1. After living here for 8 years, we’re finally starting to decorate our master bedroom. It was beige for a long, long time. We’re painting it a deep teal color called “Ocean Voyage” by Valspar, which is way more daring than I usually am. I was in the mood to make a big change, though, so I’m taking the leap.
We’re doing a total overhaul of the room with a new bed, lamps, window treatments, flooring, you name it. We’re working on the master bath, too. Both rooms are disaster areas at the moment, filled with ladders, drop cloths, tools, and all that stuff. Can’t wait to get it all done, but it might take a while!
Snapped this photo in the middle of painting the room that shows what a dramatic change the new color is going to be (wish me luck!):
2.My mom adopted a Yorkipoo puppy (!), which has been the cause of much excitement in the family. She named her Reese (after the Cups, not Witherspoon). Her first day in her pen, she escaped when we weren’t looking. We couldn’t figure it out. One minute she was inside it. The next she was outside, but the gate was still closed.
The next day, Mom caught her in the act–she was actually scaling the bars of her pen and falling over the side! We couldn’t believe it. You can see how tall it is in this photo–and how tiny she is (about 2.5 lbs).
We thought she may have gotten a concussion from the fall. When we went back to visit Reese two days later, she just wasn’t herself. We took turns holding her and trying to get her to eat or drink, but she was lethargic. You can see in this photo (below) how pitiful she looked that day. When I was holding her, my nephew Jack asked me, “Is she dead?”
After a trip to the vet we learned she had a parasite. She’s been treated for that and is now a happy, active pup again. Just look at that face! Adorable. We’re all in love.
3. We finally replaced our old white fridge, which hadn’t been working well for months. Some days we’d find our milk and lettuce frozen. Other days nothing seemed cold enough. It was 16 years old, and it was time. But still, I kinda hated to see the old girl go…
After doing lots of research and shopping and agonizing over what to replace it with, we ended up with the Whirlpool Gold model with French doors.
Pros: We got the fingerprint-free type of finish because I didn’t want to worry about smudges all the time. So far the fridge itself works great and has plenty of storage–I especially like the “deli drawer.” Most of all, it’s nice to have the water in the door–I don’t miss refilling that Brita water dispenser every day, that’s for sure!
Cons: I’m still not used to having all of my frozen food in a drawer on the bottom. It’s hard to keep it organized and to find stuff down there. Anyone else have trouble with that?
4. We discovered a game called Settlers of Catan and have been having late-night tournaments around the kitchen table. It’s kind of addictive. Here’s a picture I snapped of my son Jake and his girlfriend Callie during one of our marathons:
Callie says I don’t put enough photos of Jake on the blog, so here’s another one of them showing us how serious they are about the game (just for you, Cal!):
5.We celebrated my birthday at my parents’ house this week. My aunt drove up from St. Louis, and it was great to see her. My brother and his family just moved back to town from Pittsburgh, so they joined us, too. That’s my sweet niece Emma at the table next to me and my daughter Lily, ready to help blow out the candles if necessary.
Finally, I can’t resist slipping in a photo of my dog Maizie. (What good is having a blog if you can’t bore people with pics of your pets and kids now and then? Ha.) She looked pretty jaunty in her Easter scarf, didn’t she? She’s doing great, although she isn’t quite sure what to think of that energetic new puppy yet… 
So that’s what’s been going on here lately. How was your April? Any house projects you’re working on? Do tell! -Julia
{ 119 comments… read them below or add one }
We had a yorkie that used scale/climb things also. Another thing to watch for is they sometimes lift their hind legs off the floor, and stand on their two front legs to eat-bum in the air! Super adorable. Both seem to be kind yorkie traits.
No kidding? I had no idea they were climbers! We were shocked by that. My mom can’t use the pen anymore. We were afraid she’d break her neck falling over the side.
We had that same, exact white refrigerator. It did the same thing to the lettuce and veggies. I love the French door models of refrigerators too. I have one. I still don’t know what to do with the freezer section. Glad I have an upright freezer also. But the frig part is great for pizza boxes and lots and lots of milk that my family seems to drink.
