Romantic Charleston

From time to time – like once every three years or so - Paul and I manage to escape for a few days together.  One of our favorite places to visit is Charleston, SC.  The beauty and history of the city appeals to me greatly.  It is almost as if we travel back in time to a more relaxing era. 

Two weeks ago, we spent a few days in Charleston.  After the hectic schedule of this summer, it was a welcome break for both of us.

One morning, we sat and watched the sunrise coming up over the Atlantic.  It was lovely.  Those of you who know me well, will be surprised that I actually got out of bed early enough to catch a summer sunrise (I am not a morning person at all). :)  It was so serene and peaceful, the cool morning air blowing on our faces, and rising sun warming us as we sat on the bench.  Ahhh…

Here we are, taking our famous self-portraits again (I think they turn out better than having other people take them for us)!  You can tell I got up early – I look a bit weary!  :)

 

 

They say that every cloud has a silver lining, but this one was definitely golden.  The sun turned those clouds on the horizon to a molten color that was breath-taking in its splendor.  God is so good to give us beautiful things to enjoy here on this earth.  Sometimes I wonder at the fact that He could have made everything in shades of black and white, which would still be amazing, but He took the time to make such a glorious world for us to enjoy.  What a great and loving Father we have!  He is worthy of all the praise and worship we can give Him!

Office/Guest Room

Well, one of our dreams was not only to have a place where Paul could study for his messages, write his books, and keep up his correspondence, but to have a place for people to stay when they come to visit.  When I first saw the house, this particular room grabbed my attention! 

You can see the large built-in desk right in front of the window – perfect for studying!  This room is located right next to the master bedroom, and across the hallway from the downstairs bathroom.  It is also perfect for a guest room!  The door you see going off on the right is a large walk-in closet that is now housing my Christmas decorations and CVS stash!  (By the way, that seems to be dwindling… better get back to those coupons!)

The room was stark white, with guess what (?!) – a wallpaper border around the top.  The carpet reeked of cats, and was stained and threadbare in places, so it had to be replaced.  For the walls, I chose a lovely “neutral” green called Seamist  (it is also in several other rooms because I loved it so much!)  It was a relaxing, calming shade that I felt was not too girly to be in a man’s study (Paul does not do girly), while still matching my personal taste and style, such as it is! :)

This room really had the least amount of work to be done, so it was our kid central station while we were working on the other rooms in the house.  They hung out here and watched movies, played dolls, and fought amongst themselves. (Hey, I have to be honest!)  Here are Esther and Daniel with the one-eyed babysitter…

When I uploaded my pictures, I found all kinds of weird shots of strange things that I know I didn’t take.  Hmmm… This picture of Esther reveals a whole new realm of speculation. 

I wonder who took all those odd photos?

This is the first after picture, with new paint, new carpet, and a whole new look.  Of course, since then we have added blinds, bookcases, and other office equipment.  (We also put the doorknobs back on after painting, for those of you that are wondering.)  I am looking for a bed to go in this room since it is, after all, our guest room. We have an air mattress right now, but I am looking for something a little more permanent.  Just have to wait for that perfect yard sale find!

Here is Paul, sitting at his desk to study.  You can see the few still-packed boxes of books stacked under the desk and next to the wall.  We are planning to build some floor-to-ceiling bookshelves in this room, to help with our library storage (we have a lot of books).  For now, though, we have just a few bookshelves in here for all of his theological books and history/hobby volumes.  It is a work in progress, to be sure.  He loves it, though, and it is an answer to prayer – every preacher needs a place to call his own and get away from it all to study the Word!

School Days

With all of the hoopla of moving, school really crept up on us quickly this year.  I had (thankfully) ordered all of our books in the spring, so they were waiting, no – lurking – in a corner, threatening my summer happiness each time I happened to catch sight of them. 

However, life must go on, and with it comes schoolwork.  We were still moving and renovating the house when our  set-in-stone first day of school arrived.  I dragged out the books, and, flying by the proverbial seat of my skirt (can you do that?), I started school with no lesson plans made.  Argh!  Where was my brain? I hate it when I do that.  The kids do so much better when they have a plan to follow!  Anyway, that is the terrible truth.  I was unprepared. 

The good news is that we managed to get through the first crazy week, and a few subsequent crazy weeks, but now things have settled down into our normal routine.  Can I have a big “Woohoo!” right now?  :)

I did manage to snap some pictures of the kids on the first day of school.  They aren’t creative, artistic, or even great photos, but they are my babies, and I love them.  I think that their pictures capture their little personalities so well.

Josiah is in sixth grade this year – I really can’t believe it!  He is a responsible and tender-hearted boy, who works hard and is a good student.  He gets more and more like his dad all the time.  It cracks me up!

Abigail is in third grade.  She is as ornery as her picture indicates.  She loves to help in the kitchen, and is also learning to sew a little.  It will be a fun year.

Esther, my first-grader, is a sweet, affectionate child.  She gives hugs that literally take your breath away.  The violence of her affection amazes me! :)  She loves to help in the kitchen as well, and her favorite thing to do with Mama is scrapbook! yay!

Daniel, while not in school yet, had to be a part of the fun.  As you can tell, he is a crazy little boy who likes to ham it up for the camera.  These are the blessings I see every day – some days I appreciate them more than others, as you mothers will understand.  I do love them, though, and I wouldn’t trade the memories for anything.

