A fresh coat of paint

A fresh coat of paint makes anything look better.  Take our dining room (or new front door) for example.  A fresh coat of paint and it looks like a new room.  I love it!
Here is the dining room picture I had from the previous owners before we moved in-

Then we moved in our furniture-

The walls just looked a little blah...  We needed some color.  So after a fresh coat of paint I am loving our new dining room!

The paint looks great with the existing chandelier, and helps high light the blue delft-like design.  We bought the rug from Overstock.com to help pull together the yellow in the curtains (that the previous owners left and I dried cleaned because they are very high quality curtains) and the blue chandelier.

Yellow It Is

Remember when I was wanting to paint my new front door?  Well friends, I've done it.  Or should I say my live-in-painter, a.k.a. husband has done it.

Yellow it is!

I must admit that I was a bit self-conscious when we were painting it because it looked SUPER bright.  I kept worrying about what the neighbors would think as they drove by; he way our house is situated everyone who drives into the neighborhood can see it.  (And now you can't miss it.)  It took 5 coats of paint and a couple days to cover up the black.  I wasn't sure if I was going to end up liking it, but I LOVE it!  It is bright and fun and you can see our door way down the road.  It is fabulous.

It even matches our indoor rug, (which was there before we painted the door).  And we choose to keep the fish door knocker.

We have a neighborhood Ice Cream social on Sunday night and I'm looking forward to meeting more people in the neighborhood and telling them I live in the house with the yellow door.

What do you think?   I won't be offended if you don't like it.  I'm sure you won't be the only one :)

Linking up with Just Because 

I miss...

Don't get me wrong I love South Carolina.  I love my new house.  I love our new church.  We feel at home here in a way we never did in Georgia.  Yet, there are a few things that I miss.  I miss West Cobb Diner.  They had some great food for a great price and it was only 2 miles down the road.  I miss Gabriel's bakery; not only did they have great desserts, but she also made some killer pimento cheese and meatloaf.  I miss Publix- it truly is a pleasure shopping there.
But you know who we really miss?  Aubra.  Aubra was our RUF intern at Kennesaw State and she was phenomenal.  She became a part of our family over the past two years.  We found out we were getting an intern just days before Phoebe was born, so Phoebe has known Aubra her whole life.  In fact, Phoebe learned Aubra's name before she learned the grandparents' name.  Phoebe would get so excited whenever Aubra came over and would cry when Aubra would leave.
As an intern Aubra did a steller job connecting with and loving on students at KSU.  She also did a lot to promote community and fellowship among the group.  And somewhere between all that she found the time to babysit Phoebe and even nannied for us last summer while I went back to work full-time for a month.  She dog-sat Knox when we went on vacation and then took care of Phoebe when we went into the hospital to have Haddie Grace.
Aubra moved to Atlanta and first met Phoebe when she was a couple weeks old.  She was a tremendous blessing to the ministry and our family as we adjusted to life with a newborn.

Our "family" at the RUF Tacky Christmas Party 2011

Aubra and Phoebe in their airbrush shirts at SuCo 2012

Aubra playing with Phoebe on her first birthday

Remember when Aubra taught Phoebe her "funny face"?

SuCo 2013

And of course she came to visit Haddie Grace in the hospital when she was first born

Aubra, you meant so much to the ministry and also to our family. Phoebe is still talking about you  :) We are missing you!

