Master Bedroom Nearly Done

Our main focus in December was on our bedroom, which we hoped to get nearly done so we had an end of the day sanctuary where we couldn't look around and see projects that needed to be done. Its not quite there yet (at least for me), but it is way closer than other space in our house.

Here are four before shots showing the room as it was for the first few weeks in the house.

So the first step was painting the closets so we could unpack the boxes of clothes and empty the room so that it could be painted and there was room for the furniture. We have two small walk in closets which is a huge increase in clothes storage space for us over our last master bedroom. Miran did most of the work here and the closets looked so fresh and clean all painted in our normal gray walls with white trim scheme.

Our bedroom also has turned out to be a room that is almost completely full of new things, which has been fun. It does seem I like to reinvent things and redecorate every few years. We got a set of two new dressers and two new night stands, which luck for us Dad came to visit and assembled for us (I seem to have startled him taking this action shot). They sat in the living room for a few weeks waiting for space to be made in the bedroom.

Once the closets were unpacked we could access the walls and got the walls and baseboards and door frames painted.

So we slept on a mattress on the floor of our new bedroom for an entire month (well truthfully we were in Florida seven of those nights), but we finally we assembled everything on New Years Day. That included moving in the dressers and nightstands Dad had assembled as well as putting together the bed frame we bought. The bedding is new as well, but we used the lamp and rug that were in our office in the old house. So here is what the room looks like now:

Projects left to do in the bedroom include painting the window surrounds and sashes, painting the doors, replacing the ceiling fan, maybe getting a small chair for the corner, hanging pictures and mirror, and deciding about the window treatments. But we are both happy with how spacious the room feels, how much storage we have for clothes, and of course how pretty it looks with the new stuff.

Kitchen In Progress

So I finally found a minute to download photos and start some blog posts about the new house. First I'll show you the progress we've made in the kitchen so far. We haven't done much, but an important first step was painting inside the cabinets so that we could put the food and dishes and everything else away.

So here is the before shot of the interior of the cabinets on the fridge/pantry wall.

Fortunately, Mommy came to help with this project as in my present condition I would never have been able to get into the backs of the upper and lowermost cabinets. I focused on the midrange and she did all the hard stretching!

Afterwards it looked great with the white shelves and green back wall. It is fresher and cleaner than before and everything is much easier to see inside than against the dark brown background.

So that all happened mid-December and I got the kitchen almost completely put away and it has been functional for the past few weeks.

Yesterday there was another big development in the kitchen - the arrival of the fridge we ordered a month ago. That was the most important appliance for both us because the one that came with the house was small, really dingy, and it was way to hard to go back to a freezer on the top after you've had a french door fridge!

The new fridge was delivered about 3:00 and Miran and his friend/colleague from work Virag moved the old fridge out, took the doors off (both the new fridge and the house), moved the new one inside, and reassembled it. We haven't hooked up the water and ice machine yet because we decided to replace the very old looking pipe behind the fridge first. Hopefully we'll get to Home Depot and get new pipe tubing this week-end.

We are both quite thrilled with the new fridge and glad we made a few splurges - most importantly that we got the counter depth one, which was key for the fridge's walkway location. Plus it looks better not sticking out 6 more inches. It is definitely shallower inside, but you can never see/reach the stuff in the way back anyway, so now there is no way back. We also opted for the middle drawer, which can be set at a separate temperature. We are keeping it warmer and using it for bread and tomatoes and fruit, which are better stored not as cold as the rest of the fridge stuff. And the final new feature is the so called black stainless finish. Its not a shiny stainless steel, but rather a very dark charcoal color. We both thought it was really elegant and striking, and the ads claim it shows fingerprints less than regular stainless, so we'll see.

So here is the same fridge/pantry wall now! There is still a lot left to do, like painting all the outside of the cabinets (as a temporary solution until we can replace them) and replacing the hardware and other ancient appliances.

And to match the earlier images, here is an open door shot of the kitchen today. The big pantry with the u-shaped shelves is great for access.

New Houses!

So we are set to close on the sale of our house on November 30. We still have a couple items on the repair list left to fix, but the packing is coming along. We are headed to Munich from Nov 6 to the 15 and I want most of the work done beforehand so that I can actually relax and enjoy the trip.  I've turned the dining room into packing central and it is starting to fill up with boxes.

It has been a whirlwind couple of weeks, but we are also now under contract to buy two other houses - one for us and the baby and one for Azra and Milada. Hopefully we'll close on both them immediately after the sale - possibly doing all three closings on the same day!

Here is a picture of our new house and here is the link to the listing with more pictures and information.

Outside is great - all brick - even most of the backyard is fenced in brick (with split rail across the back). Inside, pretty much everything needs to be painted - from the kitchen cabinets to the panelling to the trim to the fireplace. But I think after a full paint job and with our furniture its going to be transformed. Its a totally solid house that is really well-built and well-maintained, and most of the mechanical stuff has been replaced in the past two years (new ac, new furnace, new plumbing pipes to the street, new outside electrical box, etc.). We'll need some new appliances as well eventually, but the ones there all work even though they are a bit older.

And here is the townhouse for Milada and Azra and the link to the listing. 

Their house is more move in ready, with recently updated kitchens and baths and new laminate flooring. So its good we won't have many projects at least at one house. Its in a really nice condominium complex with a pool I plan to come over and use next summer! But the best part is that even though its in a quiet residential area, it is a less than ten minute walk from a bunch of grocery stores and restaurants and other stuff so Milada will have access to a lot of stuff even if its another few years until she gets a car.

Fall Fun - Trips and Company!

In addition to buying and selling houses and getting ready for the baby, we've had a lot of other activity lately, including many of our typical fall activities.

We went to the Oktoberfest at the German restaurant that we try to make it too every year. This time we went with a friend of Miran's from work (Virag) and his wife and some of their friends.

We also spent a wonderful half week at Topsail Island thanks to Mom and Dad. It was very relaxing to have a change of scenery and sit around chatting with everyone each day. There was a lot of board game and bridge playing and taking pictures of my baby bump was another popular activity!

 Cecilia and the girls also visited for a week-end right before the beach trip so Mom and Dad and Aunt Maggie were here as well. Miran got a makeover:

 Ingrid read a book to Nanny and Aunt Maggie at the children's library:

 We celebrated Mommy's birthday:

And we spent the day at the Renaissance festival, where Miran and the girls got juggling lessons, the girls both climbed the wall, and they all did archery.

 

 

Halfway there!

Today we are officially at 20 weeks, so halfway through the pregnancy! It is going so quickly, especially lately when I'm totally distracted by this crazy house stuff.

I'm not sure, but I think I might be starting to feel him move. Sometimes I have a sort of feeling like there are bubbles inside me, which could be him swimming around. It is faint and definitely no kicks or anything.

At Margaret's request, here are a couple of recent more attractive bump shots showing where I am at this point.