FLORIDA MOM MAGAZINE - October '08 - Marsh Landing Seven - Laura Duffy's HouseBy: Michele Gillis Photos: Michele Gillis
 Running a household of seven is never an easy task, but Laura Duffy does it with a sense of humor and grace.
Her children are Tommy, 14; Patrick 12; Kelly 10; Brendan, 8 and Connor, 6. They also have a Labradoodle, named Irish.
Needless to say, she keeps very busy keeping her 5,000 square foot house running, going to the gym, taking the children to their sporting events, volunteering at their school and making sure everyone is taken care of.
Duffy decorated their home to feel warm and comfortable with a touch of casual elegance.
“The house works great for a family of seven,” said Duffy. “We have plenty of space. Everybody has their own room, except for the two little ones. We use the other as a guest room/computer room. It really just functions well. The two older boys have their own space upstairs and television room.”
Before children, Duffy was a stenographer. She met her husband, Tom, a personal plaintiff’s attorney at Terrell Hogan in court. “We always tell people we met in Juvenile Court,” she said.
Six years ago, the Duffy’s lived in Atlantic Beach, but as the family continued to grow, they realized they needed a larger, more functional home for such a large family. They bought a speculation house from A.F. Alan Custom Homes builders six years ago.
“It was raining and we had all the kids in the car while we visited open houses,” said Duffy. “We were tag teaming at the open houses. He’d run in then come out and tell me what he thought and then I’d run in. When we got to this house, my husband came out and said, ‘I love the house. I love the view and wait until you see the kitchen.’ I came in and just envisioned five bar stools in the kitchen area and said ‘That will work.’”
With everyone in school, she said she often acts as a short order cook and the bar area allows her to serve everyone at once.
Though the house is quite large Duffy needed to modify the kitchenette area to fit her family. “I saw how small the dining area was and knew that if we put a table there to fit our family would be too crowded,” she said. “So, I looked in magazines and had a designer come over and we talked about it. We built the banquette, (that looks like a corner booth area) which is the best thing we’ve ever done. We did go through a little trial and error with the material. The bottom did have a laminate over it, but within a month, it got punctured. So, we changed it to Naugahyde vinyl, which is totally indestructible. For any moms who want to know the best choice of indestructible material there, that’s it. It is the best thing ever.” The table she put in the corner is a slab of marble on a wrought iron frame.
Duffy remodeled her kitchen by changing out the appliances from white to all black and adding a tile back splash and stove hood. She also changed the oven from electric to gas and the fixtures from white to black.
“We put draperies in the living room,” she said. “That was a huge project because the windows were not centered, so they had to really work with them to get them up there and make them look even.”
With all of her children’s sporting events to organize, Duffy has a huge wall calendar in her utility closet off the kitchen that she uses to organize her day.
“It is my life,” she said. “I’m constantly on them to pick up and put their dirty clothes away. Organization is very important. I usually make their lunches at night because the mornings are chaos.”
Her home is decorated in very neutral colors, but she has very vibrant artwork placed strategically throughout. “My colors are very earthy and warm,” she said. “First and foremost, very kid friendly. Even the Chanel material we picked out for the living room chairs is very forgiving and will not show a thing. I like very neutral colors and my walls are faux paint and that was to keep finger prints to a minimum.”
She also has textured walls in her bathrooms to reduce finger prints and dirt on the walls. “There are a lot of kids going through there,” she said. “All of our paint is matte finish and easy to wipe. I went to a lot of open houses and I really like the warmth that these colors bring to a house. Before, the colors were gray and didn’t even match the granite countertops. It really bothered me from the day we bought it.”
The Duffy’s have a large back patio with pool overlooking the marsh. They have a play set for the kids and a beautiful rock waterfall in the corner of the pool. “The pool is used all the time,” said Duffy. “The thing with this house is that it is great for entertaining. We have doors all throughout the house that lead to the pool area from the family room, living room and master bedroom. When we have a party, it all flows very nicely. It’s really nice to go out there and sit and the kids use it all the time.”
Duffy and her husband have a part of their bedroom set up with two chairs and an ottoman, so they can go there to get away and relax. “When the kids are out here watching television or whatever, we go to our little sitting area where we can take five minutes to talk about what we are doing for the rest of the day and be alone for a second,” she said.
Their bathroom is large and spacious with a garden tub and walk in shower. The bedroom is decorated in the same neutral tones to create a relaxing haven for a busy mom of five.
The older boys have the upstairs area to play games or watch television. They each have their own room decorated with sports memorabilia and of course their trophies from their respective sporting interests.
Tommy is a golfer, Patrick and Connor play baseball, Brendan plays football and basketball and Kelly is involved with Girl Scouts, basketball, cross country running and playing the violin. “Everyone is involved in a little bit of everything,” said Duffy. “There are trophies everywhere.”
Her daughter Kelly has a four poster bed with canopy accented with pink and lace to create an adorable and comfortable room. She has her walls decorated with pictures she and her friends have created and a shelf for her to display her Madame Alexander doll collection. “She gets one every Christmas from her grandmother,” said Duffy.
Life is always on the go for the Duffy’s. Laura, with her positive on-the-go attitude, is able to keep her family and well as her beautiful home in tip-top shape.
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