As much as we enjoy (“enjoy” is a bit of an overstatement, this line of projects has been a stretch for our skills or lack there of) doing these DIY projects and pushing through on our own there are many times, in home renovation and life in general that we just can’t do it on our own. We have to rely on friends and family.

I look back on seasons in motherhood in particular and the times I was on my own and setting up life for us, I was most drained and isolated. Not because of the exhaustion of moving but from not being recharged by friendships and the encouragement that comes from relying on others. Wouldn’t it be nice to think that I could be supermom or super DIYer and  not need anyone to pull me through? For a split second while the self-sufficiency was still patting me on the back maybe, but as soon as the pat let up I would be keenly aware of how lonely it was to do it on my own. I love the community of family and friends we have developed in each and every home and in our current new space.  It has been so hard at times to cultivate it and it takes many months, even years but the work is so worth it.

I never could have imagined how much our friends and family would have to jump in with this house gig. From looking at houses with our realtor, checking out the engineering of our deck (thank goodness my brother is an engineer!), watching our children while we worked, to helping me paint molding on each and every rung of the stairs. The list goes on. And goodness knows we never would have made it out of Switzerland without the endless hours of garage-saling, corralling kids and cleaning from our dear friends there. Many times we didn’t even ask for help people just jumped in or called to offer help. You may remember when some of our friends surprised us and came to the house before we arrived and cleaned up the yard.  At the time I was so resistant to feeling like we needed to be rescued. My friend reminded me that each one of them had moved and renovated homes in the past couple of years and not one of them had done it all on their own. There are days when the projects are flowing and our energies are high and there are days when you just need a friend to pop in with enthusiasm and encourage you on your way!

this picture frame came with us from Switzerland. This was not a necessary house fix up project but I had a crazy idea to hang it in our entry way. I love that it is ornate but simple and filled that random space. Our friends were here for dinner one night and the guys helped Seth hang it. True friendship huh?!   I did feed them well when they were done! And the ladies had great entertainment watching them get it done!  Each time I see it now I am reminded of the friends who helped hang it! Reminders that this place is not put together on our own!

What project are you currently postponing because you need some help? Call up a family member or friend. It’s likely your friend would love to be asked and would love to feel needed and it is likely that your time together working on it will be a boost for both of you!  Or if you know of a friend who is working on a project call and ask how you can help! You don’t always have to be an expert in something to offer moral support!

When I was a newlywed and even when we were engaged and registering for gifts, I felt like our house had to be plenty masculine so that Seth would be comfortable in our space too. It’s kind of like how I thought I had to avoid cooking with mushroom, beans and olives because Seth didn’t love them (read: hadn’t tried them). Slowly,  ever so slowly I have allowed myself with each home to let it slide toward the feminine side. Not because I don’t want Seth to like it, but more because I realized that he really doesn’t mind either way. And it isn’t that I am not including the masculine into things,  but it’s more that in addition to those things I am not shying away anymore from the more feminine things!  As long as the house is comfortable. So just as the mushrooms, beans and olives have made their way into our menus over the years, so have the florals, paisleys, fru fru pillows. And I love it!  And if you ask Seth he would agree that olives extra pillows aren’t so bad because he knows I love them. Well, pillows are a bad example, he hates extra pillows but the other stuff has gone over well

Our bedroom was a major place I originally thought should be the perfect balance of feminine and masculine. We went out to a carpenter in Colombia and had a bed made from  a Pottery Barn catalog. We made sure it was big and dark and  masculine. It turned out twice the size we anticipated and in the right room (ie Rebecca’s farm house) it looks perfect but in a small space it eats it up! So when we moved here we bought a wrought iron bed.  Much lighter looking and I love it.  In terms of other furniture, we started with just the brown dresser but a girl without space for her clothes isn’t a nice one to contend with on say Sunday mornings when she has just dressed the younger half of the family and all she wants is to get dressed in peace with ACCESSIBLE clothes! So last week we pulled in my childhood dresser…which, bingo, adds the perfect feminine balance to Seth’s dresser. It has a hutch for the top but I decided against using that since the room is small and any spare space needs to be visible.

The bedding we picked when we got married was paisley but in rusts and browns and reds. I still love it but it is for sure more masculine. We have since gotten a lighter weight quilt that is all kinds of soft colors, paisleys and florals. We painted our room blue (see, there are boy colors still) and I tried my best to keep it super simple in there. For the walls we just put up things that were meaningful to us, engagement pictures, black and whites of our babies, our marriage license and a reading I gave Seth on our wedding day.  We also put up an old painting I found in a Swiss thrift store.

I found the curtains at HomeGoods. I wanted something with simple, neutral colors but some texture and paisley-ish pattern. I mean, I am not a very spontaneous person, I have yet to do all of those wild right of passage things from my teenage years but paisley, it’s my spontaneous. Cheery, unpredictable and just fun.  The chair was a Swiss salvation army chair that I had new cushions made for….very thrifty idea turned expensive project! It’s matching chair lives in our downstairs.  We are attempting to sit in the pretty chair rather than pile laundry on it. You’d be proud mom, the chair is on Seth’s side of the bed so 99% of the time it’s his clothes that are stacked on it, not mine.  The chair isn’t fitting quite so well with the addition of the dresser but we will see if she gets to stay.  The light fixture is a chandelier I found with my mom at the architectural salvage in Ft Worth!  It was new to the salvage store and they hadn’t priced it yet so I got a great deal!

