December 10, 2017
Christmas Living Room 2017
Hi, y'all! It has been quite some time since I last blogged about where we are in life, our home and our little family. So much has changed, so much continues to change everyday and 2017 certainly has been a challenging but rewarding year for us.
To recap, we sold our beloved home in Florida to a very sweet, southern retired couple who wanted to make it their permanent retirement home. We loved that and really enjoyed working with them. We moved back to NC in April to move into an old family home that needed some work from what we remembered. However, not stepping foot in the home in a decade, we were surprised that it needed more work than what we could afford to do while also renovating it aesthetically. It just didn't feel right for us and although it was a heartbreaking decision because it was my late grandmothers home, I truly feel looking back now that God had a plan for us with our current home all along.
We were homeless for about 4 months total, living with my parents until we could figure out what direction to go next. Fast forward to June, my husband struggled to find decent work outside of the military that had a decent salary. While still looking for employment, he took a low paying job just to help our family. Enter my best friend since middle school mentioned to us that there was a foreclsoure across the street from her & her husband that was about to go on the market she thought.
We went and visited her but really didn't think too much about the house although I did snap a picture of it in my phone back in May 2017. Little did we know it would go on the market well below what we thought we would have to spend. Enter probably 20-25 offers and a huge bidding war with others vs us and the bank and she was ours. However, if you've ever purchased or sold a home, you know how much paperwork, ins and outs and basically limbs you give up to get in the home. It felt nothing short of that. We worked tirelessly with a lender to make sure this home purchase went through. There were a couple times we thought we would have to back out but we made it happen on our own. Although, things have completely not gone as expected and financially, things have been incredibly different, we felt and still do feel so blessed to be able to have a home of our own on a decent bit of land. So....all the while, a very long year... with lots of stress and tears... but our sweet boy has truly made every dark time, happy, every tear has turned into a smile and every worry is put aside.
This home was built in 2011 and we purchased it as a foreclosure. Now, back in my days of being a real estate agent or Realtor, this was not a typical foreclosure. We didn't have tons of damage or anything crazy happen to the house. It just needed some TLC, some painting incredibly bad & some cleaning. Thank the Lord because those are all things that we can handle and do slowly. We closed on this home and God answered again by anew job for my husband. One that he stated before we even put our home the market that he would be interested in. So, he had an interview and got the job the same day! God is so good and really answered our continuous prayers. He thoroughly enjoys his job now and feels like he can make a difference and that's what any spouse wants for the other.
So, eventually I want to "brick" the fireplace where the current black tile is. I'd love to use the reclaimed brick veneer tiles, possibly in a herringbone pattern to give the fireplace some color, character and depth. But right now, we are just trying and adjusting to getting back on our feet. For now, we are trying to embrace the imperfection and the in between pretty phases and hope you will too! We are learning what I've said for years is to love the home you're with and enjoy where you are. Someone else might have a beautiful custom dream home but that may be their step 5 while we may be on step 1 or step 2. So, remember progress... not perfection.
I found the mirror below at Marshalls here locally and had to have it as soon as I saw it! I am sucker for a salvage natural wood look and you will see a lot of that finish in our home.
My husband and I also were blessed enough to find a 9' flocked Christmas tree at our local pottery on sale! I sold a few things and was able to pay for it in full just by selling items we weren't using!
Every year, I shop after Christmas sales for my ornaments. I obviously will buy something before Christmas if I really love it but this is the time where I get the bulk of my items for Christmas decor.
We also can't wait to lay some laminate or hardwood floors down! It is going to make such a difference in this house & will make it appear twice as big I feel! But since I am not one to do things half way, we are trying to save and do the entire house at once or at least start by finding something we can afford! We've been eyeing the Pergo Outlast 24 hour laminate and also some hardwoods. We also are looking into vinyl planks! That will for sure transform this house.
Anyways, I told myself this year I wouldn't make it about all the "pretty." I would enjoy being in the moment with our almost ONE year old if you can believe that and make some essential time to myself too. I hope y'all enjoyed these photos of our current living room and we cannot wait to share the progress as we start to dig into making this home ours. Thanks for stopping by!
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