Cute puppies and children all around! I have gone the opposite of you on color in the bedroom. I had brighter colors for years and am now going back to a beige that is called Croissant. I love the color you chose. I wonder how that teal would look in my family room?
Did you really? Interesting that it froze your veggies, too. I was always fooling with the temp on that thing, trying to get it to behave.
cute doggies both of them! and i like the new color can’t wait to see the finished product!
Fantastic post – you’ve been busy, busy, busy! My dining room is LONG overdue for a complete overhaul – and yes – I do find myself sitting at the computer blogging when I could be doing something about it – it’s just that watching other peoples wonderful transformations is SO much easier than rolling my sleeves up and getting stuck in myself – lol!
congrats on the new fridge…sorry it was a necessity, though. CUTE puppies! can’t wait to see what your master bedroom looks like when you are done.
My new bed just arrived. I’m excited to get it put together, but we have to buy a new mattress first. We’re upgrading from a Queen to a King finally, after all these years.
That means the honeymoon is over! Lol!
Ha! Yeah, when we got married we were very young and only had Dave’s twin bed. Now we need a little more space…
I can’t imagine sharing a twin bed for long! We’ve been married 34 years and went from a double to a king – now we want to downsize to a queen. Too much wasted space with a king!
Morning Julia!
We got a new fridge a while back, and have a freezer drawer on the bottom as well. Honestly, I tend to just throw stuff in there. I tried to keep it neat and tidy, but as soon as you grab something from the bottom, there goes that system. It’s a mess. I’m pretty good about remembering what’s in there though — which is GOOD, since I tried to keep an updated freezer list, and would FORGET to add new things or cross off what we’d used. Oh well, it works for us. I guess that’s all that matters. It does take some getting used to. I’m just so glad to have a fridge that doesn’t drain water (from a badly sealed freezer) onto my kitchen floor!!!!!
It’s so true, Sally–the minute you take something out, it’s a mess again. I keep trying to organize it but it’s just not working.
I LOVE the new color you are painting! AND Settlers is one of my all time favorite games. I learned how to play in college (wasted a lot of time that should have been spent studying!) In fact my hubby and I played a game with 2 other friends just the other night! Happy Friday!
It really is fun, isn’t it? For Jake’s birthday we bought him the expansion pack so now we can play with larger groups. The game is expensive, so we put off buying it for a long time, but now we play it almost every weekend.
Love your behind the scenes posts!
I don’t have a bottom drawer freezer, but I do have a chest freezer with a top door. I keep things organized in there by using large mesh grocery bags. All the meat goes in one bag, all the fruit goes in another bag, all the veggies in another bag, etc. That way I can lift out complete bags of things to find what I am looking for.
I like that idea for freezer storage. Thanks!
Julia I adore seeing your wonderful family and pets!! You look so young in the photos and the kids are so cute!
Oh and I love the new bedroom color!
xoxo
Karena
Art by Karena
Thanks, Karena!
Julia that is funny that you should mention the bottom drawer of new fridge. We have yet to upgrade our fridge, but I have wondered the same thing. It just doesn’t seem practical to me. I grew up with a side by side model and wonder if that’s what we’ll ultimately go with when it’s time to buy a new one.
Are you using flat or eggshell paint? We painted our living room in a bold, fairly dark color (aztec gold from glidden). We used eggshell, and I’ve noticed with the darker colors that it really shows off its sheen when compared to lighter colors.
We went with eggshell, and it looks great!
Looks like a fun month! I LOVE your bedroom color. Very dramatic and luxurious. And that puppy…oh my. Makes my heart ache for my sweet Murphy. He looked just like your sweet Baby. Happy Birthday Julia!
Thanks for sharing. Can’t wait to see the completed bedroom! You have a beautiful family. I adore that last picture of Lily and Maizie
I am loving your new master bedroom wall color! Great choice! I know a lot of people like calming (boring) colors in the master but I like things that are colorful (fun)! My hubby is a Settlers player and my kids even play sometimes but I’m afraid I’m not a strategy game player, glad your family is having fun with it! Someone told me Ticket to Ride by the makers of Settlers is a great game too. I really enjoyed this post, fun to see pictures of the kids and dogs! Have a happy weekend!
