A Nicer Light to the Outside World - Windows!

Some of you may have noticed from the initial pictures of our house, or perhaps if you have visited our house, that the windows (like everything else) were original to the house, and some of them in quite a state of disrepair (i.e. picture below).

This one was my (least) favorite. Both bedrooms were equipped with window air conditioners permanently, such that there was no window pane to put back in the window if you took them out. This one was not even sealed very well, so soon after moving into the house we decided to make the best of it by duct taping all around the window and A/C unit in hopes to reduce the amount of air escaping or coming in. Still, the rooms didn't cool or heat very well, and we knew we needed to replace them soon.

So we decided to take the plunge and replace a few really bad windows this fall, and wait on the rest until spring. Well, with the kitchen taking so long and us not entirely having our act together, we didn't get the windows ordered until November. It shouldn't have been a problem to get them installed before the end of the year, as we usually have fairly good weather through December, but not this year!

We were hoping to take advantage of the little we had left to claim on the energy rebates / tax credits, but when we left for Ireland on Christmas day, we had little hope that it would happen. BUT, thanks to a last minute heat wave and our SUPER window installer, we were able to get them in on Dec. 30 & 31! Whew - that was close!  :)

This window lives in our family room on the first floor, which is still "under construction"

 So now we have 5 nice new beautiful windows, and it really is funny how much a difference it makes (to me) looking outside! They are a lot cleaner than the old ones obviously, but I also like the crisp white instead of the dull aluminum gray.

This window resides in the "purple room" or my office :)

Now we can't wait to get the rest of the windows done, especially since we have only one new window on the front of the house (looks a little silly, but oh well - it will hopefully be fixed in a few months).