Bathroom Demo
We’ve broken into our bathroom! And we’re still tearin’ it apart. If you’ve got 6 minutes to spare, take a look at our time lapse video below. There are some gems in there. If only we could work turbo time like that in real life…
House Crush
Joe worked on a house a few months ago, in Stillwater MN, and we were invited to their open house for the grand reveal. It was such a beautiful place! And some of the nicest people ever. Joe did a lot of the behind-the-scenes work: installed a new furnace, reworked some dryer vents, fresh air intake, moved some duck work and some other small fixes. This house was redone from head to toe, and was stunning when it was all finished!
Downsize and Declutter
One of Joe’s New Year’s resolutions is to get organized, and I was pleased to hear that! I can definitely help with that one. (His other resolution is get his six pack back – I can probably help with that one too.) Sorry Joe, for outting your two resolutions. Consider it public accountability. You can thank me later. 🙂
Hello 2016
We hope you are enjoying the holidays and are looking forward to a great 2016. I’m definitely enjoying some down time – keeping all the Christmas lights on for a few more days and polishing off a few leftover cookies.
A Year in Reflection
I’ve been thinking a lot about what my 2016 goals/resolutions will be, and I keep coming back to one word: Abundance. I like to choose a theme or word instead of a traditional resolution to focus on throughout the year, and this year I want to embrace the abundance that comes my way. Remembering that there will always be enough time, always be enough money; the things I sometimes feel lacking in. Shifting a scarcity mindset to one of abundance, trusting in myself and God’s provision and plans. This can be hard and scary, but I’m so excited to see where 2016 takes us and the gifts it brings into our lives!
It’s been a great year for us with many firsts, new traditions, new memories, new friends, old friends, family, and lots of love. And of course, challenges too. But I think I really did my word from last year justice: Celebrate. We’re so grateful for the blessings this year has brought. Now, on to a year of abundance.
Fun Stats
These site stats are super interesting to me, and I thought you might like them too. If there’s anything you would like to see more of next year, please let us know! It’s really nice to hear from people and which types of projects are most inspirational/helpful to you. We have a boatload of projects backlogged that I’ll be posting, and some new construction sites in the house as well. It’s hard to keep up with Joe!
Here’s an excerpt:
A New York City subway train holds 1,200 people. This blog was viewed about 5,500 times in 2015. If it were a NYC subway train, it would take about 5 trips to carry that many people
Click here to see the complete report.
What are you doing for New Year’s? And what are your resolutions?
Decking the Halls
Decorating for a Cozy Christmas
Something about baking, putting up lights, wrapping presents and listening to Christmas music just puts me in the most relaxed mood. I love seeing everyone slowly settle into the season’s comforts. I’m all about adding layers of decorations, day by day. And I love seeing everyone’s Christmas lights – new ones seem to spring up every night! It’s a month-long celebration and we’re right in the middle of it.
Sugar Cookie Protein Bites
Are you craving Chritmas cookies like me? Stay strong! We’ve made a batch of cookies already, but I’m doing my best to keep my hands out of the freezer. I devised a plan that both my sweet tooth and my brain can agree upon.
Upcycled and Repurposed Gift Guide
Hope you enjoyed Thanksgiving! We had a lot of fun doing our annual Turkey Trot, even though it was a little wet and wild outside. We got two rounds of turkey, visiting family all around the metro. And we still have a Friendsgiving to look forward to. Bring on the leftovers!
If you got a little burnt out on Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping, it’s ok. I actually swore off Black Friday shopping a few years ago. It was after heading out in very icy conditions… I think I was looking for a crock pot or something petty. Long story short, I ended up rear-ending someone because my brakes couldn’t handle a fresh ice patch, and that was a very short-lived little shopping trip. I decided all the madness of consumerism and downright danger were just not worth saving a few bucks. I took a step back and thought about how silly the whole thing is. Thanksgiving is about friends, family and togetherness. Where’s the gratitude in a $19.99 crockpot and fender bender? So that was the end of my Black Fridays. I went cold turkey. (Thanks for noticing the pun.)
Gift Giving Alternatives
But I’m all for Small Business Saturday, the day after Black Friday. I fully support the notion of using our cash to support local shops rather than big box stores. We vote with our dollars, you know? I’m guilty of deal hunting at chain stores, but I really want to try to support more small businesses. It just feels good. While I’m trying to cut back on holiday shopping in general, I think at least being mindful of where I’m using my money is a step in the right direction. That said, I’m hoping to do a lot more Christmas crafts this year! And please, before you throw something away consider first donating it, recycling it or upcycling it. Organize a clothing swap, have a DIY-off with friends, make mittens, sew a quilt, make shop rags or give it to someone in need instead.
Our friends at Cotopaxi have some ideas for recycling and repurposing as well, and have a promo code for you at the bottom of this post if you’d like to check out their website.
Handmade Backpacks
What we really love about Cotopaxi is that all the backpacks are handmade by someone who otherwise may not have a job. The person gets to personally design the bag with colors and fabrics that inspire them. No two bags are alike. And all the fabric is repurposed, fabric that would otherwise have ended up in a landfill. It’s a win-win. I’m impressed with their commitment to impact sourcing – the people who make these bags earn a decent wage to actually improve their quality of life.
If you have a certain someone on your shopping list who’d like a unique, socially responsible, durable and useful gift, we’d highly recommend checking them out! There’s a promo code just below. Watch this video for their inspiring story:
Cotopaxi did not sponsor this post. We just think they have a great business model and mission worth sharing and we hope you will too!
What’s your favorite way to repurpose fabric or clothing?
Garage “Mud Room”
Maxing out Garage Storage
Ideally, we’d love to have an actual mudroom or entryway some day, but for now, we are making do with the space we have. If you know us, you know we I have a lot of shoes. There’s really not a great space in our house for our shoes to live, so we’ve been keeping them in the garage.
Well, we’ve engineered a somewhat functional solution that we hope to keep improving. It’s a big improvement actually. With winter on the way, this will give us a central location for all the snow pants, jackets, hats and everything else. And it’s a step up from keeping them all in bins!
Burlap Lamp Shade Upgrade
Lamp Shade Upgrade
This project was incredibly simple and affordable. I’ve been seeing burlap-covered lamp shades everywhere, and noticed my trusty bedside reading lamp was looking a little dingy. The shade was getting dirty and it was just too plain. So, why not use what I had and make it a little more homey?
Reorganizing the Crawlspace
This has been a long time coming. When we moved in, we discovered this incredible secret storage area know as the crawlspace. After moving from a slightly larger house, we needed a place to put boxes and miscellaneous things that either didn’t fit, or we didn’t have a place for right away. So into the crawlspace they went. And the garage. But that’s a whole other story… It was finally time to tackle our storage area and get things to their homes. We spent our staycation working on this, and a few other big projects.