I decided upon the title for this blog while glancing down at the fresh cleaned carpet between my toes on Sunday afternoon. "Ooh, it feels so nice and soft," I thought to myself, as I struggled mentally to get past the now overflowing vacuum bag, consisting of equal parts gravel, dirt, dust, hair, and other disturbingly "dirty" elements. It was the first day that I officially vacuumed our new home, just shy of three months since we moved in.
In my defense, there must have been at least one or two times where Ken vacuumed the house within the past three months. Must have.
Fast forward to the next couple hours following my cleaning spree. I sat on the carpet, read magazines while sprawled on the carpet, and ended up lying flat on my back on the carpet of our living room floor while brainstorming fireplace ideas with Ken. It was such a wonderful feeling knowing that I wasn't going to step on a nail or muddy my clothes with residual dirt. As I reflect on the past few weeks living at our new place, I recognize that our transition into being homeowners has been quite messy. We're in the process of creating a whole 'new' home for ourselves. It's such a cool opportunity to extend grace to myself and Ken as we work out the details of our new space. I'm learning that it's OK to get behind on laundry, dishes, and yes--vacuuming. Meanwhile, as I do start to develop habits and routines, I find my excitement increasing, knowing that I'm investing in our home. Everyday, I find things that I am grateful for as well as things that I want to change, in our new home. Perhaps, that is part of the beauty of living and self-improvement--being grateful and welcoming change as an opportunity to grow.
Ken and I continue to work toward our house project goals. Some of which include:
- Replacing the old painted lava stone facade on the fireplace with brick and a new, efficient wood-burning insert. (We are currently in the purchasing stage with the brick, which is about $100, and the saving stage with the fireplace insert. Initially, we thought the insert would be around $1500 but after actually researching fireplaces, we found out that they cost about $2500.)
- Purchasing a second bed so that we can have a comfortable setup for guests
- Installing a new fence in our backyard, as well as a new driveway
- Turning our one bathroom into two bathrooms
- Putting up blinds and eventually, replacing the storm windows
- Purchasing a couch, art, and an efficient and space-saving washer/dryer combo
- Refurbishing our kitchen with new cabinets, a larger sink, and a gas stove
- Tearing down the kitchen/living room wall and installing a reclaimed wood countertop island
Our list is inspiring and at times, daunting. Ken and I have reviewed our monthly budget countless times (which includes our income and cash dispersal for bills) and keep coming back to the simple lesson that with time, diligence, and patience, we can save for our projects. "It's the steady climb," someone once told me. As Ken and I commit to living frugally (i.e. our monthly budget for Eating Out is $50), and practice satisfaction and contentment over acquiring more "stuff", we are moving in the direction of our goals. It's pretty cool.
And oftentimes hard.
And uncomfortable.
Yet, so incredibly worth it.
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I hope you enjoy these photos of our current home additions and improvements. Thanks for stopping by!
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| Ken tearing down the 1970s' style stone fireplace. |
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| All the old rock pieces are off! :) |
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| He did an amazing job. |
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| New sheetrock and mud coating applied. |
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| Our new dining room table! |
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| Plants galore. |
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| Hung a coat rack by the door! |
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| Ken painted accent walls in our favorite shade of pear. |
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| Indoor succulent garden! |
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| View from our house - you can see the mountains. :) |
