Category Archives: House & Home

At the end of this month, we’ll have lived in this house for eight years! That seems crazy to me. Aside from the home in which I grew up (that we moved out of when I was 16), this is the longest I’ve stayed in one place. It doesn’t seem that long ago that I was heading out to Boston after I graduated from college. Or doing searches like “title loans Connecticut” when I needed to buy a car after relocating to Fairfield. But now I think it’s safe to say that the Hudson Valley is home sweet home.

This year I am determined to spruce up the outside of our home sweet home, and I’ve started by clearing out what seems like a metric ton of leaves – ugh! While I love all the trees on our property, they make such a mess when the leaves fall.

I have grand plans for actually taking care of my roses, for planting some more colorful perennials, and even adding two large planters near our front steps. The only thing is… I’m no gardener. My thumb is black as night and I am very lazy when it comes to caring for plants. Hopefully I’ll find the motivation this year, though. I’d love to add a little more curb appeal.

I am craving a spruce up in my kitchen. I’ve spent too much time looking at photos of great DIY projects and now I’m itching to start one. You see, April will mark 8 years since we moved into this house. Eight years! That’s the longest I’ve live anywhere except for the house in which I grew up.

But now the wood moulding, the builder’s cabinets, the gray speckled Formica… it’s starting to get a little boring to me. Of course, with three small kids there is NO WAY we’re investing any real money in a kitchen update. So I’m thinking about some small changes, starting with the curtains.

I’ve always like roman shades, but we don’t get enough sun through those windows to really warrant them, so I’m looking for new valances. I just can’t find anything I like. (Always my problem). Still, it’s the quickest and easiest change to make at the moment. Hopefully I’ll find something I like, or maybe my mind will just wander to another project!

I’ve been on a purging/organizing kick lately. Maybe the mild weather has shifted my brain to spring cleaning! At any rate, my big weekend project was reorganizing my closet. Someday maybe I’ll have a super-beautiful, insanely organized closet like the one pictured above, but… surely not anytime soon! Though we do have a large walk-in closet, so I really can’t complain.

Taking everything off the hangers, deciding what to keep, and what to give away, and trying to figure out better storage solutions took a good bit of time, but it’s so nice to walk into a clean closet that makes sense! It’s much easier to decide what to wear, and now I only have clothes that fit me. (I’ve lost weight, so there were quite a few items that just made me look frumpy.)

Now that my closet is squared away, I’m thinking about bedroom vanities… currently my sewing machine is on my desk but I wonder if I could work a little magic and turn it into a great place to do my hair and makeup. Well, I think the bathroom will continue to suffice for now, but it’s an idea.