Flashback to Last Friday

My number one main goal and focus for 2015 is turning our house into a home.  We're kind of there -- after all, we've lived here for over a year now -- but it's been a slow-going process for me.  And even though I've blogged about it before, it bears repeating.  The transition (for me) with this move has been rough.  Made even rougher by the fact that it's been completely irrational on my part.  I am fully aware of the fact that we live in a great place, and that there are really great people in our neighborhood, our schools, and our church.

And don't get me wrong -- I have absolutely made some great strides (making good friends has helped, as well as getting involved in various activities) but I think that my main obstacle to making this place feel like home is due to the very temporary nature of our stay here.  We know we won't be here forever.  Scott's current assignment will be done in another year, and chances are high that we will be moving once again.  And even if it doesn't happen then, we both still feel like we'll take one more away assignment before settling back down here permanently.  Because of that, it's been easier {perhaps in a self-preservation kind of way} to keep things at arm's length with regards to the house.  Why bother trying to decorate it or make it "ours" if it will just be that much more work to neutralize everything when it's time to pack up and sell?  Ya know??

Anyway,  this Christmas I decided enough was enough!  This IS our home right now.  We live in it, so it SHOULD have our stamp on it.  I'm tired of living in a transitional, temporary kind of a mindset.  I want to live in the now, and not just wait around for the future.  I am also holding out hope that creating a more home-y kind of home will translate to a happier family as well.  :)  (Not that we're not already a happy family, but we could all certainly benefit from feeling a sort of stability and permanence for the time-being.)

So, with all that being said, I decided to tackle the Computer Room first!  I've had paint in the garage for SEVERAL months now, and with Scott home to help take everything off the bookshelves and move my hutch away from the wall, I went to town last Friday and knocked out the painting in a couple of hours.  And then, since I still had a ton of paint left, I went ahead and painted Alex's room, too.  :)  Everything in the house has now officially been painted except for the top half of the front entryway hall.  I went with Benjamin Moore's "Edgecomb Gray" and I love the way it turned out.  Once everything was dry, I actually had a really fun time organizing all the books and puzzles and games and pictures back onto the shelves.  The computer room is now my favorite room in the house.  For a couple of days there, I would walk by just to look at it and drink in the sight.  Hahaha.  Future plans for the room include a rug, some curtains, and a table of sorts to be used for my sewing and quilting and crafting tendencies.   Which will then free up the Dining Room to be used as an actual Dining Room.  :)

To sum things up, I'm hoping to go through the house, one room at a time, over the next several months and finally turn this place into a home!  Enjoy the before and afters...  :)

The Before:

 {It was a family affair. :)  }

 

And The After:

 Color: "Edgecomb Gray" by Benjamin Moore

Paint: Sherwin Williams Emerald line in a Matte finish

 Pictures in the center.

 Church books on the left, along with (some of our) games, and baskets containing camera stuff and my girl scout and primary materials.

And non-fiction on the right side {all the fiction books are on the two bookshelves in the hallway}, along with our collection of puzzles.  (Which have been such a hit this Christmas!)