No More Painting!!

Friday, right after work- we went straight to Lowe's to buy paint & supplies for the weekend. What I thought would be a simple 1 1/2 day of painting turned into an entire weekend of painting. We started Friday around lunch and didn't finish until 5:00 on Sunday. I don't think that I have ever worked so hard in my life- I told my husband that next time we will use our Wagner paint sprayer and not even worry with doing it by hand. I have blisters on both hands and everything hurts- painters have a very hard job!!

[This was me in a happy mood before I realized that I would be painting the entire weekend]

Next week:
// Monday- Cabinets being installed
// Tuesday-Thursday- Lighting being installed
// Wednesday- Granite contractor to template & measure (2 weeks for complete installation)
// Lights will be turned on
// Garage Doors installed

I am so excited that next week the lights will be up with painted walls and cabinets- how crazy is that?!

After the cabinets and lighting is installed- we will have a 2 week break where just my husband and I will work on the deck railing, tile, pantry and walk in closet shelving. On the last week right before we move in, we will be putting down wood floors, the granite will be installed and the plumbing completed- it is honestly going to be down to the last minute- I'm a little nervous, but all I can do now is work hard and pray that it all comes together in time!

After we move in, we will still have a long honey-do list: installing interior doors, hardi-board siding & painting, window & door trim, exterior lighting, landscaping.

Three more weeks until we move in! 

Something to Look Forward To..

After blogging last week about being more aware of complaining less and being more thankful- things have really been going so much better! It's all about having a positive attitude! The thing is, I have always been a positive person, but understandably, I allowed myself to get drawn into an extremely negative place when I lost Roscoe- it's just taken me a little longer than most to pull myself out of the darkness that I have been in- I'm still working on it (with lots of prayer!) but I am feeling better as the days go by. The house has been a great distraction and has kept me extremely busy from getting too lost in my thoughts. I feel like it has helped me to have something to look forward to and like a good friend of mine said, it's a new start for Reggie and myself- which I think is just what we need.

In other news, the house is coming along really great! It looks like we are going to pull it all together right at the very end of our move out date!

This week:
// Finally made a decision on a paint color! We will be painting on Friday!!
// Purchase last few lights- bathroom & closet
// Finally made a decision on the wood floors & we ordered them - they were more than what we wanted to spend, but we want a quality wood & a look that we will love.
// Chose a granite contractor & he will be out to template our kitchen & bath next week
// Emailed the cabinet contractor to let him know that he can start installing cabinets on Monday

Planned for this weekend:
//Paint entire house on Friday
// Husband put up backer board in bathroom
// Go through more things & pack

Next week:
// Cabinets being installed
// Lighting being installed
// Granite contractor to template & measure (2 weeks for complete installation)

Honestly, in my mind I am already planning ahead to the week after next- hopefully, putting down tile, having the garage doors installed and maybe put up deck railing.

We may have some other good news coming up next week, but I don't want to share the details until I know for sure. One day soon, I am going to tell you all about our journey the past 7 years to present- from the place we were at to where we are now is proof that God's hand has been over us the entire time, planning out our future and guiding us into the right paths. When we were at our lowest times and things looked hopeless, it was God who came through, every time we called on him. But, that will take up an entire post, if not more, so I will save that for another day!

I hope that you are all having a wonderful week!!

Life is a Whirlwind!

Life has been such a whirlwind lately, especially now that we are on a time crunch with our house- we had to give our apartment a 30-day notice so now we are looking at 17-24 days move time. As if I weren't stressed enough already- we are waiting on the drywall to be finished, deck railing, kitchen cabinets, granite, tile floors, lighting and plumbing done before we can move in. This ----->girl is doing some serious praying. I have also been busy packing, going through things- some selling but mostly donating to the Goodwill. I sadly had to cancel my beach day with some girlfriends because I have been so stressed out- right now it's push, push, push until we get moved out and settled. But I know soon it will be worth all of the hard work that we are putting in.

Accomplished this weekend:

// covered up the underground gas tank which took several hours
// cleaned-picked up tree limbs/sticks
// emailed 4 granite places with pdf to get different quotes/time frames
// drove to Tallahassee to pick up 2 ceiling fans & kitchen light
// ordered remaining door hardware
// ordered more wood floor samples
// looked at kitchen appliances
// sorted through more things- donate, sell, and throw away piles

On top of all of that, I actually managed to do laundry, dishes, 1 homemade dinner and some food + wine shopping, so it was a fairly productive weekend!

