October has arrived, but before we dive into a new month of projects, it’s nice to pause and look back at everything we accomplished in September. From renovating Granny’s bathroom and building a train board to transforming tables into ottomans and celebrating our fifth blogging anniversary, last month was full of projects and surprises. We also revealed the first stop on our book tour below—so read on for our monthly roundup in a fun, yearbook-style recap that makes browsing the archives easier.
Most Surprising: After falling for the blue metal stools in our kitchen, we were shocked when a pair of Craigslist swivel stools wandered into our lives. They’ve quickly become favorites, and we’ve already got plans to use the blue stools in the sunroom so everything fits in nicely.
Biggest / Most Gradual Transformation: Our bedroom has come a long way since we first moved in. It took time and a lot of small decisions, so we documented its evolution with a picture-filled post to show how patient progress pays off. If your space isn’t finished after the first week, month, or year—don’t worry.
Biggest Missed Opportunity to Make a Quad City DJs Reference: We built a train board for Clara—and somehow the music-loving member of our team didn’t title the post “C’mon Ride The Train.” Honestly, we can’t believe that reference didn’t make the cut.
Video Killed the Comment Section: We published a detailed post about how we make our videos, but it received far fewer comments than expected. Maybe not everyone is as into camcorders as we are—who knew?
Creepiest Project: We started decorating with nature—specifically a butterfly Sherry and Clara found in the yard. It now sits on our bookshelf; we’re planning to add a glass dome for protection, but for now it’s a pretty and slightly eerie piece.
Toughest Decision: Letting go of our Craigslist dining chairs and replacing them with deeply discounted new ones. We love the updated look, but it was a little sad to admit the old chairs weren’t going to work out. Live and learn.
Biggest Oops: I broke our camera when it fell off a board while I was sawing. The upside: we upgraded to a new camera with HD video, which has made shooting projects and house tours much easier.
Oddest Couple: Sherry and I filmed a house tour with the new camera as a two-person team—she narrated while I held the camera. We make a quirky but effective pair for video shoots.
Biggest Relief: We finally released the promo video for our book, which we shot back in March and kept under wraps for months. Revealing some of the secret projects felt like lifting a big weight off our shoulders.
Most Burger Approved: We repurposed old X-base side tables into low ottomans at the foot of our bed so Burger can climb up more easily. They doubled as doggy steps and a helpful bedroom upgrade.
Most Likely to Require Eating Lots of Tomato Soup: We used special edition Warhol Campbell’s Soup cans from Target to make a cork-backed wall display. It required eating a fair amount of soup, but we succeeded in consuming it all.
Most Uplifting: Our weekend trip to Granny’s house in West Virginia to update her downstairs powder room. The work was tiring but incredibly rewarding, and we left feeling thrilled with the results.
Biggest 24-Hour Improvement: By the end of the second day at Granny’s, the bathroom already looked worlds better—new paint, new flooring, and lots of tidying up made a dramatic difference.
Breakout Star: Granny herself stole the show when we revealed her remodeled bathroom on video—she won a lot of new fans, and we were so happy to share why she means so much to us.
Most Academic Shopper: Sherry shared how she finds clothing deals and manages her wardrobe, complete with the idea of giving clothes a grade. Closet GPA might just catch on.
Biggest Rivalry: We compared rooms from our first house to their counterparts in our current home and even picked winners. The final tally was closer than you might expect.
Littlest Updates: Four small changes around the house—like installing another dual-flush toilet in the guest bathroom and building a hidden spot for our shredder—made daily life a bit smoother.
Longest Graphic: For our fifth blogiversary we created a timeline graphic of our history dating back to 2004. It was an exception to our usual image sizes—and ended up over 4,100 pixels long.
Most Ordinary: Our “day in the life” blogiversary post captured a regular weekday around here. It might not be everyone’s normal, but it’s ours.
Biggest Conspiracy Theory: Readers wanted to know what happened to Olivia the pig’s ear. The truth: Clara bent the ear back and forth until it snapped off. No mystery, just preschool curiosity.
Most Scene-Stealing: Clara and Burger got their own blogiversary Q&A video and charmed viewers just as much—or more—than the video of us answering reader questions.
Most Nostalgic: We dug through the archives to highlight favorites and not-so-favorites, including a post that won “Worst Photo.” It was a fun trip down memory lane.
Most Ambitious: We set goals for our next year of blogging—embracing creative risks, varying post length, and involving readers more. It’s a mix of big ideas and practical shifts, and we’re excited to try them.
Most Graphic: We published the results of a reader survey with fun infographics. Making the charts was a blast, and the graphics helped present the data in a playful way.
Most Likely to Make Pigs Fly: We announced the first stop of our book tour: Cincinnati, Ohio—the city of the flying pig. The full 17-city tour list will be revealed tomorrow morning, and we’re excited to hit the road.
How was your September? Did you finish any major projects, help someone with a makeover, celebrate a milestone, or just have some creative fun? We’d love to hear what you tackled last month.