Mudroom Makeover: Part 1

Last Thursday I decided I really wanted to take the old ripped indoor/outdoor carpet off the mudroom stairs and hopefully paint them. That little simple idea turned into a full fledged budget makeover.

The mudroom serves several purposes in this house. It is the closest entrance from our detached garage so we never use the front door because it would involve passing the side door, walking halfway down the driveway, up the porch stairs and in the front door. The mudroom also houses the basement stairs and like any mudroom, it is our general storage area - coats, shoes, dog food, etc.

On Thursday, the room looked like this after we took the carpet off the stairs and found a mess. This is at the bottom landing by the side door. Lovely paneling huh? It goes so perfect with the peel and stick red brick linoleum don't you think?

 View from the kitchen looking back down the stairs. Our general catch-all room.

A different view looking into the kitchen.

 This is how it looked on Friday after I pulled the baseboards off and started priming. I would have much rather hired someone to completely gut the room and drywall but we're trying to keep this a budget makeover so yes, I painted the paneling. The mudroom is also known as Crystal's room (the dog that keeps showing up in the pictures.) She lays on that little bench in the window and watches the world go by. She's not too happy about being displaced from her room for the weekend.

 This was the view Saturday after more painting and pulling the carpet up on the top landing. The bad and the ugly. More dirty, brittle, broken peel and stick laminate tiles.

Sunday involved more and more painting and more cleaning and prep work.

7 Questions

Happy Wednesday! It's 7 questions time! Head on over to Gentri's blog and link up!

1. Describe your perfect day. Being able to spend the day with my husband and both my girls. It doesn't matter what it is, a walk, a drive, playing in the park. 
2.What was something that you were afraid of as a child? The dark, spiders and monsters at the end of my bed that were going to get my toes.
3. What's something you're afraid of today? The dark, spiders, heights, elevators, being alone... should I go on? I have way too many fears.
4. Would you rather be obsessed with yourself or someone else? Being obsessed with myself might actually help me feel good about myself. I'm so obsessed with my girls already that I don't leave much time for myself. Like I tried to go shopping for clothes for myself yesterday and I kept ending up in the little girls clothes!
5. What is a favorite restaurant that you could visit over and over and never get sick of? This little diner across the border that we go to for breakfast. They are only open for breakfast and lunch and I've only ever had breakfast there. It's nothing special, just a cute little old diner. (We live by the Indiana/Michigan border, so across the border is Michigan. Ironic because I grew up on the Kansas/Missouri border. I've never lived in the middle of a state.)
6. What is one food you used to hate but now enjoy? Green olives.
7. Fill in the blank: Star ________. Star Song

And the required funny picture of myself. Probably funnier to me. I was trying to teeter-totter with Miss L. Trying to stay on and get her all the way to the ground.

Applesauce Production

I've got a big production going in the kitchen right now and it's really making me feel like myself again. The whole world stopped when I was pregnant with Miss G just to make sure that she stayed put and was healthy and then I only had a very small garden this year. Oh how I've missed all of it! My husband and the girls and I went to the apple orchard this morning and picked 20+lbs of apples and then bought another variety in their market that wasn't able to be picked. Now the rest of my Friday is going to be spent making applesauce. I don't like making applesauce with one straight variety. I think it gives it a better flavor if you mix two or more varieties. Normally I go for a Gala/Fuji mix but this year I'm doing a Gala/Golden Delicious mix because Goldens were the only variety we could pick today that we like.

7 Questions

Whew! A little late in the day but here it is. If you haven't already, go on over to Gentri's blog and link up too!

1. Do you ever have reoccurring dreams? I will have dreams on the same subject, but not the exact same dream. Usually something that has me agitated or stressed. I used to not remember dreams very often but when I was pregnant the last time I started remembering what I had dreamed about all the time. It's slowed down a little but way more than I used to.
2. It's the first day of Fall (or Spring for you southern hemispherers) in a few days, what are you looking forward to most? The crunch of the leaves, the cool air, sweatshirts, boots, warm drinks and Halloween! I love Halloween. It's my birthday!
3. Because a lack of coordination, would you rather not be able to tie your shoes or cut your own food? Not be able to tie my shoes. There are plenty of cute slip on shoes!
4. Would you rather live in a house made entirely of glass or a house with no windows? A house made of glass. I couldn't go without sunlight streaming in the house. And I could sew up a bunch of cute curtains!
5. Would you rather walk on you toes or heels forever? Toes.
6. What's your favorite sense? (you have 5 btw) This is a hard question for me... I love sight of course so I can see my beautiful daughters. I have an over sensitive sense of smell sometimes that drives my husband crazy but there are so many things I'm thankful I can smell.
7. What's your favorite movie quote of all time? I don't really have one. My husband on the other hand could give you a million of them. I'm not a huge movie watcher, wierd I know.

And...... the funny picture of myself. I'm cracking up at this. So you know how I've been bugging my husband to take more pictures of me? This is what he took.... Miss G and I fell asleep on the living room floor.