What Our Home Once Was

Before I carry on with any somewhat regular blogging I felt like I needed to pop in and share my sincere thankfulness.  The last time I posted I shared some honest struggles I have been going through the past month and I was overwhelmed by your response.  There were so many kind words and encouragement as well as understanding that had me teary eyed all day.  I was reminded we are all broken women with our own story and that we need to take the time to be honest with each other.  Sharing our story and real life changes things--it changes people.  And I want to continue pursuing how to better share my life story as a whole--not just within the walls of my home but through the walls of my heart.  So thank you.

I love a good story.  A well told before and after tale.  Who doesn't love a big reveal?  Well, thanks to our sweet neighbors, we get to see a little bit of the story our home tells.

My husband bought our home in 2008--a year before we got married.  The home had already been remodeled and was the only home in his price range, with a little land, that wasn't a fixer upper.  We went into the whole process with big eyes thinking we wanted to fix something up.  Looking back at these pictures I am so glad we let someone else do the dirty work.  Sure we would do things differently and may even remodel ourselves one day but to look back at what it is was to the little changes we have made today tells quite a story.

See that above picture?  Yes, the one with the blue car and massive bushes.  That is our house.  I couldn't even believe it.

I love the porch, but too bad for those beautiful big trees...

And what a transformation some stucco and paint can do...looking a little closer to how it looks today...

This is a peak into our laundry room which I believe I have shown one picture of in my years of blogging.  It serves as a garage since we don't have one and is a bit of a mess.  

Now if only they left that stainless steel refrigerator!!!

We did luck out on the stove and dishwasher though...

And the final work is done!  This is how the house looked when Brent bought the place except the flower garden had a few years to grow since then.  I am pretty amazed.

And here she is today, with a little more of our personality...

Last summer we put in the white picket fence and it has made such a difference to our curb appeal.  It also has helped keep the neighborhood school kids off of our lawn and allowed our grass to finally grow in!

We have added a few trees and some of the plants are growing in well with another year under their belt.  I have learned that just like inside the house it's all about the layers!  

Our home has been such a dream come true.  We feel so blessed at how lovely it was before Brent bought it and that it continues to grow in beauty and personality as we live in it year after year.  Knowing the story behind it makes the whole experience even that much richer!