It's My Story

And I'm sticking to it...

I love old houses. I love their creaks, their cracks, and their character! I dreamed of living in one and yet never thought it possible.

It crossed my mind that maybe, just maybe when we were given the opportunity to move to this little Mayberry town near Dallas Texas that my dream could become a reality. B.J. and I talked about it and he was on board, ready to make my dream come true.  But when the time came to start looking for  one, we both got scared knowing that with an old house, comes an enormous amount of TLC. (Not only tender loving care, but also time, loads of work, and cash). 

I toured several through personal invites, realtor showings, and estate sales. The condition and size of them sent me right back to the newer homes in the newer neighborhoods. I went back and forth between old houses and new houses until I feel certain our realtor thought she was dealing with a schizophrenic.  But the truth is, my heart never left the old houses. 

And then one day God showed up - at a garage sale...

I pulled up to a garage sale at one of my favorite historical houses.  The owner was extremely busy when I arrived but I squeezed in the opportunity to tell her how much I loved her house. And this is what she told me: "Buying this house was the craziest and most impractical thing I have ever done in my life.  But it doesn't matter because I am living in my dream house and I love it!"

OK, God, I heard you. 

And from then on I knew!! We were going to do something crazy and impractical!

This house is old, it is dirty, it is in dire need of repairs, and still I know it was meant for us to own, to love, to clean, to decorate, and to bring it back to its magnificence to the best of our ability.  It will take time, money, and hard work, but I will never doubt that 408 Preston Street Ennis Texas is exactly where God placed us in this season of our lives! He has given me my hearts desire. 

Much love, Lynn

Mantles, Sofas, and Baseball

Here is my mantle vignette. For now anyway! I would like to change the light fixtures, but will probably wait until we paint the room.  Unlike my other mantle, this one is wider and an electrical outlet is located on the top making it convenient for Christmas decorations. 

Went shopping today for a sofa. Came home confused, discouraged, and without a sofa!! We have decided to put a sleeper sofa in the den to give us a bed downstairs since all the bedrooms are upstairs.  It will also give us peace of mind when we have guests who cannot climb the stairs. 

I can't decide what I want and the choices are few for the size I need.  Oh well, I'll eventually find something.  Realized last week we've only purchased two new sofas in our 35 years of marriage.  Our last one was a hand-me-down. So the way I see it, this one will need to last us approximately 15 years. Lol 

We have tickets to a baseball game tomorrow evening.  Not looking forward to sitting in the heat, but a Rangers game is something we wanted to experience while here in Texas, so one more thing to check off our list.  

I Can See Clearly Now...

The bay window in front of our table is nasty.  Someone had the smart  idea years ago to cover all 50 panes with a tinted film. They did a terrible job trimming it because it hangs over the edges and it's also full of bubbles.  Not only that but the panes are dirty,  inside and out.  Would guess it's been a long time since they've seen Windex! 

You can see the film in this black and white pic but most of what you see is dirt and mildew.  Look even closer at the two panes above the flowers.  Can you see that they are clean!!!  Removing the film takes a lot of elbow grease, a lot!!! And apparently I do not have enough grease in my elbow because I had to use BJ's! Lol He actually did four of them but you can't see the other two because I could not reach them to clean off the residue! 

These panes are quite the pain!!! But I'm looking forward to seeing them all squeaky clean!! 

On another note, we started moving in. To the TV room that is.  Still not completely finished but close enough!!

Have We Finished

The room yet??  You ask!!

Plate Rack

My Mind Has Been Playing Tricks On Me

We brought back a few large pieces of furniture, as well as, several boxes and other things from Mississippi last week.  It was unloaded from the u- haul and into the living room. ALL OF IT!  

Despite being sick with a sinus infection or whatever I still have I spent last week unpacking the boxes and putting things away .  We worked on the TV room over the weekend so this week I planned on getting back into some sort of routine around here. But when I got ready to busy myself yesterday morning I couldn't get passed feeling "gridlocked" when I looked into the living room. 

Gridlocked in the sense that the recliner needed to be moved to another room but couldn't until the rug got put down but the table that went in the corner where the blue dishes were stacked up was in the way and couldn't be moved until the plate rack got hung and the buffet that would be placed against the wall couldn't be moved until the dresser was moved and the coffee table with the trunk sitting on top of it was in the way and trunk needed to hauled upstairs and the coffee table moved to another room... I could keep going but you get the point!

Thankfully BJ sensed my distress and went into action as soon as he got home from work helping me place everything JUST as I had it pictured in my mind. We worked late into the night and guess what?

My mind was wrong!! Wrong, wrong, wrong!! 

Nothing and I mean nothing looks like I envisioned it!! The only thing I like is the placement of a dresser under the plate rack that I had not planned on! The new rug I bought does not work in the room.  I love it but it's gotta go! It's not right for the room! The buffet along the wall looks small and lost.  The chair next to the buffet makes the room seem off balanced. And this table I planned to use in the corner looks too crowded!  

This coffee table is too large for the TV room so now I hope it works in the living room!

I am back to square one!  Now I'm worried about finding the perfect place for everything and even more worried that BJ will not be on board for another evening of furniture shuffle. 

Losing it! My mind that is! 

Second Guessing

I visualize a room and then I always ALWAYS second guess myself.  

I wanted our T. V. room to be cozy and inviting. I wanted it to draw you in. I've been in those kind of rooms but honestly I don't know how to create one.  My vision was white walls and to leave the bookshelves stained to offset the light wall color and warm the room.  (Trust me. I have no idea what I'm talking about!!). I thought the stained bookshelves would look better with the type of things we have to put in them. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I wanted a more masculine look.

The larger sitting room in this house will get a little more formal look.

I came so very close to putting the brakes on our project when the first wall got two roller strokes of white paint. What was I thinking? "This is NOT going to look good. Shouldn't I have gone with a beige?" I zipped my lips and allowed the process to continue! 

I went back to Mississippi and left BJ here to continue painting and trimming out the room. I walked in it for the first time in two weeks could not have been happier! "See! You knew the white walls were what this room needed!" 

Hoping to share the room in its entirety soon! A good bit of work left to do and I want it to be at its best when I reveal it. It needs all the help I can give it. Still not sure about the bookcases!! Don't judge them yet! I am not a fan of this yellowish wood color either but when you see the entire room they are not so bad. 

Or are they????

Groundhog Day

Remember the movie? With Bill Murray. He wakes up every morning and he relives the same day over and over and over! 

That's the way I feel right now! 

Just when I think I have everything pretty much organized in this house we bring more things in and I am back at it again.  And I have this crazy notion that there is a place for everything and everything in its place!!

I also live in a state between feeling like a prisoner inside these walls to a heart of gratitude because I have the time necessary to get things done.

I had some fun yesterday working on bookshelves. This room is still not ready for furniture. More painting and trim work to do but here is a sneak peak. And you know it will probably all change and look nothing like this when I get finished!! 

Moving...

Twenty years...

One box at a time!

 

Exhausting! Overwhelming!

And I have not put a dent in it!!!