I'd like to say "paint all of the bedrooms" but given that they are the same colors they were when we moved in four years ago, that's probably just wishful thinking.

That said, we have a new child on the way and his room is baby pink with crystal and mint green (it's grandma's old room...and very sweet in a victorian woman kind of way). So, I resolve to have his room redone entirely as well as my other son's room done prior to bringing our new child home in Augustish.

Sadly this includes removing the wallpaper in my son's room....which was HELL to hang. Why can't he love thomas until he's 40???? LOL

I'd really also like to freshen up the kitchen, which is horrible in it's 1980s victorianish splendor (hearts and geese and all) but it's a big job and so hopeless I have just learned to close my eyes as I walk through and order out....

My resolution is to hit the punchlist we've had (and added to) since moving in...9.5 years ago! Of course, we just decided it's time to replace the furnace, too, but what the heck, as long as we're bleeding green we may as well go all the way.

Fix the carriage light that never worked, change the outside wall-mounted lights to overheads, add outside lighting to the back of the house, add lights to the basement's unfinished storeroom that has TWO lamp sockets in the ceiling and NO outlets, can't even recharge the drill. While he's here, maybe he can change the outlet that a switch works.

Raise the front porch where it's dropped too far for comfort, and the sidewalk portion where it has started flooding. Hopefully the work will scare off the chipmunks who get all the blame. Of course, this may lead to needing to adjust the gutter on the porch roof.

Paint the outside! We put it off one year too many, and if I replace the outside lights I'll need to, anyway.

Paint the inside? Well, maybe...

And, as always, consider new windows. I'd love 'em, need to convince DH it's worth $30K (or even $5K/year, doing a few at a time, but every time we'd have to get a permit).

DH wants to replace the driveway, he might be right this time. I'd like to replace the garage floor, while we're at it.

Just for me, I want to turn "the pink room" (we don't know how to use it and it's, well, pink) into my "lady's room" with my dad's old kitchen table for a desk (now that we have stronger wireless), a tv, and my bookcase.

As stated in another thread....clean out 30 years worth of junk in the basement storage room...then hopefully refresh the basement---new slider or french door, paint existing cream beadboard paneling, new carpet, recessed lights to replace the awful flourescents, some sort of new ceiling..even if its just getting new ceiling tiles or painting the old ones. Oh, who am I kidding....I'll be lucky to just get it cleaned out!

I resolve to:
Get something on the DR wall. I gave away the temporary, place holder things after years (and years and years) of looking at them and never really liking them.

Get a new window treatment in my husband's bathroom. I am the only one that can successfully operate the top down/bottom up shade and it drives me crazy. Time to take it out and replace it with something easier that anyone can use.

Finish the laundry room reorganization and paint it.

There are probably plenty of things I should be/could be doing but I'll stop at these three goals.

I resolve to paint the bedrooms and make a decision on carpet. I'm still on the fence about removing the popcorn in the last two bedrooms. I just don't know if I'm up to that mess again.

I also want to get a fence built. Soon. We really need a gate so we can close off the backyard.

Number one for us is to do the backyard. It has been a pile of dirt since we did our addition almost two years ago.

Number two is for me to sew the kitchen curtains and office daybed cover that have also been waiting for two years to get done.

The we need to get an appointment with the window restoration guy who is booked out six or more months. Finally we need to paint the exterior. Oh, and the roof is probably due for tar and gravel...

The backyard will make me the most happy!

While we have no intention of selling, I want the house in sale ready mode. That means all those little things that need fixing will get fixed. Nothing major-like a complete reno, but rather finishing trim work, fixing the soffit and gutter on the one side of the house, caulking & repainting around the fire place-little things like that. That list is about 18 feet long, however...

I just checked off one of those things-I just got a new pet gate installed to keep the dogs in the back part of the house. The old one was a real pain, and this new one looks much nicer and is an actual gate that swings open.

