When we decided to buy this house just over a year ago now, really my only concern or negative about it was that it was only a three bedroom at the time. Since we were constantly tossing around the idea to have a third baby, my goal was to find a house with four bedrooms - either to make room for another baby or to have as a guest room/office/bonus room for the rest of us.
Cody did not share in this concern because the basement space is so large that he always believed we could easily make a fourth bedroom if and when we needed to. And then when we did indeed discover we were expecting last fall, my initial thought was that we would just have Jaden and Brandon share a bedroom for a few years so that we didn't have to spend a good chunk of my pregnancy trying to remodel/build out a basement. Brandon's room would have been plenty big enough for two beds, and it just seemed like the easiest hassle-free route to take. But it didn't take long for us to decide to just move ahead with a bedroom build-out in the basement, and I'm so glad we made that decision. Every inch we move forward with this house, every room we remodel and make our own, we fall more and more in love with this place. And since the basement was the biggest blank canvas when we moved in, our dreams for it have been quite large. To have a part of its remodel pretty much completed feels really, really good.
So late winter/early spring, when Jaden's basketball season was winding down and our weekend travels were less demanding, Cody and his dad Tim started the process of sheet rocking, building a wall and a closet and planning for the egress window and all the new electrical work. Being able to do this entirely ourselves is a blessing for the budget but also a little stressful. ;) Our basement family room became a construction zone for a few months, and it's hard being a nesting, pregnant woman with half your house or living space in a bit of chaos and disorder. :)
To paint the picture, we bought this house with two very large basement rooms. One side of the stairs was what we referred to as the "bowling alley" room - very long and open - with a fireplace and a walkout to the backyard. The other side of the stairs is also one large space - housing our third bathroom, a really large closet/storage area and our laundry area - plus - at the time - a ping pong table. Most of the basement is already "finished" but in need of cosmetic work and a few walls to make it more homey and comfortable. We have plans for all of it - bit by bit. For Jaden's bedroom, we cut the "bowling alley" family room in half - and put a wall up at the mid-way point to create a bedroom on the far end. The remaining section contains our fireplace and our door to the backyard and is the space that the boys use for video games, movies, and real wood burning fires in the winter. Even without really doing much to the family room area yet, putting the wall up and dividing the one room into two rooms has already done so much to make that space feel cozier and more welcoming. There is such a thing as a space being too big or too open!
And though it took a while to get there, we have loved how Jaden's room has turned out. It's plenty big for him, as he's not one to really play with toys or need a lot of space. He uses his bedroom to sleep in and change clothes in, and that's about it. There is still room in here for a desk if we find a need for one at some point - or some additional chairs or furniture. But as it sits now, it's comfortable and much, much brighter than I envisioned a basement bedroom would be. We installed the egress window in May, and he's been sleeping down here ever since.
We aren't completely done decorating. I have a couple of Jaden's own athletic pictures that I want to enlarge and hang on the walls, and Cody and I are tossing around a number of ideas for his big north wall that is still a blank canvas right now. But all of the pieces that make up his bedroom so far are loved and have meaning. There's his Papa Tim's football helmet from his playing days with the Aplington Panthers, his trophy/medal shelf already at almost full capacity, antique football shoulder pads and a UNI basketball autographed by the entire UNI basketball team during his favorite Seth Tuttle's playing years. There's his pride and joy - his Outlaws' State Championship poster framed and hanging beside his bed, and a few other special items and memorabilia that made decorating his space easy and meaningful.
One of my favorite features is the wooden basketball hoop hanging above his bed. I had a different idea for this wall but then spotted this piece at 50% off at Hobby Lobby and couldn't resist.
A sneak peak of the view from his bedroom to the basement family room. That space will start getting some love later this fall when we begin touching up the fireplace and adding some built-ins around it. I can't wait to see it all come together, and to have another cozy room to spend time in as a family with a fire burning and a brand new mantle to decorate come Christmas time. ;)
People often ask me how Jaden has done moving into a basement space, and the truth is that he never hesitated to make the move and didn't miss a beat! He sleeps great down here, and he's doing a good job (with my motherly coaching) at keeping his room picked up and his laundry in the laundry basket. We've had to work on it, but I keep telling him his future wife will thank me one day. ;)
And now with baby girl's room almost completed, all three of my kids' bedrooms - all four of our bedrooms in this house - are lived in and loved. I love a bedroom that's unique to the person inhabiting it, and each of the four rooms make me happy whenever I enter them.
