spontaneous home improvements

last week brandon and i decided it was time to rip up the carpet in our front room. i was ready to tackle this task the minute we moved in, so when he finally gave me the go ahead, i didn't have to be told twice to run downstairs for the toolbox.

you see, while house hunting, brandon and i both knew that our hearts were set on finding an older home. the charm...the character...the history. there's something about living in a home that holds a story. the memories that are housed within the walls of a home are priceless. i'm sort of a sentimental schmuck and brandon always pokes fun at me when i remind him of our first apartment together on sheldon and our memories shared as newlyweds. or the house rented on 6th street, where i learned that i was going to be a mommy. and then nine months later, i learned how to be a mommy. and we can't forget the house on ontario street where peyton took her first steps and blew out her first candle. yeesh, i'm getting teary just typing about it.

yep...i'm a schmuck:)

anyway, we wanted to find a cute, old house that had seen many, many memories being made and continue to fill up the memory glass.

and with old houses, you get original, hardwood floors. the previous owner had carpet laid down to cover the hardwood. our front room is part living area, part dining area, so you can imagine my fear of trying to keep white carpet clean with a toddler (and future toddlers) who tells me she's "done" by throwing her food on the floor. oy.

we had planned a weekend where brandon would rent a floor sander and we would go to work sanding and refinishing the floors. but brandon and i are both antsy and wanted to dig in. we knew there was hardwood beneath the carpet, but had no idea what condition they were in. much to our surprise, when we pried up that carpet, there were beautiful, shiny wood floor staring back at us. brandon and i yanked out staples for about an hour and voila! an entirely different room. (brandon also spent the better part of sunday afternoon ripping out the tack board and all the nails that outlined the perimeter of the room.....so don't get me wrong, it did take some work...but much less than we anticipated!)

all we have left to do is fill in all the little nail holes and do some buffing and polishing, and we're done. i couldn't be more pleased with the outcome. i have crushed on my friend's and family's hardwood floors for years and now i have my own. i am one happy lady:)
here are a few before and afters:

this was taken earlier in the year, right after we painted.

post carpet destruction

there's still a few things to be done with this room, but we are so excited and happy about the latest find!