I resolve to finally finish this DIY home that we started 6 years ago...
I shall finish installing those baseboards - even in the bedrooms and closets, lol.
I will paint that annoying 300ft of window trim that's sitting on the saw horses in the basement.
The window treatments will be installed, 'though the deer & raccoons are the only creatures peeking into this isolated country home :)
I *will* purchase & install the tile around the bathtub, and hide the plywood...
And on and on ...

On the other hand - the concrete encrusted (used in 2008 for cement forms) 2x4 railing in the open living room, was *finally* replaced just in time for Christmas dinner :)

Dawn

Like Pesky, I want my house to be sale ready, and also have a to-do list that feels like 18 ft long....however I DO want to sell. I guess I need to get going!

My short list includes:

Make a decision regarding paint or wallpaper for the dining room (along with actually painting / installing the paper.

Collect & frame various prints from DH's collection for the dining room.

Reupholster chairs and make window treatments for the dining room.

Paint the quarter round in the dining room (floors were installed last year).

If I ever get out of the dining room, I can then start on the rest of the list!

Good thread! We actually did get a lot done last year on my construction wish list list so I am hopeful for more progress this year.

Top on the list - and please do take me to task on this one: DD's room. We had the window replaced in (ack) August, opened this wall to the studs, and started removing the beadboard wainscoting we'd put up years ago. Occasionally, I go in and work on the drywall. (Those of you with younger children may question the messy room, but this is a 16 year old and this is pristine compared to how it usually looks!! ). Anyway, progress has been too slow and DD will comment on how I'm willing to focus on any other area in the house vs. her room...

I post the picture because I am RESOLVED to get this done by end of February. (There, I said it!). Carpet removed, rest of beadboard removed, floor redone, room painted, new area carpet in place.

Other projects: linen closet built-in off family room (hopefully January), new family room built-ins flanking windows, tiled fireplace. Keep reclaiming attic space (lots of joists which can be covered with big plywood sheets for easier access and more storage).

Great thread, I am a little afraid to put commitments down in writing.
For 2014- I need to deal with our den. DH and the DS's purchased a rug and chair and I need to get a sofa, tables and somehow pull it all together. (shameless begging-please see my post)
If finances allow, we will redo our first floor laundry room/powder room by splitting it into 2 rooms. We also may need to deal with our driveway and that could push the powder room out another year- sigh...
I would really like to refresh our bedroom, which we have never painted since we bought the house 7 years ago and is a color I loathe. It is not as easy as it sounds to paint because it has cathedral ceiling probably 20 feet high- even the painter groaned when I showed it to him when he came to paint our exterior this summer.

my home resolution is to SLOW DOWN and stop obsessing over the house!

I bought the house (my first) exactly one year ago and it's been "the year of the house." It's comfortable now, although not "complete" by any means, but I need to move on and concentrate on some other areas of my life!

after I get my new chandelier and drapes installed, that is. ;)

Nice to see you posting again, Igloo. Any way to convince your other son to give up his Thomas room for the newcomer? This way you'd only have to redecorate one room. I remember your son's jungle themed room in your other home. Now that was stunning.

My resolution includes updating my dining room. It needs wallpaper, it begs for wallpaper. I LOVE wallpaper when its well chosen and is usually go for texture over pattern. This room has a chair rail, but it's painted the same above and below. Very boring.

And then the deck must get redone. We have a smallish 2 level deck which is looking very shabby. I had gotten estimates last year to redo with either treated wood or the fake stuff and found I hated the fake stuff (I checked out all the major brands - Trex, Timbertech , etc). The current deck is made out of cedar which is too soft and the carpenter bees love it. But it was just before summer and then I got bunches of company so it never got done. Planning to call in for estimates again in the next week or so, so that work can begin in early spring for less annoyance.

Helene

Hello Helene....wonderful idea, I tried LOL But he does love his room (and honestly, it's the bigger of the two with a larger on suite as well as a huge walk in closet where as the other room is smaller with no closet (victorians!!). Wynn's room though has a better view and a private deck (which I will have to remove access to) and it's right outside of our bedroom door, which I think will make good sense initially because it's pretty common for orphanage children to not sleep well.