I’m not much of a strategy player, either. Jake wins 95% of the time because he IS great at strategizing. But the game is fun enough that I keep trying anyway.
Lovely pictures- kids, pups, rooms and the new fridge! Happy birthday to you too!
We bought a house this month! I’ll be looking for ideas on clever updates for our 1969 unrenovated ranch- with the original Harvest Gold appliances. Hopefully you’ll have some pics to inspire and I’ll be glad to share our before and afters once we’re complete. Here’s to a wonderful May!
We’re looking at a Whirlpool fridge (and matching range & dishwasher) with the same fingerprint-free finish, but in a different style (I don’t want my 6yo to have full access to the freezer, or he’ll be doing “experiments” with it). Let us know how you like it.
Great paint color, BTW.
Good thought about not having a bottom freezer with a little one around. Could be an issue! I’ve been really pleased with the lack of smudges and fingerprints so far. Haven’t had to clean it yet, even though we have a lot of kids coming through here and helping themselves to food and drinks!
Color is cool (as in attractive)
I recently went through something like that in my house. I was tired of the same old bland colors (time to get rid of the the landlord-approved white and the HGTV-approved “neutrals”), but I didn’t want it to look like a box of crayons had exploded, either. My color choices have been bold (for me, anyway), but I like the result. . . I think as long as you “blend” things, you will be okay. . . so I have an antique red kitchen with accents of sage green and “Williamsburg” blue (that’s what we called it in the old days), and I painted the ceiling a complimentary shade of gray (sounds awful, but it looks great). Since you can see the dining room from the kitchen, I picked up the sage green as the dominant color in the dining room with lots of indigo blue and some red accents, and that’s what I did as I went from room to room, picking up an accent color and running with it, just in a slightly different direction.
I think I’m going to paint some floors next. . . I’ve been dying to try painting some kind of variation of the old-fashioned black-and-white lineoleum-style squares on the bathroom floor.
I love the look of painted floors. Let us know how they turn out!
I LOVE the color in your bedroom…it sort of feels “beachy” at first glance. I’m curious to see where you take it. Hope you post pics! And the doggies and kid pictures are super cute
1. Happy Belated Birthday, Julia!
2. I love the new color for your bedroom. So peaceful and relaxing!
3. The puppies are adorable.
4. We will be doing a complete house repaint (interior) this summer in preparation for selling our house. Hope to get it on the market early in 2013. Current house is way too big for just me and hubby (and 3 cats). Need something smaller, easier to care for.
5. Love the behind the scenes posts!
Those dogs could not be any cuter…
Love the color in your room – please post pics when the project is complete! Ironically my tween son’s room was just redone in those colors. Accent wall is turquoise and remainder and sandy beige. Looks amazing with his PB Teen surf bedding.
Upcoming home project for us – just scheduled the building of our screened porch! A nice big one – I am now obsessed with Pinterest and my “Ideas for Dream Screened Porch” board. I might as well just go to Pottery Barn with my plans and hand them over for them to decorate. I’m not a huge fan of all the modular dark wicker patio furniture out there – I’m much more drawn to PB’s wooden furniture/cottage look. Working on convincing my husband that I don’t want the unpainted cabin-y natural wood feel on the porch, and that we need to paint it white so we feel like we’re at the beach. I cannot get the vision of looking up into the peaked roof and seeing the beadboard look.
Happy belated birthday!!
Sorry, meant to say “cannot get the vision out of my HEAD”!
That’s exciting that you’re getting a screened porch. I had one at my last house and LOVED it. It was very basic and simple–not even a ceiling fan to keep things cool–but I spent every minute possible out there. Have fun decorating it!
Ditto everything Marion just said! Literally, except that we’ll probably go on the market sooner, and we have two cats and a dog.
We’re looking for a condo in downtown Seattle, and, though not cheap, it’s a good time to take advantage of the market right now (good for both buying & selling). Maybe then we can save up for a cottage near the beach.
You know, I was never a small dog person, but I’m totally coming around. Both are adorable.
