Light up my life…

Whew — I have a few minutes this morning to catch up before a new whirlwind sweeps me away!

Last week  was ‘normal-busy’ till the end, all the usual running plus a few extra side-trips to the house to see how the paint was coming along.  Then on Friday I got the word that my contractor needed all the light fixtures and appliances chosen ASAP so he could place orders for the items that might take a week to arrive (likely appliances).  Anyway… my brain went into overdrive.  Shortly after high noon, I took us all over to Home Depot (mainly because everybody kind of likes Home Depot, but also because I didn’t think I could keep track of everything without at least a secretary) and began the ponderous process of light fixture choices for every room.  Mother made the choice for her room, so that was easy – a lovely textured flush mount with white trim that will match her blue and white room and add a touch of old fashioned elegance.  Jacob’s room was also easy:  the Warehouse Pendant just screamed BOY.   He wants to put a green bulb in it.  In his green room.  Uh, no.   I have been extremely accommodating so far, but that would be taking the Riddler obsession beyond.  And no, he does not get to paint black question marks every which way on his green walls.  He can cut them out of black paper and tape them up if he must.  Sheesh.

Anyway, back to my light fixture tour… that brought us to the main hallway bathroom.  Now here I was in a bit of a quandry because I had this fancy notion in my head that I could bring a thematic continuity to my multicolor house by utilizing lighting in the main, “public” areas that all came from the same “family” as it were.  However, there were many obstacles to this, not the least of which was that I was unclear as to the number of light fixtures and their location.  I couldn’t remember, right at that moment in the Home Depot, whether all the light fixtures we used to have would be in the same places or not.  So it took me a VERY long time – not just to decide what theme I wanted throughout the house, but then which fixtures would be in which parts of which rooms.

I decided to leave off that part of my list and move on to choosing toilets (pretty simple) and bathroom fixtures and appliances.  I had a conniption in the towel bar aisle because my contractor had said something about State Farm only paying up to $12.50 for basic chrome, and we had installed upgrades in both bathrooms that were more than twice that.  You know, the state I was in by that time was not conducive to clear thinking.  I moved on to look at ovens, but not without some sputtering.  My poor mother and oldest daughter were extremely long-suffering and angelic during this stretch….

Appliance shopping was really the best part of the afternoon because we had decided in advance that good appliances were a priority, and we would pay the extra beyond what State Farm would cover.  Still, I managed to find a range, microwave/hood and dishwasher that were all on sale, which pleased me greatly.  All that’s left for the kitchen is the refrigerator, but we’re bringing that in ourselves so I didn’t need to choose it quite so quickly.

I spent a few more minutes pondering the light fixture aisle, and then it was 3:30 and we had to get home, get Jacob in his karate uniform, and get him to class.  I couldn’t actually believe I had spent nearly 3 hours there.  I tried to put my finger on what had been so maddening and I finally realized it was the constant noise.  The muzak, the people talking, the loudspeakers, to say nothing of the visual noise of thousands of products looming skyward no matter which way you look … it’s all I can do to make decisions in total silence, and this was anything but.

So off we went on the karate run, and after dropping him off, I went back to the house so I could put my eyeballs on those ceilings and figure out where things were and were not.  I’m so glad I did, because there were some significant differences between the before and after.    From there I was able to go back to another home depot (spent another hour there) and make some decisions.

Two fan lights for the office (used to have track lighting – this will be much better).

Two flush mount oil rubbed bronze fixtures in the laundry room (used to be just one hanging fluorescent utility light!).

A fan light for the girls’ bedroom, and vanity light for their bathroom.

A fan light for our bedroom.  (I hope it wont be too big, but I couldn’t find anything I liked that was smaller.  And at least this will provide lots of breeze!)

It wasn’t until I was at home and looking Home Depot online that I made my final decision on the rest of the lighting.  I had been hung up because I knew I loved the look of Caffe Patina, but I knew we needed a ceiling fan/light for the living room, and nowhere could I find one that would complement that style.   I couldn’t imagine that Hampton Bay would make a whole series without a fan…. so I let out quite a whoop of victory (totally disrupting the episode of “Mentalist” that Jeff and mom were watching) when I found the final piece of my lighting puzzle – the Hampton Bay Caffe Patina 52 in. Indoor Ceiling Fan!  From there it was quick work to choose the main bathroom vanity fixture and ceiling mount; the family room fixture (used to be an ugly chandelier); and the entry way light.

I could not, however, give the ultimate sigh of relief until I opened my email this morning and found that Justin, my ever faithful contractor dude, had given the thumbs up to everything.  I am now officially PSYCHED!!

Oh, and the paint is pretty much finished — we were there yesterday and there was a very busy crew doing the final touches on trim everywhere.  They all had such a spring in their step, and I’m going to go out on a limb and say that my pizzazzy color choices had something to do with it.  The Latin radio station they had playing completed the make-you-wanna-dance ambiance.

Today the flooring begins.  I am now irrationally terrified that after loving everything else I’ve chosen as I see it coming together, I will hate the tile.  I will be so glad when this is finished!!! 😀

(P.S. — the cabinets are in, and the counter-tops should be finished today, and I LOVE THEM SO MUCH!!!!  Pictures will be forthcoming, but right now there are too many workman dudes in the way.)