We are six months post move. And while I had hoped to give monthly updates, it never came to pass. That was much too high of an expectation that I thought I could handle. We are still adjusting to life in a new
place. So what has this life been like exactly? We are finding our stride. All things have changed. We JUST unpacked our last box (except the picture frames). It felt A LOT like
Sanford and Son (cue music). I LOVED that show as a kid!! However, I do NOT much like living in what looks like a salvage yard! There was equipment and tools all over the front porch, a bath tub in the front
yard (that kept drawing unexpected visitors), and debris everywhere for months and months. Homes built in the early 1930's were obviously not built by hoarders, so we have had to improvise in the way of storage, temporarily giving up a bathroom until we can create an access to the attic. Yet another construction project. This was another time to purge.We DO have an uber
small closet in our foyer (which currently has an old chimney that was used in the kitchen "way back when" that will be taken down before it can be utilized...you heard that, right? Demo project on the horizon), everyone has a closet in their room, and
there are three storage closets up stairs. Also, we did close up a closet in our bedroom and
removed the linen closet in the bathroom to provide space. The shower
was totally worth it!!! We are getting creative with bath storage ideas.
PINTEREST to the rescue! My husband told me during initial renovations, that Pinterest was of the devil. :-) I told him that Pinterest saved him a bundle with all of the ideas and DIY projects in which I had him and the crew involved. At the moment, this house is not the Home Sweet (dream) Home, like my Pinterest board title, but she is not the hot mess where which we found her either. We are working to make it our dream though. But, I have to work harder yet not to pick up my old perfectionist tendencies. My sweet friend Melissa came to visit from the burbs of Seattle and asked me a very real question? She asked if I was okay with the months and months and years and years that it will take to get her done. My answer is NO! I may have stretched a bit far with the goal of BEING DONE ALREADY, but she should be finished within the year. Oh please, I may not make it if she is not done soon! This whole process has given me a new appreciation for God's grace and how He has changed me...Him and Him alone. I could never have changed all of the things about me that He has wiped away. And, y'all...He is nowhere near done with me yet. Thank you, sweet Jesus.
We
are growing accustomed to our new surroundings, though slower for some
of us (ME) than others. Every routine I have ever had, has been shot all
to...Helsinki! My grocery shopping, my home schooling, my cleaning, my
storage, my organization has all changed! Our go-to stores are different. Wal-Mart south, not Wal-Mart north.
Lowe's south, not Lowe's north. Lynwood Kroger, not Stonebridge Kroger. I have found that my house is equally
close to both Goodwill north and south....bonus! I love it here. I do
not love the disorganization. I cannot find things that I need. It seems
like everything hangs on the completion of one undertaking or another.
There are countless small projects that linger....and by linger, I mean
they run amuck
all over this place! Our life is full and busy. What would take some a
weekend, might take us three weeks or more to complete. We work when we
can. We will not let this home, and it's constant need for attention, be
CONSTANT. Now, it has been no where near easy. I have not enjoyed all
of the moments shared in this place. Refinement is not pretty or fun, but needed. A goldsmith removes impurities from gold by putting it into fire. That is how it becomes pure gold. If she is to be all that she can be, she must be mended and then tested. in Nell's refinement, I find myself being refined as well. I could let
all of the loose ends kill me if I did not have Jesus. I am still a
type-A, although it does not rule me like it once did. I know He is
not trying to kill the type-A. He created me this way. I have to remind
myself of this constantly. I often view this as the thorn in my own side.
But, he does not want it to define me. He wants to define me. He
wants to define you, as well. He wants me to let Him make me into
something beautiful that will take a lifetime to achieve. So, I keep
pressing forward. Some days the little that is done, inching us toward
our final state, is enough. Some days it just is not. I am only being
human. My flesh is still a very real part of me and it will until I am
in my eternal home. And in that glorious place nothing will need a single renovation!!
Clinging to that hope today!! Until then, I keep trying to
adapt...remain clay in the hands of the potter...keep having faith that
He did not bring me here to abandon me. He has something great in store
and it is unfolding before my eyes.
It feels like this is where we live...
...and this is what renovation feel like!
Marcus just asked me the other day, on yet another run to
Wal-Mart/Lowe's, "Do you miss our old house?" I had not given that life a second thought. I was struck by the fact
that Stone Spring Circle was totally off my radar. I do not think about
our old home. That is quite funny to me. I am looking forward. I know
this is where we are supposed to be.We have a new life here!She will be amazing in her own time. To us she is amazing already. We will continue to chronicle this transformation. I hope to update one completed room at a time. Stay tuned...
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