Keeping Up With the Allens

Bathroom Update 7.0

We’ve got major changes in the bathroom as of late last night……. paint on the walls and a toilet! Things are REALLY shaping up in our new bathroom and it looks amazing.

20151118_050202703_iOS — {We absolutely LOVE the wall color!! It is just what I imagined but looks even better than I had pictured. My brother did a really great job painting, too. Apparently the walls were not super easy – not a surprise since nothing in our house is!}

{Why yes, that is a light in our toilet seat... quite handy for the middle of the night!} — {Why yes, that is a light in our toilet seat… quite handy for the middle of the night!}

So now all that’s left is some finishing touches, installing the vanity and hanging the lights and mirror. It sounds like the bathroom will be done tomorrow {except for the countertop and one final ceiling light which won’t arrive to us until December}.

Bathroom Update 6.0

My brother arrived on Friday evening and has been hard at work getting our bathroom renovation moving towards the finish line…

{The tile got sealed last week on Tuesday, so since Wednesday we've been using the shower. Jackson has made himself quite comfortable on the new bathmat and towels!} — {The tile got sealed last week on Tuesday, so since Wednesday we’ve been using the shower. Jackson has made himself quite comfortable on the new bathmat and towels!}

{We've got most of our shower products in the new bathroom and have been LOVING using the new shower!} — {We’ve got most of our shower products in the new bathroom and have been LOVING using the new shower!}

{Getting into the new shower feels like I'm stepping into a shower at a fancy hotel. It's hard to believe it's in my own house now!} — {Getting into the new shower feels like I’m stepping into a shower at a fancy hotel. It’s hard to believe it’s in my own house now!}

{John's first projects were moving and installing some electrical and plumbing, then hanging the final sheet of drywall to close up the room.} — {John’s first projects were moving and installing some electrical and plumbing, then hanging the final sheet of drywall to close up the room. Alex is enjoying “supervising.”}

{Drywall is up! Now just need to screw it into the studs...} — {Drywall is up! Now just need to screw it into the studs…}

{This morning John finished the second coat of mud to cover up the screws and tape on the drywall.}

Now it’s a lot of hurry up and wait. There are a few projects that they can do in the bathroom while they wait to move to the next steps on the walls, but it seems like the bathroom is going to be slow going for a while.

While they wait, John and Alex are tackling a big and VERY exciting project in our attic today, though. We have a whopping 3 inches of insulation in our attic right now {you really should have more like a foot here in Seattle} so they are going to blow in some insulation to get us up to around 14 inches or so. Our 100+ year old house is always cold and drafty because we have no insulation in the walls {save for maybe some newspaper!} and only 3 inches in the attic, so this will go a long way to warming us up!

It is quite handy to have a contractor for a brother, so thanks for coming to help us with our bathroom, John!!! We couldn’t have done it without you!

Bathroom Update 5.0

We passed a big milestone yesterday in our bathroom renovation: the tile is completely done, grouted and sealed! It looks incredible – we are SO happy with it. Now it’s only making us more excited to see everything done and finished and put together.

{It's hard to get a wide shot since our bathroom is so small, but here is the finished product!} — {It’s hard to get a wide shot since our bathroom is so small, but here is the finished product!}

{We opted for a mid-gray grout to pull the grays out of the marble and tie everything in together. We are really liking how it looks with the subway tiles too.}

{We were so excited to have the tile done that Alex installed the hardware so we could use the shower... only to find out that one of us {me} bought the wrong size shower curtain.} — {We were so excited to have the tile done that Alex installed the hardware so we could use the shower… only to find out that one of us {me} bought the wrong size shower curtain rod.}

{Henry has been loving checking out the new tile. I think Jackson will be disappointed when we turn the in-floor heat on since he loves to stay cool on the tile.}

{We're loving how the marble on the floor ties so nicely into the trim pieces. The vanity will be going straight ahead of the door and the tile contractor cut the trim perfectly so the vanity could fit.} — {We’re loving how the marble on the floor ties so nicely into the trim pieces. The vanity will be going straight ahead of the door and the tile contractor cut the trim perfectly so the vanity could fit.}

My brother arrives on Friday night and has a busy weekend {and week} of helping us pull together the rest of the renovation. If all goes according to plan, we should be done with the reno on the 20th, except, of course for the vanity top, which won’t be arriving to us until mid-December. We are REALLY cutting it close with our holiday party!

