Living Room Redo

When we moved in, our main level was mostly painted in a light green color.  Most of it was tolerable, but the dining room was a few shades darker and always looked like a nasty shade of pea soup to me.  It has been on my list to get it painted for quite a while, but it was kind of an overwhelming project to tackle by myself, especially with my three kids at home.  Luckily my friend Katie came to the rescue and helped me over the course of two days get the walls painted a much prettier more neutral color.  Cassidy was a gem and helped out with the little kids and even changed her first poopy diaper all on her own.  It would have taken me a week to do it all by myself!  We did the whole living room, dining room, hallway, and down the stairway to the landing on the second level.  It turned out so nice!  So long, pea green!

I've also wanted a long farmhouse table for as long as I could remember and I finally found one for sale on facebook that ended up working perfectly.  It is longer than our old table, but not as wide, so it is easier for our kids to pass things across the table.  I can seat ten adults when both the leaves are in.  It has a nice poly coating, so it will hold up to the wear and tear of family meals and plenty of craft projects.  I think it looks so pretty under my chandelier.  

My favorite part of this whole project was the transformation of the arch in our entry area.  To me, it dated the house; plus it allowed someone coming into our home to look right into the bathroom...weird!  I'm pretty proud of myself for coming up with this idea and I'm proud of Eric and Steve for doing such a great job executing it!  They used poplar paneling on one side of the arch to build a faux wall.  I painted it and added the decorative touches.  The bench was a coffee table that used to belong to Patti.  I absolutely love the way it turned out!  The other side is not finished yet, but will be custom built in shelves for books, pictures, or other keepsakes.  I'm so happy with the updates we did and think it makes our house feel even cozier!