In early May I decided that I would tackle a project that has been a thorn in my side for about 10 years.
Our basement.....
We have had great hopes and dreams for our basement since we bought the house 10 years ago. We have envisioned many things for this great space. We envisioned a bar, a theatre room, an exercise room, a bathroom with laundry, a craft room.
The reality is we have 3 very active kids (and no money).
When I say active kids what I mean is travel baseball, softball, practices, pitching lessons, travel soccer at one point etc etc. I think you get the picture. These activities take up endless time (and money).
Oh how we wish we would have just dove in and finished it all when the kids were little. We didn't do that and now we just have to deal with it.
In refusing to let this great space go unused, we did manage to throw up some drywall. We put some baseboard heating down there and have been using it as it is for several years.
This is my "office/craft room". I love this space because it's all mine and it's the last place the kids look when they need me. heehee!
Enter May of this year... I decide that this is a project that needs to be completed and who better to do it than moi!!
Thats right, little ole me!!
I checked some books out of the library and researched online how to mud and tape drywall. These guys make it look so easy. Heck, some of these books even have women doing it. There isn't any reason that I can't do it.
So I got busy. I started with the area under the stairs as just a trial; just to see how I did. This was a good place to start and a bad place to start.
For one, if I really messed up, it would be hard for someone to see. It's also a small space so it wouldn't be too big a deal for me hubby to redo something.
A bad place to start because it was tight, and cramped and I had to do ceiling.
Well I did it. It actually looks pretty good. I messed up on a couple spots but I Did It; and in the end, that's all that matters, right? Well, don't ask a perfectionist engineer husband that question and you'll be just fine.
Feeling very proud of myself I moved onto a closet and a hallway. Completely mudded, sanded, mudded again and sanded again, primed and painted the walls. They look pretty good for an amateur.
So then I started on the bigger room that we use as a game room.
In the mean time, the kids got out of school for the summer.
If you listen closely, you can hear me groan.
That means I will be spending most of my time as chauffer and lifeguard. So much for working on the basement.
I was getting the other rooms done in about a week while school was in. This other room, however; has taken almost a month.
I'm still not to the point of being ready to prime the walls and frustration has set in in a major way.
We have drywall dust EVERYWHERE!! Thankfully, it has stayed in the basement mostly and hasn't come upstairs to the main living area.
It is all over my office.
Probably ruining my electronics.
I know your suppose to cover this stuff, but I still use it. Can't move everything upstairs.
So in between spending all day Saturday and Sunday on the ballfield, dropping one child off at camp, having insomnia for over 7 days and an insensitative husband; my washer has decided it can't get through a spin cycle without beating the drum to death, giving an error message, stop running and have to start over which it then runs through the same scenario again. Therefore, making it impossible to finish a load of laundry without having to stand over it and ring water out of clothes before drying them. {cringe}
Can someone say "Calgon Take Me Away"!!
I can.... except not Calgon; Bath and Body Works Aromatherapy, some fragranced candles and a glass of my favorite wine...
Add to that mixture my latest read and new CD and that's what I call a relaxing evening:
Now, lets hope my windchimes hanging from the ceiling fan will play me a sweet melody to fall asleep to. That is before mr insensitative rips it down because it keeps him awake!
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