{pretty, happy, funny, real}

~ {pretty, happy, funny, real} ~

Capturing the context of contentment in everyday life ~

Every Thursday, here at Like Mother, Like Daughter!

This is pretty much this little girl’s idea of heaven: right in the middle of whatever awesome, exciting, fun mess her big siblings are up to.

Speaking of messes…

We’re finally painting the last of the ugly brown trim! (Or at least, nearly the last of it. The very last is in the laundry room/pantry, which is such a heavily-used room that I’m not sure I can stomach taking it apart enough to paint!)

When we first moved in, we never got around to painting the woodwork in the study because we had shoved all the stuff from all the other rooms into there in order to paint the rest of the house. And by the time we finished with everything else, got everything cleared out of the study, had a baby… we agreed that we’d finish up before we moved (since this is the last actual room left with brown trim), but wouldn’t worry about it too much before.

Well, we have a move within sight (meaning, probably and vaguely, this summer. But of course, no destination yet because Marine Corps) and are trying to check things off our to-do list. So here are a few quick “before” pictures, and hopefully before too long I’ll have some “afters” for you as well.

First, the study. It has this giant built-in bookshelf, which will soon be a cheerful, crisp white. (Don’t worry. I wouldn’t paint over beautiful woodwork. This is not that.)

Did you know we had these great shelves? Probably not, because I never take photos in here. It tends towards the cave-like. (in no small part due to the dark quilted bedspread I hung as a curtain, which serves well for blocking light for tv-watching and insulating a huge and somewhat drafty window. But I’ve always meant to cut it in half and hem it so that we can, you know, open the curtains and take advantage of that big window. Obviously, that has not happened. Hence, cave. Rosie, how can you live like this?)

Anyway, all those books are currently on my bedroom floor, and we are going to do our darndest to part with a few as we put them back on the shelves, because our library has been expanding to fit the available shelf space, and we are going to be in for a rude bookshelf-related awakening whenever we move away from our wonderful cave of a study.

We’re also painting the mantelpiece, which I’ve wanted to do all along but some others (including my husband, who was initially a little hesitant, and the guys who we hired to help with the painting when we first moved in, who thought I was a total crazy lady) required some convincing. I can’t wait.