New Fireplace!

We decided after Christmas that it is finally time to replace the fireplace.  If you haven't noticed in past pictures, we have had a blanket over it.  (Here is a past post where you can see it.) Not only is it covered with a blanket, but also a plastic sheet. There is so much draft that you could feel the cold air just walking by.  Even covered, there was still cold air.  And the draft was so bad that we couldn't get a fire going.  (See this post.) 

Now that the kids are getting a bit bigger, it is time to start doing things around the house. So we got a fireplace insert!  So far, we have had a fire every Saturday and Sunday!  I love it, it reminds me of when I was younger.  Not only did I have one in my house, but my babysitter did, too.  I loved sitting in front of it as long as I could possibly stand it, letting the back of my shirt get super hot. 

The other thing we had to do was move the thermostat out of the family room.  It measured that room as being warm, and the upstairs rooms got down to about 62 degrees.  Now (thanks to Uncle Marty) the thermostat is in the dining room.  Problem solved.