red. No. I showed him pictures of what I like and then let him choose from there. Lesson learned! Here is what he could live with if he really has to choose something other than red walls.

He's very impressed that Riley has a computer, too.


He also likes this blue wall paint.



And, I just painted his room white.

We've got some decisions to make around here! That's the easy part though. Finding time to actually do the projects is the hard part. I have a busy few weeks ahead of me not related to home improvement, but it's all good stuff. I'll update you next week in an eye candy filled post. Have a great weekend!

Mudroom Shelves and Paint Color Resources

Sorry, for the late post this week. My internet has been down for a few days. I honestly have no idea why it’s working now, but I’m going to type fast in case it decides to crash on me again. Thank goodness for cell phones to keep me on top of the most important things, like bill paying and emails.

Speaking of emails, I was contacted recently by Jena from Involving Color about featuring my master bedroom on her blog. You can see the post here. It’s very flattering to be featured, but what’s more exciting is finding her blog. It’s completely devoted to paint and paint colors. What’s even better is the way it’s organized-by room, by color, by brand. I’ve been using Pinterest and Google to choose my paint colors before I even walk into a store. Her blog is an easier resource to finding the perfect paint color. I hope you check it out!

On to the mudroom progress. The built-in shelves are finally in place. I can’t tell you how confusing this was to figure out due to the weird angles in this closet. Even more confusing was to explain exactly what I wanted to my husband, the one who actually builds things around here. You would think after 16 years of marriage we would be able to figure out what each other is saying, but what we have here is a failure to communicate. After attempting to talk about the plans several times with the kids interrupting every thirty seconds, we just gave up. On Saturday, he decided to just get it done while I was out of the house. He showed me what he did when I got home and I said, “This looks amazing!” He said he was mentally prepared for a fight because he figured it was wrong! Nope. It was exactly what I wanted all along.






I think he deserves a gold star for figuring out these angles!

We ended up walling off the space on the back right (the brown board on the right side). It hurts my heart a little to decrease any storage space, but only a hobbit could get back there with the sloped ceiling. Anything that ended up back there would have stayed back there…forever.




Here is a pic of it before we blocked it off. The ceiling height is a whopping two feet tall.




The shoe cubbies are also done.



Well, the far left one isn’t finished quite yet. At least we can use them. Now, if I could just get the kids to actually put their shoes in the cubbies we’ll be doing good. Oh, and they need to learn to shut the door so Mr. Mario doesn’t drag their shoes out and snack on them. I’m buying two new pair of kids shoes today…sigh.

To recap, here is a before picture.







Cleaned out.




And almost finished....



So, what do we have left to do? Obviously, the floor and the errant shelf on the left need to be addressed. We’re also going to build a shelf above the top coat hooks. The rest is just filling in the gaps with quarter round and lots of caulk. Then, it’s my turn to finish it off. I need to paint, replace the light, and add a few decorative touches. When I type it out it doesn’t sound almost done!

Mudroom Progress

The mudroom is moving along a lot faster than I ever thought. I can't say it's because of me either. I had asked my husband to install two 2x4 boards on the wall so I could add hooks for the kids backpacks and jackets. I was thinking the bench and beadboard could be built later. I didn't want to push my luck after all since I'm not the one doing most of the work. I'm the planner/designer and he does his thing with the saw. He said it would be easier to do it all at once and was ready to get started on it. Well, that went better than expected!

I hightailed it to Home Depot and bought all of the wood and trim before my husband could change his mind. This was a little more difficult than I expected because I needed a lot of 8ft boards. You should have seen the looks I got trying to load it into my cart and then into my car. I'm sure people were thinking, "What the heck does that girl think she's doing?" I have to admit that I had a moment in the parking lot staring at this random pile of wood that was supposed to turn into a mudroom. I was thinking, "Maybe I am crazy? Why can't I just be a princess type who would hire someone to do this?" Don't worry, I got over it once I started seeing it built.

Pity party aside, if you remember we had cleaned out the closet under the stairs after I had a light bulb moment that this would make a perfect mudroom. This is what we had to work with once it was cleaned out.




It wraps around to the right. Under stairs closets can be so awkward.




