Basement Project

When we bought our house in September we knew one of the first things we wanted to do was finish the basement. I am terrible at visualizing things but D is very good at it. He saw lots of potential in the basement. I trusted him since that part of my brain doesn't work. It's the same part of the brain that helps you pack tons of bags in a small trunk or decide which tupperware container to use for leftovers. I fail at all of those things. We got a recommendation for a great contractor and he and D put together the plans. I just hoped it would be finished before the weather got terrible so that LB would have more space to play during the day. Thankfully our winter has been pretty mild so far and the bulk of it was finished while we were in Oklahoma for the holidays. D painted when we got back (I helped a little) and carpet was installed last week. It's finally done!

Here are some before photos:

In process:

Finished:

Totally transformed! Obviously, we still have a little decorating to do but it's a really great space. LB loves it and we spend a lot of our time down there. The main thing we got LB for Christmas was a kitchen. We decided to wait to give it to him until the basement was finished. I wish I would have captured the look on his face when we brought him downstairs for the first time. He even said, "wow!" It seriously was like Christmas morning around here.

One of the best features of the basement is the little hiding place under the stairs. It's so Harry Potter. The contractor put a little light in there for LB and he thinks it is the coolest place in the world. I tend to agree. Originally, we thought we would put some of his toys in there but it's just too good of a hiding place.

I'm so glad it is done and the result is way more than I hoped. Thank goodness I married someone with vision!