Stair Transformation Part 1

We are making headway with painting. The main living areas and bedrooms have all been painted. Both bathrooms and the laundry area are next, along with touch ups in all rooms. This is a photo of the before and after of our stairs. This is part one, the carpet and the railings are all being replaced as well. The loft has also been painted. I'll post photos of the finished area once everything has been installed.

Left:: Before
Right:: After, new paint. We used two tones in the main living area. Water Chestnut by Glidden (which you can see on the back stair wall) and Toasty Gray by Glidden (the fire place and beam)

The House

Our first home is located in Tempe, AZ. We love the location because it is the most centralized city in the East Valley and has close access to all the major freeways we regularly access. It is close to ASU, and we are lucky to live just down the street from our good friend Jake.

The home was built in 1984 and is a single family, one story, approx 1400 sq. ft. home. One of the things that drew us to this particular home, was the fact that it does not look like the typical "cookie cutter" home. It is in an older neighborhood and has a unique look. The single-handed best feature is the loft that is accessed by a set of stairs that wraps around and behind the fireplace.

Joe and I knew that we were going to buy a three bedroom home. This meant we would have a master bedroom, a guest bedroom and an office. Once we had kids, we would have to sacrifice either the guest bedroom or the office. Because of the loft, we no longer have to make the sacrifice. Our loft is being converted into our study/office space and the extra bedroom is being used for the dogs. When we start our family, the dog room will become our nursery.


Major projects planned. These will either be completed before we move in, or after:
*recarpet all bedrooms
*new light fixtures
*new paint on all walls
*laminate wood flooring on the stairs and loft, including new railings and baluster
*wood shutters on the windows
*stone surround on the fireplace, including new wood mantel
*complete bathroom remodels
*kitchen remodel
*landscaping overhaul, including adding a pergola and patio area
*updating windows

There is lot to do, and even more that will be done. This is a fanastic starter home for us and we are very excited.

The First Post

Welcome to the first post of Joe and Sydney's Blog!!!!

We have so many friends and family members that live outside of the state, who don't have the opportunity to see what we are up to on a regular basis. And if you are not a fan of facebook or myspace, it's difficult to be in the know of our lives.

So, the purpose of this blog is keep all of our family connected with what is going on in our day-to-day lives.

Joe and I just purchased our first home (yay!) so much of the beginning posts will go over the house and renovation details. Of course our puppies will also be featured. They are too cute to resist posting pictures of.

For more photos (without my blogging) you can also visits:

www.flickr.com/photos/joeandsydney

www.flickr.com/photos/maxotisbrady

We are hoping to move into the new house in mid-October. The only puppy that has been to the house so far is Max. In this post's picture, he is more curious about the camera then the house :)