New digs!!!

We love our house...

photo courtesy of ali harper photography

But as the boys continued to grow (geesh - don't they ever slow down?!) we started to realize that it was time to make a little change. Though we tried the whole selling-the-house idea, it just never felt right and wasn't very productive anyways! So we went the other route: remodel!

It wasn't that we didn't like the layout of the house - it had worked for almost 12 years after all! - it was just that all four of us (5 if you count the dog... which we usually do.) were sharing the upstairs. That's a bedroom for us, a bedroom for the boys, and one bathroom for everyone!

Oh, but the downstairs! Yes, our basement was beautifully appointed with a large bedroom and bathroom - that were hardly ever used because they were "for guests"!

So we took inventory of our space and decided it was time for us, the parents to move downstairs! (sorry "guests"... we're taking over!) Thinking it would be relatively easy - take out half a wall, finish a small closet, move a door, how hard can that be?! - we figured it would be done in a week. Well, that wasn't exactly the case... but the longer wait made the finished product all the sweeter!

So... with no further ado:

The only good "before" picture of our former guest room:

And here's the new, upstairs guestroom!

Comes with an armoire full of playmobil (!) and one cozy, giant dog.

(yes, Gabe sleeps on the bed. Please don't judge...)

And now, when you descend the beautifully, newly carpeted stairs you find in place of a long, narrow hallway - a door:

which leads to what I am now referring to as "the sanctuary":

replete with newly created his & hers closets:

and best of all, an en suite bathroom!!!

I have to admit, the real downfall of this transition is that for the past 10 years I have been literally in the next room from my babies! Of course, when they actually were babies it was convenient to hear them cry at night for feedings or comfort. But I realize now that even as little boys I loved that they knew I was so physically close - it promoted many morning snuggles in "momma's bed" and made bedtime family readings very comfortable and easy... and in the past week that Jason & I have spent getting used to our "sanctuary" I have found myself a little sad that we have unintentionally ushered in a new era:
one where mom & dad have their own space that is distinctly separate from our kids.

I suppose, though... that that is actually both the beauty and the beast of this change!