Day Nine: Our New Entry Way

I'm a little behind friends...it's not like I'm being graded but seriously, it stresses me out to get too far behind or else I start feeling like I'm drowning!  You know, in the sea of blogging.  In real life, this is really just a minor setback :) BUT I'm getting back on track tonight.  And I'm kicking off the tour of our house with our new entry way.  Not only is it exciting (I'm grinning here) but it's buying me some more time to clean up and photograph the other rooms! I thought I'd give you the dramatic before and after shots, although I'm swallowing my pride to do so.  I've been very strategic to keep our old carpet out of as many photos as possible because it had gotten so bad, but I dug up a few pics to show you so you could see the difference and appreciate why our entry way makes me so happy now!

First of all, this picture...Is she something else or what??  Side note, one month later and she L-O-V-E-S preschool!  Anyway, as you can see we've always had carpet leading up to the front door and for the first few years, it looked ok.  Amazingly, having a Golden Retriever wasn't the demise of the carpet but our two children were!  That and the fact that our carpet was 10 years old and a very cheap builder grade quality.  I faithfully had it professionally cleaned for many years, but eventually there just wasn't much more that could be done.  The last six months or so have been brutal but the last two months have been downright bad!  Once we knew we were replacing it we definitely let it go.  

This is a pic from my painting days this summer...our previous entry leads right into our living room and our kitchen.  Truly we really don't have an entryway.  I've always hated not having one, it's an awkward first step inside with no landing spot for shoes or more importantly, dirt.  But we've made it work.  When I knew we were putting tile in the bathrooms, I told Trav that I'd really, really, really like to do the same here.  Considering we definitely live in the land of 4 seasons, I knew tile would be a much better surface and something that could help keep our new carpet cleaner.  

So I'm very happy to show you our new entry!  It's still small, but in almost every way it's so much better.  Also, enjoy the sneak peak of our new carpet :) :) 

Ideally we would have continued our kitchen tile into the entryway, but as luck would have it, it's been discontinued and we didn't have enough left tile over to use here.  This little 4 foot area was the source of more than a few headaches for me.  I went back and forth about what to do here, what material to use and how to lay it out.  It's just not big enough to do much more than a basic rectangle so in the end I just settled for what would make the most natural transition.

I think you can see the grain of the tile well in this picture.  We just love it and are so glad we went with this here!  It's also the same tile we used in the master bath, but in there we used larger pieces.

The intersection of these four surfaces (tile, carpet and paint) stressed me out because I had to pick them mostly independent from one another.  I kept hoping and praying they were all going to work out when they were in together, ahh, hate that stress!  Clearly I have some touch up painting to do and some trim work to add but I really am very happy with the end result.

We (the tile guy and I) decided to keep the grout lines consistent so that the two would blend as seamlessly as possible.  Already I LOVE having a dark floor there instead of ivory carpet!

So now I have a cute little entry way that makes for a cozy first step into our home.  I love it and I also love some of the sights when you walk in our front door now...

I happen to think this is a great backdrop for photos now, I also think those two are some of my favorites to photograph! I'm really glad for a place to wipe our feet, leave our shoes and come on in.  

I realize this entry isn't a huge change or a crazy renovation, but like so many things, it's the little stuff that makes a big impact.  We're grateful for the chance to make these improvements one by one and I'll tell you the story of how this tile got the green light in a future post. As always, the Lord orchestrated every detail and made it possible for us to do more with less.  Amazing!  Isn't it such a great change from that first pic...

...to this???  So happy!  Who knew??  Next time you're in my neighborhood, come on over, kick your shoes off and stay awhile!  This is day 9, stay tuned for the rest of our home and changes to come! 

Day Eight: Outside the Walls

Today was one of those glorious Fall days that makes you want to savor every detail, taking in all of the sights and smells and sounds.  Not only was the weather gorgeous, but the company I kept was pretty sweet too.  

I got to accompany this girl (and her headband) to one of the local apple orchards with her preschool class.  I was a tad bit worried when the weather was cold and rainy last week, wondering how taboo it was to back out of the parent volunteer list??  Too soon to be "that" parent??  Oh, I kid.  My little Pagey girl was SO happy when I told her I signed up to go with her class, she has been counting down the days and telling me how "esscited" she was that we were going to have apple doughnuts together!  In fact she popped into our room this morning at 7 am, saying "Good morning Mommy!  I can't wait for the apple orchard today with you!"   How could I ever disappoint her AND turn down apple doughnuts??