Plans and God's Sovereignty

We had plans for this move.  We were going to close on Tuesday May 28th.  We were going to drive up to Charlotte on Monday (Memorial Day) and see some friends who were in Charlotte for the weekend from Mississippi.  Then close on Tuesday and hand the key over to the contractor to install and re-do our hardwood floors on the first floor of the new house.  Then on Monday June 3rd the movers were going to come pack up our stuff and deliver it in Rock Hill between June 7th-11th.  In the meantime we were going to clean up the outside of the house.  Chris was going to go ahead and pressure wash the deck and patio, stain the deck, paint the front door, paint some bedrooms, and get the carpet cleaned upstairs all before the house was full of our stuff.
It was a great plan!  Well, it was a great plan on paper... of course it didn't quite work out that way.  In reality, we closed a day late so we missed seeing our friends.  Because the contractor was pressed for time as it was to get the floors done in time for us to move in, the extra day made it almost impossible.  So through a series of related events the date the movers were going to come pack up our stuff was pushed back 6 days.  Meanwhile, our stuff was mostly packed up rendering our house pretty much unlivable.  At least unlivable for me- I don't do well with clutter and chaos in my living space.  It puts me on edge and stresses me out.  So we ended up going up to Chattanooga for several days to stay with Chris' parents to escape the chaos while we waited.
When we finally did get up to Rock Hill on Monday June 8th, the floors still weren't ready.  Basically Rock Hill had had a lot of rain so the stain on the new floors was not drying.  BUT the movers had to unload the truck because they had other places to go.  We compromised.  The contractor put down paper and allowed them to move the upstairs furniture in.  However, they weren't able to use hand trucks in the house.  I really did feel bad for them having to pick up and carry all those heavy dressers- in the rain.  Yep, of course it rained that day too.  (Good thing we had not gotten the carpet cleaned...)  Anyhow, all the downstairs furniture and boxes got moved into the garage for us to move in later.  We were not able to move into the house until that Friday.  I was stuck with a baby and toddler and no toys, TV or other sources of entertainment.  I also got sick for several days during that time before we were able to move in and couldn't keep down any food.  It was rough. Needless to say the painting, carpet cleaning, and outdoor cleaning never happened.
When we finally did move in we didn't have hot water for 6 days.
We kept reminding ourselves that God had called us here.  God had provided this house for us and allowed the process to move quickly to allow us to purchase a home on our limited time schedule right after having a baby.  Although it seemed stressful in the midst of it all, we knew we would come out ok on the other side.  God was Sovereign through it all and provided for us in some pretty amazing ways.  First of all, we were able to stay in one of the church's missionary houses while we were waiting to move into our home.  This was a HUGE blessing so we didn't have to pay for a hotel.  (Ministry moves are not company subsided.)  We didn't have cable or internet, but we had a place to stay with a freezer where I could store my donor breast milk and a microwave to heat up water to warm up the milk to feed Haddie Grace.  We had an area pastor and his wife who we had never met bring us a meal that fed us for a couple days.  They also came over to help us unpack and clean.  (The previous owners left the house in a pretty nasty state.  It was gross.)  This women I had just met came up and scrubbed my shower and washed bottles and breast pump parts for me.  Talk about showing someone the love of Christ!  She also let me bring Phoebe and Haddie Grace up to her house for a day to play with her kids so we weren't stuck in a little house with no toys.  
After the floors were finally finished the contractor sent his guys over to the house to help move our furniture and boxes into the house so we wouldn't have to break our backs trying to move them in by ourselves.  This was great because I was still feeling pretty dizzy and weak at this point and wasn't able to eat anything.  I was having trouble thinking straight to tell people where to put things.  Physically there was no way I could have been picking up and carrying things.
That same day they moved in the rest of our furniture Chris' parents came up for the weekend to help us unpack, clean, and paint.  I don't know what we would have done without them!!  Chris' mom is an expert cleaner.  Really.  Give her a rag and a bottle of 409 and that woman can get some things done!  Thank you Margaret!  Chris and his dad painted Haddie Grace's room, installed fans, hauled away car loads of paper and trash to the dump, and everyone worked hard to get boxes unpacked.
Since we didn't have hot water, we were able to go back over to the missionary house to take showers. I just couldn't bring myself to take a cold shower.  Although to be honest we didn't go back to the missionary house a lot- we were just dirty most of the time.  But when we got desperate we could hop over there to take a shower :)
You see God's plan (although often different from our own) always works out in the end.  Why?  Because He is the infinite, eternal, and unchangeable God who loves His people more than we could ever imagine.  He is working out all events in our lives for our sanctification and His glory.  Moving is stressful in and of itself; it is the third most stressful life event behind death and divorce.  So on top of the normal stress of moving I also get very stressed and overwhelmed with chaos and when plans don't go my way.  (You think I would have learned by now that plans hardly ever work out the way I intend, but it still catches me by surprise)  But God was (and is) Sovereign through it all and showed us grace and mercy through the love of other people that we would not have been able to experience otherwise.
I don't know why I am surprised by the fact that my plans don't come to fruition.  It tells me so in the Bible: "The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; he frustrates the plans of the peoples.  The counsel of the Lord stand forever, the plans of his heart to all generations.  Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage" Psalm 33:11-12.
In these last couple weeks, I have found comfort in one of my favorite passages of scripture, Isaiah 43.  Despite any circumstance we might find ourselves in "thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel. 'Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.  When you pass through the waters, I will be with you...For I am the Lord you God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior... Fear not for I am with you...everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made"
The Lord, the God of Heaven and Earth, was with us through the stress and chaos of our move.  And He will continue to be with us through the next set of trials and frustrations as he works to mold us into His image for His glory.  In this, I take comfort in the Sovereignty of God.

