Progress not Perfection

Everything can't be perfect, especially when we are discussing an old house. It comes the way it is, and apart from tearing it down and starting from scratch, it is what it is. We are working with those imperfections...lost of wood putty, lots of caulk...and too much mud to even mention!

We may never have perfect, but the progress we are making on this house is encouraging...Isn't living about progress? We will never be perfect...I am not perfect...and neither is my old house!

So unmotivated!

When life is soooo busy all the time, it sure is hard to stay motivated and moving at high speed! I am ready to crawl into bed and stay there, but....so much that needs to be done! The hardest thing about this train I am on is there isn't one day that is completely down...that I am at home ALL day..the kind of days you can stay in your pj's, curl up under a blanket, maybe read a little, that kind of thing...

Well who am I to complain? It is after 10 am and I AM still in my pjs! No blanket or book at the moment, but 2 out of 3 isn't bad! I am a Florida girl so I like it warm...this winter weather that has blown definitely robs me of any motivation to get out there and do anything....cuz....I am cold! Maybe it will warm up enough that I can go over my door trim today!

As I write this, I am listening to Klove and they are talking about us being so busy being busy! LOL...

Covered in Paint

It seems like I am perpetually covered in paint/drywall dust/primer/texture...or any combination of the above! Progress

has been moving forward, sometimes at a hectic rate, other times not so much! The tiling turned out to be a lot more tedious than projected, and with our schedule, getting it done has been a challenge! While that is in progress, we are hanging sheetrock, pri

mering, painting, and texturing...all over the place. This week we have sheetrocked the breakfast room, primered it, and put the texture on it (today). It has another coat of primer to go and then paint. It will be relatively back in order this weekend. Tiling-not quite done, we are planning on finishing that up tonight..also working on the front door and porch. It has been all primered and the first bit of trim work painted. Realllllllllly hope to have it painted by this weekend too!

As hard as these last months have been, and still are, I won't look back on it as a negative! We have gained so much more than we lost!

By the way...painting a ceiling with a spackling knife is quite messy-no matter how thick the paint is or how hard I tried to be neat I got it everywhere...and I do mean everywhere! (Just in case someone else gets the idea to do that!)

The "how do you eat an elephant?" has become a way of life around here. It is hard to imagine how different we approach things...our attitudes are different, our priorities are different, the very way we live is different...all because of a little rain!

Go To The Ant

"Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise." Proverbs 6:6

I have considered that verse alot these past few months as ants continue to invade! There is no real way to stop them right now, because there are too many ways for them to get in the house. I wipe them off the counters, sweep them off the floors, and fish them out of whatever...a can canister occasionally, pots and pans, cups...it reminded me of a time at SCA when there was a roach issue right around the coffee pot. Sometimes they would get into the filter or the pot. We would pour a cup of coffee and my goodness, a bug would be swimming along! One such time, Bro. Mike (previous pastor of Baptist Tabernacle) and I were standing there making cups of coffee. Both of us got floaties. He fished his out and kept on drinking! LOL-I on the other hand dumped mine and started over. He told me that after being on the mission field, he could eat just about anything, things like floaties didn't bother him at all! I have a new appreciation for that...I am not on a foreign mission field, but I am in a construction zone being invaded by all kinds of critters. Bro. Mike, I have fished a few ants out of my coffee (they got on the spoon or in the cup without me catching them)-I didn't dump it, just kept on drinking it! I have fished them out of something on the stove, shrugged, and ate it anyway. That is probably grossing some of you out, seeing Bro. Mike do that sure did me, but it is amazing what you can learn to live with when you have to...and those ants...did you know they are blind (or so I am told)?

Out With the Old: In With the New

I dont' know that I really appreciated how different a room looks with new windows! Our room didn't even have windows, now there are three of them! It is amazing what a difference the windows make in there! I usually go for the old over the new, but not in this case! We are putting new windows in in phases (17 windows in the house with a price tag of >7,000), so this round did our bedroom and the office (6 total). From the outside, it is quite obvious where the new ones are, and now I am impatient, want to get done with this phase so we can go on to the next one!

