After being back in our home for 4 years we decided to embark on another project. Four areas of the house were targeted: the attic, the master bath, the cellar, and the yard.

The Attic

One of the nice things about our house is a full 3rd story attic. In the past, the attic had clearly been used as living space having been partially finished into 2 bedrooms. However, the space is not currently heated or air conditioned and becomes very hot in the summer and very cold in the winter. We have used the attic primarly for storage.

We opted not to remodel the attic in Part 1 simply because we didn't need the space for living. However, as time has gone on Tim is finding it increasingly difficult to find time in his busy schedule to run outside, especially during the middle of the week and the winters. We decided to remodel the attic into two living spaces—one bedroom will be preserved and the rest of the space with serve as a home fitness center.

The Master Bath

When we purchased the home in 2002, the previous owner had recently remodelled the 2nd floor bathroom. During Part 1 of our remodel, we replaced the vanity and installed a medicine chest, but we left the shower alone.

Now that we've been in the house for 10 years we'd like to update the shower. We plan to install a steam shower with rain tiles, body sprays, and glass walls.

The Cellar

During Part 1 of our remodel we added a separate room in the basement in order to isolate the electrical panel and accessory freezer and refrigerator from Tim's workshop. We also use this "Cellar Room" to store potatoes, onions, and other sundries during the long Minnesota winters.

Although the room was partly finished, we basically ran out of money to tile the floor and trim out the walls. In Part 2, we're going to finish it right. We plan to tile the entire floor, add period lighting, install built-in appliances, and add cabinetry similar to the cabinets in our kitchen.

The Yard

Jay is an avid gardener and after Part 1 of our remodel Tim build a series of raised beds in the back yard for plants and growing vegetables. However, finding time to water the lawn and some of the other areas of the yard can be a challenge. We installed new sod between our house and our neighbor to the south, but it was such a hot dry summer last year that we couldn't keep up with the watering and most of the sod died.

We decided to install new sod and an irrigation system to keep it healthy during Part 2 of our remodel.