Living Room Overhaul

We’ve been busy re-decorating our house and remodeling our bathroom for the last two months or so and we’re so close to finishing. Our dining room and bedroom are pretty much done at this point and our bathroom is making great headway. I can’t resist posting photos of our living room, though. It’s probably 94% done but it’s the room with the most dramatic change and we are SO proud of it.

{This was what our living room looked like for the first year we lived here... no coffee table or anything!} — {This was what our living room looked like for the first year we lived here… no coffee table or anything! We did get a coffee table and a console table, but other than that our living room hadn’t gotten much attention until this fall.}

{This is how our mantle looked for at least four years.}

{Sorry it's so dark, but here is our new living room!} — {Sorry it’s so dark, but here is our new living room!}

{We're really excited about the new leather chairs, the funky side tables, the new rug and the awesome new lamp. We're so pleased that we were able to pull it all together!} — {We’re really excited about the new leather chairs, the funky side tables, the new rug and the awesome new lamp. We’re so pleased that we were able to pull it all together!}

{We've even updated the mantle a bit.} — {We’ve even updated the mantle a bit.}

{Here's a close up - the framed photos are of Deer Valley, Jackson Hole and the Matterhorn, three places we've been to and love.} — {Here’s a close up – the framed photos are of Deer Valley, Jackson Hole and the Matterhorn, three places we’ve been to and love.}

Now we just need a fire in the fireplace and we’ll be set to enjoy our new room!

Bathroom Update 4.0

The tile in our bathroom is officially complete!! Now all that’s left for the tile is grout and sealing and that’s happening on Monday and Tuesday.

{the floor is covered up with paper right now to protect it, so I can't take a great photo of the whole room right now} — {The floor is covered up with paper right now to protect it, so I can’t take a great photo of the whole room right now.}

Next on the list is my brother’s arrival on Friday! When he comes he will do plumbing and electrical work, then close up the walls and repair some of the drywall, he’ll also paint and install the toilet, vanity and all of the hardware, along with a new vent fan. I’m probably forgetting about 10 things on his major list of things to do. If I’m REALLY lucky we might see if we can get some extra insulation blown into our attic…

{We're super happy with how the shower turned out. We love the marble tie ins on the little foot rest and in the storage niche, as well as the window sill.} — {We’re super happy with how the shower turned out. We love the marble tie ins on the little foot rest and in the storage niche, as well as the window sill.}

Today I took advantage of Pottery Barn’s latest sale and ordered our mirror and picked up some new towels, bath mats and a shower curtain. We’re going for a dark gray towel and a white waffle shower curtain with pretty chrome rings for the curtain rod. We’re planning on finding a fun towel to provide a pop of color in the bathroom, too.

{The storage niche will be perfectly handy for holding our shampoos and soaps.}

The renovation has been really only a minor disruption at this point, but I am quite excited to not have to go downstairs to use the bathroom or get ready for bed. I’ll say, though, that I am most looking forward to all of my bathroom stuff being in one room instead of essentially spread out all over the house…

Here’s to the tile part of the project being almost complete!

The Late October Happenings

Other than being in the midst of our bathroom renovation, plus our living room, dining room and bedroom redecorating we don’t have a whole lot going on! Since our trip for Julie and Ryan’s wedding in mid-October we haven’t had too many plans, so we’ve been enjoying time at home. It’s really nice to feel settled and mostly on top of things, though I don’t feel that way about the state of my house right now. There are boxes of tile all over our living room and the contents of my bathroom are spread between four rooms, so other than that I’m doing okay 🙂

We’ve reached crunch time in our Spanish tutoring. Our trip to Mexico is coming up quickly, so we’ve been practicing our travel and food vocabulary along with the various verb tenses spoken in Spanish. Alex’s Spanish has way, way, way surpassed mine. He is like a little sponge and he can soak up and retain new information so well. He’s doing really well at learning and mastering Spanish! It’s been fun to see how fast he progressed.

