Our new Home

I love our new home! We found it on craigslist 2 weeks before we moved here and moved in sight unseen. The first day we arrived I was still swirling in a surreal daze of jet-lag and no sleep, and not sure if this house was entirely for real! 

First of all, it seemed too huge for what we are used to! It's the biggest rental we've ever lived in in our entire 8.10 years of marriage and I wasn't used to the space. The boys kept getting lost trying to figure out where everything was! Odin likes to remind me about that silly first day we moved in, where he was looking for the stairs and wound up in the bathroom!

The backdoor

It's got 5 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a laundry room, a storage room, a large dining room and kitchen, a living room with a fire-place, and small area we call the TV room (and $100 cheaper than our little Hilo house, I might add). Another bonus is the large backyard, which is all fenced in and extends for about 1/4 acre. It has large, mature trees, a space for a big garden, and a nectarine tree in the very back. The house is not fancy by any means, and it is old, but it was built tough and built for a family. The yellow brick walls have weathered many years of beatings from sleet and snow. The built in wooden cabinets have endured generations of muddy hand prints and crayola markings, and the wood floors are covered in the scratches and scuffs from rearing and raising children and animals. It is a strong house, and a quaint house, and even feels a little funky and unconventional. I think it fits our family perfectly!

There is a secret stairway in the dining room that ends up in a hidden bedroom near the laundry room. And guess what? That hidden bedroom is my new secret woman-cave! I am turning it into a peaceful place where I can retreat after long, exhausting days of being Mom. It's going to have cool posters and bright paintings, a shaggy rug, and it's going to be my very own space-- just like when I was 16 and I had my very own room! (Can you tell I'm really immaturely excited about this!?) Should I put up a poster of my favorite band, and hang all my earrings on a heart-shaped jewelry holder? Yes, yes I should.

The secret stairway going down into my secret bedroom.

We've been slowly adding furniture to the house as we find the right pieces to fit. I don't mind going without furniture until I find something affordable that I really like. In the past I've jumped at furnishing our homes with cheap and ugly things from yard sales or thrift stores, not caring what they look like, just wanting the darn house to be furnished. This time I'm taking things slow. I still prefer to buy inexpensive, second-hand-thrifted things, but I'm done with ugly things. I want a home that feels happy, bright, clean, and pretty to look at. I want a home that has strong wooden dressers, durable book shelves, comfy beds, and soft, bright rugs. I really don't mind keeping my clothes in a bucket or sleeping on the floor til we get there. We've got time. What's that old saying? Rome wasn't built in a day.... Well, my home is my Rome right now, and it's fun playing architect home decorator.

This big, old house is new territory for us, as we've been living in very small apartments and houses for quite a while. There's nothing wrong with that, however, as each place we have lived at has served it's purpose for that time. I remember the last time we lived in Cedar City we had a small, basement apartment with shaggy, orange carpet. I loved how I could stand in the middle of the living room and see every room in the house. I loved how fast it was to tidy up and how I could always hear my children laughing in the other room. Now I find myself shouting across the house just to find people.  I even got a baby monitor so I could hear Jonah when he wakes up downstairs. My friend Ruby had to show me how to use it because I was clueless!
(How do people live in mansions? I would feel so silly!) All in all, I am excited to fill this home with furniture, family necessities, happiness, and love. I see good things ahead in this big-old, brick house.

Funky glass doorknobs

Kitchen extension