We had to remove the coat rack first. I was worried about the drywall getting damaged, but it was fine except for one small hole we were able to cover up with trim.




Then, it was time to start building. Here is the progress we've made so far.



The bench was built first. It sits on a frame we built out of 4x6 lumber and has cubbies for shoes. I didn't want the bench so much as to sit on as I did for heavy bags that might pull the hooks out of the wall. Also, I don't like to hang my purses because the handles get stretched out from the weight of it.

The beadboard on the lower section was added first, then the 2x4 the lower hooks are screwed into, then the top sections. We basically built it from the bottom up. I just finished screwing in the last of the hooks this morning.

If you notice the bench has braces in the middle of each cubby.



That's because we are going to add a shelf in the middle of each one. I decided against baskets because I want to be able to see at a glance if the kids shoes are in here instead of having to go through each basket. We'll be able to fit eight pair of shoes, which should be enough since the kids only wear one pair at a time. That's one good thing about having boys!

I also want to add a shelf above the board that holds the top hooks. That's the reason these hooks are different from the bottom ones. I needed shorter hooks that wouldn't interfere with the shelf. After the top shelf is built and the shoe racks are in the cubbies, this wall will be done. I do have to paint, but that will be second to last on my list. The last thing to do will be to hire someone to finish out the flooring. Thankfully, we have three boxes left of the wood tile we used in the family room so the flooring will be continuous.



And, the light! Yes, that will be changed. I'm thinking of adding wainscoting to that small section of ceiling first. It will be similar to the beadboard, but much wider.

Here is the rest of the closet.



The section on the left will have built-in cubbies or shelves for baskets. It will start where the wall left wall ends and continue in a straight line to the end of the extra flooring. This will also help minimize the awkward angles of the closet. I'm planning on storing the kids school books they keep at home, extra paper products, and pool towels here.

I have not decided what to do with the back right of the closet. I'm leaning towards shelves since I do need a place to store gift wrap and seasonal décor. Another option is to block it off completely and add a wall under the spot the ceilings ends. This would allow us to wrap the bench and hook wall around in an L-shape for even more storage.




It's crazy, but we could use even more hooks. This doesn't even include the kids backpacks and the jackets they wore to school today.




Excuse the mess! I need to relocate that shelf from the closet to the garage asap. For reference, this is the closet we're making over in relation to the rest of the room. The garage door is down the hall to the left and the front door is around the stairs. It's directly across from the back door that leads to the pool. I love that it's in a central location since we use all the doors equally. I do wish we could keep the door off to the mudroom, but it's just too open to the family room for my comfort. The door will also keep Mario from eating our shoes. ;) If you notice, he made a bed out of the jackets I laid on the couch while I was installing the top hooks in the closet this morning.



This is also a good picture of the left side of the closet where the built-in shelves or cubbies will be, which is the next project we'll be tackling.

I can't leave you with a picture of my messy living room.




That's better!

New Project Plans: A Mudroom!

Well, technically it’s a closet. This is the place all of the odds and ends we seem to collect over the years goes…to die. It’s a huge closet under the stairs and we’ve cleaned it out more times than I can count. It has stored our Christmas decorations, important paperwork, photos, extra paper towels, old home décor, etc. Between our crazy amount of donations to Goodwill, the new home office, and new storage in the garage we don’t have an excuse for this any longer.






Thankfully, it doesn’t look as bad in the picture. I’m not kidding. If you’ve been wondering why I’ve been MIA this week it’s because I’m trying to integrate the things we are going to keep into our home office. Everything else has been donated, put in the attic, or in the garage. I still have two filing cabinets and three large bins to go through, but it’s coming along. Here is the closet now.






It’s clean, but ugly as sin. So, what prompted me to clean this mess up? Typical January organization? Nope. It’s when the lightbulb went off that this would make a perfect mudroom. It’s in a central location on our first floor so it doesn’t matter if we enter the house through the front door or the garage door. I have been complaining for a while that we don’t have enough hooks in the laundry room for a family of five. I need hooks for ten jackets, three backpacks, a briefcase and a couple of handbags. Oh, and hats! That might not happen, but it’s on my wish list. I also need a spot the kids can store their shoes that Mr. Shoe Fetish (aka Mario or the pupster) can’t find them them.