After weeks of delays we finally received our new chairs for the living room. I’ll give you a sneak peak but once we get the room pulled together {and the boxes of tile out!} I’ll post more photos.

20151030_010709496_iOS — {The lighting is not so great in this room – part of why it’s still under construction! Alex is loving his new leather chairs, and of course, his dog!}

One thing I’ve been most enjoying lately has been cooking. I’ve made a lot of soups this fall. A month or so ago I bought a little 2 cup thermos for Alex to take hot soups with him for lunch and that’s been a big hit! Last weekend I made one of my favorites: Swedish meatballs. And this weekend I am going to try my hand at brown butter rice krispie treats. Yes, you read that right, and they’re going to be the best damn rice krispie treats ever.

Here are a few of my favorite new soup recipes:

Spinach tortellini soup (I used fresh spinach)
Butternut squash soup
Overnight chicken stock in a crock pot after making a whole chicken in a crock pot

Jackson and Henry are doing well. They are both surviving but not enjoying the renovation. Lately they’ve been playing together, which of course consists of one of them chasing the other one around the house. Sometimes we’ll catch them snoozing on the floor together. We knew these moments were bound to happen but it’s heartwarming to see them. Today Jackson is out at a farm at a “doggie daycare” place. We decided we’re going to start sending him to daycare once a week or once every other week so he can get some dog socialization time in.

Both Alex and I have rejuvinated our exercise routines lately. Alex has been riding his bike a lot more over the last couple weeks, as well as lifting weights. We’ve started running together two mornings a week – super fun in the dark, as you can imagine. In addition to our morning runs, I have been doing a longer run by myself on the weekends and I found a new pilates and yoga studio that I’ve been going to for about a month. I really like the new studio and I love that they have both pilates and yoga. For my first three weeks I splurged and did private lessons, but now I’ll continue with group classes.

Between the bathroom and furniture changes and the holidays sneaking up rather quickly on me, I am looking forward to the “plan-free” weekends we have coming up to stay on top of things and get ahead of the holidays. We’re looking forward to having our second annual holiday party in December and I just love the holiday season!

Bathroom Update 3.0

And then, just like that, we have tile!

{Our tile contractor, Misha, used such precision to lay out the tile in the shower. We continue to be amazed and impressed by how wonderful and thoughtful he is!}

{...and the shower floor is done and grouted! We ended up selecting a much lighter grout than we expected to based on how the different grouts look and the recommendation of the tile contractor to avoid something too dark.} — {…and the shower floor is done and grouted! We ended up selecting a much lighter grout than we expected to based on how the different grouts look and the recommendation of the tile contractor to avoid something too dark. Note: this photo was taken just after he spread the grout out, so he hadn’t washed off the grout from the tile surface, so it looks a little cloudy.}

{And now today we have tile on the floor too!} — {And now today we have tile on the floor too! I think the yellow levels should stay, no? Nice pop of color ;)}

{Much to our surprise, our vanity components arrived today, as well - all but the countertop. I can't WAIT to organize those amazing drawers!} — {Much to our surprise, our vanity components arrived today, as well – all but the countertop. I can’t WAIT to organize those amazing drawers!}

Bathroom Update 2.0

Our bathroom renovation is majorly underway! The prep and demo work is basically done and the actual tile work should start tomorrow. It’s amazing to see the progress since last week…

{at the end of last week, our tile contractor had shimmed out the framing of the bathroom to ensure the walls would be flush and level. He also laid out the coils for the in-floor heating and poured cement to set the shower base.} — {At the end of last week, our tile contractor had shimmed out the framing of the bathroom to ensure the walls would be flush and level. He also laid out the coils for the in-floor heating and poured cement to set the shower base.}