We ended up with a picture perfect day and I was very grateful to be holding hands with my favorite preschooler, taking in the majesty of Fall in Minnesota.  Never mind the fact that I almost threw up upon our arrival, due to the worlds longest and hilliest drive.  Seriously.  I was praying myself there without incident, but mental note, next time there is a bus ride it's Trav's turn to go!

Hayride time.  We were ready for some fun, clearly!

Blue skies, rolling hills, and a playground to enjoy after our ride??  All the makings of a pretty great morning!

My two buddies for the morning! Are they cute or what??  Not sure what held my gaze more, the beautiful trees dripping with apples or these two with their smiles and giggles.  I'm thinking them.

You can't go to the orchard without having an apple to enjoy!  Minnesota Honeycrisps.  They were delish!

Loving those green shirts that are 3 sizes too big.  So funny but they were easy to spot!

And that my friends, was our morning at the Apple Orchard! We had a great time and God gave us an amazing day.

This Mama's heart was full and I'm so thankful I could enjoy a morning outside the walls of our home with my sweet Ava.  I can't wait to do this with Carter in a couple of years, although I'm sure it will be a whole new experience with a boy!  The Lord is so good, what grace it is to be blessed with children to love and opportunities to see this big world through their eyes.  Thank you Lord for apples and orchards and preschool field trips!

"Generation after generation stands in awe of your work; each one tells stories of your mighty acts.  Your beauty and splendor have everyone talking; I compose songs on your wonders.  Your marvelous doings are headline news; I could write a book full of the details of your greatness!"
Psalm 145:4-6
The Message Translation

Day Seven: The List

Two years ago, I was not in great place with this house.  I was feeling the squeeze of 1200 square feet with a toddler on the move and an infant who was only getting bigger and more mobile by the month.  The local housing market was in the depths of declining property values and we were having lots of conversations that sounded like this: "I'm so sorry Mrs. Armstrong, but unfortunately based on the type of loan you have, you fall into a small category of the population for which there are no programs or easy answers.  There just isn't anything we can do at this point to help."  Never what you want to hear from the mortgage people, right?  It seemed we were navigating our way through a season of dead ends and closed doors, ever been there?  

That spring I had picked up Ann Voskamp's book "One Thousand Gifts" and I was working my way through it.  I began really examining the heart of her journey, mostly by going through the scriptures she was referencing and spending a good deal of time reading about the Israelites and their exodus out of Egypt, into the deliverance that God had provided for them.  I was struck by how quickly they went from slavery to freedom, in an unbelievably miraculous escape, and yet on the heals of what the Lord had done for them, they were quickly discontented.  Frustrated.  Obstinate.  Ungrateful.  

It's pretty easy to read that narrative and shake your head, wondering how they could question a God who had just sent 7 plagues to free them and had parted the Red Sea for them to pass through unharmed.  What was wrong with them?  As I read their story, I began to see how clearly their story and my story overlap.  The same God who delivered them, has delivered me.  His grace is evident in my life and I see His fingerprints everywhere, including in my home.  But in a moment of frustration and/or denial, I was wondering where He was and if He'd left me too? I decided then to start looking at my home with different eyes.  Instead of focusing on what we didn't have or what we wished we had, I began looking at all that we really did have.  Everything that had been right under my nose but often out of sight...

So, I decided I'd make a list of my own.  I certainly wasn't going to shoot for 1,000 things to be thankful for in this house, at the time I was thinking maybe I could come up with 10?  But I decided to challenge my thinking and I began looking for 100 gifts in our home.  

In the beginning it was slow going, or just simplistic.  Basic things about the floor plan I liked, perks that that drew us here in the first place, etc.

 I was looking for the things right in front of me for awhile, and then I began to look a little deeper.  I started reconciling what this home meant to me and how that factored in to my relationship with the Lord.  Suddenly I could see a little glimpse of the lessons He'd taught me here, or rather the lessons He was still teaching me.  I felt like He was giving me a dose of perspective that helped me remember, this time here and this season He ordained...it may feel like a never ending trial, but really?  In the course of my life, this is only part of the story and yet, a significant part nonetheless.