Planned for this week/weekend:

// buy wall paint + ceiling paint and remaining lights for bath & closet
// paint ceilings & walls
// clean more construction debris
// have electrical contractor come back to finish putting up lights
// organize/pack more
// today- choose & order hardwood flooring

I am exhausted, but thankful for God blessing us all throughout this house-building journey- he has blessed us with amazing contractors and nice weather for the most part. It's been nice to have this to keep us busy and keep our minds occupied on positive things. God is good, all of the time.

Hope that you are all having a great Monday wherever you are!!

Almost There!!

The kitchen contractor emailed us the preview of how our finished kitchen will look- it's perfect!

Drywall has all been hung today- 1st inspection cleared. They may be finished by Thursday.

Yesterday, after I wrote about being more thankful and complaining less- my day today went much smoother. My husband spoke with the U-haul manager about the two flat tires and they gave us the 1 day rental credit back plus another $10 credit to go towards our next rental.  I also received an email for a job position that was perfect for my husband and I used my lunch break to submit his resume.

I can't believe tomorrow is Wednesday already, we have been really busy at work and with house stuff and this week has flown by! Tomorrow we meet with the cabinet contractor to sign the contract and make half the payment up front, then we will be going to Lowe's to buy paint and choose our lighting. It's hard to believe that the house will be painted with lights and cabinets next week! By the first of July, we will be installing sink bases, faucets and choosing our granite.

The one thing that may take longer will be the hardwood and tile floors- once that is done, it is time to move in! If we stay on schedule we could be moved in by July 12th weekend- hopefully, I will have time to start packing and going through everything- the less we move, the better! It would be really perfect to celebrate my husband's birthday (July 20) already living in our new home!

Well, enough about the house- I need to get some rest- tomorrow is another day. I hope that you are all having a wonderful week! 

*This picture below is when we would take Roscoe walking every day around Cherokee Lake and we would all go together to look at the new house construction- Roscoe loved running around in the grassy open area :) 

Thank God for the Blessings!

Hi lovelies, I hope that you all had an amazing weekend! I was just cleaning the apartment and making myself some Starbucks coffee when I began reflecting back over my weekend. It was not a very good weekend, everything that could possibly go wrong, did go wrong. I even caught myself posting about it on Facebook-subconsciously letting everyone know that my life isn't always champagne & cupcakes (although, to be honest, I kind of wish it were..)- who wouldn't!

 It occurred to me that I have been complaining too much lately and not being thankful for all of the blessings in my life. Yes, life is going to be hard and we all get exhausted and need a break and we go through hard times, but there is always something good to be found. Take Saturday for example, when our vehicle wouldn't start- the good thing was that we stalled at the Stone's Building center so that one of the guys there jumped us off. What if we had broken down on the side of the road with no one around? That would have been so much worse. Another good thing was that we decided to go to Chick Fil A and grab some lunch & drinks before going to Stones- so we had plenty of food and drink while we waited on the tow truck! I can't imagine how tough it would have been to wait over an hour with nothing to eat or drink in a hot vehicle.

So yes, even during the bad times in life, there is always good if we look for it- we just have to look for the positives instead of the negatives. It doesn't mean that my life is perfect or that I will never be heart-broken again & need a shoulder to cry on, it just means that I will have hard times but I will give my problems to God and he will take care of them.

 And now, with all that being said- I am going to work on complaining less and being more thankful. And I am going to start right now by writing a list of things that I am thankful for!

Things that I am Thankful For:
//We will be in our new home in 4 weeks!!
//I love our land & all of the nature surrounding where our new home is- it's so peaceful..
//I am finally living back in my hometown of Thomasville!
//I have met some great new friends here:)
//I have an amazing husband who loves me more than anything:)
//I am thankful that God let us have Roscoe for 15 long years- he gave us so much joy:)
//I am thankful that God allowed Roscoe to take his last breath lying between me & my husband and we were able to say goodbye and tell him it was all going to be okay:) He went peaceful..
//I have a great job & an amazing boss :)
//My husband & I have our health
//We have a new Trader Joes and Whole Foods (I prayed for both of these about 8 years ago when I was still living in Albany- we used to have to drive to Atlanta)

*Edited to add: Also thankful for being finished with cleaning apartment carpet and now sitting down to enjoy The Bachelorette with a glass of wine!

