A few weeks ago, we went out to the farmhouse and got to see the inside. For me, it was the second time. For the rest of my family, it was the first. Since so many people want to see the inside, I thought it may be fun to share some “before” pictures. Unedited, crummy pictures. But, here she is.
The kitchen is pretty large. We will be putting a new coat of paint on the wall. Most likely, we will be doing our favorite Toasted White by Glidden. They asked that we don’t paint the cabinets, so those will stay the same. The backsplash is almost like a miniature white subway tile. Once we get it cleaned up, it’s going to be so pretty.
This room will most likely become our homeschooling room/ play area. It’s really spacious. The openness of a school room will allow us to use it as dining if we are having a large group of people over. Some ceiling tiles need replaced, carpet needs cleaned, and new paint on the wall.
This is the living room. That wood stove is so pretty. The piano was the owner’s grandmothers. She said they could take it out, but Chloe really wants to learn. We’ll move it away from the exterior wall and have to get it tuned. The walls will get pained and carpet cleaned in here also.
This is the office. In the picture of the living room, you can see a doorway to the left. That is where this is. It’s a pretty good size. New paint will be going up. The curtain rod will be coming down. I think I’ll leave curtains off of the office windows. The view will be pretty once everything turns green again. Then, it will disappear because the corn will grow so high.
This is the master bath and bedroom. I love the mirror and lights above the sink. A LOT. We will put a new coat of paint up in here also. I didn’t get a picture, but the door separating the bedroom and bathroom is an original farm door.
Up the stairs. The carpet is green. The grossest green. But, it’s actually in good shape. haha! I really want to put a railing up because the stairs are pretty steep. We are dreading the thought of moving kids furniture up these.
This monstrosity will be Harper’s room. New paint. A lot of new paint. I’m not even sure what to do about the floors. There used to be carpet here that the previous tenants ripped up. They painted this floor and the hall floor BLACK. I thought the owner was going to fall over when she saw it. We’ll figure out the floor.. Maybe we will undertake stripping and staining it. Maybe not.
This is going to be Chloe and Addi’s room. I couldn’t get it all in one picture. The floors and walls are all painted white. It’s pretty dirty, but will look really nice once it’s cleaned. The sun rises on this side, so I’m going to be putting up some thick curtains. Mama doesn’t want them rising with the sun.
This half bath/laundry room is right off the kitchen. I actually think the wallpaper is cute and will probably leave it alone.
This staircase is off of the mud room. It goes down to the root cellar. Look at that brick floor!!! It’s so pretty. I’m excited to have a mudroom for dirty shoes to go.
I think the pictures hide some of the flaws pretty well. It’s going to be a LOT of painting. So much painting. Paint always transforms a space so much. We aren’t some rich family with a huge budget that will come in and completely remodel the house. The paint colors will change. It will get cleaned. We’ll become part of this 1860s farmhouse’s story. I’m thrilled that my kids will get to witness all of the farm work going on. The house is surrounded by field. There are tons of pole barns storing tractors and equipment. It will be noisy. Bugs will probably invade. But, we will all learn so much.
I saw this quote in my new cookbook, and I loved it so much. Some people wonder why we are so passionate about our lifestyle. Does anyone really enjoy being a part of the rat race? Some say that money is so important. Things cost money. Maybe we don’t want things. THINGS aren’t important. If you’ve ever lost someone you loved, you realize that PEOPLE matter. Hard work matters. If we can slow down and appreciate the little things, we all would enjoy life so much more.
We start work on Saturday. Ready? Set. GO!
