Welcome to the Mud Room! It is the place on Lookiloos – where we share the real stories of what goes on behind our own remodels, decorating dilemmas, domestic successes, and calamities around the house. Oh, and do we have ‘em! Don’t we all?
My family and I have lived in my bungalow for about two years. It is a modest 3 bedroom/2 bath with a detached garage. We had been looking for a home for quite a while, but was not inspired by anything in our price range – sound familiar? But the moment, we walked into this San Jose home I was in love. It was on a great street, with neighbors I knew and kids I liked and wanted my kids to play with. The house was sweet, but had some major work to be done to it.
What sold me was the converted garage. The previous owners transformed the garage into a granny unit – complete with bathroom and mini-kitchen. I had a vision of my husband’s elderly father using this space if needed or when my family came to visit they could have a mini-casita, as opposed to the blow-up mattress we usually set up. It was painted "kermit" green. It was cheerful. It was perfect. I had visions, that the kids would use it as a playroom and then I could have a living room without Power Rangers or Barbie dolls. Can’t a momma dream big?
Well 6 months after buying the home, we found out that the previous owners actually had been cited by code enforcement. Immediately my dreams of using the extra space were dashed. We HAD to revert the mini-casita back into a garage. (Yeah, I wanted to sling something at someone when I got that news!)
Long story short, we were able to save part of the garage, officially called a "rumpus room" for use other than housing cars. (sounds kinda kinky…) Now begins the saga about what to do with the space – the garage and the rumpus room. Playroom for the kids, my home office, a spot for the foozball table or a beer kegerator?
We decided to transform the space into MY office, though my husband J may disagree. Check back here to see how this rumpus room evolves or doesn’t evolve into a spot where I can actually get work done and eat chocolate in peace by myself.
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