This is the thomas room:

They actually recommend not doing rooms this elaborate for Chinese Orphans because they can be overwhelming after having been in an institution all of their life so I'm going to do his much simpler (and then get more elaborate as he wishes). I'm currently toying with brightly colored circles or bubbles floating from the floor to the walls to the ceiling even in different colors and sizes and using simple shelving intercepting the larger bubbles to display thomas trains on (he is inheriting the thomas somewhat LOL).

DS1 wants dino's now and he loves the shelf that used to hold trains as it now is a perfect place for all of his toy dino's.

I'm actually kind of excited about doing the boy's rooms. They will both go from queen beds to twins (two in each room so they can sleep in each other's room). DS1 wants a bunk bed (so not victorian LOL) and DS2 will likely have an L shaped set up as he's too little for a bunk IMO.

Given the dino's will likely last for just a year or two I'm going with decals or simple painted shapes LOL No more mural wallpaper for me! The cursing as that was going up cost me millions in quarters in the no curse jar :p

I have to admit, as a new home owner, it's a bit discouraging to read all the posters who are still working on stuff they've been meaning to get to . . . for years.

best wishes for all projects for this year!

...to not bring ONE new thing into this house unless two go out :)

Do I get 'credit' for projects just finished? We just finished a reno of our master bath and I don't think I want to start anything new for a while! That about did me in, not from any work we had to do since we contracted it out, but just living with the mess in the house, uprooting to the guest rooms and then trying to move back in a few days before Christmas and company. Oh yeah, and I need my 'mad money' account to recover too!

My several-year-old to do list includes recovering the blah ivory seat covers in the dining room and maybe repainting one the guest bedrooms (a big maybe). Then there's doing some minor repairs to the exterior fascia, door thresholds, etc that we've put off for about a year.

Violet West - Don't be discouraged. This is the reality of being a homeowner. There is ALWAYS something that needs doing.

And congrats on your new home.

I'm in process of getting my house on the market for a move, and, as I did with my last place, am finally getting around to doing all of the things that I wanted to do for me! (I even "had" to buy a new washer & dryer, which I've wanted since day 1 but couldn't justify because the old ones still worked -- the darn dryer is finally giving up the ghost after ~20 good years. LOL.)

Anyway, my resolutions are (a) to clear out the extra "stuff" (at least a good chunk of it!) and stop buying more -- just because I have the room doesn't mean I need it! -- and (b) not to finally do things like buy drapes and have everything painted because I'm staging! I'm so annoyed at myself for (b)!

OK y'all - time to check back in! The year is winding down... soon it will be time for new resolutions.

Here were mine, with comments in parentheses:

DD's room:
Carpet removed (DONE), rest of beadboard removed (MOSTLY), floor redone (NOPE), room painted (AND REPAINTED AND REPAINTED...), new area carpet in place (NOT YET). I'd take a picture but gosh, it would take hours to get things cleaned up to that point....

Definitely still have work to do in her room. She's a junior and will be leaving the nest soon, so have narrow window here!!

Other projects: linen closet built-in off family room (DONE) , new family room built-ins flanking windows (coming in November), tiled fireplace (probably next year).

Keep reclaiming attic space (lots of joists which can be covered with big plywood sheets for easier access and more storage). (DONE!)

Linen closet - need to take updated picture with upper handles. Light turns on when door opens; lower drawers hold afghans for family room. Very pleased how this turned out.

November project - hopefully complete by Thanksgiving (we're hosting) - built-ins flanking a sofa.

Please update with your accomplishments, including pictures of any new additions :).

I look forward to seeing your updates!

The drawings from which final quote came (it was great fun to figure this out). The shaker side panels SHOULD be in line with the window lites, we'll see...

This post was edited by oldbat2be on Tue, Oct 21, 14 at 21:18

1. Clean up basement storage area.....again!

2. Take a year off from everything except maintenance!!