 What He has for me here is exactly what I need.  The gift of His grace isn't only at the cross, it's also in the everyday things of life, the things that are meant to point us back to Him.  What He has allowed for us and ordained, even in the details of the home we live in, are pieces to the puzzle.  In the tapestry He is weaving for me, these are the threads that explain who I am and how I've come to know Him and walk with Him.  While I can only see my home for what it is (or isn't) today, He helps me see that what He has planned for me is so much more than drywall and paint.  He's aiming for godliness in me, not just a new address or more square footage.  His dreams for my life are more than I could possibly imagine, not to bring me happiness or fulfillment, but to make the glory of His salvation evident in my life.

It took me no time at all, a few days maybe, to complete that list.  What once felt so daunting and impossible, suddenly filled my heart and mind with a fresh gratitude and appreciation for the many ways I could see God's hand actively guiding my steps.  Stopping to reflect, to ponder and to give thanks was better for me than I could have known.  It really was a game changer in the way I thought of our condo and our situation here.  Rather than wallowing in what it wasn't, suddenly I was so thankful for all that it is.

And now, two years later?  I can still say that list has impacted my heart and mind in countless ways.  I love the common ground I share with many others in similar situations, the humility this has woven in me about our home.  I'm so far from done in that journey, there are still days I struggle and fight my way through the lies or the cycles of defeat.  But God has worked something good in us through this and I wouldn't trade that for anything.

It blesses my heart today to read that last entry on the list, from two years ago, realizing that it's almost exactly the same as the theme I chose for this 31 day journey.

#100. A home that is God's provision for us, His grace poured out to see and feel and give thanks for.  Today.

Yes, and amen...

Day Six: Home is For Friends to Gather { Weekending }

One of the best things about a home, is opening it up to those you love.  We had a full Sunday, like one of those gone all day and home super late days...BUT, the silver lining of the whole weekend is that we got to have our sweet friends Clark and Lisa over for a late night catch up and it was so great!  They moved to California a year and a half ago and we haven't seen each other since then.  Phone calls and face time are one thing, but real life???  So much better! 

 They were in town for a wedding and came straight from the reception, right after we got home from a 10 hour day ourselves.  It was late and we were all exhausted, but I am SO thankful we could squeeze this time in together!

 My kids love Lisa as much as I do and they were begging us to stay up so they could say hi.  Lisa was my go-to friend through pregnancies, birth, post-partum and baby days. She holds such a sweet place in my heart, it was so fun for all of us to see her and for the kids to be back in her arms again!

We tried to take a picture before we said goodbye, at midnight, and tried to keep our eyes open so we didn't look so tired...We may have gotten a little over-zealous with our "perkiness"...

...which sent us into a fit of giggles! 

Thank you Lord for friendships that aren't lost with miles between us.  I loved having my old friend back in our home, Clark and Lisa are our first "new carpet" guests, ha ha!  And having them here, laughing and sharing what we're both up to, is another reminder that the best things in life really aren't things after all...

I'm so thankful for a cozy home and friends to share it with.  What a sweet Sunday!  

Day 5: Home is For Resting { Weekending }

Three cheers for the weekend??    

With chaos all around and a tight schedule to keep, it's moments like these that remind me what a gift our homes can be when we make them places of rest; a haven from the outside world and all its' hustle and bustle, the demands that nearly suck us dry and wear us down to the bone.  When we finally get away from all of that and we don't worry so much about our homes looking like showcases, we can intentionally say no to "the list" and choose not to become enslaved by the very place meant to shelter us.  When we choose the quiet and force ourselves to just stop, to breath deep even...

...Home becomes more than just another place to manage or a job requiring hours logged.  It's not easy to turn off the productivity and just be...But kids sure are a great reminder that there is more to life than busyness and task mastering.  Sometimes the best choice is an afternoon movie, in a cozy bed, with the ones you love.

If your world has been spinning like mine lately, I am praying you find some much needed rest at home this weekend!  Even if it means you get nothing done...

Day Four: Under Construction

**Updated to add- While this is posting late Friday night, it was actually written Thursday night and yes, our carpet is now in and we are oh so happy about it!***

I'm writing from my couch tonight, exhausted and ready for this roller-coaster of renovating to wind down.  Tomorrow we have carpet people coming to replace all of our carpet and we are so very ready to get it in here.  The end result is making us excited, but the process...the mess, the un-doing everything, the limbo living required...we're over it.  We're grateful to be doing it, absolutely, but we're just tired.  These last two weeks in particular have been intense.  My mind is just as tired as my body, but my body might beg to differ.  Travis and I have both been burning the candle at both ends and we are starting to grow weary of this grind.  I think even the kids are ready to have their room back and free reign of their toys and the house.  They've really been very good considering they've been dancing around wet paint, torn up bathrooms, packed up belongings, and a refrigerator that is much emptier than normal.  Did I mention that we are desperate for a grocery run??

