Progress!

Whew - what a month!! It's been a crazy ride these past few weeks, but being settled in is on the horizon. :)

When we closed on our house (December 2nd), we were confident that we would be moved in by Christmas (aiming for a couple weeks before). Then, I dropped a big flippin' frying pan on my foot & almost broke it, got pink eye (which really wasn't a big deal), & then a killer sinus infection & bronchitis that knocked me down for a week, so there were a lot of days that passed that we didn't get to work on the house at all! Needless to say, we weren't in before Christmas, which was really okay & also not a big deal. :) 

Our NEW plan: be moved in by January 1st so we don't have to pay another month's storage bill. Sebastian had yesterday & today off of work & I have at least through tomorrow off, so it's the perfect week to make things happen! We wanted to get out of the storage unit first, then move our bed over later. 

We really hate asking for help. So many people have offered to help us & we SO appreciate that!! But when it comes down to it, we know there are a million other things people can be doing, & especially in this busy season, we just don't want to inconvenience anyone. 

We did a lot by ourselves, but it gets overwhelming & frustrating when you work so hard & don't see progress because there's just SO much to do. We finally called in our 'tribe' to help us finish painting last week & we were blown away by how quickly it got done.

Tonight, we wanted to start unloading the storage unit, but didn't want to ask for help since those friends had already come twice before. By 5:30, we realized we weren't going to make a big enough dent on our own, so we called them & they all came because they're fantastic human beings & we love them so much! 

Y'all. Four trucks. Nine people. Three hours. The storage unit is EMPTY! Our house is filled with all of our stuff!! AHHH! We wanted to be out by the 1st, but we thought it would for sure TAKE us until the 1st to unload it all. But AHHHHH! It's DONE!! And I can start going through stuff & placing stuff & aaaaahhhhh!!!

We are so so thankful for everyone who has helped get us this far. The Nowaks & Messicks are two families who are there for us at the drop of a hat, & we are incredibly grateful to be able to call them our family. My dad & brother, Jesse, have helped us countless times over the past month & we certainly wouldn't be at this point without them! My sweet mama has been the best encourager & supporter & there are lots of days that I'm just ready to throw in the towel, but she keeps us going. And my husband - y'all, he's just the absolute greatest. He works hard & loves me so, so well. I'm so thankful to be making this house a home with him!! 

If there is one thing we've learned throughout this home-buying process, it's that God's timing is 

p e r f e c t.  I wanted to be moved in by December 10th, then 17th, then just anytime before Christmas, but that wasn't the Lord's will for us & that's okay! I'm really excited for when the time comes & He's ready for us to be in our little home.  

Oh, this life. I feel so blessed to have it. 

PS - THE STORAGE UNIT IS EMPTY! 

Here is a quick iPhone look at our colors! Spare bedroom on the right, master in the middle, office on the left. Those blinds were suppose to be white, but they're totally gray. However, their ridiculously cheap price tag makes me LOVE the gray. ;)  

House Tour!

GAH! Still over here wondering if this is real life. :)

We're officially homeowners & we have paperwork, keys, & two outrageously large receipts from Lowe's to prove it! ;) I am still so overwhelmed with gratitude that this is OUR house. Seriously, if you had told me three months ago that we'd be doing anything other than living in my parents house & saving money, I would have laughed. But here we are - God is good & His timing is SO perfect.

So, we have (in my biased opinion) the cutest house on the planet & I can't WAIT to move in!! Unfortunately, it was a smoker's house before it was ours, so we're having to clean & paint just about
e v e r y t h i n g  before we can live there. In & of itself, that is a majorly overwhelming task. Painting the walls, ceilings, baseboards, trim, doors, closets, cabinets - so. much. stuff. We're also replacing all of the blinds, because they all have a gross, yellowish tint to them! New counter tops, new baseboard heaters, new cabinet hardware (& potentially new door knobs & hardware if my little DIY project doesn't work out, hehe), new front & back doors, & re-routing the washing machine to another location just about covers the 'upgrades' we're making. Other than these cosmetic (& smelly) things that date the house back to the 60's, it is a really great, well built & maintained house that didn't need any 'real' repairs.

Alright, I know you're all here for the tour, so I'll get to it! ;) I'm excited to show you what it looks like now & then again once we're finished making changes!

I didn't take a picture of the whole front yard/house, so this is the one that was on Zillow!

When you first walk in the door, this is what you see - nice, open living room with that little half wall/window into the kitchen. The second picture, I stood in the corner next to the kitchen & just took a photo opposite of the first! 

 LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the massive window!! So much natural light.

 This kitchen has a little eat-in area that I love. We aren't fans of the flooring in here, but it's not a top priority to change, either. If we have some money once everything else is taken care of, we will definitely swap these floors out for something a little more attractive! 

 Cute little kitchen with plenty of window light. :) We are refinishing all of the cabinets & making them white (& the door, too) as well as getting new countertops - the ones we like are slate gray. 

 This is the funny spot they chose for the washing machine. The dryer is in a utility closet outside (but attached to the house - you'll see later!), so we are re-routing the washing machine to be out there, too.

 Our little eat-in area. The old & ugly baseboard heaters have already been replaced to sleek white ones - HALLELUJAH! 

 I love having a window above the sink. Since there is no dish washer, I'll enjoy doing dishes much more getting to look outside while I do it. ;) 

 This is the view out that window/the back door window! The utility closet is that little wall off to the right.

Looking back into the living room.

Back in the living room - looking down the hallway. There are SO many closets! Coat closet #1 is that first door on the left.

 Closet #2 is the closed door on the right & the linen closet is the closed door on the left. Bathroom is open door on far right & spare bedroom is straight ahead.

The bathroom is very peachy. ;) I'd love to change the tile, but that's at the very bottom of our to-do list.

Coming out of the bathroom - spare bedroom on the right, linen closet is the closed door straight ahead, master bedroom is next to that, & the office is on the left!

Spare bedroom.

Another closet! Hot water heater & more storage. 

Master Bedroom.

Office.

Coming out of the office. Water heater closet to the right, bathroom & closet #2 straight ahead, spare bedroom, linen closet, & master bedroom on the left. 

Looking down into the living room - bathroom on the left, closet #1 on the right. 

These backyard pictures are from Zillow, too, but I just love it! It's private enough to not need a privacy fence, & just so pretty. :) 

 The little closet on the left is the utility closet that will have the washer & dryer.

There is so, so much I love about this little house. I've met four of our neighbors & they're all incredibly kind, mostly retired families. The street we live on is in the back of the neighborhood, so there isn't much traffic - you're pretty much only back there if you live there! Sebastian, Jesse & I have been working our booties off to get stuff done, & while it's no where close to being movie-in-ready, we're making progress & I'm thankful.

Y'all  - WE HAVE A HOUSE!!!!