The Neverending Story....

...has come to an end.

Remodeling the 34 side of the duplex has consumed every spare moment of our lives for the last 3 months. We painted instead of going to the movies on Fridays. We cut and installed shelves instead of going out to dinner on Saturdays. We cleaned instead of sitting at home relaxing like the middle-aged people that we are. This side of the duplex is where we started out when we moved to Billings. It seems so small now, and so renewed.

We moved into the duplex in 1981 with 3 year old Scott and 1 year old Shelly.  We paid  $89,900 and assumed a 9.5% mortgage--quite the bargain since interest rates for a new loan were 16-17%. We came up with a $10,000 down payment for the privileged of assuming that loan, making our monthly mortgage payment  around $800. No worries, we collected $165 rent from the other side. We lived on the 34 side even though the 32 side is about 6 feet longer. We wanted the bigger yard, and the other side already had renters.We have been upside down (rent collected vs. bills paid) on that place basically the whole time we've owned it, with the exception of a few years. Hopefully, that is going to change now.

The duplex was in need of updates right from the start. Here's an early shot of the bathroom.  The house had hideous, gold, 4 inch shag carpet throughout, including through the bathroom, around the toilet and up to the tub. The thought of it still makes me throw up a little.

Shelly, age 1 and Scott, age 3

Our very first remodel project was to rip out that shag in the bathroom and replace it with self-stick linoleum tiles.

Scott, age 3, Chris, Shelly 14 months

The next project was to take off the sliding glass door, guaranteed to cut you in half when leaning over the tub to bathe kids, and put up a shower curtain. 

Shelly, age 2

Now the remodeled bathroom has a new tub, new toilet, new cabinet and counter.

One night when we were working late, I ran to Walmart to get a toilet seat. It wasn't until I unpacked it and started to put it on that I realized I'd purchased this ridiculous seashell inspired seat. Fortunately, Walmart is only a mile from the duplex and they take returns.

The bathroom looks totally new,

except for the mirror and goofy charming 1970's lighting. We ran out of time and money and put these on our "next time around" list.

I have always loved the brick fireplace in the living room. It turns the duplex from a shoebox to a place with character.

Scott and his best friend Cressida,first day of first grade, 1984 with our "loaner" couches.

There is also a fireplace in the unfinished basement, this one with weeping mortar. We've never changed anything about these brick fireplace/walls. We even have a clause in our rental agreement that you 

MUST NEVER PAINT THE BRICK, UNDER PENALTY OF DEATH!!!

The kids loved to play in the basement. It has two sides--the one with the fireplace, and the other with the furnace, water heater, and lots of open space. This side of the duplex is around 1900 square feet, about 950 sf per level.

Scott, age 6

The basement hasn't changed at all, other than throwing out the piece of yellow carpet that's been sitting there for 40 years, and replacing the furnace and hot water heater.

 You can still see the holes, drilled into the basement ceiling  beam thingies, where we hung a swing for the kids.

The duplex has 2 bedrooms--one about 10 x 10, and the other 11 x 13. We slept in the smaller room because 2 beds and a crib and bunches of toys didn't fit in the smaller room. Stan cut down the legs of an old dining table which we put in the larger bedroom.  Scott and Shelly spent hours and hours drawing, cutting,and coloring at that table.

Shelly, age 18 months, Scott, 3 1/2

 The bedrooms now have new carpet and paint.

 I personally painted all of the dark doors. It took one coat of primer and three or four layers of paint. I often ran over in the morning before I picked up grandkids and put a layers of paint on all the doors, then came back at night after the grandkids went home to put on another layer. We replaced the handles, but not the hinges. Item two for our "next time around" list.

While the bulk of the house had gold shag, the kitchen had an avocado green carpet. People of the 70's obviously took drugs--carpet does not belong in kitchens, and shag carpet under the dining room table area is pure insanity. You can spill a bowl of cheerios and still be picking cereal out of the carpet a year later.

Amy, 6 months

The appliances were harvest gold, that icon of 70's color.

Scott, age 5 getting a haircut from Stan.

 Our original fridge was the kind where the freezer section was inside the fridge--you opened the fridge door so you could open the freezer. It had to be defrosted every month or two.  The whole fridge was maybe five feet high--just roomy enough to hold a gallon of milk and last night's leftovers. The freezer section was big enough for a carton of ice cream and an ice cube tray.  Look at that thing on the wall with the long, curly cord--I wonder what it is?

 Shelly, age 5, Amy 10 months

The kitchen, while smaller than my current kitchen, was the biggest we'd had up to that point.

 Scott, five and Shelly, three

 You can see how dark the wood is in the original duplex looking at the cabinets between the fridge and stove.

Shelly, 4 and Scott, 6

We replaced the flooring, cabinets, countertop, and curtains about a year ago when we did the other side.  Stan replaced the kitchen chandelier this time around. Those gold appliances have been replaced by used, but still useful white appliances over the years. We'd like to think white is always in style.

Stan added these nice shelves to the laundry room just off of the kitchen

 and took out that puzzling door connecting the two sides in the storage room off of the laundry room. This allowed us to more than double the amount of shelves in this storage room. I would have loved all of this extra storage space when we lived there.

All of the doors are this dark, veneer, fakey wood doors that are pretty battered after 40 years.

Shelly, 3 and Scott 5.

We added these curtains shortly after moving in--the place didn't have any window treatments.

Cousin Lisa and Shelly, age 4, cousin Lindsay, age 5, and back of cousin Spencer, age3

There is black wrought-iron rails at the stairs.

 Shelly, age 4

 Stan made a gate that kept Amy from taking a tumble down the stairs.

Amy, age 10 months, checking out what's behind the door

That gate has been gone for a very long time now, and we've replaced the curtains several times over the years, but the curtain rod is new. Those white doors make the place look a lot more modern, if I do say so myself.

Here's one more thing for our "next time around" list: re-pitching the stairs so that you don't need a repelling rope to go down them.

We spent happy years at the duplex. During those years I even sometimes made sure Scott was dressed in dignified ways and Shelly didn't get enormous bruises on her forehead.

Scott, age 5 and Shelly, age 3

Nevertheless, it is with great gladness in our hearts that finally, OFFICIALLY, COMPLETELY,  we finished our duplex remodel.

 At 10:30pm last night, we were still cleaning out the garage, tired as we were. We have renters moving in bright and early in the morning.

At 12:17 am I swept the last corner.

We loaded our trusty little truck with all of our tools and headed home. Man oh man, it feels good to be done. 

Of course, we still need to sand and paint the front door.

Ditto for the screen door...

...wow. I guess this really IS a neverending story....