Our November Farm Trip was all about being Thankful... it seems that even more so with this year's challenges. We truly are so blessed, and we are truly so thankful for all those blessings and yet we find that Sometimes the Best Place to Be is Nowhere to Be Found.
Although we did manage to get some of our projects worked on, we wanted to focus more on our time together.
Since this year is completely non-traditional- we decided to have a sea food boil for Thanksgiving Dinner! OH MY YUMMINESS!! Mom & Dad joined us, and were sent home with a week's worth of leftovers!
(Thankful for my Sister In law, Martez, and for her amazing cooking skills~!!)
PROJECTS...
We painted the Middle Bedroom aka "Master Bedroom", BLUE!!! ("Inked", by Behr Paints) As much as I love the color, I discovered that a little bit of blue goes a long way, therefore we will now be planking one of the walls and painting it white to tame down the intensity. We kilz'd the ceiling from an ancient roof leak, and installed the trim around the new windows. There was a nasty cut out with sheetrock in the ceiling so I suggested that we just cover it with a faux attic access... brilliant, I know. hahahaa (more like I just don't even want to go there so cover it up!)
BEFORE and during:
AFTER:
We may not be done with the room, but now 2 out of 3 bedrooms are livable!!! Yes! Can I get an Amen!
I'm thinking about painting the headboard white someday when I have nothing else to do....
NOW- What to do with the blue paint left on the paint roller..... I walked around the house with the roller up in the air and found the back porch that leads down to the basement... I don't have a before picture because it was truly unprompted, but here is our sweet little porch! (Needing something to hang on the walls yet... thinking a metal cut out of an old milk jug...anyone, anyone?)
Our Bathroom received a new floor- AAAAHHHHH- like WOW what a difference!! Here is a before we started and a current picture:
The Front Porch received the same new flooring.... Not only did it get a new floor, It got completely gutted, scrubbed, and organized... I always loved the grey paneling walls and wanted to keep them and work with them, so we stained (I did not stain, Martez stained) the wood cabinets and the closet doors an ebony wood stain and it truly brought the room to life. She also removed the little ruffled heading over the window. Now, I'm looking for something to hang over that boarded up unused window and I will be bringing some small clear totes to finish the organizing. But Wow! Check it out-
Did I tell you we now have house plants? These suckers are mean, and attacked our legs as they sat on the floor waiting to find their place in the house. I'd like to introduce you to "Pricky" and "Pokey Wokey", included in their album is our beautiful sunshine filled dining room ready for Thanksgiving Dinner. What a glorious day it was!
I don't think I've ever shared a picture of the 1st bedroom that I tirelessly sanded the floor in- We still have to finish the ceilings, and replace the trim around the new windows, but it's cozy, warm and so beautiful with that Navajo White paint on the walls! It's Naia and Nova's room.
Down in the laundry room, I cleaned it out, organized it (again!) and scrubbed down the exposed wall so Nakia could get in there and run plumbing and electric up from the basement so we can have laundry on the main floor. Hallelujah! Within the exposed wall we hung our treasures that we've found at Grandma and Grandpa's store, and from our Barn Fire in early September. I repaired the little corner wall and painted it the same color as the kitchen. (I forgot to take an after picture, sorry!)
We have this tiny sink and toilet upstairs on the landing, just sitting there with no wall... it was added about a decade or so ago by a previous occupant. It's definitely nice to have an upstairs bathroom, but the sink is not connected to plumbing and the toilet is connected to hot, steamy water, (hey- don't knock it till you try it! lol!) Nakia's mission was to create some privacy, he built out the framing for the wall and the doors and even though it's not completely finished, it makes such a difference! We don't have to sing loudly as a warning while we are on the pot anymore. haha! The tiny wall was sheet rocked, taped, and painted... (no picture, I know... I know... I need to get better!)
After a long day, he deserved some pampering, so daddy got a manicure. (Which he proudly wore the entire week, and still to this day has a bit of a blue thumb nail. haha!!) It was hilarious watching him build things with sassy nails.
It's so nice to be at a point where we can sit down and rest, and enjoy each other. We can sleep in a bed, in a bedroom, a warm bedroom at that, and walk down our squishy carpeted stairway to our lovely kitchen and brew a pot of coffee while we watch our sunrise.
Our kids can do their schooling from the kitchen table connected to our WiFi. Grandma and Grandpa are only 15 minutes away and can pop by for a visit. We watch the deer graze in the corn field to the West almost daily. Our dog doesn't have to be tied up to run outside. It's true peace and quiet, and we love it.
The final part of the trip, this went up on the wall in the kitchen nook... A tribute to the 2 that made it all possible... Harry & Agnes...
Life is Beautiful. Be well, and Happy New Year!