Jace says he had to talk me into it. He says I failed to see the potential
for the first couple of days and weeks.
I had seen prettier barn-turned-home(s) in my day.
The block walls were wavy. The siding rotted. The balcony - dangerous.
The windows would have to be replaced. Along with the doors. And the trusses. And the rest of the house.
But the lot was great. I knew an acre of irrigated green grass and trees in the middle of the desert was priceless. The neighborhood looked and felt a lot like Taylor, Arizona.
Home.
So although it was not love at first sight. I knew. Jace was capable. I had a vision. That proved to be enough.
Three months,
One 5th wheel trailer home,
Buckets of sweat and tears,
A million cuss words later,
(and not to mention a couple of these - $)
She is all spiffed up.
We broke up the tall rectangular shape with bat and board on top and stone on the bottom.
The barren, gray trees that we purchased last February are now full of life and green.
The front porch posts are just a few of the things we left original to the house. They are now stained and embellished.
Our back porch. Metal rusted beams are original. The white siding around front and back doors is where the original barn doors existed.
Before picture of front room, dining room, and kitchen. The tall sheet-rocked pillar at the end of the kitchen island was framed around an original barn beam. One was also hiding in the gray wall across the hall. The house has 3 sets of these beams holding up a metal, iron eye beam that runs the length of the house, in between the 1st and 2nd stories. Anther reason we felt good about our purchase. The house and foundation are rock solid.
After picture of old dining room and kitchen. We turned the old dining room space into a Mormon size pantry. The concrete floors are original - flawed - newly stained- and AWESOME.
The once concealed barn beams are now center stage and framed in. Should I paint them? Stain them? The new dining room and office that sits just behind it used to be a large bedroom.
The office is small. Centrally located. With a closet.
The previous owners loved to experiment with paint colors. Jace just thinks they were blind. At the top of these stairs was an old kitchen. The original owners built an apartment on top of the original barn and lived in it. While living in it, they converted the downstairs barn into a house. The result was 2 kitchens, 2 master bedrooms, 2 family rooms, ect.
After picture of the old upstairs kitchen. Now a wet bar for the large family room.
After picture of the once gray and fluorescent orange stair walls.
Before picture of the upstairs master bathroom.
After picture. The once pink bathroom is now the boys bathroom.
Tub turned boy's shower.
Before picture of upstairs master bedroom. Before we rolled the new trusses, the upstairs ceiling were just 7 feet tall. A little low for my tall Jace and for re-sale. All the bedrooms have walk-in closets.
After picture. The blue diamond walls are now white (surprised?), lined with the boy's toys and beds. The entire upstairs ceiling is now raised and vaulted.
Before picture of another darkly painted upstairs bedroom.
After. Macy was worried it would never look like a girl's room.
Macy's bathroom before.
And after. I was feeling the color white thru out the entire house. Jace quit asking about color, cabinet, and fixture choices. He knew the answer would be white. I wanted everything clean, open and bright.
Before picture of downstairs bathroom/laundry room.
After picture. We split the above pictured room into a laundry/powder bath and master bathroom.
After picture of master bathroom. Jace picked out all plumbing fixtures. On his own.
Our new master shower.
We call it our baptismal font.
I can now check this post off my to-do list. Our hard work is now documented.
Our house is feeling more and more like home everyday. We are so grateful for this house and the opportunity we have here. While the major construction has come to an end, we have lists and lists of non-major things to construct.....but who doesn't? That is part of the beauty of home ownership (and life). Construct. Tear down. Rebuild. Add on. Improve.
We are now taking your bets.
How long will Jace let me live in this one?