That puppy is just adorable and Maize is as cute as ever! I like the name Maize, I have a puppy and her name is Macy
I want to get new floors in our downstairs. We have tile in the kitchen but I love the look of wood for the kitchen but I can’t convince my husband. Too many chances of it becoming wet when washing dishes, diswasher or refrigerator leaking or dripping kids coming in from the pool. Is the new trend now to get large tiles put down? I have small ones. ( 12×12 foot)
I meant 12 inches. 12×12 inches.Or 1 foot around. Okay, my math is not so hot. I think my fourth grader will be needing help elsewhere next year in Math. He’s surpassing my knowledge!
I have been seeing more of those tiles lately, and they look pretty cool. I have wood floors in my kitchen and we were dubious about them at first, too, but we haven’t had any issues with them (knock on wood). I think wood does warm a kitchen up!
P.S. I stopped helping my 4th grader with her math this year, too. They have this “new math” thing that is different than we learned when I was a kid. That’s my excuse for sending her to her dad for help, anyway. Ha.
Love you blog, I visit everyday so fun. I think I saw on another blog where the lady had a freezer like that and used plastic container to organize her frozen food.
I might try that! Thanks, June. I’m kind of a nut about keeping things organized, so it bugs me to have it all piled in there, willy nilly.
I have had my fridge for five years and the bottom freezer is always a mess!! This is hard for me since the freezer on top style was always neat as a pin. I’m glad that it isn’t my only freezer – I have a very old one (from the 1970′s!) in my garage so I keep most of the stuff out there. If you find the magic solution to keeping that bottom drawer tidy, please share.
I might need a second one. This just doesn’t seem to fit everything very well.
OK…
1. Your bedroom window view is awesome, and the new color scheme has me anxious to see the end result! BeAuTiFuL!
2. In regards to that precious Reese. I am in love with her face! And it must be in her name. We had a puppy (choc lab) that my daughter named Reese..she was a HOUDINI! Anything we kept her in, she got out of. Scaled chain link pens, and while in the air, she would use her teeth to make holes and climb out of. Serious, we watched her one night.
3. Your new bottom freezer is just like mine, and I agree…no room! I thought it would remind me of my childhood fridge…
4. Game night is fun..turns into huge competitive fights at my house
5. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
And lastly, my whole main living space is torn up due to renovations….and trying to not let it consume our whole house is a full-time task! Good Luck, and sorry this was so long! ~Kim
That’s so funny that you said your Reese was a Houdini because we’ve been saying that’s what we should have named this puppy! One night my mom came home and Reese was still in her crate, but there was poop on the floor next to it, like she had gotten out, done her business, and went back in. We can’t figure out how she does this stuff!
I’m renovating my powder room, hall closet/mud room and laundry room. I have a good contractor but I’m having trouble with my project manager and it’s very frustrating. A project that should have taken one month at the most has drawn out to three and counting. Rrrrr…
That is frustrating. I had a similar experience when we finished our basement. Thought it would never get done! Hang in there…
I never comment, but love your blog. I also love to see the kiddo’s and the puppy is so sweet. I wanted to tell you that my dog (5 year old) hates puppies! She loves dogs of any kind but no puppies. Thanks for sharing. Mary
Love hearing from first-time commenters! Well, maybe Maizie will warm up to Reese when she gets older and isn’t quite as energetic. Thanks, Mary!
Love seeing my favorite people (and pets) in a post. And for those of you who don’t know Julia live-and-in-person, she really DOES look that young, which always makes me wish I’d made more old-lady looking friends in college instead of her so _I’d_ be the young one.
You are so sweet, Beth–and such a good friend. You’re the one I can count on to make me still feel like I’m rocking it at 80. xo
wow – you’ve been busy Julia! The new fridge LOOKS great (who cares if it doesn’t work that well, eh?) and that blue in the bedroom is so vibrant – great pick! Please share photos when you get it all done!
I love seeing pics of your dog & kids! Beautiful family!
Best,
-Sarah
Love it all! The paint color, the puppy, the kids, the game, the fridge… You have been a busy girl! I love to hear updates about real things going on in design bloggers lives and not just pic after pic of gorgeous houses. We are in the process of building a pool and it is very exciting but omg it is also a very intense process! It’s only been going on a month but I think it has been more stressful than building our house! So incredibly nervewracking when it is something you have dreamed of your whole life. You don’t want to screw it up! The pool deck is being poured right now and I am a nervous wreck. Maybe I’ll go clean out my freezer drawer instead of watching and agonizing over the concrete…
Ooh, a pool! Our neighbors just put one in and it was kind of fun to see everything that went into it. It does look like a lot of work. Invite us all over for a pool party when it’s done, Jana!
