Yep, this is crazy and not very 'grown up' of us, but we HAD to do it! Plus, we need a little fun since we have been stressing over the Mini Bathroom, Spare Room Redo, and Christmas shopping. Alex and I were 6 years old when the first Home Alone movie came out and like every kid, we just LOVED it! What kid didn't want to be as cool and clever as little Kevin McCallister outsmarting robbers and setting up a house full of traps? Most importantly, what kid didn't want to sled down their staircase and out the front door? What a great idea!
A while back I blogged about how much I loved the Father of the Bride House because of the traditional layout and center staircase at the entry. The McCallister house from Home Alone has the same characteristics. You can see a really detailed view and some behind the scenes facts on Hooked on Houses (fun fact- they made that whole house red and green colors in every room to give it an overdone Christmas feel?).
I really think the reason I wanted an older colonial style house is because of all those movies I watched growing up... Grand center staircase at the entry, detailed woodwork, classic light fixtures, doors, windows... just so warm and charming! Our staircase is of course not as large and grand, but still has a similar look and feel.
So, 20 years later (did you know it was the 20th anniversary for Home Alone?) Alex and I are making that childhood dream real! A few days ago, one of Alex's coworkers mentioned how cool it would be to have a house where you could sled out the front door like in Home Alone. Alex said, "I have a house like that" and the idea was planted! Once he mentioned it to me I told him that it was an awesome idea (much to Alex's surprise) but yes, just a little crazy!
To do this without completely destroying our hardwood floors and stairs (we have put a TON of work into our little house), we may have gone a little overboard with our protective set up to protect for Operation Home Alone: House Sledding. Just like in the movie, there is about 12 feet of level ground from the end of the stairs to the front door, therefore we had to use snow (yes snow inside = crazy) to create a slick surface to make it out the front door. Realistically, Kevin never would have made it out of the front door once he hit that rug and wood floors at the bottom of his stairs, gotta love the magic of Hollywood!
For the first step, Alex grabbed spare wood from the garage to create a frame for the sheet plastic where we would put down snow. We'd later wrap the sheet plastic around these to create a bowl effect, with the goal of keeping all of the snow contained. The pups were very curious about this whole process :-)
Then he started securing the sheet plastic with trusty blue tape and a couple of staples into the wood boards. We also put layer of blue tape at the edge of each stair to protect them from the bottom of the sled. Our sled was plastic as well, not metal like the movie, but they also had a runner down the stairs and a much larger budget (sadly, a special effects crew wasn't in our budget).
Then the snow came in (our poor dogs were very confused)! I was freaking out a lot little, but stood by with several rag towels to sop up any melting snow that hit the floor.Once we had a good amount inside, Alex packed it down and smoothed it out with a shovel.
Then it was time to sled down the stairs! Here is my little 'Kevin McCallister', Alex was REALLY excited to do the first test run.
Next, it was my turn! Sorry for the camera flip at the end (Alex would never make it on a Hollywood movie set), but you'll get the gist of it.
Then I got one of Alex from outside. I wonder if our neighbors saw what was going on?
We both took two trips down and then called it quits since it was pretty cold and we were still a little nervous about the snow in the house. Fortunately it didn't take too long to clean everything up, and then we got to watch our little videos, which were hilarious! I hope you enjoy them!
I realize this was crazy, but honestly I think that might be one of the best memories we will have in this house (thankfully a contrast from all the DIY work or the 2011 Tornado experience). We both agreed that this was a stunt that our parents would have never allowed, but one that we will never forget! I also have to give my hubby a shout out for setting this up AND for always being a 'kid' with me, I'm very thankful for that!
*** UPDATE! Our little adventure has been featured on Hooked on Houses! Check it out!