Our schedule is turned upside down a bit because we are juggling vehicles. That coming and going slows us down. Hard to get motivated when you have to keep going somewhere! Today I am off (yippee), so only have to take Kat to class, run a few errands and I am home for the day, at least until our daily Lowes trip. I am definitely going to take advantage of being home and get my room sanded. ( I stall on the sanding because it is so messy!) Shawna is coming on Thursday and I sooooooooo want to be ready to paint in there! (all that and working on the office so Kat can move in that room!) Whew....need B12 shots!

Improvising

Nothing like a natural disaster to bring out the creativity hidden inside of us...Katherine is no exception! She has spent the last several months without a bedroom. She sleeps on an air mattress in the living room (not much privacy and certainly not quiet!). She decided a week or so ago that she wanted to make her "bed" up with her new bedding...creature comforts. Last week, she got a little more creative. We had already hooked up a tv and dvd player in there and set it on an end table. She went a step further; she found her satellite receiver and hooked it up. She ran the cables under the wall (no baseboards yet) between the living room and her room and hooked it up to the tv. She didn't feel good this Saturday so she spent most of the day cuddled up in her "bed" in her "bedroom" watching tv! We are working on what we call the office (a guest room) attempting to get it done. We are down to doors, floors and trim in there. (New windows going in today-guys are here removing the old ones). Prayerfully this week it will be done (although we are tiling and haven't done that before), and she can move in there. Ya think she will miss her old room????

All about the details

Our doors have been sticking since the flood, hard to close, hard to open, keys won't work in the locks...etc...as of this past Saturday, have a new front door. It was one of our first purchases (before we had any idea what we were doing)! Nothing is really standard in this house, so of course the door was not a perfect fit. It was about four inches shorter than our original door.

Watching my husband process and work things out is an amazing thing! He sat down, thought and decided to build a header for the door. He got that done and then there was the leveling/squaring it. Of course the house isn't square anymore so anytime we need something level, a bit of a challenge presents itself. He did get it, got the door in, and it looks beautiful and works! It opens and shuts like it should, and the locks work! I can get in my front door with a key! (Small things)

I can hardly wait to put the back door in. We picked it out this weekend (with a little more knowledge under our belt). We went a little less decorative and more traditional, because it is our back door and the dogs tend to jump up on it. We have a beautiful glass door on the back now, and I hate to replace it, but it is sticking too. We have to keep it locked or it won't even stay closed. The one we chose will work well with a glass storm door which we plan to purchase later. We don't have storm doors or screen doors right now, and I would really like to add those at some point.

We have been adding details to the house which is definitely my favorite part of this process. For me, it is all about the details-those things that set it apart, individualize it, and make it just uniquely us! In the hall and living room I stenciled with wall mud a flower design on the wall. It is the coolest thing. It adds texture and an "old elegance" feeling. The living room design is spaced around the room half way up. The design is painted the same color as the wall except in a flat paint instead of semi-gloss. I have been trying to crackle it, but not working. Other things we are adding or have added: programmable thermostat, new easy open return vent (the old one had to be unscrewed every time you needed to change the filter-the new one has a switch to open it!), dimmer switches, motion controlled lights in the closet (now that is a sweet thing!), antique brass lever door handles (for design and function as we all get order!). We changed out the chandelier in the living room for a ceiling fan-doing alot of moving around lighting and fans. We have a new fan for our room too, but the ceiling isn't waiting...painted yet...can't wait to do that, but the room isn't quite ready for paint.

Speaking of waiting...I am off to a busy day. I have to take Kat to a doctor's appointment, to school, then study study study, and paint, and go to work, and...

Trying to finish the details in the office and get that floor down so my dear daughter can move out of the living room. Sleeping on an air mattress in the middle of the living room has not been fun for her!

Raising My Hands in Praise

I look around once in awhile at all God has done and I am amazed....not on my time, or according to my own ability, but on His time and in His power!