I have a French door refrigerator also and like it for the same reasons. But I have not figured out exactly how to use the freezer well. I do seem to lose things down there and I don’t think it holds as much as a side-by-side.
Love your blog, Julia!
You’ve been busy. Love the bedroom color, hope you’ll show us the final re-do.
Your dog is darling…the smaller they are the more mischief they get into…I speak from experience.
Happy Birthday and have a great weekend.
Karen
Happy belated birthday! What a fun time you’re having. Good for you for ditching the beige bedroom! That color is much more cozy and I’m eager to see the finished product, bedding, paint and all. And yes — love seeing your family and pooches. Brings even more personality to the forefront, if that’s possible. They are all completely adorable and handsome. Love the new fridge, too. What color/kind of countertops do you have? We’re buying a French door fridge, too, and have wondered about the freezer organization, but I’m hoping that the benefits of the wider refrigerator will outweigh any negative freezer issues.
BTW, our cabinets have been installed in the new house, which you can see on my blog. They’re supposed to do the island today — aack! Too, too excited about it all. Isn’t it crazy-fun getting our abodes as we wish? Yes, it is. TGIF, Julia!
That’s exciting that you got your cabinets and your island is being installed. Yay! My kitchen has humble laminate countertops that I was sure I’d change right away when we moved in…but 8 years later…you know how that goes! Maybe after I finally get my bedroom and bath put together I’ll tackle the kitchen.
We’ve got you beat. We didn’t change our laminate for 22 years. It was original to the house! But when we did, we redid the entire kitchen, from cabinets to appliances ad went with quartz counters.
You do have a busy life.. I think Reese is adorable. I am glad my “little monsters” arent the only ones that snub the new dog. Mom and Dad dot Shih Tzu early march and 7 days later mom needed hospital stay and we dog sit. Our 4 Shih Tzus were not very welcoming, especially the girls. It is amazing that a 3 pound dog can take over your life and not let go. She does not know she is tiny. She has a plastic pet taxi upstairs for bed and downstairs for naps, “time-outs” and if too many people that could step on her. Maizie looks so content.
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Maybe it’s a Shih Tzu thing! I’m hoping Maizie warms up to Reese a little more as she gets used to her, but right now she prefers to hide when she sees the pup coming. Maizie is so laid back that I don’t think she knows how to handle the puppy’s enthusiasm!
I had a chuckle over the “8 years later” master bedroom decorating, I’m halfway thru mine…….after 9 years! It was a catch-all for years of “I’ll look thru this later” objects and when I finally looked at it all, I didn’t want most of it and straight to the donation box it went!
Glad I’m not the only one! I spend so much time writing about houses that it takes me a long time to actually get around to taking care of mine sometimes.
I would be in love with that Yorkiepoo-cutie face too! She is too precious. (Don’t tell my kids or my husband I said that.) They keep hounding me for a pup.
Have fun with your bedroom makeover,
Laura
Your secret’s safe with me. Mum’s the word!
What a sweet puppy! My daughter is asking for one for her birthday.
I love the bedroom color! And the new fridge too. I love the french door types but I was wondering what to do with the bottom drawer too. They’re still my favorite though. It’s so nice to hear what you and the family have been up to and I can’t wait to see the finished project
If you like Settlers, I bet you would love Ticket to Ride. It’s one of my favorite games!
Gotta check that out! Thanks, Christie.
Love Ticket to Ride!
O.K. fr0m the top.
Love the color, love the puppies, love the fridge (sorry about your dearly departed on though).
For organization in the freezer I just saw this on HGTV (I think) on a show about organized homes. One woman had plastic boxes in her freezer that c0ntained everything. One for frozen veggies, one for ice cream, etc. It made the entire freezer look like a work of art. I had freezer envy but too dang lazy to get that motivated!
Wow. My freezer is so far off from looking like a work of art that I can’t even imagine. Ha. I like the idea of using plastic boxes. Might try that!
