office overhaul

Our office was purple and green, and it really needed a paint job, but we had already put all the things in there and the colors were d-a-r-k. I do not understand why they were those colors or why they were so dark. I polled Facebook & Instagram for paint colors for the walls, and we settled on Light French Gray by Sherwin Williams. It is perfect! It is just the light gray I was aiming for. Our kitchen cabinets are an Olympic color called Dogwood Blossom, so I opted to match our upstairs built-in shelving to that. I value consistency in paint colors in a house (each room in my house is a different shade of beige.  Each one. Different.), so this seemed like a reasonable idea which paid off, because choosing between shades of white sounds pointless.

Here are my super-fun taken-on-my-iPhone before photos:

After much taping, priming, painting, and more painting, we finally had a room we would really love.

Here is a grand tour of our office with the updated colors:

this is a very clean version of Austin's
desk. this is not my desk.

I do claim that desk!
{what do you do with a glider you don't use?}

found this gem today at Kirkland's for $15!

a look at our brackets. we love the flexibility.

pair of curtains ordered from Kirkland's
for $25

we made our giant ruler go to seven feet
instead of 6!

I used to walk in this room and just think of all the work it would one day need - almost every time. And now I get to relax and enjoy it. This is a room Austin works and plays (computer games) in, where I spend time with the Lord and where we get general home chores done. I wrap gifts and make crafts in here as well. It's been a huge change since the room was painted. The room has come together with new accent pieces - frames, wall decor, and shelf decor.

So happy to be done... or mostly done. We have doorknobs coming in this week!

xo,

Elizabeth

listing

I wasn't sure where to begin this post until I realized that I had totally skipped Ethan's 16 month "birthday". Whoops! Our little man is babbling, half-running, climbing steps, learning words, using his signs better, (I think he thinks the sign for "please" actually means "dessert". Ha!), singing the tune of the a-b-c-d song without the actual letters.. and stealing our hearts every day. So blessed and challenged in parenting this little man.

Excuse the blur of these photos... they were taken right around the 16 month mark, and he truly is a little blur now!

So. Many. Stickers.We love our backpack from Grammie!

Spaghetti is possibly our favorite meal

*Clears a tear* - Ahem.

This post is big for us. If you know us, you know how much love, sweat and tears we have put into our house. We did the thing the people on HGTV's Fixer Upper (watching as I type!) do every episode - bought the worst house in the best neighborhood {that we could afford!} and fixed it up.

I can't estimate the number of hours that we have labored over this home. I've tried to estimate the dollars. The memories of our firstborn homing home to this house, and laboring over it before he did, are something I'll carry with me forever.

Recently, though, Austin accepted a job in Cypress, Texas. It's not far from here (though construction makes it seem much further). We're excited for the upcoming opportunity for him and the growth it should provide for his career! It was a scary, hard decision - as it always is for the sole earner of a family. It's hard to leave something that is comfortable.

We have been longing for a move to the suburbs lately - both of us, for different reasons (Austin grew up in a suburb... I grew up right here!). We prayed for months over it. We had a Realtor come out. We explored several neighborhoods in several different suburbs. No option made enough sense. Our mantra became, "it would be so great to be able to live and work in the suburbs! What a rare opportunity! Those people are so fortunate!"

Then 'those people' became us.

Before I met him, Austin has always said that he is dedicated to going to church in his neighborhood - something that's really in his community. He has even attended churches in which he stood out like a sore thumb. Our current church is located just down the road from us - a total of about 10 blocks, or a 30 minute walk (we have done it). That's rare, friends. Our church has a second location... right by his new work location.

These, among other things, have confirmed and reaffirmed our plan to list our house, and relocate to Cypress, Texas. It's a big leap of faith, even though it appears to be easy. Listing your house is not easy. Selling your house is not easy. Buying a house is not easy. There isn't a house on the market right now that is 'perfect' for us. We don't really know where we will end up. On top of that: we know what the best neighborhoods are, but is that what The Lord is calling us to? The best, the safest, the most comfortable? I want to say yes. I'm not sure that is what He is saying. The world says yes - buy the big house in the best neighborhood. UPGRADE. You deserve it.

This is what The Lord says:

For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.” Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.
{1 Corinthians 1:18-21 ESV}

We're preparing our house, and it should be on the market next week.

Pondering these things in our hearts, and praying over them with thanksgiving,

xo,

The Man and the Bread

"Excuse me ma'am," the man spoke softly, turning toward me as I approached the doors to Target, "do you think I could trouble you for a loaf of bread?" I hesitated.

"Um, yes - sure. I'll run in and I'll be right out."

Today's trip to Target was supposed to be a quick one - go through the clearance section and take Ethan to the playscape in the mall. In the seconds between his asking and my reply, I decided this wasn't too much of a hassle for someone who seemed to really need that loaf of bread.

I toted the child on my hip into the store and started contemplating this man and his need. Did he really only need bread? I can't imagine how hard it would be to ask a stranger for help like that. This man, standing on the curb in front of Target looked as though he was waiting to be picked up by someone. At first glance, he didn't look homeless. I would have walked right past him and been on my way.

I'm sure I'm losing my "what is done in secret" cred, but this man and his need just struck a chord in me. I had to make myself publicly accountable for what the Lord was teaching (I love to blog, so clearly I also have a penchant for oversharing).

I'm amazed by this small way that the Lord made me aware of those in need in my neighborhood - in the middle of my day-to-day tasks. I'm a stay at home mom: my thoughts rarely drift from my tasks around the house or what I'm going to do that day in teaching, playing and occupying Ethan. But here in the midst of my day, I saw someone else in need. How often do I just look past those people? How often am I so occupied in what my family is doing that I don't notice others in my community that need some kind of help or show of love?

"Jesus answered, "The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.""
-Mark 12:29-31, ESV

My paraphrase: love Jesus with every fiber of your being and the love for others will just pour out of you.
(Stealing this paraphrase from some friends, and loving that I'm seeing it applied in my life today.)

This lesson isn't a new one. Though it's not something I haven't heard a hundred times, it could be revolutionary. The challenge for me is to love others by opening my eyes to needs of my neighbors (which may not be limited to food for the homeless), and be willing to serve even if it makes me uncomfortable (I'm uncomfortable just typing that out!). I would be lying if I said that showing love to people who are different from me comes easily for me, but what better motivation do I have than to please the Lord?

After Target, at the playscape

Clinging to this truth today,