• 
  
• Friday, we picked up Katherine's car. It is the right car at the right time, a 2002 blue Saturn. She is excited, and the timing is perfect. She starts school right after we get back from N. Carolina, and juggling the vehicles would have been quite challenging!
• We worked on the living room this weekend, getting it primered, textured, and as of yesterday, the first coat of paint. We are going to get the second coat on today. We have been working in between everything else, steady, but not at a "have to get this done" pace. There is so much more to life than this remodel!
• Todd has been a trooper-coming over on his days off, pitching in here and there. He is a good worker. I asked him if he was tired of hanging with us yet, since we obviously work all the time!? He said no...and helped Steve put in Katherine's sub floor.
• I called Tonia just to check on her Sunday. It had been a week since I heard from her. She came to church Sunday night and came by later that evening. She helped texture the living room while Caitlyn was sleeping. We talked about what we have learned. Caitlyn is beautiful. Kat found her some really cute outfits yesterday at Kohls for $1-$2 a set. (She should be a professional shopper!).
• The rat saga-so far this week, no rat. We did put bait out back, so if we are lucky, a few dead ones should start appearing! We have traps in the house set out, but they haven't been tripped yet, unless you count the time I hit one with a broom!
• Added to the schedule-I am studying for my Math Content Praxis. It is gonna be tough, and I have to spend hours every day reviewing math concepts I haven't seen in years. I am quite nervous about this test-only three weeks away! I am reminded of all the days our entire family sat around doing homework way into the night. Steve got his GMAT out and was reviewing it; Kat came in and was browsing through her college Algebra book. Won't be long, and we will all be sitting around the table doing homework together again! My schedule goes something like this: Get up and get coffee, check email and blog, do my devotions and Bible study (because Lord knows without Him I am useless!), do a few chores here and there, study for a bit, more chores, work on something in the house (today-paint), more study, have lunch with Steve (a highlight in the day), get dressed and go to work, come home, and do it all again (except tonight is church so that is first-then-come home and do it again-at least the study part!)

In everything, every opportunity to grow and every moment where God reveals Himself, all I can do is raise my hands and praise Him! He is providing for us, guiding our hands, revealing truth to us every moment of every day! Praise be to God!

Pardon our Progress

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Good News/Bad News

Bad News: Rat didn't get in through the hole in the floor, came in somewhere else
Good News: It got caught in the Tomcat rat trap we put out last night
Bad News: The trap was laying on the hutch so the dog wouldn't get caught in it which means...it was on my hutch..ewwwwwwwww
Good News: It has been properly disposed of
Bad News: Hmmm...how did it get in, which hole, and how do we keep them out?!
Good News: That tomcat really works! Might need to keep a few of those handy

Kat, very calmy knocked on our door this morning about 7 AM, thank goodness it wasn't at 12:30! She had put Maggie out about 5 Am, so somewhere between 5 and 7, the rat came in again. Rats are creatures of habit so went right to where we had spotted it. It couldn't get to the dog food this time, but apparently smelled the peanut butter on the trap laying on the hutch right above the dog food. It got caught in it and fell to the floor. It was flopping around which woke Kat up. She knocked on the door; conversation went something like this:
"Dad?"
"Yes?"
"Rat got in again"
"How do you know?"
"It is flopping around in the trap."
"Where?"
"Kitchen"
I said, Yea!....and Steve said...trap was on the hutch...I said ewwww...that means...yep...I stood back a bit while Steve fetched gloves and a paper bag to pick it up. It was quite large, size of a small cat. Very funny sight..rat with head stuck in a trap. (I was even able to laugh at the situation, which is not really all that funny). Steve took it outside, Kat went back to bed, and I grabbed a towel and bleach!

