Our most recent project was to move our office into the “formal living room” space. Then, we turned our old office space into a playroom for the kids.

Reasons I am so excited I can’t sleep at night:

1.Our office was sound insulated during construction, so now our playroom is!
2.It is in a central place in the house. No more walking toys upstairs to bedrooms. ALL. DAY. LONG.
3.The kids’ rooms are cleaner and neater and all the toys are together. And organized!
4.The kids have their own space. They will have no reason to trash the office anymore.  Raccoons, I tell ya.

My mom has been totally opposed to us turning this formal living room into an office. It is right off of our entry way, and really, the first thing you see when you walk in. I struggle with the logic of having a room that just sits there. Lonely and unused, just for the sake of looking nice. And what use is a formal ANYTHING to me right now? There is nothing formal about my life. I am up to my eyeballs in diapers, dishes, laundry, and spray paint. I mean, really. The idea of having a whole other room that serves a purpose is delightful.

We decided about 2 1/2 weeks before Christmas to surprise the kids with the new playroom. Since we were going to do it eventually anyway, it seemed like a fun time to unveil it. So, we ran around like chickens with our heads cut off trying to get it done.

Here is what we did:  Playroom Benches with boxes and baskets for toy storage

Crate Book Shelves for books and other toys

Chalkboard Table and Chalk/eraser hanger

New Kitchen and food container (love this for play food and kitchen accessories!)

Chalkboard art display

Frames with fabric mattes, black and white pictures of the kids clipped in- no glass

Pillows for the bench

Sounds easy, but when we designed and made almost every single thing from scratch,  it was crazytown at our house. But, we love it and the kids play in it ALL DAY LONG. Paradise.

I wish I could get a shot at the whole room, but you get the idea:)  Board and Batten, shutters and window treatments are next!