The living room is so much better than it was just after we finished the remodel.
You remember how it was, right?
Oh. You don’t?
Maybe that’s because it wasn’t very memorable.
It’s much better now. But I need to explain a few things. I’ll use the same photo to point them out.
TV is off the mantle and on the opposite wall, where it sits much lower now. There was simply no other place to put the TV, and the truth is that we’re a TV family. We just are. We watch movies, football games, movies, UFC events, and movies. And the History Channel. And Intervention.
I haven’t yet sold Marlboro Man on Intervention, but I’m working on him. Homeboy likes NON-DEPRESSING and ACTION-ORIENTED programming.
The armoire way over yonder? The one with the shiny brass trim? It’s GWON. As in, “gone”. I’ll show you later what took its place.
See the leather chair on the immediate right? The pretty medium brown one with the pillows? There’s a second one coming.
The second coming of the leather chair. I await with anticipation.
When it arrives, we’ll kick that curvy, dark cigar-smoker chair back to the mud room where it belongs. It’s just a stand-in right now.
And that little dinky table will be somewhere else someday soon. It was in the entry for awhile, and I liked it there.
The lamp is WAY too short and skinny. It’s an import from my own living room, where the proportion is fine. But in here, it shrinks down to nothing. I think we need two identical large and substantial lamps on either side of the TV cabinet…or do we? Is that to symmetrical and matchy-matchy?
And large, substantial lamps are VERY hard to find.
Overall, I’m happy with the direction the living room is going.
It’s so much livelier than it was, and I do really like the TV where it is now.
Still, the space will need some tweaking. A different rug? A large, more square rug to give the area some definition? Maybe a bright solid color rather than a print? Also, there’s some awkward wall space on either side of the TV. (I’ll snap a photo from the other direction later today so you can get the full effect.)
Public Service Announcement: we’ve since taken care of those visible wires behind the TV, so for those of you who feel uncomfortable at the sight of things out of place, please rest easy! You can’t see them anymore.
But whatever you do, DON’T LOOK IN MY CLOSET AT HOME. You’d have a total psychological meltdown.
Thanks for being here,
Pioneer Woman
Ree Drummond is the founder of The Pioneer Woman and a lover of butter, basset hounds and life on the ranch! Ree started her blog in 2006, and now millions visit ThePioneerWoman.com every month for her trusted recipes and fun family stories. Here’s what she has been up to since it all began:
New York Times Bestselling Author
Ree has written two memoirs (Black Heels to Tractor Wheels, and Frontier Follies) plus nine bestselling cookbooks:
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl (2009)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food from My Frontier (2012)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: A Year of Holidays (2013)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime (2015)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Come and Get It! (2017)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: The New Frontier (2019)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Super Easy (2021)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinner’s Ready! (2023)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: The Essential Recipes (2025)
Food Network Host
Since 2011, Ree has been sharing simple, family-friendly recipes—and the occasional kitchen prank!—on her award-winning show The Pioneer Woman, filmed right on Drummond Ranch. Ree is also a regular judge on Food Network competitions, including Christmas Cookie Challenge.
Founder, The Pioneer Woman Collection
Ree has been creating and selling kitchen and home products at Walmart since 2015 and she’s involved in designing every piece and pattern. The line now includes best-selling appliances (you have to see the floral blender!), plus hundreds of pieces of cookware, tableware, and more. Ree doesn’t like to play favorites but the Agatha print has a special place in her heart.
Restaurant and Hotel Owner
Together with her husband Ladd, Ree has opened several bustling businesses in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, including The Pioneer Woman Mercantile—a bakery, restaurant, and general store that draws visitors from across the country (many come for the biscuits alone!), P-Town Pizza, Charlie’s Ice Cream Shop, and The Boarding House, a charming hotel with eight different rooms decorated by Ree and Ladd.
Media Personality
Ree appears regularly on national TV shows like Today, Good Morning America and more—all while managing to keep flour off her shirt.
Wife, Mom and…Grandma!
Ree’s kids (daughters Alex and Paige and sons Bryce and Todd) are all grown up, and as of December 2024, Ree is the proud grandma of the cutest baby ever, Sofia Scott, born to Alex and her husband Mauricio. Ree still cooks for Ladd (and the kids when they’re home), and she also looks after a few mischievous ranch dogs.