Mission: Changes Daily

My dear friend Kayla told me this week that I needed to relax and enjoy the journey...we have had too much fun the last few days, and we have laughed and laughed and laughed. Kat and I got started texturing Alex's room Friday afternoon. We were absolutely covered with it, then in comes Todd. He joined our party, and somehow managed to stay clean. Now how is it that we ended up with texture in our hair, all over our clothes, so thick that we looked like we were wallowing in the mud, but Todd...who is also a novice, can texture a wall and not get dirty????

Plan was to mud Alex's wall, work on the hallway, and Steve was going to put on our new front door today, but....wait...oh rats...that didn't quite work out. Somewhere around 12:30 am, yes AM, Kat let out a blood curdling cry which resulted in mom bolting out of the bed.

Seems that the wildlife, aka, big rat, decided to venture into the house. He met a very hearty unwelcome! Well, our adventure went on for quite a few hours, ending with Katherine and I hiding out in the only room with a door, and Steve keeping guard in the living room, assisted by our trusty ratter, Maggie who kept the critter from reappearing!

That adventure left us quite tired today, and on a new mission-close up the hole in the dining room. Steve and Rich spent some time leveling the dining room floor, and deciding how to assemble our rather large floor puzzle. After a very long day, we now have a new subfloor in our dining room. In the process we discovered that a previous owner had used sheetrock under one layer of subfloor. WHO DOES THAT? We now need to take up the living room floor which was NOT in the plan.

We did get Alex's room textured, and we did get a layer of texture on the hall, and Maggie does get to sleep indoors again....just in case!

Dusting

Remember the dust I was complaining about? Yep, everywhere. When we sand, it completely covers us and everything else in the house. Really hard to get up. My hair (and Shelly's) turned grey instantly. (Wait..maybe we are just getting old before our time!LOL). Notice-I put her pix up and not mine; don't want to envision myself grey!

We sanded some more last night, and vacuumed, and...forgot to close our bedroom door so the room is now covered with dust! Guess I should get right to...dusting....

Life is Learning

ACE (Accelerated Christian Education) has this philosophy that they build their curriculum on-Life is Learning. They are definitely right about that! Not a day goes by that an opportunity to learn doesn't present itself. Our remodel has been a huge time of growth for all of us!

We have learned alot more than could be expressed in this short space! Rich has sheetrocked for the first time and gotten quite good at it. Alex took his first turn at sheetrocking and mudding. Todd got a quick lesson in how to sheetrock and mud. He has done a few walls now-and stayed neat doing it! (Can't say that for Kat or I!). Steve Willis has been helping and instructing. We might actually get this whole mud thing down before this project comes several times now...slow learners to a close. (He is patient-I think he has told us the same thing that we are!) Kids have all jumped right in, mudding, sweeping, vacuuming, sanding, and FINALLY primering. We got Alex's room primered this week! Still working on some touch up work in the hall and living room, but they are about ready to be primed too. This weekend we are going to paint his room!

We spent yesterday evening ordering doors. It took hours! Solid core, hollow core, left hand, right hand, choices choices choices on hardware, locksets?, and the list goes on! Who would have thunk that that could be so complicated! (And just a few weeks ago, thought you just kind of walked in and bought doors!) Wonder how we will do actually hanging them!

Closing In

We have really made headway this weekend. (Please forgive me for not getting pictures taken-been slacking in that area, but I promise, more on the way!) We have Alex's room, the hallway, our room (except the closet), and the living room nearly completely done with sheetrock, float and tape. YEA! We worked our you know whats off to get it done and get ready to paint. We are FINALLY almost to the primer stage. A few more touch ups in those rooms, some sanding, and we are there! I am really excited about being this close. A house looks totally different with walls, the space is definitely closing in! :)

Next: order doors for those rooms...and hopefully the window guy will be ready to install windows in those rooms soon, and then...drum roll please...floors! Yippee

