A Space of Our Own

I’ve talked, briefly before about our current living situation I think. We moved from Pennsylvania to Illinois to be closer to my family during my 3rd trimester last year. We moved in with my parents until Scott could find a job. And that turned out to take 6 months, and we had no savings and a whole lot of bills to catch up on so after living for a year in the small bedroom that I grew up in, with our 2 cats sequestered in the basement, we helped renovate the finished basement space.

Above is the only “before” picture I seem to have. My parents have owned this house for about 23 years now, bought it brand new and the basement is a finished walkout. When I was younger, we made haunted houses on Halloween down here, my mom had a craft room although I can’t ever remember it being used. There is an unfinished storage/bathroom, a work room, a bedroom, an area for a kitchenette and a large living area.

Until this year, the entire space was pretty much packed to the brim with stuff. Fabric, old crafts, old papers from when we were all kids. Stuff from my grandparents, from when my parents were in college, things that they hadn’t opened since they moved in here 23 years ago. It took us about 9 months to clean it out. A lot when to trash, more went to donate and the little that is left fits in the small unfinished storage room.

My parents decided to rip up the carpet ourselves and safe some money. I personally ripped up about 80% of the entire basement, carpet and pad. It was rough.

We painted all the walls, and most needed two coats. I think because they had never been painted since the builders coat, it just sucked it all up. I am obsessed obsessed with grey right now. So the living room is a gray with dark grey. The kitchenette (which, hopefully will become a kitchen) is a sage green and our bedroom is a slightly lighter green.

 

 

 

In the kitchenette area, my dad and brother put down a laminate wood tile floor. I can’t remember the brand but it was a super easy install and looks really nice actually.

I’m pleasntly surprised with the amount of light we get down here. I never remember there being a lot filtered in. We have two windows and a patio door in our living space that face north and are also blocked by trees and the deck from the main floor of the house. The bedroom has 1 window facing east. We don’t have bright bright sun shining in at us, but I haven’t been needing to turn lights on until the sun completely sets at night. When I lived in Boston, I had a garden apartment and it was torture. I love the sun.

I left a few quotes and little notes on the concrete floor before the carpet people came. Someday, someone else will buy this house and rip up the carpet and see my mark on this house.

 

The carpet is a very very light grey, almost beige but it’s perfect for a basement with a baby and a kitty. Jeffrey loved roaming around when it was empty. I almost hated to move our stuff in.

And this little boy also got his own bed! We’ve bed-shared since day 1 and now we have the space to put a twin mattress on t he floor and our  mattress/box spring is pushed right up next to it. It’s been about a week and he doesn’t stay in his bed all night but he usually makes it about 4-5 hours which is when he wakes for a bottle and then I bring him in bed with us. I’ve struggled sleeping without him right next to me but it’s been nice to get to cuddle with my fiance and not my baby for the first time in almost a year!

Sorry for all the rambling-ness of this post. I intended to come here and talk bout how nice it is to have a space of our own but I wanted to share a bit if the story of getting here. It has been a rough year, the three of us living in one tiny bedroom. Our living space and Jeffrey’s space to play was the main floor. There are 6 of us (including Jeffrey) plus two dogs and 1 cat (plus our cat in the basement) living in this house and I’ve found that my energy just doesn’t mesh with most peoples. I need a separate space. I might talk about it in another post, but I’m a very Highly Sensitive Person and my anxiety and depression are triggered by being around other people.

This past week, Jeffrey and I have spent most of our days in our space. We go to the main floor to eat, and now that Jeffrey is eating more food (I usually give him at least half a banana and as much as a full meal) and less bottles, we eat at the table together. We also bought what I call a “baby jail” and have filled it with lots of toys. My computer is right next to it. I work, sometimes, or play with Jeffrey. We have had almost constant dance parties.

 

A few days ago, we were leaving the house and after we left I remarked to Scott, “isn’t there such a difference being away from people?” My energy, my mood, my anxiety is so much calmer. Even though Jeffrey has been teething this week and has been fussy and clingy, even crying while I’m playing with him…I haven’t been quick to get overwhelmed, I haven’t felt the panic rise in my belly as much as before. I think this is going to be good for us. It’s still not perfect but it’s a start and it’s ours.