Crossing One Off the List

I'm sure this post will officially jinx me from ever having kids, so if it never happens we can look to this blog and know where I went wrong. When I thought I was pregnant (or when I was "not not-pregnant"), I - and this will come as no surprise to anyone who knows me - made a list of the things I wanted to get done around the house before the birth of my child. My list (in no particular order) includes:

• Paint and decorate dining room 
• Stencil Ikea curtains in living room
• Clean out "baby room"
• Organize garage
• Decorate staircase wall
• Give loaner desk back to mom and dad
• Refinish mom and dad's generously donated dresser for master bedroom
• Repair carpet in den and in upstairs hallway
• Shampoo carpet and rug in den  

Since I initially made this list, I realized there is no way I could have a baby without also doing the following:

• Reorganizing kitchen cupboards
• Revamping the "recycle center" in the kitchen
• DIY throw pillow covers for the couch

This list is distinctively different than our "major" improvements to-do list. There are three things that we would love to get done and have wanted to tackle since we moved here almost four years ago. They are a little more pricey than the other items I listed, so we've really put them off. They include:

• Finish landscaping the backyard 
• Get a mantel for our fireplace already! Gosh. 
• Spruce up the downstairs bathroom

My focus is on the smaller items, though.

I felt the best place to start was to clear out the exercise room.  We're making this our yet-to-be-conceived baby's nursery since it's closest to our bedroom. I'm ridiculously embarrassed to show the before photos of this room. It's taken a lot of abuse over the past few months. And it's very clear to see that we haven't been exercising in it. It's been our catch all room. It's the kind of room that gets random stuff thrown into it to make all of the other rooms look better. Seriously, I'm so embarrassed. 

  
Yes, we have an extensive collection of down comforters and duvet covers. And old pillows. That's what happens when two people meet. Their comforters and duvets become one. Or something like that.

I spent a mighty long time cleaning this room and organizing. (Side note: I don't think I'm alone when I say this, but when I clean a room, I inevitably end up cleaning and organizing other rooms as well.  You see, if I take something from one room and put it in another room, I must, must, must make sure I am not just adding to the clutter of another room. Kind of sounds odd given the state of this room, but this room was an exception, people! Anyhow, by cleaning and organizing this room, I also cleaned and organized the guest bedroom (and closet) and the den. When you think about it, I could write those extra chores on to my list and then cross them off.  I won't, but I could. I will probably end up adding the guest bedroom to the list anyways, though, since that is where our exercise equipment is going to go.)

Even though I spent forever and a day cleaning and organizing this room, I'm still not completely finished, so I'll save the after pics for another day. I will say, though, that I can cross one of the items off of the list:

• Paint and decorate dining room 
• Stencil Ikea curtains in living room
• Clean out "baby room"
• Organize garage
• Decorate staircase wall
• Give loaner desk back to mom and dad
• Refinish mom and dad's generously donated dresser for master bedroom
• Repair carpet in den and in upstairs hallway
• Shampoo carpet and rug in den  
• Reorganize kitchen cupboards
• Revamp the "recycle center" in the kitchen
• DIY throw pillow covers for the couch
  

Bet you weren't expecting that one, huh? It's all very complicated, but it had to happen so that I can finish this not-quite-yet baby room. I'll keep whittling down my list and keep everyone updated. I know you all are on pins and needles...