Black and White and Red All Over

Those of you who visited our home sometime in the last six months will doubtless remember the very "artistic" kitchen we were blessed with. Whoever lived here before us used about eight different colors on the walls, ceiling, and cupboards, and was apparently too ADD to finish distinct sections in one color but moved on to new hues haphazardly. But sometimes, when buying a house, you have to have a vision for what it COULD be.

The last month and a half have been spent transforming our kitchen into one more our style. David has spent many of his days off from work painting three (or four) coats over the walls, ceiling, and cabinets. Here are the "After" pictures of our brand new kitchen.

Next project: the bathroom. Although I think that one is going to have to wait till next summer.

Taming the Wilderness

One of the glorious things about this summer is that for four whole months I don't have to share David with his schoolwork. One of the drawbacks is that for four whole months I do have to share him with his garden. Before we bought our house in January of this year, I never suspected what an avid gardener and landscaper David would turn out to be. Every day he spends an hour--or two, or three, or four--outside taming the wilderness. And although I sometimes begrudge the time he spends out there, I definitely enjoy the beautiful yard he's created. Here are some before and after pictures.

BEFORE: The front yard prior to purchase

AFTER: The front yard now

BEFORE: The left side of the house

AFTER: The left side of the house -- minus the trashy plastic shed

AFTER: Notice our baby boxwood hedge -- it will be 3' tall someday

BEFORE: Right side of the house

AFTER: Right side of the house

AFTER: More right side of the house

Shelve It

Last week was spring semester finals at George Fox University, which means that this week is the first week of my husband David's summer break! After he has been studying so hard for the last several months, it might surprise you to learn that the first thing he did for his summer vacation was hit the books.

Ever since our whirlwind move (and Adam's double surgery) in January, our books have been either shelved haphazardly or piled in disorganized heaps on the basement floor. But chaos reigns no longer.

We found a great place for our favorite bookshelf in the living room and filled it up with our ancient, medieval, and early modern history titles. Coincidentally, these also happen to be our favorite books. My husband and I frequently congratulate ourselves on how well the history libraries we acquired during our single years now complement each other--an added benefit to married life.

The basement bookshelves got a complete makeover with the sections sorted out into theology, language books, reference books, poetry, fiction, political science/economics, and photo albums. Notice our handmade   Turkish rug brightening up the floor--a Craigslist find from a few months ago.

Books weren't the only thing on the agenda. A quick trip to Ikea gave us this floor length mirror. I don't know which was the harder feat--fitting it into the car or bolting it into the wall.

Another project needing attention is pictures! Our walls have been sadly bare, but that is on the mend. Above is a collection of framed art I put together by cutting the spine off a Dover book, Great Medieval Churches and Cathedrals of Europe.

This morning we made a paint run to Home Depot, so hopefully I will soon have pictures of a "cotton fluff" white kitchen (instead of one with seven different psychotically applied colors) and a green "geranium leaf" master bedroom with white trim (instead of curry yellow).

The twins have been troopers through all of our renovating and running around, enjoying their time on the front porch whenever the weather's nice enough to go outside.

Blood Work and Boxes

A guest post by the David Spears so a mother can get some rest before the big day. 

Due to the great swell of support and prayers we have received for Adam, we thought it best to keep those praying updated. The support has become a great anchor for us in these very rough seas. It is an even greater comfort knowing that the anchor firmly rests on the Rock of Christ.  

There is no mistaking the seas are raging with all the uncertainty life can bring. The house that could become our greatest economical advantage, the house that will be my sons’ home, finally cleared its last hurdles. It was a close thing; the closing came down to a two hour window where the whole deal could have collapsed. I turned in so many “one last thing(s)” that I began to think people forgot what the word “last” meant. I also had to pay $1200 dollars extra due to “oops” in the paper work. In fact, not a single date/timeline was achieved in the whole process until time ran out. Fully expecting to miss the last deadline as well, we registered the title with half an hour left by my watch. It was a close thing.

The support I mentioned has been more than just prayers. By my guess about twenty or thirty people showed up to move my family to our new home last Saturday. It was very humbling and amazing. We had only one day to move due to my school term starting today and Adam’s surgery starting tomorrow. Saturday was the only day to move, and what a move it was. There was almost too much help. The Lord answered our prayers not abstractly but with a strong vibrant church that came out to help us when we needed it the most. To those who know who they are, thanks.  

As important as this home is for my family’s future, it is just a material thing. It is wood and concrete. It pales in comparison to the importance and value of my son Adam. It is an afterthought when I think of the uncertainty Adam faces. Just this week Rose took Adam to three different hospitals in one day to search for answers.  Adam, just his name reminds me of how familiar death is to me. Death and I are definitely no strangers and I cannot pretend “everything will be fine” when I know it is not always so.  The seas are definitely raging and the storm is all around.  Adam has started his liquid diet and soon will be off even that to prepare for his surgery. It is a hard thing to starve a little baby in order to do what is best for him. Yet this is what Christ did for us, He died so we can live. Death, while familiar, is not something I fear anymore. Christ has Adam's future in His care just as much as he did the very first Adam. The Lord can use the surgeons to answer our prayers just as easily as He provided so many helping hands to move us into our new house. My family rests firmly on the Rock that is Christ and we thank you all for your prayers. 

As of right now Adam is scheduled for a 10:30 am surgery tomorrow morning.     

    

Home Sweet Home?

As some of you may know, my husband and I have been working on purchasing a house for the last several months. We wanted a place in the heart of Oregon City that would be big enough for our family to live in for at least the next ten years. At the beginning of August, we found what we were looking for. Then we set about the long process of becoming first time homebuyers.

It took phone calls to three separate mortgage brokers to get us preapproved for the house loan. After that we put in an offer. Since the house is a short sale, it took several weeks to hear back from the bank. Two days ago we officially received the offer acceptance, and the same day we had the house inspection done. Even though it was built in 1900, the house showed no major problems--the electric and plumbing had all been recently updated.

Our next step is the VA Appraisal which could take up to two weeks to happen. Lord willing, that will all go well, and we will be able to close the deal by November 15. The twins are due November 28, so it's a race against the clock to see if the house or the babies will get here first. But even if it takes longer than anticipated, we're still praying that Madison and 15th will be our new home sweet home in Oregon City.