Around the House

Here are a few items from around the house that I wanted to share.

Oh, she's around the house! Cute little Fynley!

This fan on our porch helped to make the hot summer days a little more bearable.

I found this pillow cover at Hobby Lobby and I can't believe how much it looks like Fynley (if she was wearing a pair of glasses).

I searched high and low for just the right chalkboard to go in this spot. For months, I looked at TJ Maxx, Marshall's, Target, and every place in between to find a chalkboard I loved. After telling my sister, the expert shopper, she found this perfect chalkboard for me at Ross. And, the added bonus, it was only $20!!!!

While searching for the chalkboard, I came across two of these lanterns for the porch. They were only $9.99 and that made me very happy. They also included a flameless candle that has a built in timer!

Random

Wow it has been awhile since I blogged. Our every day life is keeping me busy. I guess that's my only excuse.

Fynley had a chance to visit the beach for the first time last week. She loved running on the beach but she wasn't too sure about the water. So glad we are able to take her to the beach. 

Shelly and Fynley on the porch. 

Shelly preparing for her walk to school. Such a cool thing that we are close enough for her to walk to school every day. 

We went to Trader Joe's for our pumpkins. They have so many great looking pumpkins and terrific prices, too. We decorated the front of the house with our dozen pumpkins. Happy to see Fall around the house even though it's still a bit warm outside. 

We have owned this house for one year. Hard to believe. The girls and I didn't move into the house, permanently, until January. But, John started living here in October and we made several visits in November and December. 

Fynley is super fun. She is a total lap dog and I love it!!!

Another day of walking to school for Shelly. Here she is waiting on the corner of our court for her friend.

Carpet Runner on the Stairs

When we moved into this house we inherited a set of stairs that were creaky. They also were bare hardwood steps that I found a bit slippery and dangerous. The combination of creaky and dangerous made me think we should add a carpet runner on the stairs. 

Realty photo of previous owners' decor 

We chose a neutral colored carpet with a faint diamond pattern from Lowe's and had it installed. The carpet is comfy and has made the stairs much less squeaky (a bonus late at night). I'm so glad we decided to do this and I love the look. 

A Fire

On Sunday evening we were at home and Lily and Shelly were hanging out with their cousin. Shelly and Kaden were outside when Shelly came inside telling us there was a large fire outside. 

When we looked outside, we saw the house that sits behind us through some woods on fire. It was such a scary moment. I called 911 while John flew out the back door and headed to the house that was on fire. Thankfully, when John got there the owners were already out of the house. We could hear the fire trucks on their way and were relieved as the firemen arrived and started putting out the fire. The flames were above the house and the scene was really scary.  

As it turns out, a large detached garage was on fire and burned to the ground. Some of the flames from the fire got into the attic of the house and the side of the home was burned but it doesn't appear there was any major damage to the home. There hasn't been any information about the cause of the fire. So relieved that the fire didn't spread and no one was injured.

Here's some news video about the fire:

House Selling/Buying Notebook

Back in August we found a house in Virginia Beach that we wanted to purchase. Then we began the process of selling our house in North Carolina. With both the house buying and selling happening simultaneously, I decided I needed two things: a notebook and a folder to keep me organized. 

I used this handy notebook that was separated into two sections. I could document all things that applied to the VA house in one section and the items for the NC house in the other section. Conveniently, it came with a little pocket for each section. So any loose notes, business cards, and receipts could be placed in the pockets. 

In the notebook, I jotted down information on home repairs, showing dates and times, moving costs, utility company phone numbers, and a variety of other important items that pertained to the buying and selling of the homes. 

I also had a folder for the sale of the NC home. It was helpful for adding the larger documents that we needed to keep track of along the way.  

In addition to the notebook and the folder, I also kept two folders in my email that were titled with the home addresses. When any, and all, emails came in I would save them under the correct house folder. This made it pretty easy to find important emails from realtors, home inspectors, painters, etc. 

I think these forms of organization are what helped me to stay on track and not lose my mind (completely)! Hope these might help someone else out there who is looking to buy or sell a house (or to do both). Good luck. 

Moving On

Tomorrow all of our items will be boxed up and put on a truck headed to our new adventure. As the moments get closer, the emotions run high and low. I think about the memories we've made in this home...a new baby, lost teeth, riding a bike for the first time, birthday parties, sleepovers, tears of joy and sadness that have filled the rooms. This house made us a family of four and for that I'll always be grateful. But now it's time to move along to our new adventure and allow this house to embrace a new family. Good bye, Feathery Court. Thanks for everything. 

Mid-Month Update

Well, since my last update, we have listed our house for sale by owner. So, if you know anyone who would like to move to the area, live on a golf course, and enjoy a swimming pool, let us know!

The girls have been busy at school. Shelly has had her share of up and down days at middle school. She told her teacher that she just really missed her mom. And so, we talked about it and I let her know that I can relate. As a 1st grader, I cried every day of school for the first month (what a pain for my mother---wish I could tell her how sorry I am). I hated leaving my mother. Hopeful that she will work through all of this and it will all be okay. But, I'm realistic and I know it can take some time. 

We have had painters painting our upstairs in a very neutral palette. We've also showed our house to several realtors, as well as, individuals who are interested in the house. That means the house needs to be "show ready" all the time. :(

We are also a bit obsessed with playing the card game Speed. It seems like the perfect stress reliever/diversion from life!

We are working on how to make our move a little less stressful by lining things up ahead of time. It's a bit overwhelming and there are days when I just want to bury my head under a pillow and go right back to sleep. But, that's not really an option. So, I will continue to take it all one day at a time and pray for the best and listen to my Joel Osteen podcasts.

House Items

A few little items to share from around the house. I bought some tulips at Fresh Market yesterday and they really are pretty. I put them into some mason jars and have them in our dining room. I'm attempting to will Spring to arrive sooner rather than later. The mason jars are actually from my great grandfather's home and we discovered them in my dad's attic over the Christmas break. So, I'm putting them to good use. 

Around Valentine's Day I was shopping and found The Gurgle Pot. I've wanted to purchase it but thought it was a bit expensive. 

The shop where I found it was going out of business and it was on sale for 50% off. I was thrilled and scooped it right up. We all get a kick out of hearing it gurgle when you pour.

And finally, we had three canvases hanging on the wall in our kitchen. They were a chef theme and a year or so ago I decided I was over the chef look. So, I took them down and hung on to the canvases. 

In the left of this photo you can see the former chef canvases

After much deliberation I painted the horizontal canvas black. It took me two coats of paint and after allowing it to dry, I went back and added the saying. I was inspired by this sign but I put my own twist on it. I'm pretty pleased with the final product.

Inspiration piece

My version of the above sign

School House

Awhile back the girls and I created a school area in their "play room". We used an available wall and put up a dry erase board (the chalkboard is so 1990s) and a bulletin board. 

They also added some classroom decorations on the wall and had an area for their "faux" students' birthdays and the jobs for their classroom. It's a fun little area to use their imagination and play school...girls after my own heart!