So wow, 2020 careened out of control after we all made our lofty resolutions and goals to be amazing new people in an amazing new decade, didn't it?!
While we might not be losing weight and hitting exercise classes like we imagined, all cozied up in a blanket on January 1, if you too have been spending a LOT more time at home you may have been working on your house. I made a list of house goals for 2020 in early January and was surprised when looking back on it that halfway through the year, I've knocked out a LOT of it. Each set of goals was broken down into quarters.
Here's what I have accomplished so far:
- Replace the front storm door - we got this done in January or February. It looks fantastic.
- Put up more privacy fence - thanks backyard neighbors! They decided to do this and now I don't have to. I will eventually remove the cyclone fence, but not right now.
- Finish painting the kitchen trim and ceiling - my dad came and helped me one weekend in January. It's never going to look perfect but it's better now.
- Get decent chairs for the front porch - happy birthday to me. I got these teal Adirondack chairs delivered from World Market in early May.
- Paint the front door - this was my first quarantine project, completed in March.
- Get a quote on backyard work - uh well, it was such a good quote that the work is currently in progress!
- Pay off HELOC from garage work - Also, since this got paid off in March, I went ahead and used it again on the backyard work! Working from home is saving me a lot of money, so I'm sure I'll pay it off semi-quickly again.
The things I haven't done yet are:
- Make the bathroom lights dimmable - I am currently looking at new over the vanity fixtures, I'm tired of the boring ones I chose in a rush 11 years ago.
- Cross our fingers we don't need a new HVAC system this year - We are possibly getting a new air filtration system for the HVAC unit, which may help extend the life of the current one by a few years (we hope)
Luckily for us, my workplace is probably not going back to in-office work anytime soon, thanks to the insistent spread of the coronavirus in South Carolina (and the fact that we can work from home with NO PROBLEM). That gives me the time and energy, and extra money (from not wasting it on gasoline) to be able to do these projects. I'm still not adding a ton more, but just a few manageable things. I like to cross items off lists, so doable goals are my favorite.
New house goals for the remainder of 2020:
- Paint the half bath and add dimmable lights in there at least
- Add on the air filtration system to the HVAC
- Have all unnecessary weeds and vines removed from the backyard (by someone else)
- Put up posts for a permanent hammock stand in the backyard
- Make a few raised beds and spaces to plant hydrangeas, blueberry bushes, and a few perennials once it's cooler
- Pay the HELOC down to <$5k by December 31, 2020 ... or more!
What, if anything have you been doing to your house? If you haven't been doing anything to it, that's okay too! This has been a very weird and stressful year for reasons that just keep piling up like a bad horror movie.
