And Sometimes I Get Decision Fatigue…

Renovating all of Berrybrier has been an exhilarating, exhausting, exciting, and at times, excruciating process. To say it’s been wild, would be an understatement. I’ve loved it and I’ve hated it, but mostly I’ve loved it. So many people thought I was crazy when I bought this house. Looking back at the before pictures, I realize I was crazy! Maybe I still am? I wouldn’t trade this experience though. I’ve learned so much and gained so much confidence in my own design and DIY skills. I’ve had so much help with Berrybrier thanks to my giant family who’ve all contributed in so many ways. One thing I’ve done alone though? Bought the house and made all the decisions. And there have been a lot of decisions.

Some decisions were super easy, like what color to paint Berrybrier! Coral, duh! What else looks this good at sunset?

Some decisions have been extraordinarily difficult, like whether to try yet another method for removing the tar mastic that was keeping me from seeing my original fir floors, after the first four methods failed.

Some decisions have been super fun, like designing my dream, green bathroom!

Sometimes, just the act of making one decision after another decision on this house is so utterly exhausting, I feel like I need to take a break. As a single woman making 99% of the decisions on Berrybrier alone, I sometimes get what I call “decision fatigue.” Sometimes when something doesn’t go exactly as planned on a project, instead of making a decision on a change and pushing forward, I just want to go crawl into bed and sleep for a week.

I think this is probably normal. Our lives are all so busy these days. We’re so used to multitasking and constantly using our brains (and our phones), we forget that our heads need rest too. So occasionally, I do crawl in bed and ignore a house/renovation decision for a few hours. Interestingly, I’d say this decision fatigue is mainly related to my house and DIY projects. I don’t get this at work or anywhere else!

I’ve been so fortunate to be able to buy and renovate this house alone, but when I get decision fatigue, I often wish there was another person around just as invested in Berrybrier who could help with the endless decisions (not to mention the continual costs of home improvement!) and just be around to bounce ideas off of. Most people who take on massive projects like Berrybrier, either have way more money or they’re doing it with someone else. I read a lot of blogs, but only one features someone who’s undertaking a massive renovation alone and Daniel Kanter blows my Berrybrier projects out of the water. He’s so freaking talented. I wonder if he gets decision fatigue sometimes too?

Anyways, each project I complete gets me one step closer to finished (not that I’ll ever be truly finished with Berrybrier!). I’m done with so many of the big Phase I DIY projects around the house. Future projects are going to take more planning / design work up front and hired professionals and I’m really looking forward to that!