Completing Projects

We are half-way through January already, and I am glad to be in a new year.

Our humble little homeschool is going well.

It certainly feels like the Lord is moving us along and blessing our family.

Having all my children home with me - eating, laughing, chatting, reading, and working through our lessons together, feels like the most luxurious life any mother could have.

Our snowy winter scenes from just a few weeks ago have melted into mild, wet weather, reminiscent more of mid-March than January.

As I stirred raw honey into my tea and glanced outside at a rainy afternoon, I became aware that I am long overdue for a project completion post. Several posts ago I mentioned adding a half bath upstairs, and the paint color the kids selected is called Rainy Afternoon.

We are thrilled to have another bathroom in the house! It has proven quite useful.

 It's tiny, so it's tricky to get a good photo...

(The "before" photos...)

Can you believe this is the same space?

Micah built the bathroom around this small window, and moved some of the cabinets further down the wall.

The biggest headache of this renovation was just clearing the room out! It was an "out of sight, out of mind" junk room for many years.

But once everything was either sold or hauled to the dump, the remainder of the space was turned into an activity room for the kids.

We use the room for art, crafts, and science experiments. The TV is for looking up YouTube tutorials to help us in our creative pursuits. (But I like listening to a "coffee shop jazz" channel while I fiddle with watercolor.)

There are still a few purchases I'd like to make for the room, such as a wall clock and dry erase board for this blank wall.

Even though the activity room and bathroom have technically been complete for several months now, they are already well used and loved, and feel as though they have been with us all along. 

You may remember (many posts ago!) that I was in the process of getting illustrations done for a children's book that I had written.

After a patient process, my illustrator completed the pictures this past fall. I was thrilled, but the binder sat, almost forgotten, in a back corner of my closet until I could find the time to do something with it.

 

I figured I'd get through the holidays first, then find a way to publish my long-awaited book.

But to my complete shock, the gift I had opened Christmas morning, in my living room with my family, contained a printed hardcopy of my book!

(I may or may not have burst into tears, making everyone uncomfortable!)

Roman and Micah had snuck around behind my back, submitted my manuscript and illustrations to a self-publishing website, and printed my book, Big Girl Helper.

It's probably been around 3 or 4 years since the idea for the book hit me like a lightening bolt, and I sat down with a notebook and pencil and wrote the entire manuscript in one sitting by hand.

From that time on I have always fantasized about what it might feel like to hold the finished, printed copy in my hands. I was stunned Christmas morning at the fruition of that dream.

I am grateful to my illustrator for making my little book come to life. The book's beautiful, glossy pages, and colorful pictures perfectly achieved the homey, cheery vibe I was going for.

I am hoping I can find a way to print out more so I can give them away as gifts and possibly even sell them. (Although I realize I will never make any money from this. Haha. But I guess that wasn't really the point.)

After many years of reading countless children's books to my children, I knew the inspiring value and wholesome influence of worthy books on a growing child's mind. Books that represent real, human characters demonstrating attributes like loyalty to home and family. 

If you share those ideals, and have children or grandchildren around the ages of three through five, you may enjoy my book. 

Let me know if you'd like a copy, as one of my New Year's goals is to print more!

Thanks for stopping by my blog today, friends.

I hope to be back in Blogland more often in 2023...

💐

~ Courtney 

A Few Photos from Mackinac Island

 Something woke me up around 5:45 this morning.

Probably the pitter-pat of rain against my window.

 I decided to get up and read in the front room, watching the rain pour down and enjoying the dim, quiet house.

A moody and cool atmosphere accompanied the rain, and since any sudden change in weather or season tends to have an impact on me, a feeling of cozy inspiration began to swell up.

It's been such a hot and sunny summer that this was a welcomed change of scenery. Perhaps even a precursor to fall.

I busied myself with breakfast, laundry, and other chores. But the moment I saw a break in the rain, I put on my boots and rain jacket and went for my daily nature walk.

I need a day at home. We've been out and about so much lately that my housework requires some attention from me. But now, back at home, and most of our laundry caught up, I can take a moment to record a few photos here.

We recently visited Mackinac Island, a several-hour journey north from us. It was such a lovely little getaway that I would be quite content to stay put now and get back into our school-year rhythm.

Here I am on Main Street, running my errands.

(The pink bag is a slice of fudge I purchased for my mother's birthday.)

There are no vehicles on the island. You get around on foot, on bike, or by horse-drawn carriage.

We stayed in a beautiful house right on the water that friends of our family very generously shared with us.

Here Roman and Nola are about to take off on the 8-mile trek around the island. The last time I biked the perimeter of Mackinac island, I was a few months pregnant!

(In the background you can see Elsa and Soren fishing with their grandpa on the dock.)

So many great places to eat out...

So many fun things to explore...

Behind this water fountain, which is located in the backyard of the Grand Hotel, there is a Secret Garden I was determined to find...

Micah knows that once I am resolved about something, I will stay the course through any difficulty. 

In pounding rain, and after many wrong turns, we finally discovered the discreet, unpaved path that led us to this...

I am convinced that Freckles and Duncan (from the book we're reading) created it, because in a remarkable coincidence, the day after we returned from the island, I read this...