H54F

Thank goodness it is Friday.  Really.  It has been a crazy past couple of weeks, but now that we are moved into our new house and unpacked life should slow down and I can get back to the blog.

Looking right to left...
1//  We are officially South Carolina Residents.  We actually drove up with all our stuff a couple weeks ago, but weren't able to move into our house until last Friday.  We had the hardwood floors re-done and because of the rainy and humid weather they took much longer than expected to dry so we couldn't walk on them.
2// This stray black dog keeps jumping our fence into the yard and I don't like it!  He is obnoxious and although not overly aggressive, he isn't neutered he is a bit more testosterone driven than Knox.  Of course he always comes after animal control hours and on the weekends, so there is nothing I can do except walk him back out to the front of the neighborhood.  (You might think this sounds mean, but he has no tag or ID and I already walked him around the neighborhood and no one knows him, so I don't know what else to do with him.)
3// We have spent a lot of time swinging on the swing set out back.  We love our new backyard! (except the unwanted visitor)
4// After we finally were able to move in, our hot water wasn't working.  We didn't have hot water for 6 days.  So I started boiling water for Phoebe to pour in the tub to take the chill off the water.  It was miserable.  I felt like I was in a third world country boiling water to take a sponge bath out of a bucket.
5// Amidst the chaos, we started Summer RUF this week.  Its going to be real low-key this summer because our lives are still in a bit of transition.  Chris is calling it "Snap, Crackle and Pop Culture".  Everyone brings a box of cereal to share (we provide the milk, OJ, and decaf) then we will watch various movies and find gospel themes in them to discuss.  This week we watched Wreck It Ralph.  It is a super cute movie if you're looking for something to rent this weekend. Hope you have a great weekend!  I will be back next week with more updates on our house, the move, and the kids!

H54F

1// How sweet is this picture?  A friend our ours kept Phoebe for a day so we could get some packing done.  She took this picture.  Thank you Christina!
2// Our house is in boxes.  The movers were supposed to come Monday to load the truck but that got delayed for several days.  Our house is practically unlivable with all the boxes packed up in every room so we came up to Chattanooga for a few days to escape the chaos.  The cousins all had fun playing together
3// I had really been wanting a La Z Boy recliner for the nursery in the new house.  We have a glider off Craig's list that we had in Phoebe's room (we didn't have room for a recliner in her room) and it is just not very comfortable.  It works well to rock her, but I can't sleep in it.  And there were many nights teething where she would just want or need to be held because she was hurting and I was miserable in that rocker.  I wanted a comfortable chair for Haddie Grace's nursery and Chris swore by La Z Boys.  If we were going to buy a recliner it was going to be a La Z Boy.  Thankfully I was able to find one that was only a year and a half old on Craig's List for a fraction of the cost of a new one!  (Love me some Craig's List)
4// Phoebe almost got wrapped up and packed this week
5// The unlivable chaos that is my house right now

Have a good weekend!  Movers are coming tomorrow morning!   Be sure to check out my giveaway!