The tricky part about our room has been training the boys that it isn’t their space and to keep out the legos, Noah’s million animals, and pirate ship pieces and other various toys! The minute I see boys run into my room, racing around like banshies and sword fighting with shattering lego swords, you will find me hot on their heels shooing them out. The kids can take over every last inch of the house, but not our bedroom!  Another blogger is blogging about hospitality this month and I am enjoying every single post. One was about hospitality beginning with your relationship with your spouse.  When Seth and I have time together and invest in our relationship we are better parents and are better equipped to reach out to others. When we don’t slow down on this marathon of life to invest in each other it shows, big time. I wanted our room to be a peaceful, tidy place where we can relax and not feel like we are tripping over legos!  In the past I have worked to have a pretty room but put so much more effort into other rooms knowing that those were the ones people used and would actually see. It took a few homes into marriage to realize that this is where I want to make beautiful just as much or more than the rest of the house!  And someday I hope this will be a room that involves full nights of sleep uninterrupted by wee ones. Until then at least it’s pretty!

Happy Monday! Whew. We made it through the laundry room project. Our dreamy Sunday evening took a bit of a turn when our friends got the flu but on the upside a yummy dinner was made, the house was clean and tidy and it forced us to finish the laundry room. For now, anyways. I have long term plans to refinish the cabinets but that might be years from now!! This week we have some fun peeks into friends nests. Today my friend Rebecca is writing for us about her humble abode in Purcellville, VA! Later this week we will get a peek into my friends home in Warsaw, Poland, and then on Saturday we will get to see my friend Annie’s home in Louisville, KY.

My friend Rebecca and her husband Blake have done an amazing job renovating an old farm house.  I think Rebecca is my most carefree, laid back friend and she has faced the house challenges with so much grace! She always has the ability to laugh through the challenges and keep her head on straight.  Of course that also means she brings home puppies unexpectedly and ends up with roosters instead of hens! PS- I think her Birmingham accent has gotten thicker since she moved to the farm 

So here ya have it, southern hospitality at it’s best!

Welcome to the Farm!

In the Fall of last year, my typically predictable and always cautious husband sent me an email link to a property about 30 miles west of us in Purcellville, Virginia.    I was thrilled of the opportunity to be spontaneous and throw caution to the wind and I jumped in right away.   After a long painful process ( involving many opportunities to grow in trust and faith ) we bought the farm and moved in to our home.   “Emerald Hill Farm” is the homestead of a dairy farm from generations past.  The home is circa 1880- 1900 and the property includes a bank barn, a dairy barn, a stone cottage and 2 ½ acres.

The past 10 months have been full of hard work – cleaning, painting, repairing, painting and more cleaning.  “Decorating” has just happened along the process.    We have found junk in the barns and turned them into home accents.   There is still so much to be done – I can’t even make a list b/c it makes my head hurt.    We have learned to prioritize and I have struggled to find the balance between what I want and what we really need.    We are still missing a front doorknob and one closet has yet to be drywalled.  But, we have a front door and the skeletons of a closet – so we’re happy.

Our first (and only) big investment in the house was a paint job this summer.  It took a professional painting company 7 weeks to powerwash the house and metal roof and the barn and its metal roof.    We changed the color and painted the doors and I finally was able to have my dream side porch!   The swing and bench are craigslist purchases I repainted and I love the look!

The kitchen was my first big project.   I took apart the cabinets and stripped, sanded, primed and repainted them white.   The look is so much cleaner and makes the kitchen bigger.    Some new appliances (thanks to home warranty) also helped with the look.   The door to the kitchen stairs we painted with chalkboard paint and have our monthly family calendar on it.   And, as you can see- the kids enjoy it also.  I found an old table and 4 rickety antique chairs in the barn.  I refinished them with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint and upholstered the chairs with fresh fabric.   What a difference!

The den has an old woodburning stove – not the only source of heat , but the most reliable.   I love starting a fire first thing in the morning and snuggling up in front of it.    Our picture wall in the den includes an original window from the house with the old leaded glass and beautiful shape.   If you think the picture looks slanted – you’re right.  NOTHING is level in our house.   We just do our best and call it character!

At the end of the hall upstairs is my favorite little nook.   This is right outside our bedroom door and I call it my “quiet time nook”.   I can sneak out and sit here without waking up the kids as I walk down our very loud creaky hallway.

Last room –my latest and most painful project.   The before shot does not do it justice.   What it is missing Is the smell.   This room is above the kitchen and I ignored it for months.  When I finally got around to it, my goal was fresh and clean.   Thanks to friends for bed ( Kristen), mattress and coverlette, it was decorated quite cheaply.   The window coverings are roller shades that I attached material to with spray adhesive.

Looks beautiful Rebecca! Can’t wait until you turn the cottage into a B&B!! We want the first reservation….if our kids can stay in the barn that is!

Hope you all have a great Monday! You can hop over to www.worldmomsblog.com today if you have time for extra reading!  I’m on there talking about extending grace to other moms!

Hi folks, Hope you are all having a restful Sunday. It’s pumpkin carving night in these parts (ie our home). We are having friends over, carving pumpkins, roasting the seeds, simmering a pot of that spectacular Pumpkin Barley Chipotle Soup with Chicken from Edie, snacking on Aunt Hilda’s popcorn cake and enjoying friends and all that good stuff. Basically holding onto fall and eeeetching out every last bit of it’s glory. Have I shared that recipe with you yet for Miss Hilda’s cake?! Oh my, you need it! Here are a few pictures from our week followed by that yummy recipe!

Here are a few pictures from our week that make me smile!

brothers in training

cousins

Miss Hilda’s Popcorn Cake (from Emeril’s momma)