Friday, August 25, 2006

Bedroom Re-Do


Here's the promised post about the kids' "new" bedrooms. With school starting, and different soccer schedules for both of the boys, my already sparse blog attendance might get even more sparse for a little while. But once we settle into the new routine I'm anticipating lots of nice time at home with my little girl. Zöe and I have never had much one-on-one time at all (although the boys play together so intensely that sometimes it does feel as though they're not really here, but rather off together in imagination land) so it's really going to be a treat to have some time just with her. This will also mean extra cleaning time, reading time, craft time and computer time because when Zöe takes her nap...it'll be Mommy Time! This is not to say that I'm not going to miss those big, active boys. It's so hard to see them go. Jack is an old pro at school now, but I can hardly believe that my little Max is beginning full-day Kindergarten. My, oh my.


So anyway, several weeks back Jack informed me that he felt there was still dust in his bedroom from when Nana (my grandmother) lived here. My mind raced in several directions when I heard this, and thankfully this was one of the very rare times when I actually processed a thought or two before speaking. First, there was never a speck of dust in this house when my grandmother lived here. Ever. Second, while I may enjoy doing almost anything before housework, our house is not dirty. It was then that I realized what he meant. The paint in Jack and Max's bedroom really needed sprucing. And while I loved the rich, chocolate brown color my grandparents painted it like, thirty(!) years ago, it also needed a change. So change we did. In addition to painting it with Pratt & Lambert's "Briney Deep" we debunked their bunk beds, got new sheets, duvet covers, lamps, bedside tables, and totally organized the overflowing mess of toys that was threatening to smother them in their sleep.


Such a remarkable and profound change! The first night Max ran around kissing all of his new things, and jumping for joy that he now had a "real" bed. Apparently the poor little guy never felt at home in his cave-like bottom bunk dwelling. So now it's fantastic! They play up there all the time, instead of always bringing their toys down to the living room. They sit on their beds, alone and together, and look at books. They hang out and talk. I couldn't be happier to see them loving and enjoying their space.


And in the interest of fairness, but mostly because I was totally excited to decorate, we re-worked Zöe's room too. She was so fascinated by the boys "new" beds (she really, really wanted to sleep with Max that first night...) that it seemed like a good time to move her into a Big Girl Bed. With a new bed, sheets, duvet cover, dresser and paint (two shades of pink...Pratt & Lambert's "Ballet Pink" and "More Than Pink") we were able to transform Zöe's little space into a glittering jewel box.


She digs it in a major way and has done marvelously without the crib. I end up sleeping in there with her if she wakes up in the night (which can be often) but it's sweet and cozy, so that works for me. Incidentally, we ordered Zöe's bedframe online and she was soooooo excited that she carried around the printed-out photo of her new bed for days until it arrived. And boy does she have that girlie squeal of excitement down pat. Zoiks! My eardrums were not happy, but I was. It's worth all of the hard work to see the kids proud and excited and enjoying their bedrooms.


We're coming up really soon to being in our house for one full year. That's funny, because their room re-dos were right there at the top of my list when we moved in. Oh well, better late than never. Enjoy those last few late-nights of summer vacation everyone, and best wishes for happy first days of school to the students in your lives!

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

wow - they're all gorgeous!
love seeing becky and mandy on zoe's dresser. and i love the little baubles above her curtain rod!

Anonymous said...

wow! what beautiful rooms...so very child focused and friendly and just fun! Great colors, too. I hope they're all enjoying their new rooms!

Anonymous said...

There's so much to look at in these rooms! I especially love the abacus by the window in the boys' room, and the dress-up pegs in Zoe's. It must be so nice to see the results of all your hard work in the way the kids love their new spaces!

[Oh, and I just saw your reply to my comment on your beautiful Japanese craft book bags! Thank you so much; my email is amlopez at umich dot edu !]

beki said...

The "new" rooms look great! I love Zoe's room, so comfy and girly.

Ali said...

What lovely rooms your children have. It's fabulous to see small ones taking pride in their possessions (something my boys have yet to master!).

Anonymous said...

Hey, can anyone crash there while you are at the coast?

Crabby Amy said...

oh my!!! Cute, Cute, and more Cute!!! :) You have been way hard at work but boy has it paid off...love the rooms!!! Enjoy your time at the coast.

I can't believe it's almost time for school to begin!!

Anonymous said...

you did such a fantastic job!! you're right -- i definitely need to order that bed for Peri -- sorry to be a copycat! have fun at the coast. i hope we can have one more playdate with all the kids before school starts back up!

Chickenbells said...

WOW...it's amazing what a little dusting will do isn't it? It makes me want to dust my living room, and change it from it's current 2 different greens on the walls!

The rooms look beautiful, no wonder why the kids are so excited about spending time in them! (and are those built in drawers in the wall in Zoe's room?!)

Joanna said...

You did a fantastic job on the rooms! You're so good at picking paint color. And it seems like your house has such great bones--the trim, moulding, doors, wood floors. Beautiful!

textile_fetish said...

That corner with the paper lanterns and the top of the curtains... I lOVE that!

But how did you hide the cords?

Tricia said...

I love your decorating style, and your choices for the childrens rooms....it looks like you live in a cool older home.

Anonymous said...

beautimous beautimous fabulous! wow! I want to move in! The boys room looks enormous and I love all the storage bins and the colors. And Zoe's room is so princess like, the sweet window rod, the dress up rack, and the rug too. It can't get any better. I hope the kiddos enjoy their awesome rooms for a good long while! ;-)

Melissa said...

I'm so jealous, can I come over and play too with the boys! Great job on color choices, beautiful.

Anonymous said...

What a lovely home you have. I am new to blogging and have only just found your site and I just wanted to say I think your work is lovely.

Anonymous said...

beautiful rooms in beautiful colours. We're moving soon and I'll have all that to come...

No wonders your children are happy!

Anonymous said...

I adore that blue!! Okay, for this (embarrassed to say it) painting newbie- where do I find Pratt & Lambert paint??? We desparately need to get color into this house with it's 80's brown mouldings, doors etc. I've been leaning towards the cooler beachy colors of blues/greens to open up our tiny cottage, but I love the richness of Briney!! How in the world am I going to make up my mind???

I still need to go over my disgusting kitchen and spruce it up until we can afford to renovate!! I am hoping to tone it down to white and quaint. Now that we have the new windows I am ITCHING to get going!! It's been hard working full time, but with the change to rain I don't a real excuse not to attack the inside when I am home.

BTW, it was really great to say hello to you the other day, if only for quick little chats. I keep forgetting about Shady Dell too.

Anonymous said...

What perfect perfect rooms!! Not too "kiddy". So multi layered, and unique!! Perfect balance! I am sure they will be quite happy growing up in these rooms!! Lots of room to grow!!

Great job!!
What a "good mom"!! :)

love your blog!
xoxo Jenny