Wow.  What a year.  I think like everyone, I went into 2021 feeling perhaps overly optimistic. Despite the continued pandemic, and a whole bunch of other craziness in this world, I still feel we have a lot to be thankful for. 

From a renovation standpoint, there are some things I didn’t get done that I’d hoped to have, and other things that I never anticipated being part of the plan. 

From filming a TV show, to relaunching the website and everything in between, here are some of the highlights from the past year. 

Perhaps most exciting of all, was moving in to the house. Over Thanksgiving weekend 2021, exactly three years after I initially moved to Wheeling and into my apartment, I packed up that same apartment, and moved in to my house.

It wasn’t perfect, but it was finally at a point where it felt more like a home than a construction project, and that was how I knew I was ready to move in.

I hosted my first Friendsgiving, and later Christmas, surrounded by loved ones. It really was a great end to an incredibly difficult year.

What’s Next

If working on this house has taught me anything, it’s to expect the unexpected. With all this love and support from around the world, opportunities I never could have accounted for have popped up. Who knows what new projects may surface in 2022.

There are a few things, however, that will be completed come hell or high water.

The Kitchen

The appraisal is in, the numbers are good, and I’ll be closing on my new mortage in the first few days of the new year. That means full steam ahead on the kitchen. I have a custom cabinet maker coming to take measurements on Monday, and as soon as we can get things confirmed and ordered, I’ll be ready and waiting for my installation date. This might sound soon, but with the delays and typical scheduling constraints, this likely means a finished kitchen sometime in the late Spring.

The Laundry Room Closet

Oh, the laundry room. We were so close to finishing this room before moving in, but with the move, this space has become a dumping ground, full of bags and bins of clothes with nowhere to call home.

Finishing this space is urgently needed, so as soon as I can get cabinets and shelving in, it will go up. I’m still shopping around to figure out if built in or prefab units will work, and it will really come down to what can be quickly insalled. I’m hoping to finish this space by February.

Wiring the Third Floor

This is another non-negotiable. The third floor really isn’t in too bad of shape, with almost all the plaster in tact and salvageable. The hard thing about that is, there’s no work happening up there without power and light. This isn’t the sexiest project, but it will increase my usable space in the hosue by nearly 30%!

Fun Stuff

Finally, by the end of the year, I hope to start doing the little fun projects that just haven’t been a priority yet. I’d like to organize my beautiful built ins, and start stripping painted on hardware. My hope is that by next year, I have all projects completed by Thanksgiving, so that I can take that time to really enjoy preparing the for holidays, and know where everything is!

This all seems far off, but like every year, it will pass faster than seems possible. I am so grateful to have you all following along on this journey with me. Thank you for being here. Cheers to 2022!