What We’ve Done (6/20/05 to present)

  • Tore down wallpaper in living and dining rooms
  • Tore out carpet in living and dining rooms
  • Removed three layers of linoleum and vinyl flooring—and subflooring—from the kitchen
  • Had the hardwood floors refinished
  • Mudded and sanded the bare plaster walls in the living and dining rooms
  • Primed and painted the living room
  • Replaced deadbolts, changing the house of 50,000 keys into the house of one key
  • Attempted to fix and use tiny vintage refrigerator
  • Wallpapered the dining room
  • Replaced the dining room light with a danish modern hanging lamp
  • Removed kitchen wallpaper
  • Painted kitchen walls
  • Removed window a/c unit from dining room
  • Had central a/c installed
  • Had sewer line rodded and cleared
  • Had six feet of sewer main replaced
  • Repaired first floor shower
  • Removed first-floor bathroom vanity
  • Installed vintage kohler cast iron wall-hung sink in bathroom
  • Had wall-hung sink refinished
  • Took down now-ugly wall-hung sink
  • Installed new vitreous china wall-hung sink
  • Replaced ding-only doorbell with working doorbell
  • Replaced huge stove with vintage, less huge stove
  • Replaced huge refrigerator with new, less huge refrigerator
  • Installed prairie garden at the back fence in the backyard
  • Stripped paint off living and dining room windowframes
  • Stained and shellacked living and dining room windowframes
  • Replaced newish washing machine with brand-spanking-new high efficiency bosch washer
  • Took down curtains all over the house
  • Dyed curtains red(ish) and rehung
  • Painted bathroom orange
  • Replaced bathroom wall light
  • Replaced kitchen overhead light
  • Replaced kitchen faucet and sprayer
  • Shopped for and gazed longingly at garbage disposals that won’t fit our sink
  • Removed baseboards from living and dining rooms and hallway
  • Replaced one of two water spigots outside
  • Replaced scary non-motion sensing garage door opener with a new one
  • Had five layers of roofing removed, rotten sheathing replaced, and new roof put on
  • Installed two skylights on the unfinished (dark) side of the attic
  • Installed track lighting in unfinished side of the attic
  • Installed electrical outlets in unfinished side of the attic
  • Dug out huge evergreen next to garage
  • Planted arborvitae and euonymus next to garage
  • Dug four yews out of the front yard
  • Planted a serviceberry tree in the front yard
  • Leveled the front yard
  • Had a landscape architect design front yard landscaping
  • Ignored landscape architect
  • Sawed a hole in the living room wall to reveal stained glass window
  • Had poplar framing for the stained glass window made by jef’s dad
  • Replaced the horrid front storm door with a gorgeous solid wood Craftsman-style storm door
  • Installed new stained, shellacked baseboards in living and dining rooms
  • Replaced first-floor storm windows with traditional wooden storms
  • Had bathtub refinished
  • Installed reproduction sconces in the bathroom
  • Demoed bathroom walls
  • Had house replumbed

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