Hi Julia,
Great post and pictures, your family is growing up fast!
I have two fridges with bottom freezers, one at home and at the lake house. I much prefer them over side by side ones, as I personally think they can contain more. Mine have an upper shallow drawer, in which I freeze sauces and soups and lay them flat in zip-loc bags. For the bottom drawer, I have wire bins from Ikea, and put the ice cream and frozen veggies in those . There is another for the meat. I find it works very well.
Have fun with your bedroom!
I love the color you chose for your room. It looks very nice.
I’m glad the dog ended up being alright. It makes we happy to know that the dog is ok.
My family had that same exact fridge except for the handles were black not white. I loved how the doors would shut on it’s own.
My family has the game Settlers of Catan and we love to play that.
OMG, I have a yorkiepoo, Levi, and he’s such a great pet! They are really smart and a great pet cuz they love playtime, but aren’t always hyper, they like to chill too and they’re so affectionate. My sister has a min-pin puppy named Reese after the Cups too, lol. I’m glad your pup is ok, she’s so cute and that’s pretty impressive that she was climbing the kennel!
Oh, I hope you do more blog posts like this! The new pup is so sweet i long to pet and cudde it. What a face!
My son usually is bored by documentaries but was riveted by one which I consider a MUST for dog lovers: National Geographic’s And Man Created Dog which is chock full of great dogs, puppies, and fascinating info but not delivered dryly. We watched it on some movie rental site. Netflix? Amazon? I can’t remember.
Born Wild, narrated by Morgan Freeman, is also wonderful but focuses on baby elephants and orangutans rather than dogs. Adorable! They are orphans being raised to live in the wild again.
Interesting! I’ll have to look those documentaries up. My daughter is especially canine crazy (but loves all animals). We have a million Dogs 101 episodes saved on the DVR. I think she has them all memorized.
Some years ago a refrigerator repair tech told me that Whirlpool was the only major manufacturer using adequately large compressors for modern machines. It seems many fridge manufs (like auto makers) have decided longevity of mechanicals wasn’t in their best interest. I’ve always thought it made more since to have the freezer on the bottom. It sure took makers long enough to figure that out.
I’m not much of a gamer and never heard of Settlers of Catan until Wil Wheaton and other geek celibs play on a recent episode of his YouTube series, TableTop. It looks like a cool game, but I don’t think I’ll play with Wheaton.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3WJTlDa7oo&list=PL4F80C7D2DC8D9B6C&index=5&feature=plpp_video
Sorry about the imbed. I thought I was linking to the YouTube page. You might want to fix that (shrug).
How interesting! I hadn’t seen that series. And I had no idea videos would show up in the comments like that. I’ll leave it in case anyone else wants to watch and get an idea of how “Settlers” works. Thanks, Wade!
I organized my bottom freezer into sections – bread products in the upper drawer, meats on left and veggies on right in the main drawer. Mine came with an adjustable divider that’s useful. Nevertheless, you will periodically have to just dive in and dig around for stuff. Still like it more than any other style fridge I’ve ever owned.
Also, if you have pets, the drawer style keeps dog hair out, unlike side by sides where the bottom becomes very fuzzy.
My son loves Settlers. He attends a week long (non-electronic) strategy games camp every summer – Settlers and Magic the Gathering are big hits. I love having a nerdy son!
I hadn’t thought about the dog hair! Good point!
OMG that is the cutest puppy face! That wasn’t boring at all. It’s fun to see you out of blogging “context”. Really cute–and I am looking forward to your bedroom reveal. You have such a pretty view out the windows. It looks so peaceful.
Thanks, Jodi! It is a nice view of the woods behind the house, although one window looks at the neighbor’s house next door (and we’re really close together in this neighborhood). I wish we had more windows in our bedroom, but those are the only two.
Love that paint color!! Congrats on the fridge!! I’m jealous. I have the beige side by side from the previous owners of our house. Our white one (which also freezes lettuce) is in the garage. Good for leftovers and extra freezer space. And those dogs – Oh My Stars – too cute!! Can’t wait to see your completed room!!