This project is going to take a while. I have to paint, replace the carpet, and sweet talk my husband into taking out the retired saw for some built-in shelving. But, can’t you see it? No. Well, I really don’t have a full plan yet either. The best part of a new project are the inspiration pictures. Here’s your eye candy because I know the pictures above aren’t doing it for you.

Traditional Closet by Beverly Architects & Designers Siemasko + Verbridge


 

Farmhouse Entry by Stillwater Architects & Designers Ron Brenner Architects


 

Craftsman Entry by Palo Alto Architects & Designers FGY Architects


 

Beach Style Entry by Portland Interior Designers & Decorators Garrison Hullinger Interior Design Inc.

My new mudroom won't look like these, of course. There's only so much you can do with a closet, but I do hope to incorporate built-ins to decrease the slope and odd angles of the ceiling and walls. I can't wait to get started!





 

Projects for 2014

Are you ready for some projects?! The holidays are over and it's time to get moving. I feel like my kids when they wake up and cry that they don't want to go to school. I don't really want to get started on anything, but I know I it's time. When I wrote my to do list last year I had just finished all of the big projects downstairs and was excited to get started on renovating the upstairs of my home. I didn't finish the entire upstairs like I had planned, but I knew that was an overly ambitious goal.

Here's a quick recap of what I have done upstairs. The old, gross carpet was removed and we had new laminate flooring installed throughout the entire floor. This made a huge difference. Everything just felt clean and new. Then, we replaced all of the trim around the doors and windows, and put in a batten board treatment throughout the entire game room. I decided to work on the game room first since it's the first room you see when you go up the stairs.



I had planned on painting the game room myself, but I knew it would take forever just to caulk the trim. Since I had zero motivation and wanted this room done quickly, I hired someone to paint this room. I felt uneasy about paying someone so much money to do a job I knew I could do, but it was so worth it in the end. It took them three days and it probably would have taken me three weeks.





I spent very little on the décor since I already had the sofa and console. I added the rug, coffee table, shades, and accessories. Besides the kitchen, this is the first room I've actually finished in this house because I didn't have to buy any big ticket items.

And, my latest project still isn't finished either, the boys' bathroom.



It's really close to being done so I will probably finish this room first. The hard work is done and it will help get me motivated to start on the rest of the upstairs, I hope.

So, what's next? My kids' bedrooms and my master bathroom is all that's left inside and they are in need of some serious TLC. The boys' bedrooms have gotten the most attention in this house since we've lived here, but look the worst since kids aren't "careful" with their belongings. Using the word "careful" is me being nice. I can't tell you how many times I've had to repaint walls, replace broken blinds, pick lamps up off the floor, scrape gum off the nightstands, etc. Because my little "darlings" will just tear it up again I am just giving it a spit shine with a bit of paint and a few accessories. Now, do you understand why half the furniture in my house is from Ikea?

And, on to the biggest project. My master bathroom should be a gut job because it's a 90s nightmare, but I'm planning on giving it a facelift instead with new paint, trim and fixtures. The shower, tile, vanity countertop and flooring will eventually need to be replaced. Unfortunately, I'm going to have to save that for later. I wish I had more time and money to devote to it, but we've really got to do something about my home's curb appeal.

The roof needs to be replaced, the siding pressure washed, and the landscaping addressed. My front yard has never been wonderful to begin with, but it was really damaged after having a tractor drive through the middle of it for our pool dig last summer. Oh, and my upstairs flowerbox is so sad with one lone weed creeping over the side. I'm hoping we can get working on the exterior this spring when the weather is nice. Until then, I will be working on the remaining interior projects upstairs. Fortunately for my wallet they are mostly paint projects, but I am not looking forward to the manual labor. I suppose I should say goodbye to any hopes of having a manicure this year.

The bright side is that these are the remaining big projects! Once these are finished I will be decorating, tweaking, and doing small DIY projects. Then, we'll probably move. We have no plans to move, but we moved after our last house was remodeled so it's a running joke in our family. Now, off to work! I'm not talking about DIY. I'm really running late for work!

Have a great weekend!