diy

It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

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This has been a spectacular week! Not a lot of house stuff but a whole lot of fun and some good R & R! Last weekend we had our first snow and it was magical. The girls played in it all day, lots of Christmas crafting and baking, we went to a Christmas tree festival, and visited an artisanal holiday bazaar with lots of local food and handmade goodies. We finished decorating the tree and did a lot of chilling out with the seasonal colds settling in a bit too. Note: House pics at the bottom finally!

Playing in the snow
Baking cookies

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On Wednesday we had a very special surprise, our niece Madelyn was born! She is our daughter’s first first cousin and they’re over the moon for another girl in the family! We all can not wait to meet her, hold her, and smell that new baby smell.

Also on Wednesday we had another reason it was a special day! We went wedding dress shopping with one of my two sisters. One dress shop helped us determine more of the look she was going for, then we stopped for lunch, and then went to the second dress shop. With tears in my eyes she tried on the most beautiful, perfect, gorgeous dress! It was such a spectacular moment and so special that the girls and I got to share it with her. (no pictures not to ruin essence of surprise)

img_7202With Shaun traveling this week we had a special sleepover with my other sister. We shared a special dinner I slaved over, watched Polar Express, and snuggled a lot. Good times!

So many wonderful memories, specialness, and holiday goodness happening right now it’s making me all warm and toasty inside. As the season approaches, I want to share one idea my family does every Christmas morning. It is called the First Gift of Christmas and the link brings you to the full article for more details. Before anything else happens in our family on Christmas morning, we take time to do this and it makes us stop, reflect, and really remember the reason for the season.

I took some pictures of our house…the parts that are photo ready. Note that there isn’t anything on the walls on purpose. I don’t like to commit to hanging things until we are 100% sure and it takes a loooong time for us to do so. But I’m totally digging just enjoying our new paint colors on the walls also.

Kitchen
Family room
My fav new pieces we’ve bought for the house

 

Long Live the Valley of Empty Boxes

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The key to it all!

We have officially moved in! We are sleeping, eating, waking up here and all. Thanks in part to my high caffeine intake provided by San Fransisco Bay Fog Chaser coffee, it’s happened! Once the coffee maker changed addresses, then we were officially home.

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It’s happening!

The floors were done! I know you’re happy that I’d stop talking about them now lol. However, we’ve decided to keep the footprint of the kitchen for a few years and have the cabinets painted. So now the flooring, as of Monday, will be throughout my entire house YAY!! So, the glass half full, there’ll be one more floors post.

The painting downstairs will begin in about two weeks. Shaun started painting the girls’ rooms. I, with Shaun’s help, painted the master closet and the new closet system is going in this week. Shaun is finishing up the flooring on the stairs. I am still figuring out where I want all of the furniture. Settling never felt so good!

Thank God for NJ Teachers Convention because the art studio by our new home is having half day art camp and the girls are super pumped to go. During those few hours, I am fitting power box emptying time in, probably clothes because I miss my clothes. We packed most of our clothes about a month ago before the closing was pushed up almost three weeks. Since, we have had limited items that have been washed a lot since, choices will be very welcome. Now that the girls are going to be homeschooled we’ll have A LOT of time together but time to unpack by myself is going to be time well spent.

Homeschooling the girls has always been a dream of mine and I can’t wait to get started. My favorite hashtag is #noschooliscool because I love having the girls with me! It is going to be priceless, quality time together. The girls and I are making excessive lists of topics we want to learn, science projects we want to make, outdoorsy activities to keep us physical, and more. The lists just keep growing and expanding and it’s so exciting!

Last breakfast in BT
Last public school day of the year

I do have to say that I am already missing our home, friends, neighbors, and general everyday regular life. On the flip side, I am loving our new home, looking forward to walking the sidewalks, enjoying the view of the beautiful surroundings out of my kitchen window, shopping the local farms, and more! It’s such a change of scenery but totally loving what we are enveloped by. I also found an amazing coffee shop called The Coffee Potter! They make my coffee to perfection and that’s no easy feat.

We are all sharing much love of the office space. The girls and I love when Shaun is home so much and this space will allow him to work at home with more ease! Even if he’s busy working or on the phone, it’s just better having him share space with us. We will also be able to do lunch together, take early morning walks together, and more often than not be together for dinner.

We are truly four solid corners that completes the square shape. The feeling of goodness, happiness, and an exciting future is definitely in the air and I am so excited for it!

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Cheers!