So. Much. Painting. And buying.

Well, we're a little over 3 months into our farmhouse adventure! I meant to write and update sooner, but well, life. And painting. And hardware store runs. And online shopping. And handyman calls. And more painting. And toddler wrangling. And a near fire. And did I mention painting?

--screech--
Near fire?!?! 
Yup, the entire town fire department (which probably consists of the entire town) responded to our house the other night when the relay for our water well pump overheated and filled the basement with noxious smoke. It was delightful.
Thankfully we were awake (painting) when it happened. When the electrician came the next day (thank god--we had no running water!) he said that it was not grounded properly and so it didn't trip the circuit in a timely manner hence all the smoke and burned up pump part, as you can see below.
All in all, it was a good learning experience because Jon got to learn how our well pump works, we both got to learn that old houses often have shoddy electrical work, Agnes got to learn that fire trucks are cool and I got to learn that I prefer ogling city firefighters to country firefighters.

So, I bet you're wondering what all this painting we've been doing is all about.
Behold, Before and Afters!!!
Apologies in advance for the not great quality photos--I don't have my wide angle lens with me, so these are iPhone pics.


Living Room--Still have a couple things to do here, but it's mostly done.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Mudroom--This wins the award for most improved. Jon says it's very Pottery Barn, to which I say, "YES! Mission accomplished!"

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Master Bedroom--Still keeping my eyes peeled for a shabby chic dresser. The view of sunrise over the barn and fireflies in the trees at night is sooooo nice.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Agnes' Room--So sweet it makes your teeth hurt!

BEFORE:

AFTER: 

Jon's Office/(streaming) TV Room/Guest Room

BEFORE:

AFTER: 

Guest Room--This sunny room makes me smile every time I walk in.

BEFORE:

AFTER: 

We also painted the bathroom, but I'll wait to post a pic until the new (smaller) pedestal sink is installed. And I painted the upstairs hallway and bannister, which took waaaay longer than expected.
For those of you keeping score, we now have 3 rooms left to paint: the formal dining room, the half bathroom and the sitting room, where the wood burning stove and farmhouse table are located.
And we have a kitchen renovation, which will start sometime in the Fall. As we're learning, it's going to be a beast. Fun with electrical and plumbing!

The house is really coming together though and when I slow down from all the work, I'm amazed at how special and soothing it is here. It's going to be hard to go back to the city after being here for the last 2 weeks. And I'll miss the AMAZING fireflies. And I won't miss the other bugs. Or the sulfur smelling water.

Besides all the painting, we hosted our first dinner guests and our first weekend guests along with a few other visitors. It's so nice to have someplace to share with friends.

Also, Agnes enjoyed 2 weeks of summer camp at the local Waldorf preschool--days spent sleeping under trees and pumping water from wells and snuggling with teachers. She has all the scratches, bruises and weird tan lines to prove her country living now.

(photo credit: Minka Wasylyk)

I promise I'll update again sooner than 3 months from now!