Example: Instead of thanking God for the amazing job I've been provided with... a job which I LOVE to do... a job that helps us pay our bills.... a job that allowed us to buy a second home this year.... I catch myself thinking: "why is my job so stressful this year, when it hasn't been this stressful in the past?" Those thoughts snowball into "Is it me?" and "Am I just really bad at this?" In reality I know I'm doing the very best I can every single day. I know I've been put in this job for a reason and I'm grateful for what it's teaching me.
I really and truly have absolutely NOTHING to complain about in my life. I have amazing friends (on both the east and west coasts), I have amazing family who loves us unconditionally, I have my amazing husband and we have our health. We have food on the table and a warm place to sleep at night. Life. Is. Good.
Sure, I sometimes get caught up in "but I DON'T have this or that..." and "If only we had more..." thoughts. But, someone out there is probably praying for exactly the things I DO have. I am also a firm believer that when I show my gratitude to God for all He has provided, He then provides me with more. He's gracious like that.
Speaking of blessings, we've been blessed with a house this year. And because we own it (which naturally means we make large payments to another party who ACTUALLY owns it), we are trying to take care of it by making small improvements here and there. Here's a summary of what we've done so far... in pictures...
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| HALL CLOSET BEFORE |
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| HALL CLOSET AFTER THE HANDLE IN THE CARPET HELPS US LIFT THAT BOARD AND THERE ARE STAIRS DOWN TO THE BASEMENT UNDERNEATH |
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| WE ADDED LOTS OF STORAGE. BUT THE BIGGEST THING IS THAT WE ADDED MOTION DETECTED LIGHTING! LIGHTS TURN ON WHEN WE ENTER... AND TURN OFF AUTOMATICALLY 30 SECONDS AFTER WE LEAVE! IT'S NOT A DARK DUNGEON ANYMORE! |
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| AND WE HAVE A SPECIFIC PLACE FOR THINGS. NO MORE RUNNING AROUND TO FIND OUR BACKPACKS AND HELMETS FOR MOUNTAIN BIKING. WE KNOW EXACTLY WHERE TO FIND THINGS. YAY FOR ORGANIZATION! |
Then we tackled the kitchen. Originally, I wanted to do a HUGE kitchen renovation (like replacing cabinets and counters and everything). But, even though I don't LOVE our cabinets, they are in good shape and they are obviously functional. So, I began looking for ways to do small things that would help me love the kitchen more.
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| KITCHEN BEFORE THE SAME MATERIAL COVERING THE COUNTERTOPS WAS USED AS A BACKSPLASH... IT WAS RIPPED AND GLUED IN SOME PLACES. I JUST REALLY DIDN'T LIKE THAT. OUR CABINET HARDWARE WAS ALSO A STRANGE DARK CHROME COLOR??? DIDN'T LIKE THAT EITHER. |
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| KITCHEN BEFORE AGAIN... BEIGE WALLS... EVERY SINGLE ROOM IN THE HOUSE IS BEIGE |
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| DINING AREA... WITH BEIGE WALLS AND CHANDELIER THAT IS NOWHERE NEAR THE DINING TABLE. |
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| DURING! BACKSPLASH IS GONE AND HARDWARE REMOVED |
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| WE CHOSE A GRAY COLOR FOR THE KITCHEN |
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| IT WASN'T A DRASTIC CHANGE BUT I CAN'T EVEN EXPLAIN HOW MUCH OF A DIFFERENCE IT MADE FOR ME! I REALLY LIKE THE KITCHEN SO MUCH MORE! |
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| IT MATCHES THE COUNTERS PRETTY WELL.... WHICH MAKES ME DISLIKE THEM SLIGHTLY LESS. AND THE HARDWARE GOT SPRAY PAINTED AND ACTUALLY LOOKS REALLY, REALLY GOOD! LET'S HOPE IT HOLDS UP OVER TIME! |
We also changed out the chandelier in the dining area. You can see the old one in the pictures above. It was too big for the space AND it hung down right in the center of the room. Because it was so big and so low, we've actually had friends come over who have to duck to walk underneath it. Not cool.
So, a while ago I found an idea on pinterest and I've been collecting the materials ever since. I found a cheap "orb" at TJ Maxx a while ago ($9.99) that I've just been holding on to. Then, I checked a local antique store and found one of those old brass fixtures that no one likes anymore. I took the lighting from the brass fixture (tossed the ugly brass and glass thingy)... sprayed it oil rubbed bronze.. and added it to the orb. Ok, I didn't really do it... Mike did. The whole thing cost $25 in materials and the promise of one neck massage was the price I paid for labor! Thanks again babe!
Anyway, TA-DA!!!
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| SO MUCH BETTER IN MY OPINION NOTICE HOW WHITE IT LOOKS OUT OUR WINDOWS? YEP... IT'S SNOWING! |
I LOVE LOVE LOVE our "new" kitchen. And I love making our house feel more like home. I'm excited to cook Thanksgiving here and host some of our friends.
I have lots of other ideas (sorry Mike). Since this is a blog about being grateful, I wish I could say I am content and don't want to do anything else to the house but I don't think that will EVER be me. I will always find something else to work on. Nothing HAS to get done (fortunately), but there are definitely some ways that we would like to put our touch on this place. We will definitely take our time getting it done.
To all of you:
I wish you the happiest of Thanksgivings. I hope you spend your time with friends and/or family. I hope you stuff your faces with a delicious feast! I hope you recognize all your blessings in life and appreciate where you are in the moment. I'm grateful for you. Happy Thanksgiving!
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