Simple Things

We haven't sat down in any comfortable fashion to watch a movie or check out a show since this demolition began. The only tv up was the one in Kat's room, and there are no floors or walls in there! We were so tired last night from all this work and traveling that no one wanted to do a thing. As we debated our options, my husband came up with an idea. Our couch and love seat are in the living room, why not bring Kat's tv in there? There is no satellite in that room, but we can watch a dvd...which was actually the goal. We are big Stargate fans....hence...when the new movie came out, Steve preordered it right away. It came in last week, but we haven't stopped to watch it. Last night was the night...we curled up on the couches and after months and months, stopped to watch a movie together. Simple Things

Before we made our jaunt to Florida, I cleaned up the den (still gutted), putting the computer on a table. There is no power in there so we are running extension cords through the room into the dining room. At least we can sit down at a table, in a chair, at the computer now! Simple Things

We brought a different tv into the den and sat it on a shelf...still wasn't hooked up. Steve hooked it up to the satellite last night and this morning...another first in a long time...I am watching/listening to Good Morning America. Simple Things

To live so long already without modern conveniences that make a home a home...to be able to sit and fellowship, or watch a movie as a family...somehow the hurry up pressure to get on with this project dissipated...a few simple things makes life a bit more bearable and maybe even this process a little less taxing!

Conversations...

"Hey mom, I was thinking...let's sheetrock the house. We sure could use some new walls, and this open wall thing...not too much privacy."

"Ok, good idea...it is going to be a lot of work, but maybe we can get some help with it."

"Yea, it is work, but...hmmm...let's see..."

Brrrrrinnnnngg...."Hello?" "Yea, trying to get a little more done before we leave for Florida." "Don't have much time today" "Anything would be great."

"So how does that insulation thing work again?" "Thought it would be thicker, but it sure does dry fast!" "Insulation is in, so let's get this show on the road!, what's next?"

Sheetrock...

"Ok, Rich...where does that socket go for sure?" "Honey, it is backwards, needs to go up." "Ya sure?" "Oops..my bad." "That still isn't right." "My bad again." "Third times a charm."

"Veronica, want to come hang with us?" "Sure." "K..Kat, you and Vero get to mudding." " Alright mom" "No, no, no, not each other...the walls." "Veronica, sheetrock knife...not your fingers."

"What can we do to help?" "Want to mud? "Sure" "Wait, a sec..I don't know...." "No, really, we can do it, here is how." "Now, let's sand." "Ya'll need masks, too much dust.""Stop..need a family portrait"

Many hands make light work, inspire us to keep going, make the job less burdensome, and give us some time of sweet fellowship! Thanks for your time, you were an encouragement to us this week, at a time when we needed it most!

Decisions worth making

Decisions, decisions, decisions....really glad we never undertook building our own house...don't think my mind could handle the multitude of decisions which have to be made! I sat down with all my samples: tile, countertop, grout colors, flooring, kitchen cabinetry, and paint swatches...to figure out what direction to go in. My goodness....it is just a house, do I really care that much??? How easy it is to make something so meaningless so important. How easy it is to focus my eyes on what will rust, decay, be destroyed by nature itself...and what on earth is the point of that?! It is JUST a house. It needs to be fixed for sure, but all these details have been weighing on me...what if I make the wrong decision? What if this doesn't match that? What if it won't hold up in another flood? (Wonder what all those people were doing in Noah's day when THAT flood hit-none of their flooring held, and the paint colors really were irrelevant!)

I am sitting here thinking about Katherine, Daniel, and Robert-they are making life decisions, ones that change our lives, not our environment. Life changing...those decisions are the important ones? Do we know Jesus Christ as our Savior? Am I living my life exactly the way He wants me to? Am I serving Him, listening to His voice, obeying His every Word? Am I honest with myself, seeing myself in light of the truth of who God says I am, or am I deceiving myself into believing some lie? There is no way for me to know what way they will go, if they know for sure that Jesus is their Savior-they have made professions-but only God can see the heart.

I have labored over the non-important temporal decisions way too long already...time to just make those and move on. I am NOT changing my mind about flooring, paint, or anything else...just gonna go with it, so I can get back to what is really important-serving my Lord!