Heritage Handiwork

Many years ago (at least 25), my mother began working with my great-grandmother (Little Gramy) on a quilt for me.  They chose the pattern, a Sunbonnet Sue variety, and then began working.   Little Gramy made the blocks, since she was famous for her beautiful quilt tops.  The fabrics were also special.  Some of them were chosen from scraps of previous projects – my mom’s maternity dresses, mother-and-daughter outfits, or shirts that had been made for my dad when he was a child.

My mom did the embroidery on each bonnet, stitching flowers and French knots in lovely detail.  The quilt top was done, but for years it languished in a chest, unfinished.  Several years ago, my mom came across it again and passed it on to me.  I didn’t really know what to do with it, since I have never quilted anything.  I wanted to finish it, but really didn’t have the time or the equipment for a project that size. 

Enter my mother-in-law.  She has made dozens of lovely quilts over the years, and I approached her about helping me finish this special quilt.  She gladly took on the project, and when we moved into our new house, she sent the finished quilt to me as a house-warming gift!  What a lovely surprise!

Isn’t it beautiful?!  I am so thankful for this piece of my heritage, wrought with care and love, preserved over many years.  Each time I look at it, I am reminded of the women who gave of their time to make this special treasure for me.

Here are a few of the individual blocks, so you can see the detail a bit better.

Now it graces my bedroom wall in a place of prominence, and every morning when I wake up, it is one of the first things I see.   One day, I hope to pass it on to my daughters and I hope that they get as much enjoyment out of it as I do!

Do you have a special family possession?

Kitchen Pictures

I was advised that my album links were bad after I uploaded the pictures of the kitchen.  Sigh.  I don’t know what went wrong – some of the pictures posted, while others did not.  Here is another attempt.  If this doesn’t work, you will all just have to come and visit!  :)

                                                                           Here is some of the lovely wallpaper – layers two and three.

All the wallpaper is removed – what a job!

Ewwww!  Termites!

Paneling and woodwork

Sweeping up wallpaper scraps – there were a lot of those!

Preparing to prime and paint.

Priming done – what a mess!

Dark paneling is now gone – and the floor is prepared for new linoleum.

Beautiful new floor!

All painted!

Moving in…

Finished product.  I like it!

New fixture globes from the ReStore. 

A Tisket, A Tasket…

Thoughtfulness in a basket.  That’s what we had for breakfast this morning.  It was actually in the form of fresh blueberry muffins, bananas, and orange juice.  Maybe you are puzzled by the special-ness of this, but I will explain.

Paul and I are on a no-kids vacation getaway!   It is one of those time-share deals – you know, listen to the spiel for two hours, and get a few nights in a hotel.  :)  My mom and step-father drove down from Ohio to stay with the children.  I am forever grateful to them.  I know they will have a great time with the grandkids, and I hope they are not totally worn out by Friday!

We are on our way to Charleston, SC, which happens to be one of our favorite places.  I love the southern charm and the old architecture of the city.  There are so many different things to see and do for little or no cost, too.  We only made it to the greater Atlanta area last night, and ate dinner with some college acquaintances, Josh and Alicia.  We had a very fun dinner with them and their family, as well as a great time of fellowship.  We stayed in the prophet’s chamber at their church, which was a real blessing to us.  Alicia gave us a basket for our breakfast, which was just so thoughtful.  It was also quite yummy!  Thanks to both of you for your hospitality and friendship!

Kitchen

The kitchen is the heart of the home – at least, that is what my family seems to think.  In their opinion, all of life revolves around the table and the food that is prepared and regularly place on the table.  I can’t say that I disagree with them too much, since a lot of my memories were made around the table with family.

The kitchen is long and skinny, and the hallway leads to the laundry/scrapping room.  It has doorways that lead into the dining room, living room, sunroom, and garage as well.  It was very dark and heavy in the room, due to the dark wallpaper, dark paneling, and dark cabinetry.  The totally retro light fixture was a trial to my soul, but I was determined to deal with the hard things first.  Like wallpaper.  Three layers.  Plus two layers of border. 
The first order of business was to remove the wallpaper.  That was fun.  Under the wallpaper, we found evidence of terribly shoddy sheetrock jobs, and the added bonus of termite colonies.  Suffice it to say, we did a lot of sheetrock mudding, sanding, and smoothing in the kitchen.  It still isn’t perfect, but it is tremendously improved, and I have no complaints. 
Next, we primed and painted all the dark woodwork (except for the cabinets) white.  It is amazing what a good coat of paint will do to a room.  We actually painted all the trim in the house white.  What a remarkable difference!  I picked out my paint colors, and the kitchen is painted with Patience.  Really.  That was the color of the paint.  I thought it was a very appropriate color for the room in which I would spend a great deal of time.  Actually, I still have an almost full can of Patience sitting next to my cabinets, in case any of you are running low on that particular virtue.  :)
After painting, we had new linoleum installed, and it is wonderfully different.  We have a Habitat for Humanity ReStore not far from us, where they sell used construction/household items rather than junking them.  I found some new glass globes for my light fixtures, as well as the 2” blinds for the windows.  Total cost of the blinds and globes was $8.  Eight dollars – you got it!  You can’t do better, unless it is free!  I love the ReStore!
These are the renovation pictures along with a few of the finished product. 

		ok - having issues with viewing the pictures. Sorry, all - I will try to get them up and running.