{it was really fun to see what was behind the drywall! where our bathroom currently sits used to be the outside of the house. now there is another room on the other side.} — {It was really fun to see what was behind the drywall! where our bathroom currently sits used to be the outside of the house. now there is another room on the other side of most of it.}

{the new cement floor base is being poured!} — {The new cement floor base is being poured!}

{on Monday I had to make a trip to the slab "graveyard" and pick out a large-ish slab of marble to be used for the threshold into the bathroom, as well as the curb getting into the shower, the shelving in the built-in storage niches and the window sill. the contractor advised this so that all of those surfaces would be the same look, since marble can appear very different. It was an undertaking since all of the slabs in this photo were stacked up next to each other and they were not easy to handle.} — {On Monday I had to make a trip to the slab “graveyard” and pick out a large-ish slab of marble to be used for the threshold into the bathroom, as well as the curb getting into the shower, the shelving in the built-in storage niches and the window sill. The contractor advised this so that all of those surfaces would be the same look, since marble can appear very different. It was an undertaking since all of the slabs in this photo were stacked up next to each other and they were not easy to handle.}

{Here is the slab I picked out. it is placed next to the hexagon tile that will be on the floor. I'd say it's a good match!} — {Here is the slab I picked out. It is placed next to the hexagon tile that will be on the floor. I really like the contrast and think it’s a gorgeous piece of marble.}

{Over the weekend we painted some swatches of different colors we are deciding between. What's your favorite??} — {Over the weekend we painted some swatches of different colors we are deciding between. What’s your favorite??}

{Cement board is in on the walls and we are ready for tile... fingers crossed!} — {Cement board is in on the walls and we are ready for tile… fingers crossed!}

Illinois Trip + Julie & Ryan’s Wedding

Alex and I flew back to Illinois one last time this past weekend to celebrate the nuptials of my wonderful college friend and roommate, Julie, and her now husband, Ryan. Conveniently, Julie grew up in Geneva, Illinois, which is the town right next to Batavia, where Alex’s parents currently live. It works out quite well when I can squeeze in a visit with Julie when I am staying in Batavia with Alex’s parents, and for this trip, it was extra nice since the wedding was so close!

We arrived really, really late on Thursday night/Friday morning. To kick off the wedding events I met Julie, the other bridesmaids and the MOB {mother of the bride!} for coffee in St. Charles, one block away from where the wedding was to be held. I was exhausted to say the least. I’m sure I didn’t make the best company, but it was really nice to see the bride and her entourage while enjoying a delicious cup of coffee.

The weather while we were in Illinois was so nice! It was crisp and cool and I don’t think I saw a cloud the whole time. I was fortunate enough to get two long walks along the Fox River while I was there, one happened to be on Friday afternoon while Alex and Stan were off on their own adventure.

As a member of the bridal party I had rehearsal duty to tend to. The rehearsal and dinner went off without a hitch!

{the bridesmaids coincidentally all dressed alike for the rehearsal}

After the rehearsal we made a pit-stop over at the Bailey’s home. The Baileys are family friends of Alex’s parents and recently moved into a new home just seven minutes from Alex’s parents and are almost done with a major renovation. We got to see the house over the summer when it was amidst construction, so it was fun to see all of the progress, particularly Nora’s dream kitchen. Just like my in-laws, I simply adore the Bailey family and always enjoy seeing them when we’re back in Batavia.

{hanging out in the Bailey's kitchen... the island is big enough to fit a couple of beds on it and the entire wall on the right side of the photo is a refrigerator... absolutely amazing!} — {hanging out in the Bailey’s kitchen… the island is big enough to fit a couple of beds on it and the entire wall on the right side of the photo is a refrigerator… absolutely amazing!}

Saturday came bright and early and I ventured off to be a bridesmaid for the day while Alex spent some time with his family. His nana, sister and brother in-law all came over to his parents house, so they got to catch up all afternoon while I was gone doing wedding stuff.