Check the chaos at the door, Please

I sooooooooo needed a break from this chaos yesterday. These past two days, my stress level has been off the charts, and I found myself crying continuously. As much as I needed to do, I took the day off. I left my house at 9:30 and did not return till 4:30 or so. I took myself to breakfast, sat there reading my Bible when an older gentleman stopped to talk to me about what I was studying. He must have been a preacher! After that I went to the library to read about home decorating (of course!). I checked out a book about putting the heart into your home, designing a home around individual personality to provide a tranquil retreat from the world. Yep..that is just what we need, a retreat! Then I headed to the paint store to pick out paint. I decided on a green for my living room/dining room. (turns out it is almost the exact color in there right now...I am such a creature of habit) The paint guy was very patient, and he gave me a fan deck with thousands of colors to help me decide on the rest of the house. Next, I met Steve at the flooring place to talk to another dealer about flooring. We found another variation on the vinyl which we liked, but it is going to be over $4000 to install in the rooms we want it, so???? From there, I headed to Michaels, Linens and Things, and Lifeway. I browsed the stores looking for ideas for our bedroom and party supplies for my grandson. His first birthday is right around the corner! I had a wonderful conversation with my daughter-in-law, and got a sweet message of encouragement from my friend, Michelle. In Michaels I found this sea glass which is going to be my color inspiration for my bedroom. I have always wanted an ocean themed area because the ocean is my serenity place. I love the ocean! I also picked up my very first decoration, a metal fish tea light holder. It has an antique feel which I also love! Lifeway was my last stop. There I chose a few books and sat down to read them. I bought a devotional book, "Lord, I Need Grace to Make it Today" by Kay Arthur. (No surprise that one caught my eye!) I started it this morning and am excited about what God is going to show me through it! There was dinner, church, Starbucks, and a bit of evening drama. My day ended around 11:30. Welp...that was my day, and today is a new day. It too is a gift so, Lord, please don't let me waste it chasing after what is temporal when I could be spending it with eyes focused on the eternal!

Gift

Life Is a Gift

Today
before you say an unkind word -

Think of someone who can't speak.

Before
you complain about the taste of your food -

Think of someone who has nothing to eat.

Before
you complain about your husband or wife -

Think of someone who's crying out to GOD for a companion.

Today
before you complain about life -

Think of someone who went too early to heaven.

Before
whining about the distance you drive

Think of someone who walks the same distance with their feet.

And when
you are tired and complain about your job -

Think of the unemployed, the disabled, and those who wish they had your
job.

And when
depressing thoughts seem to get you down -

Put a smile on your face and think: you're alive and still
around.

Too much selfishness in our world...Too much "ME ME ME." Today, I am frazzled, overwhelmed by the task before me, completely exhausted and unable to focus...too much work and not enough play while those around me who could be helping carry this burden all want to go play. I get up working, keep working, go to bed working. All day every day. There is no time, no money, no energy left for anything else. I am going to take a breath, pray, read my Bible looking for encouragement from my God who is always faithful to sustain me, try to refocus, and start over.

Demo crew

What a time we had last night! My sister-in-law is cooking for us this week. (We worked out a deal, she made the menu and grocery list, I went shopping for us, and she is cooking)! They were over, and we invited the Dial family over to eat with us, and while here, they lent a hand! We don't discriminate against age here, where else can kids safely take a hammer to a wall or write on the floors??? (Any interested applicants for the demo crew must apply directly with Keila-she knows how to swing a hammer!) Dan helped Rich and Steve take down the walls in Kat's room, and offered to come help us with the sheetrock. Turns out, he used to sheetrock. God does send the right people at the right time...the extra help sheetrocking will expedite the process greatly! The demo has taken so long, but we're down to the kitchen, bathrooms, and the main guest room...and since those rooms connect to other rooms, they are partly done too. Steve figured out our insulation problem yesterday, so that will be resolved this week. The flooring guy is going to call me with a quote today; prayerfully it will be within budget! Hmmm...might be walls and floors in my future yet!