Our Nutshell

Just A Tad Obsessed With Decorating Our Front Entry Table

Andrea — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 02:37:13 +0000

I hope that when you kids are grown up and look back there’s small things like this entry table that bring a smile to your face. This table is the focal point when you walk in our home, the first thing people see, and although I often snap a photo like the ones below where it’s ‘decorated’, within a day or two the table is full of handmade crafts, art projects, and everything that you kids are so proud to put on display. Even Dad got in on it with the St. Patrick’s Day decorations, he was so happy to get a turn to put it together. I love that everyone of you loves to decorate the table as much as I do. The artwork, crafts and bunches of toys that usually scatter the table are the true reality of our family. For a day, maybe, our house will be clean or our lives in order. Then inevitably life happens and so does the chaos. But I wouldn’t trade our messy lives for anything else. We’re so blessed to have you all.

When we built our home one thing we knew we wanted (and had the luxury of choosing) was to have an “L” shaped staircase – we didn’t want a straight shot of stairs from the first floor to the second because well, we have kids. And like most kids ours often run too fast up and down the stairs and less stairs per flight = less injuries. This has been proven many times in the short amount of time that we’ve lived here. Due to the shape of the stairs a little nook is created as soon as you walk in the front door. Immediately when I saw that I knew that was where I wanted to place and entry table and mirror. I love the change of seasons and holidays and the table gives me an excellent excuse to redecorate it often. Here’s some of the entry table decorations that have been rotated through:

Entry Table Redo: From Craigslist to Entryway

Andrea — Thu, 29 Jun 2017 02:51:54 +0000

We bought 3 pieces of furniture off Craigslist last year for $60 total – a coffee table, an end table, and this table that I decided to use as our entry table. This was my first attempt at painting furniture of any kind, and I think it turned out really well! I painted it with Chalk Paint, “antiqued it” and then added a wax to it. I had always wanted to try chalk paint, it was really forgiving and a lot less work then trying to paint something neatly. It was fun to “beat up” the furniture as well! I wish I had taken more photos, but I do have the 2 other pieces I plan on painting at some point, so I’ll be sure to better document those transformations!

Framing of the house has started

Andrea — Sat, 19 Sep 2015 02:14:20 +0000

The foundation is done, and up go the walls!

Foundation Walls In Place

Andrea — Wed, 09 Sep 2015 02:28:53 +0000

Digging Has Begun!

Andrea — Sun, 30 Aug 2015 02:05:51 +0000

It’s not too much to look at yet, but digging has begun and we can actually start to see some of the formation of the house! It’s crazy to see it starting to come to life.

Land mowed and ready to go!

Andrea — Fri, 14 Aug 2015 02:42:57 +0000

We had the lawn cut even though building is right around the corner as it was pretty tall, and we will still be walking around the sides and back of the lot throughout the process. Here’s to clearing the lot to begin shortly!

Marking Trees to be Removed

Andrea — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 02:38:52 +0000

So we went down to our land and started to mark off trees that were either going to be too close to the house, or were dead(or dying). We tried to keep as many trees as possible since so many of them are old and established, and beautiful!

Our Land Prior to Building

Andrea — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 02:33:31 +0000

Our Modern Farmhouse Will Soon Be A Reality

Andrea — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 23:15:25 +0000

So I think we’ve both been too scared to jinx it and have kept pretty hesitant to talk about our plans to even our closest friends and family, but today we officially signed our loan to begin construction on our new home. This is a long time coming, to put it shortly. We are so blessed to be where we’re at and we know that because we put it into God’s hands that it might not happen when we want it to, but that ti will happen in his time. We purchased our first home shortly after our first son was born in our early 20s. It was a starter home, about 1,000 square feet with an unfinished basement. The housing market was at it’s height – getting a loan was pretty easy, but finding a house was difficult. We chose that house because it was in our price range and it checked the majority of our requirements – a nice neighborhood to walk in, room to grow in the house and on a quiet street. We moved in with a toddler and moved out the end of last year with 4 kids, 3 cats and a dog. Our home grew when we were there doubling in size to allow for an office, a family room, playroom and another bathroom. We always knew we would outgrow it, and although our plan was to only be there 5 years, when the housing market crashed it left us in a difficult position and almost took 2 years for our home to sell. Due to a quick close we needed to move out in less then a month, and right before Thanksgiving. Luckily my in-laws allowed us to rent a home of theirs which meant we had a place for us, our 4 kiddos and all those pets to reside without needing a first/last/security for an apartment, and giving us a really nice place to transition. When the opportunity to build a home presented itself Eric and I both didn’t really 100% believe it could be possible, we always assumed we’d sell our home and buy another while the sale was being finalized. The quick close meant we had to move out, and because we no longer were carrying a mortgage, we were able to get a loan for new construction. Fast forward to early 2015, we searched and found a great piece of land near our kids school. After the longest winter ever the land was perced and we began a 3 month long process of getting our loan finalized. Getting approved was pretty quick – getting all the paperwork done took forever! Although we moved as quickly as we could on our end, it still took months to complete.

So after months and months today was the day we signed the loan which means that within a few weeks they’ll begin digging, how exciting! Our vision is for a modern farmhouse – a comfortable place that we and our children will love to call home. A home that offers modern conveniences with farmhouse elements – we’re hoping for those touches such rustic flooring and an apron sink that will bring that vision to life. I’m sure a lot will change along the way, so we’re going to try to document it as best as possible not only for ourselves, but for our friends, family and anyone else that wants to follow our journey as we watch our dreams become reality.

Walking the land right after it was purchased in early 2015

Spring 2015, land prior to our home being built

Beautiful view out the far back corner of our lot

Plenty of wooded areas on our lot for the kids to explore

We want to keep as many quality trees as possible, this is the back of the lot, the front is pretty much clear so we will still have a nicely wooded area