Julie Jodie’s house at 9617 Windy Hill may be the most distinctive residence in the
It’s not the Jodies’ beautiful collection of English and French casual antiques that make it distinct. It’s not even the fact that the Jodies gutted their 1950s ranch-style house and restored it to the character of homes built during that period.
What distinguishes it are the lime green playroom and the castle- and jungle-theme murals that adorn her children’s rooms.
“I’m the only house that looks like people live in it,” Jodie says. “Apparently, everybody else has grown kids.”
The Jodies’ home is one of four in the annual Lake Highlands Women’s League home tour. They moved to the house on Windy Hill six years ago because they wanted the big yard that came with it.
“We were willing to totally redo our house to get the yard,” Jodie says.
They stripped the house to the studs and revamped it to look similar to other original homes in the neighborhood, even adding brick flooring in the kitchen.
But with a 5-year-old daughter and a 2-year-old son at the time (the Jodies’ children are 11 and 8 now), they knew they needed fun space, too. Their daughter asked for a princess room, and their son simply wanted “a great big elephant on the wall.”
The women’s league believes the Jodies’ mix of grown-up and kid-friendly décor will appeal to the younger people that tour the home. Jodie definitely hopes so, joking that “trying to get my house ready with children here has been quite a task.”
The other three homes on the tour have personalities just as unique: One is owned by a contemporary architect who designed both interior and exterior features, one is owned by professional remodelers who made family and entertaining a priority, and one is chock full of European furniture and décor. All four will be decked out in holiday finery.
This is the 27th year for the women’s league home tour and bazaar. Proceeds provide scholarships for
The bazaar features 20 to 30 vendors, and though people love to shop, their favorite part, hands down, is the annual luncheon. League husbands serve the food, and diners walk away with holiday recipe cards featuring everything they ate.
