Behind the scenes

So the last post was all the pretty pictures of what our house looks like now. Here is what it looked like when we first moved in, as well as fun picks of the process... Enjoy! Makes me tired just looking at them. No, really it wasn't too bad because our sellers left the place in great condition. But there was still a lot of paint to be applied and things to build. 

This was the very first night in the house. Notice the lovely mirrored wall (those came down last weekend, I'll post pics when it's done) and the chandelier. 1988, baby! 

We planned for a few days about the transition from our apartment to the house, since we got it on a Monday night but the furniture wasn't delivered until Friday. We planned on bringing the bare necessities (and the cats) that first night. It mostly worked except that we forgot the pump to the air mattress. The carpet is pretty plush, but I'm glad we only had to sleep here for one night. Do you like the pink valance? That came down the very next day... 
Day #2- Masking, paint buying, and eating at our new dining table! 
Joel putting shelves in our really large coat closet (behind all the coats) so I can store the small kitchen appliances. Ingenious! 
So much painting! At this point I was still unemployed so I had the time, but painting by yourself goes S-L-O-W-L-Y. 
My husband, the electrician. We replaced almost every one of the indoor and exterior light fixtures. 

And another light fixture... 

Not just the light fixtures but EVERY SINGLE outlet and switch and their plates. They were all that yucky ivory and half of them didn't hold a plug anymore. Now they're all fresh and white. I think there were over 40 to replace. What a great husband! 
Hey look, here's Joel replacing another light fixture! 
And building the kitchen island. Praise God for Ikea! 
Here is the view out of our living room window on the one snowy day of winter. 
With spring around the corner and the weather warming up, and the house almost done inside, I got to dig in my very own dirt- no more just container gardening for me. My mom was here and I can say is that lady can dig a hole! (Oh, whoops, I wasn't supposed to tell... sorry Mom!)
We were able to use my boss' truck for the nursery and home depot run. I drug mom and Joel out in the rain... because I really wanted those plants in the ground!!
Joel's reward was a new BBQ grill. I think it was shortly after this we decided that we had to stop buying him more projects! 
Stay tuned as the Hill house continues to undergo transform. Next week- the garage. This spring- crown moulding. This summer- deck cleaning! Next winter- bathroom remodel. Hip hip, hooray!!!