Since we moved into this house, the front room has been a bit of a puzzle for me. First it was going to be an office. That worked for a while, but in the end we mutually decided that the mess that our office inevitably becomes is not the first thing we want people to see when they come in our front door. Then, through months of indecision, the room organically became the junk room, the place where everything that didn't have a home yet fell in piles all over the room. I knew that wouldn't last forever, but wasn't sure how to move forward. Was it a dining room? Seemed like a waste considering how infrequently we would use a formal dining room. But we do have Chris's grandmother's table that needs a home. Was it a living room? I liked the idea, but we already have a family room off the kitchen and are building another in the basement. Do we really need
three living spaces? Then I started thinking, what about a hybrid of the two? The table folds down and doesn't take up much space. I've always wanted a cabinet to display my beautiful but rarely used china. Both of those would work in a dining area. But I would also love to have a sitting room that is free of technology: no tv, no video games, not even a stereo. I decided that with a little work, and a little furniture, I could combine the two.
I started with a china cabinet that I found on Kijiji. I really wasn't even looking for one, but rather researching what to charge if I decide to sell my family room furniture. But when I saw it I knew we were made for each other. We headed out to look at it an hour after it had been posted. Chris did a bit of work to fix it up like new before we even took it out of the van. Once I had it in the room and filled, it looked like it had been destined to house my china. I loved it. And I was hooked.
The same day we went shopping for a couple of chairs for that room. I walked into one store and fell in love with the first piece I saw. But my heart broke when I saw the price. I spent the next few hours trying to get over my love affair with that chair and fall for something else. No deal. Then I started bargaining with myself. If I found a second chair
really cheap, I could afford to buy the first chair. The hunt was on!
It took two days, but I found it. A floor model, going out of stock, just the right colour, about half the price that I was even hoping for! I took it home the same day, and went back to the original store to order the chair that was my true love. It arrived on Friday, just in time for the Moores' visit. Ellen and I enjoyed many cozy chats in my new sitting room. She also helped me find the large print for the wall that really finished the room beautifully. For now... A second hand piano and a print of the Fredericton waterfront are two items that are still on my wish list.
So now I have a sunny living room/dining room. We've used it for both already. Sunday the Moores were here and the Lambiers stopped in on their way home from church. We had plenty of food so we convinced them to stay. The kids ate in the kitchen, at what became the buffet table, and the adults (and baby Ellie) enjoyed Chris's grandmother's table in the "dining room". It was perfect! And it served a double purpose that night when it housed a rousing game of Wizard (which I won easily, of course!)
I love my "new room". I love its many purposes. But now that the kids are in school, my favourite thing about it is the way the morning sun streams through the picture window over my shoulder as I sit in my beautiful new recliner and read. I don't think anyone would dispute that it is "Mom's special spot".
And most importantly, it's leading me to finally begin to fall in love with my London house.