{Julie's stylist nailed her braid and twisty bun!} — {Julie’s stylist nailed her braid and twisty bun!}

{gettin' our hair did...} — {gettin’ our hair did…}

{sharing a sweet moment with her dad to help ease the pre-wedding jitters}

{on our way to the church we stopped at a favorite spot of Julie's so she could snap a few pictures} — {on our way to the church we stopped at a favorite spot of Julie’s so she could snap a few pictures}

{the weather and setting couldn't have been more perfect for Julie and Ryan's photos! the bridal party walked around the grounds of the reception venue for a while, posing in front of barns, on and next to fences and in front of the gorgeous trees lining the property. I can't wait to see how the professional photos turn out!} — {the weather and setting couldn’t have been more perfect for Julie and Ryan’s photos! the bridal party walked around the grounds of the reception venue for a while, posing in front of barns, on and next to fences and in front of the gorgeous trees lining the property. I can’t wait to see how the professional photos turn out!}

{their creative guestbook... canoe paddles!} — {as an ode to their passion for the outdoors, they used canoe paddles as their creative interpretation of a guestbook}

{the reception was at the Dunham Riding Club in St. Charles, Illinois}

Julie and Ryan’s wedding was really nice and I so enjoyed being a part of their celebration!

The final full day of our trip was a big and busy one, too! Donna invited her whole family to come watch the Bears game at their house so we could have the opportunity to see people. Thankfully we had a “small” group of only 18 family members who could make it. It was a really nice size group because we were able to spend time with everyone and not feel overwhelmed. Alex has a truly wonderful and loving family and it is such a blessing to be a part of it.

{catching up with Nana while sneaking tastes of the great food that Donna prepared for the big game}

Our last hurrah in Batavia was enjoying Pizza Villa pizza and beer nuggets for dinner while watching Mrs. Doubtfire on Sunday night. Pizza Villa is a restaurant in Alex’s hometown of Dekalb and he has fond memories of eating beer nuggets {basically little pieces of pizza dough that have been fried with Italian spices and you dip them in marinara} and wanted a bit of nostalgia.

And just like that, our last planned trip to the Midwest of 2015 is behind us! Thanks to our friends and family for being so accommodating and we hope to see you soon 🙂

Bathroom Reno Update 1.0

We are a week into our bathroom reno and have only hit two snags. I’d call that a success! Demo went very smoothly and things are happening FAST!

Our tile has arrived and it is patiently awaiting its installation. It’s hard to see it all in boxes and not get excited and want to lay it out on the subfloor to get an idea of what it will look like. I’m being pretty patient, I think, though. And supposedly our vanity has arrived in Seattle and we’ll receive it this week. I’m not holding my breath on that one because we still don’t have our new chairs for the living room…

The snags we are faced with are simply due to the old age of our house and the numerous renovations the house has seen. The wall in the shower ended up basically being a wave from top to bottom. The crown in the 2x4s that are framing the shower walls is upside down, which means that the wall bows out the wrong way. To make up for the inconsistencies, the framing along the entire wall {inside and outside of the shower} must be shimmed up to be “plumb” {aka “level”} so that the drywall is even across the whole wall.

Additionally, the floor has seen a number of renovations and it appears that with each renovation a chunk had been taken out of the subfloor and patched with a different thickness of plywood. The {original 100 year-old fir floor + patches} floor ultimately had to be cut out and they replaced it with plywood that is even and smooth throughout.

All of these “snags” were fairly expected, with the exception of the wall. It would have been a miracle to have gotten through this renovation without any surprises, so we were anticipating having to deal with some unexpected changes. Our tile contractors are absolutely fantastic and it turns out that our tile installer is a former carpenter and drywall contractor, so he is highly capable of fixing the wall and the floor. We are in good hands and things are coming along really nicely!

{you can see the difference of how much the "shimmed" wood sticks out from the drywall how un-level the wall is!} — {you can see the difference of how much the “shimmed” wood sticks out from the drywall how un-level the wall is!}