Whistle while you work

After more than 6 weeks of furniture in the middle of the floor and more than 4 months of back and forth regarding bids and such, the first phase of pre-baby renovations is done! The contractor finished the baseboards Friday (with the exception of a small overlooked spot behind the bedroom door that'll be taken care of in a week or two). This weekend was our turn, so we got to work. First, we painted the baseboards everywhere but the bedroom Friday night. Then, on Saturday, I repainted the bottom of the wall where we had already painted the baseboards (it had caulking and stuff on it from the baseboard work) while John painted the bedroom. We decided that as long as all the furniture was out of there, we should take advantage and get something up other than "linen white" (which I have decided is one of my LEAST favorite colors).

Next, we had to vacuum and scrub everywhere while the paint dried in the bedroom. Then, the sister missionaries came over for dinner, which was a real joke since all the furniture was still in the middle of the floor, but we made do (thank you Dominos). Once the bedroom paint was dry, I painted the baseboards in there while John worked on his talk for Sunday (which was very inspiring; he did a great job despite being so busy on Saturday). After church, some kindhearted friends in the ward took pity on us and helped us move all our furniture back. Then, we spent an hour or two rearranging books and media stuff to fill up the new entertainment center, and voila, we were done! We even listed the old TV on craigslist, and it sold tonight.

So, next up is the temporary wall installation next Tuesday. We're going to have extra baseboards here, so hopefully they'll agree to put those on instead of whatever they bring with them; otherwise, our contractor agreed to come back for an extra fee, of course, and put baseboards on the new wall. Then, we get to paint the wall and the baseboards on the wall Labor Day weekend. After that, we just wait for Mom to come out with the nursery furniture (for which we will trade her one bookcase and a sofa table), and then, we're done until after the baby.

It really feels like things are coming along. The list of what still needs to be done in this apartment is now less than one hand's worth: (1) replacing closet doors (3 sets), (2) replacing internal doors in bedroom and bathroom, (3) stripping and repainting doorways, and the big one, (4) redoing the kitchen cabinets and sink. Whew! At least we've gotten a good start.

Partial view of new entertainment center

Bedroom paint color (we're going to dispense with matching blue bedding and go for something in a contrasting or complementary color eventually)

Baseboards detail 1

Baseboards detail 2

And for everyone who is sick of hearing about the home renovations already, please don't give up on our blog entirely. I'm sure we'll have much more amusing posts with better pictures after the baby is born. In the meantime, we have to find some way to keep ourselves occupied . . .