There is the Middle.

I do love the Before and Afters, I love the process of taking a space and changing it to enhance the way we inhabit our home. But between the Before and the After is so much of the Middle. There is real presence in the Middle; of planning, and measuring, and thinking through the details. We are very much in the Middle right now of our biggest project to date on the farm, and I adore what is happening! When I walked through the house the first time, I thought "Whoa, gotta change that...and that.... and that..." and then, because this is how my brain works, I started moving walls and creating a graciousness and a flow to the home where it had felt dark and closed in. After we bought the property, I rethought that original plan a dozen times. I listened to other experienced people, architects, builders and tried on their ideas for size. I really loved some of the ideas. But, then I'd figure out the budget to implement the ideas, and it was a no-go. Three years later, and the vision is taking shape! It is very similar to the vision I had when walking through the property in 2020. Some of those first impression plans have matured into improved ones; I moved one more wall than originally planned, giving me a much better primary bathroom space. I figured out a few things that were just "not right" on first thought. My dad was a huge help here- if we look at a problem toghether, we can nearly always find a solution or work around. But, I am pleased to know that that original vision is not only going to be spectacular, but maybe, just maybe, on budget!

Also in the Middle is all the unglamorous stuff that make a huge difference to the way a house lives. It is mostly invisible in the end, and costs a mint, but really changes the game. I'm referring to changing plumbing from copper (it was splitting and leaking) to PEX. And for adding spray foam insulation to make the attic and knee walls temperature controlled and useful space, making our HVAC more efficient and our house so much warmer! Now. I think so much cooler in the summer. It is changing out the electric panels that are kind of crazy- we have 4 in the house, added on over time, and they were starting to fail. And changing out the HVAC systems to increase efficiency. Before we started the project, the air coming into the house as "heat" or "cooling" was pretty close to the outside temperature;cold air blowing on your face all night long in the winter, and a decidedly hot air in the summer. I am so grateful for the hardworking crew that have been diligently moving the ball down the field for the first months of this project. I am about to get put in the game as more than a coach. The dry wall is nearly finished, and I get to start implementing the dressing of the design. The architect, framers, electricians, HVAC guys, the plumbers, the insulation team, the project manager, and the drywall crew are either done or taking a break as the finish crew arrives! I am the painting and trim, the tile guys arrive this week, and the wood floors are stacked in the space getting acclimated so they can be put down when I am done with the bulk of the painting. We are still in the Middle. It is a mess here, with drywall dust and blobs of joint compound flung about. Rugs are folded back, there are footprints everywhere. My furniture is stacked up like a nightmare from Hoarders, I know living in a renovation isn't for everyone. But this isn't our first time here, and every morning when I open my bedroom door (we have moved to a guest room, and it is stacked to the rafters with all our contents) I see the space I envisioned when we looked at the property in 2020. It is light, and bright, and spacious and gracious. Move over Dorothy! We aren't in Kansas anymore but in the technicolor world on the other side of that door. It is going to be beautiful. PS- If you made it through reading this blog- Kudos. For some reason this is all written in a different format than usual, I don't know why, but it takes all paragraphing out between the writing and the publishing phase. I am always frustrated by blogger.com, and it keeps coming up with new ways to challenge my patience. And your eyeballs. If you know how to fix it... let me know. C