Happy New Year! Its Snowing in Louisville!

At least it was snowing in Louisville. As my DH says snow has become an endangered species in Louisville. It is supposed to snow a little more later today, but alas, no accumulation.

Today, we're just chilling out here at the house on our last paid holiday off for awhile. I'm taking this extra time to organize my list of resolutions and projects for the new year.

Major Projects

Build a shed (We need this so badly. Storing tools in much needed closets must come to an end)
Finish the deck (Yep, still working on it)

Laundry Room Redo (We want to purchase a front loading washer/dryer to better utilize the space in our hallway of a laundry room)
Floorplan redo (Details coming soon)

Minor Projects
Paint/Wallpaper Guest Room (I want to install a chair rail, and use a red, black, and white color scheme for this room)
Finish Trim throughout the house
Install Banquette in Kitchen
Have a flower/vegetable/herb garden

My only serious resolution is to get organized this year. We have a clutter problem. We would have so much more space if we could clear some of the clutter. Having an outdoor storage space would help with this resolution a lot. As I said above, storing the tools in the house really cuts down on valuable storage/organization space. So, the first step in my get organized resolution is to start brainstorming different ideas for outdoor storage.

Option #1 - Build a garage. This option requires a serious investment, but with a guaranteed return due to the fact that this house currently has street parking only.

Option #2 - Build a storage shed from scratch. This option could potentially be the least expensive. This would require a serious investment of time, and we would need some outside help. This option will not add the resale value that a garage would.

Option #3 - Build a storage shed from a kit. This is the best option so far, I think. We could get a kit with plans and everything that we need to construct a shed. No guesswork is a good thing. This is a bit more expensive than Option #2, but I think it would be worth it.

I think this is my favorite kit. Its from a company called Betty Mills and shipping would be free. We probably wouldn't do the windows, although they are cute. They are not included in the kit price. We may just get some used aluminum storm windows to put in there, if we decide to use windows. It would be nice to put some little window boxes on them. I can see myself looking out from my new deck and admiring it now, all the while thinking about how all the junk is not in the house anymore.

In closing, all I can say is what a difference a year makes. I'm so much happier this year than I was last year. I am currently light years better than I was in 2007. I look to the future with great optimism, in hopes that the years ahead will only get better from here.

Happy New Year Everyone!

For last year's words belong to last year's language. And next year's words await another voice. And to make an end is to make a beginning.~T.S. Eliot, "Little Gidding"