I love your new color for your bedroom. We just bought our first home in the Seattle area a year ago. I LOVE having the opportunity to make it my own. It has got a lot of fixen up that needs to be done but we are having fun doing it. I am curious about your fridge, ours is from the 80′s with the brown drawers. I like it because its so big and holds so much. We would love to upgrade it soon but I wonder about the newer fridges, if they last as well or hold as much. Also did you have to run plumbing for the water? This month I have been working hard on my yard and I am currently building a new white picket fence in my front yard.
We already had the water line for the fridge, so we didn’t have to run the plumbing for it. I’m not sure if the current fridges have less freezer space than older ones or not. Never had a freezer drawer before. I’m careful about how much frozen stuff I buy on sale now, though, because I’m always worried it won’t all fit.
I love a white picket fence. Wish I had one!
My hubby and I looked at the fridge with the French Doors, but I’m not really convinced about how well they seal. I would love to hear your input as you use yours. We really don’t like our side by side, as we have such limited space. We already have a freezer, so the freezer space is not an issue for us. We just need more room in the refrigerator!!!
Well, as long as you close it all the way, it seems to seal fine. There’s a screen on the front of the fridge door that tells you if you didn’t shut the doors completely. And I’m very happy with the storage space in the fridge. It’s more than I had before, for sure.
I do wish we had more door shelf space for condiments and stuff. I got a little plastic “shoebox” and put it on the main shelf to fill it with tiny bottles of soy sauce, salad dressing, etc., so they’re contained that way and I can pull the box out to find what I need easily. Works pretty well!
Julia I loved the glimpse into your “real life”!
I have a bottom freezer with two drawers. It is SO HARD to keep it straight. I have been envisioning inventing some sort of drawer dividers like IKEA sells for their dressers. Because that’s not going to happen I am measuring and considering differen baskets to put in the drawers to keep things separate.
Love that puppy face!
This was a great post!
I love my satin finish stainless appliances – no finger prints. I’m neurotic about my frozen items, so I prefer a side by side freezer.
I LOVE, LOVE your bedroom wall color, Julia. A few years ago I asked my son to go to our local Sherwin Williams to buy the paint for an accent wall in our living room. I gave him a paint chip and told him that it needed to accent/match our media cabinet. What the dear boy bought, and what is now on our walls, is a bright blue paint called “pool.” I died, and when it was finished, looked pathetically at my husband who, after spending days painting it, asked me to “try to live with it for a while.” Three years later, it’s still not a color I love, love, but I have grown to really like it.
That was the last time I asked my son to run an errand!
Too funny!
Cute puppy! Yikes about him getting sick, but I’m so glad he’s better now. Your dog is so cute too!
You did go bold with the new color, I’m proud of you. I wouldn’t be able to do it. I like how it looks and can’t wait to see the room finished.
Yorkies– mine is ten and is still quite feisty! We are redoing our office. Wanted it gray, but it looks like a really light blue
. Hardwood floors are installed and now a built in desk needs to be made. It’s taking longer than anticipated. Trying to refinance the house. Lots of gardening. Planting tomatoes tomorrow. April is always a busy month. Looking forward to May. Weekends are too short!
Those pale grays really can look light blue-ish sometimes. Sorry that’s not what you wanted!
We refinanced our house last month. Definitely worth the hassle and the time it took because our payments are about $200 less a month than before.
Weekends really are too short. My daughter thinks we should switch the way we do things–she wants to have school on Sat-Sun and be at home the rest of the week.
I actually ordered that same stainless steel refrigerator, then cancelled it. The freezer compartment is so tiny, it only had half the storage space of my old refrigerator/freezer. I’m still looking for something with a decent amount of freezer space and haven’t had any luck yet. Maybe people don’t keep much in their freezers anymore?
If I am ever lucky enough to get a nice new fridge like that, i will let you know!!! Look at what this blogger did…maybe this will help.
http://www.thetaylor-house.com/2012/03/how-to-organize-bottom-drawer-freezer.html
Love how she organized hers–thanks, Pat!
She mentions that she has a separate deep freeze. Maybe that’s the secret? Or living really close to the grocery store. That teeny little drawer hardly holds any food at all.
