Home Renovation #1: Get rid of all carpet & put in new flooring

When John and I did our initial walk through of the house, I said, "You know, this carpet really isn't that bad. We can keep it around a little while if we get them cleaned." I however, didn't realize I was pregnant at the time and when we finally bought the house and started cleaning it up for the big move-in day, my pregnant brain went into overdrive and I demanded the carpet be taken out. My sweet husband (along with some wonderful friends of ours) obliged and took out all of the carpet. Here is what we were originally working with:

that red carpet in the distance in fact leads to the kitchen! 

Carpet in the kitchen!? Carpet in the bathroom!? Carpet everywhere! ... even on the covered patio.

             

Perhaps the most upsetting part of all of our home renovations is the fact I didn't take NEARLY

enough pictures of the "before" & hardly any of the "during." -- SHAME on me.

Again, not terrible at first glance. I kept rationalizing keeping the carpet because there wasn't one stain on this carpet, which, I figured for the 30+ years that the Murphy's lived here, they must NEVER have stepped foot/ate in the dinning room or living room area. However, upon further inspection, I realized that shag doesn't show the stain because it is hidden deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep within. I found a random assortment of things including TONS of bobby pins -- immediately I felt sorry for leaving mine around all of the time, SORRY JOHN! Anyway, sweet, practical Diana who originally viewed this property decided that in no way would her baby (in 8 short months) be crawling around the sea of shag looking for daily surprises so out went the carpet! 

*disclaimer: we lived with just the sub-flooring throughout most of our house for quite a few months before some of it was put in.

I was so relieved that it was leaving, that I didn't even have a plan for what would replace it. I just knew I wanted it out as soon as it could be and John was leaving for a quick month down to Fort Irwin, so it had to be before he left. I grew up with all hardwood flooring, so naturally, I wanted that throughout my house -- easy clean up. John, on the other hand, grew up with carpets in the bedrooms and wood flooring throughout the rest of the house. We compromised, because after all isn't that what marriage is all about? We have bamboo flooring that we bought from Lumber Liquidators that is in the kitchen, dinning room, hallway, and formal living room. Carpet was put in in all three bedrooms and the down stairs living area.

this is the carpet we went with...

 a neutral tone that our future renters 

will love.

Partial view of the wood floor we chose.

We didn't want to go too dark because

of the dark cabinetry throughout the house.

Flooring process: 

Carpet first (thank you Home Depot) -- this took care of all of the bedrooms & the down stairs living room

Tile in both bathrooms (these too had carpet. All I could think was C'mon Murphys!)

New stair treads (stained by yours truly)

Bamboo flooring in formal living room

Bamboo flooring in dinning room

Bamboo flooring in kitchen