Ch-ch-changes!

I know it has been awhile since I've posted. So Sorry! My dad and older brother made a trip down with their trailer in tow and helped us move. We've been officially in the house for just over a week now. Still stepping over boxes and pushing things out of our way occasionally though. 

We're in that stage of unpacking where all (ok, most) of the necessities have been taken care of and it's just the things that are left. This house is so much larger than what I'm used to living in, and I have a decent amount of space to work with here. It is a little daunting trying to figure out the "right" place to put everything. 

Also, Nick and I have both been trying to be better about getting rid of excess stuff. Tossing it. Donating it. Whatever. I just want it out of the house. No extra clutter for this girl! I type that as I am sitting in a living room that is littered with STUFF. It is definitely a process, and a long one.

Since we have moved in we have been busy, busy, busy! Lots of little (and not so little) projects have been started. We have finally found a home services company (Shout out to Green Leaf Home Services!) that is helping us out with some of the things on our long list that need to be completed before we can reschedule our city inspection. (5 months and counting, people!) Nick has stepped up his DIY-game and is even familiarizing himself with the Home Depot that is only a few minutes away. (thanks free handy-dandy Home Depot App!)

I would like to dedicate a post to each of the changes that we've been making. Sadly, I am a terrible blogger and have spaced on taking that many pictures. Actually, it is less that I forgot to take them and more it is hard to stop a project to snap decent pictures when you only have a short time between dinner time and bath time with a toddler. So please forgive me! I will get around to posting actual pictures of the projects that we have gotten into so far, but for now I'll share list so you can see how much progress has already been made!

Living Room:

• Tear up carpeting
• Chip off and spackle peeling paint 
• Hang Curtains
• Paint walls
• Paint trim
• Build tripod lamp

Dining Room:

• Tear up carpeting
• Remove asbestos tiles
• Paint walls
• Paint trim
• Build dinner table

Office:

• Tear up carpeting
• Paint wood paneling
• Paint built ins
• Build a new work desk

Breakfast Nook:

• Remove wallpaper
• Spackle uneven surfaces
• Paint walls
• Replace blinds/hang curtains

Kitchen:

• Remove drop ceiling
• Get new oven installed
• Install light fixture/remove fluorescent light
• Replace faucet
• Repair garbage disposal
• Replace water cut off valves under sink
• Paint walls
• Paint ceiling

Wow. And that is only the list for the Entry Level not including any of the bathrooms or bedrooms! Also, it doesn't include any of the decorative things such as, "buy a new sectional" or "build a coffee table"! We also need to paint the hallway that connects all of those rooms and goes upstairs. Eventually we want to refinish all of the wood floors throughout, but I know that it is going to be quite a while before we can fit that into our budget so for now, it gets left off of the list.

Nick and I are going to sit down one of these nights and make an in depth list of what we want to get done and set little goals so that we don't get too far "off track". Here's hoping that we can tackle the Living Room trim sometime this week!  

XO!
Sam

2014 Goals

We are already (almost) a week in to the New Year already! I’m not going to be totally cliché and say how it feels like “just yesterday” we were starting 2013, because honestly it doesn’t. This year has been crazy. Looking back at pictures, mainly of Harper, it does seem like it went by very quickly. I’ve shed a tear or two thinking about how much she has grown in such a short amount of time. But so many amazing (and not so amazing!) things have happened in a year, as a family we are so far from where we were last year! I wanted to share some of my personal goals for this year. Settle in with that hot drink, this is going to be a little word-y.

i. This may seem like a silly goal to most/all of you, but I seriously NEVER made the bed growing up, like, ever. I hated doing it. I probably just spend too much time looking at pictures of other people’s bedrooms (creepy?) but it makes the room look so much more together. If I can walk into a room and not feel the chaos, it’s a win in my book. So, 30 days makes a habit, and I’m going to try and keep it up!

ii.      This one isn’t a diet related goal, at all. It’s more of a financial/stop-being-a-gluttonous-pig goal. Nick and I both eat crazy serving sizes! Like, if an extra large pizza can barely cover dinner, you’ve got a problem. Well, we have a problem. We just really like to eat! I want to start cutting out seconds, and having left-overs to save some money (ok, and it will undeniably help the waistline but that’s 100% afterthought!)

iii.  I need to get better at this too. I like to read, but I’ve found my attention span just isn’t what it used to be. I need to work on focusing more, and I think reading a good book is a great way to do that! I’ve read a few in the past couple months that are part of a series, so I plan to continue with those.

iv.      Harper and I actually went on quite a few walks, especially when it isn’t -8 degrees out! Once we’re moved in and live in a neighborhood instead of off a busy freeway, I’d like taking walks to be a daily thing.

v. I love Belle Isle! I actually only went, maybe, 5 times this year. I’m excited that it is now owned by the state. Hopefully that means the bathrooms will be open! Ha! I’d like to get a bike seat or trailer for Harper to ride on, so that we can ride around the island. Definitely would like to go at least once a month this year.

vi.      This is an ongoing goal for me. Notice the earlier mentioning of how I need to “work on focusing more”. Yeah. I am the best at finding projects that I want to do, and starting new projects. Just not so great at finishing them. I think part of this is if something isn’t turning out the way I had pictured, I have a tendency to abandon it, but not get rid of it. I’m getting better at letting stuff go and therefore having less unfinished projects lying around.

Well, there you have it! I’m sure there are a bunch of other things that I’ll work on changing throughout this year, but these are things that really stuck out in my head as far as personal growth goes. Obviously, this list doesn’t include any of the house projects that we’re planning. Save that for another day.

Do you bother to make New Years Goals? I guess lots of people think that they’re silly, or are you like me and you like the idea of “starting fresh”? Let me know in the comments!

XOX

Sam