My best friend called me from California to tell me I’m not showing enough pictures of the rest of the house. (Okay, she called to wish me a belated birthday, but she DID make a point of saying she wants to see MORE.) So–to keep her happy … (And with a mention that I (1) took these with a phone balanced on my shoulder and (2) while carrying on what I hope was a lucid conversation and (3) a reminder that the house is  still a work in progress. By our usual standards, it’s a mess. By the standards of the last couple weeks? Doing better).

The view from our window. Note that there is NOTHING behind us but trees. At night, off in the distance, you can see the bottom end of the nearby Hyundai dealership’s lights because we’re really not that far from Rt 10, but otherwise, there’s nothing back there.

Mom and Dad’s room (with a glimpse into Mom’s closet). Their window looks over the garage and to the front of the house.

View from above of our living room. We finally got the book case full of movies and tv shows set up, though it’s a little wobbly on the carpet. Mom went to a hardware store to try to find some of those furniture safety straps to secure them to the wall, but couldn’t find anything. (And, yes, we DO have an enormous behemoth of a television set.)

My very bland bathroom, because she wanted to see. It’s very beige, but has the essentials–tub with shower, toilet, sink … and a medicine chest! (Thank you Home Depot.)

Going down the stairs, Santa waves a friendly hello. No, he’s usually not out quite this early in the year, but it seemed silly to put him away just to pull him out in a couple weeks. So, for now, he’s cheering us on from the landing. I’m going to miss him, come January.

View of the front door from the stairs. (Also the vacuum cleaner, the shopping bags I need to bring out to the car, the pen we block the front door with, leashes, umbrellas, door stop because the door to the garage is on a spring. And … oh yes … someone peeking through the railing.

Once down the stairs, this is the view to the right, into the living room. The second bookcase is set up and my cookbooks are finally unpacked. The rocking chair is still looking for a home, but at least it’s in from the garage. It’s the first piece of furniture I ever bought myself and I love that chair. I’ve sat in a lot of wooden rockers that were incredibly uncomfortable, but this one is perfect. I just wish I had room for it up in my room.

Turning from the living room toward the kitchen–the kitchen table, the breakfront in the corner, next to the pantry with Chappy’s dishes in front…

And the kitchen looks like this–complete with vegetable soup simmering on the stove, a fresh batch of granola, and a chocolate pound cake cooling on the counter.

Let’s not forget the Birthday balloon from my sister, still going strong nine days later.

Here’s the view heading back toward the stairs.

Now, going downstairs? This is the one room that–even though we’re making progress–still looks, well, like we’re NOT making progress. But we ARE!

Dad’s office area looks remarkably neat and clean (a rarity for him). He’s right by the window. If you’re paying attention to the floorplans, he’s right under the kitchen table.

Mom’s area (under the kitchen) is still a work in progress. She’s got a new computer desk, though–a $25 model from IKEA that we bought yesterday and that I assembled this afternoon. The row of short bookcases divides her section from Dad’s. She’s got the shelves filled with photo albums (which always look messy) and books … though the top will eventually be cleared off.

The two chairs in the sitting area? Well … you can’t exactly see the television from there at the moment. (See it there? In the back on the left? And … do you see who else is watching?)

Which makes sense, because right now, Chappy’s the only one who can really see the television.

Okay, Dawn, I hope you’re happy!

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