New Front Door

There is a long list of things we would like to do to our new house and in our new house.  Many of them won't get done for a couple years.  We are definitely laying hardwood down in the family room to match the rest of the downstairs and refinishing the current hardwoods because they are showing some signs of wear and tear.
A few other minor things we will be doing in the more immediate future include pressure washing and painting the front step rails and awning, pressure washing and re-staining the deck out back, and painting the front door. 
I've always wanted a fun colored front door, and I think it is an easy and relatively inexpensive way to spruce up the front of the house.  Remember what our new house looks like?

The current door and shutters are a dark grey/black.  We will not do anything with the shutters, but I'm thinking about a yellow front door.  Not a bright, bright yellow but more of a mustard/dull yellow.  I think the yellow would look good with the color of the brick.

Here's some food for thought-

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Or I've thought about a turquoise door too, but I think I'm leaning towards yellow.

What do you think?  Do you think the house would look good with a yellow front door?

Sold!

Yep, that's right.  We are buying a house!  This sign in front of our new house made us very happy.  (Actually I think the house is technically under contract because we haven't closed yet, but this was the sign in the front yard when we went back to visit in order for Chris to transfer his ordination into the Foothills presbytery.)
We knew we had a limited window of time between the new baby (due mid-March) and the start of Chris' job June 1st, to find a house and move.  We had been praying that the Lord would provide a house quickly on a single trip up to Rock Hill.  And that is exactly what he did.  We had been looking online at houses for several weeks and then when Haddie Grace was one month old (she celebrated her one month birthday in Rock Hill) we drove up to Rock Hill for a few days with the hope of finding a home.
We saw several homes we liked.  My favorite, Chris' favorite and we refer to this house as the "save our marriage house"  Ok, it really wasn't that bad; this wasn't either of our favorites, but we both really liked it- enough to put down an offer.
So pending inspection, we will be closing on the house May 28th and moving shortly thereafter.  We won't be in Rock Hill June 1st, but we should be able to get there sometime during the first week of June.
These might not be the best pictures, but several people have been asking to see pictures, so here are a few I snapped. 

We love that there are lots of older trees around the home.  It is in a subdivision that is literally right behind our new church.  Living in a location close to church and campus was very important to us.  Chris will have an office at the church, so it will be very convenient.  The girls and I will probably walk over.  It would be about .2 miles from our house to the church.  The new house is also about 1 or 1.5 miles from campus.  An easy drive and Chris might even ride a bike over to campus.

You walk in and the family room is on your right.  There are oak hardwood floors in the entire downstairs except the family room.  Before we move in we are going to have a contractor come out and tear up the carpet in this room and put in hardwood to match the rest of the downstairs.  We will also have him refinish the other hardwoods.  The floor is in good condition, it just has normal wear and tear that we might as well have touched up at the same time.

To the left of the front door is the formal living room.

From the front door you walk down the hallway into the kitchen and breakfast area.  I am in love with this kitchen.  It's huge and I've always wanted an island!

Off the back of the house behind the family room there is a small deck area that leads out to a completely fenced in backyard that is pretty kid friendly.

They're going to leave us the swing set.  Sweet.

There is a nice wide hallway upstairs and four bedrooms.

Master bedroom

Master bath.  I am a bit sad the master bath does not have a tub.  I am a big fan of tubs, but I will live :)

Again I'm sorry they aren't the best pictures, but you at least get the idea.  
We are excited to move it and make it ours :)