Going Underground - Basement Update - This is It!

It's been a really long process, but we're finally done.

Today is the Grand Opening of our newly-finished basement!

Ultimately, this was less of a DIY project than we would have liked.

But it turned out a lot better than I'd hoped.

And a lot better than I was capable of doing on my own.


We didn't do the HVAC ourselves, or the drywall, or the electrical.

Or the doors. Or the bathroom.

In fact, we didn't even do the painting - which we definitely could have handled.

We DID install the floor, though. And the storage shelving, the ethernet equipment, and a handful of other small projects.

This is a really big basement, and it was a really big project.

All told, this increases the "finished" square footage of our house by about 30%.

We've added a bedroom, and a bathroom.

Most importantly, we've created a space that's entirely dedicated to our kids.

It's not fully furnished yet - the sectional sofa won't be here for a few weeks, and the bar is completely missing.

So tonight's Grand Opening is really more of a "soft launch".

But we are having a number of families over for dinner, and we'll be able to send our kids downstairs.

It's a total game-changer.

AND... it means that HomeKit is definitely coming ASAP for us.

We need a way to turn off all of the basement lights without having to constantly run down there!