Tad, That same area I love is on the northmost edge of Murfreesboro, so as close to Nashville as you can get and still be in Murfreesboro. Communting from West Nashville to Murfreesboro was pretty difficult when I was trying to get home for anything like picking up kids from school. Traffic can get pretty dense right about exit 70, Almaville Road/Smyrna until at least exit 74 where you can exit to the edge of Murfreesboro. That four miles can be really difficult during the commute home. The commute to work gets dense right about Hickory Hollow to Harding Road. And the ways around it, aren't much better. Too many lights. But if you don't mind driving for 45-90 minutes to get home, it's worth it. There is enough in Murfreesboro to keep you happy, it's less expensive, more relaxed atmosphere, close enough to Nashville for anything it doesn't have. I can't speak to the benefits/problems of Franklin, but living in Franklin, it seems like my youngest brother is really struggling financially to live there. And at no other time have they struggled. Is it worth it? Dunno. All places have good schools. _____________________________________________ Murfreesboro school rating: http://www.greatschools.org/tennessee/murfreesboro/ Franklin school rating: http://www.greatschools.org/tennessee/franklin/ Nashville school rating: http://www.greatschools.org/tennessee/nashville/ And because I know my hometown, more Nashville ratings http://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/tennessee/districts/metropolitan-nashville-public-schools/hume-fogg-academic-high-school-18154 (Gold ranking from US News and World Report #54 in the nation) http://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/tennessee/districts/metropolitan-nashville-public-schools/martin-luther-king-jr-magnet-at-pearl-high-school-18163 (Gold rating from US News and World Report and ranked #73 in the nation)

Sometimes I wonder why we went with this split king bed LOL. It seemed like a perfect solution because my husband suffers from reflux and can pop his side up, but I swear it messes with the snuggle factor because I can always feel that split. My girlfriend has the "split head" king that looks like a tooth but only splits half way (I attached a picture below). She says she can feel the split too when she snuggles. And sheets my goodness just add another variable to the entire decision. I had to buy the split king cooling lyocell sheets from the mattress company and those cost $200. Granted, after spending a million dollars on this mattress and base it may not seem like a lot, but I still can't wrap my head around $200 for these "special sheets" when I paid half as much for my favorite super duper soft PeachSkinSheets for my old king bed. They were twice as soft and still kept my sweaty husband cool and dry (bless his precious heart). They just came out with a five piece split king sheet set that is under $100 but there are only two colors ...white and cream and I really need more of a wedgewood gray-blue :-( :-(. I've never tried the Target brand, but it sounds like they only have them at certain times during the year? << :-( I just checked online and Target doesn't have any listed right now>>. Even though they don't have my color, I think that I'm going to have to cave in and get a white set. Besides, white goes with everything (see, I can justify anything!). I am hoping they stay put but in case they don't, I have my back up Sheet Suspenders.....aha! Problem solved. Here is their link, if anyone else out there is spending as much time as I am on my bedding issues: PeachSkinSheets .

Bear with me here. I'm going to ask a few questions first. 1. How far away from the corner is the door into the bathroom? 2. Do you have room to put floor-to-ceiling shelving about 12" deep on that wall around the window? And, could you put a window seat/chest under that window? 3. Do you have any other windows in your bedroom besides the one on the back wall? 4. What is that little area in the hallway beside the door to your bedroom? Is it a linen closet? And now for a suggestion: 1. Widen your closet door so you can actually walk into it, or at least have a better look at your clothing. 2. Go back to the original closet rod orientation, but put a low and high rod. That is 10' of space right there, more than the 9' you have now. Then put some of those shoe cubbies in the corners, just wide enough to hold one pair of shoes each, and stack em all the way up. 3. Get a tallboy chest that is also longer, and put more of your clothing in drawers instead of hanging them up. I'm assuming you have 8' ceilings. Look into the wire closet configurations they sell at Lowes and Home Depot, manufacturers like Closet Maid make some good ones. I bought a Closet Maid kit to outfit a closet 5' to 8' in width--whenever the closet gets built. Be strict about keeping in your bedroom only the clothes that you wear. Move the others into that other bedroom. And, you do not need to modify it in any way. Except, you can build a platform bed which has storage beneath it. A nice mattress on top can be high up enough that you could slide plastic totes beneath the platform. A good really full bed skirt out of heavy duty upholstery fabric would go far in disguising the platform and making beaucoup storage hidden from the casual observer. Even a single bed can have a platform as its support. make it as high as you like. I was pleased to have my platform bed plus mattress and a feather/down topper delivered yesterday. I slept on it last night. And it was so comfortable I overslept this morning. I've had a background living on boats for so many years, where every inch of your space has to work, that I became less than efficient in organizing my belongings once I moved into a real house. At first I rattled around like a beebee in a washpot, but not now! It sort of got away from me. I'm going to suggest that all those clothes you do not wear now but HOPE to one day, those are the ones you MUST BOX UP. I'm afraid you will discover that when you get to the right size to wear them, they will be out of style. Of course, I remember some of my teachers whose clothes looked dated, and they cared not if they did. If these clothes are of wool, moths might destroy them. Don't encumber yourself for years and then find out it was all for nothing. Make some hard choices now, and maybe you will feel like I did, that a heavy burden was lifted from your shoulders. Look at it this way. Say you and the DH are in a big balloon with all these things in the basket with you. Up ahead is a mountain range. The air is getting colder and it is thinner too, and the balloon MUST RISE to clear the mountains. Put on the coat that fits and will keep you the warmest. Then, start choosing. Start tossing out. It will lighten your load, and you WILL RISE ABOVE THE OBSTACLES. Sometimes the choices we must make are not as simple as downsizing to live happily in our existing space. Did you see the movie SOPHIE'S CHOICE?

Ha ha, all I did so far was buy it yesterday! The garden shop has done all the good work! I won't take nearly as good of care of it, hopefully it has a good start from them!