Their Mom has been divided lately.  I've been juggling the normal day to day stuff, while obsessing over paint colors and grout lines.  Because I am human and I can't do it all, I've dropped some balls here and there, and in general I've felt off of my game.   I've gone to more than a few soccer games with paint in my hair and I've convinced Carter that trips to Home Depot are more fun than the park.  Sad, but true.  Thankfully he's buying it and I'm grateful.  

While our tile was getting installed last week, I was driving south on 35, headed for my parents house.  It's a route I've driven a hundred times and I know it like the back of my hand.  We've practically got it down to the minute as far as estimating our arrival.  But while I was on my way and headed just out of the city, I quickly realized I was not going to be putting my cruise on and settling in for a afternoon drive.  Unfortunately I found myself in the middle of a rush hour/construction traffic jam and within seconds I was irritated.  Like seriously bugged.  It was inconvenient, painfully slow and there wasn't a single thing I could do about it.  I hate construction.  I could feel my pulse racing and my nerves heightening.  I was on a tight schedule with tile people working in my house and I was not planning on factoring in construction delays.  Oh, the injustice...

But here's the deal about construction.  Although it's messy and never well-timed, it is actually necessary.  Typically it's done because something is broken or wearing down, or sometimes construction is done to upgrade what you currently have or even prevent something from failing in the future.  It's a good/bad scenario.  The future outcome is almost always good, better even.  But the immediate present is usually...well, messy.  And also, it often stops you in your tracks.  

That construction on 35 is a little bit like my life at home these last few weeks.  Paint, tile and carpet have taken my normally managed life and thrown it up in the air.  Currently there are 5 lamps on my kitchen table.  Also, two TV's in my kitchen and million other things too.  Getting new carpet is awesome...Essentially "moving out" to get that new carpet...not so awesome.

Uprooting our world for the last few weeks so that we can get some things done and upgraded has me thinking a little deeper than surface level.  That construction that had me so irritated in my car and the renovation that currently has my bathrooms full of children's toys, is an awful lot like some other upgrades I've experienced.  Upgrades of the soul... 

Whenever the Lord does some much needed renovation in me, it requires more than just my thumbs up or my increased excitement level.  He's after so much more than just a fresh coat of paint or some new accessories.  What He wants to do in me, requires work.  There's demolition involved, messy living and  sometimes life just grinds to a giant halt until it gets fixed.  I don't always like what's happening, sometimes I fight it kicking and screaming because I can't see the end goal.  I can't envision what it is He wants to do in me and all I can see is a storage room full of junk, waiting to be sorted through.  Sin is like that.  It blinds us to reality and keeps our vision confined to a tunnel.  We can only see what's right in front of us and without the Lord's intervention, we just might kill ourselves because our vision is nothing compared to His.  

But God's construction is redemptive.  There is a goal and and a purpose.  Unlike construction courtesy of the DOT, this construction is aiming for so much more than a smooth surface.  When the Lord wants to do a work, He does it with all the right tools, with perfect craftsmanship and a guarantee that holds through Eternity.  His work is always on time and once He's done working in us, the completed picture is breathtaking to Him and good for us.  Always.  We can't do the work ourselves, but we do have to be willing participants.  And if we're willing, He does an amazing thing.  Not only does He work to make us more like Him, but He does it with a gentle hand and a love that can only come from a Father's heart.

Renovating a home is a complicated and exhausting process and just when you think you can't take one more day of projects and more work, you get a little taste of joy and some unexpected fun.  A glimpse of what's in store or just a break to see how far you've already come.  Who knew??

After all, nothing says fun like climbing in an empty entertainment center with your sibling, a blankie and a cheese stick.  Suddenly all that work to clear out the books and electronics created the perfect hiding spot for two little people hoping to surprise their Mommy.  And surprise her they did!  Maybe even delighted her a little bit too.

We are so ready for garbage cans and ripped up flooring to make their exit so that the new stuff can replace it and sing a better song around here.  We're soooooo ready and yet we're very thankful too.  Because even in a mess, there is progress and hope.  That can full of trash will soon get hauled away, never to return again and in it's place will be something so much better and something we simply couldn't have predicted a year ago.   Change is coming, it's happening in fact, and that is a great thing...even if there are 5 lamps on my kitchen table and 2 children in our entertainment center.