"On the line side he left bushes thick for concealment, and entered by a narrow path he and Duncan had cleared. He called this the front door, though he used every precaution to hide it. He built rustic seats between several of the trees, leveled the floor, and thickly carpeted it with heavy, wooly moss. He planted wild clematis, bittersweet, and wild grapevines, and trained them over until it was almost covered. Every day he planted new flowers, cut back rough bushes, and coaxed out graceful ones. His pride in his room was very great, but he had no idea how surprisingly beautiful it would appear to anyone who had not witnessed its growth and construction." 

(an excerpt from Freckles by Gene Stratton Porter)

A few more photos from the island...

Elsa took this photo...

For being such a small island, we were impressed to find quite a few churches there. All different denominations.

It's tradition that we get our picture taken by this gate...

Such a fun trip! I can't wait to go back.

💖

Before I end I'll share a few updates on our half-bath project.

Probably around twenty years ago, in Micah's first house, he installed a penny floor.

I found an old picture of it right after we were married and our dining room table was moved in...

Well, ever since we've lived in our farmhouse he's wanted to do it again.

So, the kids helped sort pennies, and our little half-bath has been given our "two cents worth."

I like the border!

Today is grout and polyurethane day, then we can move on with the project.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today, friends.

💐

~ Courtney 

Enjoying All Weather and a Start to Our Next Project

 Country living has made me who I am in so many ways. 

I have stepped on every bit of this land. 

I know these trails by heart.

 I have put seeds in the ground with full faith that they will grow.

A serene moment here, in silence, except for the restorative sound of birds and crickets, is my cure for almost anything!

I didn't want to leave the city, but now that I've been out here (this is the longest I've lived in one spot!) I can't imagine life any other way.

One valuable lesson it's taught me is how to enjoy all weather.

I don't like to hear people complain about weather. I tend to think, if someone will complain about something as far out of our control as weather, there's probably no end to what they'll complain about!

We are just coming down off of 90 degree heat. I enjoyed it very much. It felt luxurious to spend our days down at the pond, playing music and relaxing in the water.

But this morning we awoke to a refreshing 57 degrees. A welcomed change.

I opened the windows to air out the house.

The cool breeze on my afternoon walk was lovely.

In the fall these trails crunch under our feet, and we gather fire orange leaves to take home for a bouquet.

Winter walks feel stone quiet and frigid, and we gather pinecones to take home, along with berries to place in the bird feeder.

A mid-summer walk is a different event. We watch the bugs and squirrels scamper about in warm sunshine, and we gather wildflowers.

A few sights around my home this summer...

(As long as my Christmas poinsettia is still doing well, I see no reason why I should pitch it.)

All lovely sights until this one...

My kitchen pantry had to be completely emptied the other day for the plumber to get in there to work.

We are having a half-bath put in upstairs that I'm very excited about!

The new pipes run down the inside of my pantry. The plumber was very careful, tucked the new pipe discreetly in the corner, then vacuumed up the mess before he left. I was very pleased with him.

After he left I took the opportunity to clean out the pantry before I moved everything back.

Even though the pantry looks the same as it did before I emptied it, it still is satisfying to know the shelves have been scrubbed down, expired food has been pitched, and everything is placed back in a tidy way.

This year our home is 110 years old! 

Priorities were different in those days. When taking on an old house one must realize there will be tiny closets, and even tinier bathrooms!

We've made do just fine with our two little bathrooms, but installing a half-bath upstairs is something we've wanted to do for a while now, so it feels great to finally start on the project.

I will certainly be back here to document the progress.

In the meantime, I plan to enjoy this glorious summer.

- 👒 ~ 🌳 ~ 👒 -

~ Courtney 

Owl Wallpaper

 I have recently completed a fun project in my bedroom.

I am quite pleased with the result.

It all started when we upgraded to a king size bed. A decorating dilemma presented itself... I found I was not attracted to the king size headboards currently on the market.

Why do we need a headboard?

Ultimately the decision was made that we would just use this architectural salvage mantlepiece we already had.

One thing led to another, as the wall behind the bed still seemed a bit empty, and I found this monochromatic owl wallpaper.

I know it's not to everyone's taste, but it felt charming and whimsical to me.

So I ordered a sample.

First, I walked the sample around my house. I knew the paper would only be in my bedroom, but it's important to me that my whole house flows and makes sense. If a pattern or color works in one area, I want it to work everywhere.

Then the sample lived taped onto my bedroom wall for about a week as I watched how the light hit it throughout the day and how it made me feel.

Wallpaper can be expensive and tricky to install, but there are some plus sides to it. Once you get the hang of it, it's instant gratification. Unlike paint, there's no dry time or second coat needed. Once it's up, it's done! But one should be warned that, because of pattern repeats, there is a lot of waste with wallpaper. There's no way around it. Always order more than you think you need.

(Note: if you receive any gifts from me wrapped in this owl paper, you will know why! 😂)

My room was in a bit of an upheaval while I worked on the project...

And I was a total stress ball hanging the mantlepiece and pictures back on this wall after all my hard work!

But I'm very happy I did it.

To me it feels soothing, and like a layer of richness was added to the room.

I am very lucky Micah lets me do what I want to the house. I personally think men should. If a woman spends most of her life at home, she should have it fixed up how she likes it.

This house has been very patient with me over the years. We have put her through many design triumphs as well as some defeats. But with all our renovations my goal has always been to create a home suitable for this 100-year old farmhouse. 

If walls could talk I would like to think she would tell me she's pleased.

🏡

Thanks for stopping by my blog today, friends.

xo,

~ Courtney