Good Neighbors

I have to confess a totally embarrassing moment that happened yesterday.  The boys and I went out at our normal time to take a walk through the town and then to the local playground.  Pete, our really nice neighbor, was outside mowing his fabulous and expansive lawn.  We definitely have yard envy.  We walked over to say hello, and Owen started yelling "Peace! Peace!", his way of saying Pete.  As we approached, Pete asked if I minded if he mowed our lawn.  Oh boy, we are those neighbors.  I confess that our lawn is super low on the priority list right now, on top of the fact that we don't currently own an operable lawn mower.  This was on the Home Depot list of things we need to purchase.

So, red faced, I bumbled about how sorry I was that we haven't gotten to the lawn and that it would be so amazing if he wouldn't mind mowing and that we would be buying a mower this weekend and that we would pay him and that we would be so appreciative and...bumble, bumble, bumble.  Well, our lawn isn't very big and he said that it would be no problem.  When we returned from our walk, our lawn was freshly mowed.

It got very chilly after the front moved through yesterday afternoon and it really felt like fall.  So, the first time this year, we baked some delicious pumpkin bread as a thank you and delivered it to "Peace" that afternoon.  I realized how great of a neighborhood we live in and am so happy that we chose this house.

Here are some photos that I took last night after dinner of our street and the town from our front porch.  You can just see that autumn is right around the corner.

A panorama from our front porch of the town of Phoenixville

I love these trees on our street.  I have no idea what type of tree, but they look like they have been here since the house was built.

Paint Color Paralysis

I was pretty confident in my color selections a couple of months ago, but I realize now that I made a rookie mistake.  I didn't live with the colors on the wall first.  Paint chips only tell a very small part of the story, not to mention the changes in light from room to room and time of day.  The dining room and living room were in my mind a soothing blue gray color, the dining room a slightly deeper shade then the living room.  I am afraid that the rooms will be a bit cold with the cool blue tones, but really want something that will compliment the rich floors which I thought that tone would do well. 

So, I went and got samples (under $3 a piece at Home Depot), lots of samples.  I have applied them to the walls in each room to live with for awhile.  I also grabbed a few warmer shades in the yellow family to see if I prefer a warmer wall color.  Here is where we are at - your thoughts and opinions are very welcome!

Dining Room Back Wall - My blue/gray selections. 

Dining Room Side wall under stairway (ignore the clutter - still unpacking!)

Living Room - Warm and Cool Palette

Living Room - Warm and Cool with Deeper Accent Colors
that will be used in a special project involving book cases

My initial thoughts are that the yellow colors too similar to our furniture color and there won't be enough contrast in the room.  I'm thinking that the warmer fabrics will offset the cooler wall color if we stick with the blue tone.  As a side note, that horrible trim color is getting painted a white semi gloss.  You can see where I started around the door frame.

Box Forts

As we unpack and settle into the house, we are making the best of it with box forts!  They keep Owen entertained for quite some time and gives me more time to unpack.  We are making good progress on the boxes but still have a way to go.  In the mean time, we are deciding on the paint color for the living room.  I am stumped.  I thought I wanted a blue gray, and actually purchased the paint already.  But, I am nervous that it will be too cold for a living room.  I have some sample squares up on the wall right now living with the different colors in different light.  Who else has a blue or gray living room, and if so, what do you think?