What would you include on your thankful list?

Another House update

[I am so excited to read books, drink wine on this deck]

This Weekend: 
+ Paint Rafters
+ Clean Construction Debris
+ Finish Deck
+ Meet with Kitchen Designer Saturday morning- hopefully order our cabinets that day!
+Put up Hardi-board siding

For June 16th week:
//Monday- Gas Inspection
//Insulation installed once we get the go ahead from the Gas Inspector
//Drywall installed- takes 3-4 days to complete
//Paint drywall
//Install Garage Doors
//Order hardwood flooring (still deciding)
//Have Electrician, Plumber, HVAC return to complete everything. (Lights!!)

Raw Green Organics Giveaway Winner!!

Hi everyone, thank you to all of you that entered my Giveaway for the Raw Green Organics detox kit. The winner is....Cailee Joy from hellohealthyeating!! Cailee please send me your mailing address information to melindapollard[at]gmail[dot]com. I hope that you enjoy the detox kit as much as I have!

Enjoy your weekend!!

Happy Weekend!!

Hi everyone- happy weekend!! 

This week we were able to mark a few things off the list- so exciting!

//Monday-2 insulation contractors appointment to give quote (maybe have insulation installed this week)
//Monday- Gas contractor appointment to give quote (maybe have installed this week)
//Monday- cleaning up more construction debris so Gas line can be installed
//Tuesday- Hardi-board being delivered
//HVAC being installed
//Deck boards completed
//Order hardwood flooring (still deciding)
//Install Garage Doors
//Call for drywall quotes/scheduling

This Weekend: 
+ Paint Rafters
+ Clean Construction Debris
+ Finish Deck
+ Meet with Kitchen Designer Saturday morning- hopefully order our cabinets that day!

For June 9th week:
//Monday- Gas Inspection
//Insulation installed once we get the go ahead from the Gas Inspector
//Drywall installed- takes 3-4 days to complete
//Install Garage Doors

I am trying to enjoy the journey of building our new home, but I have to admit it has been very stressful dealing with contractor schedules and trying to get everything done each week. On the same hand, I am very grateful at how fast our home has gone up and the wonderful contractors that we have been blessed with- during all of this, I have prayed for God to bless us with the best contractors, prices, etc. 

All in all, everything has been going smoothly. The closer that we get to being finished, the more excited I become which does not make for a very restful night (thank goodness for Ashwagandha anti-stress herbs + wine). I cannot believe we only have 5-6 weeks until we officially move into our new home!

I hope that you all have a wonderful weekend!

Very Productive Weekend!!

Hello all! Hope that you all had a wonderful weekend- I really enjoyed mine and feel like I was able to be fairly productive!

Last week:
//Septic Tank Installed
//Plumbing completed w/tub install
//Electrical completed
//Called for insulation, flooring quotes- set up appointments

This weekend:
//Colored my hair w/henna
//Cleaned the entire apartment
//Niece + her bf came to visit- pizza + movie night
//Went through my closet & gave several bags of clothing + jewelry to my niece
//Applied for Financial Aid for me & the hubby to attend school this Fall (begins August 19)
//Stocked up on wine + cheese and other groceries
//Ordered the hardi-board from Pro-build
//More deck framed out
//Received several flooring quotes-have to make a decision on who to hire
//Ordered more wood floor samples online

I love our the new tub- a little expensive but it's very deep + I love the look of cast iron

Upcoming week:
//Monday-2 insulation contractors appointment to give quote (maybe have insulation installed this week)
//Monday- Gas contractor appointment to give quote (maybe have installed this week)
//Monday- cleaning up more construction debris so Gas line can be installed
//Tuesday- Hardi-board being delivered
//HVAC being installed
//Deck boards completed
//Order hardwood flooring
//Install Garage Doors
//Call for drywall quotes/scheduling

Lately, every weekend has been work, but it will be worth it because soon we will be enjoying our new home. Every time I go to our new home, I get so happy about all of the beautiful nature that we are surrounded with- this evening I even saw a turkey running through the woods, so exciting! 

Right now it is 9:00 p.m. and I am sitting here enjoying a glass of red wine, getting ready to head to bed soon. Time for a new week! Hope that you all enjoyed your weekend!