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when i was in high school God used several families to plant seeds in my unbelieving heart. these were Godly families that lived to glorify God in all aspects of their lives. i didn't know why they were different at the time, but i knew i wanted what they had. God used them in a big way to bring me closer to Him. they had no idea this was the case, or that i was even paying attention to things like - them eating together as a family, respecting/loving each other, and having an open home.

i have always wanted to have that kind of home, a welcoming home - a shelter from the storms that often come in life. a peaceful home that is well-ordered (a stark contrast to the way i grew up).

i consider it a privilege to be a homemaker, but this wasn't always the case. i remember a time, sitting in a doctor's office trying to think of a better way to say "homemaker." i felt like i needed to say something like: "homemaker, but i do have a college degree". i was caring more about what people thought than what God thought of me.

so as i begin to make a home in a new house, it is my prayer that it will be a place where guests don't feel like strangers, but more like family. that i will remember - hospitality is not about impressing others with great decorating, gourmet cooking, or a clean house. it's about welcoming, serving, and loving people in the name of Jesus and for the sake of the gospel. it's about a willingness to be used by God at all times, not just when it's convenient. to focus on people, rather than things. the gospel really is presented through our lives, not just our words.

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::this is a picture of the kid's playset off the deck (neighbor's house in the background). they have a little bouncy bridge, a fireman's pole, and a slide. the square you see near the slide is a latch door that opens up when they climb a ladder from below. they've been having a lot of fun!

last night i pushed megan in the jogging stroller while i ran 3. it was great to spend some time with just her.

later that night our power went off, so we went outside to meet some of the neighbors. we've been wanting to meet more of them, so it was the perfect opportunity. the neighborhood definitely has a different feel for it. in our last neighborhood, everyone knew each other and we'd stand outside and talk for hours. this neighborhood isn't that way. the guy next to us has lived there for 14 years, and he doesn't even know who lives a couple doors down. i think that's probably more the norm nowadays though. i'm excited about getting to know everyone better.

i really want to be very intentional about how we are using our house, and the things God has given us.

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it was a busy weekend, which seems to be the theme here these days. ☻ it has been hard to find time to run. i did go today. i ran 5 miles in 90 degrees + humidity. i was planning to go longer, but i cut it short after getting lightheaded. i had water with me, but i also haven't run in 2 weeks. the first 2 miles i felt great, even with the heat, so that was encouraging. i was running under 8:30 miles - pretty speedy for me.

this weekend we made some progress on the house. we finished switching the hardware in the kitchen. here's a picture of the island now...so much better!we also switched all the brass knobs on the closet doors and door handles to aged bronze. it was a little pricey, but i think it made a huge difference.
hopefully next weekend we can paint our bedroom. we haven't moved our furniture in there yet because we didn't want to try to paint around it. the color above the staircase in this picture shows what color we're thinking of painting it. (*picture from here)

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changed the hardware on the kitchen cabinets today. it's amazing what a small change like that can make. i like it so much better now. the one on the right is the new style. it's a brushed nickel and the drawers will soon have bin pulls somewhat like this:

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the kitchen, living room, and dining room are all open to each other. the whole back of the house is windows. not sure if we will cover any of them (except bedrooms, of course) or not.

we need to replace that phone...check out the long cord! remember when every phone had those?! i'm also not in love with the tile above the kitchen sink. it's pretty, but it's just not me. i tend to like more earthy tones. the light above the dining room will be going too. i'd like to replace it with something like this:
all of that is easy to do though, and we'll eventually get to it. right now we're just enjoying the process of making it our home.

more pictures to come.

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