I love my french door refrig/freezer. Honestly, the only way to keep the freezer drawer even a little bit organized is to store things on their little ends so that as you look down into the drawer you see the smallest edge of the item, kind of like looking at the end of a box of drinking straws. But I sort of feel like having the refrig on top offsets the disadvantages of the freezer. I use the refrig much more often than the freezer so that’s great to not have to bend over. I always thought having the freezer on top on conventional models was just way illogical.
Love your new fridge! I’d love one like that.
Hi Julia love your new fridge and I love the new colour just don’t envy you right now cause doing the bath and bedroom – been there – done that – ain’t doin it tomorrow. I guess getting the bathroom done was too much for me. But I can’t wait till you finish and we get to see it all. Love all the photographs. Hope your Birthday was wonderful. Regards Esther from Sydney.
How did I miss this great post?! Well, better late then never!
My current refrigerator is way older then yours, but it’s still working great. I’m just sick of it! I want a new one so I appreciate your comments on the bottom freezer. My sister in law has two refigerators in her big kitchen….now that’s the way to roll!
Your kids are so adorable, in fact your entire family is awesome. It’s so refreshing to see a family where home is important.
I think your bedroom color is becoming very popular, I can’t wait to see it all finished, I already to know to expect something wonderful!
I have one of these French door fridge’s with the bottom freezer. I would never have bought it if I didn’t already have a garage freezer. The house freezer is only used for stuff the kids are to lazy to walk back to the garage freezer.
It sounds as though you had a wonderful birthday. My daughter and I oohed and aahed over the cute pictures of the precious pup! And I can’t wait to see your bedroom makeover.
What a nice post. Thanks for letting us in. Good luck with the new room color.
Ha, just got back from Lowe’s (western NY). The Waverly curtains are all in their sale pile for $5.71 a panel! Too bad they don’t read this blog, if they did, they wouldn’t have any left to put on sale
Ha! Too funny, Sue. They could make a little money off some of us!
We hate our French door fridge. I hate that the water and ice take up valuable room in the fridge and I hate the freezer drawer. I hate that you have to open both top doors to use the deli compartment. I long for my side x side. Thank goodness we have an extra freezer. I just don’t get the French door thing at all. I know lots of peope hate side x sides though.
Yeah, it’s annoying that you have to open both doors to get to the deli drawer. And the door with the icemaker in it is so heavy that it always closes on me.
I’m right there with you. I am so glad I cancelled the French-door refrigerator that we ordered. The idea of having to maintain an extra freezer in order to have a little bitty freezer drawer in the “main refrigerator” just seems so wasteful. I will stick with my side-by-side.
LOVE Settlers of Catan, and didn’t think I would!
Have fun with all your projects.
Cute dogs and kids. Happy Birthday and I love the new fridge. My “smudge attractor” is getting on my nerves. Maybe next year. Enjoy!
Great pics!! Cute dogs and beautiful family!
Hi Julia!
The puppies are just too adorable! Love the idea of the Easter scarf!
We have a fridge with a freezer on bottom, but with a door instead and I love it! The sad part is that it’s 12 years old and will soon need to be replaced. I am leaning toward the french door style, but there are almost no fridge models of any kind with a bottom freezer with a door instead of drawer. My mom has the drawer style freezer and I really dislike it for the organization reasons you are experiencing! How do you like the french doors? They seem like a good idea in theory.
Best of luck with your new color scheme and remodel plans! It’s always exciting to change things up!
We just bought a new house, so there are a LOT of house things going on here. We moved from TN to NM several months ago, and have been living in a rental until last Monday. The biggest challenge for me in regard to decorating this new place is the difference in architecture here vs what I have grown up with. We have textured plaster walls and archways and no door, window, or wall mouldings whatsoever! So I am going to have to do my research and see just how people make this work
The one thing that I have managed to do in the one week we’ve been here is getting two of our three bathrooms somewhat decorated, with new fixtures, shower curtains, matching towels and such… so it is a start!
Yorkie fan here! They aren’t just pups– they totally become children. YorkieTalk.com is a WONDERFUL site!
We’re big fans of Settlers of Catan, too. I have a 15-year-old son, and there are few games he’ll play with us. That one is always fun. We just started playing Risk, too.