The Home Renovation Wishlist, 2 Years In

Now that we’ve lived in our house for two full years, I’ve found myself quietly building a wishlist of changes I’d love to make. Some feel farther away and others feel slightly more urgent.

Our house is not a fixer-upper by any means. It’s a 1980’s home and has solid bones. The previous owners did such a great job making it feel like a home. It’s somewhat of a Father of the Bride/Home Alone combo and I knew I wanted to buy it within the first 10 minutes of seeing it but a handful of spaces feel outdated or no longer quite work for how we live now. We’ve never taken on a major renovation in this house so this next chapter feels both exciting and a little daunting.

When we were house hunting after our time in NYC, I was very intentional about wanting a home that didn’t need immediate changes. I wanted breathing room and a place that felt safe for kids to live in right from the start. A house we could live in as-is without sinking money into it right away (minus buying the house itself, obviously).

In those early days, we kept changes fairly light. Some upstairs carpet was removed and some floors were refinished but everything else was mostly aesthetic and for fun… to make it feel like ours. I fell in love in with wallpaper, added a partial wall to break up an open floor plan, and poured a lot of love into our outdoor spaces. Nothing structural though, nothing urgent, and nothing that required any sort of permit or survey.

And over time, life happened. We haven’t used our primary bathroom shower in over 6 months due to grout issues that caused leaking into the kitchen below. And finally, it’s time!

So, here’s the list. The changes that slowly rose to the surface after living here for 2 years:

One of the first home changes we’re planning for 2026 is rebuilding our deck, extending the roofline, and creating a screened-in living area that I truly plan to live in daily. My hope is that it’s used more than the actual indoor living room.

After two summers here, the mosquitoes, whom I despise, have made it clear they are not going anywhere. A screened-in space would let us actually use our outdoor living area all year long without being eaten alive. I picture summer dinners, slow mornings, hosting friends and family, truly just living out there instead of running back inside every 5 minutes or reapplying mosquito repellant each time.

I know this will be a major quality-of-life upgrade so it’s also the one I’m most excited for… the one that will change our day to day life the most I think.

The slow accumulation of art supplies has officially become a problem. It’s time for a dedicated craft corner. I recently put together a 2 part video of cozy creations in 2025 and it made me realize how much of a certified arts & crafts girly I am.

This space will be partly for me and partly for kids crafts. One designated area where mess can exist freely and creativity doesn’t need to be cleaned up right away. I’ve actually already started this one and I’ll share an update on Instagram tomorrow!

We moved my son’s bedroom a couple of times since moving here, especially after welcoming our baby girl, and he landed in what was once the playroom, the largest bedroom in the house.

After living with that setup, it became clear that splitting the space makes more sense for our family. Creating two rooms will give him a proper cozy bedroom again and bring back a dedicated playroom that both kids can eventually share.

A contractor recently confirmed this would be a relatively simple and smart change, which instantly made it feel doable instead of intimidating and questionable.

These officially have fallen into the required category. Our primary bath is outdated, and the leaking grout situation has made this future renovation unavoidable. The guest bathroom we plan to tackle is on our attic floor and currently has a jacuzzi tub/shower situation that’s quite difficult to step into for our aging parents (our most frequent guests) and even my 35 yr old self. It’s impossible to use for bathing a baby too. At this point, it’s less about aesthetics and more about safety and function. I tried a temporary no-reno makeover last year but it’s time for the real deal.

We have a fairly large upstairs guest room that was once unfinished attic space but, after living with it, I realized how many possibilities were hiding!

By adding a single wall, we can carve out a small, cozy office overlooking the trees. I’m imagining a desk, books, and the long window bench that’s already there. It’ll be a quiet retreat at the tip-top of the house.

This one feels simple but meaningful. I already removed the wallpaper that we installed as soon as I moved. It was the only wallpaper that I questioned after installing and I’m craving even more calm in our bedroom. A fresh paint color feels like a good reset… a small change that’ll make a big impact in how a space feels at the beginning and end of every day.

Time has a way of revealing what matters and what truly needs fixing. I’m so excited for some of these and for how they’ll affect our everyday life so we’ll see how many we tackle in 2026.

I’m sure I’ll